Day 14 — O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

Most Christmas songs speak of the sweetness of the night of Jesus’ birth, which is the focus of our celebration. But today’s song, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” gets right to the heart of the matter and doesn’t mince words in speaking about everything His birth means—then and now.

You can probably sing along to the following lyrics:

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 song goes on to speak of freedom from the depths of hell:

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free

Thine own from Satan’s tyranny;

From depths of hell Thy people save,

And give them victory o’er the grave.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel.

Shall come to thee, O Israel.

While the author is unknown, like many Christmas carols, this song dates back to 15th century France. It is notably not as lighthearted in tone as some carols and leaves out mention of angels and shepherds, while focusing on the heart of Christmas—deliverance. 

Jesus’ birth and resurrection is a gift to all mankind, but most people approach it as they do natural gifts. For example, think of opening a large gift bag filled with tissue paper. You dig around until you finally find something and pull it out to ooh and ahh. Then comes the awkward moment—do you reach in again, acting like you’re expecting something more, or do you just leave it? 

You decide to be as polite as possible and assume there is nothing more, when the gift giver shouts, “There’s more!” Delighted, you reach back in for more. Just think—you might have missed out on some wonderful blessings if you hadn’t taken the time to accept the whole gift!

Some Christians reach into God’s gift bag, pull out salvation, and gratefully receive it. Then, they put the bag down and walk away. All the while, Jesus is shouting, “There’s more!”

If you’ve accepted your salvation but have left the other goodies in the gift bag—it’s time to reach in and take them, and give God the praise He deserves.

Here are the gifts just waiting to be received:

Healing

Wholeness and healing in your physical body is part of your salvation. Jesus bore your sicknesses and carried your diseases when He bore your sins, but healing won’t be manifested until you believe God for it, and say, “By His stripes I am healed.” That’s when healing starts to take place in your body—that’s when you accept the full gift.

Provision

If you’re in financial trouble, the answer doesn’t come from the outside in, it comes from the inside out. Jesus said He came to give you an abundant life—that includes total life prosperity and the blessing of material possessions. God loves you, and He wants you to eat the good of the land. Don’t leave that gift laying at the bottom of the gift bag. Open it and enjoy!

Deliverance

Depression, substance addiction, pornography addiction, strife, hopelessness, marriage trouble, worry, doubt, fear—anything that holds you in bondage—it’s all covered by the blood of Jesus. It’s all included in your gift of salvation.

It’s easy to see why the people who were waiting for their Savior would cry out, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel!” His coming did and still does mean so much—more than most even realize.

If you’ve only received part of the full gift of salvation, make this Christmas your time to receive the full gift. He’s calling out to you today, saying “There’s more!” Will you reach back into that bag and take all the deliverance He’s given you?