December 23, 2015
Scripture Reading: Matthew 1:22-23; Isaiah 7:13-14
22All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
13Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience of my God also? 14Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
Questions for Reflection:
After recounting the story of Joseph’s encounter with the angel, Matthew takes a moment to have an aside with the reader. He wants to make sure that the reader understands that Jesus is fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah from around 725 BC. What was the prophecy of Isaiah? What name did Isaiah say they would call the son? What does that name mean?
The power of Christmas is found in the name Immanuel. It literally means “God with us.” No matter what you’re going through, you can know that God is with you. The Message paraphrases John 1:14 as “The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, generous inside and out, true from start to finish.” What a wonderful picture. The one and only God of the universe entered into the muck and the mire of our daily lives so that we could be in relationship with Him. Tim Keller illustrates the beauty of this part of the gospel using literature. Watch the video below. (If you have trouble viewing it, you can access the video here.)
How can the truth of gospel bring hope to those in your life today? One Life exists to help people far from God experience Jesus. The good news is that while we might be far from God, He is not far from us. He is Immanuel, God with us. Spend time praying for those far from God in your life. Pray that they would experience the good news of Immanuel in their lives.