This year, I have had the joy and privilege to co-lead my small group. We have started a study on Advent to close out the semester. Yesterday was not my day to lead. I was prepared to contribute to discussion and help answer questions, but not actually lead. The other co-leader has been sick. Tuesday mid-morning she asked to call an audible and have me teach in her place.
I am a planner through in through. Whether or not I follow said plan is a totally different story. I don’t like surprises. I’m also not a big fan of plans changing. To say I had some anxiety about the sudden change is an understatement especially when you consider the fact that anxiety and I are old friends at this point. But, the Lord is so good. In my frazzled state, the Holy Spirit spoke. He gave me the perfect lesson. I don’t know that it was the perfect lesson for my group or for me personally, but my soul needed it. I’m sharing the lesson below. Not because it’s great. Not because I think I did a great job. And definitely not because I cited sources correctly, because I didn’t. But because I think there are other people who need this reminder. They need to be reminded of the Lord. Who He is and what He has done.
We started the class with an icebreaker question. What’s your favorite holiday tradition and why. Several really solid, Christ themed, answers were given. I said watching Die Hard on Christmas Eve because my brother insisted it was a Christmas movie and we watch it. Now, it serves as both a sweet and sad reminder of my brother. I set a great example as a leader with my tradition, am I right? Once people were nice and warmed up and ready to go, we did a fun activity.
As a group effort, we listed all of the names, attributes and descriptions of God we would think of until I ran out of space to write legibly on the white board. You can see the image below.
We created a list of a lot of great and true names and adjectives for the Lord. Each one of us has a different name that resonates with us for a different reason and sometimes that name will change depending on the season of life you are in. The reason we are studying Advent is because we want to make sure our hearts are focused on the right things this holiday season. It’s so easy to get caught up on doing all the things. Making sure everything is just right… Making sure everyone is happy the whole season and gets to do exactly what they want to do. We get so caught up, that we miss the importance of Christmas and why we celebrate it. In case you don’t know, we celebrate Christmas because it is the birth of Christ. He was born to a virgin in a manger. From before He was born, rulers didn’t like him. Wanted him dead- aka Herod-sending the wisemen to locate Jesus so that the precious baby Jesus wouldn’t become everything previously prophesized.
Isaiah 9:1-7 from the ESV
Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—
2 The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
a light has dawned.
3 You have enlarged the nation
and increased their joy;
they rejoice before you
as people rejoice at the harvest,
as warriors rejoice
when dividing the plunder.
4 For as in the day of Midian’s defeat,
you have shattered
the yoke that burdens them,
the bar across their shoulders,
the rod of their oppressor.
5 Every warrior’s boot used in battle
and every garment rolled in blood
will be destined for burning,
will be fuel for the fire.
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.
7 Of the greatness of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty
will accomplish this.
Isaiah was writing about the coming Messiah. At the time, Israel was under the Assyrian rule. If you don’t know anything about the Assyrians, I’d encourage you to look them up. They were some evil, wicked, and I dare say even barbaric people. They didn’t just take over countries that they conquered, they slaughtered so many people. These are the people Israel is now being ruled by. Can you imagine being in their shoes? The feeling of hopelessness. Isaiah was writing about the coming messiah some 700-800 years before Christ came. Isaiah was telling the people of Israel that hope and help were on the way.
The last half of verse 6 Isaiah uses 4 different words, word combinations, to describe Jesus. He said Jesus would be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. We are starting at the beginning and looking at Wonderful Counselor.
I’m a literal person. So before diving into how scripture is going to define Wonderful Counselor. I wanted to see how both are defined in the English language. Just to give some kind of starting pointing.
Definition of wonderful (Adjective): Inspiring. Delight. Pleasure or admiration. Extremely good; marvelous.
Definition of counselor (Noun) : A person trained to give guidance on personal, social, or psychological problems.
Some similar words for counselor that stood out to me- advisor, consultant, guide, mentor, confidant, instructor, teacher, guru, expert. If we take the literal English definition of the word wonderful and of the word counselor, what does it mean to be Wonderful Counselor?
I go to therapy. I am pro therapy. I don’t always like therapy. Nor do I always like my therapist after therapy, but I would dare say my therapist/counselor is wonderful… I think she’s good at what she does. She cares about me as a person. She wants to see me succeed in life. She wants me to be the best and healthiest version of myself that I can be. I know I can trust her. I know that when I have left my appointment, she will have helped guide me through the things I’m trying to process. She loves Jesus and knows the Word (really important). She cares deeply and I believe a wonderful counselor… but she’s not a wonderful counselor like Jesus is. There’s a difference. She is human. She is flawed. She is not all-knowing. But God… He is none of those things. He is infinite. Always has been. Always will be. He is perfect and holy. No one and no thing can be compared to Him. He knows all things before they will even happen.
So what does it mean for the Lord to be a wonderful counselor? That’s the question we are going examine. I’ve read some different devotionals and a couple articles about wonderful counselor. I wanted to be as knowledgeable as possible and do a thorough examination before group. As thorough as one can do in 36 hours that is. I can guarantee you it will not be cited correctly, but I will give credit where credit is due.
Let’s look at Isaiah 9:6 again before continuing.
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.*note: some translations have a comma between wonderful and counselor to show how both are nouns. {1}
Here the word wonderful, in the original language, “meant phenomenon or something that lies outside the realm of human explanation. It’s the same word used in Psalm 139:6 when David, in awe of the Lord’s personal knowledge of man said, “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it.””{1} “The same word for “wonderful” is used in Judges 13:18 when Manoah, Samson’s father, asked the LORD (in a theophany) what His name was. The angel of the LORD responded, “Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?” In other words, “Why do you ask my name, since it is beyond your understanding?”” {2} The meaning of the word here is far greater than what we use it for today. We use the word wonderful so flippantly. We had a wonderful meal. We had a wonderful holiday days… She’s a wonderful singer. But those are such pathetic uses of the word. None of those statements are things that lie outside of the realm of things people can understand. We know what it is to have a really good meal. We know what it is to have a really good holiday season. We know what it is when some sings really well… so can we really use the word wonderful in those scenarios?
Jesus shows just how wonderful He is and how incomprehensible some of His actions were all throughout scripture. He thought differently than the world at the time. Love your enemies. Pray for those who persecute you. Find joy in persecution. He lived a perfect life. He did wonderful things that no one else could do. He healed people and performed countless miracles. He was resurrected from the dead… Heck, He was born of a virgin.{3} If those facts aren’t proof enough of his wonderful and incomprehensibleness, I don’t know what does give “enough proof”.
The second word in the name we are studying is Counselor. In the ancient times, a counselor was usually thought of as a wise king who gives guidance to his people.
Isaiah 28:29
This also comes from the Lord of hosts;
he is wonderful in counsel
and excellent in wisdom.
the same word for counselor is used again here. {3} Jesus is wise, all-knowing. He knows what we have thought, what we are thinking, and what we will think. Unlike my awesome therapist, the Lord doesn’t need commentary or testimony from me to give counsel or guidance to me.
Psalm 139:1-4
O Lord, you have searched me and known me!
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
3 You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.
The verses in Psalms just remind us he knows everything about us. He can discern our thoughts from a far. Before we even say a word, He knows. Let that sink in… The one who created everything, personally knows you. He knows everything about everyone.
Hebrews 4:14-16
14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
The great high priest referenced above is Jesus. The verses in Hebrews remind us that Jesus isn’t some distant, far off ruler, who doesn’t know us or relate to us. Jesus went through everything we did, but He’s perfect and didn’t sin. Because of who Jesus is and what He has done, with confidence, we can draw near to the throne of grace so we can receive mercy and have grace to help in hard times.
So who is better fit to give us counsel than someone who knows everything about us? Someone who knew us before we were born. Someone who experienced everything we experienced, but did it perfectly without sin. So whatever it is you are facing… yes, human counsel is helpful…the Lord speaks through His people, but the Lord is the true wonderful counselor. Seeking counsel apart from the Wonderful Counselor will be proven futile. Seek the Lord and let Him lead you and guide you. Go to the Lord with all of your wants, cares, needs, desires and requests. He cares for us and desires that we come to Him.
As the holidays approach, let’s remember the actual reason. The baby born of a virgin in a manager. The one the prophets of the Old Testament prophesied about. The messiah. He came to save us from our sin and give us hope. Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Presents and parties are great, but the name of our Savior and why we celebrate is greater.
Sources:
- https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/41084-he-shall-be-called
- https://www.gotquestions.org/Wonderful-Counselor.html
- https://www.compellingtruth.org/Wonderful-Counselor.html
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