Of all the Old Testament prophecies of Jesus' birth, those in Isaiah are my favourite. Perhaps the most well known and beloved is Isaiah 7:14. Most of us can quote it from memory: "Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call his name Immanuel - God with us."
Of all the names of Christ, "Immanuel" or, "Emmanuel" is one of the most beautiful. It means something beautiful too: God with us. To think that a pure and holy God would come dwell among such broken, depraved creatures as we are. If that doesn't floor you to seriously consider, then I suggest you are not considering it seriously enough. Think about it. Think about it some more... the gulf between you and an ant is far smaller than the gulf between you and God, and yet God chose to come dwell among us. What a thought!
God with us! The prophets dreamed of it, the saints of the old testament longed for it. the patriarchs wrestled for it, Simeon and Anna rejoiced to see the day, though they likely passed before they witnessed the consummation of it all in Christ's death and resurrection, but still, God with us, among us, dwelling in our midst. What a thought! We are blessed, friends, to have the privilege of looking backward and celebrating Emmanuel. The Old Testament saints looked forward to it and indeed, had great faith for the believing of it, but they didn't have the 20/20 vision that always comes with hindsight. Their vision was hazy as they looked for God's redemption, ours is clear and crisp. God is with us, among us, like He never was before.
We have His holy Spirit indwelling us, we have the knowledge of what He did. They only had the knowledge of what He was going to do. They had Passover, we have Christmas!
And that brings us to today's carol, better late than never. I discovered this on a CD I randomly picked up from a thrift store by a contemporary Catholic hymn writer, Vince Ambrosetti. His lyrics are impressively sound, and this is one I wouldn't mind singing in church or a choir someday. It beautifully captures the wonder and longing that Christ fulfilled with His birth; titled simply, "Emmanuel."
I don't need to post the lyrics since they're on the video. To all of those in whom Emmanuel has come to dwell, may you rejoice anew in His presence this Christmas. To those of you who do not have Him enthroned in your heart, may He do so this year; this is my prayer for you.
Until tomorrow,
~ Christianna
1 comments:
Your post perfectly sums up one of the many facets why I celebrate Christmas - not as a holy day, but as a time to remember what God has done in Christ and look forward to the second coming of Christ. The whole month of December presents an incredible opportunity as the good works that our Heavenly Father has prepared beforehand for us to walk in are magnified, such as: singing/praise/thanksgiving, feasting and sharing, giving, and remembering the poor and destitute.
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