Why would Christ be called "everlasting Father" if he is "the son of God?"
Isaiah 9:6
ESV - 6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
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In John 14:8-9, when the apostle Philip said to Jesus, "Lord, show us the Father and we shall be satisfied," Jesus mildly rebuked him by saying, "Have I been with you so long, Philip, and yet you do not know Me? He who has seen Me has seen the Father." Although God the Father and God the Son are separate, co-equal, co-eternal persons of the Trinity, the Messiah of whom Isaiah was speaking in the passage cited in the question was to be the visible, physical embodiment of His Father to such a degree that to see Him would be to also see the Father. In that respect, Isaiah could accurately speak of the Son whom he was prophesying as also possessing the title "Everlasting Father".
The bible clearly teaches there is one God (Deut 6:4). The bible also clearly teaches that this One God has chosen to reveal himself through the bible as Three Distinct Persons - Father, Son and Holy Spirit (all persons are co-equal and co-eternal, one being in thought, emotion, and will). This is commonly referred to as the Trinity or Triune God. These inter-relationships are very well described in John chapters 14 to 17, where all three Persons are clearly referenced. Our God ascribes various "Names" and "Titles" to himself, which often apply to one specific Person of the Trinity to help us to understand the Nature and Character of God. These names and titles also help us to understand the "will, purpose and work" of each Person of the Trinity in describing God's relationship with his created life on planet earth, particularly human beings. Jesus is given the title of the Son of God, to describe him as the second person of the Trinity. When Jesus left heaven to become a human being, he always referred to himself as the Son of Man, he was both fully man and God. He became the redeemer of the world. He is called our Lord and Saviour.The Holy Spirit is often referred to as the Teacher, Advocate and Comforter which helps us understand His role in our lives. We often refer to God the Father as the "Creator" of all things, but scripture makes it clear that everything was created through Jesus, the Word of God, by the power of the Spirit who was hovering over the waters. We often refer to Jesus as the Saviour of the World, but God the Father was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself. It was the power of the Holy Spirit that resurrected Jesus body from the dead. So we can see how each Person of God has different names and titles to help us understand the different work that they do in the world, but it is always just one God being revealed to us.
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