“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” (KJV, Is. 9:6).
“For unto us a child is born”
Father, I pray that You would forgive me for my sin this day. I thank You for the cleansing work of Christ. I thank You for His cleansing blood. I thank You for sending Your Son, Jesus, to die for my sin. I thank You for the way in which You saw that I could not save myself.
When the law condemned me and I was destined to death, You saw fit to send Your Son. Thank You for including me in Your plan of redemption. You have been good to me, and I am thankful.
“unto us a son is given”
You have given me Your Son. Your Word tells me that You loved the world so much that You gave Your Son. Not only that, but Christ also gave Himself for me. You have been generous to me and have given me life when I should have been allowed to perish. I have broken Your law and spurned Your commands, but You have punished Christ in my place.
You gave me Your Son, and I pray that I would lay hold of Christ in a greater way this day. Teach me to appreciate Christ and the gift that You have given to me.
I also see that Christ was born as a man. I see that Christ was born as a son. But I pray that I would never forget that He was Your Son first. You have given Your Son, and I cannot comprehend what that meant to You. I cannot comprehend the pain that it caused You to crush Your Son in my place.
I see that when I sin, I grieve Your Holy Spirit. I see that when the world was full of sin during the days of Noah, it grieved Your heart. Please help me to never forget that You are a God Who feels emotion. You look upon Your creation, and there is a way in which You are grieved by it.
When You crucified Your Son, the world turned to darkness. I see in Your Word that the darkness represented a time of judgment. However, the darkness also represented a time of lamentation and sorrow.
Thank You, Lord, for experiencing sorrow so that I could be set free from sin. Thank You for providing Christ on my behalf that I could know You and love You as I ought.
“and the government shall be upon his shoulder”
I see that while there is much sin in the land, there is a direction in which the world is traveling. Sin is not the end of the story. Corruption is not the end of the story. Darkness and deceit are not the end of the story. The triumph of the enemy is not the end of the story.
Instead, Your Word tells me that the government shall be upon the shoulders of Christ. I see in this passage a purpose as to why Christ came to the earth. You tell me that Your desire is for Christ to rule over the people of the earth. I pray that Christ’s rule would evidence itself in my heart.
I also see that Christ will carry the government and direct the government in the way He desires for it to go. I thank You that Christ is ruling and reigning in heaven. I thank You that one day, Christ will come and sit upon the throne of David and reign in the land. I thank You that every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord.
“and his name shall be called Wonderful”
What a Wonderful Child was born to us. What a Wonderful God to send Christ to the earth. Thank you for Christ – He is truly Wonderful and deserving of praise. Christ came to the earth and gave up His glory with You, Father. I cannot fathom what that would have meant for Him.
Christ humbled Himself in a way that is beyond comprehension. Christ did not simply give up His glory with You to be made into the Emperor of Rome. Christ came to the earth to be impoverished and to live in Nazareth.
Christ came to live among the outcasts of society and to be recognized as a carpenter’s son rather than the Son of God. There is no way that I could ever match the humility of Christ. Christ humbled Himself and became a servant. He was obedient to the point of death and died upon a cross. What a wonderful Savior I have in Jesus Christ.
“Counselor”
Jesus, I pray that You would counsel me with Your Words. I need to hear Your voice, and I pray that You would show me the way in which I ought to live. I pray that as I read Your Word, You would cause Your Spirit to open my eyes to the truth of Your Word and to bring about an understanding of Your Word.
Your Word tells me that Your sheep hear Your voice and they follow You. Your Word tells me that Your commandments are to be my counselors. Your Word tells me that You are a Wonderful Counselor. Please help me to sit at Your feet and to hear what You would have to tell me this day.
“The mighty God”
You are a mighty God, Jesus. You created the world with Your Father and the Holy Spirit. You were with the Father before the foundations of the earth. You have made me in Your image, and for that, I am grateful.
I see in Your Gospels that You healed many and cast out demons. You are a mighty God, and I pray that You would show me favor. I need Your help. I see that there is still much indwelling sin that needs to be mortified in my life. I see that I have a duty to obey Your Word, but while the duty is mine, the power is Yours.
You are the Mighty One, not I. I pray that You would impart Your strength to me this day and cause me to stand. Thank You for coming to the earth. Thank You for being a Mighty God.
“The everlasting Father”
I thank You that You will be to me like a Father. I thank You that You will come and sit upon the throne of David and reign as my King. I see that the apostle Paul was a spiritual father to Timothy, and I see that You are a spiritual Father to me. You have come before me, and You have always been. You are the epitome of righteousness and holiness.
I also thank You that when I veer from the path, You will lovingly discipline me as a Father would. I pray that You would help me to delight in Your discipline and love Your correction. You have been good to me, even in Your correction. I pray that I would never forget Your love for me during my times of correction.
“The Prince of Peace”
What an amazing reality that Jesus came as the Prince of Peace. Jesus did not come as the Prince of Judgment or the Prince of Wrath. When You sent Your Son into the world, You sent Him as the Prince of Peace.
Jesus did not come to condemn the world but to save the world. Jesus does not desire that anyone would perish, but instead, that everyone would come to repentance. I see in Jesus One Who does not delight in the death of the wicked.
Thank You for sending Your Son as a Prince of Peace. Thank You for the many ways in which Jesus speaks peace to me this day. Help me to rejoice in the fact that I am at peace with You through the finished work of Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name, Amen.