06⎪DECEMBER 2022⎪shop . cmausa . org |
God
is a God of miracles , and the Bible is a book of miracles . So much more than simply a history textbook , a list of rules , or a philosophy for life , the Bible is filled with the supernatural breaking into the natural . From the first words , “ In the beginning God …” ( Genesis 1:1 , NLT ), the Scriptures defy logic ; they are beyond explanation and tell of crazy , unbelievable happenings .
Christmas is all about miracles , right ? Christmas brings hope that God will break through the darkness with His light . This year , as you celebrate the birth of Christ , let ’ s don ’ t forget a very important miracle , one at the very center of our faith . We call this miracle the virgin birth of Jesus , and it ’ s one of the foundational truths of our faith . Let ’ s take a minute and look at it from Scripture in Luke 1:26- 39 ( NLT ).
“ In the sixth month of Elizabeth ’ s pregnancy , God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth , a village in Galilee , to a virgin named Mary . She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph , a descendant of King David . Gabriel appeared to her and said , “ Greetings , favored woman ! The Lord is with you !”
Confused and disturbed , Mary tried to think what the angel could mean . “ Don ’ t be afraid , Mary ,” the angel told her , “ for you have found favor
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with God ! You will conceive and give birth to a son , and you will name him Jesus . He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High . The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David . And he will reign over Israel forever ; his Kingdom will never end !”
Mary asked the angel , “ But how can this happen ? I am a virgin .”
The angel replied , “ The Holy Spirit will come upon you , and the power of the Most High will overshadow you . So the baby to be born will be holy , and he will be called the Son of God . What ’ s more , your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age ! People used to say she was barren , but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month . For the word of God will never fail .”
Mary responded , “ I am the Lord ’ s servant . May everything you have said about me come true .” And then the angel left her .” Can you imagine the look on Mary ’ s face when the angel told her she was going to have a baby ? She was like , “ Now , how ’ s that supposed to work ?” But that ’ s the point ; Mary didn ’ t conceive by normal means . It was a break into the regular order of
things miracle . The Holy Spirit rests on Mary , and she supernaturally conceives .
This is so crazy and so important ! The Miracle of intervention :
The first miracle we pick up on here in Luke 1 is God ’ s initiating in our direction . God intervened in a situation He didn ’ t have to . God ’ s mercy for His creation moves Him to make the first step . The first miracle of Christmas is that God the Father intervened in human history .
The Miracle of intervention produces the miracle of the virgin birth :
This was how God miraculously intervened , producing offspring without a human father . No man or angel was involved . Jesus Christ , who was God from all eternity , took hold of this human nature and thus conceived and joined it to Himself .
Why is this necessary ? Why did it have to go this way ? The miracle of the virgin birth makes it possible for the one Person to ever be born who was 100 % God and 100 % man . Jesus is fully God and fully human .
The Miracle of intervention produces the miracle of the virgin birth , which brings about the miracle of salvation :
Every standard human birth produces another sinner , just as Adam , the father of all of us , produced a whole human race of sinners . The miracle of the virgin birth produces the one Man who lived completely sinless ! The one Man who can bear our sins and pay the penalty for the whole
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