1 00:00:04,690 --> 00:00:09,869 Greetings. This is Pastor David Bass at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church with the 2 00:00:09,869 --> 00:00:14,529 Moment of Truth, where we challenge you to think through an important issue of life and faith. 3 00:00:15,089 --> 00:00:22,289 Today, I want to challenge you to think through the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth. 4 00:00:23,050 --> 00:00:30,070 We at New Geneva have begun our Wednesday night Bible study, where we are looking at the life and 5 00:00:30,070 --> 00:00:37,009 times of Jesus of Nazareth. What a blessing it has been as well. We are into our third, we just 6 00:00:37,009 --> 00:00:44,369 finished our third lesson last night, and it's just been a delight to mingle with our people 7 00:00:44,369 --> 00:00:51,469 in a relaxed setting. We have it in one of the homes of our people, and it's a nice laid back, 8 00:00:51,850 --> 00:00:58,969 we have refreshments, and just a relaxed atmosphere in which to discuss the life and times of Jesus 9 00:00:58,969 --> 00:01:04,290 of Nazareth and the impact of Jesus in our own lives. That has been one of the rare treats where 10 00:01:04,290 --> 00:01:11,310 I get to hear the impact of Jesus Christ in the lives of the people in my own congregation and 11 00:01:11,310 --> 00:01:17,010 just hear this again and again. And I've heard these things before from my people, but it is just a 12 00:01:17,010 --> 00:01:22,829 delight to hear it again and to hear it oftentimes in more detail, more poignant detail. We've had 13 00:01:22,829 --> 00:01:30,269 lots of laughter, some solemn moments with tears, and then just some delightful moments in discovering 14 00:01:30,269 --> 00:01:36,849 and rediscovering the Christ of the Bible. It has been a delight to do this. And I would just invite 15 00:01:36,849 --> 00:01:42,670 you, if you'd like to join us, we have opened this up to those outside the congregation, and we have 16 00:01:42,670 --> 00:01:49,590 some people that are listeners that have been coming as well, and it's been a delight to get to know them 17 00:01:49,590 --> 00:01:54,849 and to have them get to know members of our congregation, and to share their own experience 18 00:01:54,849 --> 00:01:59,870 with Jesus of Nazareth. And if this sounds interesting to you, if this sounds like something 19 00:01:59,870 --> 00:02:06,450 you'd like to participate in, well, I'd like to invite you to it. And we meet on Wednesday nights 20 00:02:06,450 --> 00:02:14,370 at 7 p.m. in the homes of our people, and you're going to have to call me so that I can direct you to 21 00:02:14,370 --> 00:02:22,050 the nearest home in which you might participate with us. And to do that, you can call me at our 22 00:02:22,050 --> 00:02:33,789 church phone, area code 208-523-0196. That's area code 208-523-0196. And I can direct you to the 23 00:02:33,789 --> 00:02:41,509 homes of one of the homes of our people, and you can join us in looking at the life and times of 24 00:02:41,509 --> 00:02:48,930 Jesus of Nazareth. Although we have been three lessons already into it, you can find that each 25 00:02:48,930 --> 00:02:56,770 lesson is discreet and whole in itself. You do not have to have been to previous lessons in order 26 00:02:56,770 --> 00:03:04,569 to enjoy the particular lesson that evening. What we're doing right now is beginning to unfold the early 27 00:03:04,569 --> 00:03:12,330 years of Jesus of Nazareth as they are given in the Gospels, the four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, 28 00:03:12,430 --> 00:03:21,169 and John. And what we're taking up is the birth narratives of Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus was born 29 00:03:21,169 --> 00:03:30,449 in a particular place in time, and God subjects his truth claims to the claims of history, 30 00:03:30,449 --> 00:03:38,449 to the truth, the reality of history. Jesus Christ was not revealed to us in some airy-fairy space 31 00:03:38,449 --> 00:03:50,590 time continuum and mystically revealed to us in some cloud or some magical trance. No, he was grounded 32 00:03:50,590 --> 00:03:59,090 in a body, God becoming man, fully God and fully man in time and space. A particular time, that is the 33 00:03:59,090 --> 00:04:06,590 first century and a particular place that is in ancient Israel, the Israel of the first century 34 00:04:06,590 --> 00:04:13,590 in real historical circumstances where Rome was king and where the temple was still standing, these 35 00:04:13,590 --> 00:04:21,430 kinds of things. And what I'd like to do today with you is ask you some questions about the birth 36 00:04:21,430 --> 00:04:28,250 narratives, about the circumstances and the particular stories that are given in the birth narratives that 37 00:04:28,250 --> 00:04:35,990 would be Matthew and Luke. These are the two Gospels that have for us, that have preserved for us 38 00:04:35,990 --> 00:04:45,089 the narrative of the circumstances and particulars of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. And what I'd like 39 00:04:45,089 --> 00:04:50,629 to challenge you to think about first and foremost is just step back, step outside of those particular 40 00:04:50,629 --> 00:05:00,069 narratives and think with me, what is the overall trajectory of the life and times of Jesus? What 41 00:05:00,069 --> 00:05:07,269 is his purpose? Why did he come? What is his destiny? Because this has very much to do with the birth 42 00:05:07,269 --> 00:05:14,370 narratives. When you launch a projectile, for instance, the target in relation to the launch point 43 00:05:14,370 --> 00:05:20,430 determines its trajectory. What was the trajectory of Jesus' life? The trajectory of Jesus' life depends 44 00:05:20,430 --> 00:05:26,350 not only on the launch point, that is the birth of Jesus Christ, but also his target, that is his 45 00:05:26,350 --> 00:05:34,970 ultimate goal. What is Jesus destined for? When we consider the birth of Jesus, we must also take 46 00:05:34,970 --> 00:05:41,810 into consideration then his historical target as well as his origins. Both will give us a better 47 00:05:41,810 --> 00:05:48,129 insight into who he is and help us understand the circumstances of his birth. Was Jesus just a profound 48 00:05:48,129 --> 00:05:54,689 human prophet, for example, that disciples later adorned with means of divinity? Many modern scholars hold 49 00:05:54,689 --> 00:06:00,290 out to something like this. Or one of my favorite examples is that of Albert Schweitzer, the great 50 00:06:00,290 --> 00:06:07,569 biblical scholar. I say great because he was very bright, but he was sadly mistaken in Christ's ultimate 51 00:06:07,569 --> 00:06:16,870 historical target. For Albert Schweitzer, he lived in the period of the late 19th and early 20th 52 00:06:16,870 --> 00:06:23,209 centuries, and he would later establish hospitals in Africa because he was a medical doctor as well 53 00:06:23,209 --> 00:06:29,389 as a brilliant musician and biblical scholar. But he posited that Jesus failed in his mission. 54 00:06:30,389 --> 00:06:36,389 He posits that Jesus Christ predicted that this generation will not pass away until all of these 55 00:06:36,389 --> 00:06:42,310 things take place. That is, until his kingdom is fully inaugurated. And of course, Jesus' kingdom was not 56 00:06:42,310 --> 00:06:47,250 fully inaugurated. It won't be until he comes again, of course, as Jesus even predicted himself. 57 00:06:47,730 --> 00:06:53,250 But Albert Schweitzer saw him as an utter failure because he died and was crucified. And then later, 58 00:06:53,329 --> 00:06:59,430 his disciples made up the story of the resurrection. That was, to his mind, what happened. So you see how 59 00:06:59,430 --> 00:07:07,870 important the historical target is in relation to his origins because Albert Schweitzer, again, did not see 60 00:07:07,870 --> 00:07:13,209 Jesus Christ as divine, as born of a virgin. These were all stories that were later added by his 61 00:07:13,209 --> 00:07:20,370 disciples, according to Schweitzer. And so the historical target profoundly affected the origins 62 00:07:20,370 --> 00:07:26,930 of Jesus as well, in the mind of the liberal scholar, Albert Schweitzer. But for us, of course, 63 00:07:27,250 --> 00:07:35,410 we know that even as Jesus predicts, even as Jesus foretells, as the prophets foretell in the Old 64 00:07:35,410 --> 00:07:40,889 Testament and as the apostles foretell in the New Testament, that Jesus Christ will return a second 65 00:07:40,889 --> 00:07:48,230 time to establish his kingdom in full power and glory. We know this because Jesus had predicted 66 00:07:48,230 --> 00:07:53,209 it. We know this because God has been faithful in all his promises in the past. He will be faithful 67 00:07:53,209 --> 00:08:01,709 in all his promises in the future. So we know that the divine God-man, Jesus Christ, will come back 68 00:08:01,709 --> 00:08:08,810 and return to establish his kingdom eternally with full power and glory as he has predicted. So this 69 00:08:08,810 --> 00:08:17,930 profoundly affects his origins. That is the birth of Jesus of Nazareth because what is in flower we see 70 00:08:17,930 --> 00:08:25,329 in the future begins in seed form. And that, of course, begins with the childhood, the birth and 71 00:08:25,329 --> 00:08:32,450 childhood of Jesus Christ of Nazareth predicted by the prophets. He's had deep tap roots in the Old 72 00:08:32,450 --> 00:08:39,490 Covenant scriptures. And those Old Testament scriptures saw the full fruition of all the 73 00:08:39,490 --> 00:08:49,009 promises of God in him, of course. Well, considering these things then, let us ask, in particular, 74 00:08:49,009 --> 00:08:56,129 as the Christmas season approaches, let me ask you, how has the birth of Jesus Christ come down to us 75 00:08:56,129 --> 00:09:03,289 in Western culture? How has the birth of Jesus come down to us in the larger Western culture in which 76 00:09:03,289 --> 00:09:10,429 we dwell? We can't separate ourselves from this. I have grown up with Christmas in the West. I don't 77 00:09:10,429 --> 00:09:16,970 know about you, but all of the Christmas trees, the Christmas presents, the Christmas carols, and all 78 00:09:16,970 --> 00:09:23,389 of that surrounding it, Santa Claus and his elves and him coming down the chimney with a big bag of 79 00:09:23,389 --> 00:09:32,250 presents, and all the things attached to Christmas come with it in the West, don't they? And there are 80 00:09:32,250 --> 00:09:38,370 some positive things. There are some blessings to all of this, as well as perils and pitfalls of this 81 00:09:38,370 --> 00:09:45,909 heritage. When I asked our class yesterday, our devout students of the life of Jesus of Nazareth, 82 00:09:46,169 --> 00:09:50,690 what are some of the perils and pitfalls of this heritage? Why, the first thing that came to mind 83 00:09:50,690 --> 00:10:00,110 was commercialism. Because, of course, the idea of gifts and presents surround Christmas. And one of 84 00:10:00,110 --> 00:10:04,830 the perils and pitfalls of Christmas is the commercialism that can come with it. People get so 85 00:10:04,830 --> 00:10:12,970 consumed in gift-giving, gift-buying, gift-receiving that they lose sight of the true gift of Christmas, 86 00:10:12,970 --> 00:10:24,049 that is, God giving us the supreme gift of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. But that comes with the idea of 87 00:10:24,049 --> 00:10:33,690 gift-giving, the giving of Saint Nicholas, who was a fifth-century saint who loved children, and he loved the 88 00:10:33,690 --> 00:10:42,309 poor, and gave. He was a wealthy man himself, and he gave liberally to children and to the aged. There's 89 00:10:42,309 --> 00:10:49,370 a story of a poor family, a poor man who had two daughters. And, of course, in the ancient world, 90 00:10:49,470 --> 00:10:56,049 a woman had to have a dowry. That is a treasure that she has been treasuring up since she was a little 91 00:10:56,049 --> 00:11:04,129 girl for her wedding day. And a suitor would examine to see if she had a profound dowry or no. 92 00:11:04,750 --> 00:11:11,009 And if she did, well, she was more marriageable than if she did not. Well, these two poor women, 93 00:11:11,570 --> 00:11:17,950 one was betrothed but did not have the proper dowry. And so what Saint Nicholas did, and one night 94 00:11:17,950 --> 00:11:23,370 he took a bag of gold, threw it through the window, and it happened to land in a stocking 95 00:11:23,370 --> 00:11:30,210 of the girl. And so we get the tradition of giving gifts in stockings from old Saint Nicholas. 96 00:11:30,929 --> 00:11:36,450 But the idea of Saint Nicholas and his giving, which he did all year round, he was a profound 97 00:11:36,450 --> 00:11:44,669 saint of the church, and gave liberally from his own store of wealth. This is where we get so many 98 00:11:44,669 --> 00:11:49,909 of the traditions of giving of gifts. We've lost sight of this, though. Saint Nicholas has turned into 99 00:11:49,909 --> 00:11:59,789 a fat elf in a red suit with a big white beard, rather than the stately, humble old man who gave 100 00:11:59,789 --> 00:12:06,009 presents and gifts to children and to the poor all of his life, all year round. So that's just one of 101 00:12:06,009 --> 00:12:11,889 the examples of contrast with some of the cultural baggage that has come down to us. So there are perils 102 00:12:11,889 --> 00:12:17,230 and pitfalls to the Christmas heritage, but there are also profound blessings as well. This is a great 103 00:12:17,230 --> 00:12:23,309 opportunity for us to proclaim the Lord Jesus Christ at this time, to proclaim his humble circumstances, 104 00:12:23,309 --> 00:12:31,110 to proclaim his deity and full humanity, to share it with others, and to share the gospel with others. 105 00:12:31,110 --> 00:12:38,870 So Christmas also has its profound blessings as well. Personally, I have great memories of Christmas. 106 00:12:38,870 --> 00:12:48,169 I have great memories of family and the rich heritage of the church. I grew up in the church. I was blessed 107 00:12:48,169 --> 00:12:54,409 to grow up in the Reformed Church of America, and we had strong traditions in Christmas, the Christmas story 108 00:12:54,409 --> 00:13:02,210 read over and over again, and a loving family, loving extended family with some 29 cousins on one side 109 00:13:02,210 --> 00:13:08,850 and 19 cousins on the other side of my family. So I was just drenched in love and fellowship during the 110 00:13:08,870 --> 00:13:14,090 Christmas season. So I have great memories, profound blessings of Christmas. So these are some of the 111 00:13:14,090 --> 00:13:18,990 things that have come down to us in Western culture. But if we want to find out what goes on 112 00:13:18,990 --> 00:13:27,889 in the birth narratives that we celebrate as Christmas, Christ's mass, we have to look at the four or at the 113 00:13:27,889 --> 00:13:35,230 two evangelists that give us narrative stories, that is Matthew and Luke. So let me ask you this, 114 00:13:35,230 --> 00:13:40,389 what were some of the things about Jesus himself that the evangelists were trying to tell us 115 00:13:40,389 --> 00:13:47,490 by including what they did in the birth narratives? Yes, the evangelists were trying to tell us some 116 00:13:47,490 --> 00:13:52,929 very important things about Jesus in what they included in the birth narratives. For example, 117 00:13:53,590 --> 00:14:02,850 Matthew begins his narrative with, with what? With the story of the angel coming to her to announce 118 00:14:02,850 --> 00:14:14,909 her virgin birth or to Joseph. That's how, is one of the stories that Matthew relates is the angel 119 00:14:14,909 --> 00:14:21,529 appearing to Joseph to reassure him, of course, that Mary being found with child was not to be put 120 00:14:21,529 --> 00:14:27,870 aside. No, that's not how he begins. He begins with what? With a genealogy, doesn't he? With a dry, 121 00:14:27,970 --> 00:14:32,830 boring genealogy, a list of names. Well, that list of names is very important. It is part of the 122 00:14:32,830 --> 00:14:38,889 birth narrative too. Did you realize that? Part of the birth narrative of Matthew is what he begins 123 00:14:38,889 --> 00:14:47,750 with. That is the genealogy of Jesus Christ, whom he says was a son of Abraham and a son of David. 124 00:14:47,929 --> 00:14:55,610 And then he proceeds to click off the names from Abraham through to Jesus Christ and thereby 125 00:14:55,610 --> 00:15:01,309 establishing the bona fides of Jesus Christ. This would have been one of the things that a Jew would 126 00:15:01,309 --> 00:15:09,070 look at first, before you tell me he's the Messiah, a Jew would say, show me his bona fides, that is 127 00:15:09,070 --> 00:15:17,470 his authentication as a Jew and an authentication as the Messiah, because the Messiah was promised to 128 00:15:17,470 --> 00:15:24,889 come from the line of David. So Matthew, who wrote primarily to a Jewish audience, not sure whether you 129 00:15:24,889 --> 00:15:31,690 realize this or not, probably written in Hebrew and Aramaic to begin with, but his audience, his first 130 00:15:31,690 --> 00:15:37,309 audience was primarily Jewish. And so they would want to know the bona fides of the so-called Messiah. 131 00:15:37,570 --> 00:15:45,129 And so he would have to begin with a genealogy, part of the birth narratives. And we have other 132 00:15:45,129 --> 00:15:53,250 examples too. For example, why did Matthew also include then the story of the Magi? That is the story of 133 00:15:53,250 --> 00:16:04,029 those from the East who came to see this Messiah born, saw his star in the East, and they had probably 134 00:16:04,029 --> 00:16:10,769 read the prophecy in Numbers where indeed the scepter would not pass from the one who had been 135 00:16:10,769 --> 00:16:15,990 prophesied by the star. I'm paraphrasing Numbers, of course, but they would have read the captured 136 00:16:15,990 --> 00:16:21,929 books of the Hebrews when they had taken them into captivity. And perhaps there's a legend that even 137 00:16:21,929 --> 00:16:30,090 Daniel was one who inculcated this prophecy of the Messiah to come with the Magi, with the wise men of the 138 00:16:30,090 --> 00:16:34,610 East, that is the scholars of Babylon, who would have read the books of the Jews, that is the Old Testament 139 00:16:34,610 --> 00:16:40,549 of the Jews, and there would have seen a Messiah prophesied. And therefore, when they saw his star, they came 140 00:16:40,549 --> 00:16:47,350 to see this one and to worship him, bringing him presents and so forth. And one of the things that Matthew 141 00:16:47,350 --> 00:16:56,070 intends to point out for us is that these pagans, who had read the text perhaps more carefully than his 142 00:16:56,070 --> 00:17:02,870 own people, the Jews, understood the ramifications of that prophecy. They came from afar to worship him 143 00:17:02,870 --> 00:17:09,970 when those up close refused to do so. And this is a constant motif throughout Matthew, is that pagans 144 00:17:09,970 --> 00:17:15,950 and Gentiles were more ready to receive and worship Christ than were his own people. That's true, 145 00:17:16,069 --> 00:17:23,069 beginning in the birth narratives. So here you have this to begin with, right? Also, Luke has his own 146 00:17:23,069 --> 00:17:31,349 birth narratives. And what he does in his various accounts also is consistent with the rest of his 147 00:17:31,349 --> 00:17:38,670 gospel in bringing out the things he wants to bring out concerning Christ. And let me ask you, 148 00:17:38,670 --> 00:17:46,930 what were the accounts of the shepherds watching their flocks by night in the field when suddenly 149 00:17:46,930 --> 00:17:54,890 they were interrupted by a glorious host of heaven, angels, a choir of angels. I love choirs. I love 150 00:17:54,890 --> 00:18:01,650 the human voice, especially when it sings in harmony and glory to God. But can you imagine a choir of 151 00:18:01,650 --> 00:18:08,309 angels singing hosannas in the highest? What a beautiful sight that must have been. 152 00:18:08,670 --> 00:18:13,970 Did they get the address wrong? Were they really aiming for perhaps the emperor in Rome? 153 00:18:15,109 --> 00:18:20,509 Probably not. How about Herod in the region? Maybe the temple. Maybe he was coming to the Jews 154 00:18:20,509 --> 00:18:27,970 at the temple, the high priests and the chief priests and scribes and Pharisees and Sadducees. 155 00:18:28,150 --> 00:18:32,690 Wouldn't he have gone to them, first of all, these choirs of angels? No. Instead, 156 00:18:32,690 --> 00:18:39,309 they came to announce the birth of the Messiah to these humble shepherds, shepherds who were the lowest 157 00:18:39,309 --> 00:18:45,750 on the totem pole in the social climate of Israel at this time, demonstrating the complete humility 158 00:18:45,750 --> 00:18:53,109 of Christ and his appeal to the common man. Christ had great compassion on the crowds, didn't he? How 159 00:18:53,109 --> 00:18:58,390 many times do we read in the gospels where Christ looked at the crowds and had compassion on them 160 00:18:58,390 --> 00:19:04,490 for they were like sheep without a shepherd? That breaks me every time I hear that, every time I 161 00:19:04,490 --> 00:19:12,430 read that in the gospels. And we have a demonstration of Christ's love for the common man, Christ's love 162 00:19:12,430 --> 00:19:19,950 for his flock, that is the people, very early on here in the gospel of Luke with the tale of the 163 00:19:19,950 --> 00:19:26,470 shepherds. And then we also have the, after his birth, of course, when he appears in the temple for 164 00:19:26,470 --> 00:19:32,230 circumcision, eight days after his birth, we have his appearance then there at the temple where he 165 00:19:32,230 --> 00:19:37,150 encounters Anna and where he encounters Simeon as well. And we have one of the most beautiful songs 166 00:19:37,150 --> 00:19:42,869 in all of the New Testament in Simeon's song, who had been waiting for the Messiah. He had been 167 00:19:42,869 --> 00:19:48,589 promised by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Messiah. And he not only beheld, 168 00:19:48,750 --> 00:19:56,369 but he held this young one in his arms and gave a song of great beauty and glory to God. And in doing 169 00:19:56,369 --> 00:20:03,569 this, but we have here as bookends in Christ's childhood, his appearance in the temple where 170 00:20:03,569 --> 00:20:11,230 he is held by Simeon. And then later, of course, in chapter, at the end then of chapter two, we have 171 00:20:11,230 --> 00:20:19,410 Jesus' appearance at the temple again at his bar mitzvah at age 12, when he comes to the temple during 172 00:20:19,410 --> 00:20:25,150 Passover with his parents. And you remember his parents lose track of him on the return and they go 173 00:20:26,369 --> 00:20:31,589 to the temple in his father's house. Jesus tells them, where did you expect to find me but in my 174 00:20:31,589 --> 00:20:42,569 father's house? And of course, he had been examined by the elders and temple scribes and teachers and 175 00:20:42,569 --> 00:20:49,690 priests. And there he was found to have a profound knowledge of the scriptures. And in his quiz, if you 176 00:20:49,690 --> 00:20:54,690 well, at age 12, at his bar mitzvah, he was found worthy to participate in the Passover supper. 177 00:20:55,170 --> 00:21:02,910 So we have then in the very birth narratives, the one bookend of him in a temple with Simeon, 178 00:21:02,910 --> 00:21:10,289 and then the other bookend of Christ completing his childhood in the temple with the chief priests 179 00:21:10,289 --> 00:21:17,329 and scribes being quizzed there. So we have time and time again, a consistent reason and purpose for the 180 00:21:17,329 --> 00:21:25,309 particulars of the birth narratives in the Bible. Each Luke and Matthew having their own intents and purposes 181 00:21:25,309 --> 00:21:33,990 for including what they include. Well, let me ask you this then. How then, I'm sorry, what prompted the 182 00:21:33,990 --> 00:21:40,990 journey by Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem? What prompted the journey by Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem? 183 00:21:40,990 --> 00:21:52,470 It was, of course, the taxation of the emperor at the time who wanted to know who and what constituted his 184 00:21:52,470 --> 00:21:59,670 region, took a census so that he could tally all of his subjects and tax them more appropriately. He wanted, 185 00:21:59,829 --> 00:22:06,450 of course, to make sure he didn't undertax. No king, no government worries about overtaxing their people, 186 00:22:06,450 --> 00:22:12,950 but they certainly do worry and fret about undertaxing them. And Caesar Augustus, who was 187 00:22:12,950 --> 00:22:17,450 reigning at this time at the birth of Jesus, Caesar Augustus wanted to make sure that he did not 188 00:22:17,450 --> 00:22:25,809 undertax his people. And so he called for a census of his empire. And Herod then executed that census 189 00:22:25,809 --> 00:22:33,430 as an underling of Augustus. And Joseph and Mary had to report to their city of origin, 190 00:22:33,430 --> 00:22:38,509 which was Bethlehem, that is the house of bread. And this was prophesied. Oh, Bethlehem Ephrathah, 191 00:22:39,329 --> 00:22:45,309 considered smallest of the cities of Judah. Exactly, right? But nevertheless, blessed because 192 00:22:45,309 --> 00:22:55,109 the Messiah was prophesied to come out of Bethlehem. And so having had visions of the virgin birth 193 00:22:55,109 --> 00:23:02,490 given by angels, both to Mary and to Joseph, they went in great expectation that he would be indeed 194 00:23:02,490 --> 00:23:10,990 be born there and be confirmed then as Messiah. So it was the census of Augustus in AD 1 that we now 195 00:23:10,990 --> 00:23:21,069 account, which was the reason for their journey then to Bethlehem, where Christ indeed was born. 196 00:23:21,069 --> 00:23:30,029 Well then, how do each of the birth narratives, let me ask you this then in closing, how do each of the 197 00:23:30,029 --> 00:23:36,269 birth narratives contribute to understanding the virgin birth? This is a great question with which we 198 00:23:36,269 --> 00:23:42,970 want to give more time in the future. But both of the birth narratives contribute to understanding 199 00:23:42,970 --> 00:23:49,970 the virgin birth. This is utterly requisite to our understanding Jesus of Nazareth. It's utterly 200 00:23:49,970 --> 00:23:57,630 requisite for our understanding of our own salvation, dear listener. Can you be saved with Jesus as just 201 00:23:57,630 --> 00:24:05,910 a human being? We must give an emphatic no. Without his connection to God and without the divine 202 00:24:05,910 --> 00:24:13,690 intervention of God in human form, we could not be saved because we need that bridge between man and 203 00:24:13,690 --> 00:24:22,430 God. We need the intercessor to be divine in order to undergo the trials and tribulations of the 204 00:24:22,430 --> 00:24:28,089 crucifixion and not break, which could not be done by a mere mortal. And we also need a perfect one to 205 00:24:28,089 --> 00:24:35,650 fulfill the law, to live a perfect life on our behalf. Jesus indeed fulfilled all righteousness, as he told 206 00:24:35,650 --> 00:24:41,309 John the Baptist. And he needed to be divine to do that because with just a fallen human nature, he would 207 00:24:41,309 --> 00:24:48,970 not be able to do this. So we need to understand the nature of the virgin birth, that Christ was born 208 00:24:48,970 --> 00:24:55,430 not only fully human, being born of a woman, but also fully divine, that is being conceived by the Holy 209 00:24:55,430 --> 00:25:00,829 Ghost. Note the following elements with me, and we're just going to be able to begin here with this. 210 00:25:01,630 --> 00:25:09,210 Notice with me the binding nature of the betrothal versus the engagement. I want you to consider for 211 00:25:09,210 --> 00:25:15,430 next week the penalty for the transgression of a betrothal. She was pregnant before marriage. How about 212 00:25:15,430 --> 00:25:22,230 the angelic intervention with both Joseph and Mary? Very profound testimony to the virgin birth. The 213 00:25:22,230 --> 00:25:29,009 reception of both to the news, they were both humble and receptive to that news, weren't they? And then let's 214 00:25:29,009 --> 00:25:35,730 think of the relation between the two parents and the two natures of Christ as well. Fully God and fully 215 00:25:35,730 --> 00:25:41,930 human. What a profound mystery this is. And then we must also continue to ask you, why is the virgin birth 216 00:25:41,930 --> 00:25:48,029 essential to Christianity? We're going to touch on all these things in times to come. But in the meantime, we are 217 00:25:48,029 --> 00:25:54,049 unpacking all of these as well in our Bible study on Wednesday evening at seven o'clock, and we invite 218 00:25:54,049 --> 00:25:59,609 you to it, dear listener. We have listeners to the radio program attending, and I'm so happy about that, 219 00:25:59,670 --> 00:26:05,430 but we want more. We want you, dear listener, to come and join us because we're just having a delightful 220 00:26:05,430 --> 00:26:12,450 time, a blessed time in unpacking the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth. And you can join us at 7 p.m. 221 00:26:12,450 --> 00:26:19,950 in one of the homes of our people on Wednesday night, and you can call us to get a place to find 222 00:26:19,950 --> 00:26:28,250 out where we're meeting by calling area code 208-523-0196, and you will be able to connect 223 00:26:28,250 --> 00:26:33,970 with us and then, and join us. And we must also say, New Geneva Meets for Holy Worship on Sunday 224 00:26:33,970 --> 00:26:39,730 at 10 a.m. at 10 a.m. at 1014th Street on the corner of 4th and Boulevard. Join us for worship as well. 225 00:26:40,829 --> 00:26:49,890 1014th Street on the corner of 4th and Boulevard, 10 a.m. on Sunday morning. Call us at area code 208-523-0196.