For the last two weeks we have looked at two of the foundational doctrines of Bible Christianity. They may not be as valuable as the deity of Christ or salvation by grace through faith. But the doctrines of Heaven and Hell are extremely important. This Sunday being what it is, I thought we’d look at one more essential Christian doctrine. Let’s consider once again, the virgin birth of Christ.
Matthew, who was primarily writing to Jews of his day, begins by laying out some of Jesus’ credentials. Jesus is the Christ, the great grand son of David, as promised by God, the son of Judah, as promised. And He was one of the descendants of Abram as promised in the Abrahamic covenant. After following an outline of His genealogy, Matthew focuses on Christ’s miraculous birth.
In this genealogy, which reveals many things and hides some things, there is the name of one of the more wicked kings of Judah – Achaz – or Ahaz as we find him in the Old Testament – verse 9. Centuries before Jesus ‘ birth, the prophet Isaiah was sent to Ahaz with a message from Jehovah. “Moreover the LORD spake again unto Ahaz, saying, Ask thee a sign of the LORD thy God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above. But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the LORD.” The man’s answer was not spoken in humility, but rather with pride and a rebellious heart. “And (Isaiah) said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also? 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 is quoted here in Matthew 1:23 and is the focus of our thoughts this morning.
Our Lord Jesus Christ was born of a virgin and did not come into this world as an ordinary child. By “virgin birth” I mean that His mother, Mary, had never been with or slept with any man. That is a statement and doctrine which must be firmly cemented into our faith. I say that it “MUST be” a part of our faith – for a number of important reasons.
One these reasons is simply that there are many people who deny that this is important. It doesn’t matter whether you call these people “liberals,” “unbelievers,” “heretics,” “post-moderns” or whatever, these folk need and deserve an answer – and a REBUKE. I grant you there are many things which I hold dear, that are important but not absolutely essential. But this doctrine of the virgin birth of Christ is indispensable to our faith – and to our salvation. Of course, someone might be regenerated and forgiven without understanding the doctrine of the virgin birth, but he cannot be a Christian while knowingly and willingly deny it. “Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine (teaching) of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son” – II John 1:9. The heretic cannot steal the limousine in which the Saviour came into the world and call it “petty theft.” He cannot bomb and destroy Jesus’ maternity ward and call it “childish vandalism.” And each and every saint is obligated to be able to defend and contend for this aspect of our faith. It is not enough for evangelical Christians simply to say, “The Bible says it, and that settles it.” If the Bible says it, then it ought to be settled, but as ambassadors for Christ we need to be able to say, “I believe it, and here are some reasons” So, from time to time it’s important to review the scriptural facts about doctrines like this.
Fact number one – the virgin birth is an INTEGRAL PART of Christ, Salvation and Christianity.
It is not a secondary, peripheral or, unimportant aspect of our faith. This doctrine is one of the brackets that secures the shelf which holds up all the other books about Christ. Without it, all of Christology falls to the ground.
Sadly, modern religion is a Roddenberry universe filled with Romulans, Cardasians and Borgs. They began with Spock and Captain Kirk and then evolved into the “Next Generation,” and seven spin-offs. For a few years they have their fans and devotees, and then they fall away, demanding a new evolution. Nearly every organized religion in the world today is an ever evolving quagmire of confusing opinions. First, they believe certain things, and they condemn certain practices. Then they accept some of those formerly condemned practices, denying some of their original tenets. Some take on new tenets to suit the times and to fit into society. Many, over time, end up looking like a negative image to how they began. And in essence most religions appear to be just about the same as their neighbor. But that need not be, nor should it be – because God and the Bible are not evolving. All that relates to Christ Jesus, stands firmly beyond the quagmire – resting on the manner of his birth.
We couldn’t logically believe a single sentence or prepositional phrase of the Bible, if we couldn’t at the same time believe in Jesus’ miraculous birth. Again, by “virgin birth,” of course, I mean that Jesus was born to a woman who was a virgin. Why is it that the word “virgin” is considered to be funny or a dirty word and taboo? It is one of the purest of all words ever invented. The Bible says that Mary, Jesus’ mother was espoused/engaged to be married to man named Joseph. But before all the ceremonies and before the marriage was consummated, Mary was found to be expecting a child. Naturally, everyone’s first thought was that this young woman had been unfaithful to her espoused husband and had acted in an immoral fashion. But the Bible clearly declares that Mary was both physically and spiritually pure. The baby that she was carrying was MIRACULOUSLY conceived in her by the power of God.
Incidentally, it is very significant that the Talmud and other early Jewish writings laugh at the Christian claims of Jesus’ virgin birth. That Jewish sarcasm proves that this doctrine was not a doctrinal addendum added centuries later. It was a teaching of God’s people from the very beginning of the Christian era. Mere human religion, as I have said, is a constantly growing and changing thing. Catholicism for example, has evolved throughout the centuries, adding doctrines from time to time in order to please some Pope or to further enslave some of his adherents. And Mormonism began in theological lunacy but over the years has added a few Bible truths in an attempt to become acceptable. The doctrine of the virgin birth began with the Bible and was accepted by the disciples of Christ because it was Old Testamentically Biblical. The fact that we have just read of the miracle of Jesus’ birth in Matthew proves its ancient origin. The fact it is found in the Book of Isaiah proves that it is even older than the beginning of Christianity.
The Bible, in unmistakable terms, prophesied that Jesus would be born of a virgin. The first of those prophesies came at just about the beginning of humanity, in Genesis 3:15. Adam and Eve, our first parents, chose to listen to Satan and to sin against their Creator. When Jehovah confronted them, He gave each of them their own unique curse. “And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life.” In regard to the woman, we have one of the most subtle prophesies in the Word of God. But from the very earliest days of Christianity Bible teachers have understood “the seed of the woman” refers to one specific descendent of Eve. That person would eventually crush the head of the Tempter – the Devil. And in connection with that He would be our Saviour, our Redeemer, the Messiah. The way in which the verse is worded, this special Saviour would be the seed of the WOMAN – but NOT the seed of the MAN. Of course, for centuries that meaning wasn’t fully understood, but the prophesy of Isaiah clarified it. And when brought together those prophesies were fulfilled in Christ, and the meaning of the Lord in Genesis 3 became quite clear to anyone who wanted to read it.
It is very important to realize that Matthew quotes and refers to Isaiah’s 750-year-old-prophesy. In unmistakable terms the Old Testament prophesied that the Lord would give to Israel – and through Israel – to the world – a very special sign. Our Bibles say that a virgin would conceive, bear a son and call his name “Immanuel.” “Immanuel” in the Hebrew language means “God with us.” More than seven centuries passed before the angel Gabriel appeared to a young teenager named Mary, and told her that she would mother “Immanuel.” In the Book of Luke, which also teaches the virgin birth, Mary argued with the angel. She said that it would be impossible for her to bear a child, because she had never known a man. And apparently she was adamant that she would not until the day of her marriage to Joseph. But “the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” The Old Testament PROPHESIED a virgin birth and the New Testament REVEALED a virgin birth. Therefore, Christians ACCEPT, BELIEVE and PREACH the virgin birth of Christ.
And the fact is, if these words are not trustworthy, there isn’t a trustworthy passage in all Bible. If this doctrine is the product of imagination then it could argued that every part of the Bible is imaginary. And even Jesus Himself can’t be trusted, because He didn’t correct the common misunderstanding about His birth. Ultimately, the whole Bible crumbles to the ground if this doctrine is not true.
But more important than this, if that is possible … If Jesus had been born like all other men, He would have been born a sinner like all other men. If Jesus had been born a sinner, He would have, of necessity, died as a sinner, like all other men. If Jesus had died a sinner, He would, of necessity, have died for His own sins. If Jesus had died for Himself, He could not have died as a substitute for anyone else.
We MUST have a right thinking about the virgin birth of Christ.
We must see, for example, that this is HISTORICALLY ACCURATE.
We’ve already looked at the intimations which, from the very beginning, say that the Messiah wouldn’t have a human father. We’ve look at both Genesis 3:15 and Isaiah 7:14. These verses are prophesy, and prophesy is simply history pre-recorded. Prophesy is a very special historical statement.
Then we have those prophesies fulfilled in the gospels. Matthew says that the marriage of Mary and Joseph had not been completed. “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.” And the Bible says that this Special Child was fathered by the Holy Spirit of God. “The angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.” And then verse 23 quotes Isaiah 7:14 declaring that this was the fulfilment of that prophesy. “Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of Lord by prophet, saying, 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.” Whether or not men receive and believe these things, certainly they can’t say that we are misreading our King James Bibles.
Unfortunately, there are people who turn to Bibles other than the King James, ignoring Matthew and Luke. They say, but this Bible that I use doesn’t have “virgin” here in Isaiah 7:14. They say, ”This is the Hebrew word ‘almah,’ and in this Bible it is translated ‘young woman.’” There is no question that Isaiah used the word “almah,” and that there is an Hebrew word for “virgin” which is just as good as “almah,” But that doesn’t take away the fact that “almah” means exactly what the translators said it means. This word is used seven times in the Bible and four times is it translated “virgin.” But it never denoted an “young MARRIED woman.” It has always meant an “young UNMARRIED woman” or virgin. And when Luke tells us in Greek, that Mary was a virgin, the matter should be permanently settled. “And in the 6th month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary” (Luke 1:26-27). By the way, the Greek word “parthenos” is never translated as anything other than “virgin.” Either Mary and these verses are telling the truth, or they are lies and an attempt at deliberate deception. If this is deception then there not a reason in the world why we should believe anything that we ever find in the Bible. Fortunately for all of us, these things are absolute truth. The virgin birth is a HISTORICAL fact, prophesied, realized, and testified.
And then there is the fact that no one in the Bible ever hinted of a different meaning. Not Jesus Himself, not Peter, James, John or even Judas ever deny this miracle. “But,” someone argues, “most of these people don’t DIRECTLY say anything about the subject at all.” Essentially that is right. And the reason for that is that as far as they were concerned the point was unarguable.
But that doesn’t mean that the rest of the New Testament is silent about the virgin birth. What did the twelve-year-old Jesus tell his parents when they found him in the Temple? After the Passover spent in Jerusalem, Jesus’ mother, step-father and siblings where going home. But after traveling for several hours they discovered that Jesus was not among them. So they raced back to Jerusalem. When they finally found Him in the Temple, He said, “Know ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?” Which father? Joseph? Here was Jesus’ cryptic testimony of his Virgin Birth. It was something which He understood long before His ministry began.
And then what about all those references to Jesus being “the Son of God?” They come from Luke, Paul, Peter and John. They are found in the Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, and in various epistles. Jesus was, and is, uniquely the Son of God. And which Apostle ever spoke of Jesus as being “the son of Joseph?” Not one. He is called “the son of Mary,” but no one, but a few unbeleivers, spoke of Him being the son of Joseph. By the time of Paul, the virgin birth was an indisputable fact among the Christians. He didn’t need to spend a lot of time on the subject.
The historicity of the Virgin Birth of Christ is beyond dispute.
And believe it or not, the Virgin Birth is SCIENTIFICALLY TRUSTWORTHY as well.
One of clearest statements about virgin birth is found in the Book of Luke. And what is the background of the penman of that book? We are told elsewhere that Luke was a physician – a medical doctor. He was a man trained to question, probe, search and learn. As you read his two books of Luke and Acts, you see technical and scientific terms. He loved recounting the healings, miracles and details of Jesus’ life. He even had a fancy for geography and history. It would be against his nature to teach a virgin birth if he weren’t sure it was absolutely true. Listen to Luke 1:1-4 – “Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.”
The Virgin Birth is scientifically accurate – because it is consistent with the nature of God. My miracle-working God can overturn the working of nature at His will. Miracles don’t surprise the child of God at all.
Science cannot say, dogmatically, that a virgin birth is an impossibility.
But that doesn’t diminish the fact that this was INFINITELY MIRACULOUS.
Unless the Lord steps into this realm again, there never will be another virgin birth. All the medical manipulation of science to the contrary, it will never be done. When sinful people become involved – the ”virgin” aspect disappears. Because, besides other things, “virgin” means “pristine,” “unpolluted” and “pure.” The sins of man destroys the meaning of “virgin.”
And by the way “virgin birth” is the correct way to speak of this subject. Some people talk of the “immaculate conception of Mary.” The idea is false and Biblically unfounded. Mary was conceived and born like every other human baby, except Christ. She had a human father and a human mother, properly married and dedicated to God. And having a human father, she was born a sinner, just like you and me. She even acknowledged her need of a Saviour – her own son, Jesus.
Some people speak of Jesus’ incarnation as a merely “a supernatural BIRTH.” But actually, the birth of Christ was as common as any other birth. It was as painful as it was joyful; as full of travail as it was transcendence. It was the CONCEPTION of Christ which was miraculous and unique.
Some people refer to Christ’s as a “supernatural conception,” and it was. But so was the conception of John the Baptist, and Samuel, and Isaac. There were other supernatural conceptions. But the miracle of Jesus’ conception was vastly different. In fact there are conceptions and births today that seem to have the supernatural hand of God upon them. Yet, Jesus’ conception and birth stand apart from them all. No, the best terms to use in regard to this incarnation are “virgin” and “birth.” With those words we can’t loose the miraculous.
My point this morning is this:
Don’t let anyone rob you of a single detail of the virgin birth of Christ. Some people say that this doctrine is a myth: No, No! The heretics are “myth-taken,” and the critics are “myth-tified” but that is to be expected because they are unbelievers. I am convinced that this is true doctrine, and at the root of what is my faith.
And this doctrine is essential to our salvation from sin. Only a Heaven-sent Saviour could deliver this wicked soul from his sinful condition. Only someone truly man and truly God could work the miracle of my redemption. We cannot afford to relinquish a single atom of the doctrine of Jesus’ virgin birth.
So the question becomes: Have YOU been delivered from your sins through the death of this One who was miraculously born? It is not enough to believe that Christ was virgin born. Is your faith in the virgin born Christ, who gave His life as a ransom for many? It is the death of Christ which saves sinners, not the birth of Christ. What is YOUR relationship to the virgin born Son of God who died on the cross?