Isaiah chapter nine, will you take your Bibles and turn there for a few minutes? A familiar passage beginning in verse six, "For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us. And the government will rest on his shoulders and his name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace, there will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on, and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this."

God has given us these words pertaining to the person and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ that we might understand more fully, who he is. And of course, this is pure folly to the world. If you were to ask the average person, do you believe that Jesus came to this earth? And that's what we celebrate on Christmas, well, many people would say, "Yeah, I believe that." Okay. Well, do you also believe that the increase of a government is going to be on his shoulders? One day? Wow. No, I don't know about that. You know, I buy into this whole Jesus thing that, that yeah, maybe he was God, but I don't buy the whole government thing. But do you believe that Jesus was the Prince of Peace? Oh, yes. I'm all for peace. And certainly Jesus was the greatest example of non violent resistance against tyranny. Well, do you believe that He was the creator of all things? And all things hold together by the Word of His power? Oh, no, that's ridiculous. Do you believe he was God incarnate? That He came to save sinners? On his death? In his death on the cross? Well, no, I don't believe that. Do you believe, according to Ephesians, 1:20, that the Father "raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand and the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named not only in this age, but also in the one to come." Do you believe that? No. Those are silly myths in the Bible. Do you believe his words when he said that all authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth in Matthew 28? I don't believe that. You believe him when he said that the Father has given all judgment to the Son? And that he gave Him authority to execute judgment because he is the Son of Man? Do you believe that? No, people don't really believe that. Do you believe that his wrath currently abides upon you because of your unbelief? No, I don't believe that. Do you believe what Jesus said when he says, He who believes in the Son has eternal life? But he who does not obey the Son will not see life but the wrath of God abides on him? No. Most people do not believe any of those things. How sad. And it is typical of people apart from Christ a mock these great truths. In fact, we read in 2 Corinthians that 4, that "the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ who is the image of God. For we do not preach ourselves," The apostle Paul said, "but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond servants, for Jesus sake. For God who said 'light shall shine out of darkness is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.'" Indeed, the one who spoke light into existence is the one that has spoken into our hearts, that we might see the light of the glory of Christ and be saved. AW Tozer once said, quote, "The gravest question before the church is always God Himself. And the most pretentious fact about any man is not wit what he at any given time may say or do, but what he in his deep heart conceives God to be like."

You see, folks, our God, or our view of God, our understanding of God, our apprehension of who he is, is the basis of everything in our life. It determines who we will worship, how we will worship, if we will worship at all. It determines what kind of church we will attend. And Satan is a diabolical genius when it comes to deceiving people. And he does this primarily through false teachers who distort the Word of God and offer up a God that we can somehow control or impress a God that winks at our sin, that just accepts everybody the way they are, that dances to our beat, that really requires nothing of us so that we can live our life any way we want. And then on our deathbed when we stand on the brink of eternity, we will be able to sing with Frank Sinatra, "I've lived a life that's full, I've traveled each and every highway, and more, much more I did it, I did it my way." And for those who live according to that folly, you will have an eternity to regret, your unbelief and your rebellion before a holy God. The Christmas season is a perfect time to elevate Christ to His rightful position, his proper place, and behold, the excellency in the glory of who he is, so that we can not live in our way but live it his way, right? And what a blessing that is.

And this morning, I want to examine this ancient prophecy for a few minutes that God gave to Isaiah, one that reveals much of the great truths of who Jesus is. A text that speaks prophetically of his birth that we celebrate here today, the birth of the Incarnate Son of God and a text that also really details the steadfast love that God extends towards those who fear him. And it also reminds us of the judgment that God has upon those who do not fear him. Now, Isaiah 9:6-7 here is a is an aspect of the Christmas story that typically isn't talked about very much. But it was revealed to the Prophet to preach to the people of Judah during a period of spiritual darkness. One that is not all that dissimilar to the spiritual darkness that we see in our land today. It was revealed to the Prophet about 700 years before Christ during the divided kingdom. And he prophesied, Isaiah prophesied that is, for at least 34 years during the reign of four kings beginning at the death of Messiah. And he prophesied through the reign of Jotham, of Ahaz, of Hezekiah. And finally Manassah. And when we look back at ancient Judah, we see some amazing parallels to the United States of America today. During the 52 year reign of King Uzziah, Judah had prospered greatly. They had a strong economy, they were wealthy. They had developed into a very powerful commercial country, powerful military state, they were very proud. In fact, in that day, they were considered to be militarily invincible.

But as you look at scripture and history, you see that they were materialistic to the core. They are governed by crooked politicians. Their spiritual leaders were phony apostates. They were a very religious people, but they were a people that were really dominated by hypocrisy by idolatry and by gross immorality. So God promised judgment upon this people we read about this, for example, in Isaiah 5. Now at the end of his reign Uzziah, in his pride, violated God's command and attempted to pursue and assume the role of high priest, and he desired to burn incense on the altar. You may recall the story in the Old Testament. And the consequences were devastating. God struck him with leprosy, which soon caused his death. And it was then according to Isaiah 6, that God called Isaiah to prophesy in the year of whose ideas death, which was 739 BCE. Now, the vast majority of the people, like today rejected his warnings, people today reject the gospel, they think it's foolish, and only a small remnant believed. But finally, according to tradition, King Manassah had enough of Isaiah, and had him cut asunder with a wooden saw. So it was against this blackness, this darkness in the land, that God promised the light of salvation through a child that would one day be born. And here we learn much of who God is, and how his steadfast love is manifested toward those who fear him. My outline is going to be rather brief this morning, and it's rather simple, we're going to look first at the promise of His birth. Secondly, the description of his titles, thirdly, the nature of his kingdom, and finally, the zeal of his determination. And frankly, these are great truths that we need to shout from the rooftops, especially on Christmas.

So first, will you notice that God reveals these amazing truths to Isaiah, with no explanation as to the interval of time, this was 700 years now, before the child would come. But people didn't know if it was going to be next week or next year or when it was going to happen, nor does he offer any measure of the span of time between when the child would be born and when the government will rest upon his shoulders. In other words, there is no time period of how long it's going to be between his first and his second coming. We know when the first coming was, we're still awaiting the Second Coming. Now this, by the way, is a common prophetic device that we see. In Scripture, it's known as "prophetic forshortening". When a prophet reveals various truths with no idea of, of what is going to intervene in between the time the prophets would look ahead, and they would envision two Advents of Christ as two mountain peaks, with a valley in between. I often use the analogy when you head towards Denver, from this side of Denver, you get into Colorado, and all of a sudden, you can begin to see the mountains and you see all of these peaks, and they look like they're all lined up. But there's many miles between some peaks and others in the background. And that's what we have here. They had no idea of the size of the valley in between the first and the second coming. Peak one would be Jesus birth, peak two would be his second coming, speaking of the government being on his shoulders, and so forth. Now, don't think here that there's a double meaning, but rather, one of them is simply the harbinger of the next even greater and more climactic event. And from our perspective, again, we can look back and see the time interval in the valley between the first and the second coming, and we're living there today. And we're awaiting that next peak, if you will.

So 700 years before Christ, Isaiah, by the power of the Spirit is revealed. The Spirit reveals to him these two mountain peaks of precious hope, a child is going to be born one day, and he would someday rule from the throne of David on an everlasting or in an everlasting kingdom. So first let's notice for a moment the promise of His birth a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us. Now notice it does not say that a child will be born from us, nor does it say we will produce from ourselves a son. You will recall when Jesus talked with Nicodemus, we read God so loved the world that he what? He gave His only begotten Son. Begotten in the original language, "monogenes" says a term that means "unique or radically distinctive, something in a category, all of its own without equal." God gave His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and indeed he was born but he was conceived by the Holy Spirit. He was God's only begotten son, his only unique one of a kind, son spawned from God the Father, Consubstantial in every way of his very essence possessing His very nature. Moreover, it says, this child will be born to us, his son will be given to us. Now please understand, this child was not made, he was not created. He already existed, he was given. Again, God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ is the pre existent, self existent, uncreated Creator of the Universe. Yes, he was a child, but he was also the eternal Son. He was the greater son of David, but more importantly, he was the Son of God, a son of a virgin according to the flesh, but God with us according to the Spirit, but we must realize that this gift of Christ was promised before time began. By a God who cannot lie. We read this in Titus 1:2, think of this the next time you think of Jesus in the manger, that he was promised, before time began before God created time before he created anything. 2 Timothy 1:9, we read, "He has saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity." "From all eternity" can be translated "before time began." "But now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus who abolished death, and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." And notice what else is promised concerning that child that was born to us the son who was given to us in verse six, "and the government will rest on his shoulders." Now, obviously, that hasn't happened yet. But it will. The promised fulfillment of this verse verse can be found in a number of passages. For example, in Psalm 2 beginning in verse 8, the father describes the sons kingship and he says, "Ask of me, and I will surely give the nations as thine inheritance and the very ends of the earth as your possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron, thou shalt shatter them, like earthenware." And I don't know about you, actually, I do know about most of you, but I cannot wait until the King comes. I am so tired of being ruled by godless people, that are buffoons, that are fools, in desperate need of God's saving grace. Man may remove Christ from Christmas, but he cannot remove him from his throne. So someday, the wicked rulers that are endemic to world history will surrender to the righteous reign of Christ. We know that in Bible prophecy, Jerusalem will be the capital of the world, Christ will rule from the throne of David. And during that millennial kingdom, the Lord Jesus Christ will enforce his standards of righteousness with a rod of righteousness, He will protect his sheep, the sheep of his fold with the scepter of iron and we will rule with Him. Revelation 2 beginning in verse 26, and "He who overcomes and keeps my works until the end to him I will give power over the nations, he shall rule them with a rod of iron and they shall be dashed to pieces, like the potter's vessels."

So in Isaiah's prophecy, we see not only the promise of His birth, but the description of his titles. If you will notice there are four pairs of names and each name foreshadows his coming rule upon the earth during his millennial reign. The first two names are linked to an earlier name that of "Immanuel" which means "God with us" that Isaiah revealed and chapter 7:14, there you will recall He says, "Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son and we will call his name Immanuel." And then the second two names denote the glorious conditions of that time that he will bring about. So first of all, notice in verse six, "and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor." Literally, Wonder Counselor, the original language. It denotes a supernatural counselor, one with supernatural counsel. And this would have been great news to the believing remnant of that day that were absolutely fed up with the bad counsel they were receiving from their false shepherds, and their political leaders. They're the people like we experienced today. So a kingdom will rise and it will fall basically upon the council of its rulers, and that's going to change someday and certainly an everlasting kingdom requires the wisdom of an eternal, omniscient and holy God. So this child would be a supernatural counselor for he would be God incarnate. And we're waiting for that day. And this was the first hope of Zion that God gave through Isaiah. A divine promise that that would occur during this time of his reign upon the earth and millennial restoration after the pre kingdom judgments. And in chapter one and verse 26, we read, "Then I will restore your judges as at the first and your counselors as at the beginning. After that you will be called the city of righteousness of faithful city." Isaiah then prophesied in verse 27 of chapter one, "Zion will be redeemed with justice and her repentant ones with righteousness, but transgressors and sinners will be crushed together and those who forsake the LORD shall come to an end." So one day dear friends, the Lord Jesus that we celebrate today, the one who came and died in our stead and was raised again from the dead, the Wonder Counselor will return as the absolute monarch over all of the earth. Now, let's think more deeply for a moment about what this means as a wonderful counselor.

As I reflected upon this, I thought my he was a supernatural counselor, number one, in eternity past. Again before time began, and space was created, the triune godhead, counseled together to determine and decree a plan as to how they would put their glory on display. Romans 11:36, "For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things to Him be the glory forever. Amen." So to be sure, the eternal Son was part of that council, working on a perfect plan in perfect oneness with the Father and the Spirit. Together they deliberated, think about this, on creation. This vast universe, the galaxies the stars, including our sun and moon in the earth, they counseled together as to what would be the laws of physics, the essence and purpose of every angel, the unfathomable intricacies of every strand of DNA. Together, they counseled concerning man, what he would be and woman, his and her body, his and her mind. Thought about all of us, the color of our eyes, our hair, shape of our face, the sound of our voice. The Bible even speaks of how our days are determined, our length of days. Psalm 139:15, the Psalmist says" My frame was not hidden from the when I was made in secret and skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth," referring to the mother's womb, "thine eyes have seen my unformed substance, and in thy book, they were all written the days that were ordained for me." So our beloved Christ was the counselor for all the wondrous works of God. And as our wonderful counselor, he even deliberated with the Father and the Son as to how to allow sin and evil to enter into their perfect universe that they would create. This is evident in God's testimony of himself when he said in Isaiah 45:7, "I form the light and create darkness I make peace and create evil. I the LORD do all of these things." And we know biblically that he ordained evil to enter his perfect universe through the voluntary choices of moral creatures. And he did this to dramatically display his glory through his holiness, through his wrath, through his mercy, through His grace and love and power. And our wonderful counselor also helped craft that plan of redemption whereby we have been saved, including the uninfluenced choice of those that he would save. Ephesians 1:5, the father "predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself." Verse 11, "we have obtained an inheritance having been predestined according to His purpose, who works all things after the counsel of his will." Indeed, all of his elective purposes were ordained from eternity, 2 Timothy 1:9 and Titus 1:2. Again, as I said earlier, before time began, which would by implication, include his divine decree for Satan, and the angels to rebel, for Adam and Eve to sin, and by imputation, all men to sin and Adam, thus requiring according to Revelation 13:8, "the lamb to be slain" When? "from the foundation of the world." We can therefore conclude that God's elective, eternal purposes were decreed and set into motion before creation. And this would include the incarnation of the Son, the Lord Jesus, that would come to Earth. It would include His atoning work, his defeat of Satan and sin. All of these amazing realities, I'm just hitting the highlights. As we think about baby Jesus in the manger, he was indeed a wonderful counselor, with the Father and the Spirit in eternity past. And for this reason, Isaiah said in chapter 25:1, "Oh, Lord, thou art my god, I will exalt thee, I will give thanks to thy name, for thou hast worked wonders, plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness." So he was a counselor in eternal eternity past but also a supernatural counselor in the present. He counsels us according to His providence, does he not? As he orchestrates all things to accomplish his purposes in our lives, including the events and actions of all that we do. Ephesians 1:11, He accomplishes or brings about all things "according to the counsel of his will." Proverbs 19:21. "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but the counsel of the Lord it will stand." And in Act 17 Verse 28, "In Him, we live and move and have our being. "And Romans 8:28, that you're all familiar with, "We know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose."

So dear friends, nothing happens in our life that was not first determined in eternity. Concepts that are beyond our imagination. All of those things that would endure to our eternal benefit and his eternal glory, He counsels not only through His providence, but through His Word. He is the eternal Logos, the word, the incarnation of the word, who reveals the very mind and heart of God, and we hear His voice and learn from him whenever we read His Word. Indeed, Jesus said, "My sheep," what? "hear my voice," and they do what? "And they follow Me." Those that aren't a sheep, don't hear His voice, and think it's ridiculous to follow him. He counsels us through his presence in our lives. He remains to this very day Immanuel, God with us. Again, He has redeemed us that he might inhabit us, He dwells within us. He promised "lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." And because of this, he is a wise and a sympathetic counselor. Hebrews 4:15, "for we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted at all things as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need." Indeed, according to Proverbs 8:31, he rejoices in his inhabited world and delights in the children of men and Proverbs 8:14 says, "Counsel is mine and sound wisdom; I am understanding."

Oh, dear Christian, what a foolish thing it is to neglect the counsel of the Lord our God that is revealed to us in His Word. So we can see his supernatural counsel in the past and the present. But finally, counsel pertaining to the future. You know, man is incurably curious about the future and foolishly, he resorts to all of the crazy things that the enemy has provided that would hopefully help him understand the future. Things like horoscopes and zodiac signs and tarot cards, and even Chinese fortune cookies, and so forth. But our wonderful counselor has revealed enormous amounts of information in His Word; the destiny of the nations, the destiny of the world, the destiny of people who love Him and worship Him versus those who don't, and so forth. And because in those those eternal councils of the triune godhead, we know that he participated in determining the course of human history, and indeed, history, shall we say, is his story. It's the story of Christ, our Creator, and our redeemer and our coming King, and His Word is filled with prophecies. Scholars estimate that there are 1817 prophecies in the Bible. And we know that over 300 of them were fulfilled perfectly, literally, at His first advent. Hundreds more are waiting to be fulfilled in the future. So do you want to know what the future is? Consult with the wonderful counselor right? The book of Revelation, we get a little sample of this. Revelation one beginning in verse one. It says, "The Revelation of Jesus Christ:, in Greek, it's the "Apokalypsis lesou Christou", the apocalypse this means "the unveiling," the unveiling of Jesus Christ, "which God gave Him to show to his bondservants the things which must soon take place." And then he went on to say in verse three, "Blessed is he who reads, and those who hear the words of the prophecy and heed the things which are written in it, for the time is near," or the season is near.

So back to Isaiah is prophecy. Indeed, he was and is the Mighty Counselor, The Wonderful Counselor, but secondly, Isaiah said he will be called Mighty God. "El gibbor" in Hebrew it's a term that refers to a mighty military leader with great power, literally a warrior. So this child who would be born, this child who would be given to us, upon whose shoulders the government will someday rest is, shall we say, a warrior God. This is who Jesus is. The one who will fulfill the military references that we read about in verses 3-5, for example, he is the mighty God, The warrior God who will liberate his people Israel from the bondage of their sin, reconcile them unto himself, conquer their enemies, once and for all. And again, this is where people get confused, as the child we see his humanity, but as the Mighty God, we see His deity. And that's what we want to focus on, especially in the Christmas season. This will be the one to whom penitent Israel will one day turn. And this is the one to whom we in the church age have turned, not a mere human that lived and died, but this is the second person of the Triune Godhead. This is the omnipotent, all powerful, God; able to do all that He desires, able to accomplish all that he has decreed, all of his promises. In fact, the Psalmist calls us to worship saying in Psalm 24:8, "Who is the King of Glory, the Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle."

But will you notice the third in this quartet of predicted preeminent titles, he is also called Eternal Father, literally, Father of eternity. And this is an amazing concept. This child who would be born, the son who would be given will also be the Father of eternity. If that is the promise, and Isaiah's words would have certainly been of great comfort to the people who were agonizing, who were languishing in the idolatrous country in which they lived, awaiting divine judgment. And the title of Father points to his concern for the helpless, a concern that will dominate his rule in the kingdom age, a concept that speaks of how he cares for his children, even to the point of disciplining his children, Proverbs 3:12, "For who the Lord loves, he reproves, even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights." And Isaiah speaks of the Redeemer as father in Isaiah 63:16, "For thou art our Father, though Abraham does not know us and Israel does not recognize us, Thou, O Lord, art our Father, our Redeemer from of old is thy name". In the chapter 64:8, "But now oh Lord, thou art our Father, we are the clay, and thou our Potter, and all of us are the work of thy hand." Again dear friends, think of this when you gaze upon the baby in the manger.

So it's Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father. And then finally, the fourth preeminent title given to the future child who would be king is Prince of Peace. You see, the one who will come will be the embodiment of peace when he returns as King of Kings and Lord of lords. Isaiah 2:4, the Spirit of God speaks to the Prophet and says, "And he will judge between the nations, and will render decisions for many peoples; and they will hammer their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, and never again will they learn war." We long for those days in the kingdom age that is coming. But we must understand that this peace that he will eventually secure for the nations of the world when he returns and reigns upon the throne of his father, David, in the millennial kingdom, this, this peace begins first, with the peace that he secures between sinful man and a holy God. There must be a reconciliation. We are a sinful people. God is infinitely holy, we can never enter into His presence unless God does something. We must be reconciled to Him. And that reconciliation comes through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the one who bore our sins. In fact, in Romans 5:1, we read and "having been justified, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." So when we come to saving faith in Christ, suddenly we're clothed in his righteousness, and God no longer looks upon our sin, but sees the righteousness of Christ. And on the basis of that imputed righteousness, we can enter into the presence of a holy God.

That is the essence of the gospel. And therein is the peace. That Christ alone can be the Prince of Peace, but you will have no peace until you are reconciled to God through faith in Christ. And once that happens, the war is over. We are no longer his enemy. We are no longer at enmity with him. We are now his children, his redeemed. You will recall, in Luke 2 when the angel appeared to the shepherds, the glory of the Lord shined around them, they were terrified, they announced the birth of the Savior. And there we read in verse 13, of Luke 2, "suddenly there appeared with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly hosts praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased." Now, be careful, this does not mean that he's offering peace to those who are pleasing to Him. This is not some kind of reward for meritorious behavior, as if we could somehow be good enough to enter into the presence of God through our own righteousness. But literally, he's saying peace among men of his good pleasure, or peace toward men, on whom God's sovereign pleasure rests. You see, this is the goodwill that God grants to His elect. So they're saying, in essence, Glory to God in the highest to those who are the sovereignly chosen recipients of His grace of His good pleasure. Those who now have peace with God through faith in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior, the Prince of Peace.

So in this great prophecy, we see the promise of His birth, the description of his titles. Number three, the nature of his kingdom, "There will be no end," verse 7, "to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with justice, and righteousness from then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this." And you see, this point says now to the Davidic kingdom, the Davidic dynasty, the future home of the Son, the millennial kingdom, which is repeatedly promised in the Old Testament, and it will be inaugurated, when the Lord returns again at His second coming. This will be a kingdom of peace on earth when he reigns, with a rod of righteousness, when he wields a scepter of iron. This will be in fulfillment of Abrahamic covenant that we read about in Genesis 12 and 15 and 17, as well as the Davidic Covenant and 2 Samuel 7, this will be a time when David's fallen tent will be restored according to Amos 9:11. "In that day, I will restore David's fallen tent I will repair its broken places restore its ruins and build it as it used to be." Zechariah 9:10, "He will proclaim peace to the nations his rule will extend from sea to sea, and from the river to the ends of the earth." You see, this will be a time of great blessing not only to ethnic Israel, but to Gentiles. All because the child was born, all because a son would be given. But how can this possibly be accomplished? Well, he tells us in verse seven, "the zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this." So again, in this great prophecy, we see the promise of His birth, a description of his titles, the nature of his kingdom, that I'm just hitting on very lightly. And finally, we see the zeal of his determination. The term zeal means ardor, or, or passion, or even jealousy. It's a term derived from an Arabic verb meaning to become "intensely read". And it carries the idea of a man's face, becoming red with deep emotion. We all understand what that looks like. And it was used to describe, for example, a husband's jealousy for the love of his wife in Proverbs 6:34. So this is describing even the explosion of love that bursts into full flame in the heart of a bride and a groom as we read about in Song of Solomon 6:8, and Isaiah uses the term in chapter 63:15, to describe God's, quote, "zeal and mighty deeds, the stirrings of his inner parts to act". And the Psalmist tells us in Psalm 79:5, that his zeal can be compared to a quote, "burning fire." This is the zeal of the Lord. And to be sure, our God is according to Deuteronomy 4:24, "a consuming fire, a jealous God." It was Jesus, you will recall in John 2:13-17, it was Jesus zeal for his father's house that consumed him when he cleansed the temple. Make no mistake, dear friends, the burning passion of the Lord Jesus Christ will motivate him to return once again as he has promised. And he will return again as the Lord of hosts to accomplish all that he has ordained and eternity past because he is a consuming fire, because he is the Lord of Glory, because he is a jealous God, and because he is faithful to his covenant promises. And even right now you must understand that he is ordering and directing all of the events of human history, moving them toward the Messianic Kingdom, and even now we're seeing the world being prepared for the rule of the Antichrist, which must occur before Christ returns, and then eventually he will establish His kingdom which is consistent with all of these great prophecies. And that kingdom will be the consummating bridge between human history and the eternal state. This is the triumph of his zealous grace. This is what we await as we reflect upon all that baby Jesus is and will do. Well, today the world's hatred of Christ and His Word is mounting. But according to the prophet Isaiah, 14:24, we can know this quote, "the Lord of hosts has sworn, saying, Surely, just as I have intended, so it has happened, and just as I have planned, so it will stand."

So dear friends think upon this, especially on Christmas Day, think about who Jesus is the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. The Prince of Peace, who will be king, who ultimately is king, because my friends, and please hear this, a day will soon come when his nostrils will flare, and he will rise from his sovereign throne. And in the consuming fire of His righteous indignation, he will return and bring glory to himself and bring judgment upon the nations and He will establish His kingdom as he has promised. He will break the seals of the pre kingdom judgments and unleash his wrath upon a world that has for millennia, mocked him. But then he will return according to Revelation 19:15, "and smite the nations and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and he will tread the blind press of the fierce wrath of God the Almighty."

So indeed, and I leave you, with this great text, "There will be no end to the increase of His government, or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this." And then my friends, we will see this with our own eyes. I trust that you all know Christ. And when I say know him, that you have been absolutely broken over your sin, and that you have come to him in repentant faith and ask for forgiveness, that you have committed yourself to Him, that you believe that he is who he says he is. I pray that that has happened because unless it has, some day, when you see him when you bow before him, as we all will, you will either do it in triumph or in terror. The good news of the gospel that we celebrate here today is that there is hope for sinful man. And if you're here today, without Christ, you can laugh at everything that I have said, you can mock his word all you want to but you know in your heart that you are suppressing the truth in unrighteousness, and the wrath of God abides upon you. And I pray that you will have no sleep on your pillow, until you come to a place of genuine saving faith and be saved.

Your life is a train wreck apart from Christ. But with Christ, everything changes. Not that everything becomes perfect and wonderful. But certainly even in the midst of our storms, we have the great peace that passes all comprehension, because we are in Christ Jesus. And we have the hope of all that He has promised. And we live consistently in that hope, and rejoice in it. Folks, this is the glory that emanates from a manger, right? The glory of Christ. This is the one we celebrate this day. Let's pray together. Father, thank You for these eternal truths. I pray that you will speak to every heart especially those that perhaps are living in rebellion against you. Father, we know that only you can cause them by the power of your Spirit, to see the truth of their own sin and the glory of Christ, the holiness of God. And so I pray that by the power of your Spirit, you will bring great conviction to every heart that is here today. And for those that that know and love you Lord, may this be a time where we are deeply encouraged and deeply edified. As we contemplate the perfections of the glory of Christ, may we live to the praise of that glory and enjoy all of the fullness of what it means to be in Christ Jesus. We thank you, we give you praise in Jesus name. Amen.