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Isaiah prophesied the birth of Jesus
The prophet Isaiah way back in the Old Testament prophesied about Jesus Christ our Lord. He even spoke about his birth. No ordinary birth, for this was going to a virgin birth. As you read through the prophecies of Isaiah about the birth of Jesus you will realize that Jesus was born with a mission. Jesus Christ came on earth born of a woman, not for his own pleasure but to do the will of His Father in Heaven. Happy are those who believe that God sent Jesus to take away the sins of the world.
Isaiah under the influence of the Spirit of God could so confidently speak about the Messiah. Yes, it needed confidence as Isaiah was speaking about Jesus hundreds of years before Jesus could be born and manifest as a man on earth though he is the Son of God. Here are the words of Isaiah’s prophecy:
- Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, a young woman shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)
- For to us a child is born,to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder, and his name will be called “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David, and over his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and for evermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. (Isaiah 9:6-7)
- There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked. Righteousness shall be the girdle of his waist, and faithfulness the girdle of his loins. (Isaiah 11:1-5)
It would have been amazing to see all the prophets of Old Testament times meet up with Jesus when he was on earth. How great would have been the sight of them? How warm and sincere would be their praise of the Lord our Saviour? Indeed, now as Jesus is in heaven they all worship him and serve him with a zeal unstoppable by death. They are very much alive in Christ above and will be surely rewarded at the resurrection of the just.
And about ourselves, what do we do here? Let us be thankful that we got to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ and know what the prophets spoke about. For they were under the Law of Moses, waiting for the Messiah to arrive. And lo, the Lord did arrive on earth to do the will of the One who sent him. He fulfilled the Law, healed the sick, cast out demons from people, gave sight to the blind, cured the lepers and did many miracles. The greatest miracle he did, was that he in obedience to God our Father took upon himself all our sins and faults, and choose to die on the cross for us and rose again from the dead on the third day. His greatest miracle is therefore the cause of our salvation. Whenever you think of the birth of Christ, try to remember why he came on earth as per the Holy Scriptures and the prophets. That is the real meaning of Christmas.
Christ be with you!
Related articles
- Keeping Promises: The Virgin Birth (pointtolife.wordpress.com)
- Jesus Christ Immanuel God is with us (disciplesofhope.wordpress.com)
- Your Word for This Day: “Adopted” (thotam.com)
- Fear Not! God Is With Us! (scripturalmessage.wordpress.com)
Jesus Christ Immanuel God is with us
When you have Jesus Christ you have God our Father with you through Christ. Yes God is with you as promised in the scriptures. It was prophesied about Jesus being born of a virgin and its a sign from God himself.
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this. (Isaiah 9:6-7)
Even the New Testament confirms this. Let’s read:
Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus. (Matthew 1:18-23)
Though we normally don’t call Jesus as Immanuel (or Emmanuel, depending on the Bible version you use), our Lord Jesus is indeed the Immanuel of prophecy. I heard a few Christian songs and sermons which refer to Jesus as Immanuel. Now, there are many prophecies that attribute various titles to Jesus. However the titles are not his name, so sometimes title are not mentioned. To this effect, though Jesus is the Prince of Peace he was not actually named the Prince of Peace as that’s his title. In our prayers we generally say ‘Jesus let your Father’s will be done in our lives’ and rarely do we say ‘Prince of Peace let your Father’s will be done in our lives’. Suppose by God’s good graces you are ordained as the ‘Duke of Edinburgh’ your name doesn’t become the Duke of Edinburgh unless you at birth were named so. (The current Duke of Edinburgh is Prince Phillip, I think)
The union of Jesus with God our Father was strong even during the time of Jesus on earth. This is because he came not on his own authority but because our God and Father in heaven had sent him here to do his holy will. No wonder he carried the presence of the Lord God our Father with him. No wonder he said “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father”.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves. (John 14:6-11)
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it….And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:1-5,14)
Disciples of hope 