His Name Is Wonderful Counselor

Dannah Gresh: What does it mean for Christians in Ukraine right now that God is their Wonderful Counselor? I asked that question to a woman named Olesia, who lives there.

Olesia: Every time when I need to talk to my teenage daughter and when I need to speak to a listener, when they think that I'm so brave, when they think that I know everything, every time inside I think, God, You know how desperately I feel, how desperately lost sometimes I feel as a woman. I should be strong. You should be strong, or you'll be dead—physically and spiritually now.

So every time I choose to be strong I say, "God, the Holy Spirit, comfort my heart so I can serve my teenage, naughty daughter (God bless you, Deanna.) I encourage my listener who says, "It's bombing outside. Help me, Olesia." How can I help her? I say, "God, what can I do?" He comforts me, and He gives me very short messages that I try to send to my listeners, and . . . I pray . . . a lot!

I've never prayed in my life like this. I pray in every language I know. Sometimes I'm quiet. And when in quiet, I have the most intensive prayer. The level of pain when you do not have tears, when you do not have words, you're just silent. In this silence, my soul cries out to Him. (Hear the entire interview with Olesia.)

Dannah: This is the Revive Our Hearts podcast with Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth, author of The Wonder of His Name, for Thursday, March 10, 2022. I'm Dannah Gresh.

Nancy is leading us through a rich series called, “The Wonder of His Name: 32 Life-Changing Names of Jesus.” Today she’ll explore the next name in the series. 

First, a reminder that when you support Revive Our Hearts, you’re helping us reach listeners like Rachel. She’s a mother who lives in Kansas, and she recently contacted us in the wee hours of the morning. She said,

Rachel: My daughter has had many challenges tonight, and I’ve barely slept. My anxiety for her makes me ‘fuss.’ 

Dannah: Every mom understands this! “Sure enough,” she said, “doubt and fear crept in.” 

Rachel: So, I did all I know to do. I sat down with my Bible and turned to Revive Our Hearts. 

Dannah: She began listening to a podcast episode titled “The Lord Reigns.”

Nancy: Maybe there are some storms that are threatening to take you under: health challenges, family issues, a difficult marriage, a prodigal child, caring for an elderly parent.

Rachel: I was sitting there, experiencing the very thing Nancy was talking about!

Nancy: You see, here is the problem: we are more prone to believe what we see and feel than what God's Word tells us. This is why we need to get our eyes and hearts off the news long enough and deeply enough to get our eyes and our hearts in this book. 

Rachel: Thank you for being instruments of God. His Word is true! He is bigger than anything I walk through, but He knows I need messengers to remind me of that. At 4 a.m. this morning, God used you as a messenger. Thank you.

Dannah: Well, thank you, Rachel, for encouraging us! 

Again, we’re able to be a messenger in Rachel’s life because of the faithful giving of our listeners, including the members of our Monthly Partner Team. 

To be one of our monthly partners simply means you give at least $30 every month to support the work of Revive Our Hearts. You pray for us, and you also spread the message of Revive Our Hearts to others. 

If you’d like to join the Revive Our Hearts Monthly Partner Team, just check out ReviveOurHearts.com. All the details are there. 

Now, let’s join Nancy in the series, “The Wonder of His Name.”

Nancy: We looked in the last session in Isaiah chapter 7 at the prophecy that a virgin was to conceive and to bear a son, who would be called Immanuel, “God with us.”

Let me remind you of the context, because we’re going to continue in the next few days with some more names for the Messiah that are found in the book of Isaiah. The context in Isaiah 7 and continuing over the next few chapters, this was the beginning of dark days for Israel.

The Assyrian army was gathering on the northern border. Israel because of their sin and idolatry and the fact that they had rejected Yahweh, Israel was facing hardship, exile. They were going to be deported, sent out of the Promised Land. Circumstances were bleak, and the people felt hopeless and helpless.

As you come to Isaiah 8, you see this very desperate time in which Israel was living. For example, Isaiah 8:22 talks about distress and darkness . . . the gloom of anguish, thrust into thick darkness. As you read that passage, you see that the people were angry at their leaders, angry at God, wondering, Has Yahweh forgotten His people?

(Why were they wondering that? The people had forgotten Yahweh, right?) They were saying, "Has Yahweh forgotten us?" They were wondering, Is there any hope? And regardless of the reasons, or the circumstances, or what led up to it, maybe you find yourself today in a dark place, wondering if God is really there, if He really cares.

Then we get to Isaiah 9, with that dark backdrop, which tells us more about the Son who was promised back in chapter 7—Immanuel, “God with us.” Isaiah wants us to know more about this promised Son, this Messiah that would bring hope out of despair and light out of darkness.

Remember that these prophecies were given seven hundred years before Jesus was born, but the promise was that this coming Messiah would correspond exactly to the needs of the people. Whatever they needed, this Messiah would meet those needs.

So we come to that very familiar passage in Isaiah chapter 9:6: “For to us a child is born . . .” We read about a child in Isaiah 7—a child would be born to a virgin—this is that same child.

"For to us a child is born,"—speaking of the humanity of Jesus
"to us a son is given;"—that speaks of the deity of Jesus, the fact that He would be God
"and the government shall be upon his shoulder,"—this Messiah would be a king, this child, this Son, born of a virgin, would be man, would be God, would be a king
"and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

We have here four titles of the coming Messiah, and we’re looking at three of those in this series on The Wonder of His Name: 32 Life-changing Names of Jesus. We want to focus today on that title, that name, Wonderful Counselor. Some of our older translations actually make this two names.

They separate Wonderful and Counselor with a comma. You may have grown up hearing it that way, as I did. But most of our modern translations combine the words into one title: Wonderful Counselor, which I think, in the context, probably makes more sense. We want to look for just a moment at each of those words individually.

First, the word Wonderful. We usually use this word as an adjective; a word that describes a noun: “It’s a wonderful day. I had a wonderful time.” As it’s used here, this word, Wonderful, is a noun. That is His name: Wonderful Counselor. This word, Wonderful, in the Scripture, is used only of God, never of man.

In the Old Testament, you’ll see this word often pointing to God’s miracles and the extraordinary aspects of how He dealt with His people. For example, we read in Exodus chapter 15: “Who is like you O Lord? Awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders.” That’s this word wonders . . . extraordinary things that God does. This word, wonder or wonderful, is a miracle; it’s an amazing deed or thing. It is something out of the ordinary that you can’t explain. It’s extra-ordinary and inspires amazement.

Sometimes this word is translated “marvelous.” It’s a wonderful thing, supernatural, beyond our human capacity to grasp. The fact that this Messiah would be “Wonderful Counselor” means that He is not commonplace. There’s something unusual about Him. He is wonderful, awesome, a wonder, an extraordinary person—one—that God has given to us.

As I think about that name, I want to ask, “Is He wonderful to us?” Is He wonderful to you? Or have you done what so many of us do, and that is, lose the wonder of who He is and what He has done? We hear the name so often—we sing it, we say it, we read it —and maybe that name becomes commonplace to us.

My prayer through this series is that God will restore in our hearts the wonder of His name. His name is Wonderful. He’s a Wonderful Counselor. That means He’s a “wonder of a counselor,” amazing, supernatural!

It reminds me of what Paul says in Romans 11:

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! "For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?” (vv. 33–34)  

Isaiah chapter 11 is another prophecy about the Messiah, and it says,

The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD (vv. 1–2).

He is a Wonderful Counselor because He has the Spirit of God’s counsel upon Him. He is God. Christ, the Wonderful Counselor.

You remember how Jesus demonstrated unusual wisdom, even as a child. Do you remember in the temple at age twelve? Luke 2 tells us that after three days his parents found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them, and asking questions.

That maybe wouldn’t be so amazing, but verse 47 says, “All who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.” He wasn’t just asking questions, he was answering the questions of these very intellectually brilliant religious leaders. He is a Wonderful Counselor . . . a wonder of a counselor. There is no one else like Him.

As I’ve been meditating on this name, I’ve asked myself, “What makes Him such a wonder of a counselor?” There are a lot of counselors, and some good counselors, but the text in Isaiah tells us that He surpasses all of them. He is the Wonderful Counselor. Why?

One reason is that He knows people. Jesus has insight into the human heart. He knows all about us, how we’re wired, how we’re motivated. Psalm 139 tells us that He knows our innermost thoughts. He knows our words before we even speak them. He knows our longings. Jesus knows us better than we know ourselves.

John chapter 2 tells us that “Jesus knew what was in the heart of man.” Throughout the gospels, we see that people marveled at Jesus’ ability to know what they were thinking, to know what was in their hearts. He’s a Wonderful Counselor because He knows people.

Secondly, He’s a Wonderful Counselor because He’s able to understand our needs. He understands our needs because He has walked in our shoes. He didn’t just stay as this God up in heaven, He put on human flesh. He came down and walked around, and He lived our life and died our death.

Hebrews tells us that He is able to be a merciful and faithful High Priest. He is compassionate, and He is sympathetic. He was tempted just as we are, only without sin. So He’s able to understand our need.

He’s able, thirdly, to diagnose our problem. That makes Him a wonder of a counselor. He’s able to diagnose, not just the surface symptoms that anybody can see, but He’s able to penetrate and help us understand the root, heart issues that need to be dealt with. It takes a great counselor to do that, and Jesus can do it perfectly! He’s able to diagnose our problem.

He’s a Wonderful Counselor, fourthly, because He succeeded where we failed. Jesus, as He lived life on this earth, knew what was to be wronged, to be sinned against, to be tired, to be lonely, disappointed, betrayed, but He never once sinned in His response. He was never bitter, never unforgiving, never sinfully angry, never selfish.

When I get tired, I tend to get really impatient. Jesus got tired, but He never got impatient. He succeeded where we have failed. That makes Him a counselor who can help us with our need.

And, number five, He’s a Wonderful Counselor because He knows how to help us. He knows the right prescription, the right solution, for our problems. I can’t tell you how many times over the years I’ve had women pour out their hearts to me and share burdens. This happened to me the other day. A woman just started sharing with me things that were happening in her life and looked at me with these pleading eyes, like “Help me, please!”

I was thinking, I have no idea what to tell you. I’ve never been there. I can’t imagine what it’s like, and I don’t have hours to hear more of the background of this. I wasn’t even fully understanding what her situation was, but I could tell that she was desperately in need. I didn’t know how to help her.

Even when I think I know how to help people, there’s a good chance I really don’t, but Jesus knows the solution. He always gives wise and good and right counsel that is tailored to our specific situation and need and moment. He’s not going to give you, in your circumstance in this moment, the exact same counsel He’s going to give you [directing words at a different lady] in your circumstance.

His counsel will always be consistent with His Word—that’s where you get His counsel. He knows exactly what you need. He knows how to give tailor-made grace and counsel to each situation. He has all wisdom. He is God; He knows everything. He knows whether we need encouragement or rebuke or reproof or practical instruction. This all makes Him a wonder of a counselor.

He never has an unanswered question. He never needs anyone to give Him input or to help Him know how to counsel. He never has to ask anyone else, “What do you think we should do?” Never! He always knows what to do. This Wonderful Counselor knows everything. There is no limit to His knowledge, His understanding. His counsel is always right! He is omniscient, an all-wise wonder of a counselor.

And He is a wonder of a counselor because He will always tell us truth. He doesn’t just tell us what we want to hear, but He knows what we need to hear, and He’ll tell us what we need to hear, even if we don’t want to hear it. He’ll tell us the truth about our real condition, if we’ll listen to Him. He’ll tell us the truth about the issues in our lives.

He’ll tell us where we’ve sinned; He’ll tell us that we need to repent; He’ll tell us how to be delivered; He’ll tell us how we can be made whole. I’ll tell you, there are a lot of counselors today—and I don’t mean just people counselors; I mean books and programs and things you can listen to—that will give you gobbledy-gook or garbage or worse.

Sometimes the counsel of this world will actually make you worse, instead of better. But Jesus’ counsel will always make you better because it will be the truth. It will be the medicine that you need.

He’s a wonder of a counselor because He offers Himself as the solution for our needs. He’s not just like a professor standing up in the front of the classroom or an armchair quarterback. He doesn’t just tell us what to do. He’s willing to walk and live with us, by His Holy Spirit in us, that enables us to live the life that He counsels us to live. He gives us the grace by His presence within us, and He offers Himself as the solution for our needs.

He’s a wonder of a counselor because He has a proven track record. His counsel works. We’ve seen that over and over again, how’s He is proven to be an able counselor. Think of the woman at the well who had that string of broken relationships. Jesus knew exactly what counsel she needed, and it changed her life.

Think of the thief on the cross, or the demonized man who lived in the tombs and had to be chained up to keep him from hurting himself or others. Think of the woman who was brought to Jesus having been caught in the act of adultery. Think of Nicodemus, the religious leader, who came to Jesus at night for counsel. Think of the rich young ruler, wanting to know how to have eternal life.

These are all kinds of people, all kinds of walks of life, all kinds of needs and circumstances. Jesus gave each of those exactly the counsel they needed. So He is a wonder of a counselor.

What’s the take-away, the take-home from that? For each of these names, we want to know not only what it means, but what difference it makes for me. Let me give you a few take-aways about Jesus, the Wonderful Counselor.

First of all, we need to acknowledge that we need a wonderful counselor—we need wisdom and guidance. If you think you already have it altogether and your life is going along just swimmingly fine—thank you—then you’ll never go to the Wonderful Counselor. Proverbs says it this way: “Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.” We’ve got to acknowledge that we need a Wonderful Counselor.

Secondly, turn to Him for counsel. Where do you turn for counsel when you’re really desperate? Where do you go, who do you listen to? Turn to the Wonderful Counselor, turn to His Word, turn to prayer, turn to His Spirit. Ask Him, “What shall I do? How do I deal with this?”

He has come to this earth and to live in us to be our Wonderful Counselor. He’s come to direct you, to advise you, according to His perfect and sovereign will—the eternal plan and counsel of His will. His counsel is wonderful. You will never, ever get better advice anywhere else. Turn to Him.

Isn’t it great to know He’s a counselor we always have with us, by His Holy Spirit who lives in us?

We don’t have to call Him up to get an appointment. You don’t have to wait four weeks on the waiting list until an opening comes up, to get into this counselor. You don’t have to take a checkbook with you or pay one-hundred-fifty dollars an hour for this wonderful counsel. Twenty-four/seven, and all you’ve got to pay is a humble heart, a listening ear, a willingness to say, “Yes, Lord,” to His counsel. He’s available.

Elisha Hoffman was a pastor who lived in the late 1800s. One day he visited with a woman in his church who had experienced a lot of hardships and sorrows and was deeply discouraged. As they visited, she shared the things that were on her heart, and then she said, “Brother Hoffman, what shall I do?”

The pastor quoted to her some Scripture, and then he said to her, “You can’t do better than to take all of your sorrows to Jesus. You must tell Jesus.” Elisha Hoffman said later as he reflected on that conversation, “For a moment this woman seemed lost in meditation, and then her eyes lighted as she said, ‘Yes, I must tell Jesus!’ As I left her home I had a vision of that joy-illuminated face, and I heard all along my pathway the echo, ‘I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus!’”

After he arrived home, Elisha Hoffman wrote these words, which I have sung many times over the years, and many times these words have pointed my own heart to the Wonderful Counselor.

Song: "I Must Tell Jesus" by Mary Barrett

I must tell Jesus all of my trials;
I cannot bear these burdens alone.
In my distress He kindly will help me;
He ever loves and cares for His own.

I must tell Jesus, I must tell Jesus.
I cannot bear my burdens alone.
I must tell Jesus, I must tell Jesus.
Jesus can help me, Jesus alone.¹

Aren’t we so quick to tell everybody else our problems? Pick up the phone, call somebody, email somebody, text somebody and say, “Help! I need help!” I sent an email out last night to some friends saying, “Help, I need prayer!” I’m thankful that we can go to God’s people and to wise counselors and say, “Can you point me to help?”

But listen, the best help and counsel you’re going to get from any of them are as they point you to the Wonderful Counselor. Turn to Him for counsel.

But not only turn to Him for counsel, trust His counsel. Don’t just turn to Him for counsel, but when He gives you counsel, trust His counsel. His counsel is a wonder. Depend on Him; rely on Him. He will never mislead you. “Trust in the LORD,” Proverbs says, “with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths” (3:5–6).

I’ll just tell you that His counsel is generally counter-intuitive to our natural wisdom and thinking. So, when your emotions tell you, as mine were telling me this morning, “Be angry about this—be upset about this, keep mulling it over in your mind and keep thinking about this,” the Wonderful Counselor says, “Let it go, let it go.” Whose counsel are you going to take? Your own? Mind your own heart? Or that of the Wonderful Counselor? Trust the Wonderful Counselor.

Do you try to advise Him, or do let Him advise you? Do you try to tell Him how to run the universe, telling Him what you need—or what you think you need—or do you humbly look to Him to guide your life? Do you ask Him to approve your plans and your direction, or do you seek Him for His?

You can trust the Wonderful Counselor. Take His counsel. (Turn to Him for counsel, trust His counsel, and then take His counsel.) In other words, do what He tells you to do. I think of the opposite of that, in Proverbs chapter 1, where Scripture says, “You have ignored all my counsel; you would have none of my reproof” (v. 25).

May that never be said of us—that Jesus gave us His counsel, He gave us Himself, He gave us His Word—but we ignored it. Take His counsel. No counselor can help you if you don’t know that you have a need, or you won’t admit you do; if you’re not willing to ask for help; if you’re not willing to listen to and take the counsel; if you won’t do what the counselor says; if you think you know better; if you ignore what He says and try to treat yourself, then no counselor can help you.

The Wonderful Counselor will not help you unless you turn to Him for counsel.

Finally, as you are blessed by shaping your life, by His grace, around His wonderful counsel, then point others to Him for counsel. Listen, remember, you are not the Wonderful Counselor. You are not the Savior. Your counsel is limited; your wisdom is finite, so don’t try and advise others out of your own wisdom—instead, point them to Him.

Say, “I don’t know what to do, but I know someone who does. Let's ask Him.” And then pray with them. Say, “Let me take you to the throne of grace, where you can find mercy and grace to help you in your time of need. Let’s get into God’s Word together. Let’s see what it has to say about this. Let’s ask the Wonderful Counselor,” and He will, indeed, give wonderful counsel.

Song: "His Name Is Wonderful by Anthony Lamarchina & Phillip Keveren (instrumental)²

Dannah: Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth will be right back to pray. She’s been explaining why Jesus is the Wonderful Counselor. To see part of this teaching on video, visit ReviveOurHearts.com and find a link in the transcript of today’s program. It’s part of the series, “The Wonder of His Name: 32 Life-Changing Names of Jesus.”

This series is designed to help you get to know Jesus better. We're airing this during this season leading up to our observance of His death and celebration of His resurrection next month. And not just knowing about Him—we want you to know Him personally and be in awe of who He is.

Nancy’s book, also called The Wonder of His Name, will help you know Jesus through thirty-two of His life-changing names. You’ll read a devotional for each of these names and enjoy the beautiful artwork of Timothy Botts. As you meditate on who Jesus is, you’ll be in awe of Him, fall more deeply in love with Him, and trust Him even more.

We’ll send the book The Wonder of His Name when you support Revive Our Hearts through a donation of any amount. Your gift helps make it possible for us to continue bringing you the podcast version of Revive Our Hearts. If you appreciate hearing Nancy’s teaching, would you help this ministry continue? When you donate any amount, ask for The Wonder of His Name. The website is ReviveOurHearts.com, or call us at 1-800-569-5959.

Do you ever get worried about the future? Are you frustrated and surprised at ungodly decisions among powerful people or government leaders? Tomorrow, Nancy will explain why you don’t have to fear. Now, she’s back to pray.

Nancy: Oh Lord, we join with the Psalmist in saying, “I bless the LORD who gives me counsel.” We love you Lord Jesus. You are our wonder of a counselor. Amen.

Revive Our Hearts with Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth, calling you to freedom, fullness, and fruitfulness in Christ. 

All Scripture is taken from the English Standard Version.

¹Mary Barrett. “I Must Tell Jesus.” Hymns 2—Be Still My Soul. ℗ 2005 Sound Truth Publishing.

²Anthony Lamarchina & Phillip Keveren. “His Name Is Wonderful.” Classical Praise, Vol. 3—Piano & Cello. ℗ 2005 Discovery House Music.

Dawn Wilson, Lindsay Swartz, and Darla Wilkinson provided helpful research assistance for this series. 

*Offers available only during the broadcast of the podcast season.