Isaiah 9:1-21


There is good news and bad news in this passage. When given the choice I usually want the bad news first, but Isaiah decides to start with the good news in order to prevent complete despair during the announcement of the bad news. Bad news is very prevalent in our culture and society today. We see wars all over the world, the decay in values that seems to be infecting our culture and there seems to be an underlying nervousness about the possibility of terrorism. Most of these things are beyond our ability to control so they tend to produce a feeling of anxiety and fear in our lives. That is where the good news needs to come into our thinking. While it is true that many of the circumstances of our lives and the society in which we live are beyond our ability to control; they are not beyond God’s control. The good news is that Jesus has promised to set things right and one day He will reign supreme on this earth in a completely just reign. When we face bad news it is important to remember the good news.

GOOD NEWS: The good news is all about the coming of Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. Isaiah promises that one day the nation will see a great light and that light will be the hope of the nation. Isaiah looks ahead to the coming of the Lord Jesus and King of kings and Lord of lords. From Isaiah’s perspective the first and second comings of Jesus may have looked simultaneous. The first coming of Jesus was to pay the price for our sin and reveal the Father to the world in a clear and accurate way. A new clear light was about to shine on the nation so that they could see and know God. The second coming of Jesus will be very different. He is coming as King to rule over the nations and bring justice to the earth for the first time since the fall. Jesus came as a child died for our sin to be our Savior and is coming again as our King. That is GREAT NEWS!

BAD NEWS: The bad news is that before either the first or second coming of Christ that Israel will be destroyed. The bad news is basically divided into three sections: Pride, Persistence and Punishment. The reason for the coming judgment on Israel was because of their extreme pride and unwillingness to recognize their dependence on the Lord. Pride is one of man’s greatest downfalls and always places us in a dangerous place before the Lord. Their pride was made even more perilous by their persistence in sin and refusal to repent. The only way that we can avail ourselves of the mercies of the Lord is through repentance before the Lord and faith in what He has done to free us from sin. When we persist in sin without repentance and become proud of our sinfulness, there is but one result we can expect: punishment. Isaiah gives a clear description of how the nation will be judged, destroyed and laid waste. God knows exactly how to judge the hearts of men and will do so in His perfect timing. For those who do not believe the Good News there is nothing but the Bad News of God’s severe and eternal judgment of sin.

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