The Prophets Foretold-The Virgin Shall Concieve

The Virgin Shall Conceive

Summary:The Third of Six in the series "The Prophets Foretold." The Birth of Christ is described as a sign by Isaiah, this sermon explores the fact that his birth was a sign of God’s power, God’s love and God’s faithfulness!

Date: 06, December 2015

Scripture Reference: Isaiah 7:1-14, Isaiah 9:1-7

from the Series "The Prophets Foretold."

Scripture Reading

Take your copies of the Scripture, rise to our feet and turn to the book of Isaiah chapter 7. We’ll look at verses 1-14 and chapter 9. We’ll look at verses 1-7. See if you can spot the verse where the  Messianic Prophecy appears.

Isaiah 7:1-14

7 And it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin the king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up toward Jerusalem to war against it, but could not prevail against it.2 And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.3 Then said the Lord unto Isaiah, Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, and Shearjashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller's field;4 And say unto him, Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither be fainthearted for the two tails of these smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the son of Remaliah.5 Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have taken evil counsel against thee, saying,6 Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set a king in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeal:7 Thus saith the Lord God, It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass.8 For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin; and within threescore and five years shall Ephraim be broken, that it be not a people.9 And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah's son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established.10 Moreover the Lord spake again unto Ahaz, saying,11 Ask thee a sign of the Lord thy God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above.12 But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the Lord.13 And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also?14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Isaiah 9:1-7

9 Nevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at the first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations.2 The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.3 Thou hast multiplied the nation, and not increased the joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.4 For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of Midian.5 For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire.6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. May the sweet Holy Spirit add His manifold blessings to our text this morning... in our hearing. Amen! You may be seated in God's Presence.

Introduction

We saw that The Christmas story in the Bible begins earlier than you might expect, several hundred years earlier, in the Old Testament. One Old Testament prophecy after another promised the coming Messiah who would redeem the people of God. Whether you know it or not, the first promise of the coming Christ was given in very first book of the Old Testament, in Genesis 3:15.

The part of Isaiah we’re going to look at today is precious for Christians. Because this is the part of the Bible that gives us the prophecy of the virgin birth of the Lord Jesus Christ! The Prophet Isaiah writing nearly 600 years before the birth of Christ was able to see across the centuries and gave us an amazingly accurate picture of the birth of the Savior. He said, (7:14), "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.”

Christians didn't come up with the idea of the virgin birth out of the blue. This great prophecy arose out of a terribly difficult time in Jewish history. Verse one tells us that King Rezin of Aram and King Pekah of Israel were attacking Jerusalem, the capital city of Judah. They weren't able to take it over. But they were causing a lot of problems for the people of Judah.

There are two things we need to keep in mind at this point: Number one, the Jewish people weren't following the Lord very closely during this time in their history. 2 Chronicles 28:6 says that "Judah had forsaken the Lord, the God of their fathers." And once you have rejected the One Person in the whole universe who could possibly help you, where else can you turn? And furthermore, Ahaz was one of the most wicked kings the country ever had! 2 Chronicles 28 says that he made idols to worship Baal. He burned incense at the high places to all the false gods. And he even sacrificed his own sons as burnt offerings. He was a terrible man!

And not only that, you have to understand that Judah has already suffered back to back military setbacks. In 2 Chronicles 28:5 we learn that Judah lost a costly war at the hands of the king of Aram. And in 2 Chronicles 28:5-6, we’re told that Judah suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Israel. In fact, verse six says that in one day, the king of Israel killed 120,000 soldiers in Judah! In one day! 120,000!!! That’s a lot of people! Especially considering that back then, all they had for weapons were arrows and swords and clubs and shields. They didn't have any of the hi tech weapons that we have today.

And then, we’re told in Isaiah 7:2 that when the house of David found out that Aram and Ephraim had united together to attack them, "the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind." In other words, they were scared out of their sandals. They thought, "We are in big trouble now. We couldn't beat these two countries individually, and now they've together! We don’t have a chance! We’re dead!" It didn't seem like there was any way out!

Then in Isaiah 7:3, God in his mercy decides to extend to the Judean people a ray of hope. The Lord tells Isaiah, "Take your son to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Washerman’s Field." At that time, that’s where the city’s water supply was. And Ahaz was probably checking it out to make sure that there was enough water for the people just in case the invading armies cut off the water supply from the outside. And in verse four, Isaiah tells Ahaz, "Be careful. Keep calm. And don’t be afraid."

And I’ll bet Ahaz said, "Keep calm? Don’t be afraid? What are you talking about, Isaiah? Can’t you see that we’re under attack? Don’t you know that these are the same two countries that annihilated us last year? How can you stand there so piously and say, ’Keep calm, don’t be afraid?’ Of course I’m afraid! I’m terrified!"

Ahaz was scared because he didn't have a personal relationship with God. I've ministered at the bedside of both Christians and non Christians. I find that it is easier to minister to the people of faith.

And later in verse five, Isaiah says to Ahaz, "Do not lose heart because of these two smoldering stubs of firewood. They are just a couple of burned out stubs of wood. Don’t worry about them. They can’t hurt you anymore."

And you know what? He was right. A year later, the king of Israel was dead. 2 Kings 15:30 says that he was murdered by Hoshea. The year after that, the King of Aram was murdered by the invading armies of Assyria. Just like God said, they were just a bunch of burned out stubs. The truth is that compared to the power of God, all of our enemies and all of our problems and all of our obstacles are like burned out stubs. None of these things can get in the way of what God wants to do in your life if you’re willing to stand firm in your faith and let him do it!

And then in verses five through six, we get an idea of what the kings of Aram and Israel were thinking. "Since Judah won’t join our anti-Assyrian coalition, we’re going to go down there, rip the country apart, kill Ahaz, kill his children, divide the country among ourselves and put our own king in there! We whipped him before. We’ll whip him again!"

So that was their plan. The only problem was that their plan was going against God’s plan. God’s plan was for Jesus Christ to be virgin born in the line of David as a descendant of Ahaz. And if Ahaz and his descendent's get murdered, then guess what? There’s no more house of David, no virgin birth, no Christmas story, and no Messiah! The devil wins.

The kings of Aram and Israel aren't aware of it. But Satan is making a strategic move to destroy the house of David. But in verses seven through nine, the Lord says "It’s not going to happen.”

“For the head of Aram is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is only Rezin. The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son."

Ahaz thinks these two guys are really formidable. But God says, "They’re nothing! They’re nobody! They’re mere mortals! They can plan and plot and maneuver against the house of David all they want. But they’re going to be dead in a couple of years! And their plans will come to nothing."

So this is the occasion for the sign. Now we see the offer of the sign. At the end of verse nine, God says to Ahaz, "If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand firm at all." In other words, ’Ahaz, this is the hour of decision. It’s now or never! I’m giving you another chance. I’m giving you a chance to stop your idol worshiping. To stop your politicking. To stop sacrificing your children in the fire. And to start putting your faith in the true God. Are you going to do it? Are you going to trust me? Or are you going to throw it all away?"

And then in verses ten and eleven, the Lord gives him a tremendous offer, one of the greatest offers God gave any man in the Old Testament. He said, "Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights." In other words, "You can ask me for anything you want me to do to prove that I am a trustworthy God! You want me to make the moon jump up and down? You want me to make it rain cats and dogs? You want me to make the sun turn purple? Ask me for any kind of a sign you want and I’ll do it!"

Now what did Ahaz do with this offer? Watch what he did. Verse 12: "I will not ask! I will not put the Lord to the test!" Amazing! God said, "I’ll do anything you want me to do so that you will trust me and not go over to the Assyrians and trust them. And instead, he blurts out, "I will not put the Lord to the test."

He’s quoting the book of Deuteronomy. Actually, he’s MISQUOTING the book of Deuteronomy. Because it’s not testing God to do what God asks you to do! Ahaz cloaks his unbelief with pious language. But don’t be fooled by this career politician.

When said, "I’m not going to test the Lord," what he REALLY meant was ""I’m not going to TRUST the Lord." You know why he won’t trust the Lord? Because, he isn't willing to trust God because He’s trusting in himself. Ahaz is a control freak. You don’t think so? What commander in chief is inspecting the plumbing on the eve of battle?

According to 2 Chronicles 28:17, Ahaz has already decided to look to the king of Assyria for help. He didn't want to trust God. He wanted to be self sufficient instead of God reliant.

There are people like King Ahaz still living today. They want to make their own way. They also know that if they put their faith and their trust in God, that their life would have to change, they would have to stop sinning and start living for the Lord, and they don’t want to do it. Their minds are made up, and they’re not going to change!

Sermon:

Isaiah said that the birth of Jesus would be “a sign.” Ahaz, the king of God’s theocracy refuses to believe God. He was obstinate. He refuses to let God demonstrate that he can do what he says.

Last week we talked a little about multiple prophetic fulfillment and this is one of those prophecies. We know that Jesus’ virgin birth is the ultimate fulfillment of this prophecy. We find perfect harmony with this prophecy when the angels announced the birth of Christ in Luke 2:10-12, for they said, "…Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. (11) For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (12) And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger."

God has always used signs to get the attention and deliver His message to His people. In the birth of Christ we have a sign from God. 

But what is the birth of Jesus to a sign of?

First, It Is A Sign Of God’s Power.

The birth of Jesus was not a normal birth, it was a super-natural birth. He told us that “a virgin,” will conceive and bear a child. The word “virgin” used here denotes a woman who has never been sexually intimate with any man not just a young woman. The birth of Jesus was to be a miraculous event, unlike any the world has ever known. In celebrating Christmas we celebrate the fulfillment of this prophecy. God became man. Jesus, being God in the flesh, came and dwelt amongst us, being born of the virgin Mary.

In Matthew 1:18-25 and Luke 1:26-38 it is made very clear that Isaiah 7:14 had its ultimate fulfillment in the person of Jesus Christ.

Let’s read Matthew 1:18-25, 

“Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. (19) Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. (20) But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. (21) And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins." (22) So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: (23) "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,"which is translated, "God with us." (NKJV)

Not Only Is It A Sign of God’s Power But  Also…

Secondly, It Is A Sign Of God’s Love.

Isaiah says that He was to be called, “Immanuel” which means “God is with us.” It is a promise that God himself will appear in human form. You probably remember from the Old Testament incidents when God appeared to people as a person. In Genesis we are told that God walked in the garden with Adam. Later God appeared to Abraham as a weary traveler. So what is so unique about the appearance of Jesus? Jesus actually became a person. In the Old Testament, God took on human form, but in Jesus, God became a person. The theological word is “incarnation” that is God become flesh and blood.

In the scripture that almost everyone who has any exposure to the Bible at all knows, John 3:16, we are told, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” It was because of God’s great love for the plight of man that He was willing to allow his only son to come to the earth, take human form, in order that he might pay the debt that our sin demands. 

The Apostle Paul tells us the story from the viewpoint of Christ in Philippians 2:6-8, “…who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,(7) but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. (8) And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.” (NKJV) Speaks, As we saw last week Peter Stoner applies the modern science of probability to just eight prophecies regarding Christ. He says, 

“The chance that any man might have ...fulfilled all eight prophecies is one in 10 to the 17th. That would be 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000.” (one hundred quadrillion).

Stoner suggests that 

“we take 10 to the 17th silver dollars and lay them on the face of Texas. They will cover all of the state 2 feet deep. Now mark one of these silver dollars and stir the whole mass thoroughly... Blindfold a man and tell him he can travel as far as he wishes, but he must pick up [that one marked silver dollar.] What chance would he have of getting the right one?”

Stoner concludes,

“Just the same chance that the prophets would have had of writing those eight prophecies and having them all come true in any one man, ... providing they wrote them in their own wisdom.”

Over 322 separate prophecies concerning the coming Messiah give in exquisite detail the birth of Christ.

Hosea 11:1 prophetically points to Jesus’ escape to and coming out of Egypt.

Jeremiah 31:15 prophetically points to the grief and sorrow that came to the Bethlehem mothers and their refusing to be consoled in spite of their being good reason for such.

Another of those prophecies of Christ birth is found in Micah 5:2. Here Micah told exactly where Christ would be born, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting."

This verse begins with the word “but” and is the introduction to something new, something grand, that is about to enter human history. And surprise, surprise, the origin of this grand new work is not in one of the world’s capitals, not even in Jerusalem, but in Bethlehem.

We all know about the town of Bethlehem and we are used to hearing the name of Bethlehem. We saw last week that, 2,000 years ago, Bethlehem was not a very well known place. It was similar to being from a small town, like Kalburgi, Karnataka. When you are asked where you live and you reply Kalburgi, what is the next question? “Where is that?” You not only have to tell where Kalburgi is located you usually have to spell it for them as well. Bethlehem was like that, it was a pretty obscure little country town, so obscure in fact that he has to tell us what Bethlehem he is talking about! He says, “Bethlehem Ephrathah,” or the Bethlehem by Jerusalem.

Micah proclaimed that the Messiah would come from Bethlehem... but a week before Christ’s birth, Mary was still in Nazareth... 80 miles away from Bethlehem... And in a day where they walked everywhere they went, that was a long way. But God was in control and He took care of that.

Caesar One author said it so well when he said,

“Jesus endured a human birth to give us a new spiritual birth. He occupied a stable that we might occupy a mansion. He had an earthly mother so that we might have a heavenly Father. He became subject so that we might be free. He left his glory to give us glory. He was poor that we might be rich. He was welcomed by shepherds at His birth whereas we at our birth are welcomed by angels. He was hunted by Herod that we might be delivered from the grasp of Satan. That is the great paradox of the Christmas story. It is that which makes it irresistibly attractive. It is the reversal of roles at God’s cost for our benefit.”

[James Montgomery Boice. The Christ of Christmas.(Chicago: Moody, 1983) p. 59]

Not Only Is It a Sign of God’s Love But Also…

Third, It Is A Sign Of God’s Faithfulness.

“Dr. Charles Ryrie says that according to the laws of chance, it would require two hundred billion earths, populated with four billion people each, to come up with one person whose life could fulfill one hundred accurate prophecies without any errors in sequence. Yet the Scriptures record not one hundred, but over three hundred prophecies that were fulfilled in Christ’s first coming alone.”

[Today in the Word, MBI, December, 1989, p. 7 -www.bible.org/illus/c/c-42.htm]

“In his book, Science Augustus order a census be taken, and this census required that Joseph be register in the city of his families roots (David’s)... Bethlehem.

So Mary and Joseph at just the right time made the four day journey to Bethlehem. As we have seen Bethlehem was to the world a small insignificant village full of blue collar workers, nothing special... But Bethlehem was significant and the thing that made it special and the reason we still sing about Bethlehem today is, that Jesus Christ was there.

Even more amazing than the prophecy of the location of the Savior birth is that his “goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.” That is that this One, who was to come, is like God, He is eternal. The word “everlasting” means infinite or timeless in duration and refers to Christ eternality. The prophecy clearly foretells that the existence of Christ predates the creation of the Universe. God the Son, became God-man when he was born of the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem of Judea (Isa. 9:6, John 1:1, 14).

Invitation And The Final Challenge

Let’s make today’s message personal. 

Isa.7:14 said, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign.” I want us to look at a couple of truths in closing.

First and foremost, God is always faithful to His word. All of those comforting promise verses you read when you need help or have lost hope... you can be assured that those promises made by God, will be kept.

Second, Jesus was God coming to you as a man. You could not save yourself, but God loved you enough to come to you. Jesus came to set you free from the curse of sin. The gift God gave in Jesus was a gift of hope, a gift of freedom, a gift of salvation.

This gift is PERSONAL. IT IS FOR YOU!

Catch that? For all people. The Hebrew word “you” in Isaiah 7:14 is plural and means all of you! Do you remember what the angel said to the shepherds who were watching their flocks by night? In announcing the birth of Jesus, Luke 2:10: “But the angel said to them, Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”

Meaning of Immanuel. "God with us," God came near, he came in a way we could understand. Jesus was the true Immanuel and is God with us. God loves you so much that He sent you a personal Christmas present in the form of His son. The baby Jesus grew into a man, and died upon a cross for your sins, and God raised Him from the dead. Today, if you will put your faith and trust in Him, you can receive the greatest gift ever given to anyone – eternal life