The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel (which means God with us.) Isaiah 7:14

To the Israelites, who had been looking for a redeemer for 400 years, “God with us” meant their Messiah had come and would save them from the oppression of the Romans. How little they knew what His coming truly meant.

We celebrate Christmas and think of the baby in the manger, the shepherds and the wise men who came a little later, but aside from Christmas, have we really thought about what that verse means to us?

God with us. With the birth of Jesus, the world changed forever. God with us meant something completely different to the Israelites than it means to us. To us it means that God, the Ruler of the universe (all-powerful, all-knowing, all-seeing and Lover of our souls) would literally be with us because He would live in us, making our bodies His temple, He dwells or lives.

He is with us all of the time. Guiding us when we need direction, holding us when we hurt, and loving us even when we sin. God with us is eternal life that starts the moment we accept Him as Lord of our lives.

In this special season where we celebrate His birth, take a moment to really focus on what God with us means to you.

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

–by Pam Rehbein