Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
Isaiah 7:14 NIV
A Virgin Conceives
In the early years of Confederation, Canadian politicians conceived of Canada as a global nation. Canada sent immigration agents and trade commissioners abroad long before it opened up its first diplomatic mission. Both Liberals and Conservatives sought a return to reciprocity but were rebuffed by the U.S. Eventually, Prime Minister John A. Macdonald decided to move in a different direction, implementing the National Policy of high tariffs, beginning in 1879. The policy won little support in the West and the Maritimes, but was popular in central Canada, home to most Canadian manufacturers.
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We are used to seeing signs – they are all around us, guiding us, persuading us, reminding us. We would hardly get through a day successfully without signs to help us along the way. God often promises us signs as we live our lives to honour Him daily. Some of them instruct us, others remind us of how we are to live our lives as citizens of the Kingdom of God. There are some of God’s signs that are foundational to the good news of Jesus. In Isaiah 7:14, the prophet writes this: “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” Given centuries before the arrival of Jesus, this sign would be hard to miss. From a human perspective, it is impossible for a virgin to conceive. That would take an act of God – which in fact it did, in the case of Mary, the one chosen to be the mother of Jesus the Promised Messiah. This is a sign that is impossible to miss, and she points the way to the celebration of His birth.
These have been words from the heart.
Bob Beasley