Scripture

“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign.  Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14

Reflections

Over 700 years prior to the birth of Jesus, the kingdom of Judah was under attack by a coalition of the kingdom of Israel and the Syrians.  The Lord God wanted for Ahaz, the king of Judah, to trust in him.  He even offered something to strengthen Ahaz’s faith, a sign, visible proof that the Lord had indeed spoken.  Unwilling to trust in God’s protection, Ahaz sought an alliance with Assyria, something that eventually came back and bit him.  Judah would become a vassal state of the Assyrian empire.

In frustration, the prophet Isaiah tells Ahaz that, despite his refusal to ask for a sign, God will give him one anyway.  It will be one that will stand through the ages.  “The young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.” (7:14)  God’s word, once spoken, stays out there accomplishing new things in new days.  The virgin birth of Jesus “fulfilled” the word of the prophet.  He filled it out, made it full.

When it is hard to trust God in impossible situations, let us look to the sign of a Virgin who gave birth to a Son who was in every sense of the word, Immanuel, God with us.  Even Mary thought it was impossible, but God assured her, “With God nothing is impossible.”  We don’t have to ask for a sign to help us believe.  He has already been born.

Prayer

Lord God, thank you for the sign given to us through Jesus, your very presence with us.  Help me to trust in you when it seems like the odds are against me.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Full Reading: Isaiah 7:10-16