An Unlikely Messiah Series

An Unlikely Messiah

(Isaiah 53:1-3)

1. Danny was born with no ears. He could hear all right, but he didn’t have ears like normal people. All his life, Danny endured ridicule and rejection because of his deformity. But he learned to live with it…

… He graduated from high school with honors and was accepted at a major university thousands of miles away. He kissed his parents good-bye and began his life as a college student. Again, though, he found it hard to make friends and fit in because of his ears.

One day he got a phone call from his father. “Go to the hospital tomorrow, Danny. A donor has been found.”

Danny checked into the university hospital. A few hours later, Danny had new ears.

When the bandages came off, Danny gazed into the mirror for hours. He finally had ears like normal people. For the first time in his life, he wasn’t ashamed of the way he looked.

A few weeks later, Danny received another phone call from his father. “Son, your mother is very ill,” his father said. “She may not live through the night.”

Danny was on the first plane home. When he arrived, his father gave him the sad news that his mother had died.

Together they went to the funeral home, where Danny was able to see his mother for the last time. He leaned over to kiss her cheek. Brushing her hair back from her face, he noticed that she had no ears. [Dawn Turner, Sermon Central]

2. Incarnation and death meant a sacrifice of amazing dignity for we lost sinners.

3. Instinct tells us that God the Son would come to earth as a prestigious, handsome, winsome many who would charm people to God; this instinct is completely wrong.

Main Idea: God loves to confound the wise and uses the most unlikely means to accomplish his ends, even when it came to the incarnation of the Son of God.

I. His People Could Not BELIEVE that He Was Messiah (1)

A. An EXCLAMATION at the unbelief of his people

• The report equals the Gospel

John 1:11-12, " He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God…"

1. Illustration: We are all used to people doubting us: lying, formed inaccurate conclusions or have partial information; sometimes, they are right.

2. Some people are, by nature, skeptics. Skepticism is different from being open minded because skeptics are not going to budge despite the evidence.

3. That Jesus was the Messiah was documented before the New Testament was written. The original documentation is in the Old Testament.

B. The ARM of the Lord must be REVEALED

1. God’s arm is his strength; but strength can look like weakness

2. The strength of God’s arm is only revealed to some; most do not believe the report

C. Most of you are AMAZING in some way, although you may not seem to stand out…

D. When people refuse the amazing Savior, they HURT THEMSELVES

II. He Was Considered Undesirable and UNATTRACTIVE (2)

A. A SHOOT of David (Is. 11:1)

B. He is like a tree SUCKER

"Tree suckers are branches growing from the base of your tree. Not only are they aesthetically unappealing, but they also produce inferior foliage, blossoms & fruit. Trees will grow suckers during times of stress as an effort to produce more branches [ehow.com]

C. He is like a seed sprouting in ARID soil

D. David was attractive; the Messiah is NOT

I Samuel 16:18, " One of the servants answered, ’I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the lyre. He is a brave man and a warrior. He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the LORD is with him.’”

E. This world rewards BEAUTIFUL and outstanding people

1. Tall, good looking (Dressed for Success)

2. Entire churches filled with good-looking people, can become snobby

3. How sad when his followers avoid the not so good looking or grungy types

III. He Was DESPISED and Rejected of Men (3)

A. In summary, he will be called a NAZARENE

Matthew 2:23, "and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene."

"…the city of Nazareth was inhabited by families from the royal line of David from which the Messiah was to come. The name of the city comes from the Hebrew word for a branch or sprout, netzer… Isaiah 11:1 predicts the coming of the Messiah. ’A shoot will come from the stump of Jesse, from his roots a Branch (netzer) will bear fruit.’