Word to the Wise
Monday, December 20, 2010 - Fourth Sunday of Advent
[Isaiah 7:10-14; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-24]Ask for a sign from the Lord, your God; let it be deep as the netherworld; or high as the sky!......Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel. [Isaiah]<br /> All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: Behold the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means "God is with us."
The words, "All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet...." tell us everything about today's scripture and about the celebration to come at the end of this week! When Moses protested at the burning bush that he lacked the ability to take on the mission to which God was calling him, God simply says, "I will be with you..." This is a familiar refrain in the scripture. God is "with us." "Emmanuel" is not Jesus' name, it is his mission! This mission becomes physically real in the conception and birth of Jesus and his entire life, death and resurrection. What we celebrate is the beginning of this story in our history, even if it took place more than 2,000 years ago!
Needless to say, there is a big difference between picking up the Christ Child figure from our crib set to hold in our hands and picking up a live baby and seeing fulfillment of a divine promise in him/her! Perhaps some of us can do both this season! Isaiah and Matthew invite us to appreciate God's promise to be with us. Indeed the Gospel of Matthew ends with the words: "Behold I am with you always, till the end of the age...." During this coming week, we can focus our attention on the sacred moment of birth, but our challenge goes beyond giving birth to bringing the message to the world. "God is with us!" AMEN
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