I was talking with a friend who can’t wait to be a parent. Fresh from his honeymoon, he and his wife are planning and praying for a baby. And they already have names picked out, one for a boy and one for a girl. Whoa! My friend’s wife isn’t even pregnant.
In 735 BC, the prophet Isaiah prophesied to the spiritually struggling nation of Judah: “The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call Him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’)” (v.14). Jesus was named some 730 years before He was born!
I once heard a Bible teacher say that all the truths of Christmas can be stated in just three words: “God with us.” We tend to focus our attention at Christmastime on the human birth of Christ. But the greater focus should be on His deity—who He really is—“God with us.”
Immanuel means that we’re not isolated from a God who sits on some distant throne. Bette Midler’s popular 1990 song “From a Distance,” was off the mark in its refrain: God is not watching us “from a distance.” God is with us. Immanuel means that God lived among us. He had human skin and wore human clothes.
When Joseph and Mary called their son by name, they must have been awestruck. Every time His parents said “Immanuel,” it was a reminder that God was in the house—literally living under the same roof.
Are you alone? Feeling afraid? Have you felt that God is far off, somberly watching you from a distance? If so, recognize that the message of Christmas is that you don’t need to be alone anymore. For Jesus has come. Immanuel. God is with you.
More:
• Matthew 1:18-25
• John 1:14
• Philippians 2:6-8
Next:
Think about the reality that God is with us. Does that scare you or comfort you? Why?
Gift of GOD on December 3, 2009 at 12:44 am
it’s really good to know that God is with me all the time… it gives me strength to face all the uncertainty in life… thank you Lord for being with me all the time… thank you~
carolmarol on December 3, 2009 at 3:06 am
🙂 thank you so much.. I thanked Him for being around me whether or not He could stand me and my anger..
sv.vanwinden on December 3, 2009 at 3:33 am
Thanks to you God for being every single minute close to me. I can feel it, he s protecting me so much… He loves us so much!!We should glorify him every single time that we think of him…. as much as possible because our Lord deserves it!
God bless you guys!
fieldlily on December 3, 2009 at 6:59 am
God tells us He will never leave us nor forsake us. He tells us nothing can snatch us away from Him. He tells us He loves us so much that He gave us His only Son to save us. When Jesus returned to Heaven, He gave us the Holy Spirit to comfort us after He left. Is there any room for doubt that God is always with us? Just reading the Bible, God’s word, is being in His presence as Jesus is the word (“the Word became flesh and dwelt among us”).
Thank you God giving us your Son and Spirit to save us and comfort us and bring us home to you.
taomeano on December 3, 2009 at 9:09 am
It is an amazing thing to know that the creator of the universe has come to dwell among us humans. For me that demonstrates the ultimate love of God. He is so wonderful. What a comforting thought !
mike on December 3, 2009 at 10:39 am
This is so good, thank-you for the reminder, I am going on 13 months of being out of work and this is an awesome reminder of Who walks with me during this time.
mtshawaii on December 3, 2009 at 2:39 pm
K.T.
Thanks for this post. It’s a great reminder that God is in total control, even over a passage of time that seems long to us. He knew then and He knows now what the future holds, what the big picture is.
And to Mike: hang in there. And I’ll hang in with you. I’m going on 7 months of unemployment myself. Our God will see us through! He already knows the jobs He has picked for us.
k.t. sim on December 6, 2009 at 8:59 pm
hi mike and mtshawaii,
I was reflecting on Psalm 121 recently and have
been much ministered by what the psalmist wrote about God’s provision, protection and preservation as we journey through life. Trust that it will minister to you too.
You may want also want to read our Discovery Series booklet entitled Now What! The Healing Journey Through Job Loss. http://www.rbc.org/bible-study/discovery-series/bookletDetail.aspx?id=59186