Impossible? Or Possible?

One of the most ridiculed tenets of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the story of His birth. Not that people deny that it happened (as they once did), but that it happened the way that the Bible said it happened.

First, it was prophesied in the Old Testament. But how can an event be known hundreds of years before it happens?

There are several verses but this one is the most well known and probably the most criticized. It is also the one Luke quotes as being said by an angel to Mary.

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)

And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. (Luke 1:30–35)

This conversation between Mary and the angel say that Jesus is Immanuel just as Matthew’s account affirms:

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). (Matthew 1:23)

Putting this together with other verses, the NT says that the birth of Jesus was told to Mary by an angel before it happened, she was a virgin, and the conception would not be about Joseph, but by the Holy Spirit. In other words, Jesus was fully God and fully man. Other verses say this:

. . . the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. (2 Corinthians 4:4)

He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, (Hebrews 1:3)

Why is this significant? How is it even possible? In my thinking, why limit God to our understanding of how things work? If the Bible is true in saying nothing is impossible for God, then there is no reason to ridicule the idea that He could be born in a human womb. The Bible indicates God wanted to reveal Himself to humanity. He is invisible. What other way could He do that and be believable? A spectacular sky show? Writing on the wall? Revelation into the mind? An article in the newspaper?

Because we are created in His image, what better way to show us what He is like by appearing as one of us — only without sin?

I’ve never had a problem with the virgin birth. In my thinking, any birth is totally amazing. Our human ideas of how to reproduce ourselves falls short. A clone is not a new creation and some of the science fiction efforts are downright comical. We are fearfully and wonderfully made by a God whose IQ goes far beyond genius. His creative powers are incredible. Our efforts to explain them are laughable and full of holes.

I should not be too hard on those who stumble over the idea of a virgin birth. God does say their minds are blinded and they cannot see the glory of Christ. I’ve been there. It is a miracle also that He can open blind eyes. As the NT says:

For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Corinthians 4:5–6)

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Jesus, You know how difficult it is for any of us to fully grasp the amazing truth of who You are. How can it be that God came to visit us, to redeem us, even to take on the task of transforming us into Your image? It happens — only because nothing is impossible for God. You truly take my breath away!

Who is that Baby?

People make fun of a virgin birth. They also write books, make movies, and mock it in television shows. Yet if God is God, the Creator of all things, why would a virgin birth be impossible?

Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: after His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.  (Matthew 1:18)

The author of my devotional reading for today says that the virgin birth is an underlying assumption in everything the Bible says about Jesus. To throw out this part of His story is to reject His deity and the authority and accuracy of Scripture. It may not seem very important to the average onlooker, but the virgin birth is essential to the Christian faith.

This is true because the identity of Jesus is key to the essence of Christianity. Everything else the Bible teaches about Christ hinges on the truth we celebrate at Christmas — that Jesus is God in human flesh, Emmanuel, God with us. He came as a baby, born to a virgin, fully man yet fully God.

Because Jesus is God, He can be our Savior, the sinless Lamb of God who could atone for our sin because He had none of His own. Because He is God, death could not hold Him. He rose from the grave and lives forever to intercede for us.

Today’s devotional reading also says that the virgin birth is as crucial as the resurrection in substantiating His deity. Believing it is not an option, because anyone who rejects Christ’s deity rejects Christ and the Gospel.

This is a highly contended issue. If I get negative and argumentative comments on this blog, they are always over the deity of Christ. Those who reject Jesus might say He didn’t exist, or that He was a good man, or that He was an angel or a prophet, but they do not accept that He is God in human flesh. The implications are simply far too great.

How do I know that the virgin birth is true? I could claim the human side of things, like faith, believing what God says, and so on, but I know that I did not believe it until God opened my mind and heart. He did that one afternoon while I was reading in my living room. Suddenly I realized and knew beyond a doubt that the Jesus of the Bible was far more than a baby in a manger, a good man, or a prophet.

For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end . . . (Isaiah 9:6-7)

He is fully God in human flesh. Because that is true, He also saves me from sin and daily transforms my life.

God looks for people who will say 'Yes'

Yesterday I read about Hannah who wanted a baby and prayed for its birth. Today my reading moves forward a few hundred years to Mary, who was single, not likely thinking about babies, but finds out that she is about to become pregnant with the Son of God.

The virgin birth is a cardinal doctrine of Christian faith. If Jesus was born in the usual manner, He could not be God in human flesh. If He were not God in human flesh, He would have sin of His own to answer for (since sin is part of the human condition), and He could not die for the sins of others. If He could not die for our sin, we would have to pay its price ourselves.

Just an insert here—sin, by Bible definition, is not just the big things like murder and robbery, but simply turning from God to do our own thing, not believing what God says to form our own views. If anyone thinks we are not all sinners, they already have turned from God because God says we are!

Mary was also a sinner, but she was also trusting God and not turning her back on Him. She believed what He said and lived according to His teachings. Even so, I can’t imagine how she felt when the angel came to tell her that she was about to become a mother, and no ordinary mother. This baby would be born without her ‘knowing’ a man (they used euphemisms back then too), and was reminded that “with God nothing will be impossible.”

Mary was in a tough spot. Not only would she face the stigma of a baby conceived out of wedlock, but Joseph would know that the child was not his. She would be accused of adultery, an offense at that time that was punishable by stoning.

The Bible doesn’t say she had any choice in the matter, however, her remarkable response showed her yielded spirit. She was not set against God nor determined to go her own way, even with this. Instead, she said, “Let it be to me according to Your word.”

Maybe the Lord picked her because He knew she was a godly young woman, one who trusted Him. The Bible says she had found favor with God, but that does not mean she was perfect. Some think she was sinless like her Son, but there is no biblical evidence that Mary was any different from any other person, other than she believed in God and obeyed Him. She had fears, doubts, joys and sorrows. She was born with a sinful bent just like the rest of us, but God had shaped her life and worked in her heart. He made her ready to be the one who would have this experience, and ready to respond to the news with a willing heart.

What I learn from Mary is just that. God brings things into my life, and while none are even close to being this momentous, He still wants that attitude of heart that says, “Whatever You ask, whatever You want; let it be to me according to Your Word.”