Mark's Blog

“Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever.” 

WHEW!  Have you ever been miserably awake in the night—perhaps sick or afraid or distraught—and you long for sleep just to escape the pain, but the darkness, the night goes on forever!  I know that is why morning sunrise has assumed symbolic status as resurrection, rebirth, and emerging hope—any hint of light is promise of escaping the darkness.

Thank you, Isaiah, for this first light of the morning!

Isaiah is often called messianic because so many of his prophecies announce the one who brings hope and salvation to Israel.  Just in the first eight chapters, you have certainly recognized Isaiah 2:2-4 “He will judge between the nations . . . .They will beat their swords into plowshares . . . ,”   and Isaiah 7:14 “The virgin will be with child . . . .”and as we read through this book, we will find many more, including one of the greatest today in chapter 9.

In this chapter, Isaiah joyfully announces the Light coming into the world: “The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine”(v.2). If he has choked with the message of wrath because of the sins of Israel, now his words must have been sweet to his lips.

Christmas!

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.
⁷ 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.

Notice the us in the first two lines! Who is that but the people of God. Just last night we were looking at baby pictures of our friends in New Zealand who are celebrating their first grandchild. Didn’t you feel humbled, blessed, overwhelmed by the gift of your first child? You know the biology of conception, but the resulting little baby and the perfect joy that surrounds it just can’t be completely explained by the physical mechanics.

And this child announced in Isaiah 9 is even more . . . . He will establish a great, eternal community of peace, using justice and righteousness to establish it.

But where is this peace and justice and righteousness?  It doesn’t look like the world I see on CNN!

Isaiah is extending this hope to a people ravaged by their own corruption, their own fears and faithlessness, and who are even using the occult to find some relief from their pain.  To them—and to us–he is saying, when you see peace and justice and righteousness in the world around you—even momentarily, it is the light breaking into the darkness.  And just as morning follows the darkness, so the Dayspring has broken into this world’s despair in the real presence of this child.

The zeal of the Lord will accomplish this! (v.7)

If you can believe that, then you have hope. If you can’t believe that, you have no real choice but either to sink below what Francis Schaeffer called the “line of despair” or to delude yourself that there is no evil, no real unhappiness in this world.

If you can believe that to us a child is born, then you’ll break out into something like Handel’s Messiah and sing the many names of this child:  Wonderful, Counselor, Almighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace.

The rest of chapter 9 deals with those people who “have not returned to him . . . nor have they sought the Lord Almighty”(v.13).  Go ahead and read the terrors that face those who have not returned to him.  I don’t think you will enjoy it.

And then make your choice! We all make our choice whether to revel in the joy and happiness of 9:1-7 or to stubbornly refuse God and live in 9:8-21.

PS> Would you like to listen to one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written, taken from this chapter and celebrating the Prince of Peace:   Click here!