Something About That Name, Part 2

There's something about his name, because his name will put your life back together again. Dr. Tony Evans says the Bible's descriptions of Jesus include something to meet every need.

Because he's not only an advisor, he's an advisor who's a fixer. He is mighty God. Celebrating 40 years of faithfulness, this is the alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, author, speaker, senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, Texas, and president of the Urban Alternative. Usually, the story of a person's life isn't told until they've lived it. But today, Dr. Evans will tell us about a sort of biography of Jesus written long before he was born.

Let's join him. We're told in Isaiah chapter 9, verses 6 and 7, that there would be a son given and a child born. The eternal son of God, become a person, pouring all of deity into a vessel of humanity, making him the most unique person who ever lived, both God and man, son of God and son of man. The son given and the child born would carry the government on his shoulders. When Jesus Christ physically returns to the earth, he will set up his rule in Israel, in Jerusalem, and he will govern the whole world from Jerusalem. So I'm going to now tell you, through the prophet Isaiah, what it will look like for you, for us as a church, if you and I will allow him to govern us. For the government shall be on his shoulders.

And the job of a government is to oversee the well-being of its citizens. He says, and his name shall be called. He gives four titles to the names of Jesus.

Let's look at them. He says, first of all, you will call him Wonderful Counselor. The first title, if he is governing you, is he will be your personal Wonderful Counselor. Now, a counselor is somebody you go to for advice. A counselor is somebody you go to for guidance. A counselor is somebody you go to for direction. A counselor is somebody you go to for clarity.

A counselor is somebody you go to discern what your best next step ought to be in some area of your life. Jesus is here to tell you today if you let Him. He will be to you an extraordinary advisor.

He will blow your mind. Psalm 73 24 says that God guides us with His counsel. Psalm 32 verse 8 says He guides us in the way we ought to go. First John chapter 5 verse 20 says He will give you understanding. The reason why He is a wonderful counselor is He knows every subject completely. In other words, what makes Him a magnificent advisor is you can't bring up a subject of which He doesn't have full knowledge because He's Son of God. Not only does He have full knowledge because the Son was given, He has full experience because the Son became a child.

That's why the book of Hebrews says in chapter 2 verses 17 and 18, it says that He became like us so He could aid us. So He not only can counsel you with His knowledge, He can counsel you with His experience. And there's nothing like having a counselor who has both the information and the experience to be your advisor.

Most of the folk we go to may have some knowledge, and they may have some experience, but they have limited knowledge of both, and they certainly don't know you completely. His first name is Wonderful Counselor. His second name, he says you call Him Mighty God. But we talk about the Son who was given and the child that was born, but you call Him Mighty God. Because He not only can advise you, because He's a wonderful counselor, He can pull off the advice for you, because He's Mighty God.

The one who counsels you is also the strength for you to pull off the counsel He gave you, because He's Mighty God. When you take your car to a car dealership and you drive it in because the noise is coming, the indicator light is on, something is wrong. You tell them as best you can, I got this noise, my light is on. But the reason you take it is because you don't have sufficient knowledge either to understand it or to fix it.

That's why you take it, because you are limited in your knowledge. You know something is wrong, but you don't know why it's wrong, and you don't know how to make it right. So you take it to the car dealership, and when you take it to the dealership, they put a diagnostic machine on it. The diagnostic machine is to diagnose what the problem is that made you bring it to them to fix in the first place. So they go through this analysis, they go through this diagnostic process to listen to the engine, to look at this, to look at that. Then they come back and say, this is what's wrong with your car. You need a new this, you need us to fix that. Now we know what's wrong. The beautiful thing about taking it to the dealership and doing the diagnosis is that you don't have to go somewhere else to get it fixed.

In other words, you leave it right there, because they are set up not only to diagnose it, but they got the power to pull off the fixing of what the diagnostic process just revealed. Let me tell you something about your God. If you will go to him for his wonderful counsel, and you will let him tell you what the real deal is, he will, with the diagnosis, at no further charge, tell you how the problem gets resolved. Because he's not only an advisor, he's an advisor who's a fixer. Because he's not only a wonderful counselor, he is mighty God. That's why when Thomas saw him, he said, my Lord, my God, referring to Jesus Christ. To put it another way, God has the ability to fix the chaos in your life and to rectify the confusion in your existence.

He's mighty God. And throughout the Bible, you see this power being manifested. He manifested over sin. In fact, when the Jewish leaders saw him forgiving sin, they said to him, don't you know only God can forgive sins?

Jesus said, I heard that. Right, I can forgive sins because only God can forgive sins, because I claim to be God. And not only did he forgive sins, but regularly he would reverse circumstances that sin had caused. He would take care of folks who were demon-possessed, because he got power over demons. I don't know if you knew that or not. He's regularly casted out demons. You say, well that was back then. Oh no. Oh no. You say, but wait a minute, wait a minute, heavens, I don't see any demons.

Yeah, you do. Any sin that holds you hostage is not because of the sin, it is due to the demonic intrusion into the sin. When a person is addicted to drugs, the Greek word pharmacia is used of that which demons use to possess a person. So it's not just the drug that's holding a person hostage, it's that the demons have entered the drug that is holding the person hostage. So the person doesn't know it, but they don't need to just get off of drugs, they need to get off of the demonic infusion in the drug that is holding them hostage to the addiction.

So it is just a vehicle that they use. You want to get loose, but nothing seems to get you loose. That's because you're not, you're dealing with the symptom of the problem, not the demonic intrusion into the sin. Jesus Christ met the demoniac, demon-possessed man. He was crazy. He was wild. He was losing his mind. He was mentally deranged.

The people would just say he was crazy. Jesus said he's possessed, because he was looking at things spiritually, not just the physical repercussions of him cutting himself and of him disrobing himself and all that. Jesus said, no, no, no, these are demons. Mister, what is your name? And then the demon spoke, our name is Legion, for we are many.

We are many. This man is crazy, because we are controlling him. Jesus says, come out of him.

Don't miss this. The demon said, let us go into the pigs. Why did they want to go into the pig? Because pigs are unclean animals, and demons fester where uncleanness exists. So the reason the demoniac was possessed by demons was there was some uncleanness in him that the demons could attach to. So the reason why sin is bad is that, like roaches around dirt and darkness, they are drawn to it, and then they invite their family.

So now you've got a whole company, a legion, that is now causing you to lose control every second. You've got demonic things causing you to act out in a consistent, controlled way, and you need somebody who's mighty God to take care of that. He's a counselor who is a mighty, mighty God, and that is his name. And as mighty God, he can overrule circumstances. He can go to sleep in a storm and then calm the storm, because he can overrule circumstances.

You say, my circumstance can't be fixed. Well, you're talking about you are mighty God. Because last time I checked the scripture, nothing is impossible with him. And Dr. Evans will come back to explore the meaning of some of the other names Isaiah listed for Jesus in just a moment. First though, don't miss your last chance to take advantage of a special package we've put together for our listeners. It starts with an impressive picture book filled with beautiful photographs of the Holy Land and insightful spiritual applications from Dr. Evans. It's called Experiencing Israel, and it takes you to the streets and countryside that Jesus visited during his time on earth. This book will give you new insight into the history, culture, and people of the Holy Land, adding a rich background to your study of God's Word.

And it makes a great gift. We bundled this collectible coffee table style book along with all 11 full length messages in Tony's current teaching series, Encountering Jesus Names. We'll send them all to you with our thanks when you make a contribution right away in support of the alternative. Make the arrangements today at tonyevans.org, or call our 24-hour resource center at 1-800-800-3222, where team members are standing by to help you.

I'll repeat that information for you after part two of today's message, right after this. What's the best kind of self-care? Generosity. At The Urban Alternative, we take hope to a hurting world by sharing God's Word. But to do that, we need your help. When you give to The Urban Alternative, you can help deliver hope and feel good while doing it.

Learn how to contribute at tonyevans.org, and thank you for helping us take God's Word to a world in need on this Giving Tuesday. The third title or name He's given in this passage is He's Eternal Father or Everlasting Father. He manages time. He is the overseer of history. He fathers time. He controls time.

Hebrews 1 chapter 10 and 12 says that Jesus Christ created time out of eternity, which means He existed before time. You and I live in time and space. We live on a continuum of A to Z, beginning to end, start and finish, birth and death. That is our continuation and continuity of time.

We do not yet live in eternity. We live in time. When we die or when Christ comes, we'll go to eternity, where there will be no more time. But right now, we are stuck in time. We've got 60 seconds to a minute. We've got then 24 hours in a day, and then, you know, 365 days to a year, and we are stuck and trapped in time.

Ecclesiastes 3, there is a time for everything, a time to laugh, a time to cry, a time to be born, a time to die, a time, a time, a time, a time, a time, a time. What He is saying there is you are trapped in time. Time has trapped you. No way to escape it.

You get older by the day, you get grayer by the years. We are trapped in time, and since time has trapped us, you're living on earth, you are trapped. You can't escape time if you're alive on earth.

You're trapped, a closed universe. So you need somebody overseeing your time. You need somebody managing your time.

You need somebody who will father you over time. What God says is, if you will let me be your governance, your ruler, then I will oversee your time, place your time in my hand, and I will manage your time, guide your time, govern your time, intersect your time, use your time, remove your time. I will oversee your time. I will determine what intersects into your life, what doesn't intersect into your life. I will determine what people come in your way, what people need to be blocked from your way.

I will determine whether somebody runs through the red light just in the nick of time when you pass through. I will govern your time because I'm daddy over time. I am the father of time. I love the way Ecclesiastes 3.11 says that he has placed eternity in your heart.

In other words, you're living in time, but he's doused you with an eternal monitoring system that's not limited to time. Can you imagine the security of this name, that this name of the son who was born and the child who was given will oversee every second of life? Finally, his fourth name is Prince of Peace. Prince of Peace. Let me give you the the 21st century term, no more drama.

No more drama. The word for peace is shalom. Shalom is a pregnant word.

It is a thick word. It's not—it means peace, but in it is so much else. The concept of shalom means wellness or well-ordered.

So when a Jewish person over in Israel says shalom, they don't just mean I hope you're happy inside. What they are saying is, I hope your life is put together. No more drama.

I hope I hope your world is intact. Today, there's drama. Everywhere you look, there's drama, chaos, and confusion. He is the prince of no more drama. He is the prince, which is the son of a king. He is the prince to bring things together that look like they can't get along.

He is the prince of healing a marriage that looks like it's on its way to divorce because the husband and wife are constantly fussing and fighting. What they're missing is shalom. You don't get shalom through a vacation. You don't get through shalom through buying a new house.

Shalom are the pieces being fitted together so that things are in order like they ought to be. What you're missing in that marriage is the prince of peace. The racial problem, whether it's in the world or in the church, is because there's no prince of peace.

And so we go to all of these things to fix something for 300 years which ought to be solved in three minutes. But because the prince of peace is even absent from the church, it goes on and on and on and on. When Jesus was born, the son became a child born. In Luke 2 17, he says, and we all say it at Christmas, peace on earth, goodwill toward men. Now you're gonna hear that every Christmas while somebody fighting. Peace on earth, goodwill toward men. You know, that's what everybody gonna say while they leave out the last few words.

Peace on earth, goodwill toward men, with whom he's well pleased. You ever seen an orchestra and you come in before the concert begins and everybody's warming up? It sounds very chaotic. You got different instruments being warmed up in different ways. It's chaotic because everybody doing their own thing. Everybody doing their own thing before the concert begins so you can't make sense of it. But then the conductor comes in. The conductor comes in, stands at the podium, takes out his wand and taps it.

Everybody stopped doing their own thing. He does this. Everybody focused on him. And then he begins the process and what was chaotic before he came in, now becomes harmonious now that he is there and now that he's running the show. Because everybody, I said everybody, is adjusting to his presence. When Jesus Christ is governing the environment, the circumstances, and the situations, and he taps his word, everybody, when they sink into him, what was chaotic now becomes harmonious.

But here's the key. He's a wonderful counselor, mighty God, everlasting Father, Prince of Shalom, over those whom he governs, the government. So if you are a churchgoer only, but he does not govern you, you won't be able to use those names. Every law of a government you don't like, but every law of a government you're supposed to obey. Every rule of Jesus you're not gonna like, but every rule of Jesus you better obey.

That is, if you want all these benefits that accrue from the one who wants to hold your life on his shoulders. Dr. Evans will be right back with a final word of encouragement to wrap up today's lesson and his current series, Encountering Jesus Names. Now don't forget all 11 messages in this collection, on either CD or downloadable mp3s, are yours with our thanks when you make a contribution right now to help us keep bringing you Tony's teaching every day. And as I mentioned earlier, we'll even include a copy of his beautiful coffee table style book, Experiencing Israel.

Filled with stunning photos and insightful commentary, this book makes a wonderful gift for a friend or family member. Today's the last day these resources will be bundled together, so visit tonyevans.org right away to make the arrangements. Again, that's tonyevans.org. Or call us at 1-800-800-3222. Our Resource Center is open 24-7.

Again, 1-800-800-3222. Well, Dr. Evans has been teaching about the different names of Jesus found in the Bible and what those names mean for us. And he says they all ultimately point to an especially important scripture for us.

He's here now to tell us about it. The greatest verse in the Bible is, God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish but have everlasting life. Everlasting life is yours right now, the moment you start trusting Jesus Christ as your personal sin bearer. When you trust Him for your salvation, He gives you the gift of eternal life. To learn more or get some free follow-up resources, visit tonyevans.org and follow the link that says Jesus. Again, that's tonyevans.org.

Superheroes give us hope and inspiration, and they can always be counted on to do the right thing. Well, tomorrow Dr. Evans will explain that God has created a plan for ordinary men, and that plan gives us real-life characters to be inspired by. Right now, though, he's back with this final thought to wrap up our study on the many names of Jesus.

Oh, there's something about His name, because His name will give you some counsel, His name will give you some power, His name will manage your time, and His name will put your life of chaos back together again. Sort of like Scrabble. You got a whole bunch of letters in chaos until they're put in their right order to formulate words. I don't care how much your life right now looks like Scrabble.

God knows where the words need to be reconnected so that they become clauses, sentences, paragraphs, and pages, so that He can rearrange the things in your life. The alternative with Dr. Tony Evans is brought to you by the Urban Alternative and is celebrating 40 years of faithfulness thanks to the generous contributions of listeners like you.