"The Passionate Commitment Of The Lord…”

I’m sure you have heard the following expression said concerning someone (and most times it is said in a negative context) but the expression, “So & so has an agenda!” or “That group has an agenda!”

We live in a nation & even a world where there are certain people & groups who not only have an agenda but are determined to see their pet passion or personal agenda accomplished. From politicians to activists to judges to dictators & madmen to business people to multi-millionaires who use their millions to push & fund their agenda – all over our nation & our world people are pushing their agendas. Some of these agendas are small but others are quite large – seeking to impact all of society & for some, even the entire world. Some have tried but thankfully failed [Hitler would be one]. Some are more successful than others & some are extremely successful – to the place of altering thinking, changing laws & lifestyles.

For many of these it would be an accurate description to say they are determined, passionate & even zealous in pursuing the accomplishment & success of their agenda/goal.

• LGBTQ agenda – This would be an apt description of the lgbtq agenda. They have been Determined,

passionate & zealous to make this lifestyle accepted in every aspect of society.

• Planned Parenthood

• Climate Change

• PETA

Now having an agenda is not necessarily something bad. I had an agenda (& still do) as it related to my children & I hope you do, too. I have an agenda for this fellowship. Agenda’s aren’t necessarily bad – they can be very good, even God-honoring. The frustrating thing is not having the power, ability & authority to carry it out; to guarantee its success.

Now in terms of agendas - no one has had a bigger or grander agenda than God. Think about His agenda. What was it? We could say it in different ways:

• To rescue fallen, sinful man from his utter doom that awaits him when he stands before a holy God to give an

account.

• To restore a fallen world to the perfect place it once was.

• To forever rid the universe of the most evil & wicked being there ever has or will be.

• To establish a kingdom where perfect righteousness & loyalty forever reigns.

• To show forth the might, wisdom, glory & majesty of His Being.

• And course the centerpiece of His agenda was the birth, death, resurrection, ascension & 2nd coming of His

Son, the Lord Jesus Christ which we, in part, celebrate today.

That is an impressive agenda. Sometimes we hear of, say, a president coming into office with an impressive, far-reaching & all-encompassing agenda. I’d call God’s agenda incredibly impressive, far-reaching & definitely all-encompassing.

But as I said, the frustrating thing is not having the power, ability & authority to carry it out; to guarantee its success. And that’s what I want us to think about this morning.

There is a powerful little statement found in Isaiah 9, one that has captivated my thoughts this season. I have been thinking about it for a couple of weeks now. I think it gets overlooked b/c we so focus on the verses preceding it. This 1 little sentence at the end of the verse doesn’t get much press as I discovered in studying it this week. The bulk of the explanation & commentary on this section is spent on the prophecy & description of the coming Messiah who was to be born. Great sermons have been preached on the names foretold of the coming Savior & Messiah & you know them so well: Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. We sing about them. But very little is said, at least in what I read, about this powerful little statement. But w/o this declaration at the end - none of the prophecy would have happened. Jesus wouldn’t have been born. The agenda would have failed.

Isaiah 9 - Background – This was a dark, rebellious, idolatrous culture to which Isaiah wrote. A nation & a time not too much unlike our own day. A nation that was under God’s discipline & would continue under it. But into these dark times Isaiah prophecies of the coming of light (v.2), a great light – the Messiah. His prophecy contains elements of Jesus’ 1st coming but also His 2nd coming. And it was prophesy designed to give the people hope. Everything looked so black & so hopeless that the godly remnant needed to be assured that God was still on the throne & that His agenda had not failed - that there was hope for the future. With that as background we come to the 2 most familiar verses of the prophecy: