(1st Sun Advent) The Prophecy Candle
Scripture: Matthew 1:23, Isaiah 7:14
A CHILD LEARNS NOT TO TRUST
There is an old story of a father who took his young son out and stood him on the railing of the back porch. He then went down, stood on the lawn, and encouraged the little fellow to jump into his arms. "I'll catch you," the father said confidently. After a lot of coaxing, the little boy finally made the leap. When he did, the father stepped back and let the child fall to the ground. He then picked his son up, dusted him off, and dried his tears.
"Let that be a lesson," he said sternly. "Don't ever trust anyone."
Matthew 1:22 introduces a common statement in his work. He wrote, “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet” Since he used this phrasing in at least a dozen passages, Matthew knew it was important to point out to his readers that many of the events he described fulfilled specific prophecies.
Matthew 1:23 "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us." More than 700 years earlier, Isaiah wrote: Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
AHAZ BECOMES KING – DOES NOT TRUST GOD
King Ahaz took the throne at age 20 after his father Jothan had been king.
He did not trust in God. Aram and Israel fought but could not overtake him.
Ahaz begged the king of Assyria, Tiglath-Pileser to help him stand against his enemies who then conquered a portion of Israel and killed the king and sent the people into exile.
As a thank you, Ahaz sent gold and silver from the temple and went in person to visit Tiglath-Pileser. He had a replica of the Assyrian altar made and returned home to worship and offer sacrifices on that foreign altar. He then thought he should worship the gods of those who were warring against him since they were finding success. He closed the temple and set up altars on every street corner to other gods which angered the Lord against him.
In the midst of all this, the prophet Isaiah tried convincing Ahaz to put his trust in God alone. The threats against Ahaz and Judah were so great that he and the people shook like leaves in a storm and he would not trust God. Isaiah spoke the word of the Lord to Ahaz to encourage him to once more trust in God, and said: Isa 7:7-14 Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says: "'It will not take place, it will not happen, for the head of Aram is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is only Rezin. Within sixty-five years Ephraim will be too shattered to be a people. The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah's son. If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.'"
10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, "Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights." But Ahaz said, "I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test." Then Isaiah said, "Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of men? Will you try the patience of my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
Notice God told Ahaz to for ask for a sign, which he refused to do. God would give a sign any way – an impossible event – a virgin would conceive and give birth and be known as “God with us” – Immanuel. If that wouldn’t convince him to trust God – nothing would, The literal translation here of virgin is a woman of marriageable age (not a girl – not a married woman who has been with a man = virgin). Would Ahaz have to wait 700 years for the birth of Christ or is this not really about Jesus and only meant for Isaiah’s day? Isaiah 7:14 has a single meaning with double significance. In that day and in the future, it meant that God would be with his people. In Isaiah’s day, he would be with them if Ahaz would turn and trust in God. In the future, it meant God would come in person through the birth of Jesus so that all people could know him. Instead of being present based on our behavior = the law as in the OT, God would be present as an act of His will by being born in the flesh.
Matthew shows us that God had a plan and carried out that plan - “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet” The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
Matthew doesn’t just point to this one prophecy as proof that God was coming among men.
JOHN THE BAPTIST
4 NT passages quote Isaiah and Malachi concerning the birth of John the Baptist, central to the Christmas story and the birth and ministry of Jesus.
Matthew 3:1-3 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: "A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'"
Mark 1:1-3 The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. It is written in Isaiah the prophet: "I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way, a voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'"
Matthew 11:10 This is the one about whom it is written: 'I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.'
John 1:23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, "I am the voice of one calling in the desert, 'Make straight the way for the Lord.'"
OT quoted by Matthew
Isaiah 40:3 A voice of one calling: “In the desert prepare the way for the Lord;make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.”
Malachi 3:1 "See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the Lord Almighty.
These OT verses say one will prepare the way for Yahweh to come. But it is Jesus who shows up…EXACTLY – Jesus is Yahweh (God) in the flesh: John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel, meaning ‘God with us.’
The king of Judah, Ahaz, rejected the God who created him and relied on earthly powers who failed him. John the Baptist, son of a priest who served in the temple of God used his life to point others to Jesus, the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
700 years before it happened God announced the birth of Jesus to Mary, a woman of marriageable age – a virgin and the birth of John the Baptist who would prepare people for his coming. Who has God already planned to have you to prepare the way for Jesus coming into their life? Don’t rely on your abilities or those of others – do what Isaiah said – Trust in God and He will make it happen.
A CHILD LEARNS TO TRUST
One day, while my son Zac and I were out in the country, climbing around in some cliffs, I heard a voice from above me yell, "Hey Dad! Catch me!" I turned around to see Zac joyfully jumping off a rock straight at me. He had jumped and them yelled "Hey Dad!" I became an instant circus act, catching him. We both fell to the ground. For a moment after I caught him I could hardly talk.
When I found my voice again I gasped in exasperation: "Zac! Can you give me one good reason why you did that???"
He responded with remarkable calmness: "Sure...because you're my Dad." His whole assurance was based in the fact that his father was trustworthy. He could live life to the hilt because I could be trusted. Isn't this even more true for a Christian?
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