JESUS: The Counselor

Continuing the series from Isaiah 9:6 on how Jesus fulfills the description of the prophecy – today’s point is that Jesus is the true Counselor. The series is outlined below and will continue daily (except Sunday) until the series is completed.

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Part I – JESUS: The Son Given

Part II – JESUS: The Ruler of the World

Part III – JESUS: The Wonderful One

Part IV – JESUS: The Counselor

Part V – JESUS: The Mighty God

Part VI – JESUS: The Everlasting Father

Part VII – JESUS: The Prince of Peace

Jesus is often marginalized during the Christmas season as we focus on the typical festivities that surround the season of Christmas. It would be good if every Christian and ministry would focus on who Jesus is and what He has done during the Christmas season. Is Jesus really the reason for the season?

Part IV – JESUS: The Counselor

In biblical times, a counselor would be in the close inner circle of the king.  Often the counselor would serve in ways similar to a U.S. cabinet member in our present day.  The counselor would be responsible for giving advice and words of wisdom regarding specific decisions the king was faced with making.  Ahithophel served as the counselor to David and Absalom.  He gave advice as sound as as the “oracle of God” (2 Samuel 16:23).

In life we often seek proper counsel from specific individuals when we find ourselves facing trials. The individuals we seek counsel from are often those we feel are qualified through education or life experiences. In more extreme cases, we seek professional counselors to discuss problems. As a pastor, people often come to my office to discuss their problems and to seek spiritual and biblical counsel. In the midst of counseling people from God’s Word, I often see a light come on where they start to realize the problem from the biblical perspective. At that point, I do not think that I was the source of wisdom, but rather, God’s Word and the truth that comes from it was the source of wisdom for their problem. As we all experience problems, we can turn to our Savior – Jesus Christ – who is there for us and intercedes on our behalf as children of God.Charles Haddon Spurgeon once said the following about Jesus as the Counselor:

Now, our Lord Jesus Christ is a Counsellor in a three-fold sense. First, he is God’s Counsellor; he sits in the cabinet council of the King of heaven; he has admittance into the privy chamber, and is the Counsellor with God. In the second place, Christ is a Counsellor in the sense which the Septuagint translation appends to this term. Christ is said to be the angel of the great council. He is a Counsellor in that he communicates to us in God’s behalf, what has been done in the great council before the foundation of the world. And thirdly, Christ is a Counsellor to us and with us, because we can consult with him, and he doth counsel and advise us as to the right way and the path of peace (found here).

We know that Isaiah’s prophecy was speaking about Jesus Christ for a number of reasons that have already been pointed out in the previous posts. However, as it relates to Jesus as the Counselor – we see that the Word of God tells us in the New Testament that Jesus is our mediator.

1 Timothy 2:5 – For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

Who else is most qualified to hear our prayers and bring answers to the problems we face? Man may fail us, friends may betray us, enemies may attack us, close friends may deny us, and we may find ourselves lonely without anyone to stand on our behalf. Jesus Himself faced these same challenges as He was led away and crucified on the cross. He had His most close and intimate friends betray and deny Him openly. The cross was not only a point of pain physically, but also emotionally as Christ was rejected by His own people.

Therefore, when we face problems and discouragements in life, we can turn to the One who has defeated death and the grave. Jesus of Nazareth (the Christ of God) died on the cross and rose from the dead three days later. That qualifies Him to hear and answer our prayers. He can hear us in times of discouragement or in times when we need wisdom to make the right decisions. He is the source of all knowledge and wisdom and we should seek Him in the bad times and in the good times as our wise and righteous Counselor.During this Christmas season, as we consider the wonderful things about our Savior Jesus Christ who was born on that first Christmas day – let us be thankful that we have a wise and righteous Counselor who sits upon His throne and rules righteously – and is capable of providing us with pure counsel. Praise Him – worship Him – adore Him – be thankful for the reason for the season – Jesus Christ – the Counselor!

Pastor Josh Buice