HE IS WITH US
Valerie Rae Hanneman
July 16, 2004
Matthew 1:23 “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a Son, and they will call him Immanuel - which means, "God with us."” (NIV)
Early in his political campaign a certain candidate that I admired and supported made a stop here in Fresno. When I heard about it I was just about as excited as excited could be. I called the local political headquarters to confirm when and where he would be and I made plans to be there. I even asked for time off at work because I wanted to be there early enough to get a good seat. Finally the day came when he was going to be there. Early that afternoon it started a light rain -but that was not enough to deter me! I went home - made sure that my clothes were clean, my hair was done, and my make-up in place. As I drove to the private hanger over at the Fresno Airport where this candidate was making his appearance it really started to rain. And I mean it REALLY started to rain. Because this private hanger was meant to house airplanes and not crowds of people - the parking was atrocious - even though I was well over an hour early. I ended up slogging quite a distance through the rain & mud to get there. When I got to the hanger not only was it already half full - there wasn’t any seating! Knowing that I was going to be standing in a crowd for over an hour before he even arrived did not deter me. I wanted to be there with him that night. I wanted to know what he was like past the sound bites on TV. I wanted to see for myself if he was what he seemed to be in the newspaper articles. So I stood there in an ever growing, shoulder-to-shoulder crowd. About 15 minutes after he was supposed to be there the announcement came. The rainy weather had delayed his plane - it would be at least another ½ hour. We all waited - I did not see anybody leave because if the delay. The rain continued to pound outside and little streams of water started coming across the cement floor of the hanger. One of those streams came right between my feet - and as it got wider I stood with my feet further and further apart. An hour and a half later when the candidate finally arrived, I was standing with my feet almost two feet apart. When he walked into the hanger, excitement - like an electric current - flashed through the room. The band played, confetti, flags and balloons filled the air as we screamed, cheered, and jumped up and down. (Well - I didn’t jump up and down - I had that river of water thing going on - but I was on my tippee-toes!) He was accorded all the honor and respect due to the political royalty he is.
And isn’t that the way that we treat our royalty? Regardless if they are political royalty, sports royalty, movie screen royalty or rich guy royalty? When we are going to be with them we dress our best, we go to great lengths to reach them, we undergo all manner of hardships just to see them. To just - for one shining space of time - be with them.
There was another time when Royalty was among us. And He is the super-nova of royalty. Things were different though when He came. When He came there wasn’t a flash of excitement through out the earth. There were no bands, confetti, flags or balloons. All of mankind did not cheer or jump up and down as He arrived. That is because He did not come for us to be with Him. Jesus came to be with us. The focus was not on Him - His focus was on us.
When I wanted to be with the political candidate I took off work early, I slogged through the rain and stood for hours, while straddling a small river. I put up with a lot to be there with him that night. After he left I made a commitment that I had not made since McGovern was campaigning. I committed my time - part of my life - to a political campaign. I made this unusual commitment because I believe in this candidate and wanted him to be elected to the position he was campaigning for.
When Jesus was born in that dirtwater stable, He sacrificed an existence we cannot even begin to imagine - just so He could be Immanuel - God with us. He willingly traded the perfection of being the Holy One for a frail, imperfect human body. He willingly left behind the glory and adoration of all of Heaven for the obscurity of being a carpenter’s step-son in a little tiny village. He suffered through the temptations and trials that we go through so that He could know first hand what it was like to be human. He put up with a lot - just to be with us. Then He made a commitment so extraordinary that it can never be matched. He committed His life to us by dying for our sin and in our place. He made this astounding and unusual commitment because He believes in us, He loves us beyond all reason, and He wants us to be with Him forever.
That is not what is expected out of our “royalty” is it? Our royalty demands the best - Jesus chose the least. Our royalty wants the spotlight - Jesus chose obscurity. Our royalty demands that we come to them. Jesus came to us. Our royalty expects us to serve their needs. Jesus came to serve our needs. And our greatest need is for Him.
Jesus is not what we expect out of royalty - but that is what makes Him so unique. He deserved all the accolades accorded to royalty - but He chose to be with us. He chose that because that is how very much He loves us. He chose us over the glory of heaven - He chose us over the glory of earth - He chose us over His very own life.
Now He invites us to come to Him - to be with Him.
There is a day when Jesus will return to earth and He will be treated like the absolute royalty He is. Those of us who - throughout earth’s history - chose to be with Him will be with Him on that day. Best of all - we will be with Him forever. There is no greater joy.
Contact Valerie at valerie@fresnofirst.org
Posted by Valerie at July 16, 2004 02:55 PM