There is truly only one word to sum up the birth of Jesus Christ, and that word is MIRACULOUS!!! If you were going to define the word miracle, what would you say that it means? I think the idea of the miraculous has lost its impact in our modern world. This is because we have misused the word miracle. Many times the word miracle is attached to things that simply are not miraculous.
How often have you heard people say, “It’s a Miracle” or “I need a Miracle”? In the early eighties when the U.S. hockey team defeated the Soviet Union, it was called “The Miracle on Ice”. We have used this term so much, that we seem to have forgotten what a miracle really is. A true miracle occurs when God interjects Himself into the ordinary process of nature and alters it. Perhaps nowhere is that nature-altering work of God more easily seen than in the birth of Jesus Christ.
God, in the natural order of things, designed mankind for procreation. This, of course, requires the physical union of a man and woman. This is both a fact of Scripture and of nature! It is humanly impossible to produce life without the seed of man, and the egg of woman being united. Yet, in the birth of Christ God miraculously brought life into the womb of a young girl named Mary without the seed of a man. That’s right! Jesus was born of a virgin!
The confirmation of this truth is found in the words of our text: Matthew 1:18, “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as Mary his mother was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.” This, my friend, can only be described as one thing: A MIRACLE!!! When Matthew pens the words “the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise”, the very first thing he describes is the miracle of the virgin birth. However, this text not only describes the virgin birth, but in the process it also defends the virgin birth. Consider three ways this is done:
The Passage Describes Mary’s Condition
The Bible unequivocally claims that Mary was a virgin! You see, had Jesus come through the process of natural procreation, then He, like all other people, would have received a corrupted “Adamic” nature just like every one else. Adam was the original sinner, and we have received from him a fallen sinful nature that has been passed from father to child throughout every generation. Romans 5:12 describes it in this way, “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men for that all have sinned”.
This presents a problem. Man needed a Saviour that would be a substitute and sacrifice for sin, and God demanded that this sacrifice must be perfect. Herein lays the difficulty. Every man that had ever been born of woman, until Christ came, had been born a sinner, receiving from their father a depraved, sinful nature. Therefore, the only possible way to avoid this dilemma was to erase the element of a human father. Christ had to be born of a virgin, and indeed He was! God confirms this in His description of Mary’s condition.
She is described as an Unmarried Woman. The first thing that God makes clear in this text is that Mary was not married. Notice the words of Matthew 1:18, “…When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph”. The word “espoused” carries the idea that she was promised to Joseph or betrothed. The betrothal of Christ’s day was like an engagement period, only with much greater commitment and much more serious ramifications. You see a betrothal was a binding agreement, and it could only be broken by a writ of divorcement. However, betrothal was not marriage.
You see, much of the betrothal period was devoted to preparation for both the wedding and marriage. The bridegroom would prepare a place for him and his bride to live; while the bride would prepare herself and her garments for the return of the bridegroom. In other words, when a man and woman were “espoused” to one another, there was a commitment, but there was no consummation yet. No physical intimacy was to take place during this period of time. A violation of this boundary of purity could potentially have resulted in death by stoning.
She is described as an Unmarred Woman. Though God emphasizes the fact that Mary was unmarried, there was the possibility that she could have violated the law and become pregnant through an immoral relationship. In fact, at first this is exactly what Joseph thought had happened when he found out that Mary was “with child”. According to verse 19 of our text, he was “minded to put her away privily”. However, the angel told Joseph that she was the one that the Old Testament prophet Isaiah had spoken of when the Holy Spirit inspired him to write “a virgin shall be with child” (Matthew 1:23) This means that God told Joseph, that the child was not the child of any other man because Mary was “a virgin”. Some might try to say, “Well, perhaps Joseph was the culprit behind this pregnancy.” Wrong! Look again at verse 18, “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together”.
God tells Joseph and us that Mary was indeed a virgin, and then, God makes an astounding claim. Matthew 1:18 says, “…she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.” God eradicates the possibility of human intimacy and establishes the truth of Divine intervention with this one phrase. The baby in the womb of Mary was not the result of a moment of fornication, nor was this child the fruit of marital consummation, but this baby was the gift of Divine Incarnation. God had chosen the unmarred vessel of a virgin’s womb to bring a Saviour into the world. He was conceived without consummation, that He might live without condemnation. In this miraculous birth God brought the only sinless man into the world, that He might offer Himself as “the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 1:18).
The Passage Describes Prophecy’s Completion
The second avenue by which God defines and defends the miracle of Christ’s birth is through the promise of Bible prophecy. Fulfilled prophecy is one of the most vital means by which the person of Christ and the inspiration of His Word are seen. In fact, Revelation 19:10 says, “…for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” In other words, the very essence of prophecy is to bear witness to the person and the purpose of Jesus Christ. There is perhaps no prophecy that more clearly identifies Jesus as the Messiah than the prophecy concerning the nature of His birth.
In its very essence, prophecy is the accurate prediction of future events. Bible prophecy is unique, because it majors in specific details, not in broad generalizations. The Old Testament prophets spoke of the birth of Israel’s Messiah in great detail, even to the extent of naming the place, the time, the setting, and the nature of that birth. Every one of these prophecies was fulfilled by Jesus. However, out of all these prophecies there is one that could not be imitated, and cannot be duplicated, and that is the virgin birth. Many could have claimed the place, the time, and the setting, but there is absolutely no one, except Jesus, that could claim a miraculous birth to a virgin woman. You see the prophecy of the virgin birth is something only God could design; it is something only His Spirit could accomplish; and it is something only His Son could fulfill. This is why the angel said, “that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.” (Matthew 1:20) Christ was not conceived through the means of man, but He was conceived through a miracle of God!
Jesus alone is the fulfillment of this supernatural birth. The words of the prophet Isaiah were recorded several centuries before the arrival of the Christ. Consider how specific the prophecy that he delivered was: 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.” My friend, only the true Messiah could fulfill such a prophecy, and Jesus did! Notice the record of Matthew 1:22-23, “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, which being interpreted is, God with us.” The miraculous birth of Jesus Christ was confirmed, not only because it happened, but because it happened in direct accordance with the God-given prophecy of Isaiah.
The Passage Describes Joseph’s Concession
Yes my friend, the birth of Christ was miraculous! God brought life into the unmarred womb of an unmarried virgin. God brought life in direct accordance with previous prophetic prediction. It all points to the verity and reality of the virgin birth. However, there is one more vital point still to be made in this text. Remember that in spite of all this, Joseph was planning to break his betrothal to Mary by giving her a writ of divorcement. This is why the angel appeared to Joseph in a dream, and told him, “that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.” How and why did this personal encounter with Joseph come about?
Let's reason through this. If Joseph knew that Mary was pregnant, then it stands to reason that Mary told him so. What do you imagine Mary said? Get this picture. Mary says to Joseph, “I’m pregnant!” Joseph, knowing that he had never been with Mary, must have said, “Who is the father?” Can you see Joseph’s face when Mary said, “Nobody”? Oh how hard this must have been for both of them. Joseph thinking he had been taken for a fool; Mary pleading with Joseph to believe her. You see, Joseph was the ultimate skeptic. While the Bible doesn’t say that Mary tried to convince Joseph, it doesn’t take much brain power to determine that she must have tried to do so. The bottom line is that Joseph wouldn't be convinced, even by the woman he loved. No matter what she said, he was still “minded to put her away”. You see friend, only God could cause Joseph to believe that Mary was still a virgin, though she was with child, and that’s exactly what God did.
When Joseph heard the report of the angel, he no longer doubted; he no longer hesitated; he acted upon God’s Word in faith. Notice the words recorded in 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: and knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son, and he called his name JESUS.” There it is; Joseph conceded. He conceded that God’s plan had come to pass. He conceded that his wife was God’s chosen vessel. He conceded that Mary was without a doubt a virgin, and that she was to remain one until Christ was born. The miraculous birth Jesus Christ is defined, declared, and defended. Forever, the miracle of the virgin birth is settled!
How often have you heard people say, “It’s a Miracle” or “I need a Miracle”? In the early eighties when the U.S. hockey team defeated the Soviet Union, it was called “The Miracle on Ice”. We have used this term so much, that we seem to have forgotten what a miracle really is. A true miracle occurs when God interjects Himself into the ordinary process of nature and alters it. Perhaps nowhere is that nature-altering work of God more easily seen than in the birth of Jesus Christ.
God, in the natural order of things, designed mankind for procreation. This, of course, requires the physical union of a man and woman. This is both a fact of Scripture and of nature! It is humanly impossible to produce life without the seed of man, and the egg of woman being united. Yet, in the birth of Christ God miraculously brought life into the womb of a young girl named Mary without the seed of a man. That’s right! Jesus was born of a virgin!
The confirmation of this truth is found in the words of our text: Matthew 1:18, “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as Mary his mother was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.” This, my friend, can only be described as one thing: A MIRACLE!!! When Matthew pens the words “the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise”, the very first thing he describes is the miracle of the virgin birth. However, this text not only describes the virgin birth, but in the process it also defends the virgin birth. Consider three ways this is done:
The Passage Describes Mary’s Condition
The Bible unequivocally claims that Mary was a virgin! You see, had Jesus come through the process of natural procreation, then He, like all other people, would have received a corrupted “Adamic” nature just like every one else. Adam was the original sinner, and we have received from him a fallen sinful nature that has been passed from father to child throughout every generation. Romans 5:12 describes it in this way, “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men for that all have sinned”.
This presents a problem. Man needed a Saviour that would be a substitute and sacrifice for sin, and God demanded that this sacrifice must be perfect. Herein lays the difficulty. Every man that had ever been born of woman, until Christ came, had been born a sinner, receiving from their father a depraved, sinful nature. Therefore, the only possible way to avoid this dilemma was to erase the element of a human father. Christ had to be born of a virgin, and indeed He was! God confirms this in His description of Mary’s condition.
She is described as an Unmarried Woman. The first thing that God makes clear in this text is that Mary was not married. Notice the words of Matthew 1:18, “…When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph”. The word “espoused” carries the idea that she was promised to Joseph or betrothed. The betrothal of Christ’s day was like an engagement period, only with much greater commitment and much more serious ramifications. You see a betrothal was a binding agreement, and it could only be broken by a writ of divorcement. However, betrothal was not marriage.
You see, much of the betrothal period was devoted to preparation for both the wedding and marriage. The bridegroom would prepare a place for him and his bride to live; while the bride would prepare herself and her garments for the return of the bridegroom. In other words, when a man and woman were “espoused” to one another, there was a commitment, but there was no consummation yet. No physical intimacy was to take place during this period of time. A violation of this boundary of purity could potentially have resulted in death by stoning.
She is described as an Unmarred Woman. Though God emphasizes the fact that Mary was unmarried, there was the possibility that she could have violated the law and become pregnant through an immoral relationship. In fact, at first this is exactly what Joseph thought had happened when he found out that Mary was “with child”. According to verse 19 of our text, he was “minded to put her away privily”. However, the angel told Joseph that she was the one that the Old Testament prophet Isaiah had spoken of when the Holy Spirit inspired him to write “a virgin shall be with child” (Matthew 1:23) This means that God told Joseph, that the child was not the child of any other man because Mary was “a virgin”. Some might try to say, “Well, perhaps Joseph was the culprit behind this pregnancy.” Wrong! Look again at verse 18, “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together”.
God tells Joseph and us that Mary was indeed a virgin, and then, God makes an astounding claim. Matthew 1:18 says, “…she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.” God eradicates the possibility of human intimacy and establishes the truth of Divine intervention with this one phrase. The baby in the womb of Mary was not the result of a moment of fornication, nor was this child the fruit of marital consummation, but this baby was the gift of Divine Incarnation. God had chosen the unmarred vessel of a virgin’s womb to bring a Saviour into the world. He was conceived without consummation, that He might live without condemnation. In this miraculous birth God brought the only sinless man into the world, that He might offer Himself as “the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 1:18).
The Passage Describes Prophecy’s Completion
The second avenue by which God defines and defends the miracle of Christ’s birth is through the promise of Bible prophecy. Fulfilled prophecy is one of the most vital means by which the person of Christ and the inspiration of His Word are seen. In fact, Revelation 19:10 says, “…for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” In other words, the very essence of prophecy is to bear witness to the person and the purpose of Jesus Christ. There is perhaps no prophecy that more clearly identifies Jesus as the Messiah than the prophecy concerning the nature of His birth.
In its very essence, prophecy is the accurate prediction of future events. Bible prophecy is unique, because it majors in specific details, not in broad generalizations. The Old Testament prophets spoke of the birth of Israel’s Messiah in great detail, even to the extent of naming the place, the time, the setting, and the nature of that birth. Every one of these prophecies was fulfilled by Jesus. However, out of all these prophecies there is one that could not be imitated, and cannot be duplicated, and that is the virgin birth. Many could have claimed the place, the time, and the setting, but there is absolutely no one, except Jesus, that could claim a miraculous birth to a virgin woman. You see the prophecy of the virgin birth is something only God could design; it is something only His Spirit could accomplish; and it is something only His Son could fulfill. This is why the angel said, “that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.” (Matthew 1:20) Christ was not conceived through the means of man, but He was conceived through a miracle of God!
Jesus alone is the fulfillment of this supernatural birth. The words of the prophet Isaiah were recorded several centuries before the arrival of the Christ. Consider how specific the prophecy that he delivered was: 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.” My friend, only the true Messiah could fulfill such a prophecy, and Jesus did! Notice the record of Matthew 1:22-23, “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, which being interpreted is, God with us.” The miraculous birth of Jesus Christ was confirmed, not only because it happened, but because it happened in direct accordance with the God-given prophecy of Isaiah.
The Passage Describes Joseph’s Concession
Yes my friend, the birth of Christ was miraculous! God brought life into the unmarred womb of an unmarried virgin. God brought life in direct accordance with previous prophetic prediction. It all points to the verity and reality of the virgin birth. However, there is one more vital point still to be made in this text. Remember that in spite of all this, Joseph was planning to break his betrothal to Mary by giving her a writ of divorcement. This is why the angel appeared to Joseph in a dream, and told him, “that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.” How and why did this personal encounter with Joseph come about?
Let's reason through this. If Joseph knew that Mary was pregnant, then it stands to reason that Mary told him so. What do you imagine Mary said? Get this picture. Mary says to Joseph, “I’m pregnant!” Joseph, knowing that he had never been with Mary, must have said, “Who is the father?” Can you see Joseph’s face when Mary said, “Nobody”? Oh how hard this must have been for both of them. Joseph thinking he had been taken for a fool; Mary pleading with Joseph to believe her. You see, Joseph was the ultimate skeptic. While the Bible doesn’t say that Mary tried to convince Joseph, it doesn’t take much brain power to determine that she must have tried to do so. The bottom line is that Joseph wouldn't be convinced, even by the woman he loved. No matter what she said, he was still “minded to put her away”. You see friend, only God could cause Joseph to believe that Mary was still a virgin, though she was with child, and that’s exactly what God did.
When Joseph heard the report of the angel, he no longer doubted; he no longer hesitated; he acted upon God’s Word in faith. Notice the words recorded in 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: and knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son, and he called his name JESUS.” There it is; Joseph conceded. He conceded that God’s plan had come to pass. He conceded that his wife was God’s chosen vessel. He conceded that Mary was without a doubt a virgin, and that she was to remain one until Christ was born. The miraculous birth Jesus Christ is defined, declared, and defended. Forever, the miracle of the virgin birth is settled!
