The Virgin Birth
I. The virgin birth in the New Testament
A. Matthew 1:18-25
1. What
did the custom of betrothal entail?
2. What
does verse 25 imply concerning the "perpetual virginity" of Mary?
B. Luke 1:26-38; 2:1-7
II. Isaiah and the virgin birth
A. Read all of Isaiah 7
B. Identify the major characters:
Tiglathpilesar, the King of Assyria; Pekah, the King of Israel; Rezin, the King
of Syria; and Ahaz, the King of Judah.
C. Ahaz is told by Isaiah not to worry
about an alliance between Pekah and Rezin (vs. 4). They will not conquer him
(vs. 5-6). Within sixty-five years their alliance will be gone, because Israel
will be in captivity (vs. 8). God offers Ahaz a sign (vs. 10-11). Ahaz feigned
piety refusing the sign (vs. 12). The real reason was that he planned to align
himself with Assyria (2 Kings 16:6-7). God says he will give him a sign anyway
(vs. 13-14). "The" (definite article in Hebrew and Greek) "young
woman" or "virgin" (can mean either in Hebrew) "is" or
"will be" (not certain in Hebrew) with child (vs. 13-14). By the time
this child knows right from wrong and is weaned and on solid food, the danger
from the northern alliance will pass (vs. 15-16). If Ahaz does not trust God,
the real problem is going to be Assyria, not Israel and Syria (vs. 17). The
oracle was delivered in 735/734 B.C. Damascus fell in 732 B.C. and Pekah was
killed. Samaria fell in 722 B.C. People were exiled in coming years up through
Esarhaddon's time (681-669 B.C.), thus the crisis was over within sixty-five
years (vs. 8). Likewise, the crisis would be over when the child of verse 14
was a few years old, not when Jesus was born 700 years later. The child of
Isaiah 7:14 was a child born in Isaiah's day.
D. Fulfillment in Matthew
1. "Fulfillment"
in Matthew sometimes included fulfillment of a direct, exact prediction (Mt.
2:5-6), but many other times it was not the fulfillment of a direct, exact prediction
but a foreshadowing or prefiguring through types or analogies (Mt. 2:18).
2. Study
Mt. 2:14-15 as a fulfillment of Hos. 11:1. Hos. 11:1 is not a prediction of
Jesus going to Egypt as an infant. However, Jesus going to Egypt is analogous
in many ways to the nation of Israel going to Egypt.
Israel Jesus
a. God's son a.
God's Son
b. Sojourned in Egypt by b. Sojourned
in Egypt by
God's providence God's providence
c. Pharaoh ordered murder c. Herod ordered
murder
of male infants of male infants
d. Moses, giver of old d.
Jesus, giver of new
law, protected law, protected
e. Resulted in salvation e.
Resulted in salvation
of Jewish people of the whole world
3.
"Signs" were not always miraculous (Isa. 8:18), thus, the
"sign" in Isaiah 7:14 could refer to a non-miraculous birth of a
child (one of Isaiah's children or possibly Ahaz's son, Hezekiah). Later the
"sign" could refer to the miraculous birth of Jesus by the virgin
Mary. As this child in Isaiah's day was a sign that God was with them and that
God was going to save them from their northern neighbors, the baby Jesus is the
sign that God is with mankind and is working for the salvation of all people.
III. The authenticity of the virgin birth
A. It is not the most important doctrine
upon which everything else hangs. It is only found in Matthew and Luke. Paul's
thirteen epistles with their extensive explanation of the Christian faith never
mention the virgin birth.
B. The virgin birth is not included in
the New Testament because the Bible has a negative view of sexuality within the
bounds of marriage. The biblical view of sex within marriage is very positive.
C. The virgin birth is not taught in
order to avoid attributing original sin to Jesus.
1. Original
sin is a post-biblical doctrine.
2. If
original sin were passed on genetically from one generation to the next, Jesus
would have received it from Mary.
3. Study
how Roman Catholicism takes this one step further with their doctrine of the
immaculate conception of Mary.
D. The virgin birth is not found in the
New Testament merely to give the Messiah a spectacular entrance into the world
to equal some pagan deities. The virgin birth doctrine is not really parallel
with births in pagan mythology.
E. The virgin birth is not included in
the New Testament primarily to prove that Jesus is the Son of God. Again, the
doctrine is found only in Matthew and Luke. Paul, Peter, John and others could
build their theology of the deity of Christ without this truth. The
resurrection was proof enough (Rom. 1:4).
F. The virgin birth was not included in
the New Testament to make Jesus fit the Isaiah 7:14 prophecy and to fulfill
Jewish expectations of a virgin born Messiah. The Jews were not looking for a
virgin born Messiah based on Isaiah 7:14.
G. The virgin birth was not included to
explain the origin of Jesus' name of "Immanuel," because he was not
known by that name. He was known as "Jesus." "Immanuel"
became a religious name/term which manifested a truth about who Jesus was.
H. With all other options exhausted as to
why Matthew and Luke might have included the story of the virgin birth, we are
left with one other possible answer which is the most rational explanation—it
really happened. Jesus was born of the virgin Mary, thus Matthew and Luke gave
us this bit of history.
IV. Discussion
A. While "virgin birth" is the
usual term, in what ways is "virginal conception" a more accurate
expression?
B. A century ago Christian apologetics
often defended the virgin birth as the most important doctrine of all. In light
of the paucity of information about it in the New Testament, what else might be
a more central tenet of faith?
C. While the virgin birth is not
recounted in the New Testament as the chief argument for the deity of Christ,
how is it related to this truth? Lk. 1:35
D. How does the virgin birth synchronize
with the truth of the pre-existence, the incarnation, the deity, and the
humanity of Christ?
E. Can you name a hymn which refers to
the virgin birth of Christ?
F. Memory verse - Mt. 1:23