God With Us

At Christmas, we celebrate the birth of a baby in Bethlehem, miraculously foretold from Genesis to Malachi. The characters and details exquisitely revealed by Matthew and Luke captivate our imaginations. But what else was going on that first Christmas?

Do we ever stop to consider that Jesus, the Lord and Creator of the Universe, knowing all things to come, voluntarily took on human form? That He was the "I AM" of the burning bush, the "4th Man" of the fiery furnace, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, eternal Immanuel, God With Us? That He chose to suffer and to die, bearing the full weight of our sins, to redeem us to God? 

He left the splendor of heaven so that whoever believes in Him "shall not perish but have eternal life. " What amazing grace, offered to all who would believe.

A very old hymn that's caught my imagination this Christmas is Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence, originally sung by 4th century Christians and set to a more "modern" French tune, Picardy, in the mid-19th century. 

Here's a lovely version sung by Keith and Kristyn Getty:

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence

As you celebrate the birth of the Christ child here on earth, ponder the mystery of John 1:14:

And the Word became flesh
and dwelt among us,
and we have seen his glory,
glory as of the only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth.

Bask in His glory and have a Blessed Christmas!