God had been on earth many times. He had walked in the garden with Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8), revealed Himself in a burning bush to Moses (Exodus 3:2), and led the Israelites through the desert in pillars of cloud and fire (Exodus 13:21). He had spoken clear messages to the prophets and communicated through numerous visions and dreams, but He had NEVER left His throne in heaven to become a microscopic infant.

How can we comprehend the Creator of all becoming a created being, the King of kings exchanging being worshiped by multitudes of angels for being acknowledged by three people, Mary, Joseph, and Mary’s relative, Elizabeth (Luke 1:43)? Jesus chose to leave behind the blinding brightness of His vast glory to live inside a small, dark womb for nine months and He traded the majestic symphonies of angelic choirs for the songs of His mother (Luke 1:46-55). Why? To demonstrate His immeasurable love for us!

May we pause to ponder the wonder of it all, that God sent His one and only Son as a gift to this world, to every person in this world, because He wants a relationship with us. “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’–which means, ‘God with us.’” (Matthew 1:22-23 NIV)