“For a child will be born for us,
a son will be given to us,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
He will be named
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
The dominion will be vast,
and its prosperity will never end.
He will reign on the throne of David
and over his kingdom,
to establish and sustain it
with justice and righteousness from now on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD of Armies will accomplish this.”
Isaiah 9:6-7
Every Christmas there’s toys that are in high demand. A few years ago, Buzz Lightyear was THE toy that kids were all desperate for at Christmas. Parents were going berserk trying to get their hands on one, but there just wasn’t the supply for the demand. The toys were selling for astronomical prices as parents did everything in their power to deliver on promises made (probably via Santa…) to their eager kids.
The reality is though, that there would have been a load of disappointed kids on Christmas Morning. Countless parents (again, via Santa…) didn’t have it in their power to keep their word.
Hundreds of years before the first Christmas, God made a promise. He spoke through the prophet Isaiah and said that a child would be born, who would reign as king.
It was a pretty significant promise.
‘He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.’ That’s quite a selection of titles. It paints the picture of a divine, wise, caring, and just king.
‘He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever.’ God promised a king who would reign forever. Israel had endured more bad kings than good, but even the best kings couldn’t claim to last forever.
This was a much bigger promise than a Buzz Lightyear toy.
This was a promise that only God could keep. And He did.
Jesus is the child who was born for us, the son who was given to us. The King who rules eternally.
He is the King who already reigns.
He is the King who spoke creation into existence.
He is the King who holds the universe together.
He is the King who is truly sovereign over all things.
He is the King with the power to do all that He promises.
The promise from Isaiah 9 is one of many. The whole Old Testament was an arrow pointing towards Jesus’ coming. The New Testament shows that these promises were kept, and also that there are more yet to be realised. Here and now, we see a glimpse of Jesus’ eternal reign. We can live in His Kingdom. He has promised that one day we’ll see and know the fulness of His reign and Kingdom. He will return.
Until then, we have the Bible, God’s written word, to lead, guide, challenge and comfort us. We can trust that all God promises is true, because He alone has the sovereign power to do exactly what He says He will.
O Come Let Us Adore Him!
A thought to remember: Jesus is the sovereign king, with the power to keep all that He promises.
A question to ask: What promise of Jesus from the Bible gives you greatest comfort? Praise Him for that today!
A bit more to read: Isaiah 9:1-7
A song to sing: You’re the Word of God the Father