It never ceases to amaze me how talented so many of our people in this church are so grateful for the privilege of being in a place where music just comes front and center and we get to enjoy.
Quality music week after week after week. Thank you, John. Thank you, praise team. Thank you, orchestra. Thank you for playing the organ. I can't remember. I guess the last time was maybe a year ago.
So, and then going back to childhood, we had organ every single week. So, it's just such a refreshment to come into the Lord's house and to be encouraged by good music that has deep, rich theology.
And leads us to Christ. Leads us to scriptural principles that are transcendent. So, praise the Lord for that. Thank you for your ministry to us this morning through the word.
Jeff, thank you for your testimony this morning. I don't know what your experience is, but there may be times where we tend to think that some people have really great testimonies because God has saved them out of really terrible, sinful, ungodly, and wicked circumstances.
But truth be told, in our heart of hearts, we all come from that place.
Jeff talked about Ephesians chapter 5. Here is your condition and my condition this morning.
It says,
For while we were still weak, at just the right time, Christ died for the ungodly.
So, if you're here this morning and you have experienced the benefits of Christ's death,
then this verse is talking about you.
And he describes you in not so sparkling terms.
He speaks of you as one who is ungodly.
One who is weak.
One who is in desperate need for Christ.
That's how he talks about all of us in this room.
But fortunately, the story doesn't stop there.
It says,
For one will scarcely die for a righteous person,
although perhaps for a good person one would even dare to die.
But God shows his love for us in this,
that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
We were all enemies.
We were all ungodly.
We were all sinners.
We were all rebels to the core.
Whether you expressed it in a way that drew attention to yourself or not,
you are, and I am, this morning,
saved out of rebellion.
Saved out of ungodliness.
Our situation was as desperate as it could have been.
It could not have been worse.
And yet, there is hope in the midst of despair.
There's hope in the midst of darkness.
That hope is only found in the person of Jesus Christ.
And that, this morning, is God's greatest gift.
In a nutshell, that's our message for today.
My guess is, hey, great, let's pray and go home.
But what I'd like to do is I'd like to elaborate on that great gift
so that we can begin to understand the fullness
of how wonderful that gift is.
We just sang about it.
Thanks, John.
What a great song.
The wonderful counselor, the mighty God,
the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.
And what is so phenomenal, what is so spectacular about that promise
is when that promise is made
and how that promise comes to be
and who that promise is given to.
Because as we begin to recognize the context of the promise,
we begin to appreciate that there is hope for me.
There is a divine intervention that can happen in my life
where God can take me from the darkness of despair,
from the gloominess and hopelessness of my situation,
and God can create light,
and God can create joy,
and God can transform my circumstances,
not by rearranging the situation per se,
but rearranging my focus in the midst of that situation.
So I want to talk this morning about the great gift that God's given to us.
And I want to look back at Isaiah,
probably the two most prominent passages in Isaiah,
and perhaps the two most prominent Christmas passages
in all of the Old Testament
that points forward to this promise of God's greatest gift,
the promise of Jesus Christ,
the promise of the Messiah.
So if you would,
I would ask if you would please to turn with me.
We'll begin in Isaiah chapter 7,
and we'll look at this together.
Isaiah chapter 7.
If you're a guest with us this morning,
you can find Isaiah on page 571.
That's where we're going to be,
at least for the first part of this message.
The promise of God's gift.
It's found in Isaiah chapter 7.
I said verse 1,
but it's actually verses 10 through 14.
Okay?
So just make that correction.
It begins this way.
It says,
Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz.
This is in verse 10,
now in verse 11.
Ask a sign of the Lord your God.
Let it be as deep as Sheol,
or as high as the heavens.
But Ahaz said,
I will not ask,
and I will not put the Lord to the test.
And he said,
Hear then,
O house of David,
is it too little for you to weary men
that you weary my God also?
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign.
Behold, the virgin shall conceive,
and bear a son,
and shall call his name Emmanuel.
Of course, we understand Emmanuel meaning God with us.
Now turn over to chapter 9.
There we're going to begin in verse 1,
and 2, and 3,
and then the promise of a son in verses 6 and 7.
It says this,
But there shall be no gloom for her who was in anguish.
In the former time he brought into contempt
the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali.
But in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea,
the land beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the nations.
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.
Those who dwell in the land of deep darkness,
on them a light is shown.
You have multiplied the nations.
You have increased its joy.
They rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest,
as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
Verse 6,
For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government shall be upon his shoulder.
In his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God,
Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government,
and of the peace there will be no end.
On the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it with justice
and with righteousness,
from this time forth and forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
Now, right at the start,
there should be some things that just jump out at your attention.
Things about this promise that stand out as being absolutely mind-boggling.
First is,
I want you to understand that hope comes from God,
and this is just a part of this first point.
I want you to understand,
as we are moving through this entire passage of Scripture,
that if you are looking for hope,
you can only find it in one place.
There is only one source of hope,
and that is God himself.
The God of hope is the one who can give hope to you this morning.
God himself, it says,
the Lord himself will give you a sign.
King Ahaz, if you want to know hope,
if you want to enjoy the benefits
and the blessings of hope
and a future of anticipating what God can do,
look to God.
Hope exists with him.
The next is that hope is undeserved.
Hope is undeserved.
When we look at Romans chapter 5,
and then we look at this passage before us this morning,
we recognize that we don't deserve hope.
We'll see that a little bit more
as we dig into the passage some more.
But notice in verse 2,
it is a people of darkness.
Light is coming to a people of darkness,
which means it's a people who do not deserve hope.
Because they have rebelled,
because they have distanced themselves from God.
But hope comes in spite of what they deserve.
Next is that hope is bound up in God's ability to deliver.
Notice the end of verse 7.
It says,
the zeal of the Lord has done it.
Now it's still coming.
It is yet future.
But in God's mind,
it has been accomplished already.
And God is the one.
He is not just the force,
but the power and the strength
to bring hope to his people.
Not only the source of hope,
but the strength by which hope will come.
So I don't know your situation this morning.
I don't know the crisis
that may be looming on you
as an individual or as a family.
I don't know the decisions
that you're trying to make.
I don't know the turmoil
that you are experiencing right now.
But what I do know is that there is an answer.
There is an answer,
and there is hope,
and that hope can be found in Christ alone.
The Lord himself can and will do it.
The zeal of the Lord is for you
if you align yourself with him.
That's the start of this morning's message.
That kind of becomes
kind of the overarching theme
as we walk through this passage today.
As we look at the promise of God's gift,
I want to point out just a couple of things
to just mark your attention
and make some observations
about the timing of this promise.
I want you to notice
the surprising timing of this promise.
If you turn back to chapter 7,
just flip a page,
and this time we will go to verse 1.
What does it say there?
In the days of Ahaz,
the son of Jotham,
son of Uzziah,
king of Judah.
Now,
for most of us,
King Ahaz is
some anonymous individual
we have very little familiarity with.
We can talk about King Saul.
We can talk about King David.
We can talk about Solomon
and maybe some others
like Josiah and Hezekiah
and some others
kind of sprinkled in there.
For sure we know Ahab
because he was that wicked king in Israel.
But Ahaz,
who was a king in Judah,
was very similar to Ahab
who was in the northern ten tribes.
This is not the time to give a promise.
This is not the time for God to show up
and give favor
and the promise of blessing to his people.
In this kingdom,
at this particular point in time,
was about 730 years
before Jesus Christ came.
And if you remember
a little bit about the chronology
and the history
of the children of Israel,
you'll remember that
the light of the world
was resident within
the nation of Israel itself.
Israel alone had the law.
Israel alone had the temple.
Israel alone had the priests.
Israel alone had the revelation from God.
And now 10-12ths
of the nation of Israel
had abandoned their roots
and had rejected the God of Israel.
It's around 83%.
Darkness covered a people.
The light of the world
was beginning to dim.
The hope for the nations
was beginning to fade
as now 10-12ths
of the light of the world
had been obliterated,
essentially obscured
by the rebellion of a people.
And to make matters worse,
the southern two tribes
now under the leadership
of King Ahaz
was also closing the door
on the light
that God had given to them.
A commentary
on King Ahaz's leadership
is found in 2 Chronicles
chapter 28.
It says this,
Ahaz was 20 years old
when he began to reign.
He reigned 16 years
in Jerusalem
and he did not do
what was right
in the eyes of the Lord
as his father David
had done,
but he walked in the ways
of the kings of Israel.
He made metal images
for the Baals
and he made offerings
in the valley
of the son of Hinnom
and burned his sons
as an offering
according to the abominations
of the nation
whom the Lord drove out
before the people of Israel
and he sacrificed
and made offerings
on the high places,
on the hills
and under every green tree.
And if that wasn't bad enough
for him as a king,
he led the people
of Judah and Benjamin
into the very same abominations.
So that it says
of the people
that all of them
followed after
the wickedness
of King Ahaz.
The light
for the nations
was being extinguished.
So that now
the other two twelfths,
the remaining
fraction
of the light
was beginning
to be obscured.
Isaiah is writing
in a dark day
where only
a hint
of light
remained
with Isaiah
and those
who were faithful
to Yahweh.
It is safe
to say
that the nations
and the light
to the nations,
the hope
that they were
to experience
through the revelation
of God,
through his people,
was almost
virtually destroyed.
But this,
by the mercy
of God,
it was this
dark day
that hope
begins to dawn.
It was in this day,
this hopeless day,
that God
sends his prophet Isaiah
to send a messenger
to this wicked king,
Ahaz,
to say,
although you have
rebelled against
my commands,
although you have
led the people
into wickedness,
it will not
get in the way,
it will not obscure
my plan
to bring light
to this people.
Which is to say
that God
is the author
of light
and nothing
can shatter
his light
giving purposes.
God is the author
of light
and nothing
can shatter
his light
giving purposes.
I don't know
about you,
but that gives me
special encouragement
this morning.
As I look around
and I see
the darkness
of the day
in which we live.
And I think about
the darkness
that seems to be
pressing in
to every context,
pressing into
our school systems,
pressing into
our workplaces,
pressing into
our government
and all of the things
that surround
the major decisions
of this world.
I think,
is there hope
anymore
for the church
and is there hope
for his people?
And the answer is
just look back
to the hopelessness
of King Ahaz's day.
And you can see
where that hope comes.
It comes
not from people,
it comes
from Jesus
himself.
Light can come
because of the author
of light
who desires
to shine in
to this world.
Will you give him
entrance into your home?
Will you give him
entrance into your life?
Will you let
the king of light
shine in your heart
today?
But not only
do we see
the surprising
timing of the promise,
I want us
just to take note
of the unlikely
origins
of this promise.
The unlikely
origins
of this promise.
For that,
I want to
point our attention
to chapter 9,
verse 1.
There will be no
more gloom
for her
who was in
anguish.
In the former
time he brought
into contempt
the land of
Zebulun
and the land
of Naphtali.
But in
the latter
time he made
glorious
the way
of the sea
and the land
beyond Jordan,
Galilee
of the nations.
Now,
I don't know
if that strikes
you
as it
strikes me.
But I want
you to take
note of this
amazing promise.
Who is
Naphtali?
Who is
Zebulun?
Who are
these anonymous
individuals?
Where are
these
random
places?
If you can
remember back
to the book
of Genesis,
if you can
remember back
to the sons
of Jacob,
perhaps you
might recall
a few of the
names of
his 12 sons.
Certainly you
could remember
the name
Levi,
or the name
Judah,
or the name
Benjamin.
You might be
hard pressed
to remember
the name
Reuben,
or the name
Gad,
or the name
Dan,
but at least
they're somewhat
familiar.
But Naphtali?
And Zebulun?
Who are
these people?
They're sons
of Abraham.
They're sons
of Jacob.
Sons of Israel.
And so the
promise is
coming to
the people
who are
part of the
children of
God.
But people
who you
wouldn't expect
the least
likely
individuals.
The darkness
that had
surrounded this
group of
individuals,
the light
would dawn,
the epicenter
of light
would come
on the
least
likely
group
of
individuals.
And what's
also quite
surprising
is the
epicenter
of light
would come
in the
least
likely
place.
Because if
you remember,
where is
Judah and
Benjamin?
We talk
about the
northern ten
tribes,
we talk
about the
southern two
tribes.
This was
enemy
territory.
Naphtali
and Zebulun
was not
in Judah.
It was
not Jerusalem.
The promise
to King
Ahaz was
not going
to be
centered
in Jerusalem,
but centered
in the
furthest
regions
away
from the
center
of Jerusalem.
In a
place,
as a matter
of fact,
that was
first to
fall to
Assyria.
And perhaps
by the time
of the writing
of this
prophecy,
those two
tribes in
the regions
surrounding
their location
had already
been absorbed,
had already
been obliterated
by Assyria.
And God
says,
okay,
maybe
obliterated
by human
standards,
but preserved
by my
power,
light would
dawn to
a people
who were
least to
be expected.
A region
and a
territory
least to
be expected.
Again,
to emphasize
that God
is the
author of
light
and nothing
can get in
the way
of God's
ability to
make
his promises
complete.
And then,
a promise
of a baby?
Unto us a
child is born?
Is that what
they're looking
for?
If you're in the
middle of a
military
conflict,
you're looking
for a
hero,
not a
baby.
If you're
in the
middle of
a religious
crisis,
you're looking
for a
priest,
you're looking
for a
spiritual
leader,
you're not
looking for
a baby.
And if
you're looking
to join
two nations
that have
been divided,
if you're
looking for
a leader
who can
help unite
those two
regions together,
you're looking
for a king,
you're not
looking for
a baby.
And yet,
the promise
of this
son,
as we will
see in
just a
few moments,
the promise
of a son
would deliver
on all
of those
expectations,
would provide
a counselor
to help
them understand
and know
the direction
that God
wanted for
them,
a king
who would
come and
who would
lead the
people as
God had
promised to
lead,
one who
would unite
the nations
and would
lead them
into peace,
that they
had all
so desperately
longed for.
The first
message this
morning is
this,
your situation
might be
bad,
but it's
not as bad
as it was
in Judah.
Your crisis
may be
overwhelming
to you
this morning,
but it
doesn't even
begin to
compare
with the
crisis
in Jerusalem,
the darkness
that existed
there.
the message
for us
this morning,
the message
of hope
is that
light can
dawn for
you today.
In the
midst of
hardship
and suffering
and struggle,
there is
hope for
all of us
this morning
through his
son,
Jesus Christ.
Next,
we turn to
the purpose,
the purpose
of the gift.
That was the
promise of the
gift,
now the
purpose of
the gift.
Why does
God send
his gift
to us
in the
first place?
What is it
meant to
accomplish for
us?
We see
there in
verses 2
and 3,
notice this,
the people
who walked
in darkness
have seen
a great
light.
Those who
dwell in
the land
of darkness,
on them
a light
has dawned.
sorry,
lost my
plate.
You have
multiplied
the nations,
you have
increased
its joy,
they rejoice
before you
as with
the joy
at the
harvest,
as they
are glad
when they
divide
the spoil.
Now,
I made a
major blunder
here.
I forgot
my phone
so that I
know what
time it
is.
Thank you.
This is
very important
for me
and for
you,
especially
for you.
I want to
keep check
on that.
Actually,
I'll just
put it
right here
so I
can see
what the
time is.
Good.
Did you
see the
two-fold
purpose there?
It's
already up
there on
the screen
for you.
The purpose
that God
is giving
you to
send
his
special
gift
is a
purpose
of light
and joy.
Is that
what you
would expect?
Because
that's not
what the
world would
say.
What
would the
world say
is the
reason
that God
gave his
son?
Why
would the
world say
that you
should be
a Christian?
What is
their perception
of what it
means to
be a
follower of
God?
Well,
I'm not
sure I
want to
be a
Christian
because,
man,
you've
got to
give up
all your
fun.
Who wants
to do
that?
I mean,
come on!
There's so
many rules
and regulations,
there's so
many boundaries,
and, man,
you've got to
give up your
Sunday mornings,
and you've
got to give
up your
lifestyle,
and all of
these things.
Who wants
to be a
Christian?
Christian,
it's
certainly
not for
me.
Maybe
for those
who are
believers,
our response
might be a
little bit
better,
but still
not aligned
with the
purpose that
God gives.
We might
say so
that God
can create
a people
for himself,
a people
who learn
to love,
a people
who learn
to follow
after God,
a people
who want
to know
him more,
a people
who do
order their
life,
but are
ambassadors
for Christ.
And all
of those
are good
answers,
but at
the heart
of all
of those
things,
the core
motivation
for God
and the
core motivation
that keeps
us moving
into those
things is
that God
wants to
give you
light,
and God
wants to
give you
joy.
God
desires
his best
for you.
God
desires
revelation
for you.
He desires
you to
be able
to think
clearly
and to
be able
to work
through life
and to
make good
decisions
about how
to parent
and how
to love
your spouse
and how
to respond
effectively
and appropriately
in the
work context.
He wants
you to know
how to make
the big
decisions
of life,
where to
go and
what to
do.
He wants
you to be
governed by
his light
in every
interaction
that you
have with
people.
He came
to give
you
light.
He came
to give
you his
best.
Now,
just the
other day,
and I
keep picking
on one
of my
kids.
I'll keep
doing it.
He makes
for good
illustrations.
But you
know when
you go
shopping
with your
kids?
My mom
and dad
are here
and their
tradition
is to
give gifts,
to give
money to
all their
grandkids so
that the
kids can go
out and do
some shopping.
So we did
that yesterday
and we did
that the day
before.
And the
money is
burning a
hole in his
pocket.
So we walk
in and no
sooner do we
get into the
store, but he
finds exactly
what he wants.
Right?
And then we
walk down a
couple more
aisles and we
find another
thing that's
exactly what
he wants.
And we go a
step further
and it just
goes on this
way, store
after store
after store,
aisle after
aisle, and
everything that
he puts his
eyes on is
exactly what's
going to meet
and fill his
need for the
moment.
Well, finally
we found
something,
didn't we?
What did we
find?
We found
some nerf
swords, which
were great.
You can put
them together
and they
light up.
It's really
tremendous.
And we
found some
other cool
toys.
But isn't
that indicative
of us?
Whatever we
seem to set
our eyes on is
what we think
we need, but
we find after a
period of time
that that
relationship isn't
actually
accomplishing or
satisfying me the
way we thought
it should.
that hobby or
that job that
was supposed to
fill the void in
your life, that
was supposed to
leave you with
a sense of
purpose and a
sense of
accomplishment.
You find that
in actuality it
is drudgery to
go to work day
by day.
It is not
filling the
vacuum of your
heart.
That's why
light has come.
The light of the
world has come to
shine into your
heart, to shine
into your heart
what you truly
need, to give
you an awareness
of what truly
matters, and to
awaken your heart
to the joy that
only God can
give.
Joy that we
find here in
verse 3.
You have
multiplied the
nations.
You have
increased its
joy.
God is the
divine mover who
is moving you
into joy.
It is passive
on our part.
We get to
experience the
benefits of joy.
It is God's
heart and passion
to lead you into
joy, but joy that
can only be found
in him.
And that leads us
to this final,
this final gift,
the presence of
God himself.
That is the gift.
God looked and
thought, how can I
give them the
best?
How can I give them
the greatest?
How can I give them
the most supreme
gift in the
universe?
And in order to
accomplish that
objective, he gave
himself.
He gave himself
to you.
We find this
description of
himself here in
the end of verse
6.
We find those four
descriptions, the
wonderful counselor,
the mighty God, the
everlasting father, the
prince of peace.
And we find in those
descriptions everything
that we need at the
very heart of our
being.
everything we
desire at the
core of who we
are, are contained
in Jesus Christ, are
contained in this
greatest gift, the
gift of Emmanuel.
The wonderful
counselor.
Let me just touch
on these briefly.
Wonderful counselor.
This passage leaves
us with the
question, well, who
is this wonderful
counselor?
Who is this child?
It says a child is
born, but it
doesn't really
give us a
description of who
he is beyond just
a description of his
person and what he
will do.
But in Isaiah
chapter 28, verse
29, it uses these
same two words,
wonderful and
counselor, and it
connects them
directly to the
person of God.
Listen to this.
It says, this also
comes from the
Lord of hosts.
He is wonderful
in counsel and
excellent in wisdom.
Speaking of God,
wonderful.
You know, when we
say wonderful, we
think, oh, that's
good, or that's
beautiful, or that's
really pleasant, that's
really nice, that's
wonderful.
But when the Hebrew
speaks of wonderful,
it means something
more like supernatural,
something more like
miraculous, something
more like spectacular.
It's the kind of term
you would use as a
Hebrew to say, it
takes your breath
away.
That is the kind of
counselor we have.
The kind of counselor,
we don't even have
words to describe, it's
just, wow, wonderful.
Look at this counselor.
Look at who he is and
the kind of instruction
that he gives for those
who are his people.
And immediately when
this term was used, it
would have conjured up
in the minds of the
listeners a Solomon-like
figure, one who had
that kind of wisdom, one
who had that kind of
prowess.
Under Solomon's rule,
the kingdom flourished.
There was unimaginable
prosperity.
The reach and expanse
of his kingdom reached
its greatest extent
during the time of
Solomon.
An unprecedented peace.
Nations who were
paying tribute.
People who were
governed with justice.
A time of unrivaled
spiritual enthusiasm.
The engineering
accomplishments and
military prowess during
Solomon's reign was
unprecedented.
because of the wisdom
from God that he had
given to King Solomon.
But compared with
Solomon's counsel, this
new counselor would
embody wisdom.
It would be his name.
It would so, it would
so characterize him as
an individual that when
you thought about wisdom,
you would think about
this individual, this
son, this child,
this Emmanuel.
The wonderful
counselor.
Not just like a
Solomon, but he
embodied everything
that we would come to
enjoy and know
as wisdom.
The women at the well
noticed this about
Jesus.
She runs back into
town.
She says, come see a
man who told me
everything that I ever
did.
His wisdom to see
inside my heart and
to know exactly my
situation and to
orchestrate the
conversation to lead
me to God.
That was the wisdom
that Jesus demonstrated.
And Peter, in John
chapter 6, as all the
other followers were
abandoning Jesus, Jesus
turns to Peter and
says, Peter, will you
go as well?
And Peter says, no,
you alone have the
words of eternal life.
How can I go?
You are true wisdom.
Couldn't imagine
leaving you, Jesus.
The question for us
this morning is not,
does wisdom exist?
The question for us
this morning is, is
Jesus enough for you?
Is his wisdom sufficient
for you this morning?
Well, he is not only
the wonderful counselor,
he is also the mighty
God.
The mighty God.
The king will have
God's true might
about him.
Power so great that it
can absorb all the
evil which can be
hurled at it until
none is left.
I love that statement.
Every great king and
every human leader is
limited by power, but
this king will not be
limited in any way.
He will overcome
the obstacles.
He will overcome
the adversaries.
He will institute the
help and the
deliverance and the
salvation that his
people so desperately
need.
But rather than a
military conqueror,
rather than one who
would free them from
the oppressor,
this mighty God would
be one who would free
them from their
greatest adversary.
The adversary of sin
and death.
The adversary that
confronts and ruins
every person that has
ever walked this
planet, including Adam
and Eve.
This mighty king,
this mighty God,
would vanquish the
greatest enemy of
humanity, the enemy
of sin.
The enemy that
destroys us to the
very core.
It ruins our
thinking, ruins our
relationships, ruins our
joy, ruins God's
design for our life,
and inevitably ruins
our future.
Only Jesus, only in
Jesus can we experience
the mighty God and
his mighty strength.
He's also the
everlasting father.
The title has always
confused me as I
think about Jesus
as the everlasting
father.
What does it mean for
somebody who has a
New Testament
perspective?
How can he be God
the Son and God
the Father?
What is going on
here?
The Old Testament
doesn't see things
that way.
It may be more
helpful as we look at
the person of Jesus
Christ to think about
what this title really
suggests.
Christ.
It might be better
for us to think about
him as more of the
father of eternity,
which is also another
translation of this
phrase, this word,
the father of eternity.
And in this respect,
what it would mean is
kind of what Paul says
to the church.
He says, you know,
you have many
counselors, you have
many leaders, but you
don't have many
fathers.
I have been your
father.
I have been the one
who has been used by
God to lead you into
spiritual life.
And in this way,
Jesus is the
everlasting father.
One who leads us
into everlasting life
through his person,
his death and
resurrection.
He ushers us into
being children of God
and in that way,
he becomes our father.
And only through
Jesus, only through
him as the
everlasting father,
can we experience
him as the
prince of peace.
The one who comes
to make all things
new.
It's a familiar word
in the Old Testament.
It's the word shalom.
It's the word that
talks about wholeness.
The word that
deals with the
entire person,
the body,
the soul,
the spirit,
the mind,
the emotions,
everything about us
that God desires
to bring peace
into our life.
And of course,
the greatest peace
that we need
is peace with God
through our Lord
Jesus Christ.
And so I close
the message
with this question.
Do you know
the greatest gift?
Are you enjoying
today
the greatest gift
that God could ever
bring to us?
The gift of his
son, Jesus Christ,
who is the
wonderful counselor,
the mighty God,
the everlasting
father,
and the prince
of peace?
Let's pray.