For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6 – Scripture of the Day (March 7, 2014)

First, I want to say “Happy birthday!” to my beautiful bride, Beth.  I love you with all my heart, babe.  Thanks for the support, the godly example you set before me and our daughter, the encouragement and advice, and the love you share with Katie and me.  Thanks for being my companion through life.

And now on to today’s Scripture…

A well known passage that is often thought of in relation to the birth of Christ, Isaiah 9:6 has much more to offer.  Consider…

• “To us” a child is born.  “To us” a son is given.  God “gave” his only begotten Son (John 3:16).  To whom did the Father give the ultimate gift?  “To us.”  Think about the implications of that when it comes to the love God has for us.
• “The government shall be upon his shoulder.”  Christ has all authority (Matt. 28:18).  He is Lord, and thus we must do what he says (Luke 6:46).
• He is also our “Wonderful Counselor” as well as our “Mighty God” and “Everlasting Father.”  I’ve found through (sometimes hard) experience that following the counsel of Christ as shown in the New Testament (and the Old – see Proverbs, for example) in all areas of my life is the way to go.  Every time I’ve gone against what he has told me to do, my life has become harder in some fashion.  Every time I’ve followed his counsel, when all was said and done my life was made better in many ways.  He truly is a “Wonderful Counselor” in that his counsel, if followed, brings peace.  That’s why he is also the “Prince of Peace.”