Thoughts on Discipleship by Dr. W. A. Dillard - HTML preview

CELEBRATING THE VIRGIN BIRTH OF JESUS

The indispensable, foundation, and cornerstone of Christianity is the reality of the virgin birth of the Lord Jesus, The Christ. In this singular truth do all who claim to be Christian agree. That fact is not argumentative, optional, acceptable in any possible way of any alternate viewpoint. Of course, there are religions that scoff, and deny outright this foundational fact as being a myth or the fanciful concoctions of crutch-needing fanatics. Consider this with me!

Islamic people will agree that Jesus was a prophet; that He was virgin born; even that He lived a sinless life, but vehemently deny that He was the only begotten son of God; that He died on the cross and arose from the dead. Their take is that Judas Iscariot was substituted for Jesus before the actual crucifixion, and that Jesus went to heaven unharmed.

Again, the Mormon religion scoffs at the virgin birth of Jesus: that it was the Holy Spirit that caused the virgin Mary to become pregnant, and that He therefore was NOT the ONLY begotten Son of God. Their take on this is that if that were true, then it would be very dangerous to confirm females, lest the Holy Spirit make them all pregnant, inundating the elders with children to care for, which would put them in dire straits.

Well so much for the doubters and scoffers. If one can think of it, there is probably someone out there teaching it regardless of how it may contradict the clear statement of the Holy, plenary, inerrant Word. I think of my mother who often said, “You can hear anything but meat frying and money rattling.” That is to say, all talk and no substance!

Thankfully, the universal, Holy Spirit conviction placed upon all men is that they are, without exception, sinners. Moreover, no sinner is able to redeem himself from that state, let alone pay the redemptive price of others. Then let it be shouted from the rooftops that the Bible is the ultimate truth; that Jesus was and is the only begotten son of God! This fact necessitates that He had no earthly father; hence virgin born. If this is untrue, no one is saved; all are condemned without remedy; hell is the only eternal destiny, and Christians are of all men most miserable.

Thus did the angel correctly and forthrightly declare to Joseph “. . . fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins.” Matt. 1:20-21. My Savior was God and man. He walked among men, paid the sin-price of men, but he was not an offspring of earthly men!

FOR THOUGHT: Aside from the ultimate authority: the Word, if the Holy Spirit effects a birth from above in every believer, why would it be thought a strange thing that the Holy Spirit should effect the birth of one in material life, even Jesus? Every man is a sinner. Do you know of a way that a sinner may become sinless?