Weekly Message
THE LORD'S SIGN!
Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)
Have you ever had some difficult decisions to make? Have you wondered what God would have you do in those situations? How many of you have ever asked God for a sign? Sometimes you just want to know that God is truly with you. I will admit that I ask God for signs all of the time. And sure enough, there have been many times that I recognized God sharing a sign with me which gave me great comfort. We do not ask God for signs as Satan did in Luke 4:9-12, which was designed to tempt God. But we can ask as Gideon did in Judges 6:17, for wisdom in going forward.
In the passage above, Isaiah tells Ahaz that God will give him a sign regarding the future of Israel. Unfortunately Ahaz did not really trust God and had made a separate arrangement with the Assyrians for help. Have you ever tried to make decisions without God's help? You trusted people more than you trusted God.
Even though Ahaz did not want God's sign, God gave a sign anyway because God knew that the future of His people (the House of David) was at stake. The sign that God gave was not only for Ahaz and the people of that day, but for all of mankind for generations to come. Theologians refer to such prophecies as "DOUBLE FULFILLMENT" prophecies. In essence, the prophecy would be fulfilled in that day with the birth of a child to a young woman in Ahaz's house who was not married. Of course the prophecy was subsequently also fulfilled with the birth of Jesus Christ. In both cases, the sign was clear, "God was with His people". The name Immanuel literally means, "GOD WITH US.!
The Good News for us today is the same as it was then: GOD IS WITH US. God still gives us signs to let us know that He will never leave us nor forsake us. His "Word" is a sign to those who heed it. His "Grace" is a sign to those who desire it. His "Mercy" is a sign to those who experience it. The fact that you still have "ways out of no way," is a sign to those who seek it. And if you really have a serious talk with Jesus, He may even personalize your sign just for you when you need it the most.