God's Presence with Us

By: Lauren Thomas 

One of the most famous Christmas verses is found in Isaiah and ascribes a name to Jesus: Immanuel. This verse is quoted in the New Testament by Matthew who adds the meaning of this name: God with us.

 

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,

and they shall call his name Immanuel”

(which means, God with us).

Matthew 1:23 ESV

Through the Old Testament, we see that there were times when God’s presence rested among his people. When the Israelites wandered in the wilderness, God’s presence dwelled with them in the tabernacle, the tent of worship. When the Israelites made camp, the tabernacle was literally at the center of their camp with all the tribes situated around it. God’s presence dwelled in the midst of his people. God later allowed his glory to fall on the magnificent temple that Solomon had built for him.

 

But the incarnation of Christ marked a new era for us to experience the presence of God. He is Immanuel: God with us.

 

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 1:14

 

John 1:14 tells us that the Word, Jesus, came to dwell among us. But the original language puts it a little differently: the Word…tabernacled among us. This is an allusion to Exodus where God’s glory “tabernacled” in the midst of Israel. Then, it was God’s glory. But with the incarnation, it was God in flesh and blood, someone like us who could sympathize with our weakness (Hebrews 2:17; 4:15), someone whose compassion had hands and feet to go and touch our brokenness.

 

Could it be that we have something far greater now?

 

Between Jesus’s resurrection and ascension into Heaven, in Matthew 28:20, he told his disciples “I am with you always, to the end of the age.” In John 14 and 16 he told his disciples of the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, who would only come to them if he went away. Jesus is still Immanuel because we now have the Holy Spirit. Whereas incarnate Christ could only be with one person on Earth at any one time, the Holy Spirit can be with every believer at every moment. Immanuel ushered in a new era of God’s presence for us today: the omnipresent Spirit of God.

 

What a gift! The greatest present of Christmas is God’s presence with us!

 

Reflection:

If you have ever longed for Jesus to wrap you in his arms, how can you invite more of God’s Holy Spirit into your life? How can you become more aware and tuned in to his presence in your life? If God’s presence is a present to you, how can you open that gift this season?

Consider journaling about Jesus as Immanuel and what this means for you.

Hunger For God

 By: Grace Metzger

Then Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭15‬:‭32‬ ‭ESV

I was listening to a sermon recently when the pastor mentioned the story of Jesus feeding the 4,000. I loved this story as a child so the first thing I did was when I left church was pulled out my Bible and started reading it. Very quickly I found this verse that spoke me. These people were listening and just being there with Jesus for three whole days and they weren’t even ready to go home. In fact, they weren’t leaving until Jesus sent them away. I thought about our world right now and it sadden me to know that people no longer hunger for God’s Word like that anymore. 

I thought about what I’ve been seeing lately, with people not able to sit in the sanctuary for a full service, people complaining if the pastor goes too long, Christians who can’t stay off their phone long enough to listen to a sermon, and people even complaining about being at a service for too many days a week. These people sat outside and listened to Jesus speak for three whole days and we can’t even give God our attention in service a couple hours each week. 

When I spoke to someone about this they said that it wasn’t the same because these the 4000 were getting to be in Jesus’ physical presence but I would argue we get something even better then that, we get to spend time in His spiritual presence. Yet most of the time we view this as a chore on a to do list. 

We don’t have that hunger for God anymore. We have more access to God then people in the past, more access to Bibles, more access to churches, etc. But yet we take all of this for granted. 

Don’t get me wrong, as someone who’s worked in ministries for 13 years I get how sometimes things can get hard, but I always believe that going to church is a time to be in His house, be in His presence, and worship Him with fellow believers. How amazing is it that we can do that!! How amazing is it that we don’t have to travel hundreds of miles in the desert to go to the temple! 

My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God.

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭84‬:‭2‬ ‭ESV‬‬

I want to see a generation of believers who long for the courts of the Lord! I want to see us to be so in love with God that we want to be in the Church doors every time they’re open. I don’t want us to take for grant how blessed we are that we are able to be there. 

Discussion Question: How do you ensure you keep your hunger for God?

Even If...

By: Jenifer Metzger

Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego. We have all likely heard the retelling of their story. These three men refused to bow down to King Nebuchadnezzar's golden statue which resulted in the king throwing the men into a fiery furnace.

But before the king sent the men to their ultimate doom, he gave them one more chance to obey him.

Nebuchadnezzar asked them, “Shadrach, Meshach, and

Abednego, is it true that you don’t serve my gods or worship

the gold statue I have set up? Now if you’re ready, when you

hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, drum,

and every kind of music, fall down and worship the statue I

made. But if you don’t worship it, you will immediately be

thrown into a furnace of blazing fire— and who is the god

who can rescue you from my power?”

Daniel 3:14-15 CSB

The men knew this was their last chance. They also knew if they didn't obey the king's command, they would die. They could have simply bowed down to the king when the music began and saved their lives.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to the

king, “Nebuchadnezzar, we don’t need to give you

an answer to this question. If the God we serve exists,

then He can rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire,

and He can rescue us from the power of you, the king.

But even if He does not rescue us, we want you as king

to know that we will not serve your gods or worship

the gold statue you set up.”

Daniel 3:16-18 CSB

Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego told the king that they had faith God could rescue them from death by fire. But even beyond their faith in being saved was their obedience. They told the king, "Even if He does not rescue us...we will not serve your gods." They had faith God would save them but choose to obey God whether He would save them from an earthly death or not.

Can we say that?

Can we say that we will live for God and obey Him even if He doesn't save us from earthly death or disaster? Can we say that even if God doesn't heal our illness we will still live for Him? Can we say that even if He doesn't provide that financial miracle we need we will still live for Him? Can we say that even if He doesn't rescue us from that difficult situation we will still live for Him?

We have to stop and ask ourselves a few questions. Are we wanting a healing more than the Healer? Are we wanting to be saved more than the Savior? Are we simply wanting God to move in our lives and bless us or are we wanting truly live for Him and grow in our walk with Him?

Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego knew the answers. They knew that even if God allowed their earthly lives to end, they still wanted to obey Him and live their final moments on this earth for Him. Because of their faithfulness and obedience, God saved them.

Now, God doesn't always rescue us. He still could have allowed the men to perish in the fire, then welcome them to heaven with open arms. I would imagine the men would have been just fine with that! God answers our prayers three ways: yes, no, and not yet. Sometimes God doesn't bring the healing or rescuing or saving. Sometimes we still have to face trials and brokenness. Partially because of our own mistakes that have natural consequences, partially because we live in a fallen and evil world, and partially because God is doing a work we cannot see to bring glory to His name. That is why we have to make the decision to be faithful and obedient no matter what may come.

So friend, are you ready to say "even if"?

Discussion:
1. Think of a situation in your life that you have been asking God for help with.
2. Now ask yourself the tough question. Are you wanting that answer more than God? Or do you want God no matter what His answer is?

Names of God Series: Building Your Foundation on the Rock

 By: Rebekah Hargraves

Photo Courtesy of: Getty Images

"The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my rock where I seek refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold."

~Psalm 18:2

In our series on the names of God, we come next to a name assigned to God by David - the name "my Rock". My Bible points out that David proclaimed "the words of this song to the Lord on the day the Lord rescued him from the grasp of all his enemies and from the power of Saul." If anyone knows what it is like to be forced to rely on God as your only hope, your refuge, shield, and rock, it's David! This name he ascribes to God reminds us that He is our firm foundation, reliable and unchanging.

This proclamation from David makes me think of the words of Jesus found in Luke 6:47-49:

"I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, hears my words, and acts on them: He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. When the flood came, the river crashed against that house and couldn’t shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears and does not act is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The river crashed against it, and immediately it collapsed. And the destruction of that house was great.” 

God is our Rock, our firm foundation, and our refuge. He is our only hope and help in the storms of life. But as Jesus makes clear here, the safety of that refuge, the strength of that foundation, is not automatic. It is not something we are promised with no conditions. We only get to take full advantage of the blessing it is for God to be our Rock and refuge if we are not only hearing His words, but actually obeying them. That is the key. 

So, friend, be sure that you are not only a hearer of the word, but a doer also. And then, when the storms of life do rage, when the waves threaten to topple you over, run to your Refuge, cling to your Rock, and be blessed by your Shield.

"I have learned to kiss the waves that throw me up against the Rock of Ages.”

~Charles Spurgeon

Reflection Questions:

1) Have you ever viewed God as your Rock? If so, in what ways has He shown up as your Rock during the storms of your life?

2) Would you say you tend to be more of just a hearer of the Word or a doer also?

3) How does knowing God can be your Rock increase your faith and trust in Him?

The Christmas Ancestry

 By: Joanne Viola

 

The commercials have begun reminding us of various gifts we can give for Christmas. It is curious how one such gift is can help one discover their ancestry.

What is it about this time of year that causes us all to want to know our ancestry, where we came from, and the history of our families?

Opening up to read in the Gospel of Matthew, we find that, he too, was interested in ancestry:

“This is a record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, 
a descendant of David and of Abraham.” 
(Matthew 1:1, NLT)

Matthew did not take us back to the beginning of mankind. He did not start with Adam and Eve. And this is the only Gospel account which does include the ancestry of Christ.

Ancestry was obviously important as the Old Testament is filled with genealogies and yet, in the most important of all genealogies, Matthew does something entirely different. Why?

“Matthew did not write to tell us about himself. He wrote to give us a picture of Jesus Christ, the long-awaited Messiah.

 (from The Wiersbe Study Bible, page 1389)

Matthew was writing to establish that Jesus is not only the long awaited Messiah, He is the One who fulfills all of the Old Testament prophecies.

This is a royal ancestry.
And more.
This is an ancestry proving the faithfulness of our God to His Word.

The very names – David and Abraham – are meant to bring us back to two covenants God made with His people.

• God’s Covenant with Abraham. God called Abraham to leave his country, relatives and family, and go to a land which God would show him. He told Abraham that all people would be blessed through him. You can read of this covenant in Genesis 12 and 15.
• God’s Covenant with David. God formed this covenant with King David in which He promised to provide the line of kings promised to Abraham, which would lead to the King of Kings. You can read of this covenant in2 Samuel 7:8-13.

Matthew was making certain all people for all of time would know that God is faithful to His Word. He will do exactly as He said.

“I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, 
not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved.” 
(Matthew 5:18, NLT)

 

Reflection: 
Do you ever wonder about the past generations in your family? Are you the first in your family to honor Christ this Christmas or will you be carrying on a family tradition? May you find a renewed joy in being a part of this spiritual ancestry.

 

Photo by Sixteen Miles Out on Unsplash