Does the Manger Offend You? (Isaiah 8:1-9:1)

Isaiah 8:1-9:1 shows us that the coming of Immanuel (God with us) will be a stone of offense to both houses of Israel but also a sanctuary to others.  The two options we have for responding to the sign of the manger is to regard Jesus as holy or to be offended by Him.  The two options are to fear what the people fear and be in dread or to fear God with us.  The two options are to seek to understand what is happening and what we should do about it by appealing to illegal and illegitimate ways (like mediums and those who conjure up the dead) or to trust the written word of God and believe its promises.  These are three ways the text shows our two options before the sign of the manger.  These are real options for us as believers.  Will we believe the written word?  Will we regard Jesus as holy even though he was born in a dirty manger scene?  Or are you offended by the manger this year?  Are you offended by Jesus?  Are you offended when you hear that God is with us because you seem to think that God is against you right now?  If you are an unbeliever, you should be offended.  If you believe, Jesus said, “Blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

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