Back to Basics
The Birth Narratives – Part 1 16/12/2020
Derrick Harrison 16/12/2020
The Birth Narratives of Matthew and Luke The prophesies of Isaiah and their fulfilment in Matthew/Luke represents a gap of about 600 years. In actual fact the oldest prophecy in the Bible refers to the virgin birth – it is impossible to go back further in time, before humans were created! (We may be talking about 4,000 years between the time when the LORD spoke His word to Eve concerning her SEED and to the time of its fulfilment) and it is over 2,000 years since the birth of Jesus. The Genesis prophecy followed the fall of Adam and Eve, and was spoken by the LORD to the serpent in the presence of Eve, who was also the subject of the prophecy: “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel” (Gen.3:15). The LORD God refers to the “Seed of the woman” – this prophecy had its original fulfilment in the birth of Eve’s first-born son Cain (Gen.4:1), but its ultimate prophetic fulfilment was in the virgin conception; “her Seed” who was named Emmanuel by Isaiah and Jesus by the angel. Between the close of the OT and opening of the NT was about 400 years, no Scriptures were written because there had been no prophet speaking God’s word in Judah and therefore no written Scripture – this is because the writing of the Scriptures results from oral/spoken words from God. So long a silence created a vacuum - an intense longing to hear God speak, a focus on the written Scriptures which already
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existed ( they had been brought together in the Exile) and the interpretation of those sacred scrolls. What we do discover is reflected in the different branches of Judaism (Pharisees, Sadducees and other groups) and their responses to Jesus’ teaching. The intensity of longing also focused on the hoped-for Messiah who will deliver the Jews of Palestine from the Roman yolk. Jesus avoided the title of Messiah for this very reason. One point I want to make is that despite the absence of inspired Scriptures emerging, nevertheless, we find clear evidence that within Israel at the time of Jesus’ birth and during His ministry there were godly souls. Consider the poor widow who put in all that she possessed into the temple money-box, and of course Zechariah, Elizabeth, Joseph and Mary, all godly individuals in the context of Second Temple Judaism and we must also include Simeon and Anna. We have evidence of this in the region of Judea at the time of Elizabeth giving birth (Lk.1: 58, 6566), in Jerusalem at the time of Jesus’ birth and dedication (Simeon and Anna in particular), and other scattered believers who were undeviating in their devotion to the Lord (2:38). One of the lessons we learn from the OT history of God’s people is that besides their continued apostacy there was always a faithful remnant. One contemporary reaction to Israel’s Judaism (as it was represented by its various parties) was the community at Qumran; they were an ascetic Jewish sect called the Essenes, made famous by the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, who lived in the Judean desert on the north west shore of the Dead Sea. They lived at the time of John the Baptist (scholars have explored the possibility of links with John). They lived in community and shared all their possessions in common; they practised celibacy and frequent baptisms and ritual washings because they desired to be pure/clean when the Lord returned. New Life Radio – Talk No 10
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Incidentally, the history of the Jews is well documented during the inter-testamental period; the 14 Apocryphal books were written during this period. The Protestant Bible did not accept these books to be on the same level of inspiration as the rest of the books in the canon of Scripture. The first century Jewish historian of Romano-Jewish history, Flavius Josephus (AD 37-100) refers to John the Baptist and Jesus, to Pilate, the Jewish Wars and the fall of Jerusalem. Luke’s Prologue: (1:1-4) Luke’s method of writing The Gospel of Luke and The Acts of the Apostles (Lk.1:1-4). “Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus, that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed” (Lk.1:1-4). 1. Luke acknowledges the existence of Gospels which give an orderly account of, “those things which have been fulfilled among us” – Luke is saying that his Gospel will not be for this purpose. Luke could well be describing Matthew’s Gospel which views Jesus’ biography as the fulfilment of OT prophecy. 2. In comparison the content of Luke’s Gospel will be based on the accounts of events from original eyewitness and ministers of the Lord. Thus, Luke claims to have authentic knowledge of events, from the very first” – this obviously refers to Mary, Elizabeth and the birth
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narratives at the beginning of his Gospel. Luke claims for himself, perfect understanding and to have presented his material chronologically. 3. Theophilus, means “a lover of God” a name which may refer to a Roman citizen or it could be applied to any reader. Luke has his readers in mind when tells Theophilus that reading his Gospel will convince him further of the truth of things in which he has already been instructed. The journalist Luke has given to us an amazing account of Jesus’ narrative from His conception to His ascension and Acts takes us from there to His exaltation and His outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the 12 disciples, despite the fact that he was not one of Jesus’ original disciples. His writings found immediate acceptance because of his close relationship with the apostle Paul. The chronological order of events in the Birth narratives of Matthew & Luke 1. Wise men from the East see the star, Mat.2:1; (7. B.C.), a journey of over 1,000 miles 2. The annunciation to Zachariah: Luke 1:5-25; (6 B.C. Mid-May to Early June) 3. The annunciation to Mary: Lk.1:26-38; (Late November - Early December) 4. Mary’s visit to Elizabeth: Lk.1:39-56; (3 months visit to her cousin Elizabeth) 5. The birth of Elizabeth’s child, John: Lk.1:57-80; (5 B.C. Late February - Early March, 6 months before the arrival of Jesus) 6. The annunciation to Joseph, Mat.1:18-25; (Mary is 3 months pregnant) New Life Radio – Talk No 10
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7. Joseph & Mary travel to Bethlehem to pay taxes: Lk.2:1-5; (Late August - Early September) 8. The birth of Mary’s child, Jesus: Lk.2:6-7; (August 27 and September 9, probably the 2nd of Sept. on the Sabbath, the Biblical holy day known as the Feast of Trumpets - Rosh Hashanah) 9. The annunciation to the shepherds & their visit to the manger, Lk.2:8-20 10. The magi come to worship the Child, Mat.2:1-12; (early October) 11. The circumcision of Jesus, Lk.2:21-39; the prophecy of Simeon: 2:25-35; the prophecy of Anna 2:36-38 12. Joseph flees with his family to Egypt, Mat.2:13-15 13. Herod’s massacre, Mat.2:16-18; (late October) To complete the period between the events which surround Jesus birth and His childhood you may wish to include the following details from Luke’s Gospel: Jesus is 12 years old and He visits the temple with parents, Lk.2:41-49; at this young age He is conscious of His calling but chooses to return home and submit Himself to His parents. Jesus’ teenage years of development and growth, 2:51-53. From the age of 18-30 there is no account of Jesus’ life at home or in the carpenter’s shop. At the age of 30 He suddenly appears among the crowd at John’s baptisms. Before you read Luke’s birth narratives of both John and Jesus, one needs to point out one of Luke’s particular interests, - the occasions when the Holy Spirit is suddenly present accompanied by manifestations, a focus which continues in the book of Acts. Suddenly, in sharp contrast to the hundreds of years absence of the Spirit’s New Life Radio – Talk No 10
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recorded presence and manifestations, there is an eruption of the Spirit’s activity surrounding the birth of both John and Jesus, just as there are also outbreaks of joy (Lk.1:14, 44, 47; 2:14-15, 20, 38,) – noted by Luke. Matthew’s narrative focuses on Joseph and Luke’s on Mary. Matthew’s Genealogy of Jesus Christ, he begins his Gospel with a very important genealogy which begins with Jesus Christ and then he purposely jumps back to David and then to Abraham. It is clear therefore that Matthew is using and shaping this genealogy for a definite purpose. Genealogies undergird the historical narrative of the OT and to the Jews they were very important, they affirm that their history is authentic and true and that they are part of that ongoing history. Genealogies are also important because when they are examined, they often reveal the long-term purposes of God and tell us that His unique purposes/providences extend beyond the narrow lifespan of one person’s life-time. This is exactly what Matthew is doing by tracing Jesus’ origin/lineage back to the royal line of David and His Jewish root back to Abraham the first Hebrew (Abraham is also the father of faith, the father of all those who believe – so we have our spiritual origin/root in this genealogy of Jesus Christ through spiritual birth). The genealogy of Matthew is carefully divided into three equal parts representing 14 generations each (Mat.1:17). The line which eventually climaxes in Jesus Christ originates with Abraham, “who is the father of us all” (Rom.4:16). The Jews looked back to Abraham as their biological father (ethnicity), but also as their spiritual father. He begets a son, a family and eventually a nation of Jews but Abraham was also their spiritual father as he is also our spiritual father, to all New Life Radio – Talk No 10
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those who are of the same faith as Abraham ((Rom.4:16). Thus, we trace our spiritual lineage back to Abraham, although we trace our origin/root to Jesus Christ, we are conceived and born in Him and as His son’s we look back to Abraham who is our spiritual father because he began this generation of faith. This is the generation of Jesus Christ of which we are part through spiritual birth (as represented by Isaac who is the son who is born miraculously through the faith of Abraham and Sarah). Abraham and Sarah’s faith finds its parallel in both Joseph and Mary’s faith. Matthew takes another leap backwards to David who was equally important in the thinking of the Jews. Just as Abraham foreshadows Jesus who birthed us into new life, so David represents the kingdom into which we have been born. The apostle Paul taught that to be born again was to be simultaneously baptized into God’s family – His body, the church. When we came to Jesus, we came to Him for personal salvation, not realizing we were also being born in to His family at the same time. Jesus Christ is the head of His family – He is our patriarchal head and this represents a more informal headship as exercised in a family context; He also is head in His church which is His body, all spiritual headship/leadership is exercised under His headship so that all those who exercise leadership are His servants and exercise their stewardship in relationship to Him and each member of His body. He is also sovereign Lord in His kingdom where all things are subject to His rule and government – Paul specifically says: “For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. For “He has put all things under His feet.” But when He says “all things are put under Him,” it is evident that He who put all things under
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Him is excepted. Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all” (1Cor.15:25-28). King David demonstrates rulership in the nation/kingdom of Israel and foreshadows the reign of Christ in His saints and that same rule is exercised in the kingdom of God to which we belong. David was the conquering king who extended the borders of Israel, he subdued all his enemies, whereas Solomon represents the calm of God’s kingdom reign – all is peace and accomplishment in God’s kingdom. In the Abrahamic covenant the LORD promised Sarah, that “kings of people shall be of her” (Gen.17:16), and in the covenant with Moses/Israel, we read, “And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation’ (Ex.19:6). The apostle John must have had this Scripture in mind when he wrote, “and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. (Rev.1:6). Jesus embodied in His reign both kingship and priesthood as prefigured in the mystical figure of Melchizedeck who was both (eternal) king and (eternal) priest of the Most-High God (Gen.14:18-20; Heb.7:1). In Israel, priesthood and kingship were kept well apart (2Chron.26:18-21). In the kingdom of God where Jesus Christ reigns, He combines both offices, those of King and High-Priest and we also reign with Him and wage warfare with Him (Rev.5:10) as David. We also function as priests as we offer up prayers and supplications unto our God with Zachariah and his praying congregation (Rev.5:8). We are born in Christ and thus we inherit the covenant promises (represented by Abraham), and we are born in Christ to reign in His kingdom. However, Matthew’s purpose in pivoting everything on Jesus New Life Radio – Talk No 10
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as the son of Abraham and David is to focus on His ethnicity as a Jew, which was absolutely essential, but also to demonstrate that He was the direct descendent of king David through his (adoptive) father Joseph. Joseph was the last of the kingly line in Israel as John the son of Zachariah was the last of the priestly line – an awesome responsibility which John rejected in order to fulfil the role of the forerunner to Jesus. The line of Joseph ended with the crucifixion where Jesus was mocked by the soldiers who put on Him purple royal robes which was the attire of kings and the soldiers put on His head a crown of thorns and then Pilate mocked him with the question, “Are You the king of the Jew?” and when Jesus was led out to crucifixion Pilate had a superscription nailed to the cross, “Jesus of Nazareth, the king of the Jews.” Jesus more than fills the type or the for-shadowing of kingship, because: “He … is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honour and everlasting power. Amen” (1Tim.15-16) This quotation of Paul follows on immediately after a reference to His second coming and shows that the reference linking Jesus to the throne of David is very much related to His coming as a Jew to reach His own people as Emmanuel. In coming to the Jews, He fulfils the promises made to both Abraham and David. Paul makes it very clear that His kingship is eternal because He is immortal, dwelling in the inner being of God Himself in unapproachable light. I have been demonstrating the glory of humanity but Paul shows to us that the one who came to earth came from the core of God’s being to take upon Himself our humanity. Jesus is eternal God - He always has been and
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always will be God! Actually, Matthew’s purpose is to present Jesus Christ as King in his Gospel. Note also that he is writing to Jewish Christians and presents Jesus as the Messiah, the fulfilment of OT Scriptures, he repeatedly applies these Scriptures to Jesus’ life and very often with the words, “that it might be fulfilled” (9 references). Matt.1:22, is the first example and refers to Isaiah’s Emmanuel prophecy. The genealogy of Luke (Lk.3:23-38) is placed much later in the narrative – 30 years later, as it is placed after Jesus’ baptism. Matthew’s genealogy began with Jesus Christ and then he took us back to Abraham and then David. Luke’s genealogy begins with Joseph, (who was the supposed father of Jesus) and goes back all the way to Adam, the son of God, which is interesting because it takes us back beyond the Jews to the original man – thus he extends the covenant promises beyond Jews to embrace the whole of humanity. I find this significant because Jesus died for the world, also taking us back to Adam and similarly, when Jesus commissioned His disciple’s He told them to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, taking us back again to Adam, the son of God. Significantly, although Matthew begins with the Jewish covenants with Abraham and Moses/Israel, he concludes his Gospel, (following after Jesus’ death and resurrection) with the “Great Commission” which extends the covenant promises to “all the world” – so we see that both Matthew and Luke conclude in agreement, that the salvation of Jesus accomplished through the cross, extends the promises of covenant, (which were originally spoken to Israel), to all the world through the gospel invitation. Jesus, in Himself is the one who embodies the promise of covenant to all His sons and daughters.
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Before the birth narratives of Joseph and Mary there is the birth narrative of Zacharias and Elizabeth and their first-born son John. We can’t ignore the narrative of John because the characters in both narratives are inter-related and the events of both narratives meet at key points, also Luke draws comparisons between them. Going back to my introductory talk in Back to basics where I discussed Biblical inspiration as primarily consisting of God’s spoken words, which of course is true, but here we have a unique and very important contribution to our understanding of how Luke, a very significant writer of NT Scripture (alongside the apostle John and the apostle Paul) wrote his Gospel. Luke’s statement must be given full-weight alongside the much-quoted verses of Peter (2Pet.1:21) and Paul (2Tim.3:16). It is naïve to imagine that men with a pen in their hand suddenly started writing Scripture being led along by the Holy Spirit. Certainly, there were frequent occasions when these writers must have experienced just that, but the fact is that the Holy Spirit quickens mind, thought, memory, insight, words, and so on. When you study for a while these two Gospels you realize that words, emphasis, insights, careful crafting, structures of teaching units are all in there. Each Synoptic Gospel takes the visit to Caesarea Philippi with the confession of Peter, as the water-shed event, after which Jesus makes His long journey to Jerusalem. These writers share resources – oral sources, personal and independent sources (nearly all of Mark’s Gospel is found in Luke’s Gospel). What we know is that they are written and shared among people who had first-hand knowledge of the apostles’ teaching and their accounts of Jesus’ life and miracles (Lk.1:3). Luke’s two books – the gospel of Luke and Acts are cleverly linked together by him. We need to remind ourselves of Luke’s core values
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when he writes Scripture which are clearly outlined at the beginning of his Gospel and apply both to Luke and Acts. This Gospel in contrast to Matthew was written for Gentiles.
The Birth Narrative of John the Baptist
The Annunciation of the angel to Zachariah (1:5-25)
We immediately enter into another world of ancient Galilee and Judea and we meet a rural priest and his wife, a peasant girl (Lk.1:48) and two godly people who frequent the Jerusalem temple waiting for the arrival of the Messiah. The following material is unique to Luke’s Gospel, he has given to us the two most amazing parallel accounts of the annunciations and births of both John and Jesus, the two narratives are beautifully interwoven together, just as the lives of Mary and Elizabeth were interwoven as cousins from childhood. John and Jesus may well have played together when the two families met up together for family events. Luke takes up the story again 30 years later with the appearance of John Baptist from the wilderness, preaching and baptizing, when Jesus appears among the crowd (read the apostle John’s account which covers 3 days and Luke’s account which gives some of the content of John’s preaching). Luke particularly, notes how the Holy Spirit comes upon Jesus as a result of His prayer. When we read Luke’s account of Paul meeting disciples of John Baptist when he enters Ephesus, we are surprised, but the fact is that his movement spread to Asia Minor, Achaia and beyond (Acts 13:24-25; 18:25; 19:14). Both Zachariah and his wife Elizabeth were from the family of Aaron. With such impeccable credentials, we read also that they are both righteous before God and their righteousness is demonstrated in their New Life Radio – Talk No 10
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personal lives, in moral obedience to the law and ceremonial obedience to the ordinances of the law. The serious impediment in their marriage was Elizabeth’s barrenness, as it had with Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Elkanah and Hannah, Manoah and his wife. There are several links with the OT account of Abraham and Sarah and Elizabeth’s barrenness is just one of those links (v7 cf. Gen.11:30). Luke introduces Zachariah as he is conducting the service in the temple at Jerusalem; he was burning incense before the altar, the part assigned to each priest in his week of service in “the temple of the Lord” which was decided by lot. Zechariah was engaged “in the priest’s office before God” at the offering of incense to bring in and place on the golden altar the pan filled with hot burning coals taken from the altar of burnt offering; and to sprinkle the incense on the hot coals (cf. the Day of Atonement, Lev.16); and, while the smoke of it ascended, to make intercession for the people. This was the most distinguished part of the service (Rev 8:3). His priestly ministry was complimented by the simultaneous praying of the “whole multitude of the people praying without” and exactly at that holy moment of incense and prayer mingled together the angel of the Lord appeared to assure Zechariah that his forgotten prayers for a son had been heard and answered in God’s perfect timing to accomplish His will and purposes. These words of the angel point back to the words of the Lord to Abraham (Gen.17:19). As with Abraham, the angel Gabriel names the promised son, “Do not be afraid, Zachariah, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John and you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.” (vv13-14)
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The angel continues to prophecy about this promised son called John: “For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink
neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (vv15-17). There is not space here to expound these amazing words regarding John, we will simply comment on the text. 1). His greatness will be recognised by God, not only for what he does but for himself – the true person he is. We read that “Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and honourable man in the eyes of his master” (2Kings 5:1). Similarly, the Lord had a great esteem for John – surely, gained by him by his obedience and humbling in the wilderness, a costly emptying which was the undergirding and ongoing principle of his calling alongside his constant witness to Jesus. 2) His baptism in the Spirit is unprecedented in Scripture due to the fact that he was an unborn child in the womb of his mother Elizabeth when the Holy Spirit came powerfully upon him, causing him to jump for joy despite his confinement! There is total deception when the world names an unborn child as a foetus – barbaric nations today are murdering unborn children, not foetuses. Similarly, when the AIDS disease is called a virus, it is no such thing at all. John Baptist (and Paul)
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would have been ruthlessness and scathing about those who cover up their sin by calling it by another name (read Rom.ch.1). 3) The angel points to the future impact and effectiveness of his ministry in turning many Jews back to the Lord. We catch a glimpse of this in the Gospel of Luke as vast crowds of people, from Jerusalem, Galilee, Judea, and “all the country about Jordon” (Mat.3:1; Lk.3:3; Jn.1:19). Such was the compelling power of his preaching of repentance linked with water baptism that multitudes were baptised by him and his disciples in the Jordan to wash away their sins. His ministry was short-lived due to his imprisonment by Herod, but he had paved the way for Jesus by means of his preaching and thus fulfilled his ministry. Jesus began in exactly the same manner as John had begun (Mat.3:2; 4:17). 4) John’s impact was crucial as he fulfilled his God appointed role as the fore-runner of Jesus, a ministry foretold by Isaiah and quoted by John (Isa.40:3-4; Mat.3:3; Lk.3:4). (It would be interesting to identify the prophecies in Isaiah which foretell the life of Jesus and His ministry). In John’s ministry as the “fore-runner” the angel Gabriel describes him ministering in the “spirit and power of Elijah.” This prophet had an anointing of power – witness Carmel and the manifestation of God’s power and witness he unpresented miracles, and yet John performed no miracles. The angel did not speak of miracles but the transformation of families and particularly the relation of fathers with their sons (and surely, included is the relationship of mothers with their daughters). John Baptist no doubt had an exemplary home life and could minister from a position of genuine benefit. Surely, as Christian parents we can bring up children who have enjoyed wholesome relationships and stable family life. This
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is viewed as a preparation for the coming of Jesus. We also prepare our children for the coming of Jesus into their hearts and lives.
The Birth Narrative of Jesus the Christ Child
The annunciation to Mary (1:26-38)
The angel does not knock at the door or make enquiries as to Mary’s home address like the wise men, but comes quietly into her private space which she had created for God and herself. I love the painting by Fra Angelico who captures this intimate and crucial moment of the angel’s salutation to Mary – this is the setting and the occasion which sets in motion the Christmas story so loved of the world. Angel visitations to human individuals figure large in Scripture, especially around the birth of Jesus. We unfortunately, de-personalize them into ethereal beings who have no longer any relationship to reality or to us! The annunciation follows on directly from the angel’s annunciation to Zechariah regarding the miraculous conception of John. There are clear similarities, with one exception which will become apparent when you have read the following events and that is the unbelief of Zachariah compared to the faith of Mary. Fra Angelico, The Annunciation, – observe the angel Gabriel who engages with Mary, there is empathy between them, the angel is a messenger from God, declaring the words of the LORD to New Life Radio – Talk No 10
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her and these words are the most important ever spoken to a living person. The text of Scripture conveys this too us, but we must also read into the text the perfect empathy of the angel and the young woman. The fellowship and accord between them provides the necessary trust for the receiving of God’s word. Preceding this secret visitation of the angel, Mary’s heart has already been prepared by her devotional waiting on God. She was like Mary of Bethany who had chosen the “better place” at the feet of her Beloved Lord. God loves to wed His sovereignty to men and women of devotion. The LORD had already found delight in the devotedness of young Mary who had been nurtured and encouraged in the home of Elizabeth and Zachariah. The crucial exchange between the angel Gabriel and Mary results in the conception of Jesus in the womb of the Virgin which is the focus of the Christmas narrative. I particularly love this encounter between the angel and Mary because of what I see in her. One cannot fail to appreciate the magnitude of this occasion when the Son of God is begotten in her womb. We will see the fulfilment of the LORD’S prophecy in Genesis 3:15; regarding the Seed of the woman and Isaiah’s Messianic prophecy, regarding Emmanuel, - both fulfilled in the conception of Jesus in the womb of Mary and His birth which we celebrate at Christmas. Luke introduces Joseph and points to his lineage from David, but Mary is simply introduced as a virgin betrothed to Joseph, but in the visitation, Mary is the focus of the angel’s attention. Luke gives us the New Life Radio – Talk No 10
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important facts about her: 1) he links her with the narrative of Elizabeth. 2) He gives her address as the city of Nazareth in Galilee. 3) He tells us that her name is Mary. 4) He divulges the fact that she is a virgin who is betrothed to Joseph of the house of David. Luke is fully aware that the narrative hinges on the fact about Mary’s virginity which was a necessary prerequisite for God to accomplish His will as well as the fulfilment of Isaiah’s two prophecies (Isa.7:14 cf. 9:6) that a virgin will conceive and bring forth a child who will be called Emmanuel. Luke speaks of her standing before the Lord, just as John Baptist had come to the attention of the Lord in the wilderness. Mary had come to the attention of the Lord in her home, she had gained His esteem and she had come to be devoted to Him and to love Him. She had gained God’s trust by her constancy and devotion – she would need to be strong and robust throughout her future days in the light of her pregnancy. Her devotion would be challenged in the harsh realities of life as she is cruelly criticized for her assumed infidelity and unfaithfulness to her husband to whom she is betrothed. The favour of the Lord points to Him choosing her to be the mother of His child, - the mother of God. This child will bring unspeakable joy to her as a mother but also indescribable sorrow, “a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed” (Lk.2:35). These words were spoken to her by Simeon as He held the Christ Child in his arms. The greeting of the angel Gabriel to Mary, “Rejoice, highly favoured one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” (Lk.1:28). When she heard the words of his greeting, she was troubled and wondered what this greeting meant. The angel tells her not to fear New Life Radio – Talk No 10
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and reassures her by repeating that God favours her – God is pleased with you and He is with you! He continues by announcing the incredulous news of God’s plan for her to conceive His child: “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end” (vv31-33). Mary addresses the crucial question of the conception, “Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” (v34). This was not a question of unbelief, but a genuine question which the angel answered and what follows is our only explanation of the virgin birth in Scripture. It certainly is not a full explanation, leaving many questions unanswered but where we lack clarity, we choose to believe the truth of Scripture and we worship at the feet of the Christ Child. The virgin birth has proved a stumbling block to the unbelieving and the religious alike. The world-religion of Islam which is a monotheistic religion declaring that there is one God and therefore considers the virgin birth of the Son of God to be a blasphemy. The dome of the mosque on the temple mount in Jerusalem, declares in Arabic writing that God has no son. The angel Gabriel is now announcing to the virgin Mary that she will be pregnant with Father’s child. The stigma Mary faced throughout her pregnancy is the stigma the church continually faces in the light of Jesus’ incarnation – truly God has a son whose name was Jesus! The coming of God into human flesh is the most glorious truth of our faith.
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The conception of Jesus in the womb of Mary: “And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God” (v35). Here we meet the triune God, the Father – “the Highest,” the Holy Spirit and the Son of God. Father chose Mary to bear His child and to nourish and love Him throughout His childhood. Oswald Chambers writes, “No one could have had a more sensitive love in human relationship than Jesus.” Just as soon as the child was able to speak, He was taught some Bible verses and the Jewish alphabet and then He learned to read from the Torah (the first five books of the Old Testament) which was the main textbook: - reading it, memorizing it, and reciting it, was expected of every boy. Father chose Joseph to bring Him up properly as his son, the responsibility for the first level of formal education belonged to the father who later trained Him in the workshop to work physically and skilfully with His hands. He was a Jew, educated and taught according to the Law of Moses (Acts 22:3; 2Tim.3:15). It was written of Jesus that “the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favour of God was upon him” (Luke 2:40). Once, when Jesus’ parents attended the Feast of Passover, they left to return to Nazareth only to find that Jesus was not with them. When they searched for Him, it was “After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers” (Luke 2:46-47).
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Jesus astounded many because “Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favour with God and man” (Luke 2:52). Yes, Jesus was truly human, He was a Jewish male who looked like His mother and spoke with a Galilean accent. His boyhood was actually real and Luke records how He developed through the normal stages of growth to adulthood. We know nothing of Mary’s life before her visitation by the angel Gabriel, except that she was the cousin of Elizabeth, the wife of Zachariah the priest. Following a prophetic word given to Zachariah by Gabriel, Elizabeth conceived a child who was going to have a significant role in relationship to Jesus. There are clear parallels between the two women, - the two conceptions, the two births and the two amazing sons. The two women are related, they are both pregnant, they are both devoted to the Lord, and they are both going to encounter heartbreak due to both their son’s deaths. Both are heralded by the angel, both have prophetic words spoken to them, both their sons are linked together by birth ties but they are also linked together in the purposes of God. Both little boys will play together, grow up together but will not meet again until they meet at the Jordon River where John is baptizing and both will bear faithful testimony to each other. We know that John Baptist was taken aback by the revelation that came to him concerning the Man who had emerged from the crowd and was walking purposefully towards him, because Jesus insisted that John baptize Him. John at first vehemently refused to baptise Jesus because Father had just revealed to him that his childhood play-mate was none other than the Son of God! Having received this overwhelming knowledge, he felt totally unworthy to baptize Jesus.
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Gabriel concluded his visitation to her with the following words, nicely fixing her attention on her strong relationship that she enjoyed with her cousin Elizabeth, “Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren.” Finally, the angel returns again to Mary’s question, which is statement about the accomplishment of the conception by God Himself: “For with God nothing will be impossible.” Mary believed the words spoken by the angel, Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her” (Lk.1:26-38). Deeply assured in her heart by the angel’s explanation, her faith rises to embrace the prophetic word of the LORD to her. Mary’s heart was looking for assurance not explanation. She moved from her heart, not her head. Blessed virgin daughter of Israel, God’s Son will be conceived in your womb and you will give birth to God’s only begotten Child. Faith rose up in her to embrace the promise of the Holy Spirit’s coming upon her and overshadowing her as the Spirit’s presence had hovered over the waters in the beginning, prior the great miracle of creation. He was hovering over her now, anticipating the greatest of all miracles, the conception of Jesus in the womb of Mary by the Father’s words. He is poised and ready to act decisively in fulfilling Father’s will. He is also waiting for the responsive word of faith from the mouth of God’s precious daughter. She hears the remarkable promise from the mouth of God: that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.” She will give birth to God’s baby son. This will be a new experience for God as well as for Mary. This “holy One” will be her first-born child but He is also God’s first begotten Son, God’s eternal Seed germinating in the womb of Mary, named by Gabriel as “the Son of God.” The apostle John in his Prologue states clearly the Son’s New Life Radio – Talk No 10
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eternal pedigree, “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God … John also states in one single sentence the fact of the eternal Son’s conception, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (v14). The angel having encouraged Mary with the news of Elizabeth’s pregnancy which was a miracle conception by the word of the Lord, now assures her that not one word from the LORD shall fail. She responds by immediately applying the promise to herself: “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her” (v38). The instant she believed the Seed of the LORD, the pre-existent Son was conceived in her womb - at the precise moment of her believing! Mary was considering these words as intensely personal and applicable to herself. It was to be her womb and the incarnation was going to require her totally yielded body (Rom.12.1). The sacred moment of conception will be followed by 9 months when the child will grow in her womb up to the moment of delivery and birth, demanding all of her body and her heart. As a woman pregnant with God’s child, she will be the mother of God! The angel has just spoken His Name, “that Holy One shall be called the Son of God.” He, the eternal Son who is infinitely Holy came from outside of this physical world of humankind and came to the womb of the virgin to be conceived as a man, to take to Himself our humanity. Jesus continually spoke about the fact that He had come from God and that God had sent Him and the amazing truth about this conception in the womb of Mary is that He retained His impeccable spotless holiness as the Son of God and throughout His human life He lived a holy life, unprotected from sinful and demonic powers. He maintained His holiness throughout His sufferings and
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presented Himself as a spotless sacrifice to God in His death. Thus, in this conception with have the eternal Son who comes and gives Himself, the Father who sends and speaks the creative word, the Spirit who quickens and activates and the virgin who believes and yields up her body to God. Mary’s godly nature and her responsiveness to the word of the Lord is shown in her reply to Gabriel, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word” (v38). As I wrote a few sentences back, at this awesome moment of her joyful believing the conception takes place. Jesus, the eternal Son of God is conceived in the womb of the virgin Mary. In His conception, He became a human person just like you and me. He will be Mary’s firstborn son after she has laboured to bring Him forth like every other mother! I can’t find another example of responsive obedience as important and significant as when Mary presented her body “as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God.” You don’t need me to show to you the amazing consequences of her responsive obedience to the Lord.” As the unborn child grew in her womb her joy was marred by the continued reproach of her neighbours as they observed the child growing in her enlarged tummy. They had not met the angel Gabriel or heard his words of explanation as she and Joseph had. How could they not doubt her story? The birth of Mary’s Child is the most momentous event in the history of humankind. Jesus’ birth is reminiscent of the birth of Ruth’s child, she was a woman of similarly outstanding qualities, who brought forth her firstborn child and called him Obed. He was Ruth’s baby son. Both their names are to be found in the royal line “Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse” (Mat.1:5). The genealogy of Matthew concludes with,
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“Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ” (v16).
Mary visits the home of Elizabeth (vv39-56)
I said earlier that the conception is the supernatural act of God and the delivery is according to the normal course of nature. Jesus as a human went through every stage of life from birth to death. The only common experience of life He did not share with us was marriage. Elizabeth is 6 months pregnant when Mary comes to stay with her cousin. Mary is also pregnant and she stays until Elizabeth’s baby is due.
The birth and circumcision of John (vv57-80)
We examine the 2 accounts of the birth of Jesus from the background of the two Emmanuel prophecies of Isaiah and the link is the angel’s announcement in Matthew regarding Emmanuel. The simplest way is to try to follow a chronological order of events, although God was at work long before events take shape! In fact, events may have been triggered by the first appearance of the singular bright star in the sky and the Maggi setting out on their journey before the events of Matthew and Luke.
Jesus is born of Mary (Luke Ch.2)
The order of events beginning with the birth of Jesus in Ch.2 1. The journey to Bethlehem and the birth of Jesus (vv1-7). 2. The angel hosts and the visitation of the shepherds (vv8-20) 3. The circumcision of Jesus (v21) New Life Radio – Talk No 10
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4. Jesus’ presentation in the temple – Simeon & Anna pronounce blessings on Jesus (vv22-38). 5. The family return to Nazareth, and Jesus grows through childhood (vv39-40) 6. Jesus who is 12 years old is taken to Jerusalem (vv41p-49) 7. Jesus advances in wisdom and favour (vv51-40) To be completed in Part 2
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