Immanuel – God with Us

Today we are very excited to have a guest post from Tiffany Torres. Tiffany is the leader of the women’s ministry at Blaze Christian Fellowship. She lives in Santa Fe, NM with her husband and 2 children.

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel (which means, God with us).”Matthew 1:23

Have you ever wondered how Mary endured the hardships and trials in her life? A young, ordinary girl chosen to be the mother of Jesus in no ordinary way, but by the miraculous working of the Holy Spirit. 

Matthew 1:18 says,  “Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit”.

This certainly must have caused some conflict between Mary and her fiancé Joseph. His first reaction may have been anger towards her thinking she had been unfaithful. I can only imagine the courage Mary had to tell him what had taken place and about the angel’s words to her. In Matthew 1:19 it says that Joseph “resolved to divorce her quietly.” Have you ever faced rejection by someone you loved? Or had someone not believed you were telling the truth? I’m sure Mary didn’t know how things were going to work out, but one thing we can see from Mary is that she trusted the outcome to God. She had faith in what the angel told her was true and despite the ridicule and rejection she faced the hardships with hope and obedience.

We see God was at work and did not leave Mary alone. He sent an angel to Joseph to confirm the words that Mary told him. 

In Matthew 1:20-21 it says, “But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 

He brought truth to Joseph and secured their relationship. God offered help.

After the birth of Jesus, we see the hardships Mary faced continue. 

In Matthew 2:13 it says, “Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him’.” 

What must have Mary felt? Fear? Uncertainty? Worry? Surely, that must have been a tiring and scary trip to Egypt. But yet again, we see how God was at work and sent another angel. 

Matthew 2:19-20 says, “But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, 20 saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.” 

Mary trusted God’s leading and God offered peace.

Being the mother of Jesus, I wonder what Mary expected motherhood to look like. She didn’t know how the story was to unfold. We see the phrase “Mary pondered these things in her heart” used a few times in the scriptures after watching her son and his interactions. I can only assume her motherly heart trying to gain understanding. Mary didn’t know what lie ahead for her son. She didn’t know she would have to endure watching as he hung on a cross to die to be the Savior of the world. How her heart must have broken, and her tears flowed. 

Yet again, God didn’t leave Mary in her state of grief but gave her comfort and hope. The words of the prophet Isaiah say, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” (7:14) Immanuel meaning God with us. Jesus coming to earth to make a way for us to be with him forever. Jesus offered hope to Mary and the entire world by making a way for us to have relationship with him by taking our sins upon himself and dying in our place so that we can have eternal life. 

Thank you Jesus! May we look to the example of Mary and see how God was with her through each trial and hardship, just as He is with us through ours. He is Immanuel, God with us, who offers us help, peace, and hope.