Immanuel Means...

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   Flashback to Christmas for a few moments.   Joseph, who was a good, caring person, was ready to quietly break off his engagement with Mary and divorce her after finding out that she was pregnant.  An angel of God’s came to him in a dream and convinced him that God was actually the one that conceived the child inside of Mary and he should have no issues marrying Mary.
   “Jesus” would be His name because He was born to save people from their sins (Matthew 1:18-25).  From Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah prophesized that Jesus would be called “Immanuel,” which means “God is with us.”
   Now flash forward to the present.  Anyone who has asked for forgiveness of their sins from Jesus (because only He can forgive sins because He died on the cross and rose from the dead), is a temple of the Holy Spirit.  “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).  That means if you are a Christian, you have Jesus, Immanuel with you and in you.  
   Does that change how you view yourself?  According to what we are told in the Bible, a Christian is not only an ambassador or representative of God’s (2 Corinthians 5:20), but one’s body is a temple of the Holy Spirit (of God’s).  Does that change how you conduct yourself, what you say, how you treat people and what you allow into your mouth, eyes and ears?  
   Most young people will not quickly open a Bible to read about Jesus or any other story or principle shared.  If they are going to open a Bible, we Christians need to be the enticers, the ones who will whet the appetites of those who do not know Jesus.  What will cause someone who has no knowledge or desire to know Jesus, to search for Him?  God is actively pursuing people, using His Spirit to draw people to Him through many means.  One of the most significant tools God has is you and me.  Muslims who have become Christians often say what drew them to finding out who Jesus is, was the love shown by Christians to them.  That is us representing Immanuel to people who are not believers in Immanuel yet.
   No matter where we are, what we are doing or who we are hanging around with, we are showing the world who Immanuel is 24/7.  As Christians, we need to obediently allow the Holy Spirit to control us and thus He will guide us to say and live the way that will honor Jesus with our bodies (Romans 8:9-10).   In Romans 6:13, Christians are challenged to offer their bodies as instruments (weapons) of righteousness or instruments of showing people how to live correctly, for good purposes and drawing people to Jesus.
   Who are you drawing to Jesus by the way you live and act, showing in the flesh that Immanuel, God is with us today?  What a great responsibility and opportunity!

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