Sunday 12:08:13

For generations, the Israelites only knew God from afar. The Lord's presence was with them in the tabernacle and in the temple. But they could not enter into God's presence They were physically separated by heavy curtains Spiritually, they were separated from God because of their sins. People longed for God, but He was out of their reach. The tabernacle and the temple were a foreshadowing of God's plan. 700 years before Jesus was born, God promised through the prophet Isaiah that a son would be born to a virgin and would be called Immanuel, which means "God with us". Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. We sing a Christmas carol called O Come, O Come Immanuel O come, O come Immanuel and ransom captive Israel who mourns in lonely exile here until the Son of God appear Rejoice, rejoice, Immanuel shall come to thee, O Israel The song speaks comfort to Israel. Israel had been exiled and was captive to foreign kings. Even in her exiled and captive state, she could rejoice in the promise of God that He was coming. Instead of mourning, she could rejoice because of Immanuel, God with us Matthew 1:18-23 God promised that He Himself would come. Immanuel, God with us The eternal God, came to be with and live among men. In Jesus, God is with us. He is the one we longed for. He is the long-awaited Messiah He is the promised Savior We long for forgiveness from God, we have forgiveness in Jesus We long for acceptance from God, we are adopted into his family in Jesus We long for purpose from God, in Jesus we are ambassadors We long for God to know us, Jesus is our great high priest We long for God's help in struggle, Jesus said he'd be with us to the end We long for God's unconditional, stubborn love; in Jesus we experience God's deep love for us He is all we need. We can be with God, near God in Jesus Christ. Jesus prayed for his followers in John 17 John 17:24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. He prayed that we might see his glory and to love him I pray this Christmas that we would be able to see Jesus in all his fullness And to love him and all that we find in him Not a half-hearted love, but a deep love, from God Prepare your mind and heart for Christmas. Remember that what you long for has come in Jesus Christ. Forgiveness; acceptance; purpose; help in struggle; wide, long, deep and high love Come Thou Long Expected Jesus - Charles Wesley Come, Thou long expected Jesus Born to set Thy people free From our fears and sins release us Let us find our rest in Thee Israel's strength and consolation Hope of all the earth Thou art Dear desire of every nation Joy of every longing heart