What Child Is This Series

“What Child Is This?”(Text Isaiah 9:6)

(This sermon was preached by Bishop M A Lalachan, on 25/12/2015 at Diocesan Church Patna)

Did you know there are about 300 prophecies in the Old Testament about the coming Messiah? Fulfilled prophecy is one of the great proofs of the Deity of Jesus Christ. God began to prepare the world for the coming of Jesus with a multitude of prophecies in the Old Testament concerning Him. There can be no mistake that Jesus is the Messiah. Today our text was written by the prophet Isaiah more than 700 years before the birth of Jesus. It reads “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.” This verse from Isaiah 9:6 is probably amongst the best known and best loved words in all of Scripture. Names in the Bible are extremely important, in the Bible a name not only conveys who you are, but says something about your character. So let us try and understand what they might have meant in the context of Isaiah's day, and what they mean for us today as Christ followers. In Isaiah's prophecy he gives the coming King four important names, which I want to look at in turn: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

The first name given to the Lord Jesus Christ is “Wonderful Counselor”.

Wonderful Counselor – means “Supernatural and Extraordinary Counselor” Jesus is the fulfillment of this prophecy, because we can look to wonderful life, his wonderful teaching, his wonderful miracles, his wonderful love, his wonderful compassion, his wonderful mercy, his wonderful grace, his wonderful forgiveness, and his wonderful sacrifice for us on the cross. Jesus is the wonderful Counselor that Isaiah prophesied about. This name points out the truth that there is nothing common about Jesus, He is the Miracle man! So Isaiah in calling this coming king wonderful counselor, is making it clear that he be powerful, mighty, and glorious, a doer of great miracles and guide. He is so far beyond our level of comprehension that we can never figure Him out, yet He can be known by a little child! He is Wonderful in His Words, His Works and His Ways. It refers to His role as the leader and guiding force of our lives, (see Psa. 37:23; Rom. 8:28.) WHY DO WE NEED CHRIST’S COUNSEL? Because... Our hearts are basically selfish and sinful. One of the key duties of a king was to give counsel and direction to his people. The role of a counselor is to impart wisdom and experience in order to lead people from darkness and confusion into light and order, out of danger into safety. This is what Jesus does for us, this is why he is the Wonderful Counselor. He brings light into our darkness and guides and directs us in to righteousness. In John 14:16 Jesus promised his disciples that he would send to them the Holy Spirit.” And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever.” And further Jesus said “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth...” (John 16:12 ) So when speaking of the coming king, Isaiah said that the spirit of the Lord would rest upon him, "the Spirit of counsel and of power" (Is. 11:2) Later on in his book, Isaiah explicitly says that these are characteristics of God Himself: Isaiah 28:29 - "All this comes from the Lord Almighty, wonderful in counsel and magnificent in wisdom."

The second name given to the Lord Jesus Christ is “Mighty God”.

Mighty God – means “All powerful”! It refers to one who is “strong, mighty and invincible.” He alone is worthy to be our Hero for He has defeated all our enemies – first he defeated Death - 1 Cor. 15:55; second he defeated Sin - Rom. 6:14; third he defeated Satan - Gen. 3:15; fourth he defeated the Grave -Matt. 28:1-6; 1 Cor. 15:20; and finally Eternity (Hell) - John 10:28. JESUS CHRIST IS GOD! He is "Emmanuel" (God with us) Jesus Christ not only is God, He is the Almighty God. "All things were created by Him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created." (John 1:3) "He (Jesus Christ) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. (Col 1:15) But Jesus Christ is not only Mighty God in His birth and in history; He is also Mighty God in His life, Death and Resurrection.

And since He is God, He deserves our absolute reverence, He deserves our genuine faith, He deserves our supreme love, He deserves our unconditional obedience, He deserves our consecrated service and He deserves our sacred worship. To reject Jesus Christ, is to reject God Himself, and to reject God Himself, is to reject life itself.