“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.
Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.”
Isaiah 9:6-7
And so we look at today…
Everlasting Father
In light of the Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) this can be a confusing title.
The term “Father” isn’t referring to His role in the Trinity, but rather how He is the source, and author of all eternity, and that He is the King of all and over all.
In fact, we can see this idea building in this passage:
Wonderful Counselor: An individual level relationship and care
Mighty God: Complete power over all creation
Everlasting Father: Originator and ruler over all creation
Prince of Peace: A ruler who brings ultimate peace
Although Jesus plays a different role in the Trinity from the Father, we still see that He clearly is the originator of all creation, as was the promised Messiah in this passage.
We even get clear explanations that Jesus is the originator/creator of all things in many passages such as John 1:1-4, 1 Corinthians 8:6, Colossians 1:16, and Hebrews 1:1-2.
But why should this matter to us?
The Creator Owns Everything
As I wrote about regarding Jesus being described as the “Mighty God” in this same passage, it’s clear that Jesus did not flaunt His divinity.
In fact, Paul describes Jesus’ life on earth as “laying aside” His rights as God to become a humble human (Philippians 2:5-7).
In spite of His humble appearance and life, however, Jesus remained the Creator, and therefore, Owner, of everything.
Every mountain and hill
Every plain and valley
Every animal
Every person
Every speck of dust
He created it,
He owns it.
The Creator Sets The Rules
As the rightful Creator and Owner of the universe, it’s clear that Jesus also sets the rules for the universe.
The physical rules such as gravity and how life is sustained,
And also the rules of ethics and what is right or wrong.
As much as we like to create our own rules,
God has clearly laid out His rules in Scripture.
And so the only question that remains is:
Will we seek and obey God’s will for our life?
Or will we seek our own?
The Creator Knows What’s Best
In addition to simply creating rules and guidance for our lives,
Jesus also makes it clear that He knows best.
Just as an engineer of a car knows how to best treat and repair the car,
God, the Creator of everything, knows what is best for us.
How to live
What to value
How to “maintenance” our hearts and lives and relationships.
As I wrote in a separate blog post “Verses For When You Face Discouragement And Hard Times“, one of my favorite verses makes this very clear:
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Isaiah 55:8–9
In this simple verse, we learn that:
- God’s plans, thoughts, and ideas are different from ours
- God’s plan is better (just in case we thought our, different plan was better)
The question isn’t if He knows best,
The question is if we will trust Him and follow Him.
The Creator Loves His Creation
Whenever I think of God’s love, I think of the song “The Maker” by Chris August. It’s a great song to simply remind you of God’s unending love towards us, which is something repeated constantly in scripture and we should remind ourselves of daily.
We have a Creator,
An everlasting Father,
And His Name is Jesus
He owns everything He’s created,
He has set the rules in life in place,
He knows what’s best for us (and has shared it with us)
And He loves you.
I can’t think of anything more comforting than that.
The original readers of this passage (Isaiah 9:6) only held the promise of this everlasting Father coming to Earth as the Messiah.
But we have the fulfilled promise of Jesus,
Who has come,
Lived,
Died,
Risen again,
And promises us new life.
So reflect on Him today, preparing for Christmas, and marvel at His unending love for His Creation, for you.
Here’s the lyrics to that song, “The Maker” by Chris August.
I see You in the sunrise
I see You in the rain
I see You in the laughter
I feel You through the pain
Everything that You have made is beautiful
Oh, my God, I can’t believe my eyes
But in all of this to think that You would think of me
Makes my heart come alive
Your love is like a mighty fire deep inside my bones
I feel like I could climb a thousand mountains all at once
And I never have to wonder if somebody cares for me
I love the Maker
And the Maker loves me
I see You, You are creation
I see the grandness of Your majesty
The universe is singing all Your glory
I can’t believe You live inside of me
Everything that You have made is beautiful
Oh, my God, I can’t believe my eyes
But in all of this to think that You would think of me
Makes my heart come alive
Your love is like a mighty fire deep inside my bones
I feel like I could climb a thousand mountains all at once
And I never have to wonder if somebody cares for me
I love the Maker
And the Maker loves me
More than just some words upon a page
You’ve shown me in a million ways
But there is one that stands above them all
Hands of creation on a cross
The Maker
Your love is like a mighty fire deep inside my bones
I feel like I could climb a thousand mountains all at once
And I never have to wonder if somebody cares for me
I love the Maker
And the Maker loves me