Last week, we kicked off our Advent series titled: “His Name Shall Be Called.” This is based on Isaiah 9:6 “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given… and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Who is the child that Isaiah speaks of with so many names, titles, and descriptions? Isaiah prophesied of a virgin who would conceive and bear a son called Immanuel. An angel appeared to Joseph explaining Mary’s situation, declaring that the Child is to be named “Jesus,” which means “The Lord saves.”

St. Matthew notes that these things took place to fulfill Isaiah’s prophecy, for Jesus is the promised Immanuel, who is “God with us.” Jesus has so many names and titles because they describe exactly who He is and what He has come to do. He’s given the name “Jesus”, because He is the Lord who saves. He’s called “Immanuel”, because He is God with us, God who dwelt among us in human flesh—fully God and fully man. He’s called “Wonderful Counselor”, because He speaks with authority as God, meaning that His wonderful counsel is God’s wonderful counsel. Therefore, we read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest Jesus’ counsel because it is God’s Word. Jesus promises, “If you abide in My Word, you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

The second title given to Jesus in Isaiah 9:6 is “Mighty God”.

Jesus is “Mighty God”, but as you know, not everyone believes this. Even many people during the Lord’s earthly ministry refused to believe that Jesus is God become man. In our own time, we see people who celebrate Christmas, but will not receive the truth that Jesus is God. But for those of you who believe that God means what He says, you can’t and won’t ignore the truth that Jesus—the son of Mary—is the very Son of God, which makes Him “Mighty God!”

How significant is it that Isaiah proclaims the Child to be born will be “Mighty God”? The title “Mighty God” in Hebrew is used in three other portions of the Old Testament. In each of the three cases, the title “Mighty God” is used of the Lord God.

Deuteronomy 10:17 reads, “For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords (not implying that there are other gods, but using hyperbole to teach that nothing stands above the Creator of all), the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe.”

Jeremiah 32:18 proclaims: “O great and mighty God, whose name is the Lord of hosts.”

Isaiah 10:21 declares: “A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the Mighty God.”

The baby to be born of the virgin Mary will, in fact, be called “Mighty God”, because He is “Mighty God”, being the only-begotten Son of God. The apostle John emphasized this reality to open his Gospel account: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made.” There is One—called the Word—who, in the very beginning before all things were made, was with God and was God. Before all creation—there was the Holy Triune God: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

God’s Son eternally exists. Prior to creation, He was one substance with the Father and the Holy Spirit. He still is. There has never been a time when the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit didn’t exist. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have always existed as spirit—unseen, uncreated beings. Together, the Triune God brings all other things—seen and unsee—into existence.

Sometime after God’s grand work of creation—in the fulness of time—another amazing thing happened. “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Jesus was conceived in Mary by the power of the Most High as the Holy Spirit overshadowed her. God became man. The Word became flesh.

The Gospel Reading for this evening fits into this context. On several occasions, Jesus worked miracles during the Sabbath Day. This was the day when God’s Old Testament people were commanded to rest from their work in order to focus on God’s work by going to church. Yet, we heard Jesus say that He works on the Sabbath. Was Jesus breaking divine command? No. It’s important to remember that Jesus is the entire point and fulfillment of the Sabbath. We find rest in Him and His work of salvation. Therefore, He explains that He is working because His heavenly Father is also working. Jesus declares Himself to be “Lord of the Sabbath.”

In this evening’s Gospel, Jesus makes a bold claim (bold because it would rile up His opponents), that He is, in fact, God Himself, and that with His Father He works on the Sabbath Day because—as God—He keeps creation going and going and going.

The writer of Hebrews says, “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed the heir of all things, through whom also He created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature, and He upholds the universe by the word of His power.”

In the second part of John’s Gospel reading, Jesus says something else that riles up His opponents. He tells the people who had been stubbornly rejecting Him that they aren’t God’s children. Then, using Abraham as the prime example, He shows how the Old Testament believers fixed their eyes of faith on Him. He says, “Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.”

The crowd began to lose their cool. They declared, “How is it possible that you’ve seen Abraham? You’re not even fifty years old!” That’s when Jesus performed the mic drop of mic drops: “Before Abraham was, I am.” That doesn’t sound like much, but it is. When God revealed His personal name to Moses while He appeared in the burning bush, He said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” Say this to the people of Israel—I AM has sent me to you.” Jesus claims to be the “I AM” of the Old Testament. He announces Himself to be the Lord God in the flesh.

Many other passages of God’s Word reveal that Jesus is “Mighty God,” since He is God made flesh. The message is a crucial one, because the devil doesn’t want you to believe it. He wants you to reject the truth that the man Jesus is also God.

Let’s say hypothetically that Jesus was only a human like you and me. Let’s further say hypothetically that he was even a perfect human. Then, this would mean He is not the world’s Savior and Redeemer. Scripture teaches that no mere man—even a perfect man—can pay for the sins of another. Only God Himself can deliver us from the curse of sin, death, the devil, and hell.

Long, long, ago, soon after creation and the fall into sin, God promises that “the woman” would bear an offspring who would crush Satan. But only our Lord God can crush Satan. This means that the Child promised to be born of “the woman” would have to be God—God and man.

The promised Child would work salvation in the most unusual way. Sacrificing Himself, bearing our sin, even becoming sin, He was punished in our place—crushed for our sin, so that through Him we are saved from sin, death, the devil, and hell. In Him, we become the righteousness of God. Only God can accomplish all of that on our behalf—and He has in Christ!

Thus, if only a man suffered and died on that Good Friday cross between two criminals, then it would have been just one of many Roman crucifixions. You would still be in your sins. You would still be enslaved to Satan, sin, death, and hell, with no hope of salvation. That’s why the devil wants you to reject Jesus’ claim to be God. He wants you to reject His salvation.

Everyone who denies the truth that Jesus is God either must make themselves believe a lie—that there is no sin, even though they probably get upset when others do them “wrong.” Or the other option is to make themselves believe that they can make up for their sins. Both are diabolical lies keeping unbelievers from trusting and receiving Mighty God’s salvation.

There are times that we are tempted to think our own sins aren’t really that big a deal—and that God is being too hard on us. All people—unbelievers and believers fall into this trap. But if we really believe what God says—what Jesus says—in His Word, if we really believe His wonderful counsel, then we shouldn’t be comfortable with sin.

Sometimes we are tempted to feel comfortable with our sin—sometimes even justified in our sin. It can be so easy not to take the Lord’s Word all that seriously, and act like the wrong we do daily isn’t all that big a deal or we deceive ourselves into thinking it was right. If we deny our sin, if we excuse our sin, if we are proud of our sin—then the truth is not in us.

On the other hand, sometimes we do understand the gravity of sin, and think that if we can just do enough good things to make up for them, then everything will be okay. But we can never do enough good things to satisfy God’s wrath. Our sin debt is too large. We have earned temporal and eternal punishment. Only God can remove the debt of sin that sets us free, and He does. Jesus was sent by His Father as a gift—a willing gift—to die on the cross for our sins—to freely give us forgiveness, life, salvation, and eternal paradise.

Because of what His Son has done for you, God proclaims His Word of promise to deliver you from sin’s enslavement, death’s destruction, Satan’s lies, and hell’s horrors. For the Child born of Mary is “Mighty God.” He paid the price of His blood for each and every single one of your sins—the greatest act of forgiveness. He promises to be with you always until He brings you to His kingdom one day.

Jesus—our Mighty God—has claimed you in Baptism, having stamped His name on you, having washed your sin, and promising you eternal salvation. He doesn’t leave you alone there.

Jesus—our Mighty God—feeds and nourishes you regularly with the spiritual food of His Word that strengthens you to daily walk with Him through trial, suffering, and grief.

Jesus—our Mighty God—feeds you His very body and very blood as a token, as a pledge of His promise, declaring that your sins are atoned for by His blood and strengthening you so that you remain firm in the faith unto the end, when He comes again to bring you to your heavenly inheritance.

Jesus—our Mighty God—prepares us through His means of grace to be ready in faith and daily living as we await His return.

Then He will be revealed to all nations as “Mighty God.” Amen.