Emmanuel, God with Us
I still remember the first time it really hit me – the first time I got it – this Emmanuel thing. I was a high schooler, sitting alone in my room late one night during Christmas break. I had recently discovered The Message paraphrase version of the Bible, and I was reading various Christmasy passages in it. I read John 1:14, and it was pretty much life-changing.
The NIV version I was most familiar with says,
“The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.”
Somehow, The Message stated it differently enough to grab my attention and make me look closer:
“The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood.”
Whoa. So that’s what Emmanuel means. God WITH us – literally, living with us, among us. In our neighborhood; in the middle of our mundane moments and daily routine. Suddenly it was more real to me than it had ever been.
Ever had a moment like that? Where Scripture just comes alive and God gives you an understanding you’ve never had before? This particular ahh-ha moment was overwhelming and world-rocking for me. And I’ve never gotten over it.
Of all God’s amazing titles, Emmanuel: God with us, is probably my favorite. This is the very essence of the Christmas story. All the prophecies, all the characters, and the complete Christmas storyline exist to communicate this one truth: God became a man and lived on Earth. Jesus is Emmanuel: God with us.
This concept is completely unique to Christianity. In all other religions, people learn how to work hard enough and be good enough to earn their god’s love and attention. They spend all their lives gradually work their way up a mountain until they reach the favor of their god at the summit.
But Christianity is totally different. In Christianity, God says, “you can’t be good enough to get to me. I’m coming to you.” In Christianity, we don’t work our way up to God. He comes down to us.
Think about that for a minute.
God – the creator and sustainer of the entire universe – the all-powerful, all-knowing, ever-present, limitless God – chose to make Himself a human and live among His own creation. The self-existent, self-reliant God came to Earth as a helpless baby, dependent on a teenage mom for everything. The King of Kings came to Earth to be born in a dirty stable among animals, to live a common life, and to die a criminal’s death.
“The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood.”
Regardless of your social status, your financial means, your relational struggles, your wins and losses, your joys and your sorrows, God came to be a part of it all. With you.
Not above you or separate from you. With you.
Why? Why did God bother? Why in the world would God become flesh and blood and come live in all this mess?
The answer is simple and startling. Through the birth of Jesus, God demonstrates to us His boundless love and mercy.
The Bible tells us that God is perfect. Righteous. Holy. And a perfect God cannot abide with sin. And a just God cannot ignore or excuse sin.
Enter: Jesus (AKA God’s love and mercy walking around with flesh and bones)
While on Earth, Jesus experienced all the trials and temptations that challenge any man, yet He lived a sinless life. His death on the cross was a substitute or payment for our sins. God accepted Jesus’ death on the cross in place of yours and mine.
We know all this, right?
But at Christmastime, God reminds us of all this with the gift of His physical presence. Through that baby in a manger, He whispers again, “Don’t you see? I didn’t wait for you to come to me. I came to you. And I’ll never leave you. That’s just how much I love you.”
And THAT is what’s so amazing about the Christmas story. God came here with us to make way for us to be with Him forever. He came to show us His love. He came so we would never be alone.
Jesus, Emmanuel, came to be God With Us. He left Heaven, became flesh and blood, and moved into your neighborhood.
Because He just loves you that much.
Merry Christmas.
