Greg Laurie - Immanuel
Posted 12-25-2009 at 01:02:50 PM by meggers
God Is with Us
"Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people."— Luke 1:68
Immanuel: God is with us—God came to us. What a staggering thought. It is really the essence of the Christian faith and the Christian life. All other religious ideologies essentially tell you that you must do something: Do this, and you will find inner peace. . . . Do this, and you will reach nirvana. . . . Do this, and maybe you will make it to heaven. But Christianity says it is done—done for you at the Cross, paid for by the blood of Jesus Christ.
Being a Christian is not merely following a creed; it is having Christ himself live in you and through you, giving you the strength to be the man or woman He has called you to be. Jesus said, "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20) and "I will never leave you nor forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5).
The message of Christmas is God with us. That is important to know, especially during those times when we are going through great difficulty. The psalmist said, "If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me" (Psalm 139:9–10). It is great to know that God is with you wherever you go.
The Bible never teaches that we will have problem-free lives as followers of Christ. But the Bible does teach that we never will be alone. And because of that, we don't have to be afraid. As Ray Stedman said, "The chief mark of the Christian ought to be the absence of fear and the presence of joy."
That is the message that this sin-sick world needs to hear: Immanuel—God is with us.
My fiance sent the below to me in an email this morning (minus all the googly cutesy stuff, I mean
) & it echos my hope for anyone reading this, as well as anyone who is not :
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU. HOPE YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL DAY. KNOWING THAT TODAY OUR LORD GAVE US THE GREATEST GIFT WE COULD EVER RECEIVE. GOD HIMSELF PUT ON FLESH. HE WOULD LEAVE HIS PALACE IN GLORY TO BECOME ONE OF US. HE WOULD LIVE A SINLESS SERVING LIFE FOR OTHERS. THEN HE WOULD DO THE WILL OF THE FATHER AND LAY DOWN HIS LIFE THAT WE (THOSE) WHO HAVE MADE HIM SAVIOR AND LORD OF THEIR LIVES WOULD ONE DAY BE CALLED HOME ON HIGH AND WOULD FOREVER BE WITH HIM. NO GUILT; NO CONDEMNATION; FREE FROM ALL OUR BURDENS. A LIFE FULL OF JOY, PEACE, AND HAPPINESS. THAT WHY ITS NOT ABOUT GIFTS UNDER THE TREE, BUT ABOUT A GIFT THAT LIVES ALL YEAR IN OUR HEARTS. HAPPY BIRTHDAY KING JESUS, LORD AND SAVIOR OF ALL WHO BELIEVE! THANK YOU LORD! HE'S COMING ONE DAY NOT AS A SUFFERING SAVIOR BUT AS THE KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS FROM GLORY. WE SHALL KNOW HIM AS HE IS. WE SHALL BE CHANGED IN A MOMENT IN THE TWINKLING OF AN EYE, AND SO SHALL WE EVER BE WITH THE LORD.
"Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people."— Luke 1:68
Immanuel: God is with us—God came to us. What a staggering thought. It is really the essence of the Christian faith and the Christian life. All other religious ideologies essentially tell you that you must do something: Do this, and you will find inner peace. . . . Do this, and you will reach nirvana. . . . Do this, and maybe you will make it to heaven. But Christianity says it is done—done for you at the Cross, paid for by the blood of Jesus Christ.
Being a Christian is not merely following a creed; it is having Christ himself live in you and through you, giving you the strength to be the man or woman He has called you to be. Jesus said, "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20) and "I will never leave you nor forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5).
The message of Christmas is God with us. That is important to know, especially during those times when we are going through great difficulty. The psalmist said, "If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me" (Psalm 139:9–10). It is great to know that God is with you wherever you go.
The Bible never teaches that we will have problem-free lives as followers of Christ. But the Bible does teach that we never will be alone. And because of that, we don't have to be afraid. As Ray Stedman said, "The chief mark of the Christian ought to be the absence of fear and the presence of joy."
That is the message that this sin-sick world needs to hear: Immanuel—God is with us.
My fiance sent the below to me in an email this morning (minus all the googly cutesy stuff, I mean
) & it echos my hope for anyone reading this, as well as anyone who is not : MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU. HOPE YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL DAY. KNOWING THAT TODAY OUR LORD GAVE US THE GREATEST GIFT WE COULD EVER RECEIVE. GOD HIMSELF PUT ON FLESH. HE WOULD LEAVE HIS PALACE IN GLORY TO BECOME ONE OF US. HE WOULD LIVE A SINLESS SERVING LIFE FOR OTHERS. THEN HE WOULD DO THE WILL OF THE FATHER AND LAY DOWN HIS LIFE THAT WE (THOSE) WHO HAVE MADE HIM SAVIOR AND LORD OF THEIR LIVES WOULD ONE DAY BE CALLED HOME ON HIGH AND WOULD FOREVER BE WITH HIM. NO GUILT; NO CONDEMNATION; FREE FROM ALL OUR BURDENS. A LIFE FULL OF JOY, PEACE, AND HAPPINESS. THAT WHY ITS NOT ABOUT GIFTS UNDER THE TREE, BUT ABOUT A GIFT THAT LIVES ALL YEAR IN OUR HEARTS. HAPPY BIRTHDAY KING JESUS, LORD AND SAVIOR OF ALL WHO BELIEVE! THANK YOU LORD! HE'S COMING ONE DAY NOT AS A SUFFERING SAVIOR BUT AS THE KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS FROM GLORY. WE SHALL KNOW HIM AS HE IS. WE SHALL BE CHANGED IN A MOMENT IN THE TWINKLING OF AN EYE, AND SO SHALL WE EVER BE WITH THE LORD.
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