God With Us: Week 4 - Always With Us with Craig Groeschel

God With Us – The Miracle of the Incarnation

Scripture References

• Matthew 1:18
• John 1:1
• John 1:14

Overview

Christmas announces the staggering truth that God did not merely shout love from heaven—He stepped into our world. Jesus, fully God and fully man, is Emmanuel, “God with us.” Pastor Craig traces this cornerstone belief called the Incarnation, then paints an imaginative, Scripture-shaped conversation between the Father and the Son that shows what our salvation cost. Because Jesus came, suffered, died, and rose, God is forever present with His people through the Holy Spirit.

Main Points

The Incarnation in Plain Words

• Theology defines the Incarnation as God becoming flesh in Jesus; Pastor Craig simplifies it to: God the Spirit entered our world in a human body.
• John 1 declares, “the Word was God … and the Word became flesh.”
• Jesus possesses two complete natures—fully divine and fully human—joined in one person.

Setting Up the Story

• Craig jokingly cites Wikipedia’s dense definition to show how easily we over-complicate the truth.
• Personal note: the message outline flowed in 45 minutes, so quickly that he felt as though he were simply watching God type.

An Imagined Father-Son Conversation Before the First Christmas

This creative retelling stays within biblical boundaries while adding storytelling details.

• Mission briefing: The Father tells Jesus He will rescue sinners by living among them and dying for them.
• Virgin birth explained:
  • No earthly father means no inherited sin nature.
  • Born of Mary, a devoted teenage virgin; Joseph will quietly play the earthly-dad role.
• Life on earth:
  • Humble cave instead of palace signals He came for common people.
  • Immediate danger: Herod’s massacre forces the family to flee to Egypt.
  • Jesus will live with supernatural power yet choose ordinary obedience—taking baths, eating broccoli, making straight A’s.
• Carpenter years: He will craft wood that foreshadows the cross, be under-respected in His hometown, and take joy in serving.
• Public ministry:
  • First miracle—water to wine—will “mess with the Baptists.”
  • He’ll open blind eyes, heal lepers, raise the dead, befriend the outcasts.
  • Despite miracles, many will call Him a drunk, liar, or lunatic.
• Temptation showdown: The Father previews Satan’s tests; Jesus answers each with quoted Scripture, refusing to misuse power.
• Betrayal and abandonment:
  • Peter will deny Him three times.
  • Judas will sell Him for silver and betray with a kiss.
• Gethsemane agony: Terror and obedience mingle; He will sweat blood yet submit, “Your will, not mine.”
• The cross:
  • Flogged, nailed, stripped, mocked—yet He will pray, “Father, forgive them.”
  • The greatest pain: momentary separation when He becomes sin and the Father must look away.
• Resurrection promise: Three days later He will rise; tombstone rolled aside proves sin and death are defeated.
• Holy Spirit assurance: Jesus promises another Advocate—“He will be with you forever.”
• Great Commission: Followers will go, make disciples, baptize, and remember, “I am with you always.”

Emmanuel—God With Us Now

• Because Jesus came, God never leaves nor forsakes His people.
• In every season:
  • Guide for the lost
  • Companion for the lonely
  • Comforter for the hurting
  • Peace for the afraid
  • Healer for the sick
  • Strength for the weak
  • Savior for the sinner

Our Response

• Christmas invites us to trust the God who came close.
• Salvation is by grace through faith, not human effort.
• Pastor Craig led the congregation in a prayer of repentance and surrender, welcoming many into God’s family.

Key Truths

• Jesus is the Word made flesh—fully God, fully man.
• God chose humility: a manger, a cross, an empty tomb.
• The Incarnation proves love is not only something God says; it is who He is.
• The Holy Spirit indwells believers, ensuring God’s presence “always, to the very end of the age.”
• Salvation is God’s free gift, received by confessing sin and trusting Christ.

Response

• Receive the gift of forgiveness Jesus purchased.
• Acknowledge God’s nearness in every circumstance.
• Rely on Scripture when facing temptation.
• Extend Christ-like love to the rejected, hurting, and overlooked.
• Share the good news and make disciples, remembering Jesus is with you always.

Prayer

Pastor Craig prayed for two groups:

1. Those in hard seasons, asking God to reveal His comforting presence and grant peace beyond understanding.
2. Those ready to begin a relationship with Christ, leading them to confess sin, trust Jesus’ death and resurrection, invite the Holy Spirit’s indwelling, and commit to follow Him all their days.