Category: Immanuel Series

Luke 2:8-20

“That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified,  but the angel reassured them. ‘Don’t be afraid!’ he said. ‘I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!  And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.’ Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.’ When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, ‘Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.’ They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger.  After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.”

In the ultimate movement to be with his people since creation, God wraps himself up in a human body and enters earth in the most human of ways. He then sends a heavenly choir to entertain some ragamuffin local shepherds. What’s most interesting is that God doesn’t present himself to kings or rich people. He has no need to position himself because he has an other-worldly kind of power. God’s kind of “with” is fundamentally about relationship with people who need him.

Here’s your freedom for today: God desires to be with those who desire him.

What is the desire of your heart this holiday season? What expectations do you have of this day? Of next year? Of your life? Has your heart been disappointed with your earthly circumstances? Or perhaps you are living well but you are feeling spiritually void. Challenge yourself to spend time in quiet prayer asking God to align your desires and expectations with his. Seek Immanuel more than any other desire today.

Matthew 1:22-24

“All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet: “Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’ When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife.”

Yesterday we read the prophecy from Isaiah written 700 years before the birth of Jesus. Here we see those same words quoted — evidence of the fulfillment of the prophecy through Jesus’ coming. In this passage, Joseph has a dream just as he was about to run away from God’s calling on his life. He wasn’t about to get caught up in Mary’s scandal, although he had decided to be honorable about it. God intervenes and sends an angel to appear in Joseph’s dream. It must have been a pretty vivid one, because upon waking Joseph is prepared to be obedient to God based on what he saw.

Here’s your freedom for today: God reveals his mission clearly.

We often wonder what God’s will is, and we make it so complicated we have no idea what to do. We wait and wonder and do nothing while waiting. In this example of God showing up, he’s not only preparing to send Jesus, but he’s revealing his mission to Joseph. There is no evidence in the Bible that Joseph even prayed to ask God what to do — he just made a plan to leave Mary before the scandal broke. When God has a plan, he makes it clear. If you are faithful in seeking to do the right thing, God will interrupt you if you are wrong.

This holiday season, take time to read the Matthew account of the events surrounding Jesus’ birth. Consider the ways in which God reveals himself and works to unfold his plan. Take time to marvel at the ways he brings himself to the world.

As we enter the holiday season, we will spend the next eight days considering the name “Immanuel” before we head into our Advent series. We begin with Isaiah 7:14: “All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).”

This prophetic word written down in the Old Testament by the prophet Isaiah foretells of Jesus’ coming as a sign to the people. The virgin birth, a miracle we now understand to have happened through Mary, was talked about for hundreds of years before there was no room in the Bethlehem inns. God presented Jesus as a miracle baby for many reasons, but here we see his intent to prove himself as the one true God.

Here’s your freedom for today: God crosses all natural boundaries to be with us.

Laws of physics, natural order, and human expectation are not limits to God. He will cross every line to show himself, to dwell with humanity, because it is his nature to love his creation. These ideas require faith, because they exist in the supernatural and mysterious space that none of us can fully quantify. This Christmas, do you believe in God’s presence in your life? Do you believe he would do miracles to dwell with you?

Matthew 2:1-12

Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.” King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. ⁴He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?”

“In Bethlehem in Judea,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote:

‘And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah,
    are not least among the ruling cities of Judah,
for a ruler will come from you
    who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’”

Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared. ⁸Then he told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!” After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were filled with joy! ¹They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.

Although their journey likely took about two years, the days from Christmas to Epiphany represent the waiting for the wise men. Today we celebrate the arrival of the wise men, who were from “eastern lands” and who were smart enough for a jealous king to consider them potentially useful. These men knew the stars, and they had discovered the appearance of a new star in the sky. In those days, stars provided direction, light, and clues into the heavenly realms. What’s interesting is that these eastern men followed the star and worshiped Jesus. Their study did not detach them from the supernatural, but rather connected them to heavenly activity.

Here’s your freedom for today: Jesus reveals himself to all people.

The wise men were looking for clues in the sky, much like some look for “signs” today. Is there a God? How did we get here? What happens when we die? The truth is not limited only to scholars, and in fact Jesus appealed to the illiterate masses much of the time while he was on earth. It doesn’t matter who you are: Jew, Gentile, intelligent, uneducated, popular, rejected, or anything in between. Jesus came for you. And God has revealed himself and continues to reveal himself in multiple ways so that all may know him. As we move into prayers for the New Year tomorrow, I pray that you will connect with the Spirit more deeply and discover God’s truth in new ways in 2019!

Revelation 22:1-6, 17

Then the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations. No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever. Then the angel said to me, “Everything you have heard and seen is trustworthy and true. The Lord God, who inspires his prophets, has sent his angel to tell his servants what will happen soon.

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” Let anyone who hears this say, “Come.” Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life. 

Tomorrow we celebrate Epiphany, representing the coming of the Wise Men to Jesus — the first non-Jews to encounter the Savior. Today we reflect on prophetic words from the book of Revelation, the last book in the Bible. Throughout this series we have taken note of the fact that God dwells with us in a new way since Jesus’ time on earth through the gift of the Holy Spirit to each follower of Jesus. We have walked through example after example of God’s effort to dwell with his people, albeit imperfectly, while sin and death created separation from God. Of course we know that even with the Holy Spirit given to us, we continue to live in an in-between world, full of sin and brokenness. This passage from Revelation speaks of a completion of God’s mission — a time when we will fully dwell with him once again.

Here’s your freedom for today: God’s not done yet.

It’s easy to wonder where God is in this chaotic and fallen world. Why hasn’t he come to rescue us? Is he allowing suffering, or even worse causing it? These verses give us a sense of the bigger picture: God’s kingdom flows with medicine that will heal the nations. The curse will be over. All who desire to come will be welcomed. God’s kingdom has doors that are wide open, and Jesus himself is calling all who are thirsty to come. How spiritually thirsty are you? Have you responded to this invitation from Immanuel?