God is at Home in Us: The Promise of Emmanuel

At its heart, Christmas is God's promise of home, His dwelling among us. Each Christmas we sing, "O come, O come, Emmanuel," but I can forget the extraordinary meaning of this word. Emmanuel means God with us. It reminds us that at Christmas, God did something unthinkable.

The Gospel of John explains, "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us." Dwelling here means to pitch a tent or make a home. That is the wonder of Jesus: that God chose not just to visit us temporarily, but to live permanently in and with us.

I will admit, I can become swept up in the rush of the season with the presents, the wrapping and the chaos. My eyes can glaze over to the wonderful truth we celebrate. But when I pause, I can remind myself of this truth: the God of the universe has made His dwelling, his home, among us. And if God did this, how can we create spaces of welcome and belonging for others this Christmas?

And if we struggle with loneliness this Christmas, then I want to invite you into your local community to celebrate with others the God who is always with us. This December, I hope we find a quiet (or loud) moment to celebrate on that extraordinary gift.

"The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel." Matthew 1:23 (NIV)

Andrew Ford

Group Executive

Community and Mission