“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 ‭NKJV‬‬

Immanuel means God-is-with-us. Not far away, not unknowable, not cold and distant. God is with us.

Present. Real. Approachable. Accessible.

This is who God is when he steps out of heaven and into the lowly form of a human baby. When he “puts on flesh and moved into the neighbourhood,” as Eugene Peterson puts it.

This is Jesus – our Saviour, our Immanuel.

This Advent may you know the real, approachable, accessible presence of Immanuel, of Jesus. And may it fill you with a hope that does not disappoint.