Could things be different at Christmas this year?
Could this be the year that we overcome our anger?
Could this be the year that we learn to submit to the Lord?
Could this be the year that we forgive?
Could this be the year that we find our satisfaction in God, and not our possessions?
We have been studying the Names of Jesus from Isaiah 9 in our series “A.K.A. Jesus.” Today we come to the second of four compound names, the title MIGHTY GOD. These names draw our attention to four aspects of the coming Messiah:
Wonderful Counselor - the PERSON of Christ
Mighty God - the POWER of Christ
Everlasting Father - the PROMISES of Christ
Prince of Peace - the PEACE of Christ
Let’s begin our study by looking at the words for Mighty God. This is a compound of two Hebrew names. The name “El” which stands for God. It is the name of God that is most often used and appears in the form Elohim, normally translated God in our English texts.
The second part of the name is the Hebrew word “Gibbor. Taken together, these form the name “El Gibbor.” It is a title that presents to us the power of the one who would come as our Messiah.
The word for power, “gibbor,” is used of MEN. It is used of Nimrod. Genesis 10:9 "He was a mighty hunter before the Lord. Gibbor is also used of David’s mighty men (1 Chron 11:15-19). It can mean “one who magnifies himself, behaves proudly, a tyrant, who is bold, audacious” (Brown, Drivers, Briggs).
This name is also used of GOD. Three occurrences are found in Psalm 145, where the Lord is portrayed as a mighty warrior who rescues his people. Psalm 145:4 "One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your MIGHTY acts." Psalm 145:11 "They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom and tell of your POWER.” Psalm 145:12 "to make known to the children of man your MIGHTY DEEDS, and the glorious splendor of your kingdom."
Men can be powerful, but God holds all power to deliver his people.
When the word Gibbor and the name for God are combined, it provides a compound word for God demonstrating His POWER and WISDOM.
In Isaiah 9:6 the Messiah is given the name EL GIBBOR as a powerful demonstration of the DEITY of the MESSIAH. Because the Messiah is given the description El Gibbor, it means that the Messiah is equal with God, because only GOD is the ALMIGHTY.
Deuteronomy 10:17 "For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe."
Psalm 24:8 "Who is this King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle!"
Another way in which this phrase demonstrates Christ’s deity is that the only other use of compound name “El Gibbor” is found in Isaiah 10:21 "A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God." This verse refers to the FATHER, making the coming Christ equal with the Father.
The promise to Judah in Isaiah 9:6 was that God would demonstrate his POWER and deliver his people through the Messiah. This same message is important for us as we trust Jesus to accomplish impossible things in our lives.
How is JESUS the MIGHTY GOD?
We need to look to the New Testament to discover the ways in which the power of Jesus is described. There are six ways in which Christ’s power is described in the New Testament. These descriptions teach us that Christ wants to give us power for living, and the power to inherit the promises he has in store for us.
First, we see Christ’s Creative Power
1 Corinthians 8:6 "yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live."
Colossians 1:16 "For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him."
Hebrews 1:2 "but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe."
The second concept of Christ’s power is his Resurrection Power
Romans 1:4 "and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,"
Philippians 3:10 "that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,"
Colossians 2:12 "having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead."
Thirdly, we commonly find reference to the Transformation Power of Christ. He has the power to change our lives!
Romans 6:4 "We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life."
2 Peter 1:3 "His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness."
Colossians 1:29 "To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me."
Colossians 2:10 "and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority."
Fourth, when we read about the power of Christ, it is often associated with the message of the Gospel. This is the Gospel Power that is available to all who believe in Jesus.
Romans 1:16 "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile."
1 Corinthians 1:17 "For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power."
Ephesians 3:7 "I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power."
1 Thessalonians 1:5 "because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake."
Colossians 1:22–23 "But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— " "if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant."
The fifth way in which the New Testament often speaks of Christ’s power is the Indwelling Power that Christ gives to his followers. This indwelling power is often a theme in the Prayers of Paul for his friends. Paul prays that they would appropriate all of the power that Christ has promised to them. It raises an important question for us: Are we experiencing the power of the indwelling Christ in our daily lives?
Colossians 1:10–11 "And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, "being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully"
Ephesians 1:18–21 "I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come."
Ephesians 3:20 "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,"
2 Thessalonians 1:11 "With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith."
Creative power
Resurrection power
Transformation power
Gospel power
Indwelling power
The power of Christ is available to every believer! But it is only accessed through FAITH. Colossians 2:12 "having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead."
It is this kind of faith that Jesus speaks of in Matthew 17:20 "He replied, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 21:21 "Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done."
Jesus offers us the power of EL GIBBOR, the Almighty God. Through faith, Christ will empower us to move the mountains in our lives. These mountains are the things that seem immovable to us.
What are YOUR MOUNTAINS?
We believe that Jesus rose again by the power of God, But we don’t believe that things will ever change in our marriage.
We believe that God can forgive our sins and adopt us into his family, But we don’t believe that he has the power to change our attitudes and sinful hearts.
It’s easier to believe in things related to eternity than things related to this earth. Eternity is out there. But our relationships, our problems, our fears, our temptations, our bills and our health are all things that are HERE.
God can give you the power to overcome your adversity
God can give you the power to trust him when things are falling apart
God can give you the power to overcome your troubling temptation
God can give you the power to forgive the person who hurt you so deeply
God can give you the power to be content with the things that He provides
God can give you the power to trust your spouse after they have failed you
God can give you the power to change your behavior
God can give you the power to love him, even though someone is seeking to destroy you
During the end of King Saul’s reign, a small group of brave Hebrew soldiers demonstrated their faith in God to do something impossible. The story is told in 1 Samuel 31. Saul and Jonathon had been killed in battle - the Lord’s judgment on Saul for his sinful practices. In shame and disgrace, their bodies were hung on the city walls of a small hilltop city called Beth Shean. The men of the nearby Jewish city Jabesh-Gilead conducted a daring night-time mission to retrieve the bodies of King Saul and Jonathon.
Beth Shan lies along the Jordan valley, half way between the city of Jericho and the Sea of Galilee. In the time of Jesus it was a major Roman establishment, part of the Decapolis, the group of ten cities in the Jordan and trans-Jordan region. While visiting the ruins of first century Beth Shean, I saw the original city, much smaller in size and situated on a high hill overlooking the ruins of the Roman built Beth Shean. I climbed the hill to the ruins of ancient Beth Shan and realized that the men Jabesh-Gilead had to climb this same hill, completely exposed to the city occupants. A teenage girl with a hand full of rocks could have repelled their rescue attempt! They had to trust completely in God’s deliverance to complete this mission, or they would die.
The men of Jabesh-Gilead demonstrated complete confidence in God - If he did not help them there was no other hope. There was no “plan B.” It is this kind of confidence and faith that characterizes great men and women of faith. Do you have that kind of confidence that unless God helps, your plans will fail? It is both challenging and exciting to follow God in these situations in life.
At an earlier time in Israel’s history, the entire nation was in peril. At the Red Sea, Israel was in a position that only God could help them. Moses proclaimed, "The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him." Exodus 15:2 The Lord delivered them when there was no other hope.
Other passages demonstrate this kind of complete confidence in God:
2 Chronicles 14:11 “Lord, there is no one like you to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us, O Lord our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this vast army. O Lord, you are our God; do not let man prevail against you.”
Psalm 118:14 "The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation."
Isaiah 12:2 "Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord, is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.”
Have faith in MIGHTY GOD for the IMMOVABLE THINGS in your life.
