John 20:30-31 - Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.
3 responses to an amazing Christmas prophecy
I. Be Impacted by the Purity of the Virgin Birth
Romans 5:12 - Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned…
Matthew 1:16 - …Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah…
Matthew 1:18 - Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit.
Luke 1:38 - And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
Luke 1:41-45 - When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. And she cried out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.”
A. A godly mother
Matthew 1:18 - …before they came together…
Matthew 1:18 - …she was found to be with child…
B. A considerate father
Matthew 1:19 - And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly.
Matthew 1:20 - But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.”
Matthew 1:24-25 - And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.
C. A perfect nature
Matthew 1:21 - She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins…
1 Peter 1:18-19 - …knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.
II. Be Amazed by the Power of the Virgin Birth
Matthew 1:22-23 - Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.”
A. The original recipient of this prophecy was a man named King Ahaz who had to make a decision between doing things man’s way or doing them God’s way
Isaiah 7:2 - When it was reported to the house of David, saying, “The Arameans have camped in Ephraim,” his heart and the hearts of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake with the wind.
Isaiah 7:3-4 - Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out now to meet Ahaz…and say to him, ‘Take care and be calm, have no fear and do not be fainthearted because of these two stubs of smoldering firebrands…’”
Isaiah 7:7-8 - …thus says the Lord God: “It shall not stand nor shall it come to pass. For the head of Aram is Damascus and the head of Damascus is Rezin (now within another 65 years Ephraim will be shattered, so that it is no longer a people)…
Isaiah 7:11 - Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord your God; make it deep as Sheol or high as heaven.
Isaiah 7:12 - But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, nor will I test the Lord!”
Isaiah 7:13-14 - Then he said, “Listen now, O house of David! Is it too slight a thing for you to try the patience of men, that you will try the patience of my God as well? Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.”
B. The original response to this prophecy
2 Kings 16:5-8 - Then Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah, king of Israel, came up to Jerusalem to wage war; and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him…So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your son; come up and deliver me from the hand of the king of Aram and from the hand of the king of Israel, who are rising up against me.” Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king’s house,and sent a present to the king of Assyria.
C. The lessons for you and me
1. Regarding our salvation
John 8:41 - …They said to Him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God.”
2 Corinthians 5:21 - He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
2. Regarding sanctification
III. B2e Drawn by the Possibility of the Virgin Birth
Matthew 1:23 - …call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.”
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