1993 issue 5 - sermon on luke 1:26-38 - the announcement of the incarnation of christ to the virgin...

8/12/2019 1993 Issue 5 - Sermon on Luke 1:26-38 - The Announcement of the Incarnation of Christ to the Virgin Mary - Cou

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THE NNOUNCEMENT OF THE

INCARNATION

OF

CHRIST

TO IHE

VIRGIN MARY

Luke 1:26-38 Introduction

I.

The Distinctive Perspective of Luke

Regarding

the

Birth ofJesus

A careful reading of the birth

narratives

of

Matthew and

of

Luke will

reveal that each evangelist presents his

material from a different perspective,

making the accounts supplementary

but not contradictory. Both give clear

witness

to the

virginbirthofjesus

in

Bethlehem,

but

it

appears that

Matthew does so

from the perspec

tive of oseph, and

Luke does so from

the perspective

of

Mary. In Luke's

narrative

Mary's

inmost

thoughts

are revealed,

and

the whole narrative

seems to be pre-

sented from her

point

of

view, which would not be

unexpected for Luke because of his

high

regard for

women

evidenced

throughout

his

book. It appears that

Luke obtained

his

information

concerning the birth of esus ditecdy

from Mary, the mother

of

esus. The

womanly touch

in

the narrative is

perhaps adequately explained by the

supposition that the information carne

ultimately from Mary, whether or not

it passed through other lips before it

was finallyput litoliterary form. What

really stands firm is that the narrative

is

writ ten from Mary's poin t

of

view,

and

therefore

in

some sort claims to

corne from her. -j. Gresham Machen,

The Virgin

Birth oj Christ, pg. 201.

2. The OrderoJEvents Relating to Christ s

Birth According to

Matthew

and Luke

a. The announcement to Zacharias of

the birth

ofjohn

the Forerunner

b. The announcement to Mary of the

miraculous conception of the Messiah

c. The visit of Mary to Elizabeth

d. The return of Mary to Nazareth

e. The discovery by Joseph of Mary's

pregnancy

f The announcement

of

Jesus' virgin

birth through Mary to Joseph

g. The marriage of oseph and Mary

h. The journey of Mary and Joseph to

Bethlehem

for

the census

i. The birth of Jesus in Bethlehem

j. The visit

of

the shepherds to Mary

and the baby

k.

The circumcision

of

Jesus at

Bethlehem eight days after his birth

1

The presentation of the infant Jesus

in the Temple in jerusalem forty days

after his birth

m. The visit of the Magi to see the

infant Jesus

n. The l1ight of Mary, Joseph, and

Jesus to Egypt to escape Herod

o. The return

of

the holy family to

Nazareth

3. The

Role

of

Mary

in the Gospel

ofChrist

a. The

View

of Roman Catholicism

The Roman Catholic Church can

be justly accused of

MARIOLATRY,

i.e. THE DEIFICATION OF MARY

1 T nrn COUNSEL of Chalcedoo t June, 993

althoughsome within that church deny

it. In Romanisrn she is elevated to

Mediator and Dispenser of Divine

Grace. Roman Catholics are taught to

pray to her according to the weU-

known song, Ave Marta, which says,

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for

us sinners. This ponion of the song

was declared by Pope Pius V to be

authoritative. Through the centuries

Roman

Catholicism has

greatly

developed its theology of Mary. It

asserts:

(1).

her perpetual virginity;

(2). her immacu

late

conception,

I.e., she was con

ceived without

sin;

(3) . her glorious

assumption, i.e,

her resurrection

and aScension, and

her enthronement

at Christ's

right

handas the Queen

cf b::yen; (4). her

present position as

'Co-Redeemer

with Christ.

umerous

Churches, shrines and festivals have

been dedicated to her-honor. Sacred

offices designed for public and private

worsbip have been introducedinwhich

she is solemnly invoked. Furthermore,

no limit was placed to the tides of

honor by which her worshipers

address her, nor to the prerogatives '

and powers wbich are attributed to

her. Sheisdec1aredtobeDEIFICATA,

Queen of Heaven, Queen of queens,

etc. The Litanies of the Virgin Mary

give additional proofof the idolatrous

worship of which she is the object.

She is given such names and such

powers that more

than

this cannot be

sought at the hands of God. The

Virgin Mary is to her worshipers what

Christ is to us. She is the object of all

religious affections; the ground of

confidence; and the source whence all

the blessings of salvation are expected


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and sought. -Charles Hodge,

Systematic Theology Vol. III, pg. 288.

For a thorough discussion on what

Roman Catholicism teaches about

Mary, see omanCatholictsmbyLoraine

Boettner, pgs. 132-168, Presbyterian

and

Reformed Publishing Co.,

Philadelphia, Pa., 1976.

b. The View of Luke

(1). The highest honor every

given

to

a woman

was

conferred upon her by

God, the crown and glory of all

motherhoodwas bestowed

uponher-

to become the mother of the Son of

God. Although she was a sinner in

need of a Savior,

as

she herself admits

in Luke 1:47, nevertheless no other

woman in history was honored by

God as Mary. Therefore, we should

give

her

that love and respect worthy

of one so honored by God.

We are, indeed,

as

far

as

anyone

from accepting the Roman Catholic

picture of the Blessed Virgin. But we

also think Protestants,in theirreaction

against that picrure, have sometimes

failed to do justice to the mother of our

Lord. Few and simple, indeed, are the

touches with which the Evangelist

(Luke) draws the picture; fleeting only

are the glimpses which he allows us

into the virgin's heart. And yet how

lifelike is

the

figure

there depicted;

how profound are the mysteriesin that

pure and meditative soul In the

narrative of the Third Gospel the virgin

Mary is no lifeless automaton, but a

person who livesandmoves-a person

who from that day

to

this had power to

touch

aU

simple and childlike hearts.

- ...one thing is

clear an

integral

part of that picture (of Mary n Luke)

is found in

the

mention

of the

supernatural conception in the virgin's

womb. Without that supreme wonder,

everything that is here said of Mary is

comparatively meaningless and ejune,

(Le., lacking significance). The

bewilderment in Mary's heart, her

meditation upon the great things that

happened to het

son

all this, far . and source of all life,

vs. 4;

and the

from being contradictory to the virgin source of light and knowledge,

vs.

4.

birth, really presupposes thatsupreme The Word is the Self-expression of

manifestation of God's power. That God, Le., the Second Person of the

supreme miracle itwas which rendered Trinity, God the Son.

worth while the glimpses which the b. The

Word became flesh, and

narrator grants into Mary's soul."- dwelt among us." "Flesh" refers to

Machen, pg. 135. man's acrual physical substance, his

(2) .

Mary, along with Elizabeth, created human life

on

this earth, I Cor.

Zacharias, and John the Baptist, are 15:39; I Pet. 1:24. THE WORD

included in Luke's narrative "only BECAME A

MAN

WITHOUT

because of the light that is focused

by

CEASING

TO

BE THE WORD, for in

their actions and words upon Him His flesh, "we beheld His glory, glory

who is acknowledged as having the as of the only-begotten of the Father,"

right to bearthe incomparably exalted 1: 14. s a man.Jesus possessed a fully

name of

LORD,

which in the Greek human nature , a created physical

Old Testament

was

used far and away spiritual uni t, without losing His full

most frequently

as

the name of God, Deity.

the great Jehovah." - Stonehouse, pg. The Incarnation is by addition not

62.

by subtraction. When God the Son,

4. The

Meaning oj Incarnation took on our humanity, He lost none of

The incarnation is best defined by His Deity. Be did not "empty"Himself

the Westminster Shoner Catechism: of His Deity-in

orderto

become a man.

"Christ, the Son of God, became man, Rather, as the Council

of

Chalcedon of

by taking to Himself a true body and a 451, A.D. declared: Jesus Christ is

reasonable soul, being conceived by fully God and fully man in one person

the power of the Holy Spirit, in the forever without confusion or

womb of the VirginMary, and born of separation. "The assumption of flesh

her, yet without sin." by the Son of God involved a unity

Themiraculousconceptionofjesus with sinful man suffiCient for the

in the womb of the virgin, Mary,

was

bearing and destruction

of

sin, and

the incarnation of the Second Person able to do justice to such verses as

of the Trinity. This word does not Rom. 8:3;HCor. 5:21;andGaI.3: 13."

occur in the

Bible,

although the idea T.H.L. Parker, in

Baker's Dictionary oj

behinditcertainlydoes. "Incarnation" Theology, pg. 283.

is composed of two parts "in came," s the great]. Gresham Machen

which is Latin for the Greek phrase, wrote in

The

Presbyterian Guardian,

"ensarki," meaning "in the flesh." This "The doctrine of the Deity of Christ is

phrase occurs several times in the N T.,

pan

of he Biblical teaching about God.

I ]n. 4:

2;

III In.

7; Rom.

8:3; I Tim. This person whom we know as Jesus

3:16; I Pet. 4:1; 3:18;

Col.

1:21-22. Christ would have been Godevenifno

Most particularly, John 1:14 says that universe had been created and even if

the

Word

became

flesh.

there had been no fallen man

to

save.

a."The Word" is the Logos in He was God from everlasting. His

Greek.

In the beginning was the Word,

Deity is quite independent of any

and the

Word

was with

God,

and

the

relation of His to a created world. The

Word was God: In. l :lf. This Word, doctrine of the incarnation, on the

identified as God, yet distinct from other hand, is pan of the doctrine of

God, is also identified

as

the One who salvation. He

WAS

from everlasting,

createdeverything,vs.3;thepossessor but He BECAME

man at

a definite

Jnne, 1993 lHE COUNSEL of Chalcedon

11


3/11

moment in the world's history, and in

order that

fallen

man might

be saved.

That

He

became man was not at all

necessary to the unfolding

of His own

'

being.

He was

infinite, eternal and

unchangeable God when He became

man and after

He

became man. But He

would have been infinite, eternal and

unchangeable

God, even

if

He

had

never become

man

......

His

becoming

man was a free act of His love.

Ultimately its purpose,

as the

purpose

of all things, was the

glory of God;

that purpose does not conflict at all

with the fact that it was a free act of

mercy to undeserving sinners. He

became man in order that '

He

might

die on the cross to

redeem

sinners

from

the guilt and power

of sin.

Exposition

I THE SENDING OF

THE

ANGEL

FROM

GOD TO THE

VILLAGE

OF NAZARETH

In Gabriel,

The

.AD.gel

of the Lord,

the Word of God, the

Second

Person

of the Trinity in a pre-incarnate

appearance, CHRIST

ANNOUNCES

HIS

OWN

BIRTH to Mary. Sixth

months into Elizabeth's pregnancy,

Gabriel is sent by

God

the Father to

the

little

village

of Nazareth with news of

the long-awaited binh ofthe

Messiah.

Nazareth was a Galilean village about

70 miles nonheast of jerusalem in a

valley surrounded by

hills

except on

its southern side. This

village

is

stilI

in

existence today, knownasEn-Nasirah.

Itismhabitedbyapproximately 10,000

people, two-thirds of whom are

Christians, one third are

Muslims,

but

no jews, who purposely

avoid the

village.

jesus spent

his

childhood

growing

up

here.

II THE

IDENTITY

OF THE

WOM N

TO WHOM

THE

ANGEL

W S

SENT

A Th, Virgin

The woman

to whom

the

Angel

came would very soon experience

an

intimate and personal mother-child

relation with that Angel, as well as a

believer-Savior relationship. That

Angelic, (and

DlvIne),

voice

she

would

hear again in the cries and squeals of

her infant.

1 The

Virginity

ofMary

This

woman was a virgin at the

time of Gabriel's

announcement about

her

pregnancy.

She

had

never

had

any

sexual relations

with

a

man.

n verse

27

luke

clearly says

that

Gabriel was

sent to "a

virgin,"

PARTHENON in

Greek. And

in

verse 34

Mary

testifies

to her virginity by

asking,

"How

can

this be,

since

I am a virgin?" In

Greek

Mary

did not

say

"I

am

a

virgin," she

said

the eqUivalent,

"I

know no

man."

The Greek

word,

PARTHENON,

'

as used in

Luke

1:27,

means

"virgin,"

a woman

who

has not had sexual

relations

with a

man. Some would

argue that the word can

also

be

translated,

"young maiden," which is

true; however, Mary was

both

unmanied and

good,

and "when this

fact

isunderstood,itbecomes apparent

that in all history

there

is

only

one of

whom

this can

be

predicated, namely,

Mary, the mother of the

Lord."-EJ.

Young,

Isaiah.

IfMary was unmanied

and

good,

then

she

.

was

a

virgin,

When

Mary

said, Iknownoman,

she

used the

Greek

word,

GNOSKO,

which is here used in the

sense

of the

Hebrew word,

YADA, denotiIi.g

the

loving

affection expressed between two

married people in sexual intercourse, .

Gen, 4:1; 19:8. The

verb

in verse 34

is in

the

present tense, not in

the future

teuse, as though

she was taking an

oath of perpetual virginity, as Rome

maintains.

"The words are the avowal

.

of

a maiden conscious of her own

purity; and they aredrawn from herby

the strange declaration that

she

is to

have

a son before she ismarried,

(without the intervention

of

a man).

Plummer in Geldenhuys. Notice that

Mary is not talking m ~ r l y ofJoseph, .

butofallmen. "Apparently, therefore,

she felt

intuitively that

the angel means

12 f TIlE COUNSEL of

Chalcedon June,

1993

a conception without the n t r v n t i o ~

of

a

man,

and

now she

utters her

amazement

at this and asks the.angel

how such

a miraculous event

is

to

take

place."

- GeldenhUys

2:

The

Fulfillment

of

Prophecy

(Isaiah

7: 14)

The virgin

binh

of

Jesus

is

the

fulfillment of

the prophecy of

Isaiah

7:

14- Thmfore

th,

wrdHimseifwill

give

you

a sign:

Behold,

a iiirgi'nwiU be

with child andbeara son, vul she will call

His name Immanuel. Matthews

Gospel

makes

the link for us inMatthew 1:23.

It is logical for

him

to

do

so. The

Hebrew

word

for

"virgin"

in lsaiah

7:14, ALMAl:: , is translated, as

PAR1HENOS

in Matthew'S

Greek

Old

Testament. For him the

"virgin"

of

Isaiah

1: 14

is

the godly,

unmanied,

virgin

Mary,

the

mother

of

Jesus; and

for him Jesus is Immanuel, i.e., God

with

us.

According to A.N. Wilson in his

book.]esus, the AlMAH

oflsaiah

7:14

means "young

woman," not "Virgin,"

period. l:: e then rebukes Christians

for using

this text

from Isaiahas proor

that

Jesus

was born of a virgin, pg.

79.

But, when A.N . Wilson was only

15

years old,

(he

was

born in 1950),

the great E,J. Young wrote

a smashing

refutation of this groundless, .but

dogmaticassertion

thatALMAH

means

"young

wOlllaTl" not "virgin."

He

did

so

on pages283-291 ofhiscommentary

on

the book of

Isaiah as a

part

of The

New International

Commentary

on

the

Old Testament,

published by

Wm.

B.

Eerdmans Publishing Company,

Grand Rapids, Mich.

Young points out thilt

the

anicle,

"the,"

used

with the

'word ALMAH

in

Isaiah 7: 14 serves to distinguish the

ALMAH from some other kind of

woman. ALMAH

is never used

of

a

married woman. In the O.T. it is used

of

virgins,

Gen. 24:43. If the woman

mentioned in Isaiah 7: 14 is an

unmarried

woman,

a question

arises

.


4/11

Was the child illegitimateor not? f

the child were illegitimate, would such

a birth be a sign? The whole context,

indeed, the whole Biblical context,

rules this out.

On

the other hand, if

the mother were a good woman, then

the birth

was

out

of

the ordinary, an

unusual birth. The mother is both

unmarried and a good woman. When

this

tact is understood, it becomes

apparent that

in

all history there is

only

one of whom this can be

predicated, namely, Mary, the mother

of the Lord. -Young.

Inhis prophecy, Isaiah issaying: I

see a wonderful child . , a wonderful

child whose birth shall bring salvation

to his people; and before such a period

of ime shall elapse

aswould ie between

the conception of the child in the

mother'S womb and his coming to

years of discrerion, the land of Israel

and ofSyria shall be forsaken. -Machen

in Young. The presence of

God will

appear, not in the deliverance

from

Syria and Israel, but in the birth of the

Child Himself. The four points which

must be stressed are:

(1).

The virgin

birth is a sign; (2). The mother of the

Child is one who is

both

unmarried

and a good woman; and (3). The very

presence of

Ihe

Child brings God to

His people; (4). The name, Immanuel,

cannot be applied to anyone who is

not God,lherefore the human child of

the virgin is also God.

3.

The hnportance

of the Virgin Birth

Asmyoldprofessor, William Childs

Robinson, said, as quoted by Loraine

Boettner in The Person

o

Christ:

As

our Lord's divine

nature

had no

mother,

so

His

human

nature has no

father. The SonofManisnoman'sson.

The virgin birth

has

guided the Church

in her

efforts to understand and state

the union of Gpd and man, and this

break

in

the ordinary generations

descending from Adam

has

presented

One unstained by otiginal sin to be the

sinner's substitute. The virgin birth is

integral to the virgin life and the

vicarious death, to the full truthfulness

of the Gospels, and to the Church's

faith in the incarnation

of

the pre

existing Lord.

B

The

Woman

Engaged

to

Joseph

o the House o

David

his

divine bestowal of the highest

honor ever received by any woman

also put

her reputation

and

her

life

at

stake, for although she was engaged,

she was unmarried, and pregnant.

Adultery

was a capital offense,

according to the Torah, i.e., the Law of

Moses.

Betrothal was more bindingon

theJews of Mary's day than engagement

is

to

us. It was a solemn promise to

marry, a promise of mutual faith

fulness; and its violation was looked

upon as adultery, Dt. 22: 13f, 23f.

Mary's betrothed was Joseph, of

the houseofDavid He was ofDavidic

descent. TItisisimportantinformation

essential to understanding the mission

of the Messiah in the world. In II

Samuel 7 God enters into a covenant

with King David promising him that:

(1). Through David's descendant God

would establish His

KINGDOM

on

earth which would be superior to and

triumphant over all other kingdoms;

(2). Through David's descendant God

would build His HOUSE on earth,

where He

would

live

and

enjoy

fellowship with His people; and (3).

his Messiah who would accomplish

all this would be the

son of

David and

the Son of God, i.e. Human and Divine.

Therefore,

it

is important to

Luke

to make clear that Joseph was ofthe

lineage of King David. Mary was also

of Davidic descent. Luke 1:32 and 69

make no sense unless she is also a

descendant of David. Of course it

might

be supposed without

inconsistency that Mary was in reality

ofDavidic descent on her father's side

and was related to Elizabeth by her

mother ..Creed

in

Geldenhuys

Why, then, since Mary was

of

Davidic descent, and sinceJoseph was

notthe biological fatherofJesus, whose

father was God, did Luke point out

thatJoseph was

of

he Davidic lineage?

To com plicate matters, in 2 :33 Joseph

is spoken of as Jesus' father, and in

2:41Josephand Mary are spoken of as

Jesus' parents.

sit

possibleforJesus

to be considered the descendant of

David,

if

He was virgin- born? And

does referringtoJoseph asJesus' father

contradict the fact that God was is

Father?

Or

was Joseph the actual

father

of Jesus by ordinary sexual

intercourse with his wife,

Mary?

Two

things must

be

said to c1earup this

complicated matter:

1. The Significance ofjewish

Adoptive Fatherhood

The

Jewish people

considered

adoptive fatherhood in a much more

realistic way than does

modem

man.

We learn this from the divinely.

ordained institution of Levirate

marriage, Deut. 25:5f. According to

Mosaic Law, when a

man

died without

an heir, his brother was to take his

widow

and

produce an heir for his

brother, with his brother's name. The

child would

be

regarded as belonging

to the dead

man

to a degree that is

foreign to

our

ideas. A child

born

to a

man'swife,and acknowledged

by

him,

was

to aU

intents

and

purposes his

son

.

The truth is that in the N.T. Jesus is

presented

in

the narratives of the virgin

binh as belonging to the house of

David (throughJ oseph) just as truly as

ifhe werein a physical sense the son of

Joseph. He was a gift of God to the

Davidic house,

not

less truly, but on

the contrary in a more wonderful way,

than

if he had

been descended from

David by ordinary generation (through

Joseph). -Machen, pg. 129.

2. The Virgin Birth and

Adoptive Fatherhood

Because

of the virginbirth, the

relation in whichJesus stood to Joseph

June, 1993 TIlE COUNSEL

of

Chalcedon 13


5/11

was much closer than is the

case

in

ordinaryadoption. By thevirgin birth

the whole sitnation was raised beyond

ordinary analogies. In an ordinary

instance of adoption there is another

humanbeing--theactual father-who

disputes with the father by adoption

the paternal relation

to

the child. Such

was

not the

case

with Joseph in his

relationship to Jesus, according

to

the

New

Testament narratives.

He alone and no other

htirnanbeingcouldassume

the rights and dudes

of

a

father with respect to

this

child. And the child Jesus

could

be regarded as

Joseph's son and heir with

a completeness ofpropriety

whichno ordinaryadoptive

relationship would in

volve. -Machen,

pg.

129-

130.

C. The

Woman

Named Mary

"kept all

these

words, pondeTing them In

her heart. And when Simeon saw the

haby

Jesus, andsawinhim

the

salvation

of the Lord

for

the nations, she stood

there in speechless wonder and

amazement.

As

Luke portrays her,

Mary is not a modem liberated

woman, but a Jewish maiden of the

first

century, nurtured in the

covenant

promises of Jehovah- the recipient,

indeed, of a wonderful

experience,

but

A careful reader

of Luke's

birth despite that experience still

narratives will appredate

one

of the .of

some

capaCity

for

wonder in her

most beautiful literary touches in the . devoutandmeditativesoul. -Machen,

narrative and at the

same time

an

important indication of essential pg. 132.

historical trustworthiness.

We

reCerto Luke portrays Mary, not asaperfect

the delicate depiction

of

the character

woman,

but as a

real woman,

a godly

of

Mary.

-Machen, pg.

131.

What a woman offaith, a unique and superior

magnificent picture of the mother of

woman,

yet a youngJewish woman of

J e s u s w e h a v e i n t h i s n a r r a t i v e ~

Mary

the

first

century. AndOh,thebeautiful

was possessed of a simple and

glimpses

which Luke gives us into

meditative-we do not say dull or

Mary's soul.

rustic-soul. -Machen. She responds

to Gabriel's announcement with fear m.

THE

MESSAGE OF THE ANGEL

and a desire for more infonnation.

FROM

GOD

TO

THE VIRGIN M RY

When she is told that the Holy Spirit A

The

Angelic Greeting of Mary

will cause her to

conceive

and be the

mother of the Son of God, she says GabrielapproachedMarywithgreat

simply, Behold

the handmaiden

of

the

respect. He addressed her

with

the

Lord;

be

t

unto me

according

to

thy

words:

"Hail, favored

one

The

Lord

is

word."

She immediately

travels

to see

with

you : 1:28. Humble Mary

was

her dear and sympathetic friend, understandably troubled at the

Elizabeth, before whom she sings a encounter with

Gabriel

and

with

the

beautiful hymn ofpraise to God. When words he spoke to her.

Therefore,

the

her baby is born, and shepherds tell Angel, reassuring her, said: ~ D o

not be

her of the announcement of

angelic afraid, Mary; for you have found favor

host, others are

amazed,

but Mary

with

God, 1:30.

4 f

THE OUNSELof halcedon

June, 1993

Gabriel refets to

Mary as

"the highly

favored one,

who has 10und avorwith

God. ' Roman Catholicism tranSlates

the

greeting

as the one

Full of Divine

favor,

in the

sense

that

Mary is

able to

confer or mediate the favor ofGod to

sinners. But the phrase indicates that

she has RECEIVED God's favor,not

thatshenowisina position

to

CONFER

it . God had

given

her is free and

uncaused gracein a uhique

measure

bY'

choosing

her

as mother of His Son. -

Geldenhuys

B The Angelic Message

to

Mary

1. (1:31a)

''Behold,youwill

conceiveinyourwomb,

and

bear a

o n ~

Here we are

face

to

face

with the divine announce

ment that

this young

virgin,

Mary, will conceive a child

in her womb, while still a virgin,

engaged, but unmarried.

See notes

above

on Mary

the Virgin.

2. (1:31b)

"Youshall

name

himJesus

God Himself named

Mary's

son,

because He

alone

would

define

the

character

of His life

and

mission;

and

so that the world would know that in

THE LORD IS SALVATION, which

is the meaning of the

Hebrew word

for

the

Greek, Jesus,

which isJoshua, or

Yeshua.

Matthew 1:21

states:

"And

she

will

bear

Son;

and you shall

call His

namejesus,joritis He

who will save His

people

from their

sins.

a.

The Preciousness ofthe Name,Jesus

No name is all history is more

identified with the unfolding of

God's

redemptive purposes in history than

the name, Jews. When He came into

the world,

God

insured thatHe would

forever

beJesus, the Savior.

His name

is more than asymboL

It

.speaks ofHis

character, position, function, purpose,

and

prerogative.


6/11

b .The Exclusivenessofthe Name,Jesus

Matthew 1 21 says,

It is HE, that

w ll save

...

It

is

EXCLUSIVELY

HE

that will save,

sa.

43:11; 45:21; Hos.

13:4;

Psa.

3:8.

All

of these

O.T.

texts

emphasize the

significance

of his

name

as

it applied

to

Christ. It assigns

to

him a prerogative and office that

belongs to

God

alone and therefore

witnesses to the srupendous

fuct

that

this

child, conceived by the virgin and

born of her, performs a task and is

accorded a title that belong

to

God

alone. Howmajesticthe announcement

toJoseph, 'Thousha tca1lhisnameJesus.'

t invests Jesus with attributes and

prerogatives

that

are peculiarly

divine. -

John

Murray, Collected

Writings

ofJohn Murray, Vol. III, pg .

180.

c.

The

Efficacy

of the Name, Jesus

"He shall save His people from their

sins." It would be hard to find in

Scripture words so simple in

form

and

so

few

in number with greater fullness

ofmeaning. -Murray. Christ's coming

and missionare meaningless apan

from

sin: he came into the world to deal

with sin, more specifically,

to

save

His

people

from

their sins.

(1).

The

Focus on

"Save"

Jesus came into the world to

SAYE.

"He did not come simply to make it

possible

for

is people to be saved, nor

merely to provide the opporrunity of

salvation for his people. It is not as if

he

made salvation for his people

available and that theacrual enjoyment

of

this salvation waits for the

contribution which they themselves

supply. The case is that HE

SHAll

SA

YE.

There is no uncertainty or

contingency. There is definiteness. -

Jesus saves

PROM

sins. It is not

salvation

in

sin, not even salvation in

spite of sin, but salvation from sins.

The salvationJesus secured is of such

a character that it breaks the ties that

bind

us

to sin. It

frees

from the guilt of

sin, Psa.

103:

12. - It delivers from

the ruling power ofsin, Rom.

6:14.

And it is salvation that will not rest

until the redeemed will be released

from all

the defilement, love, and

misery of sin, Psa. 130:7,8. -John

Murray,pg. 183.

(2). The Significance of Their Sins"

That

from

whichJesus saves is very

concrete and

personal-

"He

shall

save

HIS PEOPLE PROM THEIR SINS."

Understand that it is not

from

sin in

the abstract thatJesus saves, but from

OUR SINS, from sin

in

all the

particularity of thought, word, and

deed by which sin is registered in us. -

Jesus saves

from

sins

in

theirindividual

aggravations and complications; and

He

does

all

this in the hearts and lives

of the elect of

God- My

people.

3. (1:32a)

"He

will

be great

Gabriel told Zacharias that John

the Baptist would be

"great in the

sight

ofGod ,

1:15. Gabriel

tells

Mary that

Jesus will be "grea

t,

but His greatness

will be a very different character. Jesus

will be great in that

He will

be

"called

the Son

of

the Most

High."

Christ's

greatness will be

incomparably

superior to everything.

The

GREATNESS

of Jesus as the

Son of the Most High God

"is

all

the

more pronounced because it is going

to be combined with humility and the

eagerness of this Exalted One to

sacrifice himself for the salvation of

sinners. -Wm.Hendriksen,

MatUlew.

4.

(l:32b)

"He

will

be called

the Son of the

Most High"

Jesus will be, literally in Greek,

Son of Highest, without articles,

indicating the absoluteuniqueness and

highness ofjesus'Divine Sonship. Luke

uses this title several times,

Luke

1:32,

35, 76; 6:35; 8:28;

Acts

7:48; 16:17.

The

title, MostHighGod, Gen.14:18,

stresses Jehovah's majesty

and

sovereignty,

Dt.

32:8; II

Sam

. 22:14;

Psa. 7:17; 9:2; 21:7, etc.

Jesus is called the

"Son"

of God

several times in Luke's Gospel, 3:22;

9:35; 20:13,14; 2:49; 10:2lf; 24:49.

Most imponantly in Luke 10:21, 22,

we find that itisunlimitedly'all things'

that are said to have been delivered by

the 'Pather' to the 'Son: so that God is

affirmed to hold back nothing, but to

share all that He has with the 'Son.' In

both the intimate knowledge of the

'Pather' and 'Son' of each other is

affirmed

to

be alike complete,

exhaustive, and unbrokenly

continuous. In both the 'Son' is

represented

to

be the sole source of

knowledge of God. But in Luke it is

said, not that the 'Father' and 'Son'

know each other, but that each knows

'what the otheris:

that is to say, all that

each is.

It

would be difficult

to

frame a

statement which could more sharply

assen the essential deity of the 'Son.'

B.B. warfield,

The

Lord oj Glory, pg.

118-119. The point is that although

such titles as, Son of the Most High,

are

connected with ] esus' Messianic

office

and mission, nevenheless, they

are not limited to that office in their

implications. The title, "Son of the

MostHigh is a Messianic designation,

but it is not only

a Messianic

designation. As the Son.]esus moves

in the sphere of the divine

life.

- The

meaning is that the Son stands out

among all others who may be called

sons

as

in aunique and unapproached

sense the Son of God. -Warfield.

When Luke 1 32 and 35 tellus that

in virrue of the overshadowing of the

Holy Spirit,

which

effected the

conception ofjesusin the virgin Mary,

Jesus is designated the Son of God,

those verses

are not

saying that the

supernatural conception of Jesus, as

an isolated fact, establishes the deity of

Christ.

"He

was divine from alletemity;

He cOllld

not become more

so

because

of the virgin binh. And it would be

appropriate to regard the titles, the

Son of God and Son of the

Highest"

in this context

as

appropriately given

June, 1993 , THE COUNSEL ofChalredon 15


7/11

in

view of

His

supernatural conception

rather than as precise intimations of

deity. On the other hand, it

is

evident

that Luke is wimessing

to

one who did

not have to await any transformation

of character to become Son of the

Highest, Lk.

6:35,

or even His

appoinrment to, or entrance upon,

His

office to be designated in this manner,

but

who from the very outset

of His

entrance into the world sustained a

unique

n;lationship

to God.

Stonehouse, pg . 167.

What Stonehouse, and

Warfield

for

that matter, is

saying is that

it

all depends

on the biblical context of

the phrase, the Son of

God,

in the

Gospel

narratives, as to whether it

refers to Jesus,

in

his whole

person, ' as

the

Messiah

supernaturally born, or to

Jesus as God, the Second

Person of the Trinity. However, the

two cannot be separated in

thisphrase.

Por, although the Son of

God"

may

have a messianic reference, this

Messiah, truly human, is also,

as God

the Son, equal with the Patherin power

and glory. AsStonehouse writes: "And

without

t

thesignifldmce of

h

phrase

as indicating the

full

deity ofjesus)

all

the rest (the messianic significance)

would remain inexplicable inasmuch

as

it

is only

on

the background of a

full

acknowledgment ofHis deity that His

supernatural entrance into the world

and His appointment to perform

transcendent

religious functions

become intelligible. - pg.

167.

Jesus

is the Son of God in that He, as the

Messiah;was supernaturally born into

the world; and in that

He

is God the

Son

in

human

flesh.

5.

(l:32c-33) The Lordwillgtve Him

the throne o His father David;

He

will reign over the

house oj

Jacob

forever; andHis kingdom

will

haveno

end J

Luke defines Jesus' Messianic

person and mission in terms of THE

COMING OF

THE KINGDOM

OF

GOD IN THE LIPE AND

MINISTRY

OPjESUSCHRIST. Thecoming of he

Messiah is the manifestation of

th

Kingdom . The eternal

Kingdom

of

God-God's Rule

and God's

Gift-

is

inaugurated by the appearance of the

Messiah. This

Kingdom

is

described

to Mary in terms of the covenant

promise of the Old Testament,

Sam.

7:12f;

Dan.

7:13f. Most

particularly,

the

Angel

emphasizes to

Mary

four

aspects of Christ's

Kingdom:

a.

He would be

given

DAVID'S

THRONE, i.e., He would be

given

the

royal authority, power and

sovereignty

promised in the Old Testament to the

Messiah-king of the

Hneage

of David ,

II Sam. 7:14;

Psa.

2:7; 89:26,27,

in

fulfillment of the Davidic

Covenant.

b. His reign would be over

THE

HOUSE OF JACOB, Le.,

the covenant

people of God, those who belong to

Christ by faith regardless

of

ethniC

origin,

Gal. 3:29,

those who

are

lost in

sin and found by the sovereign

grace

of

. the seeking and saving Savior, Jesus

Christ.

c.

His Kingdom

is

eternal. Jesus

Christ will reign to all eternity.

d. The coming of the Eternal

Kingdom promised in God's Covenant

is inseparably bound up with and

manifested in the

life

and ministry of

Jesus Christ.

As

we shall

see

, Christ's

16

TIlE COUNSEL

of

ChaIcedon

Jnile,

1993

presence on eanh, and

His victory

over the works of Satan,

signalizes

. hat

the Kingdom

has actually come' into

human history, and will continue to

come

in

all

its saving power, until it

comes in total perfection at the second

physical coming ofJesus Christ at the

very

end of history.

The Kingdom of Christ is the

realization of

th

rule of

God in

the

heans and sodeties of men, enabling

them

to hallow

His

Name, and

do His

will on eanh

as

it is in

heaven. the

Kingdom

of

God'is not

His

destiny nor

His

abstract right

to

ntle

His

sovereignty- it

is

the

actual realization of His

s w a y . ; ~ G . Vos, BIBLICAL

THEOWGY. TbeKingdom

of Christ is the actual

exerdse of divine supre

macy in the manifestation

of power, grace, righteous

ness and blessedness, in the interest of

the

divine

glory Mat

6: 10,

33;

Mk.

12:34.

OnlythencanitbeaREALMin

which people who .eriter it, when

it

"comes into their lives, enjoy divine

blessings of. God's covenant,

especially personal fellowship with

God

in

Christ.

God's

Kingdom

is not

only

.God's

redemptive. rule

in

Christ, it is also

God's

gift

in Christ. ItS realization and

its manifestation of saving power,

righteousness and blessedness depend

totally upon the sovereign grace of

God. fGod's

rule is to be established

in man's heart

IUd

sodety, God must

merdfully bring it to pass in the life

and ministry of the

Messiah, Lk.

12

:32;

22:29f.

Hence,it is clear that

Luke

ets

fonh the gospel of the kingdom in

absolute termsas God'sruleand God's

gift in Jesus Christ That this eternal

kingdom

is

inaugurated by

the

binh of

Christ

is also

made clear

by

Luke's

infancy

narratives. Well

say

more

CONTINUED ON PG. 19


8/11

n next month's issue, I will dem

onstrate

the

necessity of adopting

Van

Til's presupposition. I will explain

why

this presupposition is the most

faithful

to

God's word. I will explain why the

RPCUS (the denomination to which

ChaIcedon Presbyterian Church be

longs and which sponsors The Coun

of Chakedon) insists that all

of

its

teaching and ruling elders and deacons

subscribe

to

a presuppositional

apologetic

for

this is what the

West

minster Confession ofPaith teaches.a

THE ANNUNOATION,

aNT FROM PG 16

about the Kingdom as

we

study jesus'

preaching on the subject.

7.(1:35a) The Holy Spirit will come

upon you, and the power o the Most

High will overshadow

you

Mary asks Gabriel how it can be

that she, a virgin, should conceive. In

the reply of the angel

we

notice the

parallelism which among the Hebrews

always indicates the expression of

sublime sentiments and poeticalstyle.

The angel

in

his reply deals with one of

the deepest and holiest mysteries, and

for

this reason his words

are

here

exalted

to

a song. -Geldenhuys. In a

tender, delicate and chaste manner he

tells Mary

that

her

impending

pregnancy will be effected by divine

influence.

The

Holy Spirit Himself

will come upon

Mary

and overshadow

her with His power, through which

she will become pregnant. Uke the

Glory-Cloud of the O.T., the sytnbol

and visualization of the Divine

Glory

and Divine Presence, Exod. 40:34;

Num. 9: 15, the power and presence of

the Most

High God,

ofjehovah

Himself,

will overshadow her.

The overshadowing or

covering

of which Luke speaks is active not

static. t is creative and productive. It

causes Mary to conceive a child. It

reminds

us

of the Spirit

of

God

creatively hovering over the waters at

creation,

Gen.

1:2. Thy Spirit, 0 God,

makes life to abound, Psa. 104:30.

These delicate expressions rule out

crude ideas of a mating of the Spirit

and

Mary.

a.

How did it happen?

All the angel tells Mary is that the

Spirit shall

come

upon you, and t11e

power oj 11e Most High will overshadow

you.

Panher than this the miracle

could not be revealed, for the human

mind could not

follow

fanher. The

points are these: the conception shall

be caused by the Third Person of the

Trinity; He shall not operate from a

distance but shall Himself come upon

Mary;

He shall work the conception by

His almighty power; and this shall

occurwhen,like the Shekinah, (Glory

Cloud), the power shall overshadow

Mary.

- Beyond this

we

cannot

go.

All

else is impenetrable

.

-Lenski,

Interpretation

of Luke.

b. Why the

Holy

Spirit?

Three times the

Bible

tells us that

the Holy Spirit was the Author of the

conceptionofjesusinMary, Mat.

1:

18,

20;

Lk.

1:35. Why dld the Holy Spirit

effect this conception, and not the

Pather or the

Son?

Every

pan

ofJesus'

eanbly lifeis intimately connected with

the Holy Spirit. He was conceived by

the Holy Sphit in the virgin

Mary.

He

was equipped by the Spirit at His

baptism for his redemptive mission

to

the world. He was full of the Spirit

without measure. The Spirit guided

His life and actions. The Spirit

empowered jesus

to

cast out demons.

As

the resurrected Christ, He baptized

His

church with

His

Spirit.

The work of the

Holy

Spirit

in

the

incarnation of jesus resulted in: (1).

the creation of the humanity of Jesus

from Mary,

His mother;

and

(2).

the

immaculate conceptionoOesus,

Le., His

humanitywas preserved free from sin.

(1). The Spirit's creation

of Christ's humanity

The Son of God existed from

eternity. In the incarnation He took

upon

Himself a

PULLY

HUMAN

NATURE. The Person of the Son

adopted our human nature, physically

and spiritually, whenHe was conceived

by the Holy Spirit in the virgin. Jesus

was born, taken from and nourished

with Mary's own blood -the very

blood which through her parents s,l .e

had

received from fallen Adam.

Because of the work

of

the Holy Spirit

Christ was born a trueman, thinking,

willing, and feeling like other men,

susceptible to all the human emotions

and sensations that cause the countless

thrills

and throbsofhumanlife.

-Kuyper,

-

The

Work oj

e

Holy S p r I ~

pg. 83.

(2). The preservation

of

Christ's humanity from sin

jesus, not Mary, was immaculately

conceived; and

t

was the work of the

Spirit preserving Him

free

from sin in

His humanity, vs. 35b. Prom His

conception throughout

His

life, Jesus

was holy.

harmless,

undefiled,

separate from sinners, because of the

work of the Spirit. As the Son

of

God

He was eternally holy and without

moral blemish. In the incarnation the

Holy Spirit worked upon His human

nature keeping it immaculately holy

from

conception. Therefore it can be

said, that whereas Christ was made

SIN for us, He was never a SINNER.

Why did it take the work

of

the

Spirit

to

preserve Christ's humanity

free from sin? Answer: Because of one

very hnponant point-God sent His

Son in he likenessofSlNPULPLESH,

Rom . 8:3. Throughout the ages the

Church has confessed that Christ took

upon Himself real human nalure from

the virgin Mary, not as it was before

the

fall,

but such as it had become

BY

and

APTER

the Pall, Heb. 2:14,17.

Kuyper. The Son of

God

became man

in our fallen nature, with all

its

weaknesses,

bUt

the Holy Spirit keptit

free

from sinfulness. By saying, 'The

Mediator is conceived and born in

our

nature, as it was

BEPORE

the Pail,' we

Juue,

1993

m

COUNSEL

of Chalcedon

-

19


9/11

sever

the

fellowship between Him

and

l1S; and by

allowing tbat He

bad

the

least personal pan of our

u i l ~ n d sin

we sever His fellowship :ynth

the

DIVINE

NATURE

. -Kuyper .

(3). The work of God the Father and

God the Son

in

the incamationofChrist.

The

Holy Spirit effected the

conception

of

JesuS. ThiS is not to say

thatHe is the Father of esus,or that the

.other Persons of the Trinity had no

pan

in the mcarnation. Justas n the creation '

of the universe, so in the incarnation all

Three Persons of the Trinitywere active.

Funhermore,

itis

Biblical to say that the .

Two Persons of tlie Trinity, the Father

and the Son, worked through the Third

Person of Trinity, the Jioly Spirit.

The Bible teaches us

that

the .

incarnation

of

Christ was the work

of

the triune God. The Fatherwas the Co

Author of the incarnation according to

Clirist in Hebrews 10:5, when He said

to the Father:

"Sacrifice and offering

Thou dost not deSire, but a body didst

Thou

prepare for Me." In other words,

the Father prepared Clirist's human

nature. The Son was also Co-Authorof

HiS own incarnation. He was not

passively born, as weare, He was actively

QQrn. He willingly and sovereignly chose

io be o n c d v e d

n Mary,s womb. Christ

"existing in the form

of

God, counted

not

being on an equality with God.a

thing to be

grasped,. but emptied

Himself, taking the form of aservant .. :

Phil. 2:6,7. The moment of incarnation

the Son of God said: "Behold, I bave

come to do TIty will, 0 God," Heb.

10:5,7 .

'. Although all Three Persons were

active in Christ's Incarnation, it was

especially the work of the Holy Spirit.

He: and not the Father or the Son, was

the efficient cause by which Mary

conceived. Asthe Aposdes' Creed states,

Jesus was .conceived by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus could becalled a child of the Holy

Spirit," Mat. 1:18. However, this does

not

mean tbat: he Holy Spirit was the

f ~ t h e r

ofJesus. "Fatherhood depends

upon more t\ an causing sqmething to

be. - The relation of the Holy Spirit to .

the human nature of Christ is that of

Creator and creature. It

is

the First

Person

of

the Trinity, not

the

Third,

who isChrist's Father, Eph. 1:3: Edwin

Palmer,

The

Holy Spirit, pg. 65-66. The

Holy Spirit is the executive of the

Godhead, the Agent of the will of God,

carrying out the will of the Father and

the Son.

8. (1:35b) For that reason the holy

offspring shall be called

the

Son of

God"

"This conceiving act of the Holy

Spirit was essential In order to secure

Christ's sinlessness, ( the holy

offspring") , which,

in

turn,

was

necessary

in

order for Him to become

our

Savior. It preserved Christ from

that original sin which is the lot

of

every

person born into

thiS

world. Through

man's conception and binh, he is

unholy, full of guile, defiled and one

with other sinners. Through Christ's

conception he was 'holy, guileless,

undefiled and separated from sinners:

Heb.7:26. Man is

conceived and born

in

sin, Psa. 51:5,

but

Christ was

conceived and born in holiness, Heb.

4:15; T Cor.;:21; I Pet. 2:22;

1:19;

Heb.

7:26."-Edwln Palmer, pg. 66.

There are two elements in original

sin trarismitted to the race through

ordinary generation: (1). the guilt which

we inherit from Adam the representative

head of the covenant of life; and (2). a

corrupt nature, which we also inherit

from Adam, which is inclined to all evil,

Rom. 5:12f. But because of His

conception by the Holy Spirit, Christ

w s preserVed [rom these two elements

in original sin. The two ways in which

man becomes a .sinner by birth, were

not

in

effect In Jesus, who

was

kept

sinless by the Holy

Spirit

from

conception. Jesus did not Inherit the

guilt of Adam's representative sin, nor

did he inherit a totally depraved human

nature. His human nature was morally

spodess and morally lovely.

And

this

spotless puriry of ChriSt was due to the

operation of the Holy Spirit whereby

20 '

TIlE COUNSEL

of

Chalcedoil

' June.

1993

Jesus was

immaculately

and

miraculously conceived .

without

Joseph's taking pan. Thus the Holy

Spiritw s necessary in Christ's life from

its very inception. He

w s

necessary for

two reasons: first, in order that Christ

might be born; and, second, in order

that his human nature might be

preserved from the guilt and corruption

of Adam's sin so that He could be our

Savior."-Palmer,

pg.66-67.

9, 0 :36) And behold. even your

relative Elizabeth has also conceiveda

son in her old

age;

and she

who

was

caUedbarrenl5nowinhersixthmonth.

Apparently Mary had not yet heard

of the pregnancy of Elizabeth withJohn

the Forerunner of the Messiah, so Gabriel

informs her. ThiS is an encouragement

to Mary to strengthen her faith and to

make her realize more diStincdy the

imminency of the impending miracle,

and with it the entrance of the long

awaited Savior into the world, and the

dawning of the Kingdom of God.

10.

(1:37) For nothing will be

impossible with Godl

Everything Gabriel announced will

come true exacdy as he said- even the

stupendous miracle of the virginbirth

because nothing is impossible for the

Almighty God. He accompliShes allHis

holy will. He does whatever He pleases,

Psalm 115; 135. Whatever He has

spoken, tbat He will do, Isa. 46.

C. The

SubmiSsive

Attitude

o ary

1. (1 :34) The Question of Awe

After Gabriel brought his message

that Marywould become pregnant with

the Messiah while still a virgin,

Mary

asked, How can this be,

since

I am a

vI'Ein? This message is overwhelming

and incomprehensible to Mary. Yet ,

like ZaCharias, she does not doubt its

truthfulness. She does not ask for a

confirming sign. Instead, she simply

asks forinforrnation. "According to the

original Greek, Mary's words do not

express doubt; but overwhelmed by

the incomprehensible grandeUr of the


10/11

announcement, she merelyenquires

as

to

the manner in which that which has

been

promised

will take place.

Geldenhuys

2.

(1 :38)

The Submission to God

Mary submits herselfcompletely

to

God's will revealed in the angelic

annunciation. She says

in

effect: Lord,

I

belong to you totally as your willing

slave, do whatever you want with me.

I trust

in

you. Even if my husband

no

longer trusts me

or

I

am

executedbecause people think

I

have committed adultery,

I

will trust you and do what you

command. I am yours.

Abraham Kuyper, former

prime minister of Holland and

Reformed minister of

the

gospel, makes this important

pointabout Mary, in his book,

Women

o the New Testament

The faith to which Mary gave

expression has not always been

thought ofas having been freely

given herby grace. It is thought

by some that

Mary

partly

accomplished it herself.

Wherever

this

conception

prevails, these corollaries follow: the

incarnation of the Lord was made

possible only by Mary's assent; by

making that incarnation possible, MOlY

enabled Christ

to

offer the supreme

sacrifice of redemption; and that for

these reasons, Mary is partly

to

be

praised for the redemption of the

world..... - (However) Mary's faith,

too, was not of herself. Only by the

grace of God

did

she make that noble

confession. And this is a formulation of

a truth which diametrically opposes

thatwhichmaintains that Maryenabled

God to complete His determinate

counsel. We insist that God the Lord,

in order to fulfill that counsel, exerted

an influenceuponMary's soulandupon

her body. He influenced her soul by

giving

her

faith,

and her

body by

building up that of the Savior from her

flesh and blood.

CONCLUDING APPLICATIONS

1. The story of the virgin birth of

Jesus is the story of a stupendous

miracle. It is

far

from being incredible,

and an obstacle to faith. Instead it is

an

encouragementto faith. Itis an organic

part of that majestic picture of Jesus

which canbe acceptedmosteasilywhen

it is taken as a whole. -Machen

2. How important is it

for

a person to

believe that Jesus

was

bam of a virgin?

FIRST, it is imponant with reference

to the authority and trustworthiness of

the Bible. There can be

no

reasonable

doubt about

this fact: the New

Testament teaches the virgin birth of

Jesus. Now, the question is, is the N.

T.

correct on that issue?

f

t is not COlTect

at this point, how can i t be trusted on

any other point?

We Chlistians are interested not

merely in what God commands, but

also

in

what God did; the Christian

religion is couched not merely in the

imperative mood

but

also

in

a

triumphant indicative; our salvation

depends squarely upon history; the

Bible contains that history, and unless

that history is true the authority of the

Bible

is gone

and

we who have put our

trust in the Bible are without hope.

Machen, pg. 385

The Bible ..does not merely tell us

what God is,but it also tells US what

God did;

it

contains not merely

pennanent truths of religionandethics,

but also a gospel or a piece of good

news. n integral part of that piece of

news to the authors of the First

and

Third Gospels, was the fact that jesus

Christwas conceived

by

the Holy Spirit

andborn of the Virgin Mary.

f

hatfact

is rejected, then the wimess of these

writers-and

hence the witness of the

Bible-is in so

far

not

true.

Machen, pg.

386.

SECOND,

the

issue of the

virgin birth

of jesus is

important as a test for a

man

to

applyto himselfor to others

to determine whether one

holds a

naturalistic or

a

supernaturalistic

view

regardingJesus Christ. There

are two generically different

views about jesus and they

are rooted

in

two generically

different views about Godand

the world. According to one

view, God is immanentin the

universe

in the

sense that the

universe is the necessary

unfolding of His life; and Jesus of

Nazareth is a

part

of that unfolding, a

supreme product of the same divine

forces that are elsewhere operarive in

the world. According to the other

view, God is theCreator of he universe,

immanent

in

it but also eternally

separate from it

and

free;

and

Jesus of

Nazareth came into the universe from

outside the universe, to do what nature

could never do. Theformer view is the

view of modern naturalism

in

many

different forms; the lat ter view is the

view of the Bible

and

of

the Christian

Church. -Machen, pg.

387

THIRD, this issue is important

because it teaches us that the jesus of

History cannot be separated from the

Christ of Faith. A.N.Wilson fails

miserably

in

his well-written attempt

to make that distinction in his book,

June, 1993 l' TIlE

COUNSEL

of Chalcedon I 21


11/11

Jesus

"The two elements of Christian

truth belong together; the supernatural

Person of our Lord belongs lOgically

with His redemptive work; the

Virgin

birth belongs logically with the Cross.

Where one aspect is given up, the other

will not logically remain; and where

one

is

accepted, the other

will

naturally

. be accepted, too. Thetemaybehalfway

positions

for

a time, but they

are

in

unstable equilibrium and will not long

e maintained." -Machen,

pg.

391.

FOUR1H, a person's knowledge of

the SaViorwould be incomplete without

faith that the

N.T.

passages on the

Virgin

birth

are

true. "Without the story of

the virgin birth our knowledge of our

Savior would be impoverished in a

very serious

way.

- Our knowledge

of

the

virgin

birth,

therefore, is

important because it fixes for us the

time of the incarnation. And what

comfort that gives to our souls - The

eternal Son of God, He through whom

the universe was made, did not despise

the

Virgin's

womb. What a wonder is

there

t

s not strange that it hasalways

given offense to the natural man.

But

in

that wonder we find God's redeeming

loire, and in that baby who lay in

Mary's

womb, we find our

SaVior;

who thus

became man

to

die

for

our sins and

bringusintopeacewithGod."-Machen,

pg.394.

FIFTIl, "the knowledge of the Virgin

birth s important because ofits bearing

upon

our

View of the solidarity of the

race in the guilt and power of sin. -

How, except by the

Virgin

birth, could

our Savior have livedacomplete human

life from

the

mothers womb, and yet

have been from the very beginning no

product of what had gone before, but a

supernatural Person come into the

world from the outside

to

redeem the

sinful race? - Deny or

give

up the

story of the virgin birth, and

ineVitably

you are led to evade either the high

Biblical doctrine ofsin or else the full

Biblical presentation of the supernatural

Person of oUt Lord."-Machen, pg. 395

THEREFORE, we hold that the

Virgin birth oUesus

isVitally

important

because: (1). ifit is rejected theauthority

of the

Bible

is denied; (2). because it

brings before a person the super

naturalness of the person

of

the Lord

Jesus; (3). without the Virgin birth,

there is something seriously lacking in

one's

View

of the person and work of

Jesus Christ. A personcannotrejectthe

diVine testimony of the NewTestament

without risking serious peril

to

his own

soul

3 ..... perhaps not one man out of a

hundred of those who deny

the Virgin

birth today gives any really clear

eVidence

of possessing saVing faith. A

man is not saved by good works, but by

faith;

and saving faith is acceptance of

Jesus Christ

'as

He is offered

to

us

in the

gospel,' .Part of that gospel in which

Jesus is offered

to

our

souls

is the

blessed story of the wracle

in

the

Virgin's womb. - One thing at least is

clear: even i f the belief in 'the Virgin

birthisnotnecessaryto every Chrisrian,

it is certainly necessary to Christianity.

And it is necessary to the corporate

witness of the Church. -

Let

it never be forgotten that the

Virgin birth is an integral pan

ofthe

New

Testament witness

about Christ, and that that

wimess is strongest when it is

taken as it stands.

womb

of the Virgin by the Holy Spirit.-

Machen,

pg. 397, The Yi1&inBirth, Ilaker

Book

House, Grand

Rapids,

Mich.,

1967,

first

published by Harper and

Rowin 1930.

4.lnGabriel'smessage to Marywehave

God's testimony to the incomparable

greamess of Jesus Christ, a greatness

totally different from and superior to

that

of

any human being.

His

existence

as a man s ofuniqUe origin, vs. 35. He

was born of the

Virgin

Mary through

the overshadowing of the power of the

Holy Spirit of

God.

He eternally is the

only-begotten Son of the Most High

God, vs . 32. His God-given name is

Jesus,

Le

., The Lord is salvation. He is

the only diVine-human Redeemer of

the covenant people ofGod . Unlike all

other

human beings, He

is

totally

withOut sin. He is the Holy One in an

absolute sense,

vs.

35.

He

is

the

divine

human

King

who will reigu over His

Kingdom

for

all

eternity, vs. 34. What

a SaVior Believe in the Lord Jesus

Christ aild you will be saved

,

and your

family, Acts 16:31.0

The

Ma8nificat

The New Testament

presentation ofjesus is not an

agglomeration,

but an

organism,

and of that

organism

the virgin birth is an integral

pan.

Remove

the part, and

the whole becomes harder and

not easier to accept; the New

Testament account of]esus is

Mary s song

o

praise

for the

glob l

effects

o Christ s birth.

most

conVinCing

when it is

taken as a whole.

ONLYONE

JESUS IS PRESEN1ED

IN

THE

WORD

OF

GOD;

and that

Jesus did not come into the

world by ordinary generation,

but

was conceived

in

the

uke

1

46-55

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12 THE COUNSEL of Otalcedon

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June, 1993

1993 issue 5 - sermon on luke 1:26-38 - the announcement of the incarnation of christ to the virgin...

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