The sign said, “Turn left for Fort Wilderness Camp,” so we turned left, wound around the half-mile entrance road, and then as we crested the hill, there was a large beautiful sign: “Welcome to Fort Wilderness Camp – Stronghold of Christian Adventure.” We had arrived!
In the northwoods of Wisconsin there are many signs to Fort Wilderness Camp. But there is only one “THE SIGN” as you actually arrive at the camp. So was the coming of Christ in His First Advent. There were many indicators that the baby born in Bethlehem was the Christ. But in Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah gives us “THE SIGN”. He says, “Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign; Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call his name Immanuel.”
The word “sign” is the Hebrew word “ot,” which means “a mark or badge, or symbol.” It can mean “a warning, or an omen,” and is sometimes used to refer to a monument or a memorial. The point is that an “ot,”or sign is a significant indicator of something important.
Now it is obvious that Isaiah is speaking of a great miracle of God. The child would be “Immanuel” – God with us – through the means of a virgin birth. As we came to the crest of the hill of history 2,000 years ago, there was a significant, beautifully constructed, glorious sign which said, “Welcome to the Advent of Messiah.…a virgin has conceived and borne a Son!” It was THE SIGN of His coming.
Say – Do you know THE SIGN of our Lord’s Second Coming? Matthew 24:30 says, it is the sign of the “Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven.”