The Virgin Birth of Christ Christmas study

An interesting article was published in 2002 by The Telegraph, a British newspaper. The newspaper reported that twenty-five percent of clergy in the church of England did not believe in the virgin birth.[1] The journalist interviewed one clergyman, who said there was nothing exceptional about Jesus’ birth or childhood. It was His adult life that was extraordinary. When asked if the paper could use his name, he declined. He did not want his name to be used because he said his superiors might fire him if they knew what he truly believed. Therefore, he kept his views about the virgin birth to himself. What is bad about this his situation is that he rejected God’s Word that Jesus was born of a virgin. We must remember that the Bible is not just some ancient book written by some inconsequential individual. It was written by God himself. It is the very words of God. So when God says that Jesus was virgin born, it is important to believe that Jesus was virgin born. Now the clergyman may not think there is anything important about his erroneous viewpoint, but he has missed the fact that he has rejected the statement of God. That is significant and it is serious.

Statements Of Early Church Fathers

If we study the early church fathers who were closer in time to the birth, we discover that they believed in the virgin birth. They were in a better position to understand what actually happened. Consider Ignatius, for example. Ignatius, who lived roughly A.D. 105, said that Christ was “truly born of a virgin.”[2] Justin Martyr, who wrote a little later, said, “We even affirm that He was born of a virgin.”[3] I like the way he put it, “We affirm….” In other words, we are serious about this. We believe it. We affirm that He was born of a virgin. Justin Martyr also wrote, “And hear again how Isaiah in express words foretold that He should be born of a virgin . . .”[4] Origen made this comment, “A sign has been given to the house of David for the virgin conceived, was pregnant, and brought forth a son.”[5] Clement of Alexandria said this, “The Son of God, He who made the universe–assumed flesh, and was conceived in the virgin’s womb.”[6]

What is the testimony of these four early church fathers, not to mention many other church fathers? We would not have time to go through and read all of their comments, but they affirmed the truthfulness of the virgin birth, and they were a lot closer to the historical event than we who are 2,000 years removed. The early church fathers attest to the truthfulness of the event.

The Early Church Creeds

The early church creeds—there are three significant creeds—also affirm the truthfulness of the virgin birth. The Apostles’ Creed, which is commonly read in churches all around the country and the world, was written about A.D. 150 – 200. Or the Nicene Creed which was written later. The Athanasian Creed also affirms the virgin birth. In other words, the early Church fathers and the early creeds affirm the truthfulness that Jesus was virgin born.

Why is the virgin birth so important? There are four reasons that we are going to explore. There are four reasons why Scripture records the virgin birth, the early Church fathers attest to it and the creeds affirm it. It really does not matter whether or not some clergymen think it is not important that Jesus was virgin born.

Virgin Mary Will Give Birth To Christ

The first reason that the virgin birth is important is that Scripture recorded it. That is simple. Scripture recorded it. You may ask, “Why is that significant?” Anyone who has faithfully studied the Bible has discovered that it does not record everything. This truth is very obvious if you have studied the life of Jesus Christ or the gospels. What follows is a simple example.

We know that Mary and Joseph had parents, but Scripture tells us nothing about their parents. We do not know how their parents responded to the fact that Mary was pregnant with Jesus Christ. We do not know anything about the houses in which their parents lived. We do not know how their marriages were arranged. Remember that in the Jewish culture of those days the marriages were arranged. We do not know anything about the details of the trip from Nazareth up to Bethlehem. We do not know what kind of animals were present. We do not even know what kind of animal Mary rode from Nazareth up to Bethlehem. We do not know what kind of people were there when the baby was born. We do not know if she had help or if only Joseph helped. Scripture tells us nothing about these details.

We do not know how many shepherds were in the field on the night Jesus was born, or how many angels arrived. We do not know where the shepherds went after they visited Jesus, but we do know that they told others about Christ. We know very little about Jesus’ childhood, and the list of unknowns goes on. We do not know anything about how long it will be before the second coming of Christ.

It is amazing what Scripture does not tell us. Now do you know why? The answer is very simple. Scripture is not trying to give us all the details about everything. If we read each gospel, it becomes obvious that all of the information about Jesus’ three to four years of ministry has not been recorded. We know that most of the gospels record the last week of Jesus’ life and largely ignore the first part of His three to four years of ministry. It is amazing to realize what Scripture leaves out. Now I have said all of this to make this important point. Scripture includes only events that God considers to be important. The fact that the virgin birth is mentioned at all reveals that it is important. Therefore, the first reason the virgin birth is important is that it is recorded in Scripture. The fact that Scripture takes the time to record it at all tells us that it is important.

In Luke 1:26-38, the message is that a baby is going to be born. The baby will be virgin born. We are told in verse 1 that an angel appeared to Mary and his name was Gabriel. Earlier in Luke 1 we are told that the angel Gabriel stood in the presence of God. The fact that this angel appears is significant since he normally stands in the presence of God. He was God’s emissary. He is not just any angel who visited Mary and told her that the baby was coming.

In Luke 1:27 we are told twice that she is a virgin. The normal Greek word for virgin means that she is not married. Then in verse 34 the word “virgin” explicitly means that she is not knowing a man. The message is that she had not had sex yet and was not having sex. Not only was she not married, but she is not like so many who get married today. Today, when many couples get married, they have already been having sex with one another. This passage reveals that was not true of Mary. She had not been engaged in sexual activity.

In verse 34 we find that Mary told the angel she was a virgin,

How can this be, since I’m a virgin? Luke 1:34 (NASB)

Now if she had been engaged in sexual activity with someone, why would she ask how could she have a baby? If she had been having sex with somebody, then the question is unreasonable. But when she asks the question, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” She reveals that she is a virgin.

In verse 35 the angel Gabriel gives her the answer.

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. Luke 1:35 (NASB)

Notice that the angel did not say, “Let me think for a moment, maybe having premarital sex is the right solution. That way you can have a child.” Instead the angel said, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and overshadow you and you will have a baby.” The word “overshadow” is an interesting Greek word, because it has the sense of a cloud that would envelope her. In some sense the Holy Spirit would envelope her. Notice that Gabriel said, “And the power of the Most High will come upon you.” That is how the child will be conceived. This would be a miracle and it was a miracle! In verse 37 Gabriel explains why the virgin birth will occur.

For nothing will be impossible with God. Luke 1:37 (NASB)

Joseph Is Told His Virgin Bride Is Pregnant

In Matthew 1 we are told that an angel of the Lord visits Joseph in dream. This occurs because Joseph and Mary are engaged and he will eventually discover that she is pregnant. In Matthew 1:18 we are told the following.

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. Matthew 1:18 (NASB)

In the Jewish culture of Christ’s day, engagements were different than they are today. An engagement back in those days was like a legal contract. It was like getting married. It was everything but the final “I dos.” In fact, the engagement lasted for one year in order to determine if she was a pure woman. That is, that she was a virgin. It was a year to find out whether or not she had been having sexual relations with another man. If she became pregnant, then the marriage was canceled. That was the basic purpose for the one-year wait.

Verse 18 informs us that before the angel visited Joseph, he discovered that Mary was pregnant. It becomes obvious that he did not believe Mary. Verse 19 reports that he had planned to not have her stoned, but to divorce her quietly. Then verse 20 tells us that he had a dream and God came to the rescue.

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 Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 1:20 (NASB)

This is the same message that was given to Mary. The message that Jesus would be virgin born is repeated now twice. Did you get the memo? This fact is recorded in Scripture two times.

Verse 21 tells us why Christ was going to be virgin born.

She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins. Matthew 1:21 (NASB)

He was going to be born in order to save people from their sins. The next two verses explain that He is Immanuel. He is God. The name Immanuel means He would be with us. Now, these are not the only two passages in the New Testament that reveal Christ was virgin born. But the Matthew and Luke passages are the ones we usually hear about.

Joseph’s Genealogy of Jesus – Reveals Virgin Birth

Next we will examine two genealogies of Christ and in the process we will discover that genealogy reveals He was virgin born. The first genealogy is found in Matthew 1:1. The verse says,

The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham: Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah was the father of . . . Matthew 1:1-3 (NASB)

This is the genealogy of Christ which records His ancestral lineage. If we jump down to verse 16 we read,

Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah. Matthew 1:16 (NASB)

Did you notice anything unusual? The first part of the verse is normal. Jacob was the father of Joseph, but notice that we are not told Joseph was the father of Jesus. That is what we would have expected, because the entire chapter has been describing the sequence of fathers begetting sons. But that does not happen here. The verse says, “Joseph is the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born.”

This reveals the virgin birth of Christ. Joseph was not involved in the birth of Christ. Joseph was not responsible for the child. There was no sexual intercourse between Mary and Joseph.

Mary’s Genealogy of Jesus – Reveals Virgin Birth

The second genealogy of Christ is found in Luke 3. It also speaks to the virgin birth. We have looked at three passages about the virgin birth so far. This is the fourth one. The Greek construction is very interesting. It just basically says, “so-and-so is of, so-and-so is of, so-and-so is of,” but in your Bibles the translators have inserted the phrase, “the son of.” Here is Luke 3:23,

When He began His ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years of age, being, as was supposed, the son of Joseph, the son of Eli . . . Luke 3:23 (NASB)

What does Luke say? Everyone was thinking that Christ is the son of who? The answer is Joseph! But that was and is not true since it says, “was supposed.” The passage reveals the virgin birth of Christ.

Therefore, the first reason that the virgin birth is important is that Scripture records it. Scripture does not record everything. The fact that Scripture records it four times reveals that it was factual and of great importance.

Galatians 4:4 gives an allusion to the virgin birth. This is the fifth reference in the New Testament to the virgin birth of Jesus.

Virgin Birth Was Prophesied

The second reason the virgin birth is important is that it fulfilled prophecy. The Old Testament prophesied the virgin birth would occur. Prophecies are important because they help us understand truth. With regards to the coming Messiah, the prophecies affirmed that He would be Immanuel or God. The prophecies were designed to help us identify Him.

The first prophesy about the birth of the Messiah occurred in Genesis 3:15. In this passage we are told that the seed of the woman would be in conflict with Satan. This is important since the Hebrew word for seed actually means “semen.” Since women do not have seed or semen, this is an allusion to the virgin birth. The early church fathers understood this point and we can read their discussions about the birth of Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 7:14 is our next passage about the virgin birth of Christ. It is not just an allusion but a strong statement. Here is verse 14,

Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14 (NASB)

The critics say that the Hebrew word that is translated as “virgin” in this verse is alma. They say it refers to a married woman. But that is a problem since this Hebrew word occurs only nine times in the Old Testament. Each time it always refers to an unmarried woman. Two times it is transliterated, letter-for-letter, as “alamoth” (1 Chronicles 15:20; Psalm 45 in the title). In Exodus 2:8 is translated as “girl.” In Genesis 24:43; Exodus 2:8; Psalm 68:25; Proverbs 30:19; and Song of Solomon 1:3; 6:8 the word is translated as a maid, maidens or an unmarried woman. Every time the Hebrew word refers to an unmarried woman. Never, ever does the Hebrew word alma refer to a married woman. Do you know what the critics are not doing? They are not carefully doing a word study of the Hebrew word in the Old Testament. They are just objecting to the concept that Jesus was virgin born because then they do not have to deal with the truth that He is Immanuel – God with us.

Did you notice in Isaiah 7:14 that God said He was going to give a sign? Now let me ask an important question. Is it a sign that a married woman has a child? The answer is that is not a sign at all. That happens every day. It happens all the time. But if an unmarried woman, who is not having sexual relations, has a child, then that is a sign! Those who argue that alma means a married woman, and then try to explain that a married woman having a baby is a sign, have seriously missed the message of the verse.

Also notice that we are told “Behold….” Now let’s put it all together. Let’s look at all of the information in the verse. The verse describes an unusual birth. Notice that we are told this child will be a son. That message was given before ultrasound technology. Also we are told that his name will be Immanuel. This is really significant. This is a prophecy about an event that was going to happen in the future, about 700 years later. What does Matthew report about Jesus in chapter 1, verse 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.” Matthew 1:23 (NASB)

If you were not sure what the name Immanuel meant, Matthew translates the word for us. It means that the child was and is God. Also, when Matthew quotes Isaiah 7:14, the apostle Matthew uses the Greek word for virgin that means virgin and not a married woman. That is another reason why we should understand alma as meaning a virgin.

In summary, the second reason to believe that the virgin birth is important is that God prophesied it would occur in the Old Testament and Matthew reveals that the prophesies came true. This is important. God did not need to give us any prophesies, and Matthew did not need to tell us the prophesies were fulfilled. But God did and Matthew did. This means that the virgin birth is important.

Virgin Birth Reveals God’s Fingerprints

The third reason that the virgin birth is important is that it shows the fingerprints of God, or put another way: only God could do this. A virgin birth is impossible from a human perspective. No semen was involved. No scientific technology existed at the time of Joseph and Mary to perform in vitro fertilization. The virgin birth was a miracle.

Here is something else to think about. Unusual births occurred throughout the Bible. There were several unusual births in the Scriptures. Think about Adam and Eve, for example. They were the first humans. They were created in Genesis 1 and 2. They had no parents. God created them! God just took some dirt and breathed life into Adam. Later He took from Adam’s side and created Eve. That was a miracle of creation – not truly a birth.

God’s fingerprints are also revealed in the lives of barren or childless women. There have been barren women down through time who have eventually had children because God enabled them to have a child. Do you remember how Sarah was barren and later had Isaac? Or how about Rachel and her two sons? How about Samson’s mom? Or Samuel’s mother? Or how about John the Baptist’s mother Elizabeth? Zacharias and Elizabeth were past the age of child bearing and she gave birth to John the Baptist.

In Genesis 20:18 we are told that God closed the wombs of Abimelech’s household. He did the same to Rachel and then opened her womb. The message is that God can control whether or not a woman has children. He can prevent a birth or He can allow a birth. If you cannot have children, He can make it possible for you to have children. We have known young couples that unsuccessfully kept trying to have children. They were told that they could not have children. So we prayed and we prayed and we prayed and all of a sudden they had a child. That was a miracle birth! If God can do all of that, it should be simple for Him to cause a virgin birth.

The virgin birth is significant because it reveals the finger of God. God was involved. The third reason the virgin birth is important is that it tells us God was directly involved. This was not performed by humans. God intervened.

Please look at Galatians 4:4. This is an important passage.

But when the fullness of the time came … Galatians 4:4a (NASB)

What does “fullness of time” mean? Fullness of time refers to near the end of time. When Christ came it was near the end of God’s timeline for our world. Or in this particular case, it was the beginning of the end. The verse goes on to say,

. . . God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law . . . Galatians 4:4b (NASB)

Now notice that Paul says Christ was born of a woman. What is he talking about? The virgin birth! And who made the virgin birth possible? The answer is God! Did you notice what the verse said? It said, “God sent forth.” The Greek word for “sent forth” has the basic idea of sent forth or sent away. What this says is that God the Son was a second person of the Trinity. Do you know what God the Father did? He sent God the Son to be born of a woman. What does that mean about God the Son before He was born of a woman? He existed! If He was sent forth, that means He already existed. The verse should not say “sent forth” if God the Son did not already exist before He was born. The fact that He was sent forth implies preexistence. To say He was born of a woman means that He entered this human world. That is the message of the verse. This is very important.

Now look at John 6:57. Here Jesus is talking to a crowd, and makes this statement.

As the living Father sent Me … John 6:57 (NASB)

Who sent Christ? The Father did. That is what Galatians 4:4 said. The Father sent the Son. Now look at John 6:38.

For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. John 6:38 (NASB)

Do you understand what Jesus said? He said, “The Father sent me, and oh, by the way, that was His plan. I came to do His will.” In reality, it was the entire Trinity together: God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. But Galatians 4:4 says it was the Father’s plan, because He is the master planner. Christ came down from heaven, and it was according to the Father’s plan. The Holy Spirit made the virgin birth possible. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit were all involved. The Trinity was involved in the virgin birth.

If we go to Hebrews 10:5-7 we find that Scripture says,

. . . A BODY YOU HAVE PREPARED FOR ME . . . “BEHOLD, I HAVE COME (IN THE SCROLL OF THE BOOK IT IS WRITTEN OF ME) TO DO YOUR WILL, O GOD.” Hebrews 10:5-6b (NASB)

Do you know what these verses imply? Jesus chose to come and be born of a virgin in order to do the Father’s will. You may say, “How did all this happen?” Philippians 2 explains how this happened. In Philippians 2:5, the apostle Paul is encouraging Christians to have an attitude that is like Christ’s attitude. Then in verse 6 we are told,

. . . who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped . . . Philippians 2:6 (NASB)

Now this verse is talking about Jesus Christ. What is important to understand is that the word “form” in Greek is morphe. The Greek word means to have the same internal and external characteristics. That means this verse teaches us that Jesus had the morphe of God. He had the same internal and external characteristics as God. He was just like God the Father.

I used to have a dog named Prince. He was a white dog, a great dog, and I really enjoyed him. He learned to do tricks. Now I cannot believe that people have dogs and do not teach them any tricks. I found out that is the only way we can control a dog. We became friends. I was fascinated by this dog. I would go to work, return home, and when I opened the door, he was there to greet me. When my car pulled into the garage he could hear my car. When I opened that door, he would start spinning around and around. He was so happy.

It really touched me emotionally to see Prince’s joy. I was his master! At night he would lie down and sleep at my feet. We were like family, but he was not the morphe of me. He did not have my characteristics. He was not like me on the inside and was not like me on the outside. My dog was a dog. Prince was a dog. Prince was not the morphe of me. But Jesus was the morphe of God. He was totally and completely God in every way. That is the message of this verse.

Next, notice that verse 7 says,

. . . but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Philippians 2:7 (NASB)

Here we are told that Christ was the morphe of a bond servant. In other words, Christ was just like us. He became just like us and was made in the likeness of men. That is, Christ looked like us. Jesus was the morphe of God and he was the morphe of man. Now notice that verse 7 says, “But emptied himself.” This is a deep theological point, and I do not want to get buried too deeply into the verse. But the Greek word for “emptied” is the word kenosis.

This word refers to the fact that Christ limited the use of His divine prerogatives. On one occasion Jesus was talking to His disciples and went up the Mount of Transfiguration with three of His disciples. While He was on the mountain, He became as bright as the sun. In the Old Testament God appeared as the Shekinah glory. His divine glory was revealed momentarily. John stated God is light. When Christ was in the Garden of Gethsemane, He said,

Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was. John 17:5 (NASB)

What does that imply? On the Mount of Transfiguration the disciples who were with Him momentarily saw His glory that He had before the world was formed. But when Christ walked among us, He looked just like a man. This reveals one of the attributes that He limited while He walked among us. He limited the display of His glory. He limited the use of His divine prerogatives. He limited His glory while He was here so that it was not obvious He was God. His Shekinah glory was not visible as He walked among us.

This passage also reveals some hidden details of the virgin birth. God came, took on human flesh and lived as a human. Why? So that He could die for you and me. And that is the fourth reason for the virgin birth.

Virgin Birth Reveals Christ was Holy

The fourth reason for the virgin birth was so that He could be the perfect, sinless sacrifice for our sins. I have a question for you. How could a holy God be born into this world and not be virgin born? If He had not been virgin born, He would have been a sinner since He would have had a human father and mother. This is the ultimate, pinnacle reason for the virgin birth.

In Romans 5:12 we are told,

Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned. Romans 5:12 (NASB)

Do you know what that verse is saying? It tells us that sin entered the world through Adam, and then sin spread to everyone. It is like an infection. Figuratively speaking, we were all infected with sin. Verse 19 adds this,

For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous. Romans 5:19 (NASB)

The message is very simple. Adam caused the whole human race to fall into sin, and every one of us became sinners. And anyone born into this world as a man or a woman is a sinner. In Psalm 51:5, David writes,

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
And in sin my mother conceived me. Psalm 51:5 (NASB)

The message is actually very simple. We are born sinners, and we prove that we are sinners every day by the fact that we do wrong. We sin. That is the proof we are sinners. We cannot blame mom or dad. You can be upset with God all you want, but you prove that you are a sinner just by the fact that you sin. I sin and you sin. We violate God’s standards and commands constantly. Why is this important?

It is important because we need to understand our God who is infinite in all of his attributes. That means He is infinitely holy. He is holy to the nth degree. In 1 John 1:5 we are told that there is no shadow of turning with God. God does not sin. Therefore, how does a holy God become a human when every descendant of Adam inherits a sinful nature and we demonstrate that by sinning? Now this is important. If you have not discovered anything else so far, do not miss this. How can a holy God enter this world in human flesh when the sin nature is passed on from one person to another person? How can a holy God come into this world and remain infinitely holy? How can this happen? The answer is the virgin birth.

When John the Baptist saw Jesus, he pointed his finger and said, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Our holy God, Jesus, came to die on a cross for us. That is what he did. He came to die on a cross so that we could have our sins forgiven.

In 1 Peter 2:21-22 we are told,

For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH . . . 1 Peter 2:21-22 (NASB)

Do you understand what these verses tell us? Jesus lived here but He did not sin. Do you know why? He was not born as a sinner, and do you know why? The answer is that He was a holy God, who was virgin born. In fact, James 1:13 tells us that is it impossible for God to sin.

1 Peter 2:23 adds,

. . . and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously . . . 1 Peter 2:23 (NASB)

Isn’t this interesting? If you had been unjustly suffering on the cross, most likely you would have been saying some things you should not have been saying, but not Christ.

He just kept entrusting Himself to the Father . . .

. . . and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. 1 Peter 2:24 (NASB)

The passage says that our sinless God in human flesh was hanging on a cross to take away our sins. He was the perfect sacrifice. He did not need to do that. He could have let every one of us go to hell.

Conclusion

Do you understand why the virgin birth is so important? Christ’s sacrifice of Himself for our sins would not have been possible without the virgin birth. It is not wonderful to have a baby lying in a manger and deny the virgin birth. If Christ was not virgin born, then He was a sinner just like us and His death for our sins was a horrible lost cause. If He was not virgin born, then take your faith, walk out the door and toss it. Don’t come back to church. There is no reason to come back—if He was not virgin born. The virgin birth is foundational to having our sins forgiven, and for having eternal life because you and I are sinners. I am a sinner, you are a sinner. Jesus took our sins upon Himself (1 Peter 2:24-25) when He died on that cross. The only way we can have eternal life is by recognizing we are sinners, wanting Him to forgive us, and wanting him to change our lives.

There is a story told about three men who were climbing a mountain. They had two guides, one in the front and one in the back, and they were tied together as mountain climbers do on snow-covered mountains. They were climbing this snow-covered mountain, and the guide in the back slipped. When he slipped he fell over the cliff. Since he was tied to everyone else up the chain, he yanked the three men who were between him and the first guide. The four men were hanging on the rope, and only the guide at the top was holding on. The guide’s ice pick was jammed into the ice, and with sheer brute strength he held on while the four men climbed up over him to safety. The four men were saved because of one man who had slammed his pick and desperately hung on. Well, in the Garden of Eden, the first Adam slipped and fell, and we were hooked into him by our nature. We became sinners, you see. So when Adam died, we all died. When he slipped and fell, we all slipped and fell with him. We were all hanging over the edge and headed toward an eternal abyss. But there was someone else on that rope. He was born of a virgin, a man like you and me, and He dug in. He was born a perfect baby. He lived a perfect life. He did everything according to the will of God. He dug in, and then He died on a cross, and rose from the dead. Because He dug in, all who were slipping and heading into the abyss because of sin, can, by believing in Christ, reach safety—eternal life. – Unknown –

Here is an important question for you, “Do you have eternal life? Are you confident you have eternal life?” We have shared four reasons why we need to believe in the virgin birth. Christmas is not a sentimental season about a baby being born in a manger, but about our holy God who was born as a sinless human in order to die on a cross so that you and I could have our sins forgiven and spend eternity with God, as opposed to an eternity in hell.

 

References:

1. The Telegraph (www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1416824/Quarter-of-clergy-do-not-believe-in-the-Virgin-Birth.html)

2. Ignatius. The Epistle of Ignatius to the Smyrnaeans. Chapter 1. Ante-Nicene Fathers/Henrickson Publishers. 1995. vol 1. p. 86.

3. Justin Maryr. The First Apology. Chapter 22. Ante-Nicene Fathers/Henrickson Publishers. 1995. vol 1. p. 170.

4. Justin Maryr. The First Apology. Chapter 33. Ante-Nicene Fathers/Henrickson Publishers. 1995. vol 1. p. 174.

5. Origen. Oigen De Principiis. Book IV, Chapter 1, Section 5. Ante-Nicene Fathers/Henrickson Publishers. 1995. vol 4. p. 352.

6. Clement of Alexandria. The Stromata, or Miscellanies. Book 6. “Reasons For The Meaning of Scripture Being Veiled.” Ante-Nicene Fathers/Henrickson Publishers. 1995. vol 2. p. 509

Suggested Links:

Christmas Accounts
Gabriel Visits Mary
Mary’s Magnificat
Joseph’s Genealogy
Mary’s Genealogy
Is Isaiah 7:14-16 talking about Jesus Christ?
Who was Mary, the mother of Jesus?
When were Mary and Joseph married?
Jesus Is Born In Bethlehem