Immanuel Series

Message

Matthew 1:23

Name Above All Names - Immanuel

Today the sermon will start with a bit of a question around the name. Is it spelt Immanuel, or Emmanuel?

In Hebrew it looks like this:-

(you are going to have to goggle it ...)

the Hebrew is pronounced Immanuel

In Greek it looks like this:-

(again ... go to google) in the Greek it is pronounced Emmanuel

Either way it has the same meaning.

(I used the Hebrew text here above the English)

EL NU IMA

God us with

Today I'm sticking with the Immanuel spelling.

Let's see the name in the text we are focusing on.

23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

Matthew 1:23

Because this is the case there is no doubt that, about the connection that Matthew is making.

20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

22 All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

Matthew 1:20-23

There is only one time when a prophet speaks about Immanuel.

Isaiah 7-8

Historical situation (verse 1-2)

Read

Judah, specifically Jerusalem, is being attacked by Aram (which is the area of modern day Syria) with the help of Israel

This is family against family.

It was a terrible time which took place in 732BC.

Pekah king of Israel, and Rezin king of Aram were trying to force Ahaz to join them in an alliance against Tiglath -pilesar the king of Assyria.

Ahaz refused to cooperate.

But it wasn’t Ahaz’s refusal that was the big problem.

The big problem was Ahaz’s relationship with God.

Ahaz was the king of Judah … in the line of David.

But … he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord.

He … made idols for worshiping the Baals … and sacrificed his children in the fire.

Furthermore he engaged in the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites.

2 Chronicles 28:1-3

As a result of this lack of faith and trust in God, God used Resin and Pekah as a tool of punishment.

6 In one day Pekah son of Remaliah killed a hundred and twenty thousand soldiers in Judah—because Judah had forsaken the Lord, the God of their ancestors. 7 Zikri, an Ephraimite warrior, killed Maaseiah the king’s son, Azrikam the officer in charge of the palace, and Elkanah, second to the king. 8 The men of Israel took captive from their fellow Israelites who were from Judah two hundred thousand wives, sons and daughters. They also took a great deal of plunder, which they carried back to Samaria.

2 Chronicles 28:6-8

In the face of these losses Ahaz sent a message to Tiglath-pilesar.

The king of Assyria.

The king who was destroying all the nations.

Ahaz was desperate.

5 Then Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem and besieged Ahaz, but they could not overpower him.

7 Ahaz sent messengers to say to Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria, “I am your servant and vassal. Come up and save me out of the hand of the king of Aram and of the king of Israel, who are attacking me.” 8 And Ahaz took the silver and gold found in the temple of the Lord and in the treasuries of the royal palace and sent it as a gift to the king of Assyria.9 The king of Assyria complied by attacking Damascus and capturing it. He deported its inhabitants to Kir and put Rezin to death.

2 King 16:6-9

In his position as the king of Judah who should Ahaz have trusted?

He should have repented and trusted in God.

After all God had made a promise to all those in the line of King David.

God had an everlasting covenant with them. He would protect them.

There was a way out from the difficulty. All it involved was humbling himself before God.

But Ahaz wouldn’t do that.

Instead he trusted in the might of Assyria.

And it turned out to be a complete disaster.

But the sad part about all of this is that it didn’t need to be this way.

Read Isaiah 7:1-9