"The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”) (Matthew 1:23 NIV).
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God” (Revelation 21:3 NIV).
In the Scriptures featured today, we unwrap the blessed gift of God’s presence. Scriptures are, to quote C. H. Spurgeon, “like the swaddling clothes of the holy child Jesus; unroll them, and there you will find your Savior.”
Scripture communicates the desires of God’s heart. And time and again we read, “My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people” (this instance quoted from Ezekiel 37:27).
Jesus is the Gift of that promise! For “He is none else God on earth,” penned B. B. Warfield.
God was with Adam and Eve in the Garden. Then, He was with His people in the wilderness, in the Tabernacle, in the Temple. But, in the cave, God came near in the flesh.
Today, in the midst of your celebrations, Jesus is there. With you. His presence is the ultimate present.
God Himself dwells with His people through Jesus and the Holy Spirit. And it is that presence that sets this day apart as one worthy of the world’s joyous celebration.
“Thou Son of the Most High, Prince of Peace, be born again in our world. Wherever there is war in this world, wherever there is pain, wherever there is loneliness, wherever there is no hope, come, Thou Long-Expected One, with healing in Thy wings. Holy Child, whom the shepherds, the kings, and the dumb beasts adored, be born again. Wherever there is boredom, wherever there is fear of failure, wherever there is temptation too strong to resist, wherever there is bitterness of heart, come, Thou Blessed One, with healing in Thy wings” (Frederick Buechner).
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