The Crib, The Cross & The Crown

The Crib, The Cross, & the Crown
Isaiah 9:6​

Intro: Christmas really is a Most Wonderful Time of the Year; not because we are going to get presents, but because we have already received the Greatest Gift that could ever be given. God so loved the world that he GAVE us his Son, Jesus Christ; and through Jesus, God gave us Salvation and Eternal Life. Thank God for Christmas!
This verse in Isaiah is an amazing prophecy about the Christ, the Messiah. It highlights three aspects of the Christ.

I. The Crib- The Miracle of His Incarnation
“Unto us a Child is born...”
The Virgin birth is an amazing and supernatural manifestation of God’s divine power. Jesus was conceived in the womb of Mary, not by means of human reproduction, but by the Glory and Power of the Holy Ghost. This had never happened before and will never happen again. Joseph was the earthly father of Jesus but not his father in the sense that he brought about his conception. This virgin birth bypassed the natural laws of man and insured that Jesus Christ did not inherit a nature tainted by Adam’s sin.
The Incarnation was such a major event that God sent a host of Angels to announce it. Shepherds heard the news and hurried to Bethlehem to worship this newborn Savior. Wise men were looking for the Messiah and saw a new Star in the sky. They followed it for many months and finally fell down before the Christ child worshiping the King. Oh, the glory of the Crib! Oh, the miracle of his Incarnation- God becoming man; God with us!

II. The Cross- The Marvel of His Crucifixion
“Unto us a Son is given”
Isaiah’s prophesy moved from the crib of Jesus incarnation to the cross of his crucifixion. Truly the Son of God was born to die. Though he was holy and compassionate, he was hated by the religious leaders of Israel; rejected by his own people; arrested and illegally tried; tortured and crucified; God dying in man’s place; God paying for man’s sin; God redeeming man’s soul. Thank God for Calvary! Oh, the marvel of his crucifixion and of our salvation.

III. The Crown- The Majesty of His Exaltation
“The government shall be upon his shoulders”
Isaiah’s prophesy then leaped ahead to the time when Jesus Christ would set up his kingdom on the earth and would eventually reign forever and ever.
Yes, he was laid first in a manger; and, Yes, he was laid later in a tomb. BUT both the manger and the tomb are Empty. Jesus lived a sinless life, died a sacrificial death, arose from the dead in a supernatural resurrection, ascended back into heaven and assumed his place of honor at the right hand of the Father. He will one day Come in the Air! There will be a resurrection of the saved dead and a rapture of the saved who are living. After the Tribulation, Jesus will Come to the Earth! He will then Rule and Reign Forever; exalted in Majesty.
Glory to God in the highest!