“He will be called . . . Everlasting Father”
Isaiah 9:6
I loved my father. He was a good, kind and loving man, and an especially doting father. As a young child, I felt safe and secure around him, like he would always be there for me. Until one day in 1999 the phone rang and my childhood fantasy came to a screeching halt. He was gone. Suddenly and unexpectedly, he was gone and without as much as a good-bye. My father had died. He was a wonderful father, but he was not an “everlasting father.”
The term “everlasting Father” literally means “the Father of Eternity” or the eternal father; or the forever father. Through this name God describes the purpose of the messiah’s coming into the world. He would be a father forever, one who would never leave nor forsake his children.
This passage of scripture reminds us once again during this advent season that our Father is there for us through all the twists and turns of this human life. That no matter what we are facing in this turbulent world, he is there for us encouraging us to cast all our cares on him for he cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). Our Father is there for us not just in this life, but also in the life to come, promising eternal life to all who would believe in him (John 3:16). His love for his children is steadfast and it is everlasting.
The singer and songwriter, Chris Tomlin, reflects on the everlasting Father’s character through his song “Good, Good Father” by Housefires singing thus:
You're a good, good father, It's who you are, it's who you are, it's who you are
And I'm loved by you, It's who I am, it's who I am, it's who I am
If Christmas preparations have left you feeling "left out" and insignificant, realize that our everlasting Father’s nature is good and he is here with you. You can depend on him to be there for you whether here on earth or beyond the grave, through the power of the Holy Spirit. Counting on his presence is not a fantasy, but a reality because God himself has said, he will be called “the everlasting Father (Isaiah 9:6).”
Father, someone is hurting today as they approach Christmas without the physical presence of their earthly father, I pray that they would find comfort in you as their everlasting Father and cling to your steadfast love. Someone else is hurting because of the failures of their earthly father, Lord bring healing to their hearts and remind them that you are the Father to the fatherless. I ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.