Our Mighty God

For many of us, our view of God is way too small. In my younger years, I saw God as the principal in high school. Stick to the rules or else you’ll end up in his office and that won’t be any fun.

That is a very small view of God – and a wrong view of God.

How big is your view of God?

While I don’t know the answer to that question, I do know a few things about each of you …

1. At some point in life, you will face impossible odds. Some of you are OK right now. Others of you have already faced some really challenging circumstances.
2. When faced with impossible odds, you will also face the question of whom you will trust.

When your finances are thin, what will you lean into? When you can’t trust people around you, who will you trust?

If your view of God is small and confined, then the amount of trust you place in God will be small and confined.

The good news that Christmas proclaims is this: Jesus is still a Mighty God who has the power to transform our lives today.

For this series, we are exploring a single passage out of the Old Testament book of Isaiah. The Israelites are being led by a wicked king and their circumstances are not looking good.

In moments like these, we might be tempted to place our trust in tangible things such as armies or money or technology.

Isaiah offers an alternative and it’s the second of our four titles …

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end.” (Isaiah 9:6-7)

Jesus is not only a Wonderful Counselor but also a Mighty God. What comes to mind when you hear the word “mighty”?

Mighty God literally means: “The heroic, strong God.” It has built into the idea of God being a powerful, valiant warrior.

Before we unpack that further, don’t miss this important point: Isaiah has just described Jesus as having the name and attributes of God.

Later in this same book Isaiah will write these words …

6 “I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, 7 to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness. 8 “I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not yield my glory to another or my praise to idols.” (Isaiah 42:6-8)

The baby born in the manger is not just the Son of God, he is also God the Son. All the fullness of God dwells in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Isaiah is writing at a time when his people were doubting God’s goodness and his power to save.

Jesus encountered these same doubts in his own day.

On one occasion he meets a rich young ruler who wants to know how to inherit eternal life. Up to this point, this young guy has lived a very moral life. He can rattle off the 10 Commandments and he had kept them all.

According to Jesus, there is one thing he still lacks: to sell all that he has and give it to the poor. That’s the one thing he CAN’T do and he walks away.

Jesus then says this: “It’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven.”

This really confuses his followers. In their way of thinking, affluence was connected to goodness and morality. The more money you had, the more God must like you (read Job to get a good understanding of this way of thinking).

They’re thinking, “If Tim Tebow can’t be saved, then who can?” Then Jesus offers this response …

“What is impossible with man is possible with God.” (Luke 18:27)

In that one sentence you have the essence of Christianity. What you cannot do, God can do.

From beginning to end, Christianity is about a Mighty God who has the power and willingness to act on our behalf. Because Jesus is the Mighty God, he can …

• Save people who have lied or cheated their way through life.
• Save people who have abused their bodies with drugs or alcohol.
• Save people who have railed against him for yrs.

That is incredible enough but there’s more. Not only does he want to save you, he wants to transform you so you can help transform others.

Jesus has all the power necessary to overcome whatever problem you face and to do mighty things through you.