God is with us – What does that mean?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

Many times, when we say that someone is with us, we mean that they are our friends. We benefit from their companionship and comradery. They are there for us in our time of need or distress. They are on our side and will fight to defend us. “God is with us” means that the eternal God stepped into our world through Jesus, the promised Immanuel. Jesus overcame our sin, reconciled us to Himself, and revealed His heart in human form. From the garden to the flood to the wilderness to the cross, God has always pursued His people, ultimately giving His Son to die and rise so we could be forgiven, loved, and made His own. Through the Holy Spirit now living in believers, God remains present, empowering, comforting, guiding, and assuring us that He will never abandon us and that nothing can separate us from His love. And as we trust His promises and walk by faith, we discover again and again that the Triune God is truly with us and for us—now, in every trial, and forever.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• God is not with everyone in the sense of being friends with everyone. In fact, the Bible tells us that subsequent to Adam's fall, all mankind is born an enemy of God (Genesis 2:17; Psalm 51:5).
• But God promised to send a Savior, a Messiah, to save God's people from their sins. He promised to overcome the curse of sin and death, which man brought upon himself when he gave into Satan's temptation (Genesis 3:15).
• The prophet Isaiah spoke about this Messiah approximately 700 years before His birth (Isaiah 7:14).

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• The New Testament confirms that we are sinners by nature and by choice and that we deserve God's eternal wrath (Romans 6:23; Romans 8:7).
• God’s promised Messiah was God Himself: Jesus Christ was the long-awaited Immanuel, which means God with us (Matthew 1:22–25). Jesus is the Word (Divine Logos) who is both with God and is God (John 1:14). Jesus took on human flesh and dwelt among us; He is both fully God and fully man (John 1:18; Colossians 1:19). Jesus is what it means for God to be with us.
• Jesus humbled Himself, taking on the form of a servant, in order to identify and sympathize with us sinners, whom He came to save (Philippians 2:6–11; Hebrews 4:15–16; 1 Timothy 1:15).
• Jesus made having a relationship with God possible by breaking down the dividing wall of hostility between God and us (Ephesians 2:14).
• Jesus sacrificed His very life on the cross for our sins, thereby erasing our debt and making us right with God (Colossians 2:13–14).
• Through faith in Christ, we can be reconciled to God (Romans 5:10).
• As both God and man, Jesus is qualified to act as mediator between us, bridging the gap between us and God, bringing us to Him (1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 8:6; 9:15; 12:24).
• Jesus made peace between God and us by His blood shed on the cross (Colossians 1:20).
• Before His ascension, Jesus promised to send His disciples another Helper, the Holy Spirit (John 14:16–17). The Holy Spirit is sent by the Father and the Son to live within believers. The Holy Spirit guides us into the truth, comforts us, strengthens us, empowers us, prays for us, and produces fruit through us (Philippians 2:13; Romans 8:26; Galatians 5:22–26). In this way, God is with us by living in us.

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

God is with us in that He made the way for us to be made right with Him. God has always desired relationships with His people and made Himself known. He was with His people from the very beginning. He was with Adam and Eve in the garden both before and after they sinned. He was with Noah and his family during the flood. He was with the Israelites, saving them in the Exodus and bringing them to the Promised Land by a pillar of cloud and fire. He was with the Israelites through judges, prophets, and captivity. He was with His people as they rebuilt after captivity.

God is with us in that He sent His Son to live and die and rise again for us, so we may be forgiven, accepted, reconciled, and loved by the Father. Jesus, Immanuel, meaning God with us, came to literally be “God with us” in the flesh. He came to reveal God to us and to give Himself as a substitute for the death we deserved, making us right with God and showing us that God loves us so much that He gave Himself so He could be with us. And, He gave us His Holy Spirit after He ascended so that all who trust in Him for the forgiveness of sins have God living within us. In this way, Jesus demonstrates that God loves us (Romans 5:8). No greater love has anyone than to lay down his life for his friends (John 15:13).

God is with us by way of His promises made to us (2 Peter 1:4). God has promised His children that He will work all things together for our good (Romans 8:28). He has promised us that He will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). He has promised that nothing will ever separate us from the love of God in Christ (Romans 8:38–39). He has promised to resurrect us from the dead and grant us eternal life and joy in His presence (1 Corinthians 15:53; Titus 1:2).

As we live by faith in the Son of God and in the promises of God we will increasingly experience the truth that the triune God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) is with us and for us (Galatians 2:20; Romans 8:31).

UNDERSTAND

• God is with us in Jesus — Jesus is Immanuel, God in human flesh, who came to reveal God, overcome our sin, and reconcile us to Himself.
• God is with us through the Holy Spirit — the Spirit lives within believers to guide, strengthen, comfort, and assure us of God’s constant presence.
• God is with us through His promises — He guarantees never to leave us, to work all things for our good, and to bring us into eternal life where nothing can separate us from His love.

REFLECT

• When you consider that Jesus is Immanuel, how does it change the way you view your struggles and the moments when you feel alone?
• In what specific area of your life do you need to trust more deeply that the Holy Spirit is present to guide and strengthen you?
• How would your decisions look differently if you truly lived as someone whom God has promised never to leave or forsake?

ENGAGE

• What does it reveal about God's character that He has pursued His people from the garden to the cross and now dwells within believers by His Spirit?
• How does understanding Jesus as both fully God and fully man shape the way we understand God's nearness and compassion?
• How can we remind one another of God’s promises—especially His promise to be with His people—in seasons of fear, suffering, difficulty, or uncertainty?