Isaiah 7:14 Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).
Or more precise and Yoda like, “with US is God”
This is God with us (Jesus) in flesh on earth. God is with us now.
· Deuteronomy 4:31a for the Lord your God; he will not abandon you
· Deuteronomy 31:8 (requoted in Hebrews 13) Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.
· Psalms 46:7 The Lord of heaven’s Armies is here among us (with, by, beside)
· Psalms 94:14 The Lord will not reject his people; he will not abandon his special possession (inheritance).
· Psalms 145:18 The Lord is close to all who call on him, yes, to all who call on him in truth. (near in place and time with personal relationship)
· Psalms 139 (all about God’s love for us) – no matter where we go, He is there
· Psalm 35:18 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.
(near, ally, next to, family, ready)
· Hebrews13:5 (referencing Deuteronomy 31) I will never leave you or forsake you.
· Hebrews 13:5 (rephrased with original word meanings)
· I will never send you back, relax or loosen my hold on you, give up on you, leave your or let you sink. Nor will I abandon you, leave you helpless, forsake you or leave you behind.
· Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the ² Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
What are some of the things we learn from these verses?
1. God Almighty is in control 2 Chr 13:12 – Now look, God Himself is WITH as our head US (H7218 -chief, captain, company)
2. He cares about the tough things we are going through
3. God is always near us
4. He will never leave us
5. We have immediate access to him
Still! What does this mean? Let’s make this “God with us who never leaves us” idea very personal
When we spend time in devotions or prayer, time talking with God, who are we talking to? Who is this God with us?
· John 4:10 – (Jesus talking to the Samaritan woman at the well) “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.”
Yes, Jesus is talking about himself. Jesus wants the woman at the well to know who she is talking to because knowing who someone is matters. How we relate or respond to someone, how we ask things of someone is determined by who they are.
We need to understand who we are speaking to!
All throughout the Bible we see this beautiful redemption story unfold that is all about relationship.
· God created us to have relationship with him and for him to have relationship with us
· Sin brought separation between our relationship with God and his relationship with us.
· God sends Jesus to earth to die for our sins and to bring an end to that separation.
· This gives us access to the Father, who now because of Jesus’ humanity has an understanding of what it’s like to be human
· Then Jesus returns to Heaven to be with his Father and intercede (or pray) for us.
· After Jesus leaves, he sends the Holy Spirit to be with us, to be our helper.
We see the Trinity at work, each doing their own part and working all together so that we can have a personal relationship with God!
So who is this Trinity? Who is God? Who are we speaking to? What is He like?
The Bible lists attributes or characteristics of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. For the sake of time, I’ll list some of them here.
God (the Trinity) is:
· Love
· Perfect in Holiness, righteousness, faithfulness
· Grace, mercy, compassion and kindness
· Eternal, all powerful, all knowing, present everywhere
· Wisdom
· The designer and sustainer
· Glory and Majesty
· The Eternal Word, our advocate, redeemer, Savior
· The inspirer, teacher
· Healer
· Commander of Heavens Armies
· A miracle worker
· Tireless
Two more aspects of God we need to understand:
1. Hears our prayers (Jeremiah 29:12-13, John 9:31, 1 John 5:14-15, 1 Peter 3:12)
2. We can trust that he will never change (God is not human!).
· Isaiah 40:8 – The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.
· Malachi 3:6 – For I the Lord do not change.
· Hebrews 13:8 – Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
· James 1:17 – Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
How does this help?
1. When I pray, I can think about these attributes, which will help my perspective and my response to His answers. (give me perspective, hope, reassurance)
2. Understanding who God is can help me pray in truth.
God, I feel _______ but I know you are __________.
· Alone, always with me.
· I feel shame that I sinned again, but I know you are MY REDEEMER and SAVIOR.
· God I’m feeling anxious but I choose to trust you because you are faithful.
What do I do about this?
1. Study and Learn more about who God is
2. We need to share God with others so they can experience His beauty and wonder! (Mat. 28:18-20 Go and make disciples and I will be with you)