O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
The Advent season is a time of hopeful expectation. We anticipate the coming of the long-awaited king. The season begins with the hope of Jesus coming again and ends with the celebration of his coming the first time in a manger. Popular culture has commercialized the season with gift-giving and one-plot movies. It is a time for family gatherings and sharing time with loved ones. There is nothing inherently wrong with any of this. I’m a sap for a good Hallmark movie as much as the next person. But all these things can mask the true meaning – the anticipation of the coming King.
Isaiah 7:14 tells us about the coming of Emmanuel: “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” Matthew uses this verse to confirm the fulfillment of this prophecy through the birth of Jesus in Matthew 1:18-25:
18 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. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 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. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:
23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name Immanuel”
(which means, God with us). 24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.
It is Emmanuel who comes into the world to set us free. We begin Advent by singing, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.” The first verse says the following:
O come, O come Emmanuel/and ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here/until the Son of God appear.
Israel was in spiritual exile until the coming of Jesus, who established the kingdom of God through the church. We call people out of their exile in sin to their home in Christ. We rejoice that Emmanuel has come and is coming again to consummate his kingdom on earth. During this Advent season, let us live in anticipation of that day when all will be made right.
