Jesus uses this phrase 4 times in the book of Revelation to describe himself, 1:11,17; 2:8; 22:13. It is combined with other phrases like “Alpha and Omega” and “the beginning and the end” as well as two times mentioning that he had been dead but was now alive. This last may have reference to him being the first fruits of the resurrection in addition to the idea of beginning and end. Of course all of these symbolic descriptions point to his deity and his position of being before time was created and existing after time as we know it ends, in other words being eternal.

You probably knew this phrase was associated with Jesus and maybe that it was used in Revelation, but did you know that the Lord uses this same description of himself in the Old Testament? Employing a similar phrase to explain the actions of a king is used 9 times in the Chronicles. The image of first and last is used throughout the Bible for other reasons as well, like when Jesus says “the first shall be last” and he fulfilled this idea in a sense as well by being first (God) and becoming the least or last by dying a criminals death on the cross. 

In Isaiah 41:4; 44:6; 48:12 the Lord proclaims to Israel that he is the first and he is the last. It is no accident that Jesus pulls this same moniker from the book of Isaiah and applies it to himself in Revelation to let his people know that he is the same God that Isaiah prophesied for. And of course the idea of him being first in the sense of being before all things and first in the since of being greatest are taught other places also.

Will you put your trust in and serve the one who was before the world existed and who will remain after all is said and done?

Isaiah 9:6 gives us what is perhaps the most unusual and for some problematic titles for Christ, that of Everlasting Father. The whole verse says, “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.” It is clearly a prophecy about Jesus Christ who we think of as the Son and not about who we normally think of as God the Father. This has led some down the path of not believing in the trinity (3-in-1 nature of God), but that God simply plays different roles at different times. This is called Modalism or sometimes Oneness and is not what the Bible teaches about God.

We know Jesus is the Son and not the Father within the Godhead, so how is he called Everlasting Father? He didn’t have any children as a man on earth, but that wouldn’t explain the everlasting part of the title anyway. He is the founder and therefore, father of the Christian religion and some believe this is a reference to that, and certainly this is a possibility. Others put the focus on the fact that he is everlasting or eternal and ignore the rest. Still others think of it as a reference to his work in creating all things since the creator of a thing is often called the father of it and that certainly fits as a reasonable explanation given his involvement in creation. There are some who say that the Hebrew should be translated “Father of eternity” or “Father of eons” or something else. I am not an expert in Hebrew, but the vast majority of translations don’t follow any of these alternate translations, and I see no reason to go that direction.

We don’t fully understand this phrase, perhaps it even has to do with the relationship between Jesus and the Father. He did say, “if you have seen me you have seen the Father” and “I and my Father are one” and “I am in the Father and the Father is in me”. So there could even be a connection there. Regardless of the exact meaning of this title we can be confident that it is one of great honor for Christ to be called “Eternal Father” and it is perfectly biblical for us to use this title to describe him.

As Jesus was about to come into the world, Matthew reminds us that his birth by a virgin was planned long before and that God had prophesied the event in Isaiah 7:14. This verse is quoted in Matthew 1:23 as an explanation for the revelation by Gabriel that Mary was going to have a son even though she never had been with a man. 

“‘Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel’ (which means, God with us)” Matthew also helps us by giving us the meaning of the title, Emmanuel. He tells us that it means ‘God with us’. What better description of Jesus who was the son of God the Father and in fact was God could there be?

Sometimes it seems confusing to us because we think the prophecy was that his name would be Emmanuel and we know he was named Jesus. But the phrase that translates as ‘shall call his name’ or ‘shall be called’ doesn’t mean that will be his name, but that he will be described this way. There are all kinds of examples of this. James and John were called the sons of thunder, but that was not their name and their father was not thunder. We call Jesus: Lord, Christ, Messiah, King, etc.; however, none of those are the name he was given by his mother. We should not think that there is a problem with this prophecy just because Mary didn’t name her son Emmanuel. The prophecy was that he would be called ‘God with us’ and that is certainly what the early Christians called him and what we still call him today.

​As any Bible believer who created the world and they will likely give the same simple answer: God. On several occasions the New Testament puts forward the claim that Christ is God and one of the statements made about that assertion is that he created the world. Paul explains this in Colossians 1:16, “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.” 

Not only are we created by him/ through him, we were also created for him. Sometimes we miss this, at least, we act like we do. Some of us act and speak as if Christ is here for us and what ever we need or think we need he will get for us like he is a genie in a lamp with unlimited wishes and we can just tell him what to do. None of us would probably openly admit to it, but our actions and words sometimes betray us.

We have to remember that the creation is to serve the creator and not the other way around. The creator can make us as he chooses to serve whatever purpose he chooses and the creation has no right to complain. Isaiah 29:16; Jeremiah 18:4-6; and Romans 9:21 all liken it to a potter with some clay making whatever he wants. The clay can’t say anything about it. 

So, if we were created for him, what does he want us to do? He is God, so he doesn’t need us. He is not served with human hands as though he needs something, Acts 17:25. Humans make things for all kinds of purposes, but ultimately everything we make is so that we can enjoy it. Christ made us to bring him joy and glory and if we want to please him we must do whatever he commands us. If we will do what he commands we can become more than just a creation we can become a friend. 

Let’s serve our creator with our whole heart. He deserves all the praise, obedience, and honor we can give and so much more.

​We use the word ‘counselor’ to either mean a legal advisor like a lawyer or one who gives other advice about how to live life. We have marriage counselors, financial counselors or advisors, school counselors and some go to psychiatrists or psychologists who are also counselors. We may have a friend who is a counselor and listens to our troubles and then gives us advice. As helpful as any of these may be they cannot compare with Jesus.

In Isaiah 9:6 a prophecy about Christ is given that supplies several descriptions of the Messiah. Depending on the translation’s punctuation there are 4 or 5. It is said he will be Wonderful/Marvelous Counselor. Some break this into two and some combine it to make 1. Regardless he is a marvelous, wonderful counselor because he doesn’t just advise and counsel us on money or education. He is not even limited to helping repair marriages or overcome life problems. He is the greatest counselor of all because he counsels us spiritually on how to receive and maintain spiritual life and continue that life for ever. Now what other counselor could compare with that?

Psalm 33:11 says “The counsel of the LORD stands forever,...” Psalms 16, 32, 73, 106, and 119 all speak of God and his word counseling us. In Acts 20:27 Paul says that he acting on God’s behalf shared with those from Ephesus the whole counsel of God. These are general and no specific counsel is mentioned, but in the letter to Laodicea in Revelation 3 Jesus gives some very specific counsel. To a church that thought it was rich and prospering and had everything it needed he revealed her true spiritual condition. The church was wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. One of the most important roles of a counselor is to help us see the truth about ourselves and then to help us find the way to improve. Jesus further counseled them to get spiritual gold and clothes and eye salve from him to fix their spiritual condition. 

What advice do you and I need from our wonderful counselor? Will we listen to what he tells us and make the changes necessary to improve our spiritual condition? Peter was correct when he said to Jesus, “To whom shall we go, you have the words of eternal life.” Let’s go to Jesus for counsel instead of listening to the worldly advice that comes from Satan.

We have all heard of someone being a boss’s right-hand man. There is no more important position for an employee to be in than that. Joseph was Pharaoh’s right-hand man, Aaron was for Moses, and Moses was for God. But what if you weren’t just next in line? What if you could be more than a hand? 

Jesus is pictured at the right hand of God more than once (Ps. 110:1; Mt. 26:64; Mk 12:36; Acts 2:33), but he is more than just God’s right-hand man like Moses had been, he actually is part of the Godhead. He is “the Arm of the Lord” as John says in 12:37-38 quoting Isaiah 53:1. How much do we use our arms? How much has God used His Arm? Psalm 98:1-2 says, “His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.” Isaiah 51:9 begs God to use his arm in his day as he had in the past. Then in 52:10 he says the Lord’s holy arm is bare and the salvation of God will be seen to the furthest extent of the earth. Surely Jesus’ coming is being considered here.

The passage John quotes; however, asks “who has believed our report?” and “to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” Jesus had done so many powerful miracles revealing himself as the arm of the Lord, but many people still wouldn’t believe. He claimed this fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy.

If we continued reading Isaiah 53 we would find it familiar. The Christ would be rejected by men and despised and ultimately suffer and die bearing the iniquity(sin and wickedness) of us all. Yes, God put his arm on display for all to see and then cut that arm off and allowed his arm to die separated from him(Mt. 27:46) How impressive that his arm lives and reaches out to save us even now. At the end of that arm is the hand that is not shortened or unable to save (Isa 59:1). 

Christ, the Arm of the Lord, reaches out to save us. Will you reach out and allow him to take your hand in his and keep it there so that you can be saved? It you will there is no power that can remove it.

jp - The Arm of the Lord