God With Us
by Peter Horrobin
There are many names and phrases used to describe the Son of God, all of which have great meaning. He is Sovereign Lord, but he's also the Good Shepherd. He is Redeemer and Prince of Peace. But of all the many wonderful names you will find in Scripture, for me the most beautiful and amazing name is "Immanuel". Matthew is careful to tell us that it means "God with us".
Every other religion, through which mankind tries to express their journey to find God, is an expression of man's search after his creator. The heart of the Christian message is that God came to seek us out! When Jesus the Son of God, walked this earth we were able to see and experience the character and nature of God Himself. Jesus was the literal fulfilment of Isaiah's prophecy. He was GOD WITH US! Mankind had the incredible privilege of seeing the evidence for God firsthand.
And the Gospel writers told us all about it. These are their first hand accounts of a life-changing experience. They walked with Him, talked with Him, shared so much with Him. He was the real thing, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God. he was Immanuel.
But the miracle of the Christmas story is not that He was Immanuel, but that He is Immanuel - today. And as John reminded us in his Gospel, as many as receive Him have the right to become children of God, and that includes you and me (John 1:12). For those who have come to know Him, Jesus is constantly Immanuel - God has promised never to leave us or forsake us. We can be utterly secure in knowing that the God who made the universe cares enough about each one of us to walk with us through every season of life, whatever we are going through just now. I just love this amazing Christmas message.
Prayer: Thank you Jesus for showing mankind what God is like. Thank you that the love and compassion you gave to all men and women is there for me as well. I'm so grateful that because of you I can know God for myself and can look forward to an eternity of joy sharing in the blessings of Heaven. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Peter Horrobin is the Founding and International Director of Ellel Ministries. The work was originally established in 1986 as a ministry of healing in the north-west of England, but today the work has spread round the world, with Ellel Centres in over thirty nations. Peter has been doing lots of writing recently, including the "Journey to Life" series which can be purchased online at sovereignworld.com.
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