12232021 Emmanuel

Dear Missionary Lady,

Greetings in the name of Emmanuel. Have you ever had a hymn that you appreciated for just a few of its words? Every Christmas our church has a special music number that has become that type of hymn for me. I don't know all the words, and I don't even know the title. The words that I love, however, are “Emmanuel. Now all is well. God dwells with us.” All week long I have been thinking about these few words.

Emmanuel - God with us. This thought fills me with wonder and a bit of awe. It seems almost too good to be true, almost impossible to imagine. Who would think that God would do such a thing? I am not aware of any teachings regarding false gods that would suggest the possibility of such an intimate interaction, that people’s gods would dwell with them. Instead, the gods of false religions tend to be unapproachable, aloof, and even disinterested. They dwell in their own worlds far superior to and removed from mortals.

The true God is also superior and removed, but that does not stop Him from interacting with the lowliest of men. “Who is like unto the LORD our God, who dwelleth on high, who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth! He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth the needy out of the dunghill” (Psalm 113:4-6). God hears and answers prayers. He delivers from difficulty. He comforts in affliction.

When the time was right, God came humbly to this world. “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). I think of the people for whom this was true in the initial sense. The angel declared to Joseph, “Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us” (Matthew 1:23). What must it have been like for Mary and Joseph to realize every day that God was dwelling with them? What must it have been like for the disciples to discover that their Messiah, God in the flesh, had come? What was it like for them to follow Him and listen to Him for those years?

Emmanuel – God with us. What amazing words! This is what the world had awaited for four thousand years. This was the long-anticipated promise in particular for the people of Israel, as they waited for the Messiah. God had always interacted with mankind. There were many instances of special interaction and temporary appearances of God on the earth, but never had it been true that God was with mankind in visible form for an extended period. That is what happened when Jesus came.

For thirty-three years God walked the earth. He grew up in the home of Mary and Joseph. He gathered a group of disciples to Himself and spent three-and-a-half intensive years with them. He compassionately ministered to people through healing and other miracles. He declared truth and offered hope. For that space of time, there was the wonder of God dwelling with men. The whole purpose of this interaction was so that He could die for them to provide salvation.

When Jesus returned to heaven, this presence changed, but God’s interaction did not end. Jesus said, “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever” (John 14:16). The Holy Spirit dwells constantly with every believer, so God is still with us in a very personal way. Since believers are in Christ, there is an unbreakable union with Him. And God declares, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:5). While not face-to-face like Jesus was with the disciples, these current interactions will one day be replaced with a face-to-face interaction that will last for all eternity. “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (I Thessalonians 4:17). Everlasting communion awaits us.

“Emmanuel. Now all is well. God dwells with us.” Yes, since Emmanuel came, all is well. He came to provide for our greatest need. He came to give us ultimate peace. He came to fulfill the plan that eventually will make right every wrong. How wonderful that God came to dwell with us! His coming changed everything!

May you rejoice in Emmanuel as you remember His coming. May your fellowship with family and friends be sweet in these days. Merry Christmas!

Love in Christ,

Peggy Holt

member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA