Jesus our Immanuel, or ‘God with us’
We learn the following about Abraham from the 11th chapter of Hebrews – “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was offering up his only son, to whom it was said, ‘In Isaac your seed shall be called.’ He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he also received him back.” (Hebrews 11: 17-19)
God “tested” Abraham, or as John McArthur writes, God “examined” Abraham’s heart. James, Jesus’ half brother who wrote the epistle of James taught “Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith brings about perseverance. And let perseverance have its perfect work, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (James 1: 2-4)
Abraham’s concern may have been that if Abraham killed Isaac, it would in effect end the promise God had made to Abraham in the Abrahamic Covenant.
Although God’s request must not have made sense to Abraham, Abraham rose early the next morning and proceeded to do as God had commanded him to do. Abraham trusted God and what God could do to keep the promise He made. He even thought God could raise his son from the dead.
With Isaac on the altar and the knife in Abraham’s hand, the “angel of Yahweh called to him from heaven and said, ‘Abraham! Abraham!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ And He said, ‘Do not stretch out your hand against the boy, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only one, from Me.’” (Genesis 22: 11-12)
Paul taught in Romans – “For the promise to Abraham or to his seed that he would be heir of the world was not through the Law, but through the righteousness of faith. For if those who are of the Law are heirs, faith has been made empty and the promise has been abolished; for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, there also is no trespass. For this reason it is by faith, in order that it may be according to grace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the seed, not only to those who are of the Law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all.” (Romans 4: 13-16)
God revealed His holiness to the Israelites through the Law He gave to Moses. In giving them the Law, He showed them that it was impossible for them to purify themselves enough to enter His presence. The standards He set for them were ultimately not sufficient to deliver them out of the physical and spiritual death sentence they were under. The Law magnified their sinfulness. They needed something, ‘Someone’ outside of themselves to bring them into God’s presence.
Paul also taught in Galatians – “Just as Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness, so know that those who are of faith, those are sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, proclaimed the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘All the nations will be blessed in You.’ So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer.” (Galatians 3: 6-9)
For us today, we can have hope in what Christ has done for us! Paul also taught the Galatians, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us – for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’ – in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” (Galatians 3: 13-14)
Jesus is also referred to in the New Testament as Immanuel, which means ‘God with us.’ God revealed Himself to us through Jesus. We learn from Hebrews chapter 2 – “Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.” (Hebrews 2: 14-15)
We can put our faith and trust in His finished work. What He did for us is enough to take us all the way to heaven. Won’t we look to Him alone during this Christmas season and recognize who He truly is and what He has fully done for us!
REFERENCE:
The McArthur Study Bible, 2nd Edition. 2020. Thomas Nelson.
