K-Ville at Home! | Sunday, December 13, 2020
Parents,
This week and next week, we step out of the Bible’s big story chronology to celebrate Christmas. This week we remained in the Old Testament to learn about Jesus’ birth from the prophet Isaiah.
Isaiah’s name means “Yahweh is salvation.” God called Isaiah to be a prophet when King Uzziah’s reign was ending—more than 700 years before Jesus was born. At the time Isaiah spoke to the people of Judah, the kingdom of Judah was very wealthy. But the people did not follow God. They worshiped false idols, cheated one another, and mistreated the poor.
Isaiah spoke to the people of Judah at a critical time in their history. After King Uzziah died, the people were afraid. They were vulnerable to their enemies, and unlike Uzziah, their new king was less than ideal. Isaiah’s prophecies warned the people that God would judge them, but Isaiah also spoke words of hope. He told of how God would one day rescue those who were faithful to Him.
Perhaps the most amazing of all are Isaiah’s detailed prophecies about Jesus—His birth and His suffering and death. Jesus Himself read from the Book of Isaiah, telling the people that He was the One the Scriptures spoke of.
Jesus fulfilled God’s promises spoken by the prophet Isaiah. God kept His promise to send a king from the family of Jesse, the father of King David (Luke 3:23-32). The Spirit of the Lord rested on Jesus (Matt. 3:16-17). He was filled with wisdom and understanding (Luke 2:40). He came to bring salvation to all the nations (Acts 13:47-48).
Isaiah and many other prophets in the Old Testament told about a King who would come and rule forever. Jesus is the promised Messiah. He will make all these words come true.
Help your kids understand that Isaiah’s prophecies from God did not speak just to the people of his time; they also speak to us. Hundreds of years before it happened, Isaiah told of how Jesus would be born and how He would suffer and die to take away the sins of His people. Because of Isaiah’s prophecies, and those of the other Old Testament prophets, we have great confidence in the Bible and that Jesus is the Messiah.
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The Story
The people of Judah were afraid. Their king, Uzziah, had died. Now they had a bad king—Ahaz—and their enemies, the Assyrians, threatened to destroy them. God sent Isaiah the prophet to give the people a message of hope. God had a plan—a very good plan—for their future.
Isaiah told people about God’s plan. A King is coming! Isaiah told the people about the King and what the day will be like when the Messiah comes to rescue His people and be their King forever.
“The King will come from Jesse’s family,” Isaiah said. Jesse was King David’s father. That meant God was going to keep His promise that someone from David’s family would be King forever.
Isaiah said, “God’s Spirit will be with Him. The Spirit will help Him. He will be wise and understanding. He will know God and respect Him.”
Isaiah said that the coming King will always do the right thing. He will be a good judge; He will be fair, and He will do what He says He will do.
Isaiah said that the Messiah will bring peace. In His kingdom, the wolf will live with the lamb. The leopard will lie next to the goat. Calves and lions will eat together, and a child will lead them. Cows and bears will eat next to one another, and their young will lie down together. Lions will eat straw like oxen. Young children will play near snakes. But none of these animals will hurt or kill anything or anyone.
Everyone on the earth will know the Lord. The earth will be filled with knowledge of Him, just like the sea is filled with water.
In the future, this King will bring the nations together. All the people will come to Him, and He will rule in glory.
Christ Connection: Isaiah and many other prophets in the Old Testament told about a King who would come and rule forever. Jesus is the promised Messiah. He will make all these words come true.