February 15, 2023
… And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6b
Every loving attribute of Jesus can become a descriptive name for Him. The facets of His character, in all its glory and brilliance, are like a perfectly cut diamond: a close look only reveals more and more facets . . .
He is the beautiful Savior. The all-knowing Omniscient One knew before the foundation of the world that we would need to be saved. But saved from what?
As the Creator, it was His joy to create us in His own image. It is only right—and righteous—that He should desire to protect us from the harm of His adversary whose self-appointed job it is to deceive us into worshiping him instead. The great controversy of the ages is over worship (see Deuteronomy 30:15-20, Matthew 4:9, John 4:23).
In tender, unending mercy, He who came to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8) is steadily at work to help our minds, weakened by the influences of sin, back away from and reject the barrage of deceptions put in place by the deceiver. How does He do it? He does it through His Spirit and the witness of others—and then instructs us to test everything by His word. That is the standard, and we have it in writing as a sure reference. Herein, we have another name for Jesus: The Word of God (Revelation 19:13). In giving us the end-time vision, Jesus warns us that Satan’s deceptions will be so powerful that, instead of focusing on Him who is Wonderful . . .
All the world wondered after the beast. Revelation 13:3b (KJV)
One of the commendations of Jesus to the infant church at Ephesus was: And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars. (2:2) He has given all that we need to safely navigate around deceptions, lies, and wicked practices. Beloved, your safety lies only in your trust of and obedience to the Righteous One.
Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. 1 John 3:7
The name of the LORD is a strong tower. The righteous run to it and are safe. Proverbs 18:10