Bowling Green Covenant Church

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the
government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be
called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace.”
-Isaiah 9.6 [ESV]

Seven hundred years before Jesus was born, the prophet
Isaiah said that Jesus the Messiah would be called by
certain names. He wanted us to know that these names would
belong to Jesus and Him alone. He wanted us to know that
there is a lot more to the name of Jesus than the name of
Jesus.
From eternity Jesus is Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. He did not earn
these names because He is, was, and always will be Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of
Peace.
Jesus is Wonderful Counselor (literally, a wonder of a
counselor)-Jesus is a wonder by virtue of His virgin birth.
He surpasses all human thought and power. Jesus is a wonder
because He is God in human flesh. As Counselor Jesus is
anointed by the Holy Spirit with all the wisdom and
knowledge necessary to establish and command His kingdom as
well as the power, authority, and skill to direct our lives
because He possesses the same nature as the Lord Almighty.
As Wonderful Counselor, Jesus is the wisdom of God come down
from heaven to earth. According to James 3.17: “the wisdom
that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then
peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and
good fruit, impartial, and sincere. ”
Jesus is Mighty God-As the Mighty God, Jesus is a hero whose
chief characteristic is that He is God. A Hero gives his
life for another. A Hero is not afraid to lay down his or
her life to save someone else. Jesus is that kind of Hero.
He volunteered to step into our time in order to die in our
place so that we could live forever with Him in God’s
eternal presence.
As the Mighty God Jesus lived the sinless life that we are
not capable of living to please God. The writer of the
letter to the Hebrews tells us that Jesus was “tempted in
every way, just as we are-yet was without sin.” Since this
is true, the writer of Hebrews encourages us “to approach
the throne of grace with confidence so that we may receive
mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need,”
(Hebrews 4.16).
If Jesus had not lived a sinless life we would have no hope
of receiving mercy or finding grace from God in our time of
need. But the Mighty God, the Hero of our salvation did live
the life we could not live so that we could have hope,
receive mercy and find grace to help us.
Jesus is Everlasting Father-Everlasting Father describes
Jesus’ ministry as the pioneer of our salvation. Like a
father, Jesus protects us against the attacks by the enemy.
He comforts us with the assurance of our salvation. He
counsels us with His holy wisdom. He forgives our mistakes.
He disciplines us when we disobey. He loves us without
condition. He covets our prayers. He enjoys our company.
Sometimes God allows circumstances to cast a shadow on the
truth of His mercy and grace. Sometimes our circumstances
test our faith in His love. It is during this dark moments
when we must trust in Jesus’ character as Everlasting
Father. He loves us. He loves you, too.
Jesus is Prince of Peace-Jesus came to establish peace
between God and us. He died as our substitute to suffer the
full punishment of God’s wrath against us “so that we may
receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of
need.” It may seem inappropriate to speak about Jesus’ death
in a season when we celebrate His birth, but the fact is
Jesus was born to die. His death is our peace.
The peace Jesus gives is the Hebrew word shalom (a state of
wholeness and well-being usually brought about through a
restored relationship). Shalom is the feeling a mother gets
when her son pulls into the driveway after a night out with
his friends. Shalom is the feeling a father has when all his
children are safely home for Christmas. Shalom is the
knowledge that a loved one is going home to be with Jesus.
Shalom is the joy of knowing that God is not angry with us
because we know Jesus, the Prince of Peace.
This Christmas let us once again worship Jesus for who He
is-Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and
Prince of Peace. Let us praise Him who gives us access to
receive mercy and find grace to help in our time of need.
Let us bow down before the One to whom all authority is
given: Jesus of Nazareth who is Christ the Lord, the Son of
God, Savior.
You think about that.
MM