The Christmas Story Part 1 The Miraculous Birth Of Jesus Christ
Here is where to find indexes containing all Bible lessons posted on this blog since its inception in 2019.
I hope this will help you find lessons on a particular book of topic that we have studied through.
An index for all lessons posted from 2019 through 2021, was published on September 7, 2022.
An index for all lessons posted in 2022, was published January 24, 2023.
An index for all lessons posted in 2023 was posted on February 28, 2024.
The index for all lessons posted in 2024 was published on January 21,2025.
A miraculous birth is disclosed.
Matthew 1:18 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.
Matthew's gospel begins with a genealogy of Jesus that proves He is a descendant of King David and in the royal line.
This proved that Jesus Christ was indeed, Israel's Messiah.
Matthew was guided by the Spirit of God to give a record of Jesus' birth.
Mary and Joseph were espoused, that is they were considered as a married couple even though they had not yet consummated their marriage.
The Jews had a custom where the husband would prepare a home for his wife and then he would come to take her to that home.
However, before they were formally married, Mary was found to be pregnant.
Out of wedlock pregnancy carried a big stigma in those days and their relationship was complicated because Joseph knew that he remained pure in his relationship with Mary.
Luke's gospel gives much more detail but Matthew quickly tells us that she was pregnant by the direct action of the Spirit of God.
We are now learning about a miraculous birth. Mary was a virgin, pure and undefiled and had never been with a man, yet she was carrying a child in her womb.
This, of course is the great mystery of Christmas, that God would become a man through the incarnation of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Joseph was a man of great integrity who truly loved Mary and sought to protect her.
Matthew 1:19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.
At this point, Joseph does not yet know that Mary's pregnancy is the work of God and he began to think about how to handle this situation without tarnishing Mary's reputation.
Joseph did not want to make Mary a public example where her reputation was sullied and her family made subject to malicious gossip.
Joseph's actions tell us a lot about this man.
He was honorable and truly loved Mary and this is proven by his effort to shield her and her family from great shame.
Thus, Joseph was thinking of giving Mary a private divorce so that she could raise her child and avoid scandal.
God spoke to Joseph in a dream to guide and comfort him.
Matthew 1:20-21 But while he thought on these things, behold, 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. 21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
While Joseph was occupied with thinking about divorcing Mary privately, God intervened.
The Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream with a very clear message for him.
What comfort must have flooded into Joseph's heart when he heard the Lord tell him "Fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife."
Heaven's explanation for Mary's pregnancy is given to Joseph.
Mary was indeed pregnant but this child was from the Holy Ghost and is the mighty work of God.
Next, Joseph was told that she was going to give birth to a son and he was told what to name this child.
His name was to be called Jesus and the reason for this is that He is going to save His people from their sins.
Jesus is a wonderful and beautiful name on many levels.
Jesus is the only name given under heaven whereby men must be saved (See Acts 4:12).
Jesus is the glorious name that all men will bow down and confess that He is Lord (See Philippians 2:5-9).
The name "Jesus" literally means Jehovah is salvation, or Jehovah saves!
Thus, the name Jesus tells us that Christ is Jehovah of the Old Testament scriptures.
Joseph must have been overjoyed that God was doing a mighty work of bringing Messiah into the world through his wife, Mary.
No doubt Joseph was rejoicing that he and Mary would be wed because their love for each other was sincere.
Important prophecy of Isaiah is literally fulfilled by the virgin birth of Jesus Christ.
Matthew 1:22-23 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23 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.
Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Matthew tells us that Jesus was born of a virgin according to the prophet Isaiah who wrote about 750 years before Christ was born.
A virgin means that Mary was morally and sexually pure. We will look at Luke's gospel later on in this series to discover more details about this momentous event in human history.
Both Matthew and Isaiah tell us that another name Jesus was given is "Emmanuel" which literally means "God with us."
The very first promise of a Messiah and redeemer is found in Genesis 3:15.
Genesis 3:15 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.
The birth of Jesus to a virgin name Mary is the literal fulfillment of God's promise made right after Adam and Eve sinned.
The "Seed of the woman" would be born to destroy the serpent which is Satan.
However, the "seed of the woman" is an extraordinary phrase.
No other ancient writers ever speak of the seed of the woman.
It is always the seed of man, the seed of David, the seed of Abraham, and so on.
A woman produced eggs in her body but she cannot produce "seed."
Jesus Christ was born of a virgin and is the seed of the woman.
Romans 1:1-3 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, 2 (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,) 3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh:
2 Timothy 2:8 Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel:
The Greek word translated "seed" is "sperma" which clearly refers to sperm created by men for procreation.
Thus, when God spoke of the seed of the woman in Genesis 3, He is looking forward to the virgin birth of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Paul made it clear that Jesus is the seed of David and in the line of kings.
However Paul also tells us that Jesus being the seed of David is "according to the flesh."
This connects with God being manifest in the flesh (See John 1:1-18; 1 Timothy 3:16).
Question: Why is the virgin birth of Christ as the seed of the woman so important?
Because since the fall of man into sin, every person born through normal procreation is born a sinner.
Romans 3:10-12 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
Romans 3:19 Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.
Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
The sin nature we inherit from Adam is passed on to each generation and each person via normal procreation between a man and a woman.
All have sinned and fall short of God's perfection and glory.
The entire world is guilty of sin and sin is the root cause of all the turmoil, trouble and tragedy we witness in the world today.
God must become a man in order to undo the damage caused by Adam and Eve.
Acts 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
Thus, a virgin birth means that the sin tainted seed of Adam was not passed on to Jesus Christ.
In fact, when Paul gave his last exhortation to the elders from Ephesus, he said that we were redeemed by the blood of God.
If Christ were not born of a virgin, then His blood would have been tainted with sin and could not save us from our sins.
We can praise God knowing that the blood of Jesus is the blood of God, pure and untainted by sin, fully able to pay for the sins of all humanity through all ages.
Matthew 1:24-25 Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: 25 And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.
How does this first part of the Christmas story end?
Joseph woke up from sleep and he obeyed.
He did as the angel of the Lord instructed him to do.
He took Mary to his home as his wife, and they did not consummate their marriage until after she had given birth to Jesus.
The Christmas story begins with a powerful demonstration of God's love for us and His heart of saving sinners from eternal destruction.
John 3:16-18 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
We can trust God.
We can believe His promises.
We can follow Joseph's example of humble faith and obedience.
We can rejoice that God's promises of a Savior were literally fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ.
Let us joyfully share the real story of Christmas.
Let us not be caught up in another "consumerism Christmas" for this is a holy day worthy of praise and adoration for God.
Giving of gifts should focus on telling others about the greatest gift from God of a Savior.
There is no greater gift than that of being born again through repentant faith in Christ.
Bob
Below is a link to an excellent performance from Handel's Messiah of the song "For unto us a child is born" by the London Symphony and Choir.
The main text comes from Isaiah 9:6-7.
Lyrics:
For Unto Us A Child Is Born
Unto Us A Son Is Given
And The Government
Shall Be Upon
His Shoulders
And He Will Be Called
Wonderful
Wonderful Counselor
Mighty God
Everlasting Father
Prince Of Peace
Mighty God
And There Will Be No End
To The Increase Of His Rule
To The Increase Of His Government And Peace
For He Shall Sit On David’s Throne
Upholding Righteousness
Our God
Shall Accomplish This
And He Will Be Called
Wonderful
Wonderful Counselor
Mighty God
Everlasting Father
Prince Of Peace
Mighty God
For He Is The Mighty God
He Is The Prince Of Peace
The King Of Kings
And Lord Of Lords
All Honor To The King
All Glory To His Name
For Now And Evermore
And He Will Be Called
Wonderful
Wonderful Counselor
Mighty God
Everlasting Father
Prince Of Peace
Mighty God
Comments
Post a Comment