When Everything Changed: God Brings Salvation in Fear
What are you afraid of? Each of us has our own set of fears! The scriptures talk about fear often. One of those times involved a prophecy about the Messiah. In Isaiah 7, King Ahaz and all his officials are terrified! Two nations were marching against them, and they were more than capable of destroying them. In that time, a message for Ahaz came to the prophet Isaiah. The message was that he wasn't to be afraid. God was going to deal with the nations marching against him. Isaiah said God wanted Ahaz to name a sign that his words were true. When Ahaz refused, the prophet said the Lord would choose a sign himself. A young woman would become pregnant and bear a son. She would name the son Immanuel, which means "God with us." Before that son grew to know right from wrong, the kings and nations Ahaz feared would be only a memory! Centuries later, Matthew 1 records that a young man was upset and fearful. His...