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A Child Is Born

Isaiah 9:6
Program

As we look forward to celebrating Jesus’ birth, it’s important to remember the whole Gospel story. On Truth For Life, Alistair Begg helps us fully appreciate the significance of Christmas by tracing a line from the manger scene to the heavenly throne.

From the Sermon

A Child Is Born

Isaiah 9:6 Sermon Includes Transcript 36:40 ID: 2916

Entrust Yourself to God

Entrust Yourself to God

Behold, this day your eyes have seen how the Lord gave you today into my hand in the cave. And some told me to kill you, but I spared you. I said, “I will not put out my hand against my lord, for he is the Lord’s anointed” … May the Lord judge between me and you, may the Lord avenge me against you, but my hand shall not be against you.

The verb to grab means to seize something forcibly or roughly or to get something by unscrupulous methods. When we were young, most of us would have been taught by our parents not to grab something but instead to wait until it was handed to us. This is not just good behavior for children; it is biblical living for believers.

After God rejected King Saul, David was anointed as the next king over Israel. The throne would eventually be his when Saul died. In the meantime, however, Saul chased David for years, attempting to kill him. David knew that all it would take for him to be able to leave the wilderness and sit on the throne was Saul’s death. And then the opportunity to end Saul’s life—to take hold of safety, security, and the kingdom he had been promised—presented itself (1 Samuel 24:2-4).

Yet David refused to end Saul’s life and take hold of the throne. He did not succumb to the temptation to grab something which was only God’s to give.

David’s pathway to the throne was a long and winding road, but he chose not to take matters into his own hands or try to speed up the process. Instead, he was prepared to wait for God’s time and to rest in His providence.

Imagine how hard that must have been! But this is a faithful response—not to grab a shortcut out of difficulty but instead to serve God in the situation He has placed us in. It’s the way of David. It’s the way of Jesus, who entrusted Himself “to him who judges justly,” even unto death (1 Peter 2:23).

How are you handling the circumstances that seem to threaten your security, satisfaction, or prosperity? How are you responding to people who challenge you? To use the words of Jesus, will you seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33), trusting that all your preoccupations and passions will be taken care of by God? Make it your aim not to grab at those things which seem to be yours by right or to grasp at a shortcut out of a hard situation. Rather, like David, leave God to order your life, knowing that He has promised you eternity with Him and called you to serve Him along the way.

Questions for Thought

How is God calling me to think differently?

How is God reordering my heart’s affections — what I love?

What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?

Further Reading

21For zto this you have been called, ybecause Christ also suffered for you, aleaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 22bHe committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23cWhen he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, dbut continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. 24eHe himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we fmight die to sin and glive to righteousness. hBy his wounds you have been healed. 25For iyou were straying like sheep, but have now returned to jthe Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

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Devotional material is taken from the Truth For Life daily devotionals by Alistair Begg, published by The Good Book Company, thegoodbook.com. Used by Truth For Life with permission. Copyright © 2021, 2022, The Good Book Company.

Heart-Rending

Heart-Rending

Rend your hearts and not your garments.

The tearing of garments and other outward signs of religious emotion are easily displayed and are frequently hypocritical; but to feel true repentance is far more difficult, and consequently far less common. Men will pay attention to the most minute ceremonial regulations—for those things are pleasing to the flesh. But true faith is too humbling, too heart-searching, too thorough for the tastes of people of the flesh; they prefer something more ostentatious, flimsy, and worldly.

Outward observances are temporarily comfortable; eye and ear are pleased; self-conceit is fed, and self-righteousness is puffed up: But they are ultimately delusive, for in the face of death, and at the day of judgment, the soul needs something more substantial than ceremonies and rituals to lean upon. Apart from vital godliness all religion is utterly vain; offered without a sincere heart, every form of worship is a solemn sham and an impudent mockery of the majesty of heaven.

Heart-rending is divinely worked and solemnly felt. It is a secret grief that is personally experienced, not in mere form, but as a deep, soul-moving work of the Holy Spirit upon the inmost heart of each believer. It is not a matter to be merely talked about and believed in, but keenly and sensitively felt in every living child of the living God. It is powerfully humiliating and completely sin-purging, but it is also sweet preparation for the gracious consolations that proud, unhumbled spirits are unable to receive; and it is distinctly discriminating, for it belongs to the elect of God, and to them alone.

The text commands us to rend our hearts, but they are naturally as hard as marble: How, then, can this be done? We must take them to Calvary: A dying Savior’s voice rent the rocks once, and it is as powerful now. O blessed Spirit, let us hear the death-cries of Jesus, and our hearts shall be rent even as men tear their garments in the day of lamentation.

Devotional material is taken from Morning and Evening, written by C. H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg. Copyright © 2003, Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.org. Used by Truth For Life with written permission.

Daily Bible Reading for December 18

2 Chronicles 21, Revelation 9, Zechariah 5, John 8

Jehoram Reigns in Judah

1dJehoshaphat slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David, and Jehoram his son reigned in his place. 2He had brothers, the sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, Azariah, Michael, and Shephatiah; all these were the sons of Jehoshaphat king of eIsrael.1 3Their father gave them great gifts of silver, gold, and valuable possessions, together with ffortified cities in Judah, but he gave the kingdom to Jehoram, because he was the firstborn. 4When Jehoram had ascended the throne of his father and was established, he killed all his brothers with the sword, and also some of the princes of eIsrael. 5gJehoram was hthirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. 6iAnd he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab had done, for jthe daughter of Ahab was his wife. And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. 7Yet the Lord was not willing to destroy the house of David, because of the covenant that he had made with David, and since he had promised to give ka lamp to him and to his sons forever.

8In his days Edom revolted from the lrule of Judah and set up a king of their own. 9Then Jehoram passed over with his commanders and all his chariots, and he rose by night and struck the Edomites who had surrounded him and his chariot commanders. 10So Edom revolted from mthe rule of Judah to this day. At that time Libnah also revolted from his rule, because he had forsaken the Lord, the God of his fathers.

11Moreover, he made high places in the hill country of Judah and led the inhabitants of Jerusalem ninto whoredom and made Judah go astray. 12And a letter came to him from Elijah the prophet, saying, “Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father, o‘Because you have not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat your father, or pin the ways of Asa king of Judah, 13ibut have walked in the way of the kings of Israel and have enticed Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem ninto whoredom, qas the house of Ahab led Israel into whoredom, and also you rhave killed your brothers, of your father's house, who were better than you, 14behold, the Lord will bring a great plague on your people, your children, your wives, and all your possessions, 15and you yourself will have a severe sickness swith a disease of your bowels, until your bowels come out because of the disease, day by day.’”

16tAnd the Lord stirred up against Jehoram the anger2 of the Philistines and of uthe Arabians who are near the Ethiopians. 17And they came up against Judah and invaded it and carried away all the possessions they found that belonged to the king's house, and also his sons and his wives, so that no son was left to him except vJehoahaz, his youngest son.

18And after all this the Lord struck him win his bowels with an incurable disease. 19In the course of time, at the end of two years, his bowels came out because of the disease, and he died in great agony. His people made no fire in his honor, xlike the fires made for his fathers. 20yHe was thirty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. And he departed zwith no one's regret. aThey buried him in the city of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.

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Footnotes
1 21:2 That is, Judah
2 21:16 Hebrew spirit

1And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and qI saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given rthe key to the shaft of sthe bottomless pit.1 2He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft trose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and uthe sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft. 3Then from the smoke came vlocusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth. 4They were told wnot to harm xthe grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree, but only those people who do not have ythe seal of God on their foreheads. 5They were allowed to torment them zfor five months, but not to kill them, and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings someone. 6And in those days apeople will seek death and will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them.

7bIn appearance the locusts were like horses prepared for battle: con their heads were what looked like crowns of gold; their faces were dlike human faces, 8their hair like women's hair, and etheir teeth like lions' teeth; 9they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the noise of their wings was flike the noise of many chariots with ghorses rushing into battle. 10They have tails and stings like scorpions, and their power to hurt people hfor five months is in their tails. 11They have ias king over them the angel of the bottomless pit. His name in Hebrew is jAbaddon, and in Greek he is called Apollyon.2

12kThe first woe has passed; behold, two woes are still to come.

13Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from lthe four horns of the golden altar before God, 14saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release mthe four angels who are bound at nthe great river Euphrates.” 15So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, were released oto kill a third of mankind. 16The number of pmounted troops was qtwice ten thousand times ten thousand; rI heard their number. 17And this is how I saw the horses in my vision and those who rode them: they wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire3 and of sulfur, and the heads of the horses were slike lions' heads, and fire and smoke and sulfur came out of their mouths. 18By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed, by the fire and smoke and sulfur coming out of their mouths. 19For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails, for their tails are like serpents with heads, and by means of them they wound.

20The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, tdid not repent of uthe works of their hands nor give up worshiping vdemons wand idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, 21nor did they repent of their murders or their xsorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

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Footnotes
1 9:1 Greek the abyss; also verses 2, 11
2 9:11 Abaddon means destruction; Apollyon means destroyer
3 9:17 Greek hyacinth

A Vision of a Flying Scroll

1Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying ascroll! 2And he said to me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a flying ascroll. Its length is twenty cubits, and its width ten cubits.”1 3Then he said to me, “This is bthe curse that goes out over the face of the whole land. For everyone who csteals shall be cleaned out according to what is on one side, and everyone who dswears falsely2 shall be cleaned out according to what is on the other side. 4I will send it out, declares the Lord of hosts, and it shall enter the house of the thief, and the house of ehim who swears falsely by my name. And fit shall remain in his house and gconsume it, both timber and stones.”

A Vision of a Woman in a Basket

5hThen the angel who talked with me came forward and said to me, i“Lift your eyes and see what this is that is going out.” 6And I said, “What is it?” He said, “This is jthe basket3 that is going out.” And he said, “This is their iniquity4 in all the land.” 7And behold, the leaden cover was lifted, and there was a woman sitting in the basket! 8And he said, “This is Wickedness.” And he thrust her back into the basket, and thrust down jthe leaden weight on its opening.

9Then I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, two women coming forward! kThe wind was in their wings. They had wings like the wings of a stork, and they lifted up the basket between earth and heaven. 10Then I said to the angel who talked with me, “Where are they taking the basket?” 11He said to me, “To the lland of Shinar, to build a house for it. And when this is prepared, they will set the basket down there on its base.”

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Footnotes
1 5:2 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
2 5:3 Hebrew lacks falsely (supplied from verse 4)
3 5:6 Hebrew ephah; also verses 7–11. An ephah was about 3/5 bushel or 22 liters
4 5:6 One Hebrew manuscript, Septuagint, Syriac; most Hebrew manuscripts eye
1but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2bEarly in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him, and che sat down and taught them. 3The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst 4they said to him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. 5Now din the Law, Moses commanded us eto stone such women. So what do you say?” 6This they said fto test him, gthat they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. 7And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, h“Let him who is without sin among you ibe the first to throw a stone at her.” 8And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. 9But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. 10Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, j“Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on ksin no more.”]]

I Am the Light of the World

12lAgain Jesus spoke to them, saying, m“I am the light of the world. Whoever nfollows me will not owalk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 13So the Pharisees said to him, p“You are bearing witness about yourself; your testimony is not true.” 14Jesus answered, “Even if I do bear witness about myself, qmy testimony is true, for I know rwhere I came from and swhere I am going, but tyou do not know where I come from or where I am going. 15uYou judge according to the flesh; vI judge no one. 16Yet even if I do judge, wmy judgment is true, for xit is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father1 who sent me. 17yIn your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. 18I am the one who bears witness about myself, and zthe Father who sent me bears witness about me.” 19They said to him therefore, “Where is your Father?” Jesus answered, a“You know neither me nor my Father. bIf you knew me, you would know my Father also.” 20These words he spoke in cthe treasury, as he taught in the temple; but dno one arrested him, because ehis hour had not yet come.

21So he said to them again, f“I am going away, and gyou will seek me, and hyou will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.” 22So the Jews said, i“Will he kill himself, since he says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?” 23He said to them, j“You are from below; I am from above. kYou are of this world; lI am not of this world. 24I told you that you mwould die in your sins, for nunless you believe that oI am he you will die in your sins.” 25So they said to him, p“Who are you?” Jesus said to them, “Just what I have been telling you from the beginning. 26I have much to say about you and much to judge, but qhe who sent me is true, and I declare rto the world swhat I have heard from him.” 27They did not understand that the had been speaking to them about the Father. 28So Jesus said to them, “When you have ulifted up the Son of Man, vthen you will know that wI am he, and that xI do nothing on my own authority, but yspeak just as the Father taught me. 29And zhe who sent me is with me. zHe has not left me alone, for aI always do the things that are pleasing to him.” 30As he was saying these things, bmany believed in him.

The Truth Will Set You Free

31So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, c“If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32and you will dknow the truth, and the truth ewill set you free.” 33They answered him, f“We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?”

34Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, geveryone who practices sin is a slave2 to sin. 35hThe slave does not remain in the house forever; ithe son remains forever. 36So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet jyou seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. 38kI speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard lfrom your father.”

You Are of Your Father the Devil

39They answered him, m“Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, n“If you were Abraham's children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, 40but now oyou seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth pthat I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. 41You are doing the works your father did.” They said to him, q“We were not born of sexual immorality. We have rone Father—even God.” 42Jesus said to them, s“If God were your Father, you would love me, for tI came from God and uI am here. vI came not of my own accord, but whe sent me. 43xWhy do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot ybear to hear my word. 44zYou are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. aHe was a murderer from the beginning, and bdoes not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. cWhen he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. 46Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? 47dWhoever is of God hears the words of God. eThe reason why you do not hear them is that fyou are not of God.”

Before Abraham Was, I Am

48The Jews answered him, “Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and ghave a demon?” 49Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon, but hI honor my Father, and you dishonor me. 50Yet iI do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge. 51Truly, truly, jI say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never ksee death.” 52The Jews said to him, “Now we know that you have a demon! lAbraham died, as did the prophets, yet myou say, ‘If anyone keeps my word, he will never ntaste death.’ 53oAre you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you make yourself out to be?” 54Jesus answered, p“If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. qIt is my Father who glorifies me, rof whom you say, ‘He is our God.’3 55But syou have not known him. tI know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be ua liar vlike you, but I do know him and I keep his word. 56wYour father Abraham xrejoiced ythat he would see my day. zHe saw it and was glad.” 57So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?”4 58Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, aI am.” 59So bthey picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.

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Footnotes
1 8:16 Some manuscripts he
2 8:34 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface; also verse 35
3 8:54 Some manuscripts your God
4 8:57 Some manuscripts has Abraham seen you?
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.

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