Immanuel, Our Only Hope

When we are surrounded by enemies of sin, death and the devil, we have only one hope, Immanuel, “God with Us.” Amen.

Joseph faced a terrible dilemma.  The woman pledged to be his wife was pregnant.  Should his anger burn against her for betrayal of their vows?  Should he tell the community knowing that she faced disgrace and stoning to death?  Should he quietly divorce her and pray that she could escape town before anyone else found out?  Joseph

decided to divorce her quietly.

But, God had other plans.  He knew something that Joseph did not.  Just as Isaiah had foretold (7:14) and Matthew recorded (1:23 ESV): "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel" (which means, God with us).

An angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream and told him not to be afraid to take Mary as his wife for behold the child was conceived by the Holy Spirit and was to be named Jesus because he will save his people from their sins.

Light was coming to flood the darkness in Israel.  The people had not seen a prophet for 400 years.  They had been occupied, oppressed, misled, and dispirited.  Many people had lost hope that God would send a Savior.  Others held onto that hope by a thread.

The world is turning to darkness again.  People are abandoning their faith in God and lunging into the mire of immorality.  Less that half of our young adults are getting married and over half of those who say “I do” say “I don’t” soon afterward.  Even marriage itself no longer means one man and one woman.  People think that they are smarter than God Himself.  They no longer fear and love Him.  Drugs, violence, suicide, permeate our cities. Less than 2% of our young people are active Christians.  Entertainment and partying have replaced Bible study and church attendance.  The people grow spiritually weaker and weaker.  Our government coddles us with short-term measures that will cost us in the long run.  False religious captivate millions of people.

Where is our hope?  Can mankind solve these problems?  No, we are enslaved to sin, death and the devil if we are not in Christ.  There is no hope for the unbeliever, only hell.  But, God is gracious.  He sees our predicament and has sent us hope. There was only one way to save us, to pay for our sins, and to open the door to us through faith – Immanuel, “God with Us.”