The Gospel of Christ’s Virgin Birth-2

¹⁰ 천사가 이르되 무서워 말라 보라 내가 온 백성에게 미칠 큰 기쁨의 좋은 소식을 너희에게 전하노라 ¹¹ 오늘날 다윗의 동네에 너희를 위하여 구주가 나셨으니 곧 그리스도 주시니라 ¹² 너희가 가서 강보에 싸여 구유에 누인 아기를 보리니 이것이 너희에게 표적이니라 하더니 ¹³ 홀연히 허다한 천군이 그 천사와 함께 있어 하나님을 찬송하여 가로되 ¹⁴ 지극히 높은 곳에서는 하나님께 영광이요 땅에서는 기뻐하심을 입은 사람들 중에 평화로다 하니라. ¹⁰ And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. ¹² And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger." ¹³ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, ¹⁴ "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!" (Lk. 2:10-14)

²⁶ 여섯째 달에 천사 가브리엘이 하나님의 보내심을 받들어 갈릴리 나사렛이란 동네에 가서 ²⁷ 다윗의 자손 요셉이라 하는 사람과 정혼한 처녀에게 이르니 그 처녀의 이름은 마리아라 ²⁸ 그에게 들어가 가로되 은혜를 받은 자여 평안할찌어다(기뻐하라) 주께서 너와 함께하시도다 하니 ²⁹ 처녀가 그 말을 듣고 놀라 이런 인사가 어찌함인고 생각하매 ³⁰ 천사가 일러 가로되 마리아여 무서워 말라 네가 하나님께 은혜를 얻었느니라 ³¹ 보라 네가 수태하여 아들을 낳으리니 그 이름을 예수라 하라 ³² 저가 큰 자가 되고 지극히 높으신 이의 아들이라 일컬을 것이요 주 하나님께서 그 조상 다윗의 위를 저에게 주시리니 ³³ 영원히 야곱의 집에 왕노릇 하실 것이며 그 나라가 무궁하리라 ³⁴ 마리아가 천사에게 말하되 나는 사내를 알지 못하니 어찌 이 일이 있으리이까 ³⁵ 천사가 대답하여 가로되 성령이 네게 임하시고 지극히 높으신 이의 능력이 너를 덮으시리니 이러므로 나실 바 거룩한 자는 하나님의 아들이라 일컬으리라³⁶ 보라 네 친족 엘리사벳도 늙어서 아들을 배었느니라 본래 수태하지 못한다 하던 이가 이미 여섯 달이 되었나니 ³⁷ 대저 하나님의 모든 말씀은 능치 못하심이 없느니라 ³⁸ 마리아가 가로되 주의 계집종 이오니 말씀대로 내게 이루어지이다 하매 천사가 떠나가니라. ²⁶ In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, ²⁷ to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. ²⁸ And he came to her and said, "Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!" ²⁹ But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. ³⁰ And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹ And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." ³⁴ And Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin?" ³⁵ And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy-- the Son of God. ³⁶ And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. ³⁷ For nothing will be impossible with God." ³⁸ And Mary said, "Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her. (Lk. 1:26-38)

FCF: People tend to disregard the virgin birth of Jesus Christ.

주제: 그리스도의 동정녀 탄생은 하나님의 정하신 바이기에 그분의 동정녀 탄생을 믿어야 합니다.

Theme: Because God ordained Christ’s virgin birth, we must believe in His virgin birth.

Introduction: As you know, Christmas is the next Sunday. The whole world seems to enjoy the festive mood of Christmas even though only a few really appreciate and enjoy the true meaning of the birth of Christ. All of us may have fond memories of Christmas. As we see beautiful Christmas lighting on a wintry night, we may bring up those Christmas memories. Do you have something unforgettable related to your Christmas experience? I have several Christmas memories, out of which one is outstanding. I want to share it with you this morning. I think I have already shared it with some of you. I want to share it again with all of you.

The story goes like this. The career group I was part of at the church in Korea had a Christmas eve service. After midnight, we went outside. We were walking on the streets, singing Christmas carols and hymns. We visited fire stations, hospitals, and police stations. We would sing Christmas carols for them and share Christmas greetings and the gospel of Christ with them. Also, we would bless them in the name of Jesus Christ our Savior. On that night, we first visited a police station. The station was not far from our church. Before we got into the station, we found a drunken man sleeping outside the station. He was sleeping on the ground. It was freezing cold. So, we woke him up and brought him inside the station. We asked the police to let him stay at the station. Of course, the inside was warm. So, this drunken man would not die outside in the cold.

The irony was that he was right there outside the police station. He seemed to believe that he could stay alive if got into the station. But for some reason, he was sleeping outside a little police station. Certainly, he would be frozen to death if he spent the night there. It would be in the headlines of newspapers soon. Fortunately, we found him and led him to the right people. We felt so happy about the fact that we did something good for a dying man. Indeed, we did him a favor on Christmas, which was meaningful and rewarding to us. At the same time, I was wondering about a lot of people dying in sin and despair even though they were living around the churches.  

No doubt we are living in a graceless world. People don’t care about their neighbors in trouble. They seem to care about themselves alone. In such a self-centered culture, they don’t care about the true message of Christ. They care only about how to please themselves and forget about hardships in life. However, Christmas is a time we celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. Also, it is a time we share God’s saving grace with others. Surely, we shared God’s saving grace with him because we saved him from freezing death and exhorted him to believe in Jesus Christ. Every Christmas, this episode comes to my mind because we saved a dying person from freezing cold. Our help was surely a favor, grace, to him. On that night, we truly appreciated and practiced the purpose of Christ’s first advent, which is to save sinners from eternal death. Christmas is a time to remember and celebrate God’s special grace demonstrated in the coming of Jesus the Savior.

            The annunciation narrative tells that Mary was called “O favored one.” She was chosen according to God’s sovereign grace to bring our Savior into the world. She would never have forgotten the message of God recorded here in the text. She would never have forgotten the first Christmas. We may sense the magnitude of Mary’s joy as we read the Magnificat recorded in Lk. 1:46-56. Here is what she said: 내 영혼이 주를 찬양하며 ⁴⁷ 내 마음이 하나님 내 구주를 기뻐하였음은 ⁴⁸ 그 계집종의 비천함을 돌아 보셨음이라 보라 이제 후로는 만세에 나를 복이 있다 일컬으리로다. "My soul magnifies the Lord, ⁴⁷ and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, ⁴⁸ for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed (Lk. 1:46-48). Mary was granted God’s special grace, which was an unforgettable moment throughout her entire life. In my Christmas experience aforementioned, we were granted God’s special grace whereby we led a dying man to safety and had a reminder of the good news of Christ’s incarnation. Truly, Christmas is a time to recall God’s special grace for sinners like us. This is what we are going to deal with. My overall theme is we must believe in Christ’s virgin birth because God ordained it. Last Sunday, we dealt with the first point “trust God’s special revelation.” Today, I call your attention to the second point “trust God’s special grace.”

      I.         하나님의 특별한 계시를 믿으라.

Trust God’s special revelation.

    II.         하나님의 특별한 은혜를 믿으라.

Trust God’s special grace.

Mary was given God’s grace to be God’s vehicle to bring God’s revelation to pass. Let’s look into Gabriel’s revelation given to Mary: ²⁸ And he came to her and said, "Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!" ²⁹ But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. ³⁰ And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹ And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." ²⁸ 그에게 들어가 가로되 은혜를 받은 자여 평안할찌어다 주께서 너와 함께하시도다 하니 ²⁹ 처녀가 그 말을 듣고 놀라 이런 인사가 어찌함인고 생각하매 ³⁰ 천사가 일러 가로되 마리아여 무서워 말라 네가 하나님께 은혜를 얻었느니라 ³¹ 보라 네가 수태하여 아들을 낳으리니 그 이름을 예수라 하라 ³² 저가 큰 자가 되고 지극히 높으신 이의 아들이라 일컬을 것이요 주 하나님께서 그 조상 다윗의 위를 저에게 주시리니 ³³ 영원히 야곱의 집에 왕노릇 하실 것이며 그 나라가 무궁하리라.

Mary was granted grace in that she had a heavenly visitation and revelation. The archangel said, “Rejoice, O favored one, the Lord is with you.” Instead of rejoicing, she was greatly troubled by the saying while trying to figure out what was happening. Sensing her fear, Gabriel tried to calm her down and reassured her that she found favor with God. Then, he explained why she was a favored one of God. In sum, she was granted God’s special grace that she would bring the Savior-King of His people into the world. God’s special grace has everything to do with the person and work of Jesus Christ. She would bear a son whose name should be Jesus. This name reveals the coming of Christ was to fulfill God’s redemptive purpose. His should be the Son of the Most High God. He was the long-expected Messiah who would occupy the throne of David. He would establish the eternal kingdom of God. This revelation is, in short, the essence of the gospel of Jesus Christ. She chose to trust God’s special revelation. Her faith is a gift of God. So, Mary had every reason to rejoice in the birth of her own Savior and the Savior of God’s people.    

Surely, Mary was favored because of God’s special revelation, that is, the gospel of salvation of Jesus Christ. Also, she was favored because of God’s special election. Mary was a favored one because God would use her as His vessel to bring the Savior into the world. Why did God elect her? We do not know it. All we can say is that she was given that grace. Also, it belongs to God’s hidden counsel. We can learn humility and thankfulness from the comment of John Calvin: “but with regard to God's hidden counsel, the depth and height of it cannot be reached.” We must humbly accept the limitations of our minds and bow down before the inaccessible depths of God’s mind, which is to inspire awe and praise in our hearts. We shouldn’t quibble about God’s choice of Mary. Neither should we quibble about His sovereign choice of us in Christ.      

Now, we can say we are given special grace because we are given the gospel of the birth of the Savior Jesus Christ. We are given special grace because we are elected in Christ. We are given special grace because we have trusted the gospel of the birth of Jesus Christ. Now we are given special privilege because we are called to spread the good news of Jesus’ birth to the whole world. God’s election has nothing to do with our merits. It is God’s sovereign choice, which is by 100% grace. It is not a combination of our efforts and God’s efforts. We have done nothing to deserve God’s saving, electing grace. We only deserve God’s wrath for our sins. However, God has granted us His utter grace so that we can be chosen, and used for God’s holy purpose. In short, God’s grace is an unmerited favor with us.

Let me explain the gist of grace with the words of G. W. Knight: “When a person works an eight-hour day and receives a fair day's pay for his time, that is a wage. When a person competes with an opponent and receives a trophy for his performance, that is a prize. When a person receives appropriate recognition for his long service or high achievements, that is an award. But when a person is not capable of earning a wage, can win no prize, and deserves no award--yet receives such a gift anyway--that is a good picture of God's unmerited favor. This is what we mean when we talk about the grace of God.” Mary didn’t work hard for God’s special grace of election. Neither did we. Our election is special because it is a sovereign choice of the King of the entire universe. It gives us comfort and joy. It is the greatest privilege we shouldn’t disregard. It involves our solemn responsibilities for a dying world. God elects us in love so that He will demonstrate His sovereign grace and love. He chooses us so that we may praise and thank Him forever. So, as we think of God’s sovereign grace shown in His electing love for us, we are to give praises to God for His divine grace. This is what we are supposed to do at Christmas.  

Let’s come back to the text. Notice how Gabriel addressed Mary: “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you.” Gabriel said again to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.” Gabriel greeted her, saying literally, “Rejoice.” Then, he explained why she should rejoice. She was the one who had been highly blessed and favored by God. Notice Luke uses the perfect passive participle, which conveys the idea of action that has started in the past and continues in its effect. God’s favor and blessing had been upon her. God’s choice of Mary was according to His eternal wisdom. God’s unmerited favor was not given to her at the moment of God’s revelation. It had been with her up to that moment and would continue throughout her life. It was God’s everlasting grace rooted in the eternality of God.

God’s special, eternal grace is evidenced by the fact that “God is with you.” Indeed, there is no greater blessing than God’s special presence with His favored people. In Old Testament times, God was with His people. And God was especially with His servants such as prophets, priests, and kings. God was with Moses. And God was with the Israelites. However, His presence with Moses was special and personal. It enabled Moses to teach His people and lead the Israelites out of Egypt and through the wilderness. It empowered Moses to fulfill God’s purpose for His people. God’s presence with Mary was special and personal. God was about to do great things for His people. Mary was handpicked out of a great number of virgins in Israel to bring the Savior into the world. God was with her so that He would employ her as His servant to fulfill His purpose. For Mary, God’s special presence would guarantee the success of His redemptive work.

Mary’s task was to bear Jesus Christ God’s Son. See whom she would bear. He would be a son named Jesus, which means “He shall save His people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21). Again, the One whom she was to conceive and bear was the eternal Son of God who would be the great Savior and King of His people. He was the Messiah that the Israelites had been waiting for a long time, the Messiah-King that would free them from the bondage of sin and establish His eternal kingdom. Mary had been waiting for the Messiah by faith. Now she discovered she would bear the Messiah her Savior. She simply trusted the incredible gospel of Christ. No doubt, there could be no privilege greater than to bear the Savior of the world. She was poor. She was nobody. She didn’t do anything to merit God’s choice. But God granted her special grace so that she would be the mother of Jesus Christ the Son of God and the Savior of the world.  Surely, she was highly favored by God. That’s why she was able to believe that she would bear the Savior of the world. Not only so, but she was also able to commit herself to God so that God would use her for His plan of salvation.

The fact that we are listening to the same message Mary heard two thousand years ago indicates that we are given God’s grace. Only God’s grace enables us to trust the message of Christ’s virgin birth, a supernatural birth that exceeds our medical understanding. The supernatural birth of Christ goes beyond our human intellectual power. A. B. Bruce said, 죄 없는 사람이 도덕적 세상에서 기적인 것 만큼이나 동정녀 탄생도 물리적인 세상에서 기적이다. “A sinless man is as much a miracle in the moral world as a virgin birth is a miracle in the physical world.” The vast majority of people in the world reject the blessed doctrine of Christ’s virgin birth. But we believe in it as an essential part of the Christian faith because it is necessary for our salvation. Without espousing it, no one can be saved from the eternal consequences of unbelief against the gospel of Jesus Christ.

If you already believe in Christ’s virgin birth, then you are highly favored. You are given God’s saving grace so that you have become part of God’s special people. However, if you don’t believe it or doubt it, then you are still in a place where God allows you to hear the gospel of God’s grace. The Savior of the world was indeed born of the virgin Mary. He came into the midst of His people. He took the human flesh, intruding into the history of mankind. See how He humbled Himself to save you and me: ⁶ 그는 근본 하나님의 본체시나 하나님과 동등됨을 취할 것으로 여기지 아니하시고 ⁷ 오히려 자기를 비어 종의 형체를 가져 사람들과 같이 되었고 ⁸ 사람의 모양으로 나타나셨으매 자기를 낮추시고 죽기까지 복종하셨으니 곧 십자가에 죽으심이라. ⁶ who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, ⁷ but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. ⁸ And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (Phi 2:6-8).

Jesus had been born to die for our salvation. If He had not been born, Christ would not have been sufficient to sympathize with us and die in our place to save us from our sins. His virgin birth implied His sinless, sacrificial death, which anticipated His glorious resurrection. Christ’s virgin birth is the gospel of God’s grace. Because of it, we have become God’s children. The apostle Paul says: ⁴ 때가 차매 하나님이 그 아들을 보내사 여자에게서 나게 하시고 율법 아래 나게 하신 것은 ⁵ 율법 아래 있는 자들을 속량하시고 우리로 아들의 명분을 얻게 하려 하심이라. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, ⁵ to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons (Gal 4:4-5). God still gives us His grace, so that we can trust Jesus Christ. The fact that we believe everything about Christ the Bible says shows that we are the greatly favored ones of God.

The world disregards Christ’s virgin birth as a lie, myth, or Christian propaganda. The world disdains those espousing Christ’s virgin birth as superstitious people living under the darkness of myth. It taunts us for our implicit faith in Christ. It regards Christ’s virgin birth as a superstition, myth, or lie. But God calls it a fact, gospel, and truth. Christ’s virgin birth is the good news of God’s grace: God was made in the flesh. We don’t need to apologize to the world for our faith in Christ’s supernatural birth. What news would most excite us? The news of our promotion, success, wealth, or health may excite us. However, the greatest news that really excites us is the arrival of our Savior through the body of Mary. It is the epitome of God’s exceeding grace.

A former Muslim shared his testimony with others. Let me tell you a part of it: 무슬림 교도에서 하나님이 사람이 사고는 신성 모독입니다. 하지만 바로 이 신성 모독이 저를 불신에서 구원해 주었습니다. 저에겐 그리스도 동정녀 탄생은 가장 자연스러운 것이 되었습니다. 아바스 국왕에 대한 이야기가 전해 내려옵니다. 그는 그의 가장 가난한 백성들을 알아 보려고 거지처럼 옷을 입고 그들 가운데로 들어갔습니다. 그가 이렇게 은혜로운 행동을 취할 수 있었던 이유는 그가 왕이었고 그렇게 한다고 해서 그의 영광스러운 왕권에서 제하여 질 것이 없었기 때문입니다. 사람 중에 있었던 그러한 행동을 우리가 높이 산다면 하나님께서 그러한 행동을 하신 것을 어찌 찬양하지 않겠습니까? “To a Muslim the very idea of God becoming man is blasphemous, but it was this ‘blasphemy’ that saved me from unbelief. To me it came to be the most natural thing. Stories are told of Shah Abbas and how, in order to get to know his poorer subjects, he used to dress up as a poor man—and thus go among them. This gracious act he was able to do precisely because he was king and by such an action nothing was taken away from the glory of his kingship. If we admire such action in human beings, why should we not admire it in God?” To believers, the incarnation of Christ is a blessed doctrine.

Then, how are we to respond to the gospel of Christ’s virgin birth? Surely, we must receive God’s grace by faith. If she had rejected God’s special revelation and grace in terror, Mary would not be remembered as God’s highly favored one that brought Jesus into the world. No one knew the worth of Mary. She was literally unknown in her world. However, God recognized her and used her for God’s salvation. God granted her special grace so that she could be God’s instrument. Now, God is willing to give you and me His same grace. We are to receive it with all thanksgiving. However, if we reject the good news of Christ’s coming into the world to save us, we are losing the greatest blessing we may receive. Therefore, please respond to the great news of the virgin birth of Christ by humble faith.

Listen to Paul’s exhortation: 우리가 하나님과 함께 일하는 자로서 너희를 권하노니 하나님의 은혜를 헛되이 받지 말라 ² 가라사대 내가 은혜 베풀 때에 너를 듣고 구원의 날에 너를 도왔다 하셨으니 보라 지금은 은혜 받을 만한 때요 보라 지금은 구원의 날이로다. Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. ² For he says, "In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you." Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation (2Co 6:1-2).

Conclusion: One of the church fathers, Athanasius said, 그리스도께서 우리와 같이 되신 것은 우리로 그와 같이 되게 하려 하심 입니다. “He (Christ) became what we are that he might make us what he is.” What an amazing grace we find in the blessed incarnation of Jesus Christ! What do you think of it? Do you really believe in it or doubt or disregard it? We have to trust the trustworthy revelation of God recorded in the book of Luke. In his book The Call, Os Guinness introduces the following story: “Thomas Linacre was king’s physician to Henry VII and Henry VIII of England, founder of the Royal College of Physicians, and friend of the great Renaissance thinkers Erasmus and Sir Thomas More. Late in his life, Linacre studied to be a priest and was given a copy of the Gospels to read for the first time. Linacre lived through the darkest of the church’s dark hours under the papacy of Alexander VI, the Borgia pope whose bribery, corruption, incest, and murder plumbed new depths in the annals of Christian shame. Reading the Gospels for himself, Linacre was amazed and troubled. “Either these are not the Gospels,” he said, “or we are not Christians.”The implication of his last statement is that we will live as true Christians if we trust the records of the gospels about the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Now, do you welcome the coming of your Savior into this world? If your eyes are on the splendor of this passing world, you are missing the greatest blessing of God. You must turn your eyes to the glorious birth of your Savior. Surely, the virgin birth of Jesus Christ is the greatest news given to sinners sitting under darkness. It demands you to believe. As you trust it, you must rejoice in the birth of Christ. The joy of salvation comes from God. It is yours in Christ. Take it and rejoice in the saving birth of Jesus Christ. At this time of the year, people are looking for something to satisfy a void in their hearts. Without celebrating the birth of the Savior, they try to fill their hearts with the festivity of the Christmas season. Some go to Christmas parties and forget about their loneliness in loud music or the company of others. Others long for something that can fill their hearts even though they do not seek it in the gospel of the saving grace of Jesus Christ. We should tell them how to receive God’s saving grace insinuated in the birth of Christ. God’s sovereign grace, which was given to Mary and us, is what heals our broken hearts. As God granted it to Mary by grace, as God can give it to you. Take the gift of divine grace by faith and enjoy it in Christ during this Christmas season so that we can finish this year well and start another year well. Please, fill your souls with Christ’s special grace as you bring yourselves to the throne of grace. The author of Hebrews says, 그러므로 우리가 긍휼하심을 받고 때를 따라 돕는 은혜를 얻기 위하여 은혜의 보좌 앞에 담대히 나아갈 것이니라. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need (Heb. 4:16). Let us enjoy the special grace revealed in the good news of Jesus the Savior’s birth and let us spread it to people around us so that we can truly celebrate Christ.

Benediction: : ²⁴ 여호와는 네게 복을 주시고 너를 지키시기를 원하며 ²⁵ 여호와는 그 얼굴로 네게 비취사 은혜 베푸시기를 원하며 ²⁶ 여호와는 그 얼굴을 네게로 향하여 드사 평강 주시기를 원하노라 할찌니라. ²⁴ The LORD bless you and keep you; ²⁵ the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; ²⁶ the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace (Num. 6:24-26).