2021 Christmas Advent Day 2: The Son

• Main Passage: Isaiah 9:6
  • 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, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
• The next phrase we will look at is “unto us a Son is given.” This phrase says much more than just simply a male child will be born. That information has already been provided. In Isaiah 7:14 we read, “Therefore The Lord Himself shall give you a sign; behold, the virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” But here the details regarding the origin of the son are given. The Virgin conceives and bears a son, but if no seed has been given, then were has the son come from? Surely, it has not come from the seed of men; the seed has come from The LORD for “the zeal of The LORD of Hosts will perform this” [Isaiah 9:17b] and, “The Lord Himself shall give you a sign.” [Isaiah 7:14a] We see then the Son is from God. In Proverbs we read, “who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? Who hath gathered the wind in His fists? Who hath bound the waters in a garment? Who hath established all the ends of the earth? What is His Name, and what is His Son’s name, if thou canst tell?” [Proverbs 30:4]
  • The LORD has given us His Son; His Only Son.
    • “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” [John 3:16]
    • “And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of The Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that Holy Thing which shall be born of thee shall be called The Son of God.” [Luke 1:35]
• This Son is The Father’s “Beloved.” The Father Himself testifies to this, saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I have been well pleased.” [Matthew 3:17] And again, “This is My Beloved Son, in whom I have been well pleased; hear ye Him.” [Matthew 17:5]
• Jesus Himself says, “For the Father loveth The Son, and sheweth Him all things that Himself doeth…” [John 5:20] John the Baptists also testifies, saying, “The Father loveth The Son, and hath given all things into His hand.” [John 3:35]
• The Father has loved The Son “before the foundation of the world.” [John 17:24] We see the great love The Father has for His Son in His giving Jesus of glory and authority and fullness. The LORD says “I am The LORD: that is My Name: and My glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.” [Isaiah 42:8] And we also see Jesus saying, “O Father, glorify thou me with Thine Own Self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.” [John 17:5] The Father loves the Son equally with Himself in giving Him glory. The Father is also pleased that in Jesus “should all fullness dwell” and has “highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name.” [Colossians 1:19, Philippians 2:9]
• The Love of The Father toward His Son is also shown in a picture with Abraham and Isaac. After waiting upon God’s promise for 75 years Isaac, Abraham’s only son is born. This Son possessed the fullness of all Abraham’s wealth; He was the precious son of Abraham’s old age upon whom all the promises of God were built; Abrahams servant says “unto him [Isaac] hath he given all that he hath.” And, “Abraham gave all that he had unto Isaac” [Genesis 24:36; 25:5] and this is fulfilled in Jesus, who says, “All things that The Father hath are mine.” [John 16:15]. Abraham surely loved His son. The first time the Bible uses the word “love” is when God says, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.” [Genesis 22:2]
• Again we read, “unto us A Son is given.” Let us remember the great cost of this gift, this “unspeakable gift,” [2 Corinthians 10:15] and the dear love our Father has for His Son. And what incredible grace it is that we could have Jesus as our gift and savior, and likewise we a gift from The Father to Jesus so that it might be said, “my beloved is mine, and I am His…” [Song of Solomon 2:16] “And of His fulness have we all received, and grace over against grace.” [John 1:16]

Questions For Day 2

1. In Hebrews we read that “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He hath appointed Heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds…” [Hebrews 1:1-2] The writer goes on to list some magnificent things of The Father’s Son, Jesus, who…
   • Is the radiance of the Father’s glory
   • The exact representation of The Father’s substance
   • Upholds every particle in all of creation by the word of His power
   • Purged our sins and sits at The Father’s right hand in heaven
   • Is to be worshipped of all angels
   • Is promised an eternal never-ending kingdom
   • Is anointed with joy above all others
   • Laid the foundation of the world
   • Created the heavens
   • Is eternal and will never perish
   • Will one day create a new heaven and earth
   • Because of all these things, because of the magnificence of God’s Son, and because The Father has chosen to speak directly to us through His Son, Hebrews says, “Therefore, we ought to devote ourselves exceedingly to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should drift away. For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; how shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation…” [Hebrews 2:1-3a] If The Father loves His Son so deeply, but yet has given up His son to be slaughtered and forsaken that we might be saved, imagine the atrocity it would be to neglect such an expensive and precious gift. Where have I neglected The Son Jesus? Where have I not been mindful of this great price and gift? What can I do to change, and to show fear and respect for The Father’s gift?
     • Reflect: Let us remember the dear love of God for His Son, and what a precious gift Jesus is. Remember His love, which is sweeter than wine [Songs 1:4], because it is His love that constrains us to live for Him [2 Corinthians 5:14]. The Father’s great love for the Son and all that Jesus is; His very glory and character should motivate us to a greater appreciation and love for Him.
     • “Let Him kiss me with the kisses of His mouth: for Thy love is better than wine. Because of the savour of Thy good ointments thy name is as ointment poured forth, therefore do the virgins love thee. Draw me, we will run after thee: the king hath brought me into His chambers: we will be glad and rejoice in Thee, we will remember Thy love more than wine: the upright love Thee.” [Song of Solomon 1:2-4]