Sermon Central
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He Will Be Called Counselor Series
Contributed by Leroy Redding on Jul 10, 2007 (message contributor)
Summary: Isaiah 9:6-7 #2
“HE WILL BE CALLED...COUNSELOR”
Where do you go when you need help?
Where do you go when you need direction....guidance?
Where you go tells something about you.
Some people go to their horoscope....hair dresser...
self-help books...bar tender...psychologist...pastor...counselor.
The ultimate and best counselor is Jesus Christ. That is one of the names given Him in Isaiah 9:6.
The first question we want to look at this morning is:
I. WHY DO WE NEED CHRIST’S COUNSEL?
Because...
A. Our hearts are basically selfish and sinful
Our hearts are basically selfish and sinful. Our motives are mixed. Jeremiah says it well when he says in Jeremiah 17:9
“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure.
Who can understand it?”
It’s easy for us to say to ourselves, “Well, if I know my heart...”
But when it really comes down to it, we really do not know our
hearts.
When the disciple Peter looked into his heart he thought he saw courage and stability. But when Jesus looked into that same heart he saw someone who would deny Him three times.
“Knowing what is right is like deep water in the heart...” (Msg)
We need Christ’s counsel because our hearts are selfish and sinful.
We also need Christ’s counsel because...
B. Our minds are limited
Our hearts are not only selfish, but our minds are severely limited. Isaiah 55:8 "’For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the LORD.”
After conversion, our minds have to be transformed, so that we might be able to “prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
Romans 12:2 “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.” (NLT)
Our minds are really amazing things, aren’t they? It’s amazing the amount of knowledge we can understand. But, you know what, they are limited.
1 Corinthians 13:12”For now we see in a mirror dimly,
but then face to face; now I know in part,
but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.”
Added to our internal deficiencies (our selfish hearts, our limited minds) are:
C. External problems
External problems... the pressures of this world and the devil’s devices. Psalm 1:1
“Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked...”
“And do not be conformed to this world...”
We are surrounded by ungodly thinking and anti-God thinking.
And if we are not careful, it will influence us in the decisions we make.
Satan blinds the minds of unbelievers according to...
“Satan, the god of this evil world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe, so they are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News that is shining upon them. They don’t understand the message we preach about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.” (NLT)
Satan also tries to deceive the minds of believers according to...
“But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”
Satan is portrayed as a roaring lion in Scripture.
1 Peter 5:8 “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
No matter how you look at it, we desperately need God’s counsel. And the way God gives us counsel is one of His most gracious works.
James 1:5 “If you need wisdom—if you want to know what God wants you to do—ask him, and he will gladly tell you.
He will not resent your asking.”(NLT)
Isn’t that great? It’s there for our asking.
You need wisdom? You need advice? You need counsel?
Ask Jesus!
And we desperately need His counsel.
But, why should we go to Jesus? How is He qualified to be our counselor?
II. HOW IS JESUS CHRIST QUALIFIED TO BE OUR COUNSELOR?
Not everyone is qualified to give counsel. It’s against the law to advertise your services as a counselor unless you have the necessary credentials. Just because you have an interest in people, and love to give advice to others does not qualify you with the necessary credentials to be a counselor. It takes a certain amount of education, some practical experience under the guidance of a trained counselor. But even then, not everyone who even goes through all that, is really a qualified counselor.
Is Jesus Christ qualified to be our counselor? Yes, He is! How so?
