Where are you, Lord?

One word weaves together the entire story of Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation: Immanuel — God with us. If you hold this thread in your hand and walk slowly through the pages of the Bible, you begin to see that the deepest mystery of God’s revelation is not simply a set of laws, not simply a story of human striving, but the great unveiling of a God who refuses to leave His people. The story of salvation is the story of Immanuel.

In the Beginning: God With Us in Eden

The Bible begins with paradise. What made Eden paradise was not the garden itself, but the presence of God walking with Adam and Eve “in the cool of the day” (Gen 3:8). Humanity was created for communion, to live with God in intimacy and peace. When sin entered the world, this communion shattered. Adam and Eve hid, and for the first time the ancient cry rose in the heart of man: Where are You, God? Paradise was lost because Immanuel was obscured.

The Covenant: God With Us in Promise

But God does not abandon His creation. Again and again, He renews His promise: I will be with you. He says it to Abraham: “Fear not, I am your shield” (Gen 15:1). He says it to Moses trembling before Pharaoh: “I will be with you” (Ex 3:12). He says it to Joshua standing before the Jordan: “I will be with you as I was with Moses” (Josh 1:5).

God instructs Israel to build the tabernacle, the tent of His dwelling, so that His presence can move with them in the wilderness. Later, Solomon builds the Temple, and the glory of the Lord fills it with fire and cloud. Even in their wandering, even in their rebellion, God insists: I will dwell with My people. The covenant is His vow to remain near.

The Prophets: God With Us to Come

Yet sin continues to wound and exile Israel. The people cry out: “Where are You, O Lord?” The prophets rise to announce hope. Isaiah proclaims: “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (Isa 7:14). Ezekiel speaks of a day when God Himself will shepherd His sheep (Ez 34:15). Jeremiah promises a new covenant written on the heart (Jer 31:33).

Through the prophets, God whispers into the darkness: I am coming closer still.

The Incarnation: God With Us in Flesh

The climax of the story arrives in Bethlehem. The angel tells Joseph that the child born of Mary will be called Immanuel — God with us (Mt 1:23). And so the invisible becomes visible, the untouchable becomes touchable, the eternal Word takes on human flesh.

Bethlehem itself means “House of Bread,” already hinting at what is to come. God chooses littleness, poverty, and hiddenness. He does not come in thunder but in swaddling clothes. Already, He is teaching us: “Here I am, with you, in the very fabric of your humanity.”

The Cross: God With Us in Suffering

But the deepest cry of humanity is not only for presence, but for presence in suffering. In every age, the wounded world has cried: Where are You, God, in our pain?

The Cross is the answer. Immanuel does not stay distant from our agony. He descends into it. On Calvary, God is with us in betrayal, in shame, in torture, in abandonment, in death itself.

Here is the great paradox: when the world mocks, “Where is your God?” the Crucified answers: Right here. Pierced, nailed, bleeding, but still loving. Right here, my beloved. The Cross is not only God’s hatred of sin, it is His embrace of the sinner. It is both judgment and mercy, wrath and tenderness, colliding in one act of love.

The Resurrection: God With Us in Victory

On the third day, Immanuel rises. His first words to the women at the tomb are: “Do not be afraid” (Mt 28:10). God-with-us is no longer only with us in weakness, but now also in triumph. He has passed through death and returned to say: there is no place I will not go with you, and no power that can keep Me from you.

The Risen Christ is still Immanuel — not gone, not absent, but more present than ever. He goes before us into glory.

The Eucharist: God With Us Forever

At the Last Supper, the mystery of Immanuel becomes everlasting. Jesus takes bread and says: “This is My Body.” He takes the chalice and says: “This is My Blood.”

The Eucharist is not simply a memory of a God who once drew near. It is the abiding of Immanuel, here and now. The same Word made flesh in Bethlehem, the same Lord crucified on Calvary, is present on the altar — for you, for me, for every generation until the end of time.

Bethlehem, Calvary, and the Eucharist form one seamless truth: God-with-us in littleness, God-with-us in suffering, God-with-us abiding forever as food.

The Church: God With Us in His Body

Through baptism, we are grafted into Christ. St. Paul says: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal 2:20). The Church is not merely a gathering of like-minded people; it is the Mystical Body of Christ. Immanuel is not only beside us but within us. We carry Him, and we become His presence in the world.

Heaven: God With Us in Fullness

The Bible ends where it began: God dwelling with His people. In Revelation we hear the final word: “Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with them” (Rev 21:3).

Heaven is simply the fulfillment of Immanuel. No more shadows, no more sacraments pointing to Him — only God-with-us face to face, forever.

Immanuel: The Story in One Word

So yes, Immanuel is the story of the whole Bible.

• Eden is God-with-us lost.

• Israel is God-with-us promised.

• Christ is God-with-us revealed.

• The Eucharist is God-with-us abiding.

• Heaven is God-with-us perfected.

The Bible is not first of all a record of what men have done, but a revelation of what God has done — and what He has done is never to leave us.

Immanuel is His name. Immanuel is His plan. Immanuel is His eternal promise.