For unto us, a Child is born
For unto us, a Child is born: Jesus will soon reign on Earth, as predicted
6For 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. 7Of 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. – Isaiah 9:6-7
At this time of the year when we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, it is necessary to reflect on exactly what it is that we are celebrating. Throughout the past 2,000 years, the significance of the birth of the Messiah, as foretold by the prophet Isaiah, has been lost in the traditions of men. Watching programmes on television, for the world, Christmas is all about food, lights, presents, and celebrations, when in fact the conditions at the time of Jesus’ birth was anything but glamorous. Isaiah’s prophecy is one of progression:
- For unto us a child is born
- unto us a son is given
- and the government shall be on his shoulder
- and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace
- 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.
Let us look at the reality of the prophecy and simply answer Yes or No as it applies to Jesus the Messiah right now:
- Was a child born for us? Yes. See Matthew 1:18; and Matthew 1:23.
- Was a son given to us? Yes. See Matthew 1:21; Matthew 1:23; and John 1:34.
- Is the government on his shoulder? No, not yet. See Daniel 9:26. From here on, the prediction of Isaiah is still in the future, to be fulfilled when He is called the names given by Isaiah, and when He rules as the rightful King over Israel, on Earth.
Thus, we see that the wonderful news of the birth of Jesus and the accolades that are bestowed on Him, are spread over a very long period, and for most of it so far, these have not yet realised, except the first two. You and I as believers may recognise Him for all the attributes Isaiah mentioned, but the prophecy is really about Messiah ruling over Israel, as was the plan from the start. Man interrupted the process, driven by the devil, to crucify Him and make a temporary end to His rule.
The minute that Herod came to know about the birth of Jesus, through the wise men, he was determined to kill Him:
1Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, 2Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. 3When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. – Matthew 2:1-4
Once Joseph took Mary and Jesus and fled to Egypt, Herod started his campaign to stamp out this future king:
16Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men. – Matthew 2:16
Of course, this failed, but it would eventually end in His crucifixion, some 30 years later.
As said earlier, the world has managed to completely remove Jesus Christ from Christmas. Have you noticed that for a few years now, the day is known as Xmas? Jesus has been eradicated from the celebrations. X represents the unbelieving world and its distorted way of thinking. Thus, true believers should make every effort to remove the X and replace it with Christ, as it was intended to be.
Not only has the day been degraded to merely represent a time of feasting, frivolity, gluttony, and a waste of money, even when efforts are made to bring Jesus into the picture, these depictions are all wrong. Forget about the big fat man in his red suit for a moment. Think about a traditional Christmas card. It probably shows Joseph and Mary surrounded by animals, looking at a baby wrapped in cloth, with three men standing close to them, representing gifts. This is not even close to being true. Let us look at Luke’s explanation, which is more complete than that of Matthew.
15And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. 16And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. – Luke 2:15-16
From this account, the wise men were not present at the time of Jesus’ birth, but He was visited by the shepherds (Luke 2:8) who were informed of His birth by angels, and who went to look for Him. Luke does not mention the wise men at all, because they were not present at His birth. Matthew tells us that when Jesus was already born, wise men came from the east and enquired about the King of the Jews:
1Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, 2Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. – Matthew 2:1-2
Herod found out about it and called them. He wanted to know when they saw the star, that was the sign of Jesus’s birth. By the time the wise men had found Jesus, some time would have lapsed since His birth, and we are told that they found Jesus and his mother in a house:
11And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. – Matthew 2:11
Note that they arrived at a house, not the animal pen. At the same time, Herod found out that he had been tricked, and killed all the children under two years old (Matthew 2:16), most definitely indicating that some time had lapsed between the birth and when the wise men visited Jesus. There would not have been any reason to kill children up to two years old if the wise men visited Jesus at His birth. Of course, many people believe that there were three wise men, based on the gifts given, but this cannot be accurate as we are not told that there were three wise men, just that there were wise men.
It is clear then that the media has been used with great effect to completely erase the reality of the Son of God. If the world can deny His birth, it denies His atonement for the sins of man. For those of us who are holding on to our faith in the Son of God, Jesus the Messiah, our thoughts on Christmas Day should not be the eating, lights, and festivities, but we should reflect on what really happened that day. Born without fanfare, except for the announcement the angels made to the shepherds in the field, Jesus Christ, born in Bethlehem, raised in Nazareth, and killed outside Jerusalem, but having risen and now lives forever, will return one day to complete the fulfilment of Isaiah 9, when the government will be His, reigning from Jerusalem, as King, forever.
Conclusion
As the year is ending and you reflect on what has probably been a difficult one, how have you managed to cope? Are you drawn towards Jesus, knowing that His coming is imminent? Indeed, He is going to reign forever, but before that, we will meet Him in the clouds and be with Him in heaven before He descends once again, taking up the throne that belongs to Him alone. Do not look back at what has been but focus on Him alone.