"The King Has Come"

“The King Has Come!”

December 28, 2008

“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14

Christmas is over. The King has come. And Herod is in a rage. Mothers are weeping in anguish because of his jealousy. The wise men are returning to their homes in the east with great joy and excitement. Shepherds still watch their sheep at night – but they look at the night sky in a whole new way. Mary is holding a perfect little baby in her arms – pondering all these things.

And hundreds of years earlier the prophet Isaiah said all these things would happen. And – they DID happen. But now Christmas is over. The celebration has subsided. The gifts are opened and the Christmas wrappings litter the room. The feast has been consumed and dirty dishes are stacked high. It was a lot of work preparing for this celebration and the clean-up is not nearly so fun. It was wonderful giving gifts – but now bills have to be paid.

So what are we to think about all this? Is there something to learn? Is there something to take with us? I think there are a few things we need to be aware of.

First, I hope you are aware that you are loved. Think of all the trouble God went to – just because He loved you and me so much. Think of the planning involved. This was not a spur of the moment idea with God. Before the world began He planned all this. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit contemplated all aspects of creating man and realized that Jesus would have to come to earth this way – so He could grow up and be the perfect, pure sacrifice for our sins. God knew our frame. He knew what we were made of – or would be made of. He knew we would fall. He knew we would fail. He knew we needed help. He knew we needed a Savior. And Jesus willingly gave Himself for us. He willingly laid down His life for us. He died for our sins in our place. That’s love. Christmas is about how much God loves us. In the wake of Christmas this year, remind yourself of that. God loves you!

Secondly, Christmas shows us that God always keeps His word. The Scriptures told from the beginning that this was going to happen. Even Adam and Eve knew about it when they were driven from the garden. Prophets foretold this wonderful even for centuries. And finally, it arrived – just as they said it would. One thing Christmas reminds us of is that God keeps His word. What He says He will do – He will do. What He says will happen – WILL happen. The bible says,

“Now when people take an oath, they call on someone greater than themselves to hold them to it. And without any question that oath is binding. God also bound himself with an oath, so that those who received the promise could be perfectly sure that he would never change his mind. So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us.” Hebrews 66-18

It is impossible for God to lie. He is not wired that way. He is absolutely pure and holy and true. We can trust Him. We can trust His word. Christmas is an example of God’s faithfulness and truthfulness. It happened in just the way the prophets said it would happen.

So what does that mean to us following Christmas? It means that we can trust Him for the things that are to come. Christmas happened just the way He said it would –and everything else will happen in just the way He promised. Even though the Priest and religious folks got it wrong about His first coming and His dying for their sins – it happened just as the Scripture said it would. That encourages me - because Jesus promised me eternal life. He promised me a home in heaven. He promised me and you glory and honor and awesome, unimaginable blessings. I believe it. I can trust Him. Christmas proves it.

The story is told of a businessman who, having something to do at his office, took his young son along with him. He asked the boy to wait on the steps while he went inside to do his work. Pretty soon he became so engrossed with his business that he forgot about his son waiting outside. Leaving the building by a different door, he went home alone. Several hours later the family sat down to dinner, and noticed the son was not present. His mother became anxious and wondered where he might be. Then the father remembered where he left his son. Hurrying back to his place of work, he found his son, tired and hungry, waiting as he had been instructed to do. “I knew that you would come, father,” he said, “you said you would.”