4th Sunday Of Advent, Year A. Series

Isaiah 7:10-16, Psalm 80:1-7, Psalm 80:17-19, Romans 1:1-7, Matthew 1:18-25.

A). BEHOLD, A VIRGIN SHALL CONCEIVE.

Isaiah 7:10-16.

The northern kingdom of Israel/Ephraim, along with her ally Syria/Aram, intended to force the Davidic kingdom of Judah into their alliance against the Assyrians (Isaiah 7:1), by setting up a puppet king - a ‘Son of No Good’ (Isaiah 7:6) - in Jerusalem. The LORD instructed Isaiah to take his son and confront King Ahaz of Judah, who was busy taking stock of the water supply for a possible siege of Jerusalem (Isaiah 7:3). There the LORD’s word to Ahaz was meant for comfort - not so much ‘Let go and let God’ on this occasion as ‘Take stock, don’t panic, vanquish fear… and trust in the LORD’ (Isaiah 7:4; Isaiah 7:9).

The name of Isaiah’s son faced Ahaz with the alternatives: was it ‘A remnant shall return’ or ‘It returns in pieces’? Or even, more pertinently to the immediate situation, ‘A remnant shall repent’ (Isaiah 7:3)? Thankfully, the LORD does offer second chances:

“Moreover, the LORD spoke again to Ahaz” (Isaiah 7:10). The words were still intended to embrace the stubborn king: ask a sign - any sign - of the LORD “your” God (Isaiah 7:11). Ahaz, however, had already decided to lean not on the LORD, but on Assyria, and feigned piety to cover his faithlessness (Isaiah 7:12).

Isaiah was close to losing his temper with this awkward character. Will you also weary “my” God as you are wearying me (Isaiah 7:13)? Then the LORD stepped in and gave him a sign anyway (Isaiah 7:14).

The irony of the sign for Ahaz is that, since he had decided not to trust in the LORD, he just could not see or understand what it meant - even in the short term (cf. Isaiah 6:9-10). The kings whom Judah feared were nothing to the LORD (Isaiah 7:16; cf. Isaiah 7:7-9): butter and honey would be readily available in the city before long (Isaiah 7:15). Ahaz trusting Assyria, however, would ultimately bring the king of Assyria to the very gates of Jerusalem (Isaiah 7:17)!

The young woman who would bear a son called Immanuel, God with us (Isaiah 7:14), was not ultimately the queen bearing Hezekiah (2 Kings 18:7), nor yet Zion bearing the remnant, but Mary bearing Jesus the Saviour. Matthew is clear: reading from the Greek translation of the prophecy, this woman is “the virgin” - and her child’s name Immanuel means “with us the God” (Matthew 1:23). The definite article is emphatic, leading us away from any other mother than the virgin Mary, and any other so-called ‘god’ than the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

APPLICATION

As we approach Christmas, what life-changing choice will we make at the manger of Jesus (cf. John 1:11-12)?

Which path will we choose to follow (cf. Joshua 24:14-15)?

Or into which areas of service and ministry is the LORD giving us a second call (Isaiah 7:10; cf. Jonah 3:1)?

B). GIVE EAR, O SHEPHERD OF ISRAEL.

Psalm 80:1-7; Psalm 80:17-19.

Belief in the God of Israel is not blind faith, but an informed trust. One expression of our confidence that the LORD is in control of all things is to make our complaints known to Him. In Psalm 80 the writer bemoans the plight of the divided tribes of Israel, and boldly expresses his perplexity at God’s dealings with them.

The Psalmist uses two metaphors: that of God as shepherd (Psalm 80:1-7; Psalm 80:17-19), and that of Israel as a vine (Psalm 80:8-16). Both of these Jesus applies to Himself (John 10:11; John 10:14; John 15:1). He as the God-man embraces both.

Asaph begins his prayer with an appeal that God will hear (Psalm 80:1). Sometimes our Shepherd seems distant, and deaf to our cries. We might need, like the Psalmist, to remind ourselves just who He is - “the one who dwells between the cherubim” - and what He has done on behalf of His church in the past (1 Samuel 7:12).

It is customary to think of our salvation as a single event, ‘when I got saved.’ In one sense this is true, but it is also an ongoing event in our lives. The changes and so-called chances of life may present us with new problems as we grow from one level in our Christianity to another, so we need to call on God anew to continue His saving work within us (Psalm 80:2).

There is a refrain throughout the Psalm, growing in intensity and boldness. The appeal for our restoration is first addressed to “God” (Psalm 80:3), then to “God of hosts” (Psalm 80:7), and finally to the “LORD God of hosts” (Psalm 80:19). The prayer that God’s face would shine upon us reminds us of the Aaronic blessing (Numbers 6:24-26), and of the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ transfiguration.