Hello everyone, and welcome back to our series titled What Child Is This?, where we take a deep dive into the Child who was born of the Virgin Mary. In today’s post, we will look at precisely that: the virgin birth of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Get some tea or some coffee and sit down for a bit...this is a longer one!
The Conception of Jesus
Let’s go back just over 2000 years into the past.
Before the writings of the New Testament.
Before Paul cast out demons.
Before Peter healed people with his shadow.
Before the day of Pentecost.
Before 5000 men were fed bread and fish.
Let’s go back to Luke 1 where the angel Gabriel appeared to a young woman called Mary.
A. The Angel Appears to Mary
Luke 1:26–35
26 Now in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was very perplexed at this statement, and was pondering what kind of greeting this was. 30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and there will be no end of His kingdom.” 34 But Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” 35 And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.”
Mary’s reaction to the greeting from the angel is reasonable. She was afraid and did not know how to respond.
There are three reasons why this could have been:
She was talking to an angel. In many instances, when an angel appeared in Scripture, he had to tell the person to whom he had appeared not to be afraid. The experience of seeing an angel alone would have been enough to frighten the average person.
400+ years had passed. Since the last book of the Old Testament, more than four hundred years had passed since anyone had received an authentic word or experience from God. The appearance of an angelic being was not something to take lightly, much less one who was talking about the Messiah.
An angel had already appeared to Elizabeth. Not long prior to Gabriel’s appearance to Mary, he had also appeared to Zechariah, the high priest at that time, who was the husband of Mary’s cousin, Elizabeth. The earlier verses of Luke 1 tell us that after the experience with the angel, Zechariah was left mute, being unable to speak. One could imagine how fast these stories may have traveled around.
The high priest became mute!
If Mary had heard the story, surely she would have been frightened by seeing an angel appear to her as well.
B. The Angel’s Message to Mary
1. “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”
Though Mary was betrothed to Joseph, because they were not yet married, they would not have had intimate relations.
Mary understood that pregnancy comes through sexual relations, and therefore recognized that something extraordinary was being announced by Gabriel.
Luke 1:35–38
35 The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God. 36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, the slave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
The child that was going to be born would be conceived by the Holy Spirit and would be called the Son of God.
This child was not going to be just another child.
He was going to be the means through which God would bring redemption to humanity.
2. Who Was This Son?
The angel’s message reveals several important truths about the identity of this child Mary would bear. Let's see what he said:
He told her she was going to have a son. This would not just be any son. For, not only was she going to conceive as a virgin, but her son was going to be very special and unique.
He told her the child would be the “Son of the Most High God”. “Most High” is the way in which the patriarchs of Israel and ancient men who feared God (such as Melchizedek) would refer to God. Christ’s mention of being called the Son of the Most High demonstrates a link to his deity. In other parts of Scripture, the term “sons of God” has been used to refer to angels. For this reason, many (falsely) believe that Christ was an angel. However, in Luke we see how Gabriel tells Mary that he will be the “Song of the Most High”. Later in the gospel, the legion of demons runs to Jesus, calling Him the Son of the Most High. Were He an angel, they would not have attributed to him this title.
He told her that the “Lord God would give him the throne of his father David”. Historically, God gave the right to rule over Israel to King David. Prophetically, the Messiah had to be a descendant of King David. Thus, God’s covenant with David was to be fulfilled in this child who was of the line of David, conceived in a virgin.
He would reign over the house of Jacob. The “house of Jacob” refers to the nation of Israel. Jacob was the son of Isaac (son of Abraham) whose name was changed by God (stated twice in both Genesis 32:28 and 35:10). Because of the Davidic covenant, Jesus (the promised King) would rule over the kingdom of Israel. The Israel of God is His kingdom.
His kingdom will have no end. This child was going to be the Son of the Most High God that would sit on the throne of David, rule over Israel, and whose kingdom would be eternal.
Only those who have repented and believes Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of their sins will be able to enjoy a new life in the Kingdom of God through Christ!
C. The Person and Character of Mary
1. The Immaculate Conception — a False Doctrine
Before moving on from the Angel’s message to Mary, I would like to take some time to analyze Mary.
The Roman Catholic Church has a doctrine known as the Immaculate Conception which teaches that Mary was conceived without original sin and that from the moment of her conception Mary was preserved by God from the stain of original sin (original sin refers to the inherited sin nature of Adam and Eve that affects all of humanity).
The doctrine claims that this preservation by God would have made her sinless. Catholics often use the passage that we examined in Luke 1 to show how the angel called Mary “full of grace” and, thus, it points to and supports the belief in her sinlessness.
This doctrine of the immaculate conception is in error.
Scripture clearly teaches that all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God (Romans 3:23). The implication and belief in Mary’s sinlessness is that she was born sinless and also lived sinlessly, which is erroneous, and contrary to what is stated in the Bible. If Mary was truly sinless, then she could have met God’s standard by her own deeds. Yet, Scripture indicates that a person’s salvation is not by works, that no man may boast.
Ephesians 2:8-9. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not of works, so that no one may boast.
Additionally, Mary herself shows her need for a Savior:
Luke 1:46-47. 46 And Mary said, “My soul exalts the Lord, 47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
Jesus Christ came to die for those who need saving.
The only ones who need saving are those that are lost.
The lost are those who have gone astray because of sin.
And all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God.
All like sheep have gone astray (Isaiah 53:6).
Thus, Mary was not, and could not, have been born sinless. The most obvious indication of the error of the immaculate conception is that her sinlessness is not even mentioned in passing throughout the Scriptures.
We cannot create an interpretation and, much less, a doctrine from something that is not in the Bible.
2. Mary, Blessed Among Women
With all of the previous considered, I do not wish to continue without also discussing the blessedness of Mary, and explain how we ought to honor and respect her as the mother of our Lord.
While it is true that certain denominations have elevated Mary to an almost divine status and placed her on a pedestal in which she ought not be placed, there are many in the protestant and evangelical church who perform a disservice to the person and character of Mary by diminishing her to just being another woman.
It is true, as we have discussed, that Mary was “just a woman” in the sense that she was a sinner.
She was a common jewish girl.
She was a peasant.
She was not wealthy.
She needed a Savior.
However, the angel did say that she was “full of grace” and the “favored one”.
It is true that Mary’s deeds and merits would not have earned her these titles, for our works are as filthy rags before God and cannot make us righteous. But God chose her to be the mother of our Lord (and her Lord). She was going to be the woman to give birth to the Christ. She was going to breast feed Him. She was going to give him instruction and teach him as a child. She would have to look over him and love him greatly! Thus, Mary could not have been just any woman!
She would have to be a woman that feared God, a woman that honored God’s Word and obeyed His commandments.
She would need to have been a humble woman with a meek and quiet spirit (as women are commanded to be in 1 Peter 3:3-4).
Had Mary not been humble, we would have a much different picture of her today.
Picture a version of Mary where she boats about giving birth to the Messiah.
Picture a version of Mary where she is puffed up in her opinion of herself, and tries to command the followers of Jesus to do her will.
Yet, Mary’s response in all of this was to say, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord, let it be to me according to your word.” And she rejoiced in the blessing and promise of the Lord.
Let us not slander and diminish the mother of our Lord. She was a sinner just like us, but she was also a special woman chosen for that very special task.
D. The Angel Appears to Joseph
It is important to note that, not only did an angel appear to Mary, but also to Joseph, her betrothed: her husband. There is also speculation about the identity of the angel which appeared to Joseph. While the Bible says that it was angel Gabriel who appeared to Mary, it does not say whether the same angel appeared to Joseph. Whether it was the same angel or a different one, Matthew 1 tells us of this event.
Matthew 1:18-24.
18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. 19 And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. 20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the One who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 And she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” 22 Now all this took place in order that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet would be fulfilled, saying, 23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” 24 And Joseph got up from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife.
When Joseph discovered that Mary was pregnant, he would have had every right to be upset and angry. Under the Old Testament law, he could actually have her stoned (Deuteronomy 22:13–21). But Scripture tells us he was a just man. He did not want to harm her. He did not want a drama-filled situation. Instead, he wanted to put her away quietly.
I do not believe anyone on Earth could have changed his mind. Thus, God sent an angel to him as a messenger, and to let him know that everything was going to work out for the good, for the child that was in her was of the Holy Spirit.
Gabriel told Joseph that this child was conceived from the Holy Spirit, and that he was to be given the name Jesus, for he would save his people from their sins.
This was not just any child.
He was the Son of the Most High.
He would sit on the throne of David.
He would rule over the house of Jacob.
He would reign forever. His kingdom would have no end.
He would save the people from their sins.
Immediately, upon hearing the message from the angel, the minds of both Mary and Joseph would likely have been presented with thoughts about the Messiah spoken of by the prophets. The jews were waiting for a man that would free them from their bondage. They were waiting for a man that would rise up against their oppressors and destroy their enemies. They did not understand that the Messiah’s mission was more profound than this.
Isaiah 7:14. "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel."
Isaiah 9:6-7
6 For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. 7 There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over His kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of Yahweh of hosts will accomplish this.
With prophecies such as these, the jews knew that a great person would come into their midst through a virgin. We also have many of his titles in these short verses from Isaiah:
Wonderful Counselor
Mighty God
Eternal Father
Prince of Peace
These names point to a being much higher than a common hero. These names point to the reality of all realities: that this child was the one and only True GOD.
Joseph and Mary would likely have immediately thought about the Messiah, the promised Savior of Israel. Zechariah and Elizabeth would also have had some idea of this (considering their own encounter with God in relation to John the Baptist). However, the bible says that, instead of letting the entire world know, they stored these ideas and thoughts in their hearts.
Growing up, most probably knew Jesus as just the son of Joseph and Mary. Indeed, there would be something different about this child. I can imagine that he was the perfect child growing up, who obeyed his parents and completed all assigned tasks. Being the incarnation of the Word, he definitely did not break any of the commandments and was perfect. But Scripture reveals that people just saw him as a common man.
His true identity would not be revealed until the appointed time, and it has been revealed!
Today we are blessed that God chose to preserve His Word from which we can know all that He has revealed to us about the Son.
And we will read more about it in the next post!
A Closing Word
If you've read this far, thank you! I pray that this blog has been an encouragement to you and helps to strengthen your faith and walk with our Lord Jesus Christ.
In the next post, we will continue our series Who is this Child? by studying John 1:1: In the beginning was the Word.
Reflection Question
How does the miracle of Christ’s conception shape the way I trust God’s power and promises today?
Comments
Post a Comment