by

Dr. E. Harold Henderson

Dr. E. Harold Henderson was for 25 years, from 1972 -1997, the principal English language speaker on LifeWord Broadcast, an international radio outreach of the Baptist Missionary Association of America. Dr. Henderson was the Writer of the Adult Sunday School Quarterly (Baptist Publishing House, Little Rock, AR) for 39 &1/2 years. He authored four books and numerous religious periodicals.

© LifeWord Broadcast Ministries
Conway, Arkansas
Reprinted by permission

Prisoners Bible Crusade
P.O. Box 696
Picayune, MS 39466

THE MEANING OF THE VIRGIN BIRTH. . . . . . . . . . .Page 1
THE WITNESS OF THE VIRGIN BIRTH . . . . . . . . . . .Page 3
THE NECESSITY OF THE VIRGIN BIRTH. . . . . . . . .Page 5
THE SEQUEL OF THE VIRGIN BIRTH. . . . . . . . . . . .Page 6
THE EMPHASIS OF THE VIRGIN BIRTH. . . . . . . . . .Page 9

Two men were discussing the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. One remarked of his wonder at the cross where Jesus died for sinners. The other responded, "I can scarce get past His cradle in my wondering to wander at His cross." So might each person marvel at the incarnation of God in a human body.

Consider the marvel of the incarnation. The Ancient of Days became a babe in Bethlehem. He who thunders in the heavens became an infant crying in a cradle. He who made all flesh became clothed with flesh. The mighty God became a helpless infant. God and man became one in the body of Jesus, the Christ. The incarnation is indeed a great marvel.

Human reason tends to reject the Bible account of the incarnation. It seems so contrary to the natural order that the natural man draws back in question of it. That is the only time such a thing occurs in human history. True. But that is the only time in human history that God came down to live in a physical body as Man among men. If God, the Creator of all, chase to come into the world as a part of His creation, it is no surprise that He chose to come by a new and different way. Virgin conception was the way by which God came in human flesh.

Much of the question concerning the incarnation of Jesus Christ is due to a misunderstanding of what happened in the act of incarnation. The details are recorded by a physician, named Luke, and recorded in the gospel which bears his name in our New Testament (1:26-38).

The Bible account is wonderfully detailed, yet appropriately restrained. The angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, called Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, and the virgin’s name was Mary. He greeted her with the words, "Hail, thou that art highly favored, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women." She could not imagine what was meant by such a statement. He continued, "Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favor with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus..." Mary could not understand, and asked, "How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?" Then the angel explained the miracle of the virgin birth with these words: "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." Mary responded, "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word." That is the summary of the Bible account of the virgin conception by which God came into a human body.

We speak of "virgin birth," but the Bible lays emphasis upon virgin conception. It was the conception, not the birth, which was a miracle. The Bible record indicates that Mary was a normal woman before the visit of the angel Gabriel to announce her conception and birth of her divine Son. It further indicates that all the processes of development of the fetus and the delivery at birth were normal in every way. The miracle lies in the nature of the conception. Jesus, the Christ, had a human mother but He had no human father. The virgin conception was a miracle of God.

Virgin birth does not mean "immaculate conception." Immaculate Conception is a doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church, which holds that the virgin Mary, though conceived naturally by human parents, was from the moment of conception free from any stain of original sin. That is not what is discussed in Luke 1. The Bible makes no reference, not even once, to the Immaculate Conception of Mary.

Virgin birth does not mean "miraculous birth." There is a doctrine abroad today that the birth, not just the conception, of the physical body of Mary’s child was by a miracle of God. It is related to the dogma of the perpetual virginity of Mary. The teaching is that Mary, even after the birth of Jesus, remained physically as if she had never conceived or given birth to a child. There is nothing in the Bible to indicate any thing miraculous about the birth of Jesus. It was the conception which was an act of God.

Virgin birth does not relate to the dogma of perpetual virginity of Mary. After the birth of Jesus, she became the normal wife of Joseph (Matt. 1:24,25) and gave birth to at least six other children by normal process of conception and birth (Matt. 13:55,56; Mark 6:3). There is nothing in Scripture to indicate the perpetual virginity of Mary.

What, then, is meant when we speak of the virgin birth? We mean that, contrary to the course of nature, God did a creative miracle by which Mary, a pure and chaste virgin, conceived a child without a human father and nine months later brought forth her first-born Son, Luke 1:35 explains it in this way, "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."

Be careful that you do not misunderstand. No coitus of any kind occurred, human or divine. God performed a creative miracle. As the Holy Spirit hovered over the formless mass in Genesis one, and God spoke His creative word to form the world, so the Holy Spirit hovered over Mary and God spoke His creative word to form life in her womb. Pre-existent deity and finite humanity were thus fused in One, whom we call Jesus of Nazareth.

Jesus lived in the light of His miraculous incarnation. He called himself the "only begotten" Son of God in John 3:16. The term He used was composed of two words: the first means "alone" and the second means "I am born." The term means that He is unique in His birth; He is the only one born after such a manner. He testified, "Ye are from beneath, I am from above," John 8:23. "I came down from heaven," John 6:38. "I came forth from the Father," John 16:28. He knew of His miraculous entrance into human history, and His divine existence before His incarnation.

The gospel writers, Matthew and Luke, were careful to separate the birth of Jesus from the births of other men in their genealogical account. Matthew used the formula, "So-and-so begat So-and-so," over and over in his genealogy. But when He came to Jesus, he changed the formula abruptly and wrote, "And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ," 1:16. He carefully refrained from saying "Joseph begat Jesus" as he had done in tracing each generation. Luke was equally careful, writing, "And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph," 3:23. He did not say Jesus was the son of Joseph, but that Jesus was "as was supposed" (or, as people thought) the son of Joseph. Yes, even the genealogical accounts of Jesus indicate His is different from other men.

The doctrine of virgin conception and birth was not set forth because some believed it and sought to make the Bible teach it. Quite the contrary. The fact did not arise out of the belief; the belief arose out of the fact. Mary did not expect virgin conception and birth, so she questioned the angel, "How shall this be...?" Joseph did not expect virgin conception and birth, so he considered divorcing Mary on the grounds of adultery, Matt. 1: 18-25. God did a new and unexpected thing when He sent His Son by the miraculous way of virgin conception and birth. Indeed, we can hardly get past His cradle in wondering at the miracle of God.

"Father, thank you that you have come in human flesh in the person of Jesus. Thank you for taking our nature and bearing our sin that we through faith might take your nature and bear your righteousness. Grant that this moment many who share these words may trust Jesus Christ and be made new in Him. For Jesus’ sake. Amen."

The Bible doctrine of the virgin conception and birth of Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, lies at the heart of the Christian faith. He who rejects that doctrine undercuts the very foundations upon which the Christian religion is founded.

We believe Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ of eternity. We believe that His earthly ministry was nothing less than God clothing Himself in a human body, experiencing all the circumstances of human birth, growth, life, and death, and triumphing over them all so as to provide salvation for us in time and eternity. Because we believe that, we worship Jesus as God, trust Him as Savior, and serve Him as Lord.

The virgin conception and birth of Jesus is a foundation stone on which rests our belief concerning Him. How sure can we be about the details of His miraculous entrance into human society? What witnesses are there that He was truly born by miraculous conception to a pure and chaste virgin? Our faith is firm because reliable witnesses are many.

God foretold His coming in human flesh long before the event. The first reference to it is recorded in Gen. 3. Adam and Eve had sinned and were expelled from the beautiful Garden of Eden. The judgment upon sin had fallen on nature, on them individually, and on all their posterity. The forewarned sentence of death became real to them. How pitiful they were as they were set outside the Garden and forbidden the right to re-enter it. Yet, in the midst of that tragedy, God gave a promise. Gen. 3:15 recounts the promise of God that the seed of the woman would bruise the head of the serpent. Salvation was promised through a Son born to the woman, not to the man and the woman, but to the woman. The "first gospel" suggested the virgin conception of the Savior.

Isa. 7:14 recounts the familiar prophecy, "Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." The angel of the Lord explained to Joseph (Matt. 1: 18-21) that prophecy was fulfilled in the miraculous virgin conception of Mary.

Prophecy was fulfilled when Jesus was born as the virgin-conceived Son of Mary. When the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman..." (Gal. 4:4) as He had promised through the prophets that He would.

The angel Gabriel was "sent from God" to announce to the virgin Mary that she would be the mother of the Christ child. She had no idea of virgin conception. She never thought that was what Isa. 7:14 and Gen. 3:15 taught. She wondered how she could bear a child before her marriage to Joseph was consummated. The angel explained that the power of God would be mediated to her by a creative act of the Holy Spirit so she would conceive a child without a human father. No one had ever heard such a thing before, but Mary knew God could do it if He wished and offered her body to be the vehicle of God’s miracle.

Joseph, espoused husband to Mary, learned that she was awaiting the birth of a child. He knew he was not its father and, not thinking of the possibility of a miraculous virgin conception, concluded that Mary had been unfaithful to him. He resolved to break quietly their marriage espousal so as to bring as little shame upon Mary as possible. The angel of the Lard came to him in a dream and instructed him to take Mary as his wife. The angel explained, "...that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost." The Bible comments, "Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel..." Joseph was told by an angel that the conception of Mary was the fulfillment of prophecy in Isa. 7:14.
If you believe in the validity of prophecy, and if you believe the message of the angels of God, you will believe in the virgin conception and birth of Jesus.

It happened as it had been predicted. Mary was with child. She did deliver a son. He was unique in His person, power, relation to God and man, and in every aspect of His being. The historicity of the birth of Jesus Christ is beyond dispute.
The fullest account of the virgin conception and birth of Jesus is recorded in the gospel of Luke. Remember that Luke was a physician. He must have investigated the matter thoroughly before he recorded it and set his name to it. Besides that, he was guided of the Holy Spirit in writing the account. His record is true.

The apostle Paul made many references to the unique person we know as Jesus Christ. In Phil. 2:5-8, he discusses the incarnation of God in human flesh and declares that Jesus of Nazareth is the incarnate Christ. In Gal. 4:4,5 he writes how "when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons." In the second epistle to the Corinthians, he testifies, "God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them...," 5:19. The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews reported how Jesus became a partaker of flesh and blood, the same as we humans have, in order that He might make reconciliation for our sins. The apostles all witness to the reality of His incarnation by a new and different way, the way of miraculous conception.

Galatians, chapter four, is an important passage on this subject. Four times Paul used the word for "born" when speaking of other men, but he used the word for "become" when He spoke of Jesus. The usage indicates Paul understood that Jesus was not born as other men, but became what He was not — flesh! How did Paul know about the miraculous conception? Remember that he traveled with Dr. Luke as his personal physician on some of the mission tours, and Luke must have explained to him in detail the circumstances of the birth of the Lord. The Holy Spirit, in turn, directed Paul to report that unique doctrine in his epistles.

Consider the witnesses to the truth of the virgin conception and birth of Jesus. Consider the number of witnesses. Consider the reliability of the witnesses. Consider the agreement of the witnesses. Consider the witnesses and be not faithless, but believing.

Faith in the virgin-born Son of God will bring forgiveness of sins, acceptance before God, safety from death and hell, and all the privileges of being a child of God.

"Father, give the gift of faith to all who receive these words. Settle the witness of the Spirit in our hearts as we trust, and love, and serve Him who is our Savior. In Jesus’ name. Amen."

I believe in the Bible doctrine of the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. That doctrine can be concisely stated in this way: "God broke into the natural chain of human generation and by a creative miracle through the Holy Spirit caused conception in the womb of a chaste virgin named Mary, so that the child she bore was the Second Person of the Holy Trinity and was called Jesus Christ." I want you to believe that doctrine, also.  The doctrine of the virgin conception of the Son of God is essential. Consider these reasons for its importance.

Is necessary for Jesus to be very God. The Messiah is pictured many times in the Old Testament. One very interesting description of Him is in the names given to Him: "Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace," Isa. 9:6. Micah 5:2 describes Him as one "whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." Those titles describe One who is more than man, One whose nature is deity, whose power is limitless, whose duration is eternal, whose appearance is wonderful, and whose mission is peace. No mere mortal could measure up to those great qualifications. The Messiah is more than mortal. It was necessary that Jesus be the virgin-born Son of God in order to be the Messiah of Israel and the Savior of men.

John 1:1,14 reads, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God...And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." Therein is the incarnation of God in human flesh.

Is necessary for Jesus’ teachings to be justified. Jesus called Himself the "only begotten Son" of God (John 3:16). He declared, "...I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me," John 8:42. Again, He said, "Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world," John 8:23. "I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me." John 6:38. His opponents heard Him speak in such a manner and objected strenuously. They understood Him to be saying that He was equal with God. That was exactly what He was saying. He was affirming deity for Himself. How could any man make such an affirmation? None could but Jesus, and He could make such a claim because it was true. His unusual manner of birth indicated He was and is the "only begotten of the Father" (John 1:14), the Son of the living God (Matt. 16:16). If the virgin birth was not true, Jesus’ words would not be true. The virgin birth is necessary, therefore, for Jesus’ teachings to be justified.

Is necessary for Jesus to be heir to the throne of David. Jesus is heir to that throne. The angel Gabriel announced to Mary, "He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end," Luke 1: 32,33. Why could Jesus not be heir to the throne of David apart from a virgin birth?

Matthew’s chronology of the family line of Jacob shows he was descended from David through a king named Jechonias (Matt. 1:11) or Coniah. He was wicked before the Lard. God condemned his wickedness and commanded the prophet Jeremiah, "Write ye this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days: for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah," Jer. 22:30. If Jesus had been the natural son of Joseph, he could not have been an heir of the throne of David because Joseph was descended from Coniah and no descendant of Coniah would ever occupy that throne. Jesus was not the natural son of Joseph, and so was a proper heir to the throne of David.

Is necessary for the reliability of Scripture. Isa. 7:14 spoke of a virgin conceiving and bearing a son whose name would be called Immanuel. Matt. 1:23 declares that the virgin conception of Mary was in fulfillment of that prophecy. The statement is clear and positive. If Jesus were not miraculously conceived of a virgin mother, without a human father, the testimony of the Bible would not be true and we would have no authoritative book of religion. But since the Lord Jesus was miraculously conceived, in a way which man had never known, and since that conception was exactly as foretold hundreds of years before by God’s prophet, the Bible is demonstrated to be a divine book and its teachings authoritative.

Is necessary to explain the virgin life of Jesus. Jesus of Nazareth was a unique person. He "did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth" (I Pet. 2:22). His opponents could convict Him of no wrong doing (John 8:46). He was tempted in all points like as we are, yet He was without sin (Heb. 4:15). He only of all the human race could truly say, "I do always those things that please the Father" (John 8:29). It must be said of all other men, "...all have sinned and come short of the glory of God," Rom. 6:23. But here is Jesus who is totally without sin (II Cor. 5:21). How can it be explained? There is but one explanation. Jesus was man, but He was more than man. He was and is God-man. His virgin birth proves the unique nature of His character and explains the reason for His sinless life

Was necessary if Jesus was to atone for sin by His own death. God decreed that atonement for sin could be made by the offering of an innocent and sinless victim in the place of the guilty sinner. There was no man who could make an eternally-effective sacrifice, for all have sinned (Rom. 3:9,23) and is by nature children of wrath (Eph. 2:3). Then Jesus came. He lived a sinless life. His divine nature filled the physical body which He inhabited while here in the world. He offered Himself to God as a lamb without spot or blemish (I Pet. 1:19; Heb. 10:10,12.14). "Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them," Heb. 7:25. The virgin birth and sinless life of Jesus, the Son of God, made it possible for Him to be our Savior.  The doctrine of the virgin conception and birth of Jesus is an important Bible doctrine. Understand it. Believe it. But most important of all, place your faith in the virgin-born Son of God as your personal Savior.

"Father, give us the spirit of humble faith that we may know the certainty of your Word and trust Him to whom it bears witness. May the sinless Christ live in our hearts by faith today and every day. For Jesus’ sake. Amen."

We call it "incarnation." Our English term has come from the Latin "en came." It means "in flesh." Each Christmas season there is a renewed emphasis in religious circles of the fact, the meaning, and the significance of the incarnation of God in human likeness.

The incarnation reaches far beyond the miraculous conception by a virgin named Mary. It goes farther than the birth of a little child in Bethlehem when the angels sang and wise men journeyed from afar. The incarnation is related to the person and work of a man named Jesus of Nazareth.

The body of Jesus was miraculously conceived by the creative power of the Holy Spirit of God. His physical body developed through all the stages of human growth: infancy, childhood, adolescence, youth, young adulthood, and finally mature manhood. The Bible expresses it in these words: "And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man," Luke 2:52. Through all of his earthly life, the miraculously conceived body of Jesus appeared and acted as any other human body. The difference was that God’s only begotten Son lived and ministered in it.

Jesus’ physical body was prepared of God. Jesus said to God, "...a body Thou hast prepared me.,.," Heb. 10:5. The body of Jesus was a body of flesh and blood and bones, the same as any other human body. Heb. 2:14 declares, "Forasmuch then. as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same..." His body grew, needed food and water, became weary, experienced pain, and was capable of dying. His was a normal human body in every sense of the word, even though it was prepared for Him of God.

Yet, there was something different about the body of Jesus. It developed in the womb of the. purest of womanhood, a chaste virgin. It began existence by the holiest of conceptions, a creative miracle. It was born for the loftiest of purposes, to present the Savior. It was indwelt by the divinest of persons, the Son of God. That was the physical body of Jesus, the Christ.

Jesus’ body was the vehicle of divine revelation. God used the physical body of Jesus to manifest Himself. I Tim. 3:16 reads in part, "God was manifest in the flesh." How was He manifest in the flesh? Through the body of Jesus in whom "the word became flesh and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory...) (John 1:14). God was so perfectly manifest in the physical body of Jesus of Nazareth that the Holy Spirit caused John to write, "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him," John 1:18. Jesus responded to the request, "Show us the Father," by saying, "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father" (John 14:9).

How would God manifest Himself to man? He must do it in a way which man would be capable of comprehending. God did it by coming into the world with the physical likeness of man. He spoke to people of flesh by taking upon Himself a body of flesh. What grace! Remember that the fetus conceived in the womb of Mary, the infant born in the stable and laid in the manger at Bethlehem, the lad growing up in the home of Joseph the carpenter of Nazareth, the adult baptized at the hands of John the Baptist, the teacher speaking the things of the Kingdom of God, the victim fastened to the cross, the corpse buried in a borrowed tomb, and the glorified Lord risen and returning to heaven--they are all one. God manifested Himself to mankind through the miraculously-conceived body of His only begotten Son whom we call Jesus of Nazareth.

Jesus’ body was the victim in His atoning death. Look how physical the crucifixion was . They beat His back. They plucked out His beard. They put a crown of thorns on His head. They struck Him in the face. They drove nails through His hands and feet. They heard Him cry out with thirst. They thrust a spear through His side. They took His body down and buried it in a tomb. That body which was so abused in the crucifixion was the same body which was miraculously conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Listen to the testimony of Scripture. Simon Peter wrote of Jesus, "Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness; by whose stripes ye were healed," I Pet. 2:24. Imagine, the sinless Son of God bore our sin-guilt in His virgin-conceived body when He went to the cross. "...We are sanctified by the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all," Heb. 10:10.

What blessed results follow His sacrifice. We who believe have become dead to sin by the body of Christ (Rom. 7:4). "And you that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now bath he reconciled. In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreprovable in his sight," Col. 1:21,23. Thank God for the benefits of the sacrifice which Jesus made in His virgin-conceived body.

Jesus’ body was proof of His resurrection. Remember how His body was taken down from the cross and carried by loving friends to a borrowed tomb for burial (John 19:31-41). There was a proper burial (Matt. 27:57-60). His grave was properly identified (Luke 23:55). A seal was set upon it and a detail of soldiers stood watch outside of it (Matt. 27:62-66). And yet, on the first day of the week an earthquake rolled away the stone from the door of the tomb to reveal it was empty (Luke 24:3). Jesus had risen. The absence of His body was one proof of His resurrection. He appeared to His disciples in His body and by it assured them that He had risen from death: "Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself; handle me, and see; for a spirit bath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have," Luke 24:39. His body was proof of His resurrection.

Jesus’ body will be manifested yet again upon the earth. He was received. into heaven at His transfiguration (Acts 1:9; 7:56), and still bears the marks of His crucifixion (Rev. 5:6) in his now-glorified body (Phil. 3:21; Matt. 17:1,2). He will return to earth in His visible body, "in like manner" as He ascended to heaven (Acts 1:11). That He will return with the same body is evident that many will "look upon Him whom they have pierced" (Zech. 12:10), and others will ask, "What are these wounds in thine hands?" (Zech. 13:6).

Who would have thought that the virgin-conceived body of Mary’s infant Son would have such a long and glorious ministry? All that is involved in the Christmas message of the incarnation of Jesus Christ.

"Father, help us to see God in human flesh coming as our Savior. Lead us to respond in penitent faith to our ever-living Lord. For Jesus’ sake. Amen."

In this series of messages, I have been insisting on the truth of the virgin conception and birth of Jesus Christ. Someone may wonder why the emphasis. Is it very important, after all? Is there any real need for an insistence on the doctrine? I answer with a positive "Yes."

The doctrine is important. This study will deal with the reasons why a belief of the Bible testimony concerning the virgin birth of Jesus is so significant.

The doctrine of the virgin birth of Jesus is important because it is related to the dependability of Holy Scripture.

There can be little question but that the Bible teaches that Jesus was born of a virgin mother. Gen. 3:15 contains a faint suggestion of the doctrine in the announcement that a son born to a woman would bruise the head of the serpent by who came the fall of man. Isa. 7:14 specifies "a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." Matt. 1:18-25 reports the consternation of Joseph when he learned that his espoused wife was awaiting the birth of a child before their marriage had been consummated, and the assurance of the angel that Mary had conceived by the miraculous creative power of God in direct fulfillment of the prophecy by Isaiah. Luke 1:26-38 recounts the appearance of the angel Gabriel to the virgin Mary with the announcement and explanation of the birth of her miraculously conceived child. There is no question but that the Bible teaches the virgin birth of Jesus.

There are only two alternatives open to you and me concerning that testimony. (1) We can accept it as truth and hold the Bible as an authoritative revelation of God. (2) We can deny the teaching about the virgin conception and birth and deny the validity of the Bible as an authority in the field of religion. Which course seems best to you? I prefer to. accept the account of the virgin birth and the reliability of scripture, don’t you?

The doctrine of the virgin birth of Jesus is important because it counteracts theological heresy. In almost every generation there has been a movement denying the full humanity or the full deity of Jesus Christ. It was true even as early as New Testament times. "Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that "confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: and very spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world," I John :2,3. "For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist," II John 7. The Bible clearly states that the person who denies the fact that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God, but is the spirit antichrist. The apostle Paul argued strongly that in Jesus Christ the totality of deity settled down and remained at home (Col. 2:9,10). He believed in the virgin birth, just as do all those who hold to the clear teachings of the Word of God. Only the heretic, who is inspired by the satanic spirit of antichrist, would deny that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh.

The doctrine of the virgin birth of Jesus is important because it is necessary to an objective atonement. What is an objective atonement? It is the teaching that atonement for sin depends on a positive deed performed by Jesus Christ in His incarnate state. I Pet. 2:24 expresses the objective atonement in terms of Jesus bearing our sins in his own body on the cross. Col. 1:21,22 describes it as our being reconciled in the body of His flesh through His death. Eph. 1:7 declares it as having redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace. That is an objective atonement.

God issued a solemn decree: "The life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul," Lev. 17:11. Jesus came in a body of flesh and blood (Heb. 2:14-18) in order to make an atonement for sinners by the shedding of His blood. Now, "the blood of Jesus Christ (God’s Son) cleanseth us from all sin," I John 1:7. The incarnation made possible an objective atonement through the shedding of Jesus’ blood, and the incarnation began with the virgin birth.

The doctrine of the virgin birth of Jesus is important because of the commitment demanded of Christians. Here is the commitment expressed in several passages of scripture. "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service," Rom. 12:1. "Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace," Rom. 6:12-14. "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s," I Cor. 6:10,20. "And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ," I Thess. 5:23.

God has redeemed us. Redemption is applied to our immortal spirits when we receive Jesus Christ as personal Savior. Redemption is applied to our lives day-by-day as we live in God’s will and under the government of His Holy Spirit. Redemption will be applied to our physical bodies when Jesus returns and the resurrection transpires. The totality of our being (spirit, soul and body) is included in the redemptive deed of Jesus Christ and nothing less than the totality of our being will satisfy His call to commitment.

For five sessions we have investigated the Bible doctrine of the virgin birth of Jesus. We have considered the meaning of His virgin birth, witnesses to His virgin birth, the necessity of His virgin birth, the sequel to His virgin birth, and the emphasis we must place on His virgin birth. This has not been merely an exercise for the mind. Let it lead us to worship.

"Father, we praise you and adore you for the great love wherewith you loved us. Thank you that your Son gave up heaven to become man in order to lift us from death in sin unto life in holiness. Honor your Son by calling many to personal faith in Him right now. For Jesus’ sake. Amen."

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