Since I was young, I have heard Christians talk about Jesus being our Lord and Savior. This implies we are being saved from something or someone. Too often, our answers are anemic or at best incomplete. Jesus saves us from going to hell, and one day when we die, we go to heaven with God. Which is all true. AND. Jesus promises that his saving changes our today as well. That he saves us from the narratives of our world that leave us longing for more. That he saves us from a life driven solely by what you can produce or make or earn. Jesus comes to save us not just for one day in the future, but to transform how we live today also.

The Old Testament names that one day there will be a child born of a virgin, and his name will be Emmanuel, which means God with Us. That’s such a churchy phrase, God is with us. As the prophet Isaiah spoke those words, it was a game changer. God would be involved in our day-to-day life, God would become a human like us in a grand act of love to save humanity from ourselves. God would step into our story in a concrete way, and still walk with us in the highs and lows of everyday life.