Tag: God

The Year of Immanuel

The name Immanuel is familiar to almost all Christians, though it appears infrequently in the Bible. We first encounter the name in Isaiah 7:14, most recently heard as a part of the Advent readings:

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign; The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isa 7:14)

Here we are generally provided with an explanatory note that the name given is actually a combination of words, important ideas, that spell out God is With Us. The fact that the young women will name her child so is either an expression of faith in the face of adversity or a prayer for mercy and help (God Be With Us). Of the coming of our savior satisfies this sign as Jesus becomes one of us and is with us. Is this ideal just a sentiment of is it a theological fact that remains true today?  Theologically, God is with us as believers in the Holy Spirit but in a greater sense, God the Father is present with us intimately every moment of every day. Our response to this promise and its reality to large numbers of people is often quite different.

Many times we are guilty of living as though the Father was distant in heaven, tabulating our behavior from afar, listening to our prayers but not present. We do not consider His immediacy when we sin and we fail to acknowledge his presence surrounding those we do not minister too. Would we bypass the homeless man sprawled out on the sidewalk if the Father appeared as a specter, beckoning us to polish the imago dei for a fellow person? Would we casually continue our bigotry, divisive theological wars, oppression of gifted women, et. al. if we sensed that truly God was with us?

God with us is a profound theological truth that has many implications for our lives and ministry in our current day. It is our call to make it clear to the world at large that not only is God alongside and around us, but as Christian believers, He is in us! We live without condemnation for our past sins and we are empowered to turn from our daily temptation. We can walk into any situation as the Spirit leads without fear — God Is With Us. Why then, don’t we live this truth out in such a meaningful way that we change the world radically so that it nearly shimmers with kingdom values?

God with us has implications for our personal piety as well. Often we see the walls around us as come kind of shield between the God who is with us but not near us. If we truly sensed the presence of God, how would our pursuit of personal holiness be affected? Would we take sin more seriously? Would our devotion to personal and constant worship increase? Would we know in the depths our hearts that God is Truly With Us?

This can be our year of Immanuel, a year of radical change in ministry and a monumental transformation in holiness. I, for one, will be aligning my ministry with the burdens that God has placed on my heart. My pursuit of holiness will be an increased priority. God is With Me is going to be the most profound theological truth that I will pursue this year.

Join me.

Trusting the Promise

It is at this hour of the morning where God’s promises are so passionately and vibrantly clear. Looking to the East, I can watch as the low, endlessly flat horizon of the Great Plains begins to divide from darkness to light. In the dark, the horizon disappears and yet, at the appointed hour the slightest hint of the new day begins to show. At first, it is a change from deep black to a violet to a blue but it soon changes to a hint of pink then orange then a blaze of glorious yellow as the warming sun pokes it rays above the edge of the world!

I see the promised sun again, light that my brothers in the East have already gloried in without my jealousy and light that my sisters in the West await in anticipation. Your promises, Father, can always be trusted though sometimes I must wait while others enjoy your blessing. You remind me by the passing of the day that others are waiting as well and I should have not pride in the blessings your visit upon me. Glory to God in the Highest!

Psalm 113 

Praise the Lord.
Praise, O servants of the Lord,
praise the name of the Lord.
     Let the name of the Lord be praised,
both now and forevermore.
     From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets,
the name of the Lord is to be praised.
     The Lord is exalted over all the nations,
his glory above the heavens.
     Who is like the Lord our God,
the One who sits enthroned on high,
     who stoops down to look
on the heavens and the earth?
     He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the ash heap;
     he seats them with princes,
with the princes of their people.
     He settles the barren woman in her home
as a happy mother of children.
Praise the Lord.