Devotions this week are based on Week 1 of “He Shall Be Called: Wonderful Counselor” (CLICK HERE)
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.
The prophet Isaiah was God’s spokesman about 700 years before Jesus was born. He spoke to the people of Judah and as was the case in many seasons of God’s people they would would drift away from the Lord and seek after other gods and follow the influence of the people’s around them. The drifting was dangerous and led to hardship for God’s people. However, amidst the calls to repentance were also communication of God’s promise and reason for the people to have hope that God’s love and grace had not failed them. Isaiah 9:6 is one of those prophecies.
Over the next weeks we will reflect on each of these names and the significance of each. This week “Wonderful Counselor”
A counselor is one from whom we seek advice. We may seek counsel when we get stuck, seem to be in a negative pattern, or simply need help making a decision. People take up the profession of “Counseling” usually with a degree in psychology. Usually counsel is sought out, but sometimes we receive “unsolicited advice.” The point is that a counselor is one who gives us advice. Another word for “counselor” might be “advisor.”
Wonderful is the word that describes the “Counselor.” “Wonderful” implies a positive experience that is usually better than one might expect. Wonderful in the Bible is often used as something that is of divine origin and causes awe in one’s heart or mind. Perhaps another way to look at these two words, “Wonderful Counselor” is this: One who gives advice that is of God.
Jesus is the perfect fulfillment of this as he is the one that is “the Word made flesh.” In all of his life and ministry he spoke the very Words of God. He stands in contrast to advisors who give advice that seeks to eliminate God as a source of wisdom. Some may claim that the advice that comes from Jesus is “old fashioned,” “irrelevant,” or simply empty of truth.
So what advice have you been seeking or taking? Are the people from whom you seek counsel ones who are seeking the wisdom of God, or simply giving the best secular advice they can come up with?
This week we will consider the difference between “woeful counsel” and “wonderful counsel.” At first the two may seem obvious, but even 2700 years after Isaiah we are tempted to seek woeful counsel instead of relying on our Wonderful Counselor.
Apply: Consider woeful and wonderful advice you have received. What has been the result of both?
Prayer: Lord, thank you for sending your Son to be our Wonderful Counselor. Help me to more consistently seek his advice for all aspects of life. AMEN