"[Mary] will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, 'God with us.'” (Matthew 1:21-23)
Each Christmas Christians celebrate the coming of God’s Son into the world as a human being. This great event is called the Incarnation. The doctrine of the Incarnation holds that God became flesh, assumed a human nature, and became a man. That man is the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the second person of the Trinity.
The writer of Matthew 1:21-23 sees Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14, a verse which promises God’s presence with his people. Isaiah 7:14 reads: "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel."
Jesus Christ is Immanuel or “God with us.” Because God is with his people, he is present to save them. He saves them from sin and its consequences. He delivers them from evil. He rescues them from the things that prevent or hinder their experience of a full relationship with himself.
The miracle of the Incarnation demonstrates that God does not just pity us from afar. He actually shares in our human experiences: our joys and sorrows, our successes and failures, our triumphs and tragedies. Jesus Christ can be touched with the feeling of our infirmities (Hebrews 4:15).
When God came to earth in the Person of Jesus Christ, he most clearly revealed his love and deep compassion for us. Through his life, through his teachings, through his healings, through his miracles, and ultimately through his redemptive work on the cross, Christ reveals to us that: God is with us; God is on our side; He feels our pain; and He wants to rescue us from the things that diminish and destroy us in our spirits, minds, bodies, relationships, and other aspects of our humanity.
During these last days of 2020, I invite you to focus on the wonderful reality that God is with us in the Person of Jesus Christ. Praise God for the great gift of salvation and the love which he reveals to us through his Son.
Merry Christmas!
In Christ,
Wilfred Graves Jr.
www.wilfredgraves.org
Quick Links
- Visit Daily Inspiration Devotional Archive.
- Watch sermons and teachings from Dr. Graves.
- Donate online.
Wilfred Graves Ministries, Inc. is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. Your gift is tax-deductible as a charitable contribution.
Leave a Reply