God With Us // Isaiah 7:14
Immanuel means, God with us, in the biblical Hebrew. Today’s verse serves a dual role in speaking to the moment in time when Isaiah was serving as God’s prophet, but also as a prophecy to the future birth of Jesus. That is confirmed in Matthew 1:22-23 as we read, “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’).” Matthew wrote those words after he shared how Mary and Joseph learned of their unique (and uniquely terrifying task) of helping bring God to earth in the flesh. There are some who point to the word, virgin, in these passages as though to try and nullify the idea of Jesus’ immaculate conception. Yes, it is true that the word virgin translates into young maiden, but we do ourselves a serious disservice trying to apply today’s warped sexual ethics to the time of Christ. God would only have selected the people to raise Jesus who obediently adhered to God’s will, word, and way. The biggest key in this question has more to do with the Holy Spirit’s role…as well as the result of this supernatural event…which separated Jesus from the stain of original sin. This, my friends, is why the doctrine of the virgin birth is critical to the Christian faith, because it enabled the adult Jesus to bear, and bury, the sins of the world, leaving them in the empty tomb when He marched out triumphantly on that Resurrection morning! These two events of Christmas and Easter are tied together by Jesus’ role as Immanuel, and the meaning of His name, which declares He will save the people from their sins (Matthew 1:21). So, let’s give thanks to the prophet and the prophecy, giving us the promise that God comes to us, saves us from our eternal separation, and leads to help others find the glory of Heaven right here and right now.
