They shall call his name Emmanuel

(Matthew 1:23-25) Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS. God said through Isaiah 『Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14) Immanuel is a combination of the Hebrew words "im" (with), "manu" (us), and "el" (God), meaning "God with us". In John 1:18 “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.” There is a spirit in God's bosom, and that spirit is God because he is with God. Because he was with God in the arms of God, He is God. That God came into the world as the God of Immanuel. He shows God Himself to humans. So, because that God appeared to us, He is the image of God. So, in 『Let us make man in our image』, the image of God represents Jesus Christ. According to the way in which God exists, it is 『spirit』 if it defines the image of God. The image that God says ``according to our image'' means the spirit. 『And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness 』, so 『God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. Here, man is the first man, Adam, as a man in the image of God before being separated into man and woman. In Colossians 1:15, “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:” “The invisible image of God” is Jesus who appears as “the image of the visible God.” “Our image” means that “the invisible God” appears as “the visible God” as “the Spirit of God works in Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit”. In Isaiah 9:6『 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. 』 Isaiah said, "One baby (Jesus Christ) is the Almighty God and the Everlasting God." So, people call it Immanuel. It means “God with us”. Hebrews 1:3 says, "Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; 』 God is not with everyone. Only with those who repent. So repentance is important. Repentance is turning to God. It is a way to deny self. It is united with Jesus Christ who died on the cross.『 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. 』 (Acts 3:19-21) The apostle Peter explained salvation in four ways. Repent, be converted, be innocent of your sins, and a new day will come. Repentance is to realize that leaving God is a sin to die. Turning back means being converted, changing lives. Then the Lord washes away sin. The Greek word for "a day to be renewed" is a combination of an again and a soul. The soul is renewed. So the dead spirit is alive. When this happens, the intended Savior, Jesus, is sent. The repentant opens his eyes and finds himself in the dark. So, they go into the light. No matter how much you study the Bible before you open your eyes, there is no way to know the will of the Lord. You cannot even meet the Lord. Worship is the heart of a repentant person. If you don't repent, you just listen with your ears. Who would be saved if the Lord had no pity? But those who repent will be saved. The Lord had pity on David, who had murdered, committed adultery, and lied, and sent Nathan the prophet to him. It is an opportunity to repent. All sinners have the opportunity to repent. However, they did not take the opportunity and flowed like a river. The Lord had no pity on Saul, who returned without killing Amalek. In front of the Jabbok River, the Lord had pity on Jacob and struck Jacob's ring. It is an opportunity to repent. All sinners can take the opportunity to repent, but it is God's unknown mercy to give the opportunity to repent. To repenting Jacob, the Lord changed the name from Jacob to Israel. Repentance and regeneration are different. But it is not separated. If you repent, you will be born again, but you will not be born again without repentance. Only when you are born again will you be forgiven of your sins. It is the problem of repentance that many people in the Church misrecognize today. Repentance is a confession of sin. Mostly, “I am a sinner. I confessed last week.” Now that I confessed, “Please forgive me.” Others repent of their sins with tears, seeking forgiveness, and sinning again. He is repenting while comforting himself as an inevitable sinner who has no choice but to sin. We must recognize that the self-identity of the self is an immutable being. It comes from the flesh, so we must deny it. So we must repent and put on the body of the spirit. In order to deny the body, we must die with Jesus on the cross. It must be changed to an identity from heaven. So, life is changing. The Holy Spirit must lead. Those who are free from sin are those who are led by the Holy Spirit. You cannot do it as a person, but God does it. These people cannot love the world. You will never live for the existence of "self" again. Only to live for the Lord. The master is Jesus who died on the cross for me. It is associated with Him. If you are not united with Jesus, who died for me, your heart is in trouble.

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