Five Questions About The Virgin Birth

“For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, This day have I begotten thee?”—Hebrews 1:5

Every believer has stood with bowed head under the shadow of the cross of Calvary to behold with the eye of faith the Lord Jesus hanging there a bleeding victim for the sins of the world. We have been privileged also to stand beside the empty tomb of our Lord, and as we have done so our hearts have leaped with joy because we had the assurance that He arose a victor over the dark domain and recalled how He said to His disciples, “...because I live, ye shall live also” (John 14:19). By faith we have stood on the mount of Ascension to behold Him as He went on high to be received at the Father’s right hand, where He was to represent us in the court of heaven. Many times have we tried to visualize the sight of His coming when He shall descend with ten thousand of His holy ones.

Today, I want to lead you to Bethlehem, the place where the holy child Jesus was born. While this infant came into the world through the portals of a woman’s life, no babe was comparable to Him in birth; He was born of a virgin. In his wonderful Gospel, John tells us that “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” (John 1:1, 14).

I trust as we gaze upon this wondrous child, Christmas will take on a deeper and mroe precious meaning for us. The world has ruined this glorious event by a coating of commercialism, and merchants have capitalized upon it as a time for money-making. But Christians memorialize the day in remembrance of Him who came for the express purpose of redeeming mankind.

It is impossible to rush into the stable where was the manger-cradle and catch the significance of the occasion as it was revealed to us. We must move quietly and with reverence if we are to gain the blessing the Holy Spirit has in store for us. The secrets of this holy place will never be revealed to those who would scoff and criticize. History records how Alexander the Great rushed into the Jewish holy place and into the Holy of Holies upon the conquest of Palestine, hoping to gratify his curiosity in the sight of rare and beautiful treasures. But he found only a bare, plain room. Yet that room was the place where God revealed Himself to the high priest who entered it wearing the garments of reverence. If we race into the mysteries of this astounding thing, the incarnation of our Lord, there is bound to be naught but disappointment. But if we will follow the Star of Hope until we come to the side of that sacred cradle, then offer in reverence our gifts, we will find our hearts filled to overflowing with joy and the intellect fully satisfied.

The first question which I wish to ask relative to this striking birth is,

Is It Taught?

We mean by this, is it taught in the Word of God? There are many stories told about the advent of the Savior, but does the Bible have anything to say about it? Irrespective of what any one  may think about the virgin birth of the Lord Jesus, I want each of you to see that the event is revealed and emphasized upon the pages of the Book. It is not a subject relegated to some back portion of Scripture or crowded into a remote corner of revelation. It is conspicuous upon the sacred page and worthy of careful consideration.

Moses could not get beyond the third chapter of the first book which he wrote without alluding to the coming of our Lord. Quoting the Lord God, he said, “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” (Genesis 3:15). Satan must have trembled as these words were uttered for they prophesied his doom through the appearance of “the seed of the woman” which is a very definite reference to the virgin birth of the Savior.

The sun of divine revelation shines even brighter in Isaiah for he wrote, “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sigh; Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). There are those who have called this statement in question declaring it refers to some local circumstance in the history of the nation and has no bearing on Messianic truth. However we believe all objections to the real meaning of this prophecy must vanish in the light of the Spirit’s usage of this passage in the New Testament. The first quotation in the New Testament is this blessed statement. Let us see how clearly it is used by the Holy Spirit, “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins. 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” (Matthew 1:21–23).

Beginning with the passage I have just mentioned, the first five quotations in the Book of Matthew taken from the Old Testament refer to the birth of Christ and the facts which are connected with it. Surely this shows the importance which God gives to the advent of His Son into the world. His appearance marked the fullness of time, and it is to be noted that all history was to be changed and the law and the prophets fulfilled. The birth of the Lord Jesus is an occasion of vast and sweeping importance.

With marked definiteness Matthew and Luke teach the historical fact of the virgin birth of Jesus. These two are the ones which deal with His childhood and quite naturally should be expected to touch upon His birth. It would be a strange thing indeed if these two evangels failed to mention the peculiar nature of our Lord’s birth and a very singular things if other New Testament writers dealt with it as Matthew and Luke have done.

Of the thirty-nine books comprising the Old Testament, thirty-five of them make direct reference to the nativity narratives of the New Testament. This cannot be said of any other single historic event recorded in the New Testament save the redemptive work of Christ Jesus. The Old Testament appears upon the pages of the New in a preponderating way controlling the thoughts of the speakers and guiding the feet of the seekers to the very side of the manger in Bethlehem. Our answer then to the first query is a positive affirmation. The virgin birth is definitely taught in the Bible.

The second question concerning the unique birth of our Lord is equally interesting.

Is It Essential?

We often hear people say, why make so much ado over this theme? Does it make any difference whether one believes it or not? Why should it be considered a test question as to one’s orthodoxy? Is it not possible for a man to be a Christian and at the same time reject the virgin birth?

The question might be approached for the moment from the negative side. Suppose Jesus were not born of a virgin? In this case He would be the illegitimate son of an unchaste mother and of a sinful father. Matthew declares how Mary “was found with child of the Holy Ghost” before she and Joseph came together (Matthew 1:18). If our Lord were not born of a virgin and had a natural father, then He was not divine and did not have a pre-existence. He was not a member of the Trinity. If Jesus had a human father, then He had a sinful nature comparable to that father, and being sinful, He would not be able to be the world’s redeemer. Man cannot save man even as the Scriptures declare, “Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord God” (Ezekiel 14:14).

The truth of the virgin birth of the Savior is essential to a full Gospel. Unless Jesus was born of the virgin Mary as is taught in the Bible, then the world stands hopeless at this hour for it does not have an adequate Savior. The Christ who reached down and saved this poor sinner was none less than God of very God and it took such an One to satisfy the righteous demands of God on my behalf. Let us never minimize what the Holy Spirit has been pleased to magnify.

Another important question is,

Is It Mystical?

Without hesitation we answer that the virgin birth of our Lord was mystical. Nowhere are we told to understand the mysteries involved in this miracle, but we are to believe it and to rejoice in the fact of it and its far-reaching significance.

Why should any one object to our Lord’s birth because he cannot understand all that is involved in it? There are hundreds of things in nature we cannot understand, yet we accept them as historic facts. Who can understand or explain the tides of the ocean? This and many other features in nature will ever remain locked in mystery, yet we do not turn from them because of this.

Matthew wrote, “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise...” (Matthew 1:18), which statement, in itself, indicates a supernatural element is involved. Let us keep in mind that Christianity not only begins with a miracle, but it continues in one and ends in the mystical. We read further in this first Gospel how the angel said of Mary, “...for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost” (Matthew 1:20). Anything with which the Sprit of God has to do is mystical and supernatural in character. In the case of our Lord’s birth, the Holy Spirit imparted life and used the virgin to form the body “wherefore, when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me” (Hebrews 10:5). Jesus Christ was both Son of Man and Son of God, human and divine, both natures being perfectly blended within the confines of one body.

The fourth question for consideration is,

Is It Believable?

A man said to me one day, “I am thinking man, therefore I cannot accept the story of the virgin birth of Christ.” Since Jesus was a thinking man, I ask, “did He believe it?” I do not recall any passage in the four Gospels where His words are recorded that He spoke directly of His virgin birth, and it is perfectly fitting that He should have remained silent concerning it. The revelation of it was left to His heavenly Father. Nevertheless, He constantly referred to His pre-incarnate existence and His heavenly origin. The teaching of His eternality was definitely predicated upon such an event as the virgin birth.

On one occasion the Savior said, “And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me...” (John 5:37). No one can read the sixth chapter of John without being profoundly impressed with the oft-repeated statement that He was the true bread which cometh down from heaven. In this same chapter He stated, “As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father; so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me” (John 6:57). A little further on we read again, “Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world” (John 8:23). Such a statement as this is ridiculous without a knowledge of the supernatural birth of our Lord. While Jesus was a dutiful Son, He laid little stress on His human parentage. He was never disrespectful but ever was deeply conscious that He was sent from the presence of His heavenly Father and was on an heavenly mission.

Some have asked if Paul believed in the virgin birth, and if he did, why did he not mention it in his epistles? We would like to ask those who doubt Paul’s knowledge of the virgin birth of the Lord to explain the meaning of Galatians 4:4 aside from an understanding of it. The passage reads, “But when the fullness of time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law.” The great apostle to the Gentiles was fully conversant with the pre-incarnate existence of the Son of God and every great doctrine pertaining to salvation which he propounded in his epistles is predicated upon the truth of the virgin birth.

Writing to the Philippian church, Paul spoke of the descent of Christ and among His seven steps downward he mentions, “Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation, and took upon himself the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:6–7). To reject the truth of the virgin birth of Jesus is to render this passage utterly unintelligible. Everywhere Paul made allowance for this grand truth though he did not mention it by name.

The early church fathers believed it and regarded it as an essential part of the faith of the church. Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch early in the second century, in his epistles speaks emphatically of it. To the Ephesians he wrote, “Hidden from the prince of this world were the virginity of Mary and her child bearing, and likewise also the death of our Lord—three mysteries of open proclamation, the which were wrought in the silence of God.” In his letters to the Smyrneans, he wrote, “I am firmly persuaded as touching our Lord, that He is truly of the race of David according to the flesh, but Son of God by the divine will and power, truly born of a virgin and baptized by John.” These are but a few of many which might be quoted. The truth of the virgin birth is believable because it fits in with the divine scheme of things pertaining to the person of our Lord.

Our final question is,

Is It Practical?

In these days people are thinking of the practical rather than the abstract. They desire to know what bearing a truth such as the virgin birth has upon daily living, and it is right that they should ask such a question. I know of no more practical truth revealed upon the sacred page than this. We can readily appreciate the practical nature of the truth of Christ’s atonement and of His resurrection from the grave. And it is not difficult to understand the practical character of His second advent. Wherein is the practical everyday value of the virgin birth?

This is brought out as the story was told to Joseph, “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” (Matthew 1:23). Most of the false religions of this world have the underlying philosophy of making gods out of men, but in the truth of the incarnation we see how God was made man to the end that we might come to know Him. Nothing could be more assuring to the heart of man than to know that “God is with us.” He is not so far away that He cannot be found. In the person of His Son, He came to be with us.

As this story was unfolded to Mary it revealed that Earth is to have a king some day, “...and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David” (Luke 1:32). The world stands in desperate need of such a Ruler, and when He does come, its problems will be solved.