The Heroic God

Tonight, I will be preaching in the South Mississippi Correctional Facility. Every third Saturday night, I preach in the chapel there. This has been very fulfilling for me. Before I preach, there is always an impressive time of worship through music. The inmates have formed a band and choir that can really rock the house.

My sermon for this evening will be based on Isaiah 9:6. When prophesying the birth of Jesus, Isaiah gave several names for Jesus. One of the names in Hebrew is El Ghibor, which is commonly translated Mighty God. An alternative translation, which I read in a devotional book penned by Richard Wurmbrand, is Heroic God. For me, the term "Heroic God" really captures the miracle of Christmas.

Contemplate with me this translation of Isaiah 9:6, "And His name will be called…Heroic God."

If you are looking for the ultimate hero, don't go the largest athletic stadiums and coliseums. Kicking, throwing, and catching balls is entertaining, but is it truly heroic?

If you are looking for the ultimate hero, don't go to Washington, D.C. Negotiating treaties, contracts, and compromises is important, but not truly heroic.

If you are looking for the ultimate hero (or heroine), don't go to Wall Street. Buying and selling commodities is an integral cog in the economic machine, but that's not truly heroic.

If you want to find the true hero of the world, go to a barn in Bethlehem. Look into a feed trough lined with hay and you will find the Son of God wrapped in swaddling clothes when he could have requested the finest robe. Look into that manger and see the Son of God who humbled himself to show us love.

If you want to see the true hero, go to Calvary. Look at the Heroic God choosing to suffer on a cross instead of resting on a throne.

Finally, if you want to see the true hero, go to the borrowed tomb in which they laid Jesus. You will find an eternally empty tomb. Jesus is a true hero for you cannot his body buried anywhere. Yet, he is everywhere. He is alive. He is the ultimate Hero. All other so-called heroes fail in comparison to Jesus Christ.

Title: Praise God for Christmas

By Joseph Bayly

Praise Him for the incarnation,
for the word made flesh.
I will not sing of shepherds
watching flocks on frosty nights,
or angel choristers.
I will not sing of a stable bare in Bethlehem,
or lowing oxen,
wise men trailing star with gold,
frankincense, and myrrh.
Tonight I will sing praise to the Father
who stood on heaven's threshold
and said farewell to his Son
as he stepped across the stars
to Bethlehem and Jerusalem.
And I will sing praise to the infinite, eternal Son,
who became most finite, a baby
who would one day be executed for my crime.
Praise him in the heavens,
Praise him in the stable,
Praise him in my heart.