Isaiah 9
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given...And he will be called WONDERFUL COUNSELOR, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
277,257 is a really big number - do you want to know what it represents? 277,257 is the number of book titles that came up on Amazon when "self-help” was entered in the search box. There were over 427,000 book titles that came up when"psychology" was searched. That is almost three-quarters of a million book titles offering some form of wisdom focused on shining a light into the dark places that are within us.
Did you know that when humans get lost, they move faster? (This must be why so many men hurry when they are in the shopping mall.) When people are asked how they are doing, two of the top answers given are "busy” and "tired.” Is it possible that people are moving so fast because they feel so lost? Is it possible we have over 700,000 books giving some kind of wisdom because so many people are feeling so lost?
Seven hundred years before Christ came, the prophet Isaiah described the world Jesus would enter into that first Christmas. "The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness, a light has dawned" (Isaiah 9:2).
The darkness of the time was oppressive. People were trapped by the darkness, lived in the darkness, and participated in the darkness. As if walking in darkness was not enough description for us, it says they lived in a "land of deep darkness."
Darkness is disorienting to people. Darkness has the unique ability to send confusion our way because when darkness comes, fear is empowered. Darkness makes problems seem bigger, hope seems smaller, and help seems further away. Darkness gives our enemies permission to approach without detection and paralyzes our responses. If Amazon were around during the time of Jesus, I am sure there would have been over 700,000 books trying to shed light on the darkness.
Do you know how to fight the darkness? Turn on the light! (We now interrupt this devotional to talk Christmas!) "For to us, a child is born...And he will be called Wonderful Counselor." Did you see that? Wonderful Counselor is an amazing darkness-penetrating, light-giving name. Here's why - when someone gets great counsel, it feels like a light has shone into a dark place.
How incredible is it that in a land filled with darkness, to a people walking in darkness, to a people living in deep darkness, the light comes and the light has a name? Wonderful Counselor! Jesus is the one who enters, and He is the light. His counsel does not point us to light; His counsel is the light because HE is the Wonderful Counselor!
Often, when Jesus was on earth, He would wrap up His teaching with the phrase, "whoever has ears to hear, let him hear." As Jesus traveled, He consistently repeated the invitation to "follow Him." The invitation to listen and to follow is exactly the response everyone should have to wonderful counsel.
Our lives are marked by our response to the wonderful counsel we hear. When we listened and followed, the darkness left, and the light came. When we did not listen and follow, darkness held tight. Our relationships, struggles with sin, and friendship with Christ all thrive or fail depending on how well we listen to and act upon wonderful counsel. Daily, we come to a crossroads of listening to and following after the wonderful counsel from the Wonderful Counselor. The very name Wonderful Counselor requires us to listen and follow. Talk about a Christmas Gift! Thank you, Father, for sending the Wonderful Counselor into my darkness!
UNWRAPPING THIS GIFT
Take a minute and think of some wonderful counsel God has given you. Thank Him for it.
Spend a few moments and share God's faithful counsel with a friend.