December 18, 2019 - Suggested Reading Luke 9 for the December 22nd message on Isaiah 9:1-7 in our worship service at 10:00AM

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 8:38-39 (NIV) 

Isaiah saw that our Lord Jesus was more than a Wonderful Counselor like other wise men in the world, for Isaiah saw Christ Jesus in His glory and declares Him to be Mighty God in Isaiah 9:6.

Surely more Christians have found encouragement in the 8th chapter of Romans than in any other Scripture text. After confronting the demoralizing truth of chapter 7 that there is a battle being waged in my inner person, Paul turns to the truth that we are no longer under condemnation and are not alone in our battle, but are united with Christ and indwelt by the Spirit, and bound for glory once the struggles of this life are over.

Paul then turns His attention to the question that comes to all true Christians (false believers don’t ask this question), “Am I still in the love of God through Christ Jesus?”. The answer according to Paul is a resounding YES!

Paul declares what Isaiah could see - simply that our God is Mightier than any other power in creation. Paul does it in a dramatic, poetic fashion ensuring that all the powers are covered and yet I wonder if we truly believe it.

Do we see Christ Jesus as greater than our sin?

My assurance of the hope I have in Christ does not rest on me and my efforts, but rests solely on the Mighty God, who saved me from my sin, anointed me with His Holy Spirit and who will bring me to His side in glory because of His unfailing love for me.

It is true that when I am in a period where I wander from Him, clutching unconfessed sin to my heart- it is true in those times that I don’t hear the assurance of the Spirit (vs16), rather what I hear is repent John repent for that is what I need to hear. Yet it is also true that the presence of that convicting voice is a reminder to me that I am His and that nothing can separate me from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus.

Surely He is a Mighty God.