‘A Child…A Son’

‘A Child…A Son’

For 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, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6

God gives good gifts.  In Christ, He has given us His greatest gift.  As the prophet Isaiah unfolds the revelation which God gave him to deliver, he magnifies the Person and Work of Christ.  In the portion of the text upon which we land today, he speaks of Christ as the ‘Child’ and the ‘Son’ Whom the Father has given to us.  This brings us to consider the miraculous nature of the birth of Christ. Isaiah had already had things to say about this miraculous conception and birth.  Two chapters earlier he wrote, ‘Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.’  We believe in the miracle of Christ’s virgin birth. In order for Him to be very God of very God, and also truly man, He had to come into the world by this miraculous means.  So Christ came, sent into the world by His Father, as the ‘Child,’ and the ‘Son.’ Christ is the superlative Gift which God has given us. No other gift surpasses this one; not any grace common or special; not even life itself or even eternal life.  Therefore, as we consider all the gifts which God has bestowed upon us, let us prize Christ above all. Let us fix our gaze upon Him, not for a moment, an hour, a day, or a season, but continually and perpetually. He is the central figure of all of human history.  He, from His manger, to His cross, and from His Throne, merits our undivided attention. He, the ‘Child’ and the ‘Son’ is God’s ‘unspeakable gift’ to us.

Our Good and Generous God,
we praise You that You have bestowed upon us,
the glorious gift of Christ.
We rejoice that He is the same yesterday, today and forever.