‘To Order It…Forever’

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 justice from henceforth even for ever.  The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

Isaiah 9:7

The Kingdom of Christ is the Everlasting Kingdom.  Isaiah prophesies as much when he utters the words upon which we center our attention today.  He says that Christ will sit upon the throne of David and be ‘over his kingdom.’ He then goes on to say what Christ will do with this kingdom, ‘to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever.’  Here is the future of the balance of history and of eternity. Christ came to redeem and to establish His Kingdom, first in His Own people, and after that over the whole of the cosmos. He is in the process of extending His Kingdom, and will continue until the day when He reveals Himself, with power and great glory as, ‘King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.  He will, in His Kingdom, ‘order it and establish it with judgment and justice.’ It will be the last and only kingdom. It will endure ‘forever.’ It is our privilege to advance this Kingdom. Christ, not man, is King. We are the willing subjects of king Jesus. We have heard His Voice and followed Him. He has given unto us eternal life, and according to His word we shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck us out of His Hand.  We look forward to the day when the faith shall be sight. We anticipate the fulfillment of all that He has promised. With all the ransomed church of God we say, ‘Even so, come, Lord Jesus.’

Our Glorious Living Christ,
we look forward to the day,
when You shall fulfill all of Your promises,
to all of Your people.
We rejoice that You shall reign,
and that we shall reign with You.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

‘Upon The Throne of David’

Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end….
Isaiah 9:7

Christ is David’s Greater Son. God promised David that a descendant of his would sit upon the throne forever. By the mouth of Nathan the prophet, God gave the promise, ‘and thine house and thy kingdom shall be established forever before three: thy throne shall be established for ever. David understood this to be a reference to Christ and indicates as much in Psalm 110 where he says, ‘The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.’ Christ uses this fact in controversy with the Pharisees when He asks, ‘What think ye of Christ? Whose son is he?’ and they replied, ‘The Son of David.’ He asks, ‘How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying, The Lord said unto my Lord, sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool? If David then call him Lord, how is he his son?’ Both David and Christ understood the implications of what it meant for Christ to be David’s Son, and David’s Lord. Therefore, when we come to consider Christ as King, we recognize that He is the fulfillment of the ancient prophecy. If we extend our view of Scripture to the Book of Revelation we see the return of Christ in the nineteenth chapter where He appears as ‘King of Kings and Lord of Lords.’ In the twentieth chapter, He judges ‘the dead, small and great.’ By the twenty-second chapter, Christ appears as the Lamb upon the Throne of God. This is the final and ultimate fulfillment of all that God had promised David. This is the king, the descendant of David, Who sits upon the Throne forever. We have no King but Christ. He, not man, is King. He is not just a King, or the King, but He is our King, and that forever. We bow before the King of Kings today and say with Thomas, ‘My Lord and my God!’

High King of Heaven, we rejoice that,
‘Jesus shall reign where e’er the sun
does His successive journeys run.’
We praise You that we may happily serve our
Sovereign Savior and our Living Lord.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

The Sum of All Perfections

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 presents Christ consistently as the Sum of all possible perfections.  In the portion of our text which we are considering today, we see a list of names and titles which all refer to Christ.  It would literally take volumes to even scratch the surface of the whole of the implications of these titles. Perhaps a simpler way of presenting these concepts is to begin by quoting the Shorter Catechism as it describes God: ‘God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.’  If we consider God in these terms, and then dwell upon the titles before us, we find they lead us to the inevitable conclusion that Christ is God come in the flesh. As such, He is the Ideal Man. He must be the sum of all possible perfections in order to accomplish His glorious purpose of living perfectly and dying sacrificially. Hence He is, ‘Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.’  He is, ‘infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth.’ This God-Man; this sum of all possible perfections is just the Savior we need. He brings to the table all that we do not. He is all that we are not, and does all that we cannot do. Therefore, we sing, ‘All glory, laud, and honor to Thee, Redeemer King.’ Because He is the sum of all perfections, He is the One to Whom we look to be perfect for us as our Grand Substitute.

Our Good and Gracious Savior,
we rejoice in You, the sum of all possible perfections.
We praise You, that by Your perfect work,
You have brought us unto God.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

‘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.