SCRIPTURE
TEXT
Is. 9:2
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those
living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.
Is. 9:3
You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice
before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as men rejoice when
dividing the plunder.
Is. 9:4
For as in the day of Midian’s defeat, you have shattered the yoke
that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their
oppressor.
Is. 9:5
Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood
will be
destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.
Is.
9:6For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the
government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Is. 9:7
Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He
will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom,establishing and
upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and
forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.
INTRODUCTION
Is there ever a
perfect gift? I thought I had one when I was nine. The only sporting goods
store in town showcased a variety of basketballs. I remember looking at the
display hoping to have one. I had unceasing fascination to acquire the leather
sphere which translated into incessant courtships for my father to make my wish
come true. He did. on my birthday.
My father was not
exactly a good handyman. He was not an engineer but a lawyer. Yet he tries
every now and then to delve into some domestic novelty. He not only got me a
ball but he introduced it with an accompanying feature: he gathered some lumber
and invited me to create from scratch a backyard basketball goal. It took us
about five hours to cut and fuse the wood and finally erect it for our initial game.
It was bliss. My dad and I playing basketball almost everyday at home court. At
times, I would invite playmates to try our hard-crafted sporting post. It was
the perfect gift or so it seemed.
There was only one
problem. The basket rim was somehow mispositioned by my father's calculation.
Instead of sitting on the lower portion of the backboard, it was attached right
at dead center of the board. This created a problem about my personal training.
Each time I practiced, I had to loop my shot at least a foot further up than
the regulation hoops. Whenever I played the game on regulation basketball
goals, my shots were always off. Well my training implement was of course the
culprit. What seemed like a perfect gift actually created my imperfect shots.
Is there a perfect
gift? As I ponder over this question this season of Advent, I am drawn to the
one gift that marks Christmas. Jesus Christ was given to us by the Father not
only as the perfect gift but as one that transforms all our imperfections
towards a redeemed perfection.
PERFECT PROPHECY
Is. 9:2
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those
living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.
Is. 9:3
You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice
before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as men rejoice when
dividing the plunder.
Is. 9:4
For as in the day of Midian’s defeat, you have shattered the yoke
that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their
oppressor.
Is. 9:5
Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be
destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.
The perfect gift is
revealed through scriptural revelation. In looking at Isaiah 9, we are
introduced to a form of literature that is known as prophetic perfect. It is
the kind of language that assumes the absolute fulfillment of a
prediction about the future by using the past tense as though the events
already transpired.
Biblical prophecy is
unique in its privilege for it is the only religious document that speaks forth
about absolute certainty pertaining future events. It is to be noted that the
Bible contains three-fourths prophecy as opposed to other religious materials
who merely speak about the past and the present.
The Old Testament
which was written 1,000 years before Christ was born spoke of at least 300
prophecies regarding the coming Messiah. The prophets spoke about the timing of
his birth in Daniel 9; the condition of the virgin birth in Isaiah 7; the
actual location of his birth in Micah 5:2; the precise details of his
life and crucifixion in Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53; as well as his glorious
resurrection in Psalm 16. For all these prophecies to be perfectly fulfilled,
Dwight Pentecost once reference that there was a determination that only one
chance in 87 plus 93 zeros can this take place. But it did!
The Lord Jesus makes
reference to this:
Matthew 5:17 “Do not
think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to
abolish, but to fulfill.”
Luke 24:27 “And
beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things
concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.”
Luke 24:44 Now He said
to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you,
that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets
and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
John 5:39 “You search
the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is
these that bear witness of Me;
The strong light of
Christ is guaranteed to beam amidst the context of our dark world. The effect
of Christ amidst the chaos and gloom of our confused world is one of strong contrast:
the offer of Christ confronts the present darkness and the impending gloom of
death.
It is with guarantee
that those who turn to the Lord will be like renewed nations who will never
lack joy, In increasing measure, they will rejoice over the gracious provision
of their benevolent King. Those who will turn to the Lord are likened to those
who will receive the abundance of gifts outsourced by God's victory. It has
been guaranteed that the number of those who trust in the Lord will never
diminish in number but increase greatly. Although there will be attempts to
hinder the shining of the Lord's light as in the times of Christian persecution
in China, the lumens of faith all the more blazed in splendor.
In referencing the
story of Gideon and the breaking of the yoke of Midian, God is declaring
his omnipotence over any existing human power. The ways of God are certainly
higher than any mortal scheme. There is a promise that those who oppose
God's plan will be frustrated. God himself will shatter them by means of
supernatural intervention. Gideon's obedience to God transformed him to become
a mighty vessel resorting to a life of prayer and radical obedience. God's
people are likewise called to claim such heritage.
Through our time of
uncertainty, God introduces his time of prophetic certainty. Through the
present deluge of violence and war, God promised a complete halt to all
such strife. A time will certainly come when all battle implements will be set
aside forever. He guarantees the full restoration of his creation to the kind
of order he desires.
APPLICATION
We are called to
celebrate the trustworthiness of God's inerrant Word. God's Word reveals God's
power and wisdom. In it, we find the purposes of God. As a result, we are
invited to participate in the peace that comes from knowing that God is in full
control of anything and everything in this world. We are called to act
accordingly as God's holy people perfectly revealed as His favored children.
PERFECT PERSON
Is. 9:6
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government
will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Is. 9:7
Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He
will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom,establishing and
upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and
forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.
The perfect gift is
not a commodity, not an institution, not a plan but a person. God's son is the
perfect gift.
The perfect gift is
fully human (a child is born) and is fully God (a son is given). The only
person who can redeem humanity is God's perfect gift. The guarantee of this
provision comes from the integrity of his relationship with his son who
willingly obeys his Father to accomplish our redemption. With a determined
purpose it is for us, our present helpless condition that Jesus was sent. It is
determined that the restoration to order of what is presently chaotic has been
delegated to Him alone.
He is able to
accomplish this by virtue of His impeccable character. He is a person of
supreme and unique wisdom. His counsel is productively perfect.
His power is
accompanied by divine might.
His pastoral concern
is sustained by His eternal commitment to love his own.
His offer of peace
comes from the incredible reality of His very presence.
The integrity of this
promised gift is contingent upon His promise to accomplish it. By His zeal, we
are guaranteed to receive this divine favor: God is with us!
APPLICATION
There are only two
kinds of persons in our present world. Those who are overshadowed by the zeal
of the Lord's redemption and those who are overshadowed by the anxiety of their
present calculation. We are invited to take seriously the perfect Gift God has
given us. We are called to live in the presence of the one whose wisdom is
eternal and whose might is beyond compare. He is the one who truly cares for us
in that he is the only one who can grant us true peace: His guaranteed
presence.
CONCLUSION
The first Christmas
tree did not originate from Germany. It was first spotted at Golgotha. The tree
was without leaves and the hanging gift was ugly and without any holiday
wrappings. Yet, the willing present was God's perfect gift to us. To this day,
many ignore him because of myopic hearts. For those of us who have been favored
to receive him into our lives, we are called to share the perfect gift to
others. Christ's purpose is seek the lost and offer them the gift of salvation.
This is incredibly accomplished, when gift bearers like us, make ourselves
available to deliver the perfect present to all those whom God leads us to
share.
Let your Christmas be
a true season of perfect gift giving: Share the perfect prophecy by sharing the
perfect Person.
