God With Us

On this Christmas Eve, I'd like to share the words of John MacArthur from his devotional book, "Truth for Today," because they so perfectly sum up what we have to rejoice in at this Christmas time.

"For there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord."  Luke 1:45

"Isaiah 7:14 says, 'The Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.'  That virgin's name was Mary.

The name Immanuel, however, is the key to this verse--and the heart of the Christmas story.  It is a Hebrew name that means literally,'God with us.'  It is a promise of incarnate deity, a prophecy that God Himself would appear as a human infant, Immanuel, 'God with us.'  This baby who was to be born would be God Himself in human form.

If we could condense all the truth of Christmas into only three words, these would be the words: 'God with us.'  We tend to focus our attention at Christmas on the infancy of Christ.  The greater truth of the holiday is His deity.  More astonishing than a baby in a manger is the truth that this promised baby is the omnipotent Creator of the heavens and the earth!"

May you find joy and peace in this wonderful truth that the Creator of all heaven and earth is with us this Christmas season and every other day.  Rejoice!  God is with us!