Emmanuel
Emmanuel, God is with us. Emmanuel, God became man.
With us to dwell, Savior of nations, Reconciling man to God again.
And the angels would sing, to this babe so humbly born,
In a manger silently, to a virgin tired and worn.
And though he was a mighty king, he came down to serve instead,
To lead us in the truth, our healer, our teacher, our friend.
Our Salvation has come, through this babe so humbly born.
For God sent his only Son, to a world so tired and worn.
And, though he is a mighty king, he came down to give His life.
To save us from our sin, redeemer and sacrifice.
Long before your common birth, you knew a love for us so pure
That you came willingly to earth, knowing the pain you would endure.
Emmanuel, God is with us! Reconciling man to God again!
Luke 1:26-2:40: The Birth of Jesus
Imagine for a moment that you are a king or queen living in a magnificent palace. You have everything that you could ever need or want, and you are with those whom you love and who love you. Now, imagine that word has come to you that the lowliest of peasants living in poverty at the outskirts of your kingdom are in trouble. They are sick and miserable, fighting among themselves and dying from disease and starvation on a daily basis. Because you have compassion for them, you decide to visit them. No, you are not going to send one of your many servants to do the job; you are going yourself, because this is such an important job. When you look further into the situation, you realize that things are so bad that one brief trip is not going to cut it, and you will need to spend some time there. Regardless of the time commitment, this is important, so you prepare for your trip. First, you shed your royal garments. After all, you can’t expect to reach out to them if you aren’t dressed in a similar fashion. Next, you secure lodging. The options are scarce, and you find yourself living in little more than a rustic shack – one that is lacking all modern conveniences. As you settle into your new surroundings, you quickly discover that the food is bad, the water is worse, the shack in which you live is filled with parasites, and the people you have now surrounded yourself with are, for lack of a better word, filthy. In spite of the conditions, you move into your humble surroundings and begin to teach those around you how they can live a better life. Further, you directly help those who are in need when you find them. In general, you offer them a better way of life – a way out of their destitution.
In spite of all of the wonderful things you are accomplishing and lives that you are changing for the good, you soon discover that there are some who do not appreciate your help. They know who you are and are jealous of you. They don’t want your help, and they would prefer for things to be left as they were. Every day they ridicule you and make your life absolutely miserable. Day in and day out, they make fun of your clothes and your shack and your “stupid ideas”. Then, in a final fit of jealousy and anger, they plot and carry out your murder! Imagine! You set out to help these miserable beasts, and instead of being gracious, they murder you???
Now for the question of the day…knowing all of this in advance, would you still go?
Jesus did. He left Paradise to become human and live with us. He didn’t have to do this. He could have looked at our wretched condition and thrown up his hands in disgust. He could have started all over with a new race of people on a distant planet far, far away. He knew that by coming to earth, he would be subjected to poverty, insolence, jealousy, and affliction. He knew that he would be despised, rejected, and put to death. Yet in spite of all of that, he came anyway. He came because he loved us so much that he was willing to suffer anything just so he could spend eternity with us. That is the definition of love.
“What we do see is Jesus, who for a little while was given a position ‘a little lower than the angels’; and because he suffered death for us, he is now ‘crowned with glory and honor.’ Yes, by God’s grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone. God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring many children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation.”
Hebrews 2:9-10
God wanted to relate to us on a very personal level. He wanted to live as we live, feel as we feel, and experience what we experience. He wanted to give us a Savior that we could personally relate to so that we could have a closer relationship with him.
We also know that the Son did not come to help angels; he came to help the descendants of Abraham. Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. Then he could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people. Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested.
Hebrews 2:16-18
There was another reason that Jesus needed to come as a human. To understand this, we need to go back to the beginning. When God created the earth, he gave it to humans to be stewards of the earth.
“Then God said, ‘Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”
Genesis 1:26
Unfortunately, when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they handed control over to Satan. In essence, they signed the title deed to the earth to Satan who continues to rule this world.
“Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.”
2 Corinthians 4:4
God gave the tribes of Israel plots of land that were to remain in their family forever. Some, however, sold their land if they fell on financial hardship. Jewish law allowed them to buy the property back under certain conditions, and it also allowed for a “kinsman redeemer” to purchase it back. A kinsman redeemer is a nearest relative who is charged with restoring their relative’s rights and gaining back the title deed to the property.
Title deeds were written on a scroll with several seals. We see such a scroll in Revelation 5.
Then I saw a scroll in the right hand of the one who was sitting on the throne. There was writing on the inside and the outside of the scroll, and it was sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel, who shouted with a loud voice: “Who is worthy to break the seals on this scroll and open it?” But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll and read it.
Rev 5:1-5
Then I began to weep bitterly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll and read it. But one of the twenty-four elders said to me, “Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the heir to David’s throne, has won the victory. He is worthy to open the scroll and its seven seals.”
Jesus became our kinsman redeemer by becoming fully human, living a sinless life, and paying the penalty for our sin on our behalf. By doing so, he paid the price for the title deed of the earth.
We can rest in confidence that Jesus, by coming to earth as a human, can fully understand our every situation and has won the final victory that will eventually restore the earth in full.
Related Devotionals
Resources
For a discussion of the title deed to the earth, go to this link: THE TITLE DEED OF EARTH
For devotionals on the birth of Jesus Christ by Max Lucado, go here:
Music and lyrics by LuAnne Barnet. Copyright (c) 2003 LuAnne Barnet. All Rights Reserved
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
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Information on the Creation Museum can be found at https://answersingenesis.org/