This is the manuscript of the sermon of the second Sunday of December as we begin the celebration of the birth of Immanuel...God with us.
Isaiah 12:2 NIV Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.”
In our text Isaiah declares that “God is my salvation.” This Christmas season let’s focus our attention on the great salvation that is offered through Jesus Christ. Through Jesus Christ, “God has become our salvation.”
That Jesus came to save is the essence of His message. His first impression! Christ’s first step toward us is not as our Creator and King. It’s as our loyal, merciful, loving Savior.
Jesus Christ was born to be our Savior. He died on a cross to save us from the penalty of sin and from the separation from God that sin brings. Jesus Christ arose from the dead triumphant and victorious to be our Savior.
We miss the real meaning of Christmas if we can’t say with the prophet, Isaiah, that “God is my salvation.”
Scripture
Isaiah 12:1-6 NIV In that day you will say: “I will praise you, Lord. Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away and you have comforted me. Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.” With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. In that day you will say: “Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done, and proclaim that his name is exalted. Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world. Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you.”
Text:
Isaiah 12:2 NIV Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.”
Introduction
In our text Isaiah declares that “God is my salvation.” This Christmas season let’s focus our attention on the great salvation that is offered through Jesus Christ. Through Jesus Christ, “God has become our salvation.”
The angel told Joseph that Mary’s child would be a savior.
Matthew 1:20-21 NIV But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
The angel also made the announcement to the shepherds of a savior.
Luke 2:8-12 NIV And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
If first impressions count for anything, then the personal name God gave His Son is paramount. That’s right. Neither Mary nor Joseph chose the name.
Of all the prestigious names God could have chosen from the annals of Israel’s history, He chose Jesus—a shortened form of Joshua—which signifies:
SAVIOR
That Jesus came to save is the essence of His message. His first impression! Christ’s first step toward us is not as our Creator and King. It’s as our loyal, merciful, loving Savior.
Jesus Christ was born to be our Savior. He died on a cross to save us from the penalty of sin and from the separation from God that sin brings. Jesus Christ arose from the dead triumphant and victorious to be our Savior.
We miss the real meaning of Christmas if we can’t say with the prophet, Isaiah, that “God is my salvation.”
Our world needs God’s salvation. We need salvation from:
Ignorance.
Fear.
Anger and hate.
Rashness and harshness.
Greed.
Arrogance and pride.
Wickedness and ungodliness.
Selfishness and hard-heartedness.
All of these things are sinful things and outside the will of God for us, and we know that the penalty of sin is death, or eternal separation from God.
Romans 6:23 NIV For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Yes, we need a savior and Jesus is our Savior. We not only need Jesus Christ as the Savior from the penalty of sin, but we need him as our Savior from the power and practice of sin. When you are under the power of sin you are a slave to sin, so you practice sin.
Romans 6:16 NLT Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living.
People can become slaves to sin without: realizing it. Sin can manifest itself in attitudes, actions, or ambitions.
But Jesus Christ is the way out of slavery to sin.
Sin not only enslaves; it also separates people from God, and other people. Jesus is the only one who can deliver a person from slavery to sin. All of us need pardon from past guilt and deliverance from the power and practice of sin.
Romans 6:6 NLT We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin.
Romans 6:17-18 NLT Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living.
Jesus is the way out of failure and the waste of sin.
Without salvation people are failures throughout eternity; it doesn't matter if they led an international corporation, led a nation, or had millions or even billions of dollars while living on earth.
Mark 8:36 NLT And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?
Only Jesus can pay the price of our sin and deliver us from spiritual death and eternal torment.
In his sermon of the Day of Pentecost Peter said;
Acts of the Apostles 4:11-12 NLT For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”
Jesus is the way out of the disappointment of sin.
Faithless living always disappoints. No one would want to go bankrupt, yet every person who goes through life without God follows a way that brings big disappointment in the end.
But Jesus is the way out of the disappointment of sin.
Romans 9:33 AMP As it is written and forever remains written, “Behold I am laying in Zion a Stone of stumbling and a Rock of offense ; And he who believes in Him [whoever adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Him] will not be disappointed [in his expectations].”
Romans 10:11 AMP For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him [whoever adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Him] will not be disappointed [in his expectations].”
Jesus Christ, who was born in Bethlehem and who conquered death and the grave, lives today to help you experience God’s full salvation.
Let's go back to our text.
Isaiah 12:2 NIV Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.”
Because God was his salvation, Isaiah was able to declare, “I will trust, and will not be afraid.”
We too can declare that we trust and are not afraid because through Jesus God has become our salvation.
God who forgives our sin fully and freely and forever.
Ephesians 1:11-14 NIV In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
Romans 8:37-39 NIV No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We can trust and not be afraid.
Jesus Christ is alive, and in the Holy Spirit he dwells within us as close as the very breath that we breathe. He wants to fill our hearts with the love of God. He wants to guide us with the wisdom of God. He wants to help us control ourselves by means of the Spirit of God. Because he lives we can face anything.
Because He lives
I can face tomorrow
Because He lives
All fear is gone
Because I know
He holds the future
And life is worth the living
Just because He lives (He lives)
Those are some of the lyrics from the song "Because He Lives"
We can trust and not be afraid of the future.
As we approach the end of the year, there is always speculation about the future. None of us can know what the future holds, but in Jesus Christ, we know him who holds the future.
Hebrews 13:8 NIV Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
Christ has conquered death and the grave. He has promised us the life that endures beyond the curtain that people call death. We can count on him for his presence with us always.
Psalms 23:6 NIV Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
As revealed through Jesus Christ, God as my Savior is the source of my strength.
Philippians 4:12-13 NIV I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Here are some lyrics from another song that are appropriate here. The song is "God Is" which was written years ago by James Cleveland.
God is the joy and the strength of my life
(God is) He removes all pain misery and strife
(God is) He promised to keep me
Never to leave me
He'll never ever come short of His word
(God is) I've got to fast and pray
Stay in this narrow way
(God is) Keep my life clean every day
(God is) I want to go with Him when He comes back
I've come to far
And I'll never turn back
God is
God is
God is
God is
God is my all and all
Conclusion
Isaiah could say, “God has become my salvation.” Isaiah had come to a point of faith and commitment when God’s salvation became real to him.
Some say, “Education is my salvation.” Some say, “Marriage is my salvation.” Some say, “My family is my salvation.” Some say, “My money is my salvation.” Some say, “My government is my salvation.” With God in your life through His Son Jesus Christ, He offers salvation from the past, the present, and the future.
If you will truly let God become your salvation as he has revealed himself in Jesus Christ, you will be able to join with the prophet who said, “I will trust, and will not be afraid.”
Prayer
Father, thank You for loving us so much that when Jesus shed His blood on the cross, You freed us from our sins. We reaffirmour faith in You and give You praise for the gift of salvation. Thank You that we don't have to earn it. We accept Jesus' sacrifice for us and receive your forgiveness and cleansing. We rejoice in knowing that we are Your children, Father. Help us obey Your Word and each day to acknowledge the Lordship of Jesus in our lives. Amen.
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