Isaiah's Messiah
Advent 2022
Worry and Wonder
December 11, 2022 • Walter Henegar • Isaiah 11:1–10
Isaiah 11 has three peaks of prophetic fulfillment: in Isaiah’s time, in the first coming of Jesus, and finally in his second coming to make all things new. When we put our hope in the God of this story, he enables us to live lives marked more by wonder than worry.
For to Us a Child Is Born
December 4, 2022 • Woonny Kim • Isaiah 9:1–7
God tells us that he desires to bring peace to us - not just the end of the conflict, but the full flourishing of all things. That's why he sends the Messiah, Jesus Christ, to us. To be a King over us who brings endless boundless peace. God wants to make you whole, but to do it, he has to rule over you. Refusing to let God rule will lead to a self-wrought ruin and darkness that comes from rejecting God's truth. Accepting his rule gives you access to more peace than you could find by ruling yourself. But we can rejoice, God's own zeal will establish his gracious rule.
The Sign of Immanuel
November 27, 2022 • Walter Henegar • Isaiah 7:1–17
Matthew 1:23 declares that the birth of Jesus fulfilled a sign promised by Isaiah over 700 years before. Isaiah's original prophecy, however, was not a simple prediction of a future event. The same God who took on flesh in the person of Jesus was present with his untrusting people through centuries of perilous uncertainty. Isaiah's challenge to be "firm in faith" (v. 9) is our same challenge today. When our hearts are shaking, we steady ourselves in the heart of God, rejecting the temptation to “use God to run from God” and to seek help from any source but God.