A glorious promise

Xanthe Galanis

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

This is a passage that’s often read at Christmas time, a prophesy of the coming Messiah.  Isaiah’s description of Jesus Christ here is perhaps the most revealing in the whole Old Testament. He tells his people living in exile, and us, that the Messiah will be born as a human child. And yet, this child will be the holy Son of God. And he will be our ruler, our King. His names cover the whole of our lives:

as ‘Wonderful Counselor’, he is all wisdom (see 1 Corinthians 1:30);

as ‘Mighty God’, he is all power (see Philippians 4:13);

as ‘Everlasting Father’, he is all love (see John 14:21);

as ‘Prince of Peace', he is all calm (see Philippians 4:7).

This ancient prophecy reminds us that things don’t happen randomly and that Christ didn’t just come into the world by chance. God chose that special moment in history as the centre of time itself. Everything else before Christ’s birth leads up to that sacred moment; everything that happens hereafter is eternally affected by it. Our world would not be the same if Christ had never been born. He came at a moment, time, and place where his life would be most effective in the world for centuries. That wasn’t chance; that moment was chosen by God so that our own lives would be informed, reformed, and transformed by our knowledge of Jesus today. In other words, everything has a purpose, a plan, a special time and a sacred meaning.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, there are things happening in our lives that are not subject to chance or coincidence. You plan to have us fully involved in Your Mission. Reveal to us this day where our purpose in Your Kingdom work on Earth truly lies. Amen