The Many Names of the Christmas Child "Wonderful Counselor"
Series: The Many Names of the Christ Child
Isaiah 9:1-7
Sermon #1 Wonderful Counselor
Isaiah 9:1-7 (NLT)
1 Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory. 2 The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine. 3 You will enlarge the nation of Israel, and its people will rejoice. They will rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest and like warriors dividing the plunder. 4 For you will break the yoke of their slavery and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders. You will break the oppressor’s rod, just as you did when you destroyed the army of Midian. 5 The boots of the warrior and the uniforms bloodstained by war will all be burned. They will be fuel for the fire. 6 For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!
Series: The Many Names of the Christ Child
Isaiah 9:1-7
Sermon #1 Wonderful Counselor
Often times the birth of a baby is an occasion for great joy and celebration. Nearly all of us get excited and do silly things in the presence of a new born infant. The sight of a fragile infant cradled in the arms of its mother offers us a sense of hope for the future.
Isaiah tells us the story of two babies. In Isaiah chapter 8, God speaks to the prophet Isaiah and tells him to get a large scroll, and across it, with big letters write the name Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. Not long after that Isaiah and his wife discovered that they were going to have a baby. God then told Isaiah to give the child the name he had written on the scroll. The name meant: Quick to the plunder, swift to the spoil. God then said to Isaiah,
"Before your son is old enough to say mamma or daddy, your nation will be plundered and the people taken off as slaves."
Can’t you see a mother standing in the back yard and calling, “Hey, ‘Plunder’ time to come eat”?
Needless to say this child came to symbolize the hardship of the Hebrew people. Every time Isaiah looked upon his son he was reminded of what God had said.
As we move into chapter 9 we find that the captivity this child represented was harsh. Notice the words used to characterize this tragic time.
Verse 1: Gloom and anguish (NRSV)
Darkness and despair (NLT).
Verse 2: death castes it’s shadow (NLT).
As much as we hate to admit it, these words seem to describe our existence. Though it is nowhere near as bad as the Hebrews suffered the words gloom, anguish, darkness, despair, shadow of death seem to characterize our lives and our world.
Statistics indicate that most of us are living from one paycheck to the next. One emergency and we would be on the brink of disaster. For some of us, that emergency has already come and gone.
We would agree that Christmas should be the most joyful time of the year. However it is during this season that the largest number of people suffer from depression. There will also be a higher percentage of suicides and deaths.
Some of our family relationships could be described no other way than, "gloomy." There seems to be constant bickering and fighting. Or even worse, there is no emotion whatsoever. The marriage, "just exists."
Just like the Hebrews the words gloom, distress, darkness and death seem to describe our existence. (pause)
But the prophet Isaiah proclaims that out of this darkness, there will come a great light! In other words, there is hope! A light has dawned.
For you see, there is a second baby! The prophet proclaims, “Unto us a child is born.”
The good news is that this child will be different from the first. He will not represent plunder and despair but hope and peace. Who is this child that will be the light of the world? For the Christian his name is Jesus.
Our theme for 2008 has been “It’s All About Jesus.”
Have you wonder over the course of this past year what the “It” is? If “It is all about Jesus,” what is the it?
“It” is every thing this passage implies. We can place many words in the place of “It.” Life is all about Jesus. Hope is all about Jesus. Salvation is all about Jesus. Love, joy, Christmas, Easter, peace……each of these things can be summed up in one name, “Jesus.”
As we learned from Isaiah child, Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz a name could carry so much meaning. Some things are almost to big for words. Have you ever experienced something, or seen something that words just couldn’t describe it? We try, “Grand Canyon.” “Pikes Peak.” “Birth.” Good names but still there is more to it.
So it is with this child that Isaiah describes.
Some have suggested that there are 256 different names that the Bible uses speak about Jesus.” It is as though one name could not express the infinite virtue and worth of His marvelous life.
In this passage Isaiah proceeds to give us some names that will help characterize this savior who will be called Jesus. He does it in the form of “couplets,” double words.
The first name he uses to help us understand what this child will become is "Wonderful Counselor." This text could literally be translated: A wonder of a counselor.
If you happen to be reading this passage from the King James Version of the Bible it has a comma between Wonderful and Counselor as if they are two separate names but in the time this passage was written there were no such things as commas. It is understood now that these words belong together: Wonderful Counselor.
This word “Wonderful” is a unique word in the Hebrew language. It is a word that was usually applied to something that could have only been done by an act of God. It was something that was so unusual that it would have been beyond human capabilities. It is something that astonishes.
Had we been present when the Israelites walked through the parted waters of the Red Sea and dry land we would have said, ‘That is wonderful.”
Had we been standing by Joshua, the captain of the hosts of the armies of Israel when he commanded the sun and the moon to stand still over the Valley of Ajalon, we would have said, ‘It is wonderful.’
Had we stood on Mount Carmel by Elijah when fire fell from heaven and consumed the wood, the sacrifice, and the altar, and licked up the water surrounding it we would have said, ‘It is wonderful.’”
Perhaps a phrase we use that best describes this word Wonderful would be “out of this world!” We eat one of Pauline Norton’s hot homemade rolls and we say, “this is wonderful.” Pauline’s rolls are out of this world. They are so marvelous that surely they are manna from heaven.
This is what Isaiah wants us to understand about this special child who will come. He is no ordinary child. There will be nothing ordinary about him. He is out of this world. He can only do what he does because he comes from God Himself.
Jesus is all this but Isaiah adds the word COUNSELOR.
When I think of a counselor I think of someone who is filled with great wisdom.
Isaiah calls him "Wonderful Counselor."
What does this mean? It means that Jesus is the sum total of all knowledge. All wisdom, all guidance, all direction, all truth, all counsel and insight…He knows everything about everything and is never wrong.
All knowledge of the past present and future, of all things, of all purposes and plans belongs to Him. He even knows what is in your heart!!
The Psalmist expressed it this way:
The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations. Psalm 33:11 (NRSV)
She is one who serves as a guide. A great deal of a counselors time is given to listening. He is one we can pour our heart out to without fear of being put down or being made fun of.
This is one of the most beautiful aspects of our Wonderful Counselor. He is always ready to listen to what we are feeling or experiencing. We never have to make an appointment, he is available to us 24 hours a day.
You see Jesus is a wonder of a counselor.
There is no one as wise as he.
No one is as available as he is available.
No one can listen as Jesus can listen.
But a counselor is one who not only listens but goes a step further. He becomes and advocate. One who stands up for us when no else is willing to do so. An attorney is often called "Counselor" because he stands up for his client in a court of law.
The story is told of a soldier who served in the Union army during the Civil War. He was a young man who had lost his older brother and father in the war. His mother sent him a letter pleading with him to come home and help her and his sister take care of the farm.
The young man was granted a furlough and went to Washington, D.C. to plead his case to the president. When he arrived at the White House he asked to see the president. He was told in no uncertain terms, "You can not see the president! Don't you know there's a war on? The president is a very busy man. Now go away!"
The young man left very disheartened. He went to a nearby park and sat down on a bench and tried to figure out what to say to his mother. It was then that a young boy walked up to him and said, "Soldier, you look unhappy. What's wrong?" The soldier looked at this young boy and he began to spill his heart out to him. He told him about his father and brother dying in the war and how his mother needed him back on the farm.
The little boy took the soldier by the hand and led him around to the back of the White House. They went through the back door, past the guards, past all the generals and the high ranking government officials until they got to the president's office itself. The little boy didn't even knock but just opened it and walked in. There was President Lincoln with his secretary of state, looking over battle plans on the desk. President Lincoln looked up and said, "What can I do for you, Todd?" And Todd said, "Daddy, this soldier needs to talk to you." Right then and there the young man was able to plead his case.
This why Jesus is a wonder of a counselor. He is our advocate. He has the ear of God himself.