INTRODUCTION
• SLIDE #1
• We going to begin a new series that will take to Easter.
• I cannot believe that Easter is right around the corner!
• The series is entitled, “It Matters.”
• As you have read the Bible, have you ever wondered why it matters? I am not talking about God, but rather all the particulars?
• Why does it matter how things happened? Why can’t there be many paths to God?
• If God loves us so much, why can’t we do whatever we want to still go to Heaven?
• Why were some of the events in the Bible so important that God took the time to tell us ahead of time through prophecy?
• I could ask why questions all day long, because there are plenty of them.
• Through this series Jerry and I are going to take you on a journey through the Old and New.
• We will examine why the events of the life of Jesus from the Old Testament prophecies and their subsequent fulfillment in the New Testament are important.
• In this series we will begin with the event of the birth of Jesus, then Jerry will bring a message concerning the Triumphal Entry, I will follow that up with messages on The Trial and the Crucifixion.
• Jerry will deal with the Resurrection, and I will conclude the series with a message on Easter Sunday concerning the Ascension of Jesus!
• Today we are going to look at the beginning of Jesus on earth, in or message entitled, “The Beginning.
• Let’s look at Isaiah 7:14 together.
• SLIDE #2
• Isaiah 7:14 (HCSB) Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive, have a son, and name him Immanuel.
• We are going into some of my favorite nerd territory for a minute. I want to give you a minute of history to set up the prophecy.
• The time frame was about 735 BC. The Nation of Israel was divided in 931 BC.
• You had the Northern Kingdom, Israel, and the Southern, Judah (which included Jerusalem).
• When Isaiah offered this prophecy, Judah was being threatened by an alliance of Israel and Aram (SYRIA).
• SLIDE #3 MAP
• Ahaz, the king of Judah was afraid and was going to ask for help from the Assyrians, because the Assyrians under Tiglath-pilesar III was going to attack Aram and Israel.
• God called Isaiah to go to Ahaz to stop the alliance.
• Isaiah told Ahaz that within 65 years his enemies would be destroyed. The Northern Kingdom fell to the Assyrians in 722 BC.
• In Isaiah 7:9b we read
• SLIDE #4
• Isaiah 7:9 (HCSB) …If you do not stand firm in your faith, then you will not stand at all.
• Another way to read verse 9 is that Ahaz would not be ESTABLISHED without faith.
• Ahaz was from the line of David and wanted his kingdom to reign forever. Trusting in God versus trusting in the Assyrians was the key to success for Ahaz.
• Isaiah asked Ahaz to ask God for a sign and Ahaz faked humility by saying he could not test the Lord, probably because he already made up his mind.
• Isaiah says, oh well, HERE IS YOUR SIGN, and we have verse 14.
• He tells Ahaz that before a child knows right from wrong that his enemies would be gone.
• This prophecy is directed toward a future event of a miraculous nature, one that Ahaz would not see, but that would give him assurance that the throne of David would continue into the future despite the fears he had.
• So to properly understand the importance of this prophecy we will look at four things that are important to understand.
• These points will explain why the birth of Jesus matters!
• The first thing we need to grasp is…
• SLIDE #5
SERMON
I. The birth had to be supernatural.
• Isaiah’s prophecy would be an encouragement to King Ahaz who was interested in the long-term future of the throne of David.
• I think we can safely say that a virgin birth would be a miracle.
• Liberal critics try to make the Hebrew word used for VIRGIN to mean an young woman of marrying age and they try to assert the word does not mean VIRGIN.
• The six other times the word is used in the Old Testament it does mean VIRGIN.
• The Jewish scholars who translated the LXXX (GREEK TRANSLATION OF THE OLD TESTAMENT) of the Old Testament in 285 BC translated the Hebrew word IN ISAIAH 7:14 TO THE Greek word which meant VIRGIN.
• Matthew in Matthew 1:23 uses the same Greek word used in the LXX when he wrote his passage.
• SLIDE #6
• Matthew 1:22–23 (HCSB) — 22 Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 See, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name Him Immanuel, which is translated “God is with us.”
• Jesus birth had to be something miraculous, an ordinary birth would not have sufficed. Jesus would have just been another person who was born and one day died.
• When we look at Isaiah 7:14 Isaiah uses the word SIGN. Sign means a miracle so an ordinary birth would not fit the prophecy and therefore had Jesus been born as the rest of us, He would not be the Messiah.
• So the fact He was born of a virgin does matter because without that happening, Jesus COULD NOT claim to be the Messiah, the Son of God!
• Matthew or an Angel of the Lord took the passage from Isaiah and told us it referred to Jesus.
• The second thing we need to grasp is…
• SLIDE #7
II. The child had to come from the line of David.
• This is another issue that matters because IF Jesus did not come from the line of David, He would not be able to claim to be Messiah.
• Let’s look at Isaiah 9:7
• SLIDE #8
• Isaiah 9:7 (HCSB) The dominion will be vast, and its prosperity will never end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. The zeal of the Lord of Hosts will accomplish this.
• This passage lets us know that in order for the throne of David to reign forever, Jesus had to be from the line of David.
• In Matthew 1, Matthew gives the genealogy of Jesus through Joseph, which would be His LEGAL LINE.
• In Luke 3, Luke gives the genealogy of Mary, the physical line of Jesus. This is why the two genealogies are different. Mary is not mentioned by name in Luke’s genealogy because they did not typically list the genealogy of females in that time period.
• Luke traces the family tree through David’s Son Nathan (2 Samuel 5:13-15) whereas Matthew shares the genealogy through David’s son Solomon.
• SINCE JESUS WAS BORN AFTER JOSEPH AND MARY WERE MARRIED (Matthew 1:24), JESUS WOULD BE THE A LEGAL HEIR OF DAVID.
• Luke understood the nature of the birth of Jesus also in his genealogy he begins it this way:
• SLIDE #9
• Luke 3:23 (HCSB) As He began His ministry, Jesus was about 30 years old and was thought to be the son of Joseph, son of Heli,
• Joseph was the SON-IN-LAW of Heli, the father of Mary who would NOT be mentioned in a genealogy.
• SLIDE #10
• 2 Samuel 7:16 (HCSB) Your house and kingdom will endure before Me forever, and your throne will be established forever.’ ”
• SO the genealogy of Jesus matters.
• The next issue that matters is that…
• SLIDE #11
III. God had to literally be present in the child.
• In Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah told King Ahaz The virgin will conceive, have a son, and name him Immanuel.
• This name means GOD WITH US. When Jesus was born, Mary looked into the eyes of God, not a god, not a representation of a god, BUT GOD HIMSELF!
• In Jesus we have Divine nature living in a human body!
• This gives the power behind Jesus when He claimed to be God!
• One of the instances in which He claimed to be God was at His trial
• SLIDE #12
• Mark 14:60–65 (HCSB) — 60 Then the high priest stood up before them all and questioned Jesus, “Don’t You have an answer to what these men are testifying against You?” 61 But He kept silent and did not answer anything. Again the high priest questioned Him, “Are You the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” 62 “I am,” said Jesus, “and all of you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power and coming with the clouds of heaven.” 63 Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “Why do we still need witnesses? 64 You have heard the blasphemy! What is your decision?” And they all condemned Him to be deserving of death. 65 Then some began to spit on Him, to blindfold Him, and to beat Him, saying, “Prophesy!” The temple police also took Him and slapped Him.
• It matters that Jesus is NOT A god, but God in the flesh!
• For our final observation let’s look ay Isaiah 9:6
• SLIDE #13
• Isaiah 9:6 (HCSB) For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on His shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
• SLIDE #14
IV. The magnificence of the child could not fall short of that assigned by God.
• This passage is awesome!
• For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on His shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
• Is it not comforting to know that we RELY On God, that HE is in control, not the government.
• They will make mistakes, Jesus will not!
• The phrase and the government will be on His shoulders is a reference to His eternal sovereignty.
• This GETS ME EXCITED!
• He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
• HALLELUJAH!
• HE IS JESUS, SON OF GOD!
• He is not JUST a good teacher, HE IS JESUS, SON OF GOD!
• He was not JUST a good example, HE IS JESUS, SON OF GOD!
• He is not A god! HE IS JESUS, SON OF GOD!
• AMEN!
CONCLUSION
• So does it matter? Does it matter how His birth took place? YES, IT DOES!
• Why?
• Because HE IS JESUS, SON OF GOD!
• HE was no ordinary child!
• Does it matter? YES, IT DOES! Once you realize HE IS JESUS, SON OF GOD, you life will never be the same, it was never the same for the Apostles and it will not be the same for you!
• PRAISE GOD! PRAISE THE NAME OF JESUS!
