O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

The words of the beautiful Christmas hymn, "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" capture the meaning of Christmas for us in the truest possible way. Far removed from Elves, presents under trees, candy canes and reindeer, we see Christmas for what it was intended to be - not what it has become. God sent His Son to deliver His people. "Immanuel" means "God with us". God Himself would dwell among His people once again. The promised deliverer of Isaiah 7:14 would appear... The people of Israel had been in exile and bondage. They were not the victim, however... They had turned their back on God and worshipped others.. But God, who is rich in mercy and steadfastly committed in His love, promised that they would not suffer for their sin forever. He would bring about their deliverance. The Messiah would suffer for their sin - in their place.
Just like captive Israel in the days of Jesus' birth, we are born captives. Held in the chains of our own sin. Without a deliverer we have no hope. Our eternal destiny rides on the shoulders of another. The deliverer would carry our sin to the cross with and tomb with Him.
The long-awaited rescuer hears our cries...
The long-anticipated redeemer paid the price for our sin...
The longing for wholeness, peace, deliverance is here - Immanuel (God with us) has come.