Jesus Our Immanuel
Isaiah 9:6-7; Matthew 1:18-25
As you enter the busiest part of the Christmas season, what kind of feelings are you having? Is there a sense of anxiety that you won’t get everything done? Exhaustion as you bake, shop and attend celebrations of the season? Joy as you gather with friends and family? Is there a sense of anticipation?
As children, we may have had an expectancy as we looked forward to Christmas and the gifts that accompany the season. As Christians, children and adults alike should have an anticipation throughout our lives, because of Christmas and all that it means.
Isaiah foretold the coming of the Messiah as a baby boy, and in giving us the names by which He would be called, Isaiah told us the roles He would play. These are not names or roles that are new to us. Over the last several weeks, we have seen God as our everlasting Father, One who is right and just, the One and Only God. Today we see God in human form – Jesus, in these same roles.
Our lives are often filled to overflowing with activities. We have difficult decisions to make. Many are dealing with grief and loss. How does it feel to know that through all these things we have a Wonderful Counselor, a Mighty God, an Everlasting Father, and a Prince of Peace?
Our God works in ways that are beyond our comprehension. If you ever doubt that, just read the accounts of the birth of Jesus. God used a young, virgin girl to be the earthly mother of His Son. As unlikely as that seems, just as unlikely was the obedience of the man who would act as Jesus’ earthly father. In spite of the apparent evidence of Mary’s unfaithfulness, Joseph was open and obedient to God’s message. He did not divorce Mary as he originally planned. In spite of how things looked to those around them, he took Mary home as his wife, and when the baby was born, he named Him Jesus, “the Lord saves.”
Each time we hear the name Jesus, especially during this season, we should remember why He came – to save us from our sins. This season should be less about the things that keep us busy, and more about quietness – the quietness of reflecting on not just Jesus’ birth, but also on His life, death, and resurrection, and what that means to us.
As exciting as the birth of Jesus is, how much more so is the knowledge that “God is with us” still. Always. In these days, and in the days to come, rejoice in the knowledge that we serve a personal God. Respond in obedience to what He calls you to do. Reflect that relationship in your daily life.
Register– Lessons in the BSL series for the winter quarter are being written by Laurie Register, executive director-treasurer of Woman’s Missionary Union, SCBC.