Jesus, Our Immanuel - He Become One of Us

[Matthew 1:20-23; John 1:14]

But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:
"Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel" (which means, God with us).

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

{Rev. Dan Whang}

On the show Glee, there was an episode called "The Great Cheese-sus." On that episode, the characters were all confronted with who God was and how they should live. Like a normal secular show, they decided on who God was for each of them and life went on. There is also a song by Joan Osbourne - What if God was one of us? ... But God did become one of us. He become "God with us".

When we look over the Matthew passage, it is pretty familiar. Joseph is told that Mary is pregnant and it is from God. He is also told this is the fulfillment of a prophecy.

What does the incarnation teach us?

God understands and knows us completely and perfectly.

The Christmas story tells us that God came and lived the human life. The God of the universe came as a helpless baby. Why didn't God just come as a 30 year old? The bible doesn't say much, but we can assume that Jesus was a baby... a toddler... a pre-teen, teen, young adult. God knows what it means to live as a human. He knew about betrayal, being outcast, being tempted, carrying burdens that no one knows about.

" God became a man. While the creatures of earth walked unaware, Divinity arrived. Heaven opened herself and placed her most precious one in a human womb.
The Omnipotent, in one instant, made himself breakable. He who had been spirit became pierceable. He who was larger than the universe became an embryo. And he who sustains the world with a word chose to be dependent upon the nourishment of a young girl.
God as a fetus. Holiness sleeping in a womb. The creator of life being created.
God was given eyebrows, elbows, two kidneys, and a spleen. He stretched against the walls and floated in the amniotic fluids of his mother.
God had come near.
He came, not as a flash of light or as an unapproachable conqueror, but as one whose first cries were heard by a peasant girl and a sleepy carpenter. The hands that first held him were unmanicured, calloused, and dirty.
No silk. No ivory. No hype. No party. No hoopla.
Were it not for the shepherds, there would have been no reception. And were it not for a group of stargazers, there would have been no gifts.
Angels watched as Mary changed God’s diaper. The universe watched with wonder as The Almighty learned to walk. Children played in the street with him. And had the synagogue leader in Nazareth known who was listening to his sermons…
Jesus may have had pimples. He may have been tone-deaf. Perhaps a girl down the street had a crush on him or vice versa. It could be that his knees were bony. One thing’s for sure: He was, while completely divine, completely human.
For thirty-three years he would feel everything you and I have ever felt. He felt weak. He grew weary. He was afraid of failure. He was susceptible to wooing women. He got colds, burped, and had body odor. His feelings got hurt. His feet got tired. And his head ached.
To think of Jesus in such a light is—well, it seems almost irreverent, doesn’t it? It’s not something we like to do; it’s uncomfortable. It is much easier to keep the humanity out of the incarnation. Clean the manure from around the manger. Wipe the sweat out of his eyes. Pretend he never snored or blew his nose or hit his thumb with a hammer.
He’s easier to stomach that way. There is something about keeping him divine that keeps him distant, packaged, predictable.
But don’t do it. For heaven’s sake, don’t. Let him be as human as he intended to be. Let him into the mire and muck of our world. For only if we let him in can he pull us out.
Listen to him.
“Love your neighbor” was spoken by a man whose neighbors tried to kill him.
The challenge to leave family for the gospel was issued by one who kissed his mother goodbye in the doorway.
“Pray for those who persecute you” came from the lips that would soon be begging God to forgive his murderers.
“I am with you always” are the words of a God who in one instant did the impossible to make it all possible for you and me.
It all happened in a moment. In one moment…a most remarkable moment. The Word became flesh." -- Max Lucado

God has made Himself knowable, understandable, and accessible to us.

Before Jesus, God always came in strange forms. God came as a smoking firepot. A burning bush. A pillar of cloud and a pillar of fire. A thunderous earthquake. This was probably awesome and wondrous for people to behold. For years and centuries, this is what people thought about God. People probably found it difficult to relate to God. People were told to meet God at this one physical place, the tabernacle.

This is why Christmas is so amazing. The son of a carpenter, a blue collar worker. He is intimately more relate-able. Jesus was not just a good teacher, not just the best man, but He was God-man. He was the fullness of God. If you want to know God, all you have to do is open the bible and read about Jesus.

When tough times come, we are tempted to think God as hard and unfeeling. But we should look at Jesus. Jesus wept over Lazarus. God is not hard and unfeeling, He is sensitive. Jesus who stooped down and washed the feet of his friends who would soon desert Him. This not an uncaring God. Jesus is God in HD (High Definition). The clearest picture of God we can get.

How should respond to the incarnation?

Aggressively seek Jesus and behold Him everyday.

God has made Himself available to us. The people of the Old Testament wished to know God. But God has revealed Himself fully through Jesus.

The hardest part of the Christian life is not ministry, it's not the things we need to do. But the hardest part, is staying intimate with God. Cultivating and investing in our relationship with God.

Take away your community group. Take away ministry. Take away church friends. Would you still have a personal life with God? A life with God that people don't know about unless you tell them? Or is there just a spiritual silence? Because this is the substance of our faith. This is not meant as condemnation, I don't speak these words as one who has his life perfectly in line with this. I struggle with my TV and computer on at the same time. Are our hearts empty? Is our time with God strange and awkward?

What if we set our alarm clock earlier by 30 mins? Spend that time meeting with God.

Be the incarnation of Jesus to this lost and dying world

What opportunities does God give us to be incarnations of Jesus in our life? To be kind and loving to those around us?

How about being Christ-like during these holidays? Being the most courteous and kind driver and shopper during the craziness of this season? To do something selfless at a cost. To give someone else your parking spot. To smile at people in church. To love that one estranged family member at the family gathering. To serve during finals week.