"Fulfilled Promises"

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…

"Fulfilled Promises"

    Christmas proclaims the fulfilled promises of God.  Seven hundred years before the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, the prophet Isaiah foretold in the most literal detail possible the birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension unto glory of the Savior.

     "Who hath believed our report?  And to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: He hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from Him; He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth: He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He openeth not His mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare His generation?  For He was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was He stricken.  And He made His grave with the wicked, and with the rich in His death; because He had done no violence, neither was any deceit in His mouth. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand. He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied: by His knowledge shall My righteous servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong; because He hath poured out His soul unto death: and He was numbered with the transgressors; and He bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors" (Isaiah 53:1-12).

     God keeps His promises.  He fulfills His Word.  He cannot lie.  He always does that which He says He will do.  Perfect faithfulness characterizes His nature, character, and way.  These affirmations and countless others regarding the integrity of our Lord sing forth in every Christmas carol, shine brightly in all Christmas generosity and benevolence, and grace the season with the truth that Lord Jesus is the Truth (John 14:6).  We may think that the central message of the Gospel is hidden amid the trappings of the season that often have little to do with the manger of Bethlehem.  Certainly a case can be made that this is true.  However, the illumination remains of promises fulfilled, of faithfulness revealed, of trustworthiness proclaimed, and of Christ to be known as the most vivid confirmation that no one has ever trusted in the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and been disappointed for doing so.  And no one ever will…

"Thy Word is truth."

(John 17:17)

"Thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds!"

(Psalm 36:5)

Weekly Memory Verse

    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)