November 28th, 2024
14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
The advent of Christmas is our yearly return to the story of Jesus Christ's birth. There is no other birth in history that demands so much investigation and introspection then the coming of God's one and only Son. Over the next few weeks we will dwell upon this wonderful miracle of Christmas together.
Whenever I ponder the events surrounding the Christmas story, I am always reminded by the fact that God knew exactly what we needed. More importantly, He knew exactly who we needed. As humans our prayers to God are plagued by all kinds of requests that more often than not fall into the category of things we "want". However, the coming of Christ was not the present or gift we merely added to our wish list. He was not the person we necessarily anticipated or even the gift we thought to ask for. But certainly, in every imaginable way Jesus was the precise necessity we have always needed at the core of our being. God knew we needed His Son, Jesus Christ.
Isaiah in his ancient prophecy pens the words that would eventually be pronounced over Jesus some 700 years later. And not one word from this prophetic announcement would go unfulfilled as the child of Christmas would arrive in wondrous perfection. Isaiah not only addresses the manner in which He would be born but He also provides to us what He would be called. He gives us the name "Immanuel" which translates to "God with us". This very specific title for a newborn baby is obviously somewhat odd and even confusing. How could a small child embody the providing and protecting presence of Yahweh? What capabilities could He possibly have that would warrant such a divine calling? It is for no other reason except that God would have been truly with us in the coming of Jesus Christ.
Some have tried to suggest that this child was merely a boy like the rest. Some have tried to prove that He was no more significant than other prevalent people throughout the world's history. However, no matter how the world may try to spin it, the Word of God utters the glorious statement that He is in fact unlike any other human being. He is the God of the whole universe that miraculously became a man. The very God that encompasses and sustains each particle of the cosmos placed Himself in a human body for the sake of humanity. The unbelievable gift of Christmas, wrapped in human flesh, swaddled in baby cloths and laid in a lowly manger.
This is one of the dominating reflections of Christmas for believers. That God would restrict the magnitude of His greatness to walk upon the ground just to be with you and I. It is one thing to read the Psalms and be reminded that God is always with us. It is another thing entirely to see God do it in actual reality. To stare face to face with the eternal Prince of Heaven. To know that the God of heaven is closer than we've ever known. To witness the Word becoming flesh and making His dwelling among us (John 1:14). And to see the glory of the Father shining bright in the person of Jesus (Hebrews 1:3). Never again should we wonder if God's presence is really with us. Never again should we doubt if God would ever come to rescue us and take care of us. The Promised Immanuel arrived exactly on time and He came just to save us.
Let us take a few moments this month to be soberly reminded of the greatest promise ever made to us. Let us worship the heaven-born Prince of Peace and come to God with hearts that are rejoicing. There is no other response than to praise our Immanuel and tell others of the wonders of His love.