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"...The church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth."
I Timothy 3:15
The Virgin Birth of Christ
The Gospel Standard
Surely the virgin birth of Jesus Christ and His Deity are inextricably bound together. Linked together in Scripture with His identification as Immanuel and as the unique Son of God, is the declaration of His Virgin birth. Christ's Deity and His miraculous conception and birth cannot be separated, either both of these facts are true or neither of them is true.
If Jesus was not virgin-born, the Bible is not the inspired Word God God. If the account of the birth of Jesus is a falsehood, then He is not the Saviour. No other conclusion can be drawn.
The Old Testament Predicts the Virgin Birth of Christ
In an early chapter of the Bible a prophecy is given concerning the virgin birth
of the Redeemer. In the Garden of Eden the Lord God said to the serpent: "Because
thou hast done this, (tempting Eve)...I will put enmity between thee and the woman,
and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise
his heel" (Gen. 3: 4, 15).
It is a well-known biological fact that the seed emanates from the male, not the
female. Thus, when God declares that Satan's head should be bruised by the seed of
the woman, He excluded the male element from the birth of this One who should come
forth from the woman to defeat the devil. The Redeemer was to be virgin born.
Seven centuries prior to the birth of our Lord, the same Isaiah that predicted that
he would be born of a virgin affirmed the Deity of this child when he wrote: "For
unto us a child is born, unto us a child is given: and the government shall be upon
his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God,
The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6). The Old Testament foretells
the virgin birth of Christ and His Deity.
The New Testament Announces the Virgin Birth of Christ
The first chapter of the New Testament records the genealogy of Jesus through Abraham
and David. Again and again it is stated that so-and-so begat so-and-so. There follows
the account of the annunciation to Mary and Christ's birth beginning: "Now the birth
of Jesus Christ was on this wise..." (Matt 1:18).
The evangelist goes on to tell how the Angel Gabriel told Joseph, Mary's fiancé,
that she would give birth to a son, conceived through the instrumentality of the
Holy Spirit, and Jesus would save His people from their sins. And Matthew states
that this was in fulfillment of Is. 7:14.
Luke also writes of the annunciation by the angel Gabriel. Here the angel's words
to Mary are recorded, in which he tells her of the coming birth of Jesus and, in
answer to her puzzled query as to how this could be in view of her chastity, says:
"The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow
thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called
the Son of God" (Luke 1:35). The New Testament announces the virgin birth of Christ
and his Deity.
The Necessity of the Virgin Birth of Christ If Jesus was not virgin-born, then he
was born as other men and inherited a sinful nature. In such a circumstance He Himself
would have needed a Saviour. But He was absolutely sinless; there was no sin in Him
at all. Furthermore, in order for Him to be the redeemer of mankind, it was necessary
for Him to take on human form. Only as a man could He die for other men. Again, bear
in mind His Deity. Our Lord was perfect in His humanity; He is also perfect in his
Deity. He had to be born supernaturally, and so He was.
From every consideration - the revelation of the Scriptures, the sinlessness and perfection of Christ's Person, and logic itself - there can be no explanation but that which was prophesied about Him, testified concerning Him, and demanded of Him is true: He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.