The Deity of the Son of David (Selected Scriptures) | Worship Service

Mary, his mother, and they fell to the ground and worshipped him. Then opening their treasures, they presented to him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

This morning we're going to begin our worship service and sing together, Angels We Have Heard on High. Angels we have heard on high, sweetly singing o 'er the plains, and the mountains in reply, echo back their joyous strains.

Glo -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o, excelsis

Deo, glo -o -o -o -o -o -o -o, excelsis

Deo. Shepherds, why this jubilee?

Why your joyous strains prolong? Say, what made the tidings be?

Which inspired your heavenly song? Glo -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o, excelsis

Deo, glo -o -o -o -o -o -o -o, excelsis

Deo. Come to Bethlehem and see

Him whose birth the angels sing. Come, adore on bended knee

Christ the Lord, the newborn King. Glo -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o, excelsis

Deo, glo -o -o -o -o -o -o -o, excelsis

Deo. See within a manger laid,

Jesus born of heav 'n and earth. Mary, Joseph, Lenoree, with us sing our

Savior's birth. Glo -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o, excelsis

Deo, glo -o -o -o -o -o -o -o, excelsis

Deo. Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills and everywhere.

Go tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is born.

While shepherds kept their watching, o 'er silent flocks by night.

Behold throughout the heavens there shone a holy light.

Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills and everywhere.

Go tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is born.

The shepherds feared and trembled when low above the earth.

Rang out the angel chorus that hailed our

Savior's birth. Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills and everywhere.

Go tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is born.

Down in a lonely manger the humble

Christ was born. And brought us God's salvation, that blessed

Christmas morn. Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills and everywhere.

Go tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is born.

Rejoice your Creator reigns as the only awesome

God. The Alpha and the

Omega, who was, is and is to come.

Let the oceans roar and the mountains sing. He provides for all

He has made. So be comforted as He rules with grace.

Rejoice, all the earth, rejoice.

All the world rejoice for the baby comes as a humble prince in the night.

The Word made flesh, Emmanuel, the everlasting light.

Let the warmth of heaven reach the coldest heart with the gospel of His grace.

For His heel will bruise the serpent's head. Rejoice, all the world, rejoice.

All the church rejoice for your King returns on a white horse wearing a crown.

He will break the sky with the angel shout, descending from the clouds.

Then the dead will rise from the land and sea, all His people will ascend.

We will reign with Him for eternity. Rejoice, all the church, rejoice.

Then the dead will rise from the land and sea, all

His people will ascend. We will reign with Him for eternity.

Rejoice, all the church, rejoice. Rejoice, all the church, rejoice.

You may be seated. There's psalms, peace on earth.

Bells are ringing. Peace. They're singing.

Peace. Peace on earth.

The wind is fair on my head. There is no peace on earth,

I said. The rain is strong and marks the song of peace on earth, goodwill to men.

But the bells are ringing. Peace on earth.

Like a choir they're singing. Peace on earth.

Does anybody hear them? Peace on earth.

Goodwill to men. Does anybody hear them sing?

Peace on earth. Peace on earth.

A bunch of men, a riot prevailed. With peace on earth.

Goodwill to men. Singing on its way.

All from night to day. A voice of chime, a chance of whine.

Of peace on earth, goodwill to men. And the bells are ringing.

Peace on earth. Like a choir they're singing. Peace on earth.

With our hearts we'll hear them. Peace on earth.

Goodwill to men. Do you hear the bells they're ringing?

Peace on earth. Like the angels singing. Peace on earth.

Open up your heart and hear them. Peace on earth.

Goodwill to men. Peace on earth.

Peace on earth. Peace on earth.

Peace on earth.

Peace on earth. You turn now to 2

Samuel chapter 7 for the Scripture reading. 2

Samuel chapter 7. And we're going to begin reading at verse 8. Refer to this last week in the message.

This is the covenant that God makes with David concerning his throne and his lineage and one who would come after him, who would reign on his throne forever, establish an eternal kingdom.

2 Samuel chapter 7, beginning at verse 8. And we will read through the end of the chapter. Now therefore, thus you shall say to my servant

David, Thus says the Lord of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be ruler over my people

Israel. I have been with you wherever you have gone and have cut off all your enemies from before you, and I will make you a great name, like the names of the great men who are on the earth.

I will also appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them that they may live in their own place and not be disturbed again, nor will the wicked afflict them any more as formerly, even from the day that I commanded judges to be over my people

Israel. And I will give you rest from all your enemies. The Lord also declares to you that the

Lord will make a house for you. When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom.

He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I'll be a father to him, and he will be a son to me.

When he commits iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men, but my loving kindness shall not depart from him as I took it away from Saul, whom

I removed from before you. Your house and your kingdom shall endure before me forever. Your throne shall be established forever.

In accordance with all these words and all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David. Then David the king went in and sat before the

Lord, and he said, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house that you have brought me this far?

And yet this was insignificant in your eyes, O Lord God, for you have spoken also of the house of your servant concerning the distant future.

And this is the custom of man, O Lord God. Again, what more can David say to you? For you know your servant,

O Lord God. For the sake of your word and according to your own heart, you have done all this greatness to let your servant know.

For this reason you are great, O Lord God, for there is none like you, and there is no God besides you, according to all that we have heard with our ears.

And what one nation on the earth is like your people Israel, whom God went to redeem for himself as a people and to make a name for himself to do a great thing for you and awesome things for your hand before your people, whom you have redeemed for yourself from Egypt, from nations and their gods.

You have established for yourself your people Israel as your own people forever, and you,

O Lord, have become their God. Now therefore, O Lord God, the word that you have spoken concerning your servant and his house, confirm it forever, and do as you have spoken, that your name may be magnified forever by saying,

The Lord of hosts is God over Israel. And may the house of your servant David be established before you. For you,

O Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, have made a revelation to your servant, saying, I will build you a house.

Therefore, your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to you. Now, O Lord God, you are God and your words are truth, and you have promised this good thing to your servant.

Now therefore, may it please you to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever before you. For you,

O Lord God, have spoken, and with your blessing, may the house of your servant be blessed forever. Will you stand with me as we pray?

Let's bow our heads. Our Father, you have revealed to us in your word things pertaining to the distant future, things distant to David, things distant even to us, at least we think.

We belong to the group of your called out ones who still wait expectantly and long expectantly for the return of our

Messiah, our King. We long for that day when the world will be ruled and reigned in righteousness, and the

Son of David will establish that throne that you promised to David and will rule and reign over it forever.

That is our hope today. That is the hope of generations past. That is the hope of Israel.

And we thank you that you have brought us to salvation and now placed us in the salvific blessings of the new covenant in which we wait expectantly for those final eschatological blessings, the blessings of the end times when

Christ shall return and triumphantly put down all opposition to His rule and His reign, and even death itself shall be destroyed, and you will gather us together with you for all of eternity.

It is because of what you have done in your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, that we are even able to pray this way and to wait upon you.

We pray that you would fix our hearts and our minds upon your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, that our hearts would be filled with affection for Him and that our minds filled with your

Word and our souls sanctified and conformed by your truth. And we pray that you would work and accomplish in us every good deed, everything that you desire for us, conforming us to His image and giving us that great expectation and fixing our hope upon Him.

May that be the end result of our meditation here today and our worship before you today. Be honored and glorified, we pray, through us, your people, as we worship together in spirit and in truth around your

Word. Be glorified, we ask it in Christ's name. Tell me the story of Jesus Write on my heart every word

Tell me the story most precious Sweetest that ever was heard

Tell how the angels in chorus Sang as they welcomed

His birth Glory to God in the highest

Peace and good tidings to earth Tell me the story of Jesus Write on my heart every word

Tell me the story most precious

Sweetest that ever was heard

Fasting alone in the desert

Tell of the days that are past How for our sins

He was tempted Yet was triumphant at last

Tell of the years of His labor Tell of the sorrow

He bore He was despised and afflicted

Homeless, rejected, and poor Tell me the story of Jesus Write on my heart every word

Tell me the story most precious

Sweetest that ever was heard Tell of the cross where they nailed

Him Writhing in anguish and pain

Tell of the grave where they laid

Him Tell how He liveth again

Love in that story so tender

Clearer than ever I see Stay, let me weep while you whisper

Love paid the ransom for me Tell me the story of Jesus Write on my heart every word

Tell me the story most precious Sweetest that ever was heard

In Psalm 24, verses 7 to 10, it says, Lift up your heads, O gates,

And be lifted up, O ancient doors, That the King of glory may come in. Who is this

King of glory? Yahweh, strong and mighty. Yahweh, mighty in battle. Lift up your heads,

O gates, And lift yourselves up, O ancient doors, That the King of glory may come in.

Who is He, this King of glory? Yahweh of hosts, He is the King of glory.

We're going to end our music service this morning and sing Prepare Him Room. The mystery now unfolds

See the star shine on the virgin foretold

Angels sing and light up the sky Hope rings out in a newborn's cry

Swing wide, you ancient gates For Christ is born today

Prepare Him Room, prepare Him Room Let the

King of glory enter in God with us, a promise has come to be

It's the one the prophets were longing to see

In the darkness a blazing light To the hungry the words of life

His kingdom now is here For those with ears to hear

Prepare Him Room, prepare Him Room Let the

King of glory enter in Prepare Him Room, prepare

Him Room Let the King of glory enter in As busy as Bethlehem Don't say there's no room in the inn

Through the cradle, cross, and grave See the love of God displayed

Now He's risen and He reigns Praise the name above all names

Prepare Him Room, prepare Him Room Let the

King of glory enter in Prepare Him Room, prepare

Him Room Let the King of glory enter in Let the

King of glory enter in You may be seated.

With your Bible open, or with your Bible in your lap, I would say, we're not going to open it just yet, but with your Bible in your lap, let's bow our heads and ask the

Lord's blessing upon our study before we open His Word. Our Father, as your people, we love your

Word because it is truth, it is wisdom. In there we see the righteousness of our

Savior revealed, His infinite power to save to the uttermost all who come to Him by faith.

We thank you for His humanity, His pure humanity, sinless as it was, and His obedience to all of your law on our behalf.

We thank you for the deity of our Savior. He was fully God and thus able to save forever all who come to Him, fully able to provide infinite and unblemished righteousness to those who call upon your name.

So it is these things that we are grateful for, it is these things that we reflect upon at this season when we are thinking about the incarnation of our

Lord and His life on our behalf, His death for us. We pray that you would open our eyes and our hearts to your

Word now and convince us of these truths and help us to see the glory in them and the grace and grandeur of Christ our

Lord who lived for us and died for us and rose again that we might have eternal life.

We ask your blessing upon our time and that you would open our eyes and our hearts to your

Word in Christ's name. Amen. One thing that consistently set

Jesus in opposition to the religious leaders of His day was not that He was a political revolutionary and was calling for the overthrow of Rome, but rather He made claims to be

God. He made claims to divinity, to deity. And these were not subtle and enigmatic claims that you kind of had to sort of parse out and find out is it sort of a double meaning that He has in mind there?

What exactly is He alluding to? Some of them were very overt and very clear, bold declarations of His own divinity.

In John 5, Jesus claimed that He and the Father do the same works. Pharisees confronted

Him because He was healing on the Sabbath and He said, the Father works on the Sabbath and I work on the Sabbath. They said, what was the

Jews' response to that? John 5, verse 18, for this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill

Him because He not only was breaking the Sabbath but also calling God His own Father, making

Himself equal with God. Now that's John's commentary on what Jesus said and why the religious leaders were trying to kill

Him. He was not just claiming that He was the Son of God in some generic universal sense in which all people who have ever lived are the sons of God by virtue of us being

His creation, but He was claiming a unique relationship with the Father so much so that He does the same works as the

Father. The Father works on the Sabbath and I work on the Sabbath. And they searched around and looked for stones to stone

Him. They wanted to kill Him because He was not just claiming that God was His Father, but He was making

Himself equal with God. They understood exactly what it was that He was claiming. And what was Jesus' response to that?

Did Jesus back down and say, no, you misunderstood me. I think if you just kind of parse out what I'm saying a little bit, you'll understand that I'm really not making that kind of a bold claim.

He didn't do that at all. In fact, He doubled down on some of those claims and He claimed not just to be working on the

Sabbath, but He claimed to do all the works that the Father does. And this is John 5, by the way. This is right on the heels of verse 18.

He claimed to do all the works that the Father does. He claimed to know the secret things of the Father, to be the judge of all men, to be worthy of the same honor, reverence, worship, and obedience that men render to the

Father. He claimed to be able to give eternal life and forgiveness of sins to any and all who put their trust in Him.

He claimed that He is the proper object of faith and trust and confidence and then claimed that He has the power to raise all men on the last day and consign some men to eternal life and others to eternal damnation based upon His own authority.

And then He claimed that everything in the Old Testament was written about Him and that Moses wrote about Him and that His words were as authoritative as Moses' words.

Now this He did in the face of them picking up stones to stone Him. He didn't simply say,

I think you've misunderstood what I meant. In fact, He knew that they understood exactly what

He meant and so He said He doubled down on it. He did the same thing in John 10. Later on,

He claimed to be the Good Shepherd, which by the way, if He was not Yahweh in human flesh, that was blasphemy because who is our shepherd?

Psalm 23, verse 1, Yahweh is my shepherd. And on to the scene, in the temple steps

Jesus and says, I am the Good Shepherd. They go, hey me, I am the

Good Shepherd. They understood exactly what He was claiming. And then He went on to say that He had authority over His own life,

His own death, His own resurrection. He claimed again to be the proper object of faith, trust, confidence, and obedience.

And then He claimed to be the one who would grant eternal life to His people. And then He capped it all off with this statement,

I and the Father are one. And what was the response of the Jews to that? John 10, verse 31, the

Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, I showed you many good works from the Father, for which of them are you stoning

Me? The Jews answered Him, for a good work we don't stone you, but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself out to be

God. Did Jesus then back away from that and say, hold on, I think we have now a second time that you've misunderstood what

I've said. No, not at all. In fact, He went on then to claim that He is in fact

God, He is in fact the Son of God, and He is in fact God the Son. Jewish people today, by the way, respond to the same way to Jesus of Nazareth that the

Jews in Jesus' day does. They claim that He is a liar and a fraud, and they claim to be the Messiah, and they claim to be

God, and they hate Him for that. In some Jewish homes, you are not even allowed to say the name of Jesus Christ, unless it is a swear word.

And by the way, if Jesus was not divine, then He was a liar. Those are really your two options.

He either was God in human flesh, or He was the greatest deceiver who has ever lived, because He claimed to be

God in human flesh. So the question then comes to us, this raises for us this question, should the

Jews have expected deity in their long -awaited Messiah? Did the

Jewish people have reason to expect that this Messiah, who was promised in Genesis 3, and promised to David, and promised by the prophets, and predicted through all of the

Old Testament, and symbolized, and typified through all of the sacrifices and the feasts and in the tabernacle, should the

Jews have actually expected one who would step onto the scene and claim to be deity?

Should they have anticipated that? To borrow the illustration that I started last week, you remember the Old Testament is like God, over the course of centuries, putting on the table various puzzle pieces that we can put together and get a picture of the

Messiah. Well, should the Jews, I don't do puzzles, because I hate puzzles, but my wife, when she does puzzles, she isolates all the similarly colored ones into one area, and then all the ones from another color into another area.

She has the patience for it. I don't. Should there have been a collection of puzzle pieces on the table that said deity all over them, all the same color?

You have the puzzle pieces that said He was going to be man, that He would have a lineage, that He would suffer as a man, that He would die as a man, that He would live as a man, and obey the law as a man, that He would come from David's line.

There were all of these puzzle pieces that said that the long awaited Messiah would be true humanity. He would be a real man.

But were there a group of puzzle pieces, when you pull them off to the side you say, this One who is coming looks a lot like Yahweh.

We might even call Him Yahweh. Were there those puzzle pieces? In other words, should the Jews have expected to see amongst those puzzle pieces puzzle pieces that identified

Him as Yahweh in the flesh? And the answer to that question is yes. There were a lot of Old Testament puzzle pieces that indicated that this

One to come was not just true humanity, but He was full deity as well. Last week we looked at three of the many evidences that the

Messiah would be a real man. His lineage, His sufferings, and His reign. And today we're going to look at the evidences that the long awaited

Messiah would be God, that He would be Yahweh. There are heresies throughout church history that have denied the humanity of Jesus.

There are heresies that have denied the deity of Jesus. And there are heresies that have denied in some fashion or some measure both of those and claimed that He is some mongrel amalgamation of divinity and humanity that is neither fully human nor fully divine but some third entity.

And orthodoxy, Christian teaching says that the Messiah would be fully man, that He would be fully

God, and that these two natures in their fullness would reside in the one person,

Jesus the Nazarene. Now turn if you will please to Micah chapter 5. We're going to look at the first of three evidences and we're going to go through all three of these today.

We're going to see that the origin of the Messiah demonstrated His divinity, that the names of the

Messiah showed His divinity, and that the reign of the Messiah demonstrated His divinity.

And we're going to work our way backwards starting in Micah 5 and then we're going to go back to Isaiah and then we're going to go back to Psalm chapter 2.

We're going to start later in the Old Testament and work our way back to Psalm 2. Micah chapter 5 and we're going to be looking at verse 2.

Micah 5 verse 2. I'll give you a second because unless you're looking for it on your electronic device it's going to take you a bit maybe.

Micah 5 verse 2. But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, too little to be among the clans of Judah.

From you one will go forth for me to be a ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago from the days of eternity.

Does that verse sound familiar? You've probably got at least half a dozen Christmas cards by this point in the year that have that on the front or somewhere inside of it.

It is a glorious promise. In fact, it is one that sort of shines with the brightness of a thousand suns and even that without understanding the context.

But once you catch the context of the book of Micah and the verses immediately surrounding this, that verse takes on a whole new level of hope and expectation and longing.

And I want you to jump for a moment just into the context so you can see how dark this period of time was in the nation of Israel's history.

And once you understand the backdrop against which this promise is made, you're going to say, wow, that's quite the hope of expectation.

Look, if you will please, to Micah chapter 3. Just turn back a couple of chapters. I'm going to read a few verses. I'll show you the context.

Micah 5 verse 2 is a prophecy that is given in the context of judgment upon the nation for their disobedience.

Look at chapter 3 verse 1. Here is how Micah addresses the rulers. And I said,

Hear now heads of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel. Is it not for you to know justice? In other words, rulers, leaders, civil leaders, shouldn't you know what justice is?

Verse 2, You who hate good and love evil, who tear off their skin from them, this is the skin of the people that they lead, and their flesh from their bones, who eat the flesh of my people, strip off their skin from them and break their bones and chop them up for the pot as meat in a kettle.

And they will cry out to the Lord and he will not answer them. Instead, he will hide his face from them at that time because they have practiced evil deeds.

In other words, the leaders of the people had abused their power and oppressed the people and this had been the case for decades this had been going on.

Wicked, evil rulers who ruled over the people for their own benefit and their own profit and their own power and the prophets of the land were no better.

Look at verse 5. Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who lead my people astray. When they see something to bite with their teeth, they cry peace.

But against him who puts nothing in their mouths, they declare a holy war. See what he's saying? Somebody comes and offers them something to eat, some bribe, they say, oh, peace, may peace be upon you.

But if nobody offers them anything against that person, they turn around and declare a holy war. In other words, they were prophesying and speaking from the

Lord for their own sake, for their own benefit. Verse 6, Therefore it will be night for you without vision and darkness for you without divination.

The sun will go down on the prophets and the day will become dark over them. The seers will be ashamed and the diviners will be embarrassed.

Indeed, they will all cover their mouths because there is no answer from God. So the spiritual leaders were as wicked and corrupt as any of the civic leaders, liars and frauds.

So chapter 11, sorry, chapter 3, verse 11, look at that. Here they're all lumped together.

Her leaders pronounced judgment for a bribe. Her priests instruct for a price. And her prophets divine for money.

Yet they lean on the Lord, saying, Oh, it's not the Lord among us in our midst. Calamity will not come upon us.

Therefore, on account of you, Zion will be plowed as a field. Jerusalem will become a heap of ruins and the mountain of the temple will become high places of a forest.

Micah is promising desolation, destruction, ruin, and judgment would come upon them for their rebellion.

This is the immediate, this is the immediate reality that the people faced. At the same time that he is announcing all of that to the nation,

Micah, throughout the book, looks forward beyond their present time to give them hope of something in the future.

Look at chapter 4, verses 1 -3. And it will come about in the last days. In other words, not immediately, but in the last days that the mountain of the house of the

Lord will be established as the chief of the mountains. It will be raised above the hills and the peoples will stream to it.

Many nations will come and say, Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord and to the house of the

God of Jacob that He may teach us His ways and that we may walk in His paths. For from Zion will go forth the law, every, even the word of the

Lord from Jerusalem. And He will judge between many peoples and render decisions for mighty distant nations.

And they will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against nation and never again will they train for war.

So Jerusalem and Zion will eventually be the center of everything, the center of worship, the center of commerce, the center of praise, the center of learning, all of that will happen on Mount Zion.

They will go up to Yahweh to hear Yahweh speak to them the word of the Lord. All of the nations will.

At some point, that's going to happen. But in the immediate, look at chapter 4, verse 9,

Now why do you cry out loudly? Is there no king among you? Or has your counselor perished? The agony has gripped you like a woman in childbirth.

Writhe and labor and give birth, daughter of Zion, like a woman in childbirth. For now you will go out of the city, dwell in the field, and go to Babylon.

There you will be rescued. There the Lord will redeem you from the hand of your enemies. And now many nations have assembled against you who say,

Let her be polluted and let our eyes gloat over Zion. They do not know the thoughts of the Lord and they do not understand

His purposes, for He has gathered them like sheaths to the threshing floor. This is the darkest point in Israel's history.

All of the nations were licking their chops over coming to Jerusalem and plundering it. And it looked as if it would be the end of the kingdom, the end of the nation, and the end of the people.

And Micah says, You have every reason to fear. You have every reason to be terrified of the judgment that is about to fall because it is coming and it is going to be swift and it is going to be severe and it is going to all but destroy you.

But, chapter 5, verse 1, look at this contrast.

So Micah addresses the leaders of his day and says now, after pronouncing judgment, now, he says, muster yourselves in troops, daughter of troops.

They have laid siege against us. Here's the destruction. With the rod, they will smite the judge of Israel on the cheek.

So after laying out this whole destruction plan of how they're going to be judged by other nations, Micah says now, ruler of Israel, go ahead, muster your troops.

You trust in your army? Muster them up. Call them up. Daughter of troops, get all the army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, National Guard, bring them all out there and see if you can withstand this judgment.

Because the judge of Israel, that is the one who is leading in Micah's day, that judge of Israel is going to be struck on the cheek.

The ultimate insult. That was basically a way of saying, you can muster all of your forces and it is not going to stop the judgment that is to come.

The ruler of our city is going to be destroyed and humiliated and utterly conquered. And guess what?

Spoiler alert, he was. Here's where chapter 5, verse 2, but as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you one will go forth for me to be a ruler in Israel.

His goings forth are from long ago and from the days of eternity. Here, this ruler is contrasted with all of the wicked rulers previously.

The Lord is promising there is coming a ruler for the nation, a ruler for this kingdom who is going to come out of Bethlehem but his days have actually been from long ago, from ancient days, from days without number, from all of eternity.

Chapter 5, verse 4, he will arise and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord and the majesty of the name of the Lord is

God and they will remain because at that time he will be great to the ends of the earth.

So in the midst of that judgment, Micah promises this ruler who would come forth and he will grant

Israel and his people security, he will be the one to care for them, he will protect them, he will teach them, he will be a king, he will be strong in Yahweh.

Look at the details of his origins, chapter 5, verse 2, but as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you one will go forth to me to be a ruler into Israel.

These are his origins, two of them, from Bethlehem and from long ago. He's coming out of Bethlehem, but he's going to have been from long ago.

Those seem contradictory, don't they? They are unless the one who was born in Bethlehem actually preexisted not just his birth but also

Bethlehem itself. Notice that Micah is specific about which

Bethlehem this one is going to be born in, Bethlehem Ephrathah, there were other towns named Bethlehem, for instance, there was one in Zebulun, but Micah identifies a specific

Bethlehem, Bethlehem Ephrathah. And that, by the way, was the birthplace of King David.

So you may wonder, well, is this then a prophecy about the coming of King David? No, it wasn't because David had lived hundreds of years before that.

So he's not talking about David who would fulfill this, he's talking about one after David who would be born in the very city in which

David was born, Bethlehem Ephrathah, not just any Bethlehem but a specific Bethlehem, and that one would be the ruler who would rule on behalf of God.

So he's speaking here of a son of David who would be born in the same city and of the lineage of David.

Now, this Bethlehem was a small, insignificant, overlooked town. In fact, it wasn't even considered a city in those days.

It was so small and insignificant. It wasn't even on the map, which is what Micah is talking about when he says it's too small to even be among the clans of Judah.

You listed all the cities out in the city of Judah, you wouldn't put Bethlehem on there. There's more animals in that town than there are people.

It was where you stopped to get a drink of water on your way to somebody else. Just a small, little, insignificant, backwater hick town, not even on the map, not even listed amongst the names of other cities in that area.

And I see some of you smirking, you think, I'm going to give a Clark Fork joke. I'm not. I'm not. Instead, this place was like Good Grief, Idaho.

Because you go through Clark Fork. You don't really go through Bethlehem. You go through Clark Fork. Unfortunately, there's no way around it.

You have to go right through it. Bethlehem was more like Good Grief, Idaho. The sign that says

Welcome to Good Grief, and you are now leaving Good Grief, it's the same sign. Both of them together.

Just a small, little place like that. More animals than people. Insignificant. Nobody even thought anything about it, which is quite remarkable when you realize that King David was born in that town hundreds of years prior.

You'd think there would be a monument. You'd think it would be a bustling center. It was not. Even in Micah's day, it's insignificant and small.

It's a little backwater town. Nobody paid attention to it. Which, by the way,

Bethlehem is significant. Sorry, I should say it this way. Christ is not significant because He was born in Bethlehem.

Bethlehem is significant because Christ was born there. If it were not for that, even today it would be forgotten.

Long had been obliterated. God chooses the lowly and the foolish and the insignificant things, and He places a glory on them that you and I cannot imagine.

And Bethlehem is just like that. A little town, not even worth remembering, not even worth naming.

And the King of Glory was born there. And if God wanted to draw attention to the place of Christ's birth,

He would have had Him born in a political center like Rome or Babylon or a commercial center like Ephesus or Antioch or an educational center like Alexandria or Tarsus or even the religious center of the world, the city of Jerusalem.

But He chooses none of those things. He chooses a place that's not even listed amongst the cities or the clans of Judah, and it is there that the

King of Glory comes into time and space. It's there He is born. And the name

Bethlehem means house of bread, by the way. It's a fitting place for the bread of life to be born in the house of bread.

When Jesus comes, was born in Bethlehem, says, I'm the bread of life, there's a play on words there that works on so many different levels.

He's the one who gives life to the soul. He brings sustenance to His people. But He's only able to do that because of what the last part of the verse says, that His goings forth have actually been of old, from eternity.

From you, that is from Bethlehem, one will go forth for me to be a ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity.

The NIV translates goings forth there as origins, but the word does not describe a point when somebody comes into being.

It's not saying His point of coming into being was long ago. The word origins there is a word that means, it has the idea of the sense of activities or goings out or coming out of something.

If you say He went forth from the house, it doesn't mean that He began to exist in the moment that He exited the house, but rather His activities and His doings and His coming forth from something is actually from long ago, from days of eternity or days without number.

That word eternal, or from days of eternity, that is actually a word that is used to describe

Yahweh in other places of the Old Testament. Habakkuk 1, verse 12, Are you not from everlasting,

O Lord my God, the Holy One? In Deuteronomy 33, verse 27, the eternal God is a dwelling place and underneath are the everlasting arms.

So this one coming to Bethlehem is Himself one whose activities and coming out and going out and doings have been from everlasting.

This, by the way, is what the New Testament means when it says in John 1, verse 1, In the beginning was the

Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. In the beginning, John's going back as far as you can possibly go back.

Not that he had a beginning, but you go back to what you think to be the beginning before time and space and anything else was created, and there he was existing with God, as God, second person, fully

God in nature. That one, John says, became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld

His glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John 5, verse 58,

Jesus said to the unbelieving Pharisees, Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.

He took the divine name of Exodus 3 and applied it to Himself. When God says to Moses, you shall tell the children of Israel that I am who

I am has sent you. And Jesus took that title, and He said before Abraham existed, I am.

He's always existed. John 17, verse 5, Jesus prayed, Now, Father, glorify me together with Yourself with the glory which

I had with You before the world was. That is a prayer of insanity if He is not fully

God. That is insane. It's blasphemy. And if He's not fully

God, then the Jews had every right to pick up stones and stone Him. John 17, verse 24,

Father, I desire that they also whom You have given me be with me where I am so that they may see my glory which

You have given me for You loved me before the foundation of the world. He is the eternally existent

One. So Philippians 2 says, He laid aside the prerogatives of His deity and emptied Himself by taking upon Himself the form of a servant and coming in the likeness of a servant and being made a man, being found in appearance as a man.

He who was the image of God, but He did not regard His equality with God something to be held on to at all costs. But instead,

He let go of not His equality with God but His position and all the prerogatives of deity so that He could take upon Himself human flesh and come here as the fully divine and fully human

One. John 1, verse 3, All things came into being through Him and without Him nothing was made that was made.

Colossians 1, He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. By Him all things were created, things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.

All things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things and in Him all things hold together.

Those are statements of preexistence and complete deity. Because this One who was born in Bethlehem who will rule

Israel, His goings forth, His activities have been from innumerable days past, from eternity past.

He is the everlasting One and the eternal One who always existed and has always existed, who never came into being.

He is the eternal One without beginning. This is the One that was born in Bethlehem.

From you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, too little to even be named among the clans of Judah. From you,

One will come forth whose doings and goings forth have been from days without number.

Go back as far as you want. He existed. He was there. And He willed everything else into being, into creation.

The ruler of Israel. By the way, this is the same ruler that is described in Isaiah 9, verses 6 and 7.

And to there I want you to turn as well. The first thing that demonstrates His divinity, His deity, His origins,

His goings forth, His doings, have been from everlasting. Second, the names of the

Messiah show His deity. And this is Isaiah chapter 9, verses 6 and 7. This is where we were here last week, looking at His humanity.

Isaiah 9, verse 6. For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us, and the government will rest on His shoulders.

And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

Those are the names. Those are the titles. We'll focus on those here in just a moment. Let's read verse 7 as well.

Now we looked at this in the context of His humanity, what it means is that the government will rest upon His shoulders.

We looked at that last week. But verse 6 gives us titles of this

One who would be born to rule David's kingdom. This One who would come forth in Bethlehem Ephrathah. There are titles given there.

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, and Prince of Peace. This describes the One who has come to come from David's line.

Let's look at each of those titles. I want you to see how they are connected to His deity. First, the title

Wonderful Counselor. It's not Wonderful, Counselor, but One who is the Wonderful Counselor.

And the word Wonderful there does not describe an awe -inspiring one.

The idea is distinguished, exceptional. He is the Distinguished Counselor. Why would they call the

One who was to rule on David's throne a Distinguished or Exceptional Counselor? It's because every king had a council of council people who advised the king in all the things that the king didn't know.

Every king would gather around him people who knew the things that the king didn't know. So when the king needed to make a decision, he would consult his advisors.

He would get wisdom from his trusted friends and counsel, etc. But this king who will rule on David's throne, he doesn't need any counselor.

Why? Because he is himself the one who is the Distinguished Counselor. He is the one who gives counsel to people who need counsel.

He doesn't need any counsel to rule or to reign or to exercise dominion over David's throne, to uphold it with justice and righteousness, and to rule over his kingdom, to operate that government.

He doesn't need any other counselors. This is like what the Lord says in Isaiah 40 when

He says, Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord? Or as His Counselor has instructed Him. Who gives God counsel?

The One who is Himself ruling and reigning who needs no other counsel must be what?

God. Nobody can counsel Him. He needs no instruction from anybody. He needs no counsel.

He needs no wisdom outside of Himself. He needs no knowledge given by anybody else because He knows everything and He has all wisdom and in Him resides all wisdom, all truth, and all knowledge.

And that is what makes Him the exceptional, the noteworthy, the Distinguished Counselor. He doesn't need a council of advisors because He alone can rule knowing all things.

Giving counsel to all people. Remember the passage that we read earlier in Micah? There will come a day when the nations will come up to Him to hear the

Word of Yahweh. Nations will stream up to Jerusalem and stand before that throne and people from every tongue and tribe and kindred from all over the world will just stand there to hear

Yahweh speak. And He will speak counsel and He will speak wisdom and He will speak truth and knowledge and people will just long for that.

He's able to do this because He is the Wonderful Counselor. Second, He is the Mighty God. That's the word El -Gebor.

El, by the way, is the name that is often attached or used in God's name. El means like Emmanuel, etc.

El Elohim, El Shaddai. The names almost escaped me there for a second but here's

El -Gebor which is God the Mighty One. Gebor means champion or hero or strong one.

One who is manly or vigorous. The Mighty One. This is God the Almighty. The nations will stream up to Jerusalem and they will stand before this

One who is on David's throne in that kingdom. They will hear the Word of Yahweh and they will call

Him the Mighty God. That is His title. He is the Mighty God. We shall go up. By the way, this is why they go up to hear the

Word of Yahweh because it is Yahweh who is sitting on the throne in the person of Jesus Christ. So when

He speaks, it is the Word of Yahweh. And they will refer to Him as El -Gebor, the Mighty God. A clear title of divinity.

And then He is called the Everlasting Father. Now that makes us want to hit the brakes, right? Hold on a second. Everlasting Father.

I thought this was the Son who is incarnated and not the Father. Is Isaiah mixed up about which member of the

Trinity takes upon Himself human flesh? That He calls Him the Everlasting Father? Because I thought we refer to Him as the

Son of God, not as the Father. It's true, right? What does Isaiah mean when he refers to Him or describes

Him as the Everlasting Father? Because we make distinctions in the Godhead. And to be clear, we can say that God died on the cross for us.

That He bore the penalty for our sins. And that as the God -man, He rose again from the dead. But we cannot say and we'd never say that the

Father died on the cross or that the Spirit died on the cross. So it is very important when we are talking about what the members of the

Trinity do that we make these careful distinctions. So it's odd then that in speaking of this One who would rule from David's throne as the descendant of David, the

One born in Bethlehem, that He would be called the Eternal Father. This is the One that was born in Bethlehem and He's the Eternal Father?

Does that create a Trinitarian problem for you? The solution is not too difficult. The word

Father there means chief or founder or progenitor. And what He is describing here is not

His relationship to other members of the Trinity, but His relationship to time. He is the

Father, the progenitor of time. He's the Everlasting One. To go back to what

Micah says, He is the One whose goings forth and doings have been from long ago. So Isaiah is not describing

His relationship to the other members of the Trinity. He is describing something that is true of this

One, namely His eternal nature. And He's not simply saying that He existed before time, but rather that He is the

One who Himself created time. He is the Father, the progenitor, the originator of time itself.

And that can only be said of Yahweh. That is what is described there. He is the Father of it. His doings and His works,

His goings forth are from days without number because He is the Father, the originator of time.

He is everlasting, the Eternal One. And lastly, Prince of Peace. Peace will characterize this rule.

Notice again the promise to David. The government will rest upon his shoulders and there will be no increase, verse 7, of his government or of peace and on the throne of David and over his kingdom to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness.

And this rule that Christ establishes will itself be a rule of everlasting and infinite peace.

That is hard to conceive of in the world in which we live. At Christmastime, we hear a lot about the peace on earth.

In fact, our special is saying this and this is not intended, by the way, as a slight against the special at all.

We hear a lot at Christmastime about peace and peace on earth. It is what we long for.

It is what we are promised is going to happen someday. But there will never be peace on earth until the Prince of Peace rules in Jerusalem.

That's why we long for that. That's why we sing for that. Peace on earth and goodwill toward men. When we speak about that, peace on earth and God's favor toward those with whom

He is pleased, when we describe that, we're not asking people to just dig deep inside of their hearts and find this little nugget of peace that if they take it out like a seed and they plant it and they water it and they nurture it and expose it to nice bright sunshine that it will blossom into this worldwide movement filled with rainbows and unicorns and 40 clovers.

That's not what we mean by peace. What we mean by peace is that we long not just for the peace of Jerusalem but for peace that will be worldwide and that can only happen when the

Prince of Peace rules not in our hearts, on the earth.

When every nation will bring its offerings and its sacrifices up to Him. And every nation comes to hear the

Word of Yahweh from this One who is Yahweh in human flesh. When every nation gives its obedience to Him and when

He rules the entire world in righteousness and truth this will happen.

And not until that happens will there ever be peace. There will not be peace in Jerusalem. There will not be peace for Jerusalem.

There will not be peace at any place on this planet until the King of Peace, the Prince of Peace takes

His throne and establishes the Kingdom that is described here in Isaiah chapter 9. The Kingdom of David.

Then there will be a righteous and just and benevolent monarchy that will be characterized by peace.

When Shiloh takes the staff. Remember we looked at that last week in Genesis chapter 49? The promise to Judah? Once Shiloh takes the ruler's staff, the one to whom that belongs, when he takes it, then to him shall be the obedience of the people.

You know why there's war? Because people disobey Jesus Christ. But when all disobedience is put down, when justice and righteousness are fully done, then we shall have peace.

And that leads us third to the reign of the Messiah shows His deity. So the origins of the going forth in Micah chapter 5, the names of the

Messiah in Isaiah chapter 9, and now turn back to Psalm 2. And our time is running away with us so I'm going to have to do some editing here on the fly.

Psalm chapter 2. I've kind of already made the case for His reign and His rule as deity in Isaiah chapter 9, but I want you to see how the

Father addresses the Son, how the Father addresses this One who would rule. Psalm chapter 2, verse 1.

Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against the

Lord and against His anointed, saying, Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us. This is a rebellion of sinful man.

This, by the way, is the war that is taking place between the serpent and the seed of the woman. Right? You see it here in Psalm chapter 2.

Those who belong to the devil and are doing His bidding are at war against the Lord and His anointed

One. They are adamantly hostile against the seed of the woman that was promised in Genesis 3.

This is rebellious and sinful men. By the way, this is not describing any kind of peaceful existence prior to the coming of the

Messiah. This hostility between the seed of the woman and the serpent is going to continue until it is finally put down by this rule and reign that you're about to read about here.

Chapter 2, verse 4. He who sits in the heavens laughs. The Lord scoffs at them. Then He will speak to them in His anger and terrify them in His fury, saying,

As for me, I have installed my king upon Zion, my holy mountain. Now, Peter applies this to Christ in the book of Acts chapter 2.

David here is the author of Psalm 2, but here's something to remember. David is speaking concerning...

We read it at the beginning of the service. 2 Samuel chapter 7. David is speaking concerning promises that God made to one of His descendants and to David.

Some of those promises were fulfilled in David's lifetime. Some of those promises applied to Solomon, but many of those promises applied to days that were yet a long way off, as David says in 2

Samuel chapter 7. So here in Psalm 2, David is speaking of things that Yahweh has said to him concerning his household and concerning this king, but David is also speaking on behalf of this king.

It's almost as if he takes upon himself for the sake of the psalm a prophetic persona by which he speaks as this one to whom

God has made this promise. And that's what we have in v. 7. What we read in v.

7 is David reporting to us the words of the Messiah, Christ, His greater

Son, v. 7. I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord. He said to me...

And now you have Christ quoting Yahweh, the Father, what the Father says to the divine

Son in v. 7. You are my Son. Today I have begotten you. Did you catch all that?

So David is quoting the Messiah, His greater Son who would come, and the

Messiah then is saying what Yahweh, the Father, has said to him. You are my Son. Today I have begotten you.

The word begotten, by the way, doesn't have anything to do with coming into existence. It means proceeding from. In other words, there is a

Sonship that exists here that predates time itself. Verse 8. This is

Yahweh speaking to the Messiah. Ask of me and I will surely give the nations as your inheritance and the very ends of the earth as your possession.

You shall break them with a rod of iron. You shall shatter them like earthenware. The kings of the earth will be shattered.

They will be broken. They will be undone, ruled with a rod of iron for they face judgment and destruction and their only hope is to repent and to believe and to worship and turn.

If they are to continue in rebellion, if they continue in rebellion, they will be destroyed. That is the promise of the psalm. So bow the knee before the

Son or face destruction. That is the ultimatum that is given when this king takes his throne. Does that sound harsh to you?

Oh man, it fills my heart with love and wonder and it thrills my soul to hear that.

Verse 10. Now therefore, O kings, here is the conclusion, show discernment, take warning, O judges of the earth, worship the

Lord with reverence and rejoice with trembling. Do homage to the Son or kiss the

Son. Do obeisance. Come before the Son that He not be angry and you perish in the way for His wrath may soon be kindled.

How blessed are all who take refuge in Him. So here is David's counsel. Come to the Son, bow the knee, kiss

His feet, worship and obey Him, do Him reverence or He will destroy you. Looking forward to this king,

Psalm 45, has the father saying to this king, Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.

A scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness.

Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of joy above your fellows. That is, God the

Father speaking to God the Son when God the Son takes the throne. To Him belongs the obedience and the worship of the peoples.

So, did the Old Testament promise a divine Savior? It did. It promised one who would speak the word of God, rule justly for God, be as righteous as God, do all the will of God, who would be called

God, who would counsel as God, who would reign as God, who would execute and fulfill all the promises of God, who would be worshipped and adored as God.

That is what the Old Testament promised. Colossians 2, verse 9, says, For in Him that is in Christ dwells all the fullness of deity in bodily form.

Everything that belongs to Yahweh dwells in Jesus Christ in bodily form.

That, by the way, is your only hope and my only hope for salvation is a Savior like that who is perfectly suited to save us.

We needed somebody who was fully manned to live the law in obedience to the law on our behalf and to represent us by doing everything that you were demanded to do and I was demanded to do.

And we needed somebody who was fully God to stand before the Father and to bear the infinite penalty, the infinite wrath for my infinite sin debt and your infinite sin debt and one who could provide us an unblemished and perfect and infinite righteousness and to do that not just for us but any and all who will trust in Him.

We needed one who was infinite in His ability to save and in His righteousness and in His person so He could bear an infinite wrath for an infinite debt which you and I owe.

That is why we needed both a divine Savior as well as a human Savior. One who could live in my stead and then suffer infinite wrath in my place.

He had to be both man and God. And this is what the Scripture promised. He is the only

Savior able to do all of that and He is perfectly suited to not only save us to fulfill all of the promises of the

Old Testament. Perfectly suited to fulfill all of the promises of the Old Testament. If you have lied, if you have stolen, if you have blasphemed

God's name, if you have committed idolatry, adultery, fornication, if you've lost it in your heart, if you've taken

God's name in vain, if you've done any of those, if you've violated any of the commandments, I have bad news for you. If you do not kiss this

Son, if you do not come to this One who is fully God and fully man, you will perish just like any wicked king of the earth will when they stand before Him.

But I also have good news for you. This One, the Scripture calls you to come before, to bow before, to repent before and to believe in and trust, is

Himself One able to give you all of the righteousness that God demands of you when you stand before Him.

He is the One who is able to save you from all of your sin and to forgive every transgression because He bore the wrath of the

Father in your stead, in your place. Because He was God, He was able to do that. Because He was man,

He was able to do that. He is the only Savior. There is no other name given among men by which we must be saved because there is no other

Savior who fulfilled the demands of the law perfectly in our place. There is no other Savior who died in our stead.

There is no other Savior who rose again to provide us life and there is no other Savior who is coming again to judge the living and the dead.

So if you will have salvation, you must have this Savior and if you do not have this Savior and you will not take this

Savior, then you will neither have salvation either. The One who crushed the serpent's head at His first coming will come again to crush the nations and establish a kingdom and to rule and reign in righteousness.

He will defeat every enemy including death. He will raise up His people to eternal life and recreate a world and usher in a new heavens and a new earth and He will bring us in there and we will live and dwell with Him for all of eternity.

This is Christ the Lord. This is the One who was born to save any and all who come to Him.

Let's pray. Our Father, we thank You for a righteousness that we needed that is provided in Your Son, the

Lord Jesus Christ and we thank You that You knew our every need and have provided for it in a

Savior who is perfectly able, infinitely able to save any who come to Him. Thank You that our hope rests in this

One who is coming again to judge the living and the dead, to establish that kingdom promised to David, to renew this creation just as You have promised and to fulfill every last word, every last promise that remains unfulfilled.

It is because You have fulfilled every promise to this point that we can with such confidence and expectation trust and believe that You will keep

Your Word even to the very end. Thank You for the promise that You will raise us up together with this

King in glory to enjoy that blessed and eternal rule and reign. Thank You for Your grace for bringing us to salvation in Christ and may

Your grace rest upon us as we leave here this day and reflect upon these things, we pray in Christ's name. Amen.

Would you please stand and we'll end our service this morning and sing, O come, O come, Emmanuel. O come,

O come, Emmanuel and ransom captive Israel that mourns in lonely exile here until the

Son of God appear.

O come, Thou Dayspring, come on high and cause

Thy light on us to rise.

Disperse the gloomy clouds of night and death's dark shadow pour to flight.

Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to thee,

O Israel. Come, O come, true prophet of the

Lord and turn the key to heaven's door.

Lead us to the

Father's side. Rejoice, rejoice,

Emmanuel shall by His word our darkness dispel.

Our great high priest and intercede Thy sacrifice, our only plea.

The judgment we no longer fear.

Thy precious blood has brought us near.

Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel has banished every fear of death.

Thou King of nations, free and end to all our suffering.

Bid every pain and sorrow cease and reign now as our

Prince of Peace. Rejoice, rejoice,

Emmanuel. Rejoice, rejoice,

Emmanuel. Rejoice, rejoice,

Emmanuel shall come again with us to dwell.

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing so that you will abound in hope by the power of the