Immanuel

church. Turn with me and your Bibles to Isaiah. Isaiah chapter 7. In the Pew Bibles, it is page

Isaiah 7 · chapter mention

535. This morning is the first Sunday of Advent. That is the season where we anticipate celebrating

the coming of Christ leading up to Christmas, and we're beginning a new sermon series on

Messianic prophecies from the book of Isaiah. So this month in December, we'll be looking at how

the prophecy of Isaiah points forward to the person of Christ. Isaiah lived and prophesied in

the 8th century BC, about 700 years before the coming of Jesus into the world, and yet the New

Testament quotes from the book of Isaiah over 75 times. And what we want to do this month is look

at just five of those texts from Isaiah that are quoted or alluded to in the New Testament

in reference to Jesus. So we'll consider how Isaiah's words shed light on the significance of

Jesus' birth, Jesus' ministry, Jesus' character, Jesus' suffering, and Jesus' mission. The chapters

we'll be focusing on are listed on the blue sermon cards in the pews, so if you want to take one of

those home with you, feel free to do that if that helps you to prepare for Sundays. This morning,

we're focusing on the prophecy that is in Isaiah chapter 7, verse 14, but I want to read chapter 7

Isaiah 7:14

beginning at verse 1 so that we can see some of the bigger context of the verse that we'll be looking

at today. So join me, read with me from Isaiah chapter 7, beginning at verse 1.

Isaiah 7 · chapter mention

In the days of Ahaz, the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin, the king of Syria,

and Pekah, the son of Remaliah, the king of Israel, came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it,

but could not yet mount an attack against it. When the house of David was told, Syria is in league

with Ephraim, the heart of Ahaz and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake

before the wind. And the Lord said to Isaiah, go out to meet Ahaz, you and Shear Jashub, your son,

at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the washer's field, and say to him,

be careful, be quiet, do not fear. And do not let your heart be faint because of these two

smoldering stumps of firebrands at the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria and the son of Remaliah.

Because Syria with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah has devised evil against you saying,

let us go up against Judah and terrify it and let us conquer it for ourselves and set up the son of

Tabeal as king in the midst of it. Thus says the Lord God, it shall not stand and it shall not come

to pass. For the head of Syria is Damascus and the head of Damascus is Rezin. And within 65 years,

Ephraim will be shattered from being a people. And the head of Ephraim is Samaria and the head of

Samaria is the son of Remaliah. If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.

Again, the Lord spoke to Ahaz, ask a sign of the Lord, your God, let it be deep as Sheol,

as the grave or high as heaven. But Ahaz said, I will not ask and I will not put the Lord to the test.

And he, that is Isaiah 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. He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and

choose the good. For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose

two kings you dread will be deserted. And the Lord will bring upon you and upon your people and upon

your father's house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah,

the king of Assyria.

What is it that strikes fear into your heart?

Maybe it's something personal.

Could be a medical diagnosis or a relational conflict or financial stresses or looming deadlines.

Perhaps those final exams and papers that are due next week or the project that your boss wanted done yesterday.

Maybe you're afraid because you have enemies.

You have people who seem to be out to get you.

And you don't feel like you have a way to defend yourself against them.

Or maybe it's not just a personal crisis.

Maybe it's a family crisis.

Maybe you're worried about your kids.

They're having problems and you can't seem to make any progress in dealing with them.

Maybe you're worried about their school.

The town of Hamden, where we now live, just approved a plan to redistrict their elementary schools

and close two of them.

It's a big change and affects a lot of people.

The Board of Education meetings this fall have been filled with concerned parents.

Or maybe it's something even bigger.

Maybe you're worried about the direction of national politics.

Or the effects of global warming.

Or the worldwide refugee crisis.

The passage we just read from Isaiah begins with the hearts of King Ahaz and his people

shaking as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.

King Ahaz was facing a national crisis.

Two neighboring countries had banded together against him.

They had invaded his land.

They had caused some damage.

They were headed toward Jerusalem.

And Ahaz was shaking in his boots.

Now the passage we read earlier in the service from the Gospel of Matthew

also begins with someone facing a crisis.

Joseph wasn't facing a national crisis, but he was facing a personal crisis because Joseph

was betrothed.

That is, he was legally pledged to be married.

To marry.

And he finds out she's pregnant with a child that's not his.

What does he do now?

Now, this morning as we look at both of these passages, I want us to see that God speaks

to us in the midst of our fears.

In the midst of our problems and crises, he speaks to us.

And he speaks to us through a child called Emmanuel.

I want us to look at this theme in three parts.

First, I want to begin by looking at God's word to faithless Ahaz in the book of Isaiah.

Then I want to look at God's word to faithful Joseph in the Gospel of Matthew.

And third, I want us to consider God's word for us in our own problems and crises and fears today.

So first, God's word for faithless Ahaz.

As we said, Ahaz was facing a national crisis.

It's described here in Isaiah chapter 7.

Isaiah 7 · chapter mention

It's described with some more details in 1 Kings 16 and 2 Chronicles 28.

So here's a bit more of the situation.

Two neighboring countries.

So one of them is called Syria.

Not to be confused with Assyria.

Those are two different countries.

Both appear.

So Syria, in some translations, if you have the NIV, it's called Aram.

So Syria is one country.

And then Israel, which is also called Ephraim, which was the northern ten tribes that had broke away from Judah.

So Syria and Israel had allied themselves against Ahaz, who was down in Judah.

And they had invaded his land.

They had killed some of his people.

They had taken many captives.

And they were heading toward his capital city of Jerusalem.

And Ahaz was shaking in his boots.

Where we meet Ahaz in verse 3 is he's apparently gone out of the city to inspect the water supply.

A practical thing to do.

That's probably why he was at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the washer's field.

It was one of the water sources for the city of Jerusalem.

He's sort of thinking, if we're besieged, what do we have on hand?

How are we going to deal with this?

And there, verse 4, Isaiah delivered God's word to Ahaz.

What's God's word?

Be careful.

Be quiet.

Don't fear.

Fear.

And don't let your heart be faint because of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands.

In other words, what Isaiah is saying is that these two countries who are attacking you

and who you're shaking in your boots about,

they're like the remnants of a bonfire.

They're still creating a bunch of smoke, but they're on their way down and they're on their way out.

They are not the ones that you need to fear.

So, verse 7 says,

it, that is their plan to conquer Judah,

shall not stand and it shall not come to pass.

God says,

they're trying to conquer you, they will not succeed.

And then in verse 9, Isaiah challenges Ahaz and says,

if you won't stand firm,

if you are not firm in faith,

you will not be firm at all.

Now, that word has,

that sentence,

there's a word play in that verse

that's hard to capture precisely in English

because the same verb appears twice,

first in an active form and then in a passive form.

So, basically what Isaiah is saying is,

if you won't actively trust and rely and believe in God,

you won't be established,

confirmed, reinforced by God.

If you won't stand firm in faith,

you won't be confirmed and established.

Now, Ahaz doesn't seem to respond to Isaiah's first word,

or at least his response is not recorded here in the text.

So, Isaiah goes to,

God sends another word to Ahaz.

Verse 10,

again,

the Lord spoke to Ahaz a second time.

Ask a sign of the Lord your God.

Let it be as deep as the grave or as high as heaven.

In other words,

God was saying to Ahaz,

let me show you how trustworthy I am.

Let me demonstrate my love for you.

I am your God.

Let me show you my power to save.

And Isaiah says,

I mean, sorry,

Ahaz says,

verse 12,

no.

Now, he says this in a way that sounds rather polite

and even sort of religious.

I won't ask.

I will not put the Lord to the test.

All right, now, back in Deuteronomy,

the Israelites were in the wilderness.

And they were testing God,

even though they had seen his faithfulness

over and over and over again.

And God says to them,

do not put the Lord your God to the test.

You've seen enough evidence.

He brought you out of Egypt from slavery.

He brought you through the Red Sea.

You've seen enough.

You don't need another sign.

But here,

God is offering Ahaz.

It's a rather unusual offer.

God doesn't make this offer to everyone in the scriptures.

Ask me for a sign.

Whatever you want.

But Ahaz says no.

Because really what Ahaz was saying

was something like this.

God,

I don't even want to consider the possibility

that you might be right.

I don't even want to give you a chance

to show me that you're worth trusting.

I'm not asking you for a sign

because I don't want a sign.

Because my mind is already made up.

I know who I trust,

and it's not you.

Now, you might say,

well, how do we know that?

How do we know that's what was going on

in Ahaz's mind?

Well, verse 13 indicates,

here then, O house of David,

is it too little for you to weary men

that you weary my God also?

In other words,

Ahaz is test-trying the patience of God

first by ignoring Isaiah's first word

and then refusing the second word.

But if you look at 2 Kings, verse 16,

again, one of the other passages

that speaks about the same situation,

it makes it very clear

who Ahaz was really trusting.

So 2 Kings 16, verse 5,

2 Kings 16:5

just summarizes the situation.

Rezin, king of Syria,

and Pekah, the son of Ramaliah,

king of Israel,

came up to wage war in Jerusalem,

and they besieged Ahaz.

So they finally reached Jerusalem,

but they couldn't conquer him.

And then verse 7,

here's Ahaz's response.

So Ahaz sent messengers

to Tiglas Pileser, king of Assyria,

again, not Syria, but Assyria,

saying,

I am your servant and your son.

Come up and rescue me

from the hand of the king of Syria

and from the hand of the king of Israel

who are attacking me.

Ahaz also took the silver and gold

that was found in the house of the Lord

and in the treasures of the king's house

and sent a present to the king of Assyria.

Who was Ahaz trusting to save him

from this national crisis?

He wasn't trusting the Lord,

but he was trusting the king of Assyria.

He was even willing to clean out

the treasures of the Lord's house

and send them off to the king of Assyria

to try to buy his favor.

Now you might say,

who were the Assyrians?

Well, they were the rapidly expanding

superpower of the day.

They were the largest empire

that had yet existed in world history.

They were also incredibly cruel

and ruthless.

They routinely deported

and brutally tortured peoples

whom they had conquered.

But Ahaz thought

the king of Assyria is strong.

Ahaz's pro-Assyrian stance

might have been partly

what provoked Syria and Israel

to unite and come against him

in the first place

because they realized

that if he allied with Assyria,

they were in trouble

so they were going to strike first.

So Ahaz might have just

even brought this trouble on himself.

By trusting in Assyria

and looking to Assyria.

So Ahaz was facing a national crisis

and he refused to trust

and obey the word of God.

Instead, he trusted the king of Assyria.

And that brings us to verse 14.

God says to Ahaz,

Okay.

You won't ask me for a sign.

I'll give you a sign.

Behold,

the virgin shall conceive

and bear a son

and shall call his name

Emmanuel.

This child Emmanuel

will be a sign.

In other words,

this child Emmanuel

will be a living demonstration

that God's word

is trustworthy and true

even though you have rejected it.

Ahaz.

Now many people have wondered

who in the world

was Isaiah talking about?

Here in verse 14.

Now look down at verse 16.

For before the boy knows

how to refuse the evil

and choose the good,

the land whose two kings you dread

will be deserted.

Isaiah was speaking to Ahaz

in the year 735 BC.

That was the year

that Syria and Israel

invaded Judah.

Three years later,

the king of Assyria

conquered Damascus.

That was the capital of Syria.

Killed the king of Syria

and deposed the king of Israel.

And ten years after that,

the Assyrians conquered Samaria,

the capital of Israel,

and the nation of Israel

fell apart.

The northern kingdom.

So at one level,

verse 14

has to be talking about

a child who was born

in the time of King Ahaz.

Otherwise,

the child is not assigned

to King Ahaz

and verse 16

doesn't make any sense.

So at one level,

in the immediate context,

there has to be

a child that Isaiah

is speaking about

who was born back then

in the 8th century BC.

Now you might say,

well,

what about this word virgin?

The virgin shall conceive

and bear a son.

Well,

that word translated virgin

can also mean more generally

a young woman

of marriageable age.

So this is not necessarily

speaking about

a miraculous conception

or a miraculous birth

in Isaiah's time.

So,

okay,

if there's a child

that was born back then,

who was it?

Well,

I think the beginning

of chapter 8

shows us

who this child was.

Chapter 8,

verse 3.

And I,

this is Isaiah speaking,

and I went to the prophetess,

that is,

Isaiah's wife,

and she conceived

and bore a son.

Do you notice

the parallel wording?

7,

14.

The virgin shall conceive

and bear a son.

Chapter 8,

verse 3.

I went to the prophetess

and she conceived

and bore a son.

Sign,

fulfillment.

And you might say,

okay,

so if Emmanuel

is at least in part

talking about Isaiah's son,

then how is Isaiah's son

assigned to King Ahaz

and to his people?

Well,

primarily Isaiah's son

would be a sign

of God's coming judgment

because Ahaz

had refused

to trust

and obey

the word of God.

And God says,

this child

will show you

and be a living demonstration

that my words

will come to pass

regardless of whether

you believe them or not.

And because you have chosen

not to believe them,

you will experience

judgment.

Now,

if you look at

the verses following,

714 and 8.3,

Isaiah first reaffirms

that the two nations

who are attacking Ahaz

will be defeated.

So,

716,

the land whose two kings

you dread

will be deserted.

8.4,

the wealth of Damascus

and the spoil of Samaria

will be carried away

before the king of Assyria.

But Isaiah's main emphasis

is in the verses

that follow.

In 717-25

and 8.5-8.

What do these verses say?

Verse 17,

chapter 7,

verse 17,

the Lord will bring

upon you

and upon your people

and upon your father's house

such days

as have not come

since the day

that Ephraim

departed from Judah,

the king of Assyria.

So, basically,

Isaiah's saying,

you know what?

These two nations

that are attacking you now

that you're worried about,

yeah,

they'll be dealt with,

but guess what?

Something worse

is going to happen to you.

Chapter 7,

verse 18-25

basically talks about

how terrible things

will be

when the Assyrians

invade Judah

and how the land

will be depopulated

and how it will become

briars and thorns.

It'll become

a wilderness again.

Chapter 8,

verse 5-8

is even more clear.

The Lord spoke to me again

because this people,

that is the people of Judah,

has refused

the waters of Shiloah

that flow gently.

So, Shiloah

was a little stream

outside Jerusalem

that is just

a small,

gentle brook.

And Isaiah's

basically saying,

because you're

not willing

to just be content

being who you are

and who God

has made you to be

and you rejoice

over Rezin

and the son of Ramaliah.

That is,

you're rejoicing

that Assyria

is conquering

these Syria

and Israel

because you're

so happy about that.

Therefore,

behold,

the Lord is bringing up

against them

that is against you

the waters of the river

mighty and many,

the king of Assyria

and all his glory.

It will rise

over all its channels.

It will go over

all its banks.

It will sweep

on into Judah.

In other words,

the king of Assyria

is going to come

in like a flood

and nearly drown you.

You have something

much bigger

that you should be

worried about.

You're worried

about the wrong thing.

You're worried

about these two

little nations

that God is going

to deal with soon.

And guess what?

You have something

even worse.

If you want

to think about this

with a simple analogy,

somebody else

came up with this.

Ahaz has been

compared to a mouse

who is being

attacked by two rats

and the mouse

calls out for help

to the neighborhood cat.

You get it?

Isaiah says,

the cat is not

your friend.

He might attack

the rats first,

but once you're

on his radar screen,

he's coming for you.

Isaiah says,

Assyria is the

wrong one to trust.

And one commentator,

John Oswalt,

said,

whatever we trust

in place of God

will eventually

turn on us

and destroy us.

Isn't that so true?

And that's part

of God's judgment

judgment when God

gives us over

to the fickle

and selfish

masters that we

have chosen

for ourselves.

That's what the

child Emmanuel

would be a warning

to Ahaz of.

He would see

this child growing up

and he would see

the word of God

being fulfilled

at each stage

of this child's life

and he would see

that God's words

were trustworthy

and true

and he would see

that because he

didn't listen

and didn't obey

that these judgments

were coming

on him.

So Ahaz faced

the national crisis.

He refused to trust

and obey the word

of God

so God gave him

the sign of the child

Emmanuel

as a sign

of his coming judgment.

But now,

that's Act 1.

Now we go to Act 2,

the Gospel of Matthew,

God's word

to faithful Joseph.

Turn ahead

to Matthew 1.

We read this earlier

in the service.

The page number's

in your bulletin

if you need that.

Matthew 1,

18 to 25.

Now here we have

somebody who's not

facing a national crisis

but he's facing

a personal crisis.

Back then,

being betrothed

was,

it was even more

binding than engagement.

Okay,

being betrothed

meant you're legally

pledged to be married.

The only way

you could break off

a betrothal agreement

was through

a legal divorce.

So it was even

more serious

and even more difficult

than breaking off

an engagement today

as devastating

as that can be.

So Joseph has already

signed on the dotted line.

They have a wedding,

they've, you know,

they've probably

got a wedding date

but they've made

a legal and binding agreement.

They will be married,

they're not yet married,

they're not yet living together

but they haven't yet

slept together

but then he learns

Mary's pregnant.

And so what does he do?

Verse 19,

it says Joseph resolved

to divorce her quietly.

Now notice,

verse 19 says

Joseph was a just man,

that is a righteous man

and he was also

a compassionate man

because it says

he was unwilling

to put her to shame.

In other words,

Joseph was saying,

I'm committed

not to dishonor you

even though

I can no longer

trust you.

I can't marry you

but I won't do anything

to harm you.

I won't make a big scene.

I won't gossip about this.

I won't seek to undermine

your reputation.

We will go our separate ways

peaceably.

Now on a side note,

Joseph in verse 19

is an example

of how to go through

a divorce

in a godly

and righteous way

when you have clear

biblical grounds

for divorce,

in this case

apparent sexual

unfaithfulness.

Joseph resolved

not to be vindictive

even when it seemed

that trust

had been irreparably

broken.

However,

that's a side note,

what seemed

to be the case

was not actually

the case.

God sent his word

to Joseph,

verse 20,

not through a prophet

as with Isaiah

but through an angel

in a dream.

Joseph,

son of David,

do not fear.

Again,

notice the theme

of fear.

Do not fear

to take Mary

as your wife

for that which is

conceived in her

is from the Holy Spirit.

Okay,

that's the one

and only time

that this is going

to happen,

just so you know.

She will bear a son

and you shall call

his name Jesus

for he will save

his people

from their sins.

And unlike

King Ahaz

who twice

rejected God's word,

we see that

Joseph obeyed

immediately.

Verse 24,

when Joseph woke

from sleep,

he did as the angel

of the Lord

commanded him.

He took his wife

but knew her not

till she had given

birth to a son

and he called

his name Jesus.

So Joseph was facing

a personal crisis.

God sent his word

to him

and Joseph trusted

and obeyed.

And what we also see

is that God

gave him a sign.

the child

Emmanuel

as a sign

not of his

coming judgment

but of his

coming salvation.

Jesus

who will save

his people

from their sins.

Verse 22

and 23,

Matthew tells us

that all this

took place

to fulfill

what the Lord

had spoken

through the prophet

Isaiah.

Now,

I'm sure

that some of you

are asking this question.

You're saying,

wait a minute,

you just told me

that Isaiah

was talking about

his own son

Emmanuel

back in the 8th century

BC.

How can then

Matthew

say

that Isaiah's

prophecy

is fulfilled

in the birth

of Jesus?

Let me say

three things

out to that

very reasonable

question.

First,

many biblical

prophecies

have both

an immediate

fulfillment

that is

a specific

relevance

to the time

and place

where they

were first

spoken

and a

longer

range

fulfillment

that becomes

evident

later on

in the

unfolding

story

of God's

salvation.

So,

it's a bit

like if you're

watching,

it's not a

perfect analogy,

but if you're

watching a movie

and the movie

begins

with a close-up

of a particular

individual

individual.

And for a

while,

the movie

is just

focused on

you see

that person

as a

child,

you see

them growing

up,

you see

their life

develop,

and you

think

this movie

is all

about that

one person.

For example,

take Thomas

Edison.

I'm not sure

there's a movie

about him,

but he's the

one who invented

electricity

and all other

kinds of

things.

So,

the movie

focuses on

his childhood

and then

finally on

his adventures,

but then as

the movie

comes to

an end,

the story

broadens.

Because it's

not just

about Thomas

Edison,

it's about

how electricity

changed the

world.

It's about

his followers

and their

legacy and

his legacy

and his

impact,

and it's

about the

people who

come after

him who

even far

surpassed

them.

The people

who make

even other

inventions that

even perhaps

have a greater

impact that

grow out of

that.

You realize

that this one

person is only

the beginning

of a much

bigger story.

Second,

so that's a

general point

about biblical

prophecy.

They often

have both

an immediate

fulfillment

and a longer

range fulfillment.

In the case

of this

particular

prophecy,

second point,

the book

of Isaiah

itself points

to both

an immediate

fulfillment

and a longer

range fulfillment.

You might say,

how?

Well,

turn back to

Isaiah,

but keep

your finger

in Matthew.

Turn back

to Isaiah.

Isaiah,

the child

Emmanuel is

first named

in Isaiah

7,

14.

And as I've

pointed out,

the rest of

chapter 7

and the beginning

of chapter 8

clearly indicate

that Isaiah's

son was in

mind.

I think that's

the best way

to understand

them.

But that's

not all that

Isaiah says

about Emmanuel.

Look at

chapter 8,

verse 8.

It's talking

about the king

of Assyria

invading Judah

and sweeping

on into Judah,

overflowing

and passing

on,

reaching even

to the neck.

It's as if

Judah is

nearly drowning

in this flood

and its

outspread wings

that is the

extent

of the king

of Assyria,

his power

will fill

the breadth

of your land,

O Emmanuel.

And you think,

what?

your land,

O Emmanuel.

Wait a minute.

I thought

Emmanuel's just

Isaiah's son.

Isaiah's son

doesn't even

become a king.

How does the

whole land

belong to

Emmanuel?

And then,

verses 9 and 10,

the tone

abruptly shifts

from a prophecy

of judgment

that almost

overwhelms

and destroys

Judah

to

an announcement

of judgment

on the other

nations that

are attacking

Judah.

And a word

of hope

for God's

people.

Verse 10,

take counsel

together,

but it will

come to

nothing.

Speak a word,

but it will

not stand,

for God

is with us.

Emmanuel.

There's that

word again.

It's a word

play.

The word

Emmanuel

means God

with us.

For God

is with us.

So,

Emmanuel seems

to give

renewed

strength

and hope

to God's

people,

even after

God has

judged them

for their

faithlessness.

And then,

Isaiah chapter

Isaiah 9 · chapter mention

9,

which we'll

look at

more next

week,

also talks

about this

child who

will be

born.

Chapter 9,

verse 6,

for to us a

child is

born.

To us a

son is

given,

and the

government

shall be

upon his

shoulder.

And the

end of

verse 7

says,

he will

reign with

justice and

righteousness

from this

time forth

and forever

more.

You see,

the horizon

has broadened.

We've started

by just

looking at

Emmanuel as

Isaiah's son,

and then the

camera angle

has zoomed

out,

and now

we see

that someone

called Emmanuel

will reign

forever.

So it

can't just

be talking

about Isaiah's

son,

even though

it is

talking about

Isaiah's

son at

the first.

Third

point,

Matthew

sees this

familiar

pattern first

described by

Isaiah,

and he

sees that it

has now come

to a greater

fulfillment

in the

birth of

Jesus.

He sees

that Jesus

is this

child who

will one

day reign

forever.

You know,

if you look

at Old

Testament

prophecies,

there are a

few Old

Testament

prophecies

that are

about the

Messiah that

are fairly

straightforward

predictions.

Prophecies

that were

recognized even

before the

coming of

Christ,

by faithful

Jews,

they were

expecting

these words

to refer

to the

Messiah.

A good

example of

one of

these is

Micah 5.2,

which basically

says that a

ruler of

Israel will

come from

Bethlehem.

And you can

look at the

Dead Sea Scrolls,

you can look at

pre-Christian

Jewish documents

that clearly

interpret that

verse as

referring to a

coming Messiah.

Messiah.

But you know,

many or

perhaps even

most Old

Testament

prophecies,

it's not

quite that

clear in

advance what

they're referring

to.

Their

significance

only becomes

clearer in

hindsight after

Christ has

come.

One scholar,

Craig Blomberg,

put it this

way.

He said,

the key

patterns of

activity

ascribed to

God

recur,

that is,

they happen

over and

over,

in striking

discernible

patterns such

that the

believer can

only affirm

the same

hand of

God at

work in

both events.

It's sort

of like if

you turn on

the radio

and you

hear a

song that

you have

never heard

before,

but immediately

you recognize

the singer's

voice.

You recognize

the band's

style and

you know

immediately

who it

is even

though you've

never heard

that song

in your

life.

Or you

see a

piece of

art that

you've never

seen before

and immediately

you know

that's a

Van Gogh,

that's a

Monet,

because you

see the

fingerprints of

the artist.

I think

Matthew looks

at the story

of the birth

of Christ

and he

says,

that's the

God who

speaks to

us in

our

fears.

That's the

God whose

word is

always

trustworthy.

That's the

God who

gives his

people a

sign,

the sign

of Emmanuel,

so they

can see

that he

will always

be true

to his

word.

And so

they can be

encouraged and

challenged to

trust him

and not

trust anything

else that is

not worthy

of their

trust.

You see,

here's the

basic comparison.

Back in the

day,

Isaiah's son

Emmanuel was

assigned to

unfaithful Ahaz

of God's

coming judgment,

but now

Matthew is

saying,

Emmanuel,

born of the

Virgin Mary,

is assigned to

faithful Joseph

and to all

God's people of

his God's

coming salvation.

As Joseph

watched the

child Jesus

grow up,

as he watched

him be born,

as he watched

him grow up,

he would see

God's promises

are coming

to pass

in him.

He is a

sign that God

is faithful to

his word,

and he is a

sign that God

has come

to save us.

That's what

the name Jesus

means.

The Lord

saves.

There's

salvation

for everyone

who will put

their trust

in Jesus.

Emmanuel,

God with

us.

So we've

seen God's

word to

unfaithful

Ahaz,

and we've

seen God's

word to

faithful

Joseph,

and finally,

I want us

to consider

God's word

to us.

What are the

crises and

problems that

you're facing?

What are the

things that can

make your heart

shake like a

tree in the

wind?

Whether they're

personal problems

or family

crises or national

or global

concerns?

Let me speak

to you for a

moment if

you're not

a Christian,

if you're not

currently trusting

Jesus as your

Lord and Savior.

God spoke to

Ahaz, and God

said, ask me

for a sign.

Now, as I

said, God

does not tell

everyone to

ask him for

signs anytime

they want.

God does not

say, ask me

for whatever

you want, and

if I don't

give it to

you, then

don't worry,

you don't

have to

trust me.

The Pharisees

came to

Jesus, they

demanded a

sign, and

Jesus said

no, because

their motives

weren't right.

But here's

the question.

Are you

giving God

a chance to

show himself

to you as

trustworthy and

true?

Maybe you have

questions, maybe

you have doubts

thoughts or fears

or issues, barriers

to faith in the

Christian God.

Talk about them

with a Christian.

You'll almost

certainly find that

other people have

wrestled with the

very same things.

There are good

books by Christians

that address all

kinds of issues and

fears and doubts

and concerns and

questions.

Have you read a

thoughtful book by

a Christian that

explains a

Christian perspective

on whatever your

top doubt or

issue is with

Christianity?

Also, let me

challenge you, are

you willing to

question your

default assumptions?

Ahaz's default

assumption was,

I need to trust

the biggest guy

on the block.

Everybody trusts

something, even

if it's only

themselves.

Who are you

trusting if it's

not God?

Finally, have you

ever prayed and

asked God, God,

if you're real,

would you please

show yourself to

me?

In the

bulletin, there's

a prayer for

those searching

for truth.

It's on the

page titled

Prayers for

Communion.

When we serve

communion in a few

minutes, let me

encourage you to

consider that

prayer.

Second, for

those of us who

are Christians,

will we let God's

word speak to our

fears and our

problems and our

crises?

You know, the

right kind of fear

can be clarifying.

It can jolt us out of

apathy and

complacency.

It can give us a

laser-like focus and

clarity to face the

challenges before us or

to flee the temptations

that ensnare us.

Sometimes we need a

little bit of that

right kind of fear,

which begins with the

fear of God.

All the right kinds of

fear are ultimately

derived from the fear

of God.

Because the fear of God

gives us a respect for

the order that God has

established in this

world.

And therefore, we

learn to live wisely in

the world that God has

made when we recognize

that there's a maker of

this world who ordered

it.

And so, we ought to

respect His design for

things.

There's a right kind of

fear, but there's a

wrong kind of fear.

And the wrong kind of

fear, the kind of fear

that Ahaz had,

God just further

confuses us.

It further creates

clouds of dust.

Sometimes fear can

paralyze us.

Sometimes fear can

drive us into a frenzy

of chaotic activity.

But to be honest, you

can't even quite explain

why you're doing what

you're doing.

You just know that

you're afraid and you're

running.

And you're spinning your

wheels.

Sometimes we can get so

worried about our

concerns, that is,

things that we cannot

control.

And therefore,

ultimately, we need to

trust God with those

things, that we neglect

our responsibilities,

the things that God has

actually assigned us to do.

One person said, we are

always in danger of paying

too much attention to the

passing and paying too

little attention to the

significant.

So will we let God's

words speak to our fears

and reshape our concerns?

You see, on the one hand, the

sign of Emmanuel is a warning,

as it was to King Ahaz.

Whatever we trust in place of

God will eventually turn on us

and destroy us.

But on the other hand, the

sign of Emmanuel is a comfort.

Because we can look at Jesus

and see, God has come to be

with us.

That's how Matthew begins his

gospel, by introducing Jesus as

Emmanuel, God with us.

And what's the last word of the

gospel of Matthew?

Jesus says to his disciples,

go and make disciples of all

nations, and I am with you

always.

to the very end of the age.

Emmanuel has come to be with

us, and he's promised to stay

with us, and never leave us,

and never forsake us.

And so he's with us in our

problems, in our crises, in our

fears.

Don't live as if he's not.

He's not absent.

Brothers and sisters, do not

fear the wrong things.

For God is with us.

Let us pray.

Father God, we thank you for

speaking to us in the midst of

our fears.

We thank you that you do not

only speak to us from afar,

but we thank you that in Jesus

Christ you have come to dwell

with us, that we would know

that we are never alone in all

the battles we face, in all the

uncertainties of life in this

unpredictable and fallen world.

Lord, we thank you that you are

the rock upon which we can stand.

We thank you that you are the

one who can give us courage and

confidence, who can give us

humility and peace.

We pray that we would take heed,

that we would listen and obey

your word.

We pray that in this Advent season

that we would know your presence

with us.

We pray that we would

forsake our

loyalties that are

misguided,

that we would

not trust

other people or other

things

that we should not

be trusting in.

That we would trust in you

alone above all

things.

And that you would give us

wisdom

to live wisely in this world.

We pray that as we

come to the Lord's Supper,

that you would

nourish us and strengthen us

to live by faith

in the one who died for us

and rose again from the dead.

We pray in his name,

Jesus our Lord.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.