All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son,
and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
~ Matt 1:22-23

Immanuel—GOD WITH US!

Of the many promises concerning the coming of Messiah, Jesus, this is one of the most profound. A virgin would conceive and bear a son. His name would be Immanuel—GOD WITH US!

This is not a story of human intervention. It is a story of God’s intervention.

As early as Genesis 3 we read that sin entered the world. Since then the Jewish people had awaited a deliverer. They had lived through slavery, exile, good kings and terrible kings, and the consequences of sin for hundreds of years. And here, in Matthew’s gospel, we read the story of the birth of a child with an incomprehensible name. Immanuel. GOD WITH US!

The world was broken then, and it is broken now. For all our amazing technologies, we cannot fix ourselves. We were never meant to. God alone, who made us and set us in a world that he had called “good,” knew that we cannot save ourselves. We’d need his radical intervention if we were going to experience deliverance.

Radical Intervention

And radical it was. He sent his one and only son, Jesus, to earth to live among us and show us the Father.  Jesus “made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!” (Phil 2:7-9).

The people of Jesus’ day had Immanuel in their very presence. God walked with them. He lived among them. Many did not believe he was the Son of God, especially the religious leaders and others who had something to lose if he really was the Messiah. But to all those who “believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12).

The offer is still good. All who put their trust in Jesus receive him into our lives. Immanuel takes up residence. God is with us! Not just in our world as an observer, a “presence” only. He is with US.

Jesus has the last word in the book of Matthew. After giving the Great Commission to his followers (you might call it the church’s marching orders) he concludes by saying, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matt 28:20b).

The Men in the Painting

The artwork that shows up at the top of each blog post is called the “Featured Image.” Did you look closely at the one I chose for this post? Did anything seem out of context to you?

I couldn’t find the name of the artist or when the painting was made, but it appears to be in a classical style. There are two characters who seem to be outsiders. The hat caught my attention, and then the clothing of the hat man and the one beside him. While the other two men in the painting are wearing robes, these two are wearing shirts and jackets, that is, more modern clothing. Can you see the seams on their jackets? And look at the collars on their shirts.

The younger man is looking at the shepherd behind him, smiling as he points to the baby Jesus. It looks to me like he is surprised (and a little giddy) to have found himself at the manger. His father, though—at least I think he is probably the young man’s father—knew exactly what he was doing in this barn that night. As the artist who created this painting he wanted to be as close to Jesus as he could get. So he painted himself into the scene. Well, that’s my theory anyway.

How About Us?

Do we really understand that Jesus is with us? Perhaps that’s something we once knew but life is too busy, too noisy, too complicated, too whatever, and we don’t know Jesus like we used to. We don’t hear him. Maybe we are too busy, noisy, complicated, whatever. Could it be that we are looking off in the wrong direction so we don’t realize that Immanuel is with us?

If this is us, let’s kneel with the father at Jesus’ manger. Let’s spend this month in adoration of Immanuel, “fixing our eyes on Jesus” (Her 12:1-3). The more we gaze on Jesus, the sweeter we will find him to be. And the more we will be changed by him. He is with us for time and eternity.

May you be reminded daily of Immanuel who loves you and is with you.

Ginger

Michael Card sings Immanuel. I hope you enjoy it.