Series:  Inspiration in Isaiah, #6  

July 23, 2006

TO US A CHILD IS BORN

Isaiah 9:6

How many hats do you wear?  take a minute and go over the various roles / jobs you have in the course of your life, and tally them up in your mind.  OK, who wears the most hats here?  Who has more than 5?  6?  …  (Have the one with the most tell us what they are.) 

          Even within a given role, there can be many sub-roles that we play. For example, in my role as pastor, I am expected to be:

          theologian   leader                     friend                     linguist         coach                     boss             manager                        counselor              visionary          preacher                        teacher       pastor (shepherd)             social worker          planner        man of God

God is something like this, only to a much higher degree.  I’ve combed  through the Scriptures looking for attributes and roles of God, and have found over 200 titles, attributes, roles, etc.  This morning we are going to look at just four titles Jesus Christ has as the Messiah, that Isaiah predicted of Him in Isaiah 9:6: 

    For to us a child is born,

        to us a son is given,

        and the government will be on his shoulders.

    And he will be called

        Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

        Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

I.        The Government Will Be on His Shoulders Acts 2:33; Eph 1:20-22; 1 Peter 3:22; Eph 1:10

          The first thing to note here is that this is a prophecy of Christ that is in the process of being fulfilled.  It is somewhere between “already” and “not yet”.   Christ has already been exalted to the right hand of God (Acts 2:33, Eph 1:20);  He already holds a position that is “far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given.”  God has “placed all things under his feet,” (Eph 1:21,22).  Angels, authorities and powers are in submission to him (1 Peter 3:22).  So in some sense, the government of the universe is already on His shoulders. 

          But this is not yet fully the case.  We see plenty of evidence on earth that Christ is not exerting His authority in every situation, but is allowing sinful men to have their way.  So we still look forward to that time when King Jesus will rule on the throne in a more complete way, and God brings “all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ” (Eph 1:10). 

          Isaiah gives us four aspects to this King’s nature—four hats He wears.  Each of these roles is described with two words, one of which refers to His humanity, and the other to His deity. 

II.          Wonderful Counselor  cf. Ps 78:12

          If you are familiar with Handel’s rendition of this verse in the Messiah, you will remember that the music breaks this title into two:  wonderful; counselor.  That’s because this first word is really not an adjective, it’s a noun—“a wonder”.  But since all the rest of these titles are two-word phrases, it makes sense to see these two words as going together also.  So the sense of it is that the coming Messiah is a “wonder of a counselor.” 

          The  word for wonder (root pele’)  is used of the miracles in Egypt, such as the plagues, the dividing of the Red Sea, the fire and cloud that guided the Israelites through the desert, etc. (Ps 78:12).  It is almost always used of the works of God, rather than men.  It tells us that when we contemplate Jesus Christ, we should stand in wonder and awe.  He’s amazing!  We overuse the word, but Jesus really is “awesome”.  He’s the sort of person that we look at and say, “Wow!”  The Old Testament captures some of this when it speaks of the fear of the Lord. 

          In particular, Jesus is a wonder of a counselor.  All through history, heads of state have had their counselors and special advisors, people who are typically experts in various fields who advise the leader, make recommendations, etc.  I have a cousin, Dr. John Marburger, who is the Science Advisor to President Bush.  Jesus needs none of that.  He Himself is the all-wise counselor.  He has all the answers. He is the counselor to all others. 

          Therefore, we can trust Him to guide our lives.  Over the past 46 years that I have known Christ, I have brought many decisions to Him for guidance.  What college to attend; whether to take an Air Force commission through ROTC;  what seminary to go to; who to marry; the decision about my first pastoral position as an assistant in Los Angeles; the decision to come to Loveland in 1978 to pastor the First Presbyterian Church here; the painful decision to leave the Presbyterian denomination and to start Faith Evangelical Church, etc.  I can honestly say that I have never made a mistake in any decision that I have fully submitted to Jesus Christ for guidance.  He is a wonderful Counselor.

          Where do you need Jesus’ counsel, His advice and guidance?  Are you facing an important decision?  Are you confused about something?  Maybe it’s a job issue, or a relationship you don’t know what to do with.  A career change or choice? A ministry concern? Jesus is the Wonderful Counselor.  Ask Him what you should do. 

          But here’s the catch:  You have to be willing to do whatever He says.  You can’t come to Him with an agenda and secretly hope that He’ll endorse it.  I’ve done that, and I know it doesn’t work!  You have to be absolutely neutral, and willing to go either way, or you won’t even hear His voice—you’ll only hear your own desires. 

          The other thing is that most of the wise, wonderful counsel that Jesus has to share with us is already written down in the Bible.  Don’t ask Him whether you should stay in your marriage or not—He’s already told you what He thinks about that.  Don’t ask whether you should put your interests ahead of your friends’, or whether to forgive someone who hurt you terribly.  Jesus has already expressed Himself clearly on these matters.  If you are going to go to Jesus, the Wonder of a Counselor, for His advice, you have to take what He’s already said in the Bible as your starting point. 

          Secondly, Jesus is the

III.      Mighty God   Ps 135:6; Matt 28:18; Jer 32:27

          The word translated mighty means adequate, powerful, capable of heroic deeds.  It is often translated “hero”.   When applied to God, it points us to His omnipotence.  God is not just a heroic figure; He can literally do anything.  Psalm 135:6, “The Lord does whatever pleases him.”   After His resurrection, Jesus said, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and earth” (Matt 28:18).  He has the authority, and the practical power, to accomplish anything He wants.

          Brothers and sisters, our God is too small.  We ignore or forget all that the Scripture tells us about His might, and we reduce Him down to someone made in our image. For example, we may unconsciously think of Him as

·        Resident Policeman, who hands out guilt-tickets if we cross the line.

·        Magnified Parent, which may mean different things based on your experience with your parents: either doting, scolding, spoiling, nagging, lecturing, hounding, abusing, etc.

·        Grandfather:  giver of gifts and spoiler of children;  one who smiles, tells stories, and doesn’t do much else that’s useful.

·        Gentle Jesus, meek and mild.  A Caspar Milquetoaste, a wimp who let people walk all over Him.

·        Distant CEO, who is way too busy running the universe to do much about our problems.

          In each of these cases, we have shrunk God to our size and created Him in our image.  But that’s not really who Jesus is.  He is the Mighty God, who is very much in charge of the world, and who is capable of doing anything and everything.  Jeremiah 32:27 says, "I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?”  What a great rhetorical question!  Is anything too hard for the God who made the world? 

          Since that’s true of Jesus Christ, then what do you want to say to Him?  What do you need Him to do for you?  I forget which of the Wesley  brothers said, “Thou art coming to a King—large petitions with thee bring; for His craft and power are such, none can ever ask too much!”  Take a minute and repent for the times when you have imagined God to be more like you or another person than like He really is, the Mighty God.  And then ask Him to demonstrate His power to you in a way that will bring glory to Himself. 

          Secondly, Jesus is the

IV.          Everlasting Father

          A.          The Son is the Father

                    Right off the bat here, we are faced with a mystery:  this Son who is born for and given to us is the Father – the everlasting, eternal Father.   How can the Son of God also be God the Father? We get lost trying to explain the Trinity in terms that our feeble human minds can understand. I think the most I know to say is that the Father and the Son are so much one that the attributes of one are the attributes of the other. There is obviously some distinction between them, because the Bible says the Father sent the Son, and the Son obeys the Father, and the Son prayed to the Father while He was on earth. But the point that Isaiah makes is that this Child he predicted could properly be referred to as the Everlasting Father because they both share the nature of deity.  In their essence, they are both divine. 

          B.          Everlasting   Ps 90:2

                    One of the things that sets God apart from every created thing is that He has no beginning and no end. Psalm 90:2 "Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God." As far back as you want to go in the past, and as far as you want to go in the future, God is still there. He has always existed, and He always will exist. Einstein's theory of relativity has led scientists to the conclusion that before there was matter, there was no time. Time itself is dependent on matter. So before the creation, when there was only God, there was no time. I'm not sure if the same sort of thing happens at the end of the world when God will make a new heaven and a new earth, but whether time stops at some point or not, God will continue to exist. He is everlasting.

          What that means for us is that we will never outlive our heavenly Father.  Most of us can expect to outlive our human fathers, but as long as we live, in every situation we find ourselves, God will always be there for us as our Father.

          Let me just mention two things about God as Father. 

                   C.      Loving   Luke 15:20-22

                    In contrast to so many fathers today who still think that their job is to be like the characters played by Clint Eastwood or Arnold Schwarzenegger, one of the most fundamental attributes of the Everlasting Father is love.  The parable of the prodigal son is really the parable of the loving father. The whole time his boy was away, the father was scanning the horizon, looking for him. While he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. The father said to his servants, “Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.  Kill the fatted calf.  We're going to party. For my son who was lost has been found.” No matter how your human father treats or treated you, that's how your heavenly Father feels about you and will treat you.

          Our God is the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort. When we are hurting, He feels our pain. The scripture says that in all our distress, He was distressed. And His great heart of compassion moves Him to reach out to us with love and comfort. Are you hurting today? Grieving? Fearful? Feel the arms of Jesus, the Eternal Father, around you, pulling you to His chest, holding you close, crying with you, comforting you with His powerful love.

          Then the Father's love moves Him to provide for His children.

          D.           Provider  Matthew 6:8; 7:9-11

                    Jesus said we don't have to keep hounding God for what we need, because, "your Father knows what you need before you ask him” (Matt 6:8).  He's just waiting for us to ask so that we'll know where it came from.

          Jesus also compared our heavenly Father to us earthly fathers. Matthew 7:9-11 "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? [10] Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? [11] If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" That's so good! Of course we know how to give good gifts to our children. Well, says Jesus, think about how much more your Father in heaven will give good gifts to those who ask Him.

          What do you need from Him?  What good gift are you asking for?  If it hasn’t come yet, don’t stop asking!  Keep asking, so that your joy may be full.   

V.      Prince of Peace

          Finally, Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace. Right from the very start, in the first announcement of His birth, the angels picked up on this prophecy and proclaimed Him to be the source of peace—peace on earth toward men of good will.  There are two different aspects to the peace Jesus brings. One is what we might call

          A.           The Peace of God   John 16:33; Philip 4:6,7

                    Before He died, Jesus met with His disciples in the Upper Room, and told them many things, sort of recapping for them the main themes of His teaching over the previous 3 years. Near the end of that evening, He said, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). In this world, you will have trouble.  No question about it. It might be physical problems, poor health, life-threatening diseases. It could be loss of a job; or loss of a spouse. It might be a financial crisis, or an emotional crisis.  It could be a relationship that has gone sour.  There is no end to the trouble we face in this world.  But in the midst of that, Jesus, the Prince of Peace, brings us peace.  

          The other dimension of peace Jesus brings is

          B.           Peace with God

                    The sad truth is that we all start out alienated from God.  We are rebellious and determined to live our lives independently of God.  Jesus came to be the mediator between us, to reconcile us to God.  He took our sin on Himself and died for it, so now there is no barrier between us and God.  God is already reconciled to us; all we have to do is to turn around, give up the fight for who is going to run our lives, and fall into His waiting arms. 

          Which kind of peace do you need today?  The peace of God in the midst of trouble?  Or the peace with God where you lay down your weapons and surrender to His love?  Let’s go to Him, and you talk to Him about the peace you need.