Isaiah 9 – A Child Is Born

“For a child has been born for us,

a son given to us;

authority rests upon his shoulders;

and he is named

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

— Isaiah 9:6 (NRSV)

Great hope is foreshadowed in these seven short and sweet verses of Isaiah 9:1-7. What had gone before was now no longer, as the prophecy of the Prophet of Israel swung through the canopy of judgment unto glorious salvation for all who would believe.

Those who would believe would be set free. They would be governed by the authority of the Governor over all governments; a government established and upheld in justice and righteousness, eternally.

Hailing the Righteous Reign of the Coming King

Jesus.

This prophecy is all about one solitary man—Jesus. He is the Governor reigning over all governments.

He was a young man, born in an offbeat village, the child of a peasant woman. He learned a woodworking trade and worked with his hands until he was 30. Then he preached for 3 years.

This young man never wrote a book, or held office, or owned his own home, or studied a degree; he never did any of the things our world considers great.

He was still a young man when the fickle world turned against him. He was tried in a farcical trial and condemned to die between two thieves—a grievous death. His executioners spat on him and mocked him. As he breathed his last, he said, “It is finished.” But in truth that was just the beginning, really.

He was placed in another man’s tomb. But it held his body only two days, for on the third day this young man rose from the dead.

Twenty centuries have come and gone and no one, barring none, has had the impact that this one solitary life—Jesus Christ—has had and continues to have.

This young man came—God incarnate—to revive and restore, to set free, to loosen the shackles of oppression, to empty the burdens of all who would know God.

Jesus does these things as well today as he ever did!

Jesus is alive through the Holy Spirit. All we need to do is believe by faith, for by our faith we are justified and saved by grace.

It all began when that child was born in Bethlehem, Judah.

We owe Jesus everything.

© 2012 S. J. Wickham.

Acknowledgement: to the Christian Television Association production, One Solitary Life: Jesus Christ, circa. 1993.