Hallelujah, We Have a Mighty God

Isaiah 9:6-7 ““For to us a child is born,

    to us a son is given,

    and the government will be on his shoulders.

And he will be called

    Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the greatness of his government and peace

    there will be no end.

He will reign on David’s throne

    and over his kingdom,

establishing and upholding it

    with justice and righteousness

    from that time on and forever.

The zeal of the Lord Almighty

    will accomplish this.””

Imagine receiving a birth announcement that detailed the child’s future resume- 

Welcome Johnny Jr, our little bundle of joy!

He’ll be the joy of his parents and teachers.

Johnny will most certainly be voted most likely to succeed and will excel in the classroom and on the football field. 

He’ll be salutatorian and even graduate a year early.

He’ll earn a generous scholarship to university where he’ll participate in the pep band and will spend spring break volunteering with refugee ministries.  John will graduate with honors and then go on to law school.  He will be admired and respected by his family, his church and his coworkers… 

A birth announcement like that would seem odd, premature at best, but more likely pretentious and very presumptuous. 

But centuries before Jesus was born, his birth announcement told us exactly who He would be and what He would do.  

• He will be called- 

  • Wonderful Counselor

  • Mighty God

  • Everlasting Father

  • Prince of Peace

• And He will Lead like no other-

  • The greatness of his government and peace will have no end.

  • He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever.

These days, we are so accustomed to hearing news of saber-rattling and watching world leaders vying for position and power.  But this leader, our Mighty God, will outrank and outshine them all.  He is the ultimate world leader and His power and authority will be unmatched. Under His reign we will know true justice, righteousness and peace.  Can you imagine? And centuries before He was born, God shared the good news of this birth announcement that would change the world.

Today, let’s pray that our sons and daughters would have perspective and peace despite the uncertainty of world leaders and fragility of peace..  Rather than being alarmed at what they see happening in the world, pray that they have confidence in our Mighty God and look forward to the day when He will reign forever, unchallenged on David’s throne.  Pray that they long for God’s justice and righteousness over the temporary solutions offered by human leaders.

Christmas Season Challenge: Today, take time to listen to the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah.  Close your eyes and just soak in the truth of the words and the beauty of the music.  Then, take a few moments to pray for our political leaders.  Yes, pray for them.  Pray that their eyes would be opened to the Truth of the Gospel and they would surrender their hearts to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Pray without ceasing.