ISN’T HE WONDERFUL
Isaiah 9:6
The Hebrew word translated in Isaiah 9:6 as "wonderful" denotes something indescribably great; that which is so tremendous and so amazing, that it’s literally beyond all description. It speaks of that which goes beyond human comprehension. This morning I want to tell you that Jesus is indeed “Wonderful” in every aspect.
I. HE IS WONDERFUL IN HIS PERSON
A. Just Who is Jesus Christ
B. He’s the Alpha and Omega – Revelation 22:13 "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last."
1. As Alpha, He’s the Creator of all that is - John 1:1-3 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made."
2. As Omega, Revelation 19:15-16 tells me that He is the one who will “smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron”… He will tread “the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.” And have “on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
C. He is Almighty God
1. Isaiah 9:6 “…the Mighty God”
2. John 1:1 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
3. Colossians 1:15-17 "Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: for by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers. All things were created by Him and for him: and he is before all things, and by him all things consist."
D. He is God – Incarnate
1. John 1:14 "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."
2. Colossians 2:9 "For in him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily."
3. The land of Persia was once ruled by a wise and beloved Shah who cared greatly for his people and desired only what was best for them. One day he disguised himself as a poor man and went to visit the public baths. A furnace in the cellar heated the water for the baths, so the Shah made his way to the dark place to sit with the man who tended the fire. The two men shared the coarse food, and the Shah befriended him in his loneliness. Day after day the ruler went to visit the man. The worker became attached to this stranger because he "came where he was". One day the Shah revealed his true identity, and he expected the man to ask him for a gift. Instead, he looked long into his leader’s face and with love and wonder in his voice said, "You left your palace and your glory to sit with me in this dark place, to eat my coarse food, and to care about what happens to me. On others you may bestow rich gifts, but to me you have given yourself!" As we think of what our Lord has done for us, we can echo that fire tender’s sentiments. Oh, what a step our Lord took -- from heaven to earth, from the worship of angels to the mocking of cruel men, from glory to humiliation!
II. HE IS WONDERFUL IN HIS UNDERTAKINGS
A. Revelation 15:3 "And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints."
B. 1 Chronicles 16:9 "Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him, talk ye of all his wondrous works."
C. He is Wondrous in Power
1. Nature bows at His command
a. Mark 4:39-41 "And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?"
2. Disease and Death flee from His presence
a. Luke 8:43-47 "And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any, Came behind him, and touched the border of his garment: and immediately her issue of blood stanched. And Jesus said, ‘Who touched me? When all denied, Peter and they that were with him said, Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? And Jesus said, ‘Somebody has touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me. And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately."
b. John 11:43-44 "And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with grave clothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus said unto them, ‘Loose him, and let him go."
3. Demons tremble in fear before Him
a. Mark 1:23-27 "And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? Art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God. And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him. And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? What new doctrine is this? For with authority commands he even the unclean spirits, and they do obey him."
D. He is wondrous in His Judgment
1. Romans 11:33 "O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!"
2. His judgment is always righteous
a. Revelation 19:2 "For true and righteous are his judgments: ..."
b. Revelation 19:11 "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he does judge and make war."
3. His judgment is always just
a. Zephaniah 3:5 "The just LORD is in the midst thereof; he will not do iniquity: every morning does he bring his judgment to light, he fails not; but the unjust knows no shame."
b. John 5:30 "I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father, which has sent me."
E. He is Wondrous in His Holiness
1. Jesus Christ is holy with an absolute holiness that knows no degrees.
2. Revelation 15:4 "Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? For thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest."
3. 1 John 3:5 "… in him is no sin."
4. Hebrews 4:15 "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin."
III. He is Wonderful in His Love
A. His Love is Unmerited
1. 1 John 4:10 "Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins."
2. 1 John 4:19 "We love him, because he first loved us."
B. His Love is Unconditional
1. Ephesians 2:4-5 "But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, has quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)"
2. There is nothing you can do to make Christ love you more! There is nothing you can do to make Christ love you less! His love is unconditional, impartial, everlasting, infinite, perfect! Christ is God and God is love!
C. His Love is Unfathomable
1. John 15:13 "Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
2. Romans 5:7-8 "For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commends his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."
3. Ephesians 5:2 "And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us, and has given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savor."
4. “As I contemplate the cross, I grasp that its wonder is not in its appearance, but in the Superglue of love that took Christ to the cross and held him there.” – Katie Funk Wiebe in The Christian Leader (Feb. 1995). Christianity Today, Vol. 40, no. 4.
D. His Love is Unending
1. Jeremiah 31:3 "The LORD has appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee."
2. They tell us that the sun is fed by impact of objects from without, and that the day will come when its flames shall be extinguished. But Christ’s love is fed by no external contributions, and will outlast the burnt-out sun and gladden the ages of ages forever.
3. One evening, a woman was driving home when she noticed a huge truck behind her that was driving uncomfortably close. She stepped on the gas to gain some distance from the truck, but when she sped up the truck did too. The faster she drove, the faster drove the truck. Now scared, she exited the freeway. But the truck stayed with her. The woman then turned up a main street, hoping to lose her pursuer in traffic. But the truck ran a red light and continued the chase. Reaching the point of panic, the woman whipped her car into a service station and bolted out of her auto screaming for help. The truck driver sprang from his truck and ran toward her car. Yanking the back door open, the driver pulled out a man hidden in the backseat. The woman was running from the wrong person. From his high vantage point, the truck driver had spotted a would-be rapist in the woman’s car. The chase was not his effort to harm her but to save her even at the cost of his own safety. Likewise, many people run from God’s love and His provision of atonement on the cross, fearing what He might do to them. But His plans are for good not evil--to rescue us from the hidden sins that endangers our lives. - copied
