IMMANUEL
Suggested Reading: Isaiah 6-8
Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion).
Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: "Behold the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son and shall call His Name Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14). In our photograph, the believers of the Nazareth Village are doing a superb job telling the story. God has placed something in every human heart, believer or not, that causes a desire to celebrate at this time of year! Merry Christmas!!!
GOOGLE MAPS – To see where the photo was taken, click HERE.
Key Verses: Isaiah 6:3; 7:9b,14
And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!”… If you will not believe, surely you shall not be established…Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.
In the Gospel of John 12:41, John speaks of Jesus when he says, “These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.” John was with Jesus for over three years and John began his record of Jesus by writing, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God” (John 1:1)… And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld His Glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth!” (John 1:14). As a result of his vision of Jesus, Isaiah was transformed; First in his CONFESSION (Isaiah 6:5), second in his CONFIRMATION of forgiveness (Isaiah 6:7), and third in his COMMISSION (Isaiah 6:8). Isaiah believed and his life and ministry were established.
Those who do not want to believe in the virgin birth of Jesus will often say that the word translated “virgin” in 7:14 can also be translated “young woman.” Of course Mary was a very young woman, perhaps 13,14 or 15 years old. Be assured that in that culture and at that time, the entire tiny community of Nazareth, besides parents, guaranteed that all young women would be virgins. Early Hebrew scholars, as well as the early Church leaders, never doubted that the young woman referred to here would be a virgin. Otherwise this would be a normal conception and in no way would this be a miraculous sign from God to King Ahaz (Isaiah 7:11). We need to use our minds to do as the Lord said to Isaiah, “Let us reason together” (Isaiah 1:18a).
PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Lord God, I say with all my heart along with Isaiah, “Here am I, send me!” I pray that my 100% commitment to You will not waver in any way. Grant that I may “behold Your glory,” seeing with fresh insight the Person and work of Jesus Christ in Whose Name I pray. Amen!!!
100 PERSONAL WORDS:
Actually, as I type this at 5:25 a.m., I am overwhelmed with emotion. I’m having trouble seeing the keys on my laptop. I must stop and worship!!! Hallelujah!!! I need to be quiet. People are sleeping here because some of my family are still without electricity due to the ice storm. My grandson, David Peter Mainse, is awake and trying to get back to sleep. This 19 year old is lying on the couch cushions about 15 feet away. Inside my heart and mind I’m shouting with the Seraphim Angels, “HOLY, HOLY, HOLY IS THE LORD OF HOSTS; THE WHOLE EARTH IS FULL OF HIS GLORY!!!!!” (Isaiah 6:3). The picture below was taken November 25th, just a month ago. I’m on the edge of the mountain called Herodian. Bethlehem is seen behind me on the horizon. King Herod was probably on this mountain in his fortress for safety from an uprising of the people after he had ordered the killing of the boy babies two years old and under in Bethlehem. (Matthew 2:16) Bethlehem was a small village then with perhaps 300 people. In such a community there may have been a dozen babies. Herod had murdered his wife and two of his sons along with many others. Infanticide was common throughout the Roman Empire, so the death of these children would not have created much of a stir in the rest of the country. Because of the birth of Jesus, I have complete confidence in the fact that I will meet these murdered babies in Heaven soon. Christmas gives me such wonderful hope! What would I celebrate today if Jesus had not come as “Immanuel?” “God with us!” Amen!!!
Yours for a glorious celebration of “HIS GLORY” today,
David
P.S. Here is a link to episode #5 in the TV series for Christmas, which I taped this past November in Bethlehem. Episode #3 will be on CTS television at 9:30 tonight, with 4 & 5 on Thursday and Friday nights. CTS is “Canada’s Christmas Channel.” Check out the Christmas schedule here. MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM MY PERCH OVERLOOKING BETHLEHEM!!!
David, thanks for a year of inspiring devotional challenges, and today for the Christmas reminder to give God our 100% best…after all, he delivered His best to us yet in the most inclusive, humblest of ways. A baby in a manger.
Merry Christmas to you and Norma Jean, and to all of our Crossroads constituency. May more and more come to know the best love story ever, God’s love extended to every person on the face of the earth.
Love, Don and Fay Simmonds
Chairman, Crossroads
Even on Christmas! Thank you Mr. Mainse and Praise God for LIFE!
Dear Mr.Mainse
Thank you for all you have done for me on my journey, for guiding me and teaching me about Jesus and His unconditional love for us all..GOD’S words…also for holding my hand spiritually and helping me in my healing and forgiving(myself as well as others) after God called our wonderful,handsome 23 year old son Scott home to Heaven in SEPTEMBER 2004…
everyday sometimes every second is a slippery slope ,clinging to my sanity and seeking my purpose but my FAITH and TRUST in GOD and HIS plan for me and my family as told in Psalms 139 carry through the dark tormented moments.
I pray that you have a wonderful Christmas with your loved one’s, make happy memories as I have found out death takes everything physical but it cannot take the love and memories we share.
GOD bless you kind sir, thank you for all you do for us and for the helping hand you extend, unconditionally.
Take care, respectfully yours,
Mrs.Annamarie Cartwright
Wishing you and Norma jean a very joyous and blessed Christmas! May God continue to heal your body and continue to fuel your passion and vision with His divine strength and annointing. Here’s to a fruitful and healthy 2014!
With love from Eldon and Janet ,Johanna and Jordan
Merry Christmas Pastor!! We are so thankful for your commitment to our Lord and this blog. Our first Christmas gift and the best one…Jesus!!!
Shouting with you, HOLY, HOLY, HOLY!!! to the glory of God!! Thank you so much, David–oh faithful servant!!! God bless you and your family on this precious Christmas day! Merry Christmas, everyone!!!!
The beauty of Christmas, is like no other time,
When the world stops for one day, no war, hate or crime.
We welcome each other, with laughter and cheer,
We are kind to our neighbours, its that time of year.
We think of the homeless, and those all alone,
The loved ones we’ve lost, who’ve made heaven their home.
At Christmas we remember, His birth as a babe,
Born just in a manger, with donkeys and hay.
For our Heavenly Father, gave the gift of His Son,
Who grew into a man, to disciple everyone.
And lead us to freedom, with the gift of His life,
That we be forgiven, not once, twice, or thrice.
But over and over, as we bow on our knees,
Confessing our sins, and repenting of these.
It’s to You, our Lord Jesus, and angels, we sing,
We wish You, Happy Birthday, we praise You, our King.
c. Beverlee Kay
December 2013
Beautiful Beverlee. Merry Christmas!
Warm Christmas blessings from our hearts to your family.
Merry Christmas to all and a very special Merry Christmas to you, David! It is amazing that in today’s blog reading we read Isaiah 7:14 about the virgin conception and birth of Christ Immanuel!! God with us. I liked the analogy you referred to about the ants:) How else would we know!? Praise our Lord, Jesus Christ!! Have a spirit filled Christmas, to all!
Merriest of Christmas to you David and Norma Jean and all your family as well as all my blogger buddies
May God continue to heal your body in Jesus name Amen 🙂
How wonderful to celebrate THE GREATEST GIFT OF ALL………JESUS……..IMMANUEL God with us!
THank you once again Pastor David. To you and your family…….A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS and continued prayers for your good health.
Loving the series, great to see the early pictures of your family and grandchildren last night. Ron with a mustache??? Singing.
P.S. MERRY CHRISTMAS to my fellow bloggers.
Merry Christmas to you David and your wonderful family…and fellow bloggers…I echo the thoughts and sincere love expressed already…..and those awe inspiring words…”Here I am Lord…send me…use us!!!
Praises to our Saviour, Jesus Christ…Immanuel. This is the greatest celebration of them all. A blessed Christmas to you, Pastor David, Norma-Jean,family and to all my blog buddies.
Dear Lord, I pray for great blessings for my friends. As we go through the Bible, I thank You for Your word and for our human teacher, David, and most especially, The Holy Spirit. May our understanding and retention increase. MERRY CHRISTMAS.
Merry Christmas everyone.
God bless you David and Norma Jean and your whole family this wonderful Chirtmas Day. I am so blessed to live at this time when we can commune in this way. Merry Christmas to you and your family. YOur whollle family is such a blessing to our world at this time.
Merry Christmas to you, faithful pilgrim! You are loved. Thank you for helping us worship Him and dig deeper in His Word. Immanuel – Hope indeed. Love from our whole family. (Generationally following Him and equally appreciative of you) xo
Merry Christmas David Mainse and family!! Happy New Year!!
Merry Christmas David, Norma-Jean, Ron, Ann & Family.
What a wonderful blessing you all are at Crossroads!
We really enjoyed meeting you in Israel. Your families leadership on this trip
brought new experiences and opened our eyes, minds and hearts to so much more!
We had a wonderful time and we will cherish these memories forever!
Wishing you love, peace, joy and good health for 2014.
Blessings in Christ,
Margaret & Darren
Israel 2013, Blue Bus
Thanks for being so real concerning your emotions and times of worship. Sometimes I think I must be strange because it is my favorite time of the early morning, 4:30 to 5:30 as I pray, worship and often just cry before the Lord. Your blog has helped me to focus on Jesus Christ in a new way. It seems that at my time of life I have so much more to learn than I used to think I did. God is so gracious as He draws us into His Truth. Keep writing,… Christmas blessing of Love to you and your family!
Glory, Glory, Hallelujah!!!!
Merry Christmas Pastor David and family!!!!
Merry Christmas fellow blog-buddies!!!!
Enjoy this day surrounded by family and friends.
Merry Christmas to all. God is with us! His faiithful Love endures forever!
Amen to all the comments above! Wishing you, David, Norma Jean and your dear family, and blog-buddies a most blessed Christmas day! There is so much for us to be thankful for on this glorious day of celebration. God’s richest blessings to all and may this be a day filled with love and God-inspired conversations with our non-believing friends and loved ones.
Praying God’s loving and merciful blessings on the members of Crossroads staff and their families as you invite us to travel with you encouragingly in your spiritual walk through life. May God’s richest blessings rest upon you, Norma Jean and each member of your precious family that 2014 may bring hope in new ways.
🙂
M.