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Embrace Your Everlasting Father

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“ . . . And He will be called . . . Everlasting Father . . .” Isaiah 9:6

Happy New Year, dear one! I pray that 2014 brings you closer than ever to Jesus and that you fully experience what He died to give you. I hope to.

We have spent the last couple of weeks peeling away the outer wrappings of some of the gifts God gave us in Jesus. I pray that as you discover afresh the valuable contents, your heart will be drawn to dig even deeper. We have barely scratched the surface! But as you pursue an intimate relationship with the Son of God, His gift of the Wonderful Counselor “will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I [Jesus] have said to you” (John 14:26).

One of the Holy Spirit’s jobs as our Counselor is to teach and reveal the deep things of God to each of us. Remember,

“We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.” 1 Corinthians 2:12

God desires for you to know your inheritance, dear one. He never empties; He fills!

Today we peer at the third name of God associated with Jesus’ birth in Isaiah 9:6. Christ opened the way for us to know and experience God as Everlasting Father. Recall the familiar words of John 14:6:

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Jesus is our only way to know God as Father. To belong to the Father, we must know and belong to the Son. John 14:7 adds these words, “If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well.”

Beloved, God desires for you to know Him intimately as Father.

Perhaps that thought doesn’t offer you much comfort. The stamp of sin on this broken world leaves many painful relationships in its wake. But regardless of the images the word father may bring to mind, allow yourself to contemplate the ideal dad.

Strong . . . Protector . . . Compassionate . . . Loving . . . Merciful . . .

Dear one, God is the Father you’ve always longed for.

“The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” Zephaniah 3:17

Scripture paints a picture of God as the Father who will never leave, no matter how bad things get. And unlike our earthly fathers, Mighty God is always strong enough to save us from the messes we’ve made. Nothing, however, thrills my heart like the words of that last sentence. “He will take great delight in you.”

Haven’t you longed to be the object of someone’s delight? To know that you, above all else, are their greatest source of pleasure and joy? That’s exactly what Scripture teaches about your heavenly Father. God takes great delight in you.

Whether or not we can draw the image from our own childhood experience, we can all conjure up a picture of a doting parent cradling a beloved child, quieting restless cries with loving murmurs and whispered songs. Images of a mother flow more freely, yet the sight of a father assuming that role brings a special tenderness to the heart. Strength choosing to display itself through gentleness moves us.

And that’s exactly how your heavenly Father feels about you.

Picture it, dear one. Has it occurred to you that God desires to hold you in His capable hands and rejoice over you with singing? Longing to quiet you with His love, He yearns to gently lift you into His lap to still your restless heart with tender songs.

Yet many of us squirm and pull away from Him like rebellious toddlers, refusing to allow Him the joy of simply being with us. We have stuff to do, after all. Who has time to merely sit and be held?

Indeed. We have become far too busy scampering after our dreams to spend any time with our Father. And wonder of wonders, the God of the universe has given us the freedom to choose.

But our choice comes at a cost. Our refusal to still ourselves in His presence blocks the flow of His grace. We’ve robbed ourselves of the power we desperately need.

Most of us miss the blessing of God’s commandment in Psalm 46:10,

“Be still and know that I am God.”

We get so busy trying to make things happen in our own lives, we forget that God has asked us to be still, believe, and let Him work on our behalf.

What if you and I chose to alter our thinking as we begin 2014? What if we began to believe that God Himself is our true blessing? What if we sought cherished moments of intimacy with our heavenly Father through Jesus instead of merely seeking the gifts that come from His hands?

God intended to make Jesus the “firstborn among many brothers” (Romans 8:29). If you have put your faith in Jesus and committed your life to follow Him, you also are a child of God and a recipient of every blessing that comes with it.

Strength… Compassion… Love… Provision… Protection… Mercy… Forgiveness…

Take up your inheritance, dear one. Your Father will fight for you. You need only to be still (Exodus 14:14).

Wonderful Counselor

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“. . . And He will be called Wonderful Counselor . . . “ Isaiah 9:6

Have you ever wished you could have your own, personal adviser? Someone who had all the answers, could help you avoid pitfalls, and would lead you on the path to prosperity? Allow me to introduce you to one of the amazing gifts God gave us through His Son. Meet the Wonderful Counselor.

As my pastor so eloquently reminded us last Sunday, God’s gift to us in the manger cannot be separated from His purpose accomplished through the cross. Even the angels’ announcement proclaiming Jesus’ birth to the shepherds foretold His fate. “Do not be afraid, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10-11).

Jesus came to the earth to save. He was born to die, a perfect sacrifice that would overcome the power of sin and death and unite us again in sweet fellowship with the God who made us. Not only would His death and resurrection provide for the forgiveness of our sin, but His return to the Father would usher in the release of the Wonderful Counselor.

As Jesus was nearing the end of His earthly ministry, He tried to prepare His disciples for His departure. As you may imagine, they didn’t take it well. I mean, would you? Jesus, the Son of God had lived among them. They repeatedly witnessed the miraculous as God’s power revealed itself throughout His ministry, proving Him to be the long-awaited Christ . . . chains were broken, sick were healed, water turned to wine, and loaves multiplied. It doesn’t get any better than that! Jesus could not possibly leave them now.

 But in John 16:7, Jesus spoke these words:

“But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.”

Jesus taught that what the Counselor would open up for us surpassed what Jesus could do for us if He remained. We often think how much easier the Disciples had it. They could see Jesus face to face! They could touch Him and hear His voice as He spoke. While we struggle so much with our faith, they had the assurance of His presence among them to wipe away their doubt. Yet Jesus claims that we have the greater gift!

What does the Counselor offer that the person of Jesus could not? Jesus explained further in John 14:16-18.

“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.”

No, we don’t have the physical person of Jesus walking beside us. What we have is the presence and power of Jesus dwelling within us! We’re no longer limited by the physical boundaries of our location. He is wherever we are because He dwells inside us. And Scripture assures us that we will have Him forever. Once He’s made His home in us, He will never leave.

Jesus didn’t leave us as orphans, dear one. He abides in us as the Counselor, the Spirit of truth. Listen to what He desires to do in your life.

“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.” John 16:13-14

Jesus promised that the Counselor will guide us into all truth. Do you understand what that means? The Counselor will not only give us understanding of God’s Word, but He’s also available to warn us away from deception! His job is to steer us along the path of God’s will, thwarting the enemy’s plans to harm us and leading us safely through to God’s blessing. He speaks what He hears from Christ and makes it known to us. And verse 13 assures us that He will even tell us what is yet to come!

Beloved, are you listening? Are you following Him on your path to blessing?

Through the birth and death of Jesus, a priceless gift arrived, the Wonderful Counselor sent to dwell within the hearts of all who would believe. Is He guiding you? Surrender your life to His leadership and join the early disciples in witnessing the miraculous. What He has for you is beyond anything you could imagine (1 Corinthians 2:9)!

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