The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness, a light has dawned…  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 greatness 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.  Isaiah 9:2, 6-7

It is said that Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year.  Andy Williams even sings about it in one of our most beloved Christmas Carols of the season.  The Church has traditionally embraced the weeks leading up to Christmas with Advent readings and the lighting of the candles on the Advent wreath.  It gives us time to take a holy pause in the commotion of Christmas preparations and remember the reason for the season.

Today is the first week of Advent, and we will be lighting the Candle of Hope.  Just like the people of the Old Testament, we also are a people walking in darkness.  Today we have the reality of hope from years ago, as a Savior was indeed born and rules over us with justice and righteousness from that time and forever.  So, today we light that first candle of Advent, the Candle of Hope in both an act of remembrance and an act of faith in our future.

In today’s Bible verse, they mention 4 names of Jesus.  Let’s look at four ways we find hope in the name of Jesus:

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 

Wonderful Counselor – God is exceptional at knowing us in the most intimate way.  His counsel will always lead us into the light and guide us to redemption.  The term “counselor” is a translation of parakletos, which is a description of a function, not the nature of something.  So God as our counselor is to counsel us, advise us and support us.  We also read in Psalm 119:24 that God’s Word is a counselor that we have access to every day and in every way. So, we find hope in Gods Word as our Counselor!

Your statutes are my delight; they are my counselors. Psalm 119:24

Mighty God – He is the living God.  He is the one and only true God.  He is the only God upon whom we are to call on. On Christmas, He became man and remained God.  Our God is mighty in power.  He is our strength and our hope this Christmas as the ONE who was sent as a messiah to save us. He will take delight in us and will rejoice over us with singing.  How beautiful to imagine our God singing over us the Christmas season!   So, we find hope in our Mighty God who saves.

The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.  Zephaniah 3:17

Everlasting Father – He is timeless; He is God our Father. We cannot think for even a minute; we can understand the complexities of our God at a glance.  It is so amazing that we can within a few words of each other, be talking about God as an infant born as a man, who remains God and is all at the same time, timeless.  Wow.  It takes my breath away even to start to grasp the complexity of our Father.  I am so glad; we are forever His. We are eternally loved by our Everlasting Father. So, we find hope in an Everlasting Father that became flesh, walked with us in our humanity and died for our transgressions.  

David praised the LORD in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, “Praise be to you, LORD, the God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. 1 Chronicles 29:10

Prince of Peace – Shalom, the Hebrew word used in the Old Testament for “peace,” consists of far more than the absence of conflict. It is about peace that comes from a relationship with God.  It is about peace that comes from living cohesively with one another.  Jesus is the Prince of Peace.  Jesus gives us an inner peace because He reigns.  Because of Him, joy triumphs over sorrow, love prevails over heartache and hope is present where despair once reigned. So we find hope, not in the absence of conflict, but our relationship with God.

As Warriors of Hope, we celebrate the name of Jesus.

Let’s bow our heads as we sit by the Candle of Hope and celebrate the name of Jesus.

Everlasting Father, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Prince of Peace, we celebrate your Name as the only true name of our Messiah.  We look upon the sight of you laying in the manger as the one who brings us council through your Word, as the Mighty God that is capable of saving us from death, as the Everlasting Father whose love has no end and as the Prince of Peace that has triumphed over the sorrows of the world.  Lord, hear our prayers as we come before you this Christmas season to celebrate YOU!  Amen