This is the third post in a four-part Advent series. Read last week’s post here.
“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, emphasis added
Like the title Mighty God, Everlasting Father indicates a divine nature for the promised child. To be everlasting is to be unending, unceasing—nothing a mere human can do. And though a person can take on the role of a father, an Everlasting Father is a God-like characteristic.
The beauty and mystery of the promised Messiah is that He would be the Son of God and yet called Everlasting Father. It’s a paradox that reveals the complexity of the child to be born.
The Son as Father
When Isaiah called the Messiah the “Everlasting Father,” he was not suggesting that the Messiah would take on the role of God the Father. Though Jesus and God are one (John 10:30), they have distinct roles—God as the Father and Jesus as the Son.
Rather, Isaiah was more likely referring to the Messiah’s attributes of being like a father. The promised child would be fatherly in character and care.
“Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.” -Isaiah 53:10, emphasis added
Jesus views His followers as offspring, as children in need of the love of a father. A good father shows his love by caring for his children and guiding them to live wisely. He also sacrifices for his children in order to protect them.
Jesus is the perfection of a father’s sacrificial love because He laid down His life for our sins. Through His death, He ensured that we would have a path to a restored relationship with the Heavenly Father.
And when Jesus left this Earth, He made sure His “offspring” were not left alone but had a helper with them.
“‘I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.’” -John 14:18-20, emphasis added
Even though Jesus no longer walks on Earth, He sent the Holy Spirit to teach us and remind us of what Jesus said (John 14:26). In that way, Jesus, like a good father, is always there for us.
Everlasting Love
“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever.” -Psalm 136:1
Many aspects of Jesus are everlasting: His reign, His power, His promises. Probably the sweetest of all is His everlasting love.
Even the best earthly fathers cannot perfectly love their children unceasingly. Only the Lord can love with an unrelenting love.
When we fall and when we fail, His love endures forever. When the storms of life crush our spirits, His love endures forever. When we question His goodness and run from His love, His love still endures forever.
Once we are adopted into Christ’s family, we are His forever. What a cherished comfort it must have been for the nation of Israel—a nation that had turned from God again and again—to hear that the Messiah would be an Everlasting Father. He would not leave them or forsake them. It was true then, and it is true to this day.
“There is no unfathering Christ, and there is no unchilding us. He is everlastingly a Father to those who trust in him, and he never does at any one moment cease to be a Father to any one of these.” -Charles Spurgeon