Wonderful Counsellor

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 Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 (NLT)

In this passage the prophet Isaiah lists four titles that will be ascribed to the coming messiah. The first title he uses is “wonderful counsellor”. It is important to state that some bible translations separate these two words as though they are two separate descriptions of the Lord, “Wonderful” and “Counsellor”. Although it is true that Jesus is both wonderful and a counsellor, modern translators have more accurately translated the two words as the one single descriptive, “Wonderful Counsellor”. Speaking prophetically Isaiah states, “He will be called: wonderful counsellor”. Notice that he does not say He is a wonderful counsellor, or he will be a wonderful counsellor. Instead he says “He will be called Wonderful Counsellor”. This is an important point because it highlights our need to experience this attribute and benefit of Jesus’ character personally. Nobody could ever call Jesus “Wonderful Counsellor” unless they have first experienced Him being a wonderful counsellor to them. If you examine your own life can you personally and honestly say of Jesus, He is my wonderful counsellor? If you can then you are currently enjoying this benefit of being a Christian. If you cannot then it is important to realise today that Jesus wants you to benefit from His wonderful counsel personally. He wants you to reach a place where you have received such wonderful counsel from him that you cannot help but be a living fulfilment of Isaiah’s two and a half thousand year old prophecy, declaring from the roof tops, He is a wonderful counsellor!

There is no getting away from the fact that Jesus is the “Wonderful Counsellor”. The Apostle Paul refers to Him as the “author of Life” and the Apostle John tells us that “nothing was created except through him”. Being the designer and creator of all life, Jesus always knows the answer to our problems and concerns. There is nothing in our lives that He does not understand and cannot help us with. Yet all too often, even as Christians, we can be guilty of looking for the answers to our problems in every place other than the person of Jesus Christ. He is the wonderful counsellor, but is He experientially your wonderful counsellor?

Several years ago I was on mission in Uganda. The longest time I had ever been away from my family was ten days and at this point I had already been away for two weeks and still had another seven days to go. During one of the many phone calls home, my wife told me my young son Nathan, had fallen down the stairs, and for a short time had stopped breathing, being rendered unconscious. I felt totally helpless; the news that he was now fine and running around like his usual lively self did little to dampen my anxiety. I was thousands of miles away and was not able to care for my family and hold my son in my arms. There was only one person I could turn to. When I got back to my room in the evening, holding the pictures of my children in my hands, I began to pray. Weeping before God I asked him to keep my family safe from harm and to watch over my children, that they may grow up to live lives in His honour and service. I felt helpless and knew that only God could give me the peace and security I needed. The next morning I was approached by a student who was attending the conference where I was speaking. I had not mentioned my son’s accident nor my prayer from the night before but this young student spoke to me through an interpreter. She told me that I had prayed a very specific prayer the night before and God had heard my prayer and wanted me to know that He was going to do it. The short conversation was somewhat patchy because of the language barrier, but the message was loud and clear. God had heard me and He was going to keep my family safe and watch over my children, so they would grow to live lives in the honour and service of God. Thousands of miles away from home, Jesus was my wonderful counsellor; He brought me peace and security to the extent that I am rarely concerned for their security and wellbeing. That is not to say that I don’t protect, father and train them. God’s promise does not relieve me of my responsibility to actively father my children; it simply means that whilst I continue to fulfil my responsibility as a father, I can trust God to keep His promise. I can confidently say with unwavering conviction, Jesus is a wonderful counsellor and He wants be the wonderful counsellor to you.

Neil Reid