There’s a saying we attribute to C.S. Lewis from the movie Shadowlands with Anthony Hopkins.[1]
We read to know we’re not alone.
In the video I’m standing in front of the new Interlochen Library, where the community will be celebrating the Grand Opening tomorrow at 4 o’clock. There will be a lot of people entering this building to read, and to read for counsel.
That brings us to this week’s name for God from Isaiah: Counselor.
One of the greatest ways that we can discover the counsel of God is to examine His whole counsel, the Word. So I encourage you, as you enter the end of the year and the beginning of the next, that you come up with a Bible reading plan. Take time to read and to discover the whole counsel of God.
As we discussed last week, Jesus is Wonderful.[2] He’s also Counselor.
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. (Isaiah 9.6, NIV)
Jesus is our Counselor
i. God Himself becoming one of us, the Counselor
This term is rightly stated and translated. It carries the full meaning of counselor that we understand today. What transcends our meaning is that we think of counselor in regard to another human. This is not just another human.
This is God Himself, bending low, walking among men, and getting to know us. It’s God Himself, walking more than a mile in our shoes. This is God Himself becoming one of us, the Counselor.
Are there any who, in the last few months, have lost a sense of God’s direction, God’s guidance?
Has it been awhile since God has spoke to you?
Has anyone possibly been longing for a Word from the Lord, but can’t seem to find it?
ii. Remember the Counselor is also the Word
As John the Apostle thinks about all that Jesus is to us, he begins his amazing Gospel by saying:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. (John 1.1-2, NIV)
Then John goes on to describe the magnificence of Christ. He says in verse 14:
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
As we celebrate Christmas, as we celebrate the fact that God Himself was clothed in human flesh and became one of us to walk alongside of us to be our Counselor, let us not forget that He is the Word. The Word that you need for your soul is right here.
I want to encourage you as a pastor, don’t just start on some topical reading plan. Commit at some point in your life to read through the entire Word of God, to receive the whole counsel of God, not just what you’re looking for in the moment.
As you stroll through Scriptures, you will find that the Word will meet you there, the Counselor. Many people chase words, here or there . . .
“I’ve got to hear something from God.”
“Read your Word.”
In His Scriptures He’s revealed to us His divine counsels. We know He speaks to our hearts, sometimes prophetically, sometimes through others. But keep in mind, His counsel is written.
iii. The Word is our Counsel
The Word of God is alive (Hebrews 4.12). God’s Word is our guide.
The Word is our counsel on the mountain tops and in the valleys.
For anything . . . anything we face, our hearts can fall heavy on the Word of God.
Through the Word of God, Jesus speaks to our spirit.
Jesus is our Counselor!
notes:
[1] William Nicolson, Shadowlands, directed by Richard Attenborough (New York: Time Warner Entertainment, 1993).Rent Shadowlands on Amazon Prime: Shadowlands
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