Sermon Tone Analysis
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*Wonderful Counselor*
*Isaiah 9:6-7 *
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.
Of the increase 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.
* Introduction-*
Isaiah prophesied over 700 years before Christ was born.
Remarkably, he projected the birth of Christ, the nature of Christ and the death of Christ in the Bible book which bears his name.
Among the amazing prophesies of Isaiah is the one found in our text for today.
There is a great dualism presented in this verse.
In one phrase Isaiah points out that a child is born, but then he asserts that a son is given.
Why say twice what appears to be essentially the same thing?
Because the two are not the same, not in the least!
On that first Christmas about 2,000 years ago, the child, Jesus, was born.
But the Son is preexistent.
The Son was not born, for He always has been and always will be.
The child was born, but the Son was given.
Yes, the child and the Son are one, but the terms used are different to describe Him.
A Child is born...that speaks of the Humanity of Christ.
A Son is given...that speaks of the Divinity of Christ.
A Child is born...that speaks of Im-po-tence.
A Son is given...that speaks of Om-nip-o-tence.
A Child is born...that speaks of the Terrestrial.
A Son is given...that speaks of the Celestial.
A Child is born...that speaks of the Earthly.
A Son is given...that speaks of the Heavenly.
A Child is born... that speaks of the Son of Man.
A Son is given... that speaks of the Son of God.
Isaiah caught the duality and the deity of Christ in simple, but profound words as he described the wonderful gift God was giving to the world - namely, His own Son.
Just think of it, "Jesus had an earthly mother, but no earthly father.
Jesus has a heavenly Father, but no heavenly mother."
In essence, God's Son from heaven came to be born as a child here on earth for the express purpose of redeeming the lost race of humanity.
In this passage Isaiah speaks of four titles for the Son.
If one reads the Bible carefully, he or she will discover that the Word of God contains more than 225 terms, names or titles for our Lord.
Truly, His name is the name above every name.
In this four part series, we are going to look at the four titles, which Isaiah gave to us in this passage, and relate them to our lives right now.
The four names are:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and The Prince of Peace.
We begin today with the title Wonderful Counselor.
The name Counselor, and the adjective Wonderful, are filled with meaning - as we shall see.
A counselor is one who gives advice, leads, or defends someone.
But we must be careful to whom we turn for counsel.
The story is told of two bums sitting together on a park bench.
One of them said to the other, "I'm a man who never took advice from anybody."
The other said, "Well, old buddy, I'm the man who followed everybody's advice."
The problem for many people is they will not listen to words of wisdom.
For others, they are listening to the wrong voices or to many voices.
Today we are going to consider listening to and following the Wonderful Counselor.
Let’s contrast the effort of an earthly counselor with the wonder of the divine Counselor.
Now, granted, we need earthly counselors.
They play an important role.
In fact, they may be used by the divine Counselor to help us when they are applying the Word of God to our situations.
This message is not meant to demean of belittle human counsel, but rather it is to reveal the supremacy of the Savior when it comes to giving counsel to us.
*I.
The Earthly Counselor Must Ask to Know Your Need -*
*The Wonderful Counselor Knows Your Need Before You Ask*
A counselor must have knowledge of the person he or she is seeking to advice.
Counselors always begin by asking questions or seeking to get the counselee to discuss the situation and life experiences that exist that might have an impact on the advice needed.
But Christ, the Son who was given, needs no introduction to your need.
He knows you wholly, completely and utterly.
He knows your talents and gifts.
He knows your sins and weaknesses.
He knows you history.
He knows all about you.
The earthly counselor must ask about your need.
The wonderful Counselor knows what you need before you ask.
Listen to the words of Jesus found in Matthew 6:8, which reads, "Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
"Think about all He knows about us.
* *
*A.
He Knows Our Past*
Our need of counseling assumes and presupposes that we have a past.
But the Lord knows our past, every moment of it.
He is the Wonderful Counselor because He has all the knowledge of our past in His heart and mind.
He knows the secret sin of your past.
He knows the hidden hurt of your past.
He knows the lost dreams of your past.
He knows all about your past experiences.
* *
*B.
He Knows Our Present*
Sometimes we will speak to someone and say, "You can't image what I'm going through right now."
But you can't say that to Jesus!
The Lord knows your present pressures, your present pain, your present temptations, your present trails.
He knows this very minute what no other person on earth knows about you.
He is wonderful in His knowledge of us.
He is om~/nisc~/ient – he knows everything
* *
*C.
He Knows Our Future*
No earthly counselor can boast that he is aware of the future of the counselee.
Our Lord knows what is ahead of us.
He is able to see the future and to guide us through the landmines that dot our future landscape.
He alone can do this!
Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
*II.
The Earthly Counselor Hopes He Can Help You - The Wonderful Counselor Knows He can Help You.*
*A.
Those Who Have Tried Him Testify Of Him*
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