Address—C. Hendricks
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
Begin tonight by reading a verse from First Timothy three First Timothy chapter 3, verse 16 and without controversy. Great is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the spirit scene of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
There are six things mentioned here. I want to talk about the 1St 1:00 tonight.
God was manifest in the flesh.
Think of that.
Think of that statement, that momentous statement. God was manifest in the flesh. God became a man.
The person of Christ, who is he? Do you know Him?
Do you know who he is?
We sometimes speak of other truths developed from this, but this is the most basic, the most fundamental of all truths.
The person of Christ who he is. There's one more verse in Second Epistle of John I'd like to call your attention to.
Second John.
7.
For many deceivers are entered into the world who confess not that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh.
This is a deceiver in an Antichrist. I'm going to read that just a little differently. Notice the difference for many deceivers are entered into the world who confess, not Jesus Christ coming in flesh.
They didn't so much the confession that he came, but the person who came.
It's the confession of the person who came to talk of any of us in the room here tonight as coming in flesh really doesn't make much sense because that's the only way we can come. We're just humans, men and women, boys and girls. The only way we can come into this world is is in the flesh. But here's the confession of a person that existed before he became flesh.
The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.
John says, And we beheld his glory, the glory as of an only begotten with the Father, full of grace and truth.
God was manifest in the flesh, and it's this is this confession that John is talking about here to this elect lady and her children is the confession of His person, He who came in flesh. Coming in flesh brings before us His manhood, His humanity. He who came is his deity. God became a man, the most stupendous, one of the most stupendous truths of all Scripture.
And then in verse nine he says, Whosoever transgresseth and abideth not.
In the doctrine of Christ, he's just talked about the doctrine of Christ in verse seven. It's God manifest in the flesh, the person who came in flesh confessing him, and it says he that abideth not in the doctrine of Christ hath not God.
He's warning this Christian lady, this elect lady and her children, that if one should come to her door purporting to be a Christian teacher and doesn't bring the doctrine of Christ the truth as to who he is, she's not to receive him.
It says verse nine again, Whosoever abideth not in the doctrine of Christ hath not God. Then he says it in the positive way, he that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. So not to not to abide in the doctrine of Christ, and hold it in your soul.
You don't have God, you don't know him, you're not saved.
If you don't know who Jesus is and believe it in your innermost soul that he is very God and very man.
It says you don't have God, but he that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, He is both the Father and the Son.
Now he says to this elect lady and her children, verse 10, if there come any unto you and bring not this doctrine, this basic truth. Now we're not talking tonight about something non essential. There are a lot of things that.
Are non essentials. We're talking about the most essential and basic and fundamental truth in all of scripture. Who is he?
And if you're not clear on that, you haven't even taken Step 1 towards into the Christian life.
00:05:09
If there come any unto you purportedly a Christian teacher, and brings you not the doctrine of Christ, the word to this elect lady is, don't receive him into your house, neither bidding Godspeed.
This is so serious that she is told have no fellowship with him. close the door.
Now we're going to look at the doctrine of Christ tonight, and we'll turn back to Genesis chapter 3.
Genesis chapter 3 describes how Satan deceived Eve and she ate of the forbidden fruit, gave it to her husband Adam, and he ate and sin entered into the world.
We will pick up the story in Genesis 3 at verse 14. This is after they had fallen into sin and the Lord God said unto the serpent.
In the Satan, in the form of a serpent, because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field. Upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat. All the days of light life. And I will put enmity between thee. God, the Lord is speaking to the serpent, to Satan I will put enmity between thee and the woman.
And between thy seed and her seed.
It that is, her seed shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. Another translation renders that it The seed of the woman shall crush thy head, and thou shalt crush his heel. Now no sooner did sin enter into this world than God speaks of a coming Savior, a coming Redeemer.
And he's called here the seed of the woman, and he says you have deceived Eve.
And through the woman you have introduced sin, man is held accountable. The Bible says by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin. And so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. And yet it was really Eve that did it. But Adam was responsible. He was the head. And so he's held accountable for what he allowed his wife to do, and then he followed suit.
You know, everyone wants to be the boss.
A lot of people do anyway to be the head. It's a sound thing to be in that position because you're then accountable. You're accountable for what happens.
So man is held accountable.
While it was the woman, the weaker vessel, the one who should have kept her place of subjection to her head. Adam.
And turn the whole thing over, the whole question that she, the whole discourse that she had with the serpent, she should have turned that all over to Adam and retired in the background. But instead she took the lead and Adam allowed it, and sin entered into the world. So he enters through the weaker vessel and deceives her and seduces her to believe the lie, and sin enters in. So God says the seed of the woman, the very woman that you used to introduce sin.
The seed of the woman, the one that comes from her, is going to crush the serpent's head.
And in the process of crushing the serpent's head, he would have his heel crushed, and that was the cross.
That was when the Lord Jesus died on the cross. He paid the penalty for sin.
And he suffered, but he crushed and destroyed the power of Satan, who through death destroyed him that had the power of death, and delivered them, who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to *******. So here we have the first prophecy, if you will, the first promise, the first announcement of a coming Redeemer.
And that is the seed of the woman. It the seed of the woman shall crush thy head. Now let's turn to Isaiah chapter.
7.
Isaiah 7 verse 10 Moreover, the Lord spake again unto Ahaz, saying, Ask the assign of the Lord thy God, Ask it either in the depth or in the height above. But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the Lord. And he said, Hear ye now, O House of David, is it a small thing for you to weary men? But will ye weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign.
00:10:04
You hold a virgin.
Shall conceive.
And bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuel. Now here in this one verse in Isaiah 7.
We have the doctrine of Christ. The Virgin conceives and bears a son. That's his humanity. He's born a man child into the world and his name is called Emmanuel, which means God with us. God was manifest in the flesh, a truth that you and I cannot with our finite puny minds really grasp. God and man in one person.
In fact, the Word tells us that it says no man knoweth the Son but the Father. He only knows Him. He is past our ability to really understand how God and man could be united in one person.
We have a tremendous verse in Colossians 2. It says, For in him Speaking of Christ dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead, the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, all the fullness of Deity dwells in him. And then the last word of that sentence is the crown jewel of the sentence bodily.
In that man all the fullness of the Godhead dwells.
Now just feed on that for a moment. Think upon it.
Can you grasp it? Can you grasp all the fullness of deity dwelling in a man?
But that was true of him.
That was true of the baby.
That was born of the virgin.
Well, there are some modern translations that read verse 14. Behold, a young woman shall conceive and bear. A son should call his name Emmanuel.
Well, that wouldn't have been a sign, because a young woman conceiving and bearing a son, that happens every day. There's nothing unusual about that. There's no.
Significant sign in that. But for a virgin to conceive and bear a son, that indeed is a sign.
The seed of the woman.
And so the Virgin conceives. Now the correct, the more correct, the more literal translation says, Behold, the Virgin shall conceive and bear a son.
And she'll call his name Emmanuel. Not any virgin would have met the conditions necessary to bear the Messiah.
She had to be of a certain lineage, had to have a certain genealogy, she had to be there at a certain time so as to fulfill the prophetic word, so that when the Messiah came, he came exactly according to the prophetic clock.
And he came through the through through the line that we have outlined in the Gospel according to Luke in the genealogy there.
The virgin conceives and bears a son. Now let's let's not argue.
With anyone about whether that Hebrew word rendered virgin, I don't know Hebrew that well means always virgin or could bear the meaning of young woman, but it means here virgin. The context proves it. And all we're going to look at in the New Testament how the Spirit of God guards the person of Christ, especially his humanity. We're going to look at passage after passage after passage.
To substantiate.
These truths that we've been looking at, He is the seed of the woman born of the virgin. If he isn't that, we don't have a savior.
If he isn't that there is no savior for mankind and there's no gospel, there's no good news. Christ is the good news. Christ is the gospel. And if he is not all that the word of God says he was to be.
Then he is not our Savior, but he is all notice. Now we turn to the New Testament. Matthew chapter one, Matthew's Gospel chapter one I'm going to read.
The genealogy. I'll read it quickly and you'll notice one word that is emphasized in this genealogy in Matthew, which happens to be Joseph's genealogy. The word is begat. We'll read it over and over again. The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham begat Isaac and Isaac begat Jacob, and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren.
00:15:07
And Judas begat Pharaohs, and Zahra of Themar, And Pharaohs begat Ezram, and Esrim begat Arum, and Arum begat Aminadab, and Aminadab begat Niacin.
And they asked and begat Salman and Salman begat Boaz of Reykjav, and Boaz begat obit of Ruth, and Obed begat Jesse and Jesse begat David the king, and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias.
And Solomon begat Roboam, and Rabon begat Abaya, and Abaya begat ASA, and ASA begat Josephat, and Josephat begat Jorem. And Joram begat Ozias, And Ozias begat Jotham. And Jotham begat Akaz, And Acas begat as a Caius, and as a Chaos begat Menasses, And Menasses begat Ammon, and Ammon begat Josius, and Josias begat Jekyas and his brethren about the time they were carried away to Babylon.
And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconius begat Salathiol.
And celestial begets a robabel, and Zerubbabel began to buy it. And Abaya begat Eliakim, and Eliakim begat Azor, and Azor begat Sedic, and Sedic begat Akum, and Akum begat Eliad, and Eliad begat Eliezer, And Eliezer begat Matt Fan.
And Matt then begat Jacob. Now notice, and Jacob begat Joseph.
It does not say, and it could not say, Joseph begat Jesus.
It says Jacob begat Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus.
Who is called Christ?
Joseph is never called in the scriptures. Jesus Father.
By the Holy Spirit.
He's called that by others, but not by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God guards against doing that.
But Mary is called over and over again. His mother.
Over and over again, for she was He was the seed of the woman. He came through Mary. But Joseph had nothing whatsoever to do with that conception or that begetting.
Jacob begat Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus.
Who is called Christ? So all the generations from Abraham to David are 14 generations.
And from David until the carrying away into Babylon are 14 generations. And from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are 14 generations.
I just want to make this comment.
The.
The church that claims to be.
The Bride of Christ.
Calls Mary the mother of God.
Scripture never does.
Scripture calls Mary his mother, refers to Mary as his mother, but it's always the Mary as the mother of his humanity. You see, God has no mother, only a father. The Lord Jesus as God has no mother, only a father. The Lord Jesus as man has no father, only a mother.
No earthly father.
For Joseph had nothing whatsoever to do with that birth, with that conception genetically.
Nothing. And we'll see how the Spirit of God guards this Now verse 18, the birth of Jesus Christ.
Was on this wise when as his mother Mary often she's called that over and over again by the Spirit of God when as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph. Notice the guard here before they came together she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.
Then Joseph, her husband, being a just man and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily.
But while he thought on these things, behold, the Angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. Now if you have a margin in your Bible, I have one in mind. And there's a note there by the word conceived, and it reads Greek begotten. The word really is begotten. Matthew does not talk about.
Mary conceiving Matthew talks about the Holy Ghost begetting.
In contrast to all those begettings that we read of Indiana, the genealogy recorded in Matthew, it's man begetting man begetting man begetting. Man begets and the woman conceives. That's the normal birth. Every one of us in the room here tonight is the seed of man.
00:20:07
There was only one man in this world that was called the seed of the woman.
And that's the one who was virgin born. That's the one whom man had nothing to do with connection with that begetting.
He was begotten in the power of the Holy Spirit, so this ought to read. That which is begotten 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. Jesus, the most wonderful word in in all of creation, Jesus, meaning Jehovah, the Savior God. Jehovah God manifest in the flesh, the Savior. He became a man in order that he might die for us on the cross, shed his precious blood, cleanse us from the stain of our sins, and become our Savior.
But before he could do that, he had to come God's way.
According to the Word. And so He did, He was begotten by the power of the Holy Ghost.
Joseph had nothing whatsoever to do with that. And Luke speaks of Mary conceiving, and Matthew speaks of the Holy Ghost in place of man begetting, and his name is called Jesus.
For He shall save his people from their sins. There you have the double truth, God and man in one person.
Now all this was done that it might be fulfilled, which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet saying now he quotes Isaiah 714. Behold, a virgin shall be with child. There's no question about the meaning of this Greek word translated virgin. It means virgin and it has to, of course, according to the Scriptures, a virgin shall be with child and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel.
Which, being interpreted, is God with us, and there we have the doctrine of Christ.
God and Man in one person.
The Virgin bringing forth that man child, his humanity, and his name is called God with us, Emmanuel. Then Joseph being raised from sleep, that is, the Angel of the Lord, had bidden him, and took unto him his wife. And notice now he knew her not till she had brought forth her first born son, and he called his name Jesus.
Now it says in verse 18 in the middle of the verse.
Before they came together, she was found with Child of the Holy Ghost.
And this last verse adds the additional truth that he knew her not until the child was born. So that whole nine month development period, which I take to be quite normal, the the miracle in the birth of Christ was the conception. The begetting man had nothing to do with the begetting.
Of that man child he was the seed, of the woman, where the seed of man, He was the seed of the woman. So Joseph knew her not till she had brought forth her first born son. And he called his name Jesus. And after that they lived a normal married life and Jesus had half brothers through his mother Mary.
But there was no relationship, marriage relationship between Joseph and Mary until after the first born was born.
And that's so important, the Spirit of God guarding, so that there can't possibly be the thought that that Joseph had anything to do with this, this son.
Now, chapter 2. Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of Herod the King, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem. What we're reading here took place a little bit short of two years after his birth.
Saying, Where is he that is born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. When Herod the King had heard these things, he was troubled in all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. And they said unto him in Bethlehem of Judea. For thus it is written by the prophet. And thou, Bethlehem in the land of Judah, art not the least among the Princess of Judah, for out of thee shall come.
A governor. Notice that's a capital G It's referring to God, deity, a governor.
That shall rule my people, Israel. This is the Messiah. Now then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared, and he sent them to Bethlehem and said, go and search diligently for the young child. I want to call your attention to that expression, the young child. We're going to read it over and over again in this chapter. It sets him off and apart from the others, the one in this case, Herod, who was seeking him. He wanted.
00:25:26
Kill him under the pretense that he wanted to worship him, but really he hated him. And but the young child is an expression we will meet with in this chapter over and over again, so watch it, and when you have found him, bring me word again that I may come and worship him also. His intent was to kill him. When they had heard the king, they departed, and lo, the star which they saw in the East went before them till it came, and stood over where the young child was.
And when they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were coming to the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down. And you'll find the young child and marry his mother are always put together because she was his mother. She was the mother of his humanity.
Joseph never called his father because he was only his legal father. He was not genetically so.
When they were coming to the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts, gold, His deity, His God, frankincense, His humanity, perfect man, and myrrh. His sufferings by which He has atone for our sins, shed His precious blood that cleanses from our sins.
And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
And when they were departed, behold, the Angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, notice the language now.
And take the young child and his mother. It is not arise and take your wife and son.
No, the Spirit of God doesn't speak that way. Arise and take the young child and his mother. Joseph is here viewed as being often a part from the young child and his mother. They're coupled together. They're put together by the Spirit of God, and Joseph is just, you might say, one that takes them along.
Legal father, yes, but not really. So he had no human father.
Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word. For Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother.
By night and departed into Egypt, and he was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled. Which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet saying out of Egypt, have I called my son? Who is speaking my son? Who's speaking God? Is God the Father speaking? He's my son.
And the one that can call him my son was either God the Father referring to him.
In that eternal relationship that he had with him as the Son from all eternity, or Mary could say my Son.
Actually so because.
He was her son.
As a man.
Out of Egypt have I called my son. Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from 2 years old and under. He wanted to be sure for this calculation that he got that child.
According to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.
Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet saying in Ramah was there a voice heard lamentation and weeping and great morning. Rachel weeping for her children and would not be comforted because they are not.
But when Herod was dead, behold, an Angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, again, notice the language, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel, for they are dead, which sought the young child's life. And he arose and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.
And when he heard that Achilles did reign in Judea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither, notwithstanding.
Being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee, and He came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets. He should be called a Nazarene, a despised, hated, rejected, outcast, a Nazarene. Can anything good come out of Nazareth?
00:30:17
Now let's turn to Luke's Gospel chapter 3. We'll read a few verses from chapter 3 to start with.
Luke, it has often been said, gives us moral order. Mark gives us especially chronological order, order in time, one event in time after the other. But Luke gives us moral order. You will see that in what we're going to read here. Luke 3, verse 19. But had the Tetrarch being reproved by him for Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done, added this. Yet above all, and that he shut up John in prison.
Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also being baptized and praying that heaven was opened, and the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him. And a voice came from heaven and said, Thou art my beloved Son, in thee I am well pleased, who? Speaking the Father, the Father speaking from heaven, declaring Thou art my beloved Son, and whom I'm well pleased.
There we have his deity, his father.
He was always his father. Notice now the very next verse and Jesus himself began to be about 30 years of age being Here's the guard.
By the Holy Spirit being, as was supposed, the son of Joseph, which was the son of Eli, which was the son of Matt that and so on. Now I said before, and I just want to make this comment, that.
This is the genealogy of Mary. Matthew gives you the genealogy of Joseph.
The son of Eli, Well, it was common in those days. Actually, he lies.
Offspring was Mary. This is Mary's genealogy, so it ought to be. The real thought is which was the son-in-law.
Of Joseph, excuse me, which was the son-in-law of Eli? Joseph was the son-in-law of Eli, that is, this is Mary's daughter. Eli was the father of Mary, and Joseph was his son by marriage. Very common in in Hebrew and in biblical language. So we have in Luke the genealogy of Mary, and his humanity is traced.
All the way through. Read the last verse 38 which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God. Adam is here called the Son of God by creation. He was created directly from the hand of God. So he was the Son of God as created. The angels are called sons of God also because they are created directly by God.
But the Lord Jesus is the Son of God, not by creation.
But he is the Son of God from all eternity. It is an eternal relationship that he had with the Father. For all three persons of the Trinity are God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. But this genealogy traces him back to Adam.
Giving us his true humanity. And from whom did he derive his humanity was From his mother, not from his.
Legal father who had nothing to do with his birth.
But from his mother.
Scripture says he was born of a woman.
Born under law that he might redeem them that were under law.
Born of a woman.
Revelation 12 Says pictures the woman bearing a man child.
And we know that Israel but came through Mary, and she bore the manchild who would be the Redeemer, the seed of the woman. Now let's turn back while the guard here is being, as was supposed, the son of Joseph.
Let's turn back to Luke chapter one verse.
24.
And after those days, his wife Elizabeth conceived and hid herself five months saying.
Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein He looked on me in mine affliction.
He looked on me to take away my reproach among men. And in the sixth month the Angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph of the House of David. The virgin's name was Mary. And the Angel came in unto her and said, Hail thou that art highly favored, the Lord is with thee.
00:35:21
Blessed art thou among women.
And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
We read in Daniel's prophecy that the Antichrist would not regard the desire of women.
Well, what was the desire of women? The desire of a godly Jewish woman was to bear the Messiah.
To bear the Christ.
And here is this Jewish maiden that has been selected by the Spirit of God to be the mother.
Of the Lord's humanity.
Highly favored. The Angel said unto her, verse 30 Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favor with God, and behold, I shall conceive in thy womb, and there the word conceive is proper. Luke talks about Mary conceiving. Matthew talks about the Holy Ghost begetting.
Thou shalt conceive in thy womb and bring forth a son, and shall call his name Jesus.
He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the highest, the highest the title for God.
And the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his Father David.
And he shall reign over the House of Jacob Forever, and of his Kingdom there shall be no end.
What a person is being announced here to her?
Then said Mary unto the Angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? She had no relationships, and no relationship with a man, with Joseph or any other man. She was the virgin.
Now verse 35 Tremendous, tremendous verse. And the Angel answered and said unto her, the Holy Ghost.
Shall come upon thee.
And the power of the Highest shall over shadow thee. Therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
Notice it does not say.
Shall become the Son of God, it says, that holy thing which shall be born of these shall be called.
The Son of God. He was the Son of God from all eternity. We were looking this afternoon at Philippians 2, where it says he emptied himself. What did he empty himself of? Of the form of God by assuming the form of a servant. Did he empty himself of his love? No. Did he empty himself of His Holiness? No. Did he empty himself of his power? No.
He entered himself of His glory.
Is the outward form of God.
Did he empty himself of his sonship? No.
When he entered his own creation, he was called the Son of God.
Sun in time thou art my son, This day have I begotten thee.
Not the miserably poor and wretched translation. This day have I become your father?
He did not become his father when he was born in time. He did not become his father at any point in time.
He was always his father.
The Eternal Father, the Eternal Son, dwelling together in a past eternity in the blessedness of Deity.
He never became his father.
He was begotten in time as to his humanity.
And as that one that was born in time, he was called the Son of God. He carried his sonship into time.
He did not lay that aside.
Why does it say this holy thing?
Therefore that holy thing which shall be born of thee. I looked the word up in the original and it's it's the word holy in the neuter gender. If it was in the masculine gender, it would be holy one.
But it's holy thing. Why? Because he's talking about his holy humanity. His humanity was in the state of holiness.
When Adam was created, his humanity was in the state of innocence.
00:40:03
Without sin, but capable of sinning. And when he took of the forbidden fruit with his wife Eve, sin entered into the world. Death by sin. So we're all sinners now. We all partake of sinful humanity. Adam's humanity did not change. He was still a man as much after the fall as before, but the state of his humanity changed. Changed from innocent.
To sinful We sometimes look at a newborn baby and we'll say that innocent little thing. They It's not an innocent little thing, it's a sinful little thing.
Because we're born in sin.
And shape and iniquity. There is no such thing as innocence as to the state of humanity any longer.
That was lost at the fall and when you're saved and when you come to know the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal savior, the one that shed his precious blood to cleanse you from your sins and to wash you white as snow to make you fit for heaven. When you're saved you you partake of a new nature, a new life which is holy just like Christ's. That first John three. I don't remember the verse 9. Whatever it is it says he that is born of God cannot.
Because his seed abideth in him, he cannot sin because he's born of God, he has that holy nature. And one of the blessed, the most blessed things of heaven is going to be we're not going to have the flesh anymore. We're not going to have that sinful nature. We're going to be before God in the in the very nature of Christ, that holy nature. So Christ humanity was holy. We've had three states of humanity innocent that's gone that will not be recovered, not returned to.
When you're saved, you don't go back to the paradise of Eden. That was wonderful, but it was lost by sin. But we're brought into a state of fixed and subsisting holiness in Christ. We partake of His holy life. So here it says, when he entered into the world, that holy thing referring to the holy nature of his humanity, which shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son of God.
And if you don't have that holy nature?
That holy life, if you're not born of God, if you don't partake of the divine nature by faith in Christ.
You'll not get there. You wouldn't be comfortable in heaven without a life that can enjoy him.
You need to be born of God.
You need two things as a Sinner. You need a new life, a new nature to enjoy Him, and you need to have your sins forgiven. And we have that through His precious blood.
His blood cleanses us from all sin.
Verse 35. I'll read it again it to me. It's such a thrilling verse. The Angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall over shadow thee. Therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And behold, thy cousin Elizabeth, she hath also conceived the son of her old age, and this is the 6th month with her who was called barren, for with God nothing.
Shall be impossible. And Mary said, Behold beautiful, listen to what she says, behold the handmaid of the Lord.
Be it unto me according to thy word. And the Angel departed from her, She submits immediately. Immediately. No words like, Oh, I'm not worthy of this Lord. No, he just submits. He accepts what the Lord told her. I'm going to bear the Christ of God.
I'm going to bear the Son of God.
The most honored woman.
Indeed she was, and Mary arose in those days and went into the Hill Country.
With haste into a city of Judah, and entered into the House of Zacharias, and saluted Elizabeth.
And he came to pass, that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost. And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the Mother of my Lord should come to me for law? As soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears, the Bay bleeped in my womb for joy. And blessed is she that believed, for there shall be a performance of those things that were told her from the Lord.
And Mary said, my soul doth magnify the Lord.
And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. She needed a Savior like you and I. The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception of Mary is impossible.
Because she had an earthly father as well as an earthly mother, and so she was a Sinner, just like you and I are.
We're all born in sin, but when the Holy Ghost came upon Mary taking the place of an earthly father doing the begetting, He did the begetting.
00:45:03
He preserved that holy humanity of Christ, so that none of the sinfulness of Mary's nature was transmitted to it, and He was that holy thing.
That was born by the preserving power of the Spirit of God.
And without that, it's impossible. Impossible that anyone.
Borne by the natural.
Process of man and woman Impossible that that product could be sinless. What the Lord Jesus, being the seed of the woman was the sinless one, His holy humanity? When you're asked the question, could the Lord Jesus have sinned? Can holiness sin? Holiness is delight in what is good and abhorrence of evil.
That's what it is.
It's essential truth of what holiness is.
Every suggestion to him towards sinning was painful and grievous and abhorrent to him because he was holy.
He could not sin because He was holy in humanity. He could not sin because He was God manifest in the flesh.
God would never unite to a sinful human being.
The doctrine of Christ.
Eternal.
He could not sin.
I love the one tract I picked up. It said could God Incarnate sin? The very question is answered by the by the way it's put could God Incarnate sin? Of course not. But he couldn't sin because of his holy humanity. We won't be able to sin.
We can't sin in our new nature. It's impossible because it's holy.
It's a life of Christ.
And all we're waiting for is the removal of the flesh.
At the resurrection and we will then be in a state of holiness.
Which is just like his as man.
Well.
Beautiful to read Mary's words. I want to get into the second chapter, so I'm going to Passover the rest of this in chapter one, just for the sake of time, and we'll read chapter 2. It came to pass in those days. There went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. And this taxing was first made when Serenius was governor of Syria. And all went to be taxed, everyone into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth.
To Judea into the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be taxed with Mary, his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered, And she brought forth her first born son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a Manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. Think of it.
The creator of the universe enters his own creation. Another point.
He's never called, never in Scripture a creature.
He's never spoken of, even as to his humanity, that it was created.
Never.
It says in Hebrews 10A body, Hast thou prepared me?
And we could speak a long while on that word prepared, but I don't have time tonight.
A body hast thou prepared me?
Not created.
He was the creator and he enters his own creation, becomes a servant.
Takes that place in lowly grace to reach us and bring us into blessing.
But even his humanity is never spoken of as being created, because the Spirit of God guards that truth.
He's the creator God over all, blessed forever.
Verse eight. There were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night, and lo, the Angel of Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid.
And the angels said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
Yes, he enters his own creation as a little babe.
In poverty, in weakness, born in a stable, laid in a Manger, There was number room in the inn, no room for the Creator. Think of that. No room in their hearts and don't ever forget it. This world has no room for Christ. Don't ever forget it. It hasn't changed. It's no different. It's worse because it's the at the end of 2000 years.
00:50:18
Of Christian witness.
It's about ready to overthrow.
Christianity entirely just waiting for us to be raptured, and then that will hasten speedily.
Lo, the Angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them. Verse nine. And they were sore afraid.
In the Angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For under you was born this day in the city of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.
No. Great.
Announcement Public announcement about his coming.
Just to a few shepherds, it says in Genesis the shepherds were an abomination to the Egyptians.
And here the Lord reveals his coming into the world in the lowliest of circumstances to those that were abominations to the Egyptians, the shepherds.
Unto you, as born this day in the city of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord, this shall be a sign unto you. You shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a Manger. And suddenly there was with the Angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men. He came to pass as the angels were gone away from them into heaven. The shepherd said, one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which has come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.
They came with haste, and found Mary and Joseph and the babe lying in a Manger. And when they had seen it, they made no one abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these sayings, these things, and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherd's returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen as it was told unto them. Mary kept all these things in her heart. Remember, she was the.
She was the number one person that was down here that knew how Jesus came into this world. She knew that man had nothing to do with that birth, with that conception.
She knew. Joseph knew. Those two knew.
And when 8 days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called Jesus, which was so named of the Angel before he was conceived in the womb.
And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord.
As it is written in the law of the Lord, every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord. We don't have time to turn back. But if you look it up in Leviticus 12, it says they were to bring a lamb for a burnt offering and a turtle dove or a young pigeon for a sin offering. But there was provision made for the poor of the flock. They could bring 2 turtledoves or two young pigeons if they couldn't afford the lamb. And so that's what it says, to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord.
A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.
We were we had before us this morning at the breaking of bread.
The he who was rich became poor, and when he entered this scene, he came into the very tourist of conditions. They were so poor they couldn't even afford a lamb for a burnt offering. So they offered a turtle dove for the burnt offering and for the sin offering. And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon.
And the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Ghost was upon him.
And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought him the child Jesus to do for him, after the custom of the law, then took him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now let us thou thy servant, depart in peace according to thy word. For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which thou hast prepared before the face of all people, a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people, Israel.
Notice now. And Joseph and his mother, maintaining the distinction, marveled at those things which were spoken of him.
There are that verse happens to have.
Some manuscripts that read his father and his mother marvelled at those things which were spoken of him.
I'm convinced from all the testimony of Scripture that that's a wrong rendering, That's a wrong reading. And what we have in our King James Bible is right. Joseph and his mother. That maintains the distinction between Mary, the mother of the Lord, and Joseph. That's consistent with all we've been looking at. So I believe it ought to read exactly as it reads here. Joseph and his mother marveled at those things.
00:55:12
Which were spoken of him.
And then the very next verse confirms that. And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother.
Behold, this child is set for the fallen, rising again of many in Israel, and for a sign which shall be spoken against.
Yeah, a sword shall Pierce to thine own soul. Also that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.
Now we're just going to the end of the chapter and then we finished.
Verse 41. Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover, and when he was 12 years old they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast.
And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem.
And Joseph and his mother knew not of it. Now some manuscripts there read His parents knew not of it. I don't have any trouble with that. Verse 41 speaks of his parents and other passages because they were that Joseph and Mary. But I do object to verse 33 reading his father and his mother.
Says they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day's journey. I want, I want to emphasize that in this very passage that truth is guarded again by the Spirit of God. We'll see it in a moment by the Lord Himself.
They, supposing to him to have been in the company, went a day's journey, and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. And he came to pass that after three days they found him in the Temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them and asking them questions. And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. And when they saw him they were amazed. And his mother said unto him, Son.
Why hast thou thus dealt with us? Behold thy father, and I have sought thee. Sorrowing very naturally referring to Joseph as his father. He was that legally, but not actually. Notice how the Lord gently corrects her in the next verse. A boy of 12, mind you. And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought be wished ye not that I must be about?
My father's business.
And he's referring to God his Father there, of course, my father's business. And then the next verse is quite a statement. They understood not the saying which he spake unto them.
You know how slow we are to apprehend the deep truths of the person of Christ. It was number different with Joseph and Mary, though. Mary knew far more than we do in one sense, and yet we know more, far more than she did in another sense.
They understood not.
He was only 12. They probably never told him how he got here. Maybe they thought he didn't know.
Maybe they didn't realize.
Mary pondered these things in her heart.
Says they understood not the saying which He had spent, which He spoke unto them. He went down with them and came to Nazareth, was subject to them. But His mother kept all these sayings in her heart. We began the meeting tonight. Who is He?
In yonder's stall, that little baby. Just think of it. The creator of the universe becomes a baby.
Enters his own creation through the womb of the Virgin.
Conceived by the Virgin, by the begetting power of the Holy Spirit.
Born of a virgin.
God with us, Emmanuel.
Do you know him?
Do you know who he is? That was the most important question the Lord put to the Pharisees. He said, What think you of Christ? Whose son is he? They said, David's son of David. How then doth David in spirit call him Lord? Quoting the 110th Psalm, saying, My Lord said it unto the Lord. Said unto my Lord, Sit thou with my right hand, until I put thine enemies as footstool of thy feet.
If David, then call him Lord.
How is he his son?
They couldn't answer.
They didn't know who Jesus was.
They didn't know.
They couldn't answer. To them, he was just David's son.
A man.
As David's Lord, he was God.
Do you know him as very God, very man?
What thinking of Christ is the test to try both your state and your scheme. You cannot be right in the rest unless you think rightly of Him. As Jesus appears to your view, as he is beloved or not, so God is disposed to you, and mercy or wrath is your lot.
01:00:15
The most important question you'll ever have to answer is who is he?
You better know who he is, very God.
Very bad.
We've gone over, so we'll just pray.