God with us

Given the glorious season that is upon us, you will hear the name Emmanuel significantly more than usual. It was the name given to Christ in Isaiah and fulfilled when He "became flesh and dwelt among us" (John 1:14). As a kid, I remember singing a lot of songs mentioning Christ as Emmanuel. These were both songs of the Christmas and traditional/weekly worship varieties. I never really gave any thought to the name besides Christ entering into our world as a man. (And I don't mean to diminish the miracle of the incarnation by any stretch of the imagination. Redemption doesn't happen without it!) The name seemed only to bring meaning around Christmas when we focused on the incarnation in the nativity scene. At that point in time, God entered the realm of the finite to make His dwelling amongst His creation. Emmanuel was now a reality.

What I always failed to comprehend about Jesus as Emmanuel was the lasting effect of "God with us." Yes, two thousand years ago God was with us in the flesh. (How awesome/scary/humbling must that have been for His family, disciples, and anyone else who saw Him?) Today that is not the case. I am not typing this with a physical Jesus sitting next to me. However, the implication of Emmanuel goes much deeper than the physical presence of God. Through Christ, God could now reside inside the hearts of all who called upon His name.

At first glance, that seems less flashy than God actually being physically present with us. I mean look at all the things Christ did while He was on the earth! However, His presence on the earth was not enough to fix the epidemic of sin. The real problem was that God, because of His holy and righteous nature, could not be with us. (Read Romans to get the fuller picture and explanation.) Sure, in Christ, He could be in our physical presence, but we still had no part with Him. Christ, Emmanuel, made it possible for us to be with God. He bridged the immeasurable and uncrossable gap sin had placed between Creator and His creation. He fashioned our hearts into living temples of the Most High God. Christ was/is the means by which "Emmanuel" can be accomplished.

I love the nativity scenes commemorating when Emmanuel was in our midst. They are even better when I remember how and why Emmanuel left our midst, but remains Emmanuel today.