Immanuel

God with us! What an amazing gift was given. Christ left His throne on high and took on the likeness of man! He came to be God with us. But we still have Immanuel, He isn’t gone. If we have been saved by Jesus’ blood then we still have God with us.

To be saved requires a separation from the former life. There must be a severance between the old life and the new life. That new life mandates the death of the old life.

Immanuel. Our gift, our free gift from God. Amazing. Simply amazing. The King over all the earth, the One no mortal eye can even look upon, is willing to come down and dwell with us! For He is our Immanuel, God with us.

How can He be at home in our lives unless we live in the likeness of His perfect life? Salvation is the rescue from ourselves and the destruction we deserve. Galatians 2:20 makes the verbal picture of what our life is now. It is no to myself, yes to Him, no to my will and my understanding, yes to faith and obedience in His will, no to my small selfish choices and yes to those inconveniences on my part in the effect of blessing another. Small continuous "deaths" of the old me, and small continuous growth in Him, the new me.

We must determine to part company with our sinful nature and "put on the Lord Jesus Christ". "Likewise reckon yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for you are not under the law, but under grace." Romans 6:11-14

And when the enemy comes to try to discourage us -"You hypocrite! You didn't really mean it when you said you'd start living for Jesus. You haven't been made new, you're still just as sinful as ever!" that's when we run to the cross and remember our Lord who cried out "It is finished". He is our Hiding Place, our Strong Fortress, we are new in Him.

Always keep in mind you have Immanuel. Your life is Christ's. Be careful where it goes. Be careful what it does. Be careful what it ponders. Be careful how it reacts. It is the temple of God.