Prince Of Peace Series

Jesus, Prince of Peace

Isa. 9:6

Illus. Typical of last minute Christmas shoppers, a mother was running frantically from store to store. Suddenly she realized her three year old son was no longer holding her hand. In a panic she retraced her steps and found him standing near a frosty window, gazing at a manger scene. Hearing his mother’s near hysterical call, he turned and shouted with innocent glee: "Look Mommy! It’s baby Jesus in the hay". With obvious indifference and impatience, she grabbed him and said, "We don’t have time for that!" (From "THE WONDER OF CHRISTMAS" by Glenn Pease).

How many of us are guilty of being too busy for Jesus this holiday season?

And yet, He is precisely why we celebrate and why we’re studying Him this Christmas.

The truth is, we have just begun to scratch the surface of Who Jesus really is.

We’ve been looking at 1 verse that lists just four names for Jesus (turn to Isa. 9:6).

In those names, we’ve discovered…

•As our Wonderful Counselor, He is an amazing/awesome/astonishing Advisor/Advocate.

•As our Mighty God, our salvation, strength, and security depend on Him.

•As our Everlasting Father, He has a permanent and paternal relationship with us.

Today, we wrap up our short study by looking at one last Name, our Prince of Peace.

•In all the hustle and bustle, it seems like “peace” is about the last thing on our minds.

•Which is why we need to talk about it.

Prayer

Isa. 9:6 FOR TO US A CHILD IS BORN, TO US A SON IS GIVEN, AND THE GOVERNMENT WILL BE ON HIS SHOULDERS. AND HE WILL BE CALLED WONDERFUL COUNSELOR, MIGHTY GOD, EVERLASTING FATHER, PRINCE OF PEACE.

The first thing we discover in our name today is …

I. HE IS OUR PRINCE.

The context of Isa. 9:6 revolves around the idea that Messiah will be a Prince.

6FOR TO US A CHILD IS BORN, TO US A SON IS GIVEN, AND THE GOVERNMENT WILL BE ON HIS SHOULDERS. AND HE WILL BE CALLED WONDERFUL COUNSELOR, MIGHTY GOD, EVERLASTING FATHER, PRINCE OF PEACE. 7OF THE INCREASE OF HIS GOVERNMENT AND PEACE THERE WILL BE NO END. HE WILL REIGN ON DAVID’S THRONE AND OVER HIS KINGDOM, ESTABLISHING AND UPHOLDING IT WITH JUSTICE AND RIGHTEOUSNESS FROM THAT TIME ON AND FOREVER. THE ZEAL OF THE LORD ALMIGHTY WILL ACCOMPLISH THIS.

•This whole passage conveys the fact that this Messiah would be a victorious ruler.

There are two things about a prince I want to highlight today.

A. A prince commands respect.

A prince was someone who was highly respected and revered/held in high esteem.

•He was considered royalty.

Illus. We have trouble respecting authority in America.

•That’s one of the shortfalls of being a democracy.

•Our young people are being taught to challenge and even resist authority.

When the British meet royalty, they bow/pay respect as a sign of submission/humility.

In Biblical times, a prince commanded the same respect.

Gen. 42:6 NOW JOSEPH WAS THE GOVERNOR OF THE LAND, THE ONE WHO SOLD GRAIN TO ALL ITS PEOPLE. SO WHEN JOSEPH’S BROTHERS ARRIVED, THEY BOWED DOWN TO HIM WITH THEIR FACES TO THE GROUND.

1 Sam. 25: 23 WHEN ABIGAIL SAW DAVID (before he was king), SHE QUICKLY GOT OFF HER DONKEY AND BOWED DOWN BEFORE DAVID WITH HER FACE TO THE GROUND.

A prince commands respect. Jesus, our Prince commands the greatest respect.

•He is to be held in the highest esteem.

•That means we submit to His authority whether we want to or not.

•It means we honor Him and revere Him above all else, all the time.

•It means we bow before Him in humility and treat Him like royalty.

Not only is He a Prince, but there’s coming a day when He will return as King of kings and Lord of lords.

Phil. 2:10-11 THAT AT THE NAME OF JESUS EVERY KNEE SHOULD BOW, IN HEAVEN AND ON EARTH AND UNDER THE EARTH, 11AND EVERY TONGUE CONFESS THAT JESUS CHRIST IS LORD, TO THE GLORY OF GOD THE FATHER.

The second characteristic of a prince actually sets him apart from the king.

B. A prince concerns himself with the people.

Princes were usually more involved in the affairs of the country than the king.

The king sat on his throne signing orders, while the princes were out in the trenches, governing the people.

In 2 Sam. 15, David’s son, Absalom, was able to overtake the throne because he sat at the gate with the people and turned their hearts toward him.

The people could better relate to a prince than they could to a king.

Jesus, as our Prince, is also concerned with the affairs of His people.

•He left His throne in heaven to humble Himself and come down to the likes of us.