Immanuel

"Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and he will be called Immanuel (meaning, God is with us)."

What does this mean to us, everyday?

Everything!

Jesus says in John 15, ""I am the true vine.....apart from me you can do nothing."

Is this true or not? Yes, it is true. It is God's word. However, is it true to us individually in the experiences of our lives? Do we by faith recognize his presence so the we are continually occupied with him in intimacy and love so that we have power to overcome our flesh and the powers of darkness and the power to produce Godly fruit? (See also Galatians 5)

Our ancestors have left us their example. A few are listed below:

Jacob's experience of God’s presence:
From Genesis31, "Your father has turned against me…But the God of my father has been with me… God has not allowed him to do me any harm.”

Joseph's experience of God’s presence:
From Genesis 39, “The LORD was with Joseph so he succeeded in everything he did as he served in the home of his Egyptian master.” and “But the LORD was with Joseph in the prison and showed him his faithful love. And the LORD made Joseph a favorite with the prison warden…..The LORD was with him and caused everything he did to succeed.”

David's experience of God's presence:
From II Samuel 5, “And David became more and more powerful, because the LORD God Almighty was with him.”

Solomon's experience of God's presence:
From II Chronicles 1, “Solomon, the son of King David, now took firm control of the kingdom, for the LORD his God was with him and made him very powerful.”

Joshua's experience of God's presence:
From Joshua 6, “So the LORD was with Joshua, and his name became famous throughout the land.”

We can read the scriptures too fast and miss the simplicity of the MIRACLE of God's presence and we can also use our own limited mental capacities and do as A.W. Tozer suggests, ""Left to ourselves we tend immediately to reduce God to manageable terms." Why though?!

Be a child and be continually occupied with the power and comfort of God's loving presence. You have been given access through your faith in Christ. Yes, you are right if you are thinking,"It is not fair though." but your thoughts make God's truth absolutely no less true!

Big Daddy Weave - Without You
From the album What I Was Made For
Would we hear the sound
Of breathing in the dark
Where would be life’s spark
Without You

Would the birds every sing
Would the wind blow through the trees
Could touch the grass so green
Under this big sky so blue
With You, without You

Chorus:
And the sun doesn’t shine
And my world stops spinnin’ round
Without You, without You
Tell me where else could I ever find
The peace that floods this heart of mine
Without You, without You

Who could fill, the emptiness inside
Who would ease the pain, in my broken heart
Who would come in and abide
Promise never to depart
Without You, without You

Chorus:(2x’s)
I can’t live without You
I don’t want to try to
Live one more moment without You

Lyrics may not be reproduced without permission from the publisher.

Picture God's Love............for You

Can you see God running toward you, embracing you in his arms and kissing you? God sees himself loving you exactly this way.

Jesus says in Luke, "And while he was still a long distance away, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him......'Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger, and sandals for his feet. And kill the calf we have been fattening in the pen. We must celebrate with a feast, for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.' ......We had to celebrate this happy day. For your brother was dead and has come back to life! He was lost, but now he is found!'"

Can you see God coming to live with you and him singing a happy song over you because he is so exultant and overjoyed to be with you?

God says through the prophet Zephaniah that Yes! He will do exactly that. "For the LORD your God has arrived to live among you. He is a mighty savior. He will rejoice over you with great gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will exult over you by singing a happy song."

Can you picture God desiring you so compassionately that he is willing to suffer a very cruel and harsh punishment that you deserve just so he can be with you and enjoy wonderful experiences of loving companionship with you? He did just that.

Matthew describes Jesus' punishment in your place like this,"They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him. They made a crown of long, sharp thorns and put it on his head.......they spit on him and grabbed the stick and beat him on the head with it. When they were finally tired of mocking him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him again. Then they led him away to be crucified........nailed him to the cross..........he hung there.........And the people passing by shouted abuse, shaking their heads in mockery...........At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o'clock. At about three o'clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"......Then Jesus shouted out again, and he gave up his spirit."

What next? "At that moment the curtain in the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.". You are now given access to experience God's love and presence. We, individually, were the very purpose for his suffering.......the ONLY purpose for his great suffering.

What else?

Everything else.

Paul says in Galations "And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and now all the promises God gave to him belong to you."

But James says "And yet the reason you don't have what you want is that you don't ask God for it. And even when you do ask, you don't get it because your whole motive is wrong – you want only what will give you pleasure."

The two reasons mentioned here for not receiving are:

1. We do not ask
2. Our motivations may be wrong when we do ask.

A third thing James mentions is doubt "But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. "

First, in regard to #2 and our motivations, we cannot simultaneousley seek to recieve from the Lord and seek to satisfy and indulge in the appetites of our flesh. The desires of our flesh are at war with the very Spirit who gave us our new life and who empowers our prayers.

Secondly, regarding doubt and not asking. Regardless of our creeds and what we "say" we believe, our faith will be placed where our assurance and confidence truly rests. What hinders us? Most likely at least two things for sure: 1) a hidden performance orientation that has very deceptively taken us captive so that we are hesitant to approach God. In other words, we are not really confident that we qualify or measure-up and 2) an inaccurate perception of God that has convinced us that He is really more unconcerned and distant to my needs in life small or large.

This is how Paul in Romans 8 describes the heart and willingness of God toward you, "Since God did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won't God, who gave us Christ, also give us everything else?"

From Daniel 9, "We do not ask because we deserve help, but because you are so merciful. "O Lord, hear. O Lord, forgive. O Lord, listen and act! For your own sake, O my God, do not delay, for your people and your city bear your name." I went on praying and confessing my sin and the sins of my people, pleading with the LORD my God for Jerusalem, his holy mountain. As I was praying, Gabriel, whom I had seen in the earlier vision, came swiftly to me at the time of the evening sacrifice. He explained to me, "Daniel, I have come here to give you insight and understanding. The moment you began praying, a command was given. I am here to tell you what it was, for God loves you very much."

Seeking Comfort

Consciously or not we are very often seeking comfort, relief, satisfaction, contentment or whatever similar description best fits our own situation. We will develop certain patterns of behaviors that swing us emotionally from a state of displeasure to one of contentment. Many times these behaviors become compulsive and destructive to ourselves and tragically to those around us. These compulsive behaviors may be addictions to a certain activity, a substance or other people and thier acceptance of us. Our search for comfort is often in response to either actual painful experiences, fears of potential personal injury due to an offense or dissapointment we might receive from others, personal failure(s) or merely in response to our God given God dependency for love, acceptance and personal value.

The good news is that we can get off of the treadmill of insantity that sends us endlessly in a circle of unsuccessful repeated attempts to gain the joy that nothing nor anyone can provide other than God himself very personally.

How so? The simplicity of God's unfailing love and presence can escape us so easily. In God's presence we can experience the comfort and warmth of his intimate loving embrace, his company of companionship, his tender mercy, his acceptance and the unconditional value he places on each of us.

Paul says in Ephesians 3 "Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come fearlessly into God's presence, assured of his glad welcome."

Again in Colosians 1 Paul says "God reconciled everything to himself………This includes you who were once so far away from God……As a result, he has brought you into the very presence of God, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault."

The Lord said to Joshua "be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."

And Jesus said "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor (Comforter, or Encourager, or Advocate), who will never leave you."

Psalm 16:11 "You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever."

So let us each say as the Psalmist in 118 "Open for me the gates where the righteous enter, and I will go in and thank the LORD. Those gates lead to the presence of the LORD, and the godly enter there." Do not hesitate!

A few lines from the Song A Better Way by Downhere:

I'm not alone, I really believe
You never go, You never leave
Here and now, You always stay
“I love you” could not be said a better way