The Four Kings of Christmas (Jesus) (Part 4) (Mt. 1:18-25; 2:1-3, 9-10)

JESUS IS GOD WITH US.

“ . . . they shall call His name 'Immanuel,' which translated means 'God with us'” (Mt. 1:23).

• When I say that God is “with us,” I'm talking about proximity, closeness, being approachable.
• There are two theological words that contrast the proximity of God.
• The first word is “transcendence.”  That means God is above and beyond, “up there”, in a class by Himself. He is distant from us, different from us and sovereign over us.
• Transcendence is described in 1 Timothy 6:15-16.  Jesus is “the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.”
• The second word is “immanence.” That means that God is near us, with us and interested in us. He is not just “up there” but He is also “right here.” In other words, He “gets us” (Heb. 4:15-16; 5:2, 8).
• Jesus knew temptation (Heb. 4:15).
• Jesus knew weakness (Heb. 5:2).
• Jesus knew suffering (Heb. 5:8).
• Jesus knew rejection (Mt. 27:46).
• Jesus knew discomfort (Mt. 8:20).
• Jesus knew hunger (Mt. 4:2).
• Jesus knew thirst (Jn. 19:28).
• Jesus knew betrayal (Mk. 14:10).
• Jesus knew loneliness (Mk. 14:50).
• Jesus knew grief (Jn. 11:35).
• So what is Jesus, “God with us” and “God who gets us”, doing right now?
• Jesus is praying for you, that you will draw near to God through Him (Heb. 7:25).
• If you ever wondered what God wants from you more than anything else, now you know!