Immanuel-God WITH us

Scripture:

Matthew 1:20-25 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. (21) She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." (22) All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: (23) "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"-which means, "God with us." (24) When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. (25) But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

Observation:

The Incarnation took place by the agency of the Holy Spirit in the life of a young woman referred to as a virgin. The passage tells us that Mary was betrothed to Joseph, and that they had not consummated their marriage in sexual relationship. It refers to Joseph as her husband, yet in the angel's message Joseph is addressed as Son of David and urged not to hesitate to go through with his marriage to Mary, who is referred to as his wife.

To understand this one must recognize that in Jewish marriage there were three steps. The first step was the engagement, a contract arranged by family members who determined whether the couple would be well suited for each other and for a future marriage. Second, there was the betrothal, the public ratification of the engagement, with a period of one year for the couple to become known as belonging to each other, but not having the rights of living together as husband and wife. The only way a betrothal could be terminated was by a divorce. In Jewish law there is a phrase which states that a young woman whose fiancé dies during the period of betrothal is called "a virgin who is a widow." Mary and Joseph were in the second stage in the account of this text. The third stage is the marriage proper, which took place at the end of the year of betrothal.

It was during the year of their betrothal that Mary made known to Joseph that she was with child by the miraculous act of God. Joseph is referred to as a just man with special love and consideration for Mary. Confronted with the problem of his betrothed being pregnant, he contemplated how to end the betrothal in a divorce. He sought ways to do it privately rather than to expose her publicly. In his careful contemplation, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph with a message from God.

This passage of Scripture deals strikingly with the Incarnation. The birth of the King is referred to in three ways: (1) Jesus Christ, the Messiah, Matthew 1:18; (2) Jesus, the Savior, Mat_1:21; and (3) Immanuel, meaning "God with us," Matthew 1:23. Christ is the Greek form of the Hebrew word for Messiah. "Jesus," or "Joshua," means "Yahweh is salvation." Immanuel, from Isaiah 7:14, speaks of the deliverance of Yahweh, a deliverance so striking that the mother would call her child Immanuel, "God with us."

Application:

School was out and 10-year-old Charlie was thrilled to be out of London celebrating Christmas in the country. Driving along the winding roads with his mother, he was captivated by the snowy winter landscape. But suddenly the snow got heavy, the visibility turned bad and the car slid out of control ending up in a ditch. Charlie tried to push while his mother pressed the accelerator, but it was no use. They left the car and walked down the road where they knocked on the door of a little house and asked for help. Flustered, the lady invited them in to use the phone and warm up while she made tea and cookies.

"What's so special about that?" you may be asking. "Just another everyday event, right?" No. At least not to the woman who opened the door that day; she's already told the story hundreds of times. And can you blame her? It's not everyday the Queen of England and Charles, Prince of Wales turn up on your doorstep!

It happened one night over 2,000 years ago the Prince of Peace knocked on our door - and it was no accident. The Bible says it "happened to fulfill the Lord's message… He will be called Immanuel… God is with us."

John 1:14
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Christmas can be a lonely time if you've lost your job or your family or your sense of hope. And the joy of others can be a painful reminder of what you've lost. But you're not alone. You may feel lonely, but you're not alone - God is with you. He really is! Believe that, and have a blessed Christmas! I love you guys!

Prayer:

"Lord, I thank you today that You came TO US, so that I can truly say that God is WITH US. That is shouting ground! You, the Giver of life, the Creator of everything, the Overcomer, the Alpha and Omega, the Author and the Finisher of my faith...is WITH ME. Thank you for that promise Lord! Because You are with us, I can be assured that even though I am hard pressed on every side, I am not crushed; even though today I may be perplexed, because you are WITH ME, I am not in despair; even though I may be persecuted, thank you Lord that I am not abandoned; I may be struck down, but I am not, nor will I be, destroyed. I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate me from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus my Lord. And the reason that is so, is because You are Immanuel...God WITH US! When I am lonely, you are with me. When I am discouraged, you are with me. When I am battling depression, you are with me. When I am in pain, you are with me. When I am confused, you are with me. When I am sick, you are with me. When I feel rejected, you are with me. When I am having relational struggles, you are with me. When I am battling spiritually, you are with me. When I am battling worry, you are with me. When I am facing fear, you are with me. When I am struggling financially, you are with me. When I am sad, when everyone around me seems happy, you are with me. When I am facing the Holiday season with the pain of a lost loved one, YOU ARE WITH ME. I love you Lord, and I am so thankful today that you are STILL Immanuel...God with us! In Jesus' name, amen!"