Immanuel in the Garden

Intro:

I love Christmas Time!

We only have today and Next Sunday before Christmas is Here!

It is unbelievable!

As I thought about these two Sundays, I became increasingly excited about being able to talk about the GREATEST STORY THAT HAS EVER BEEN TOLD!

It is a story of the unexpected!

A story of the most majestic becoming the most humble!

A story of HOPE, LOVE, JOY, and PEACE

A story that can encourage the downcast, disheartened, and discouraged

A story that brings wind to the sails of one searching for purpose and meaning!

It is the greatest story of all time….a story of a SAVIOR BORN UNTO US!

In Fact, lets get right into the STORY….Matthew 1:18-23

Matthew 1:18–25 CSB

18 The birth of Jesus Christ came about this way: After his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, it was discovered before they came together that she was pregnant from the Holy Spirit. 19 So her husband, Joseph, being a righteous man, and not wanting to disgrace her publicly, decided to divorce her secretly. 20 But after he had considered these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what has been conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” 22 Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 See, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name him Immanuel, which is translated “God is with us.” 24 When Joseph woke up, he did as the Lord’s angel had commanded him. He married her 25 but did not have sexual relations with her until she gave birth to a son. And he named him Jesus.

She will give birth to a son, and you are to NAME HIM JESUS, BECAUSE HE WILL SAVE HIS PEOPLE FROM THEIR SINS!

See what I am saying, this story is so Good…..

Here we have a normal Jewish Man and Woman….Mary and Joseph

But there was nothing normal about their sudden SEASON OF EXPECTING!

Mary was a Virgin, yet conceived miraculously by the Holy Spirit!

They were about to have this child in a manger when there was no room in the INN

Yet this Child left the THRONE OF HEAVEN to be placed in this Manger Throne!

And while the baby was just born….His MISSION WAS CLEAR

HE WOULD SAVE HIS PEOPLE FROM THEIR SINS!

His Name would be called JESUS…

This was the Greek Equivalent to YESHUA….or Joshua which means YAHWEH SAVES

Joshua of the Old Testament was the one that LEAD HIS PEOPLE INTO THE PROMISE LAND!

This Joshua (JESUS) will be the one that LEADS HIS PEOPLE INTO THE TRUE PROMISE LAND!

And While Jesus is the name of the child, HE HAS ANOTHER TITLE HERE that I want to talk about this morning!

THE TITLE IMMANUEL!

Matthew 1:23 “23 See, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name him Immanuel, which is translated “God is with us.””

In Hebrew…Immanu means “with us” and EL means “God”….GOD WITH US!

God Incarnate….God dwelling among Humanity!

There is a precious Hymn that I am reminded of as I THINK ABOUT GOD BEING WITH US….

I come to the garden alone While the dew is still on the roses And the voice I hear, falling on my ear The Son of God discloses And He walks with me And He talks with me And He tells me I am His own And the joy we share as we tarry there None other has ever known

“IN THE GARDEN” is one of those hymns that captivate you and ministers to your soul!

In the Garden, a place you go alone YET GOD IS WITH YOU!!!!

He walks with you!

He Talks with you!

He tells you that you are His own!

Today, I want to talk about IMMANUEL IN THE GARDEN!

Which literally means…. God is With Us in the Garden!

And i want to look at four different places that we can FIND GOD WITH US IN THE GARDEN!

Immanuel in the Garden of Eden

I. “God Is With Us” in the Garden of Eden. (Gen 2-3)

Genesis 2:7-8

Genesis 2:7–8 CSB

7 Then the Lord God formed the man out of the dust from the ground and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, and the man became a living being. 8 The Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he placed the man he had formed.

God created man and blessed him with a Garden that God planted called EDEN!

And this Garden had every GOOD THING man could want!

Every provision was given here!

No Shame and perfect fellowship was given to man!

This Garden was THE FIRST PLACE GOD EVER WALKED WITH HUMANITY!

However, we chose to rebel against God…choosing ourself over Him….

And the consequences were grave….

Genesis 3:8–9 CSB

8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 So the Lord God called out to the man and said to him, “Where are you?”

Man, who was blessed to WALK WITH GOD….now HIDES FROM GOD!

The GOD WHO WAS WITH US……now has to ask WHERE ARE YOU!

And it gets worse…

Genesis 3:22–24 CSB

22 The Lord God said, “Since the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil, he must not reach out, take from the tree of life, eat, and live forever.” 23 So the Lord God sent him away from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. 24 He drove the man out and stationed the cherubim and the flaming, whirling sword east of the garden of Eden to guard the way to the tree of life.

Our Rebellion THREATENS THE IDEA OF IMMANUEL!!

Our rebellion got us banished from the Garden…

But more importantly….WE LOST GOD WITH US!

We lost the intimacy of KNOWING AND FOLLOWING GOD!

WE LOST PURE GOODNESS….and BECAME VERY AWARE OF EVIL…

AWARE OF….

TEARS

PAIN

AND DEATH

AS SINNERS….God was no longer WITH US in the same way!

We became children of wrath and sons of disobedience!

I am thankful for Immanuel in the Garden of Eden

Immanuel in the Garden of Gethsemane

II. “God Is With Us” in the Garden of Gethsemane. (Matt 26:36-46)

You know when you mess up….and you get that gut punch feeling!

You missed an important day for someone you loved….or you say something that was just hurtful!

And it is not that they are upset….but you just cant believe you did that….it grieves you because you know you hurt them!

I find this moment at the GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE…

We will see that GOD WAS WITH US…..BUT WE WERE NOT WITH HIM!

Matthew 26:36–46 CSB

36 Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he told the disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 Taking along Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 He said to them, “I am deeply grieved to the point of death. Remain here and stay awake with me.” 39 Going a little farther, he fell facedown and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” 40 Then he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. He asked Peter, “So, couldn’t you stay awake with me one hour? 41 Stay awake and pray, so that you won’t enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 42 Again, a second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” 43 And he came again and found them sleeping, because they could not keep their eyes open. 44 After leaving them, he went away again and prayed a third time, saying the same thing once more. 45 Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? See, the time is near. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Get up; let’s go. See, my betrayer is near.”

Jesus was sorrowful and troubled and told His closest friends to PRAY FOR HIM for he was deeply grieved to the point of death….

And they slept!

He woke them up and said STAY AWAKE AND PRAY…

And they slept!

He saw them sleeping again and continued to pray until HE WOKE THEM UP and SAID THE TIME IS NEAR...

THE SON OF MAN IS BETRAYED INTO THE HANDS OF SINNERS…..MY BETRAYER IS NEAR!

And Judas walks up with an angry mob with swords and clubs!

His closest friends WOULD NOT BE WITH HIM….They deserted Him and ran away!

However, THIS DOES NOT REMOVE IMMANUEL FROM THE GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE

We may have not been with Him, BUT HE REMAINED WITH US!!

This is the whole point….

He prayed Matthew 26:39 “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

THIS CUP is the cup of God’s Wrath…

Jeremiah 25:15–16 CSB

15 This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take this cup of the wine of wrath from my hand and make all the nations to whom I am sending you drink from it. 16 They will drink, stagger, and go out of their minds because of the sword I am sending among them.”

This is the cup that Jesus drank for those that are IN CHRIST!

And he finished every drop of it!

That is why Paul can say….

Romans 5:9 "Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!"

1 Thessalonians 5:9 “9 For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,”

When he was abandoned…..He never abandoned us!

In fact, He SHOWED US THAT HE WAS WITH US..…demonstrating His love for us while we were still sinners, he would die for us!!

I am so thankful for Immanuel in the Garden of Gethsemane

Immanuel in the Garden Tomb

III. “God Is With Us” in the Garden Tomb. (John 19:41-42)

John 19:41–42 CSB

41 There was a garden in the place where he was crucified. A new tomb was in the garden; no one had yet been placed in it. 42 They placed Jesus there because of the Jewish day of preparation and since the tomb was nearby.

This is another moment when one might think God was all by Himself as he laid DEAD ON THE COLD STONE WITH THE TOMB SHUT!

We know that He resurrects from the grave SHOWING VICTORY OVER DEATH!!

But WAS HE ALONE….

Don’t forget….His name is IMMANUEL….GOD WITH US!

God was WITH US in the GARDEN TOMB!

This is about to get really good….make sure you are listening!!!

Romans 6:3–5 CSB

3 Or are you unaware that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 Therefore we were buried with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united with him in the likeness of his death, we will certainly also be in the likeness of his resurrection.

Galatians 2:20 CSB

20 I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

2 Timothy 2:11 CSB

11 This saying is trustworthy: For if we died with him, we will also live with him;

This is the power of the death and resurrection of our Lord….

He was not ALONE in the Garden Tomb….

But rather, He brought the ELECT “THE CALLED OUT ONES OF GOD” into his DEATH so that we would be brought INTO HIS LIFE!

I am so thankful for IMMANUEL in the Garden Tomb!

Maybe Mary wasn't wrong after all when SHE THOUGHT THE RISEN JESUS WAS THE GARDENER IN THE GARDEN TOMB!

He indeed planted the Garden just like He planted the ONE ALL THE WAY BACK IN THE BEGINNING in the EAST….the GARDEN OF EDEN!

In fact, I think this was His plan all along…..A RECONCILIATION AND A RESTORATION TO THIS GARDEN WE WERE BANISHED FROM

A Garden where GOD TRUELY IS WITH US!

A Garden where there is no more….suffering, pain, or death….

SOUND FAMILIAR?

Immanuel in the Future Garden

IV. “God Is With Us” in the Future Garden. (Rev 21-22)

This is the great INVITATION FOR US TODAY…to join Him in this Garden!

It is the Garden that has been MADE NEW AND PREPARED FOR US…..

Isaiah 51:3 CSB

3 For the Lord will comfort Zion; he will comfort all her waste places, and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord. Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and melodious song.

Revelation 2:7 CSB

7 “Let anyone who has ears to hear listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

It is a Garden where GOD IS WITH US!

Revelation 21:3–6 CSB

3 Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look, God’s dwelling is with humanity, and he will live with them. They will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them and will be their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more, because the previous things have passed away. 5 Then the one seated on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new.” He also said, “Write, because these words are faithful and true.” 6 Then he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will freely give to the thirsty from the spring of the water of life.

It is the MOST BEAUTIFUL GARDEN!

Revelation 22:1–5 CSB

1 Then he showed me the river of the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the city’s main street. The tree of life was on each side of the river, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree are for healing the nations, 3 and there will no longer be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will worship him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 Night will be no more; people will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, because the Lord God will give them light, and they will reign forever and ever.

IT IS A GARDEN YOU ARE INVITED TO….

Revelation 22:17 CSB

17 Both the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” Let anyone who hears, say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come. Let the one who desires take the water of life freely.

Revelation 22:20 CSB

20 He who testifies about these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!

Don’t miss your invitation!

IMMANUEL is the TITLE OF A GOD WHO HAS MADE A WAY TO BE WITH US!!!!

We can see it at every step in EACH OF THE GARDENS….

Immanuel in the Garden of Eden

Immanuel in the Garden of Gethsemane

Immanuel in the Garden Tomb

Immanuel in the Future Garden

In the Garden

I come to the garden alone While the dew is still on the roses And the voice I hear, falling on my ear The Son of God discloses And He walks with me And He talks with me And He tells me I am His own And the joy we share as we tarry there None other has ever known