I BELIEVE

Son

,

again from the dead

judge catholic the church ; the

resurrection

in

God

of heaven and earth : And in the Father Almighty, Maker

The Creed

dead, and buried ; he descended into ; he ascended into right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence the quick and the dead. I believe in the communion

hell

; the third day heaven his only , born

crucified

,

he rose Holy Ghost

; the holy of saints; the forgiveness of sins ; of the body; and the life everlasting . Amen

I BELIEVE

in

God

of heaven and earth : And in the Father Almighty, Maker

Jesus Christ

Son

,

our Lord

; who was conceived by the

Holy Ghost

, born of the virgin Mary , suffered under Pontius Pilate, was dead, and buried ; he descended into

hell crucified

, ; the third day his only

he rose again from the dead

; he ascended into heaven , and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the catholic the church ; the communion

resurrection Holy Ghost

; the holy of saints; the forgiveness of sins ; of the body; and the life everlasting . Amen

Key Question…

“Was Jesus Born of a Virgin?”

…and why does it matter?

The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Was Jesus Born of a Virgin?

“most Christians in all the churches in the world confess as they recite the Apostles' Creed that Jesus was born of the virgin Mary. Now...modern Christians completely discount the historicity of the virgin birth and understand it in a figurative sense… The tomb was full and the manger empty” -Gerd Luedemann, German NT scholar “those first disciples … when they thought about his coming they were sure that he came specially from God … they associated with God's special influence and intention in his birth … but they phrased it in terms of a biological miracle that our modern minds cannot use.“ - Harry Fosdick, 20 th century pastor A December 2008 Harris poll found 61% of Americans believe in the virgin birth The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Does the Virgin Birth Matter?

“What if tomorrow someone digs up definitive proof that Jesus had a real, earthly, biological father named Larry and archaeologists find Larry's tomb and do DNA samples and prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the virgin birth was really just a bit of mythologizing the Gospel writers threw in to appeal to the followers of the Mithra and Dionyslan religious cults that were hugely popular at the time of Jesus, whose gods had virgin births? But what if as you study the origin of the word virgin , you discover that the word virgin in the gospel of Matthew actually comes from the book of Isaiah, and then you find out that in the Hebrew language at that time, the word still be a Christian?” - Rob Bell, Velvet Elvis virgin could mean several things. And what if you discover that in the first century being "born of a virgin" also referred to a child whose mother became pregnant the first time she had intercourse? What if that spring was seriously questioned? Could a person keep jumping? Could a person still love God? Could you The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Prophecies of the Virgin Birth

“The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, Cursed are you more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you will go, And dust you will eat All the days of your life; And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.”" (Genesis 3:14-15) The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Prophecies of the Virgin Birth

"Then he said, “Listen now, O house of David! Is it too slight a thing for you to try the patience of men, that you will try the patience of my God as well? “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel."(Isaiah 7:13-14) The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

" Clearly, somebody went seeking in the Old Testament for a text that could be interpreted as prophesying a virginal conception, even if such was never its original meaning. Somebody had already decided on the transcendental importance of the adult Jesus and sought to retroject that significance on to the conception and birth itself.” -John Crossan, Member of Jesus Seminar commenting on Isaiah 7:14 and Christ The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Does Isaiah 7:14 Speak of Christ?

Plural, referring to Davidic House “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel."(Isaiah 7:14) “almah”: a marriageable girl; a young woman until the birth of her first child. Four uses in OT (Gen 24:43, Ex. 2:8, Prov 30:19, Is 7:14): all refer to a woman who has not known a man. The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Does Isaiah 7:14 Speak of Christ?

As many Biblical prophecies do, this had a near and distant fulfillment. A son was born to Ahaz: Hezekiah who would sit on the throne in Judah (and not someone from the immediately threatening enemies). But the distant fulfillment spoke of a miraculous birth (there is nothing special about a virgin becoming pregnant by normal means) – the coming Messiah. As good a king as Hezekiah was, he was not referred to as ‘God with us’.

Note some scholars think the birth was Isaiah’s son. The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Does Isaiah 7:14 Speak of Christ?

When the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament) was written, the authors (non-Christian) used the word “parthenos” in Is. 7:14. That word has a very specific meaning: ‘one who has never engaged in sexual intercourse’. Some argue that the Hebrew word “betulah” would have been used (which can mean virgin), yet Joel 1:8 speaks of a ‘betulah’ mourning for the husband of her youth. The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Prophecies of the Messiah’s Birth

“The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes, And to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.” (Genesis 49:10) The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Prophecies of Messiah’s Birth

"For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7) The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Prophecies of Messiah’s Birth

“But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity.” (Micah 5:2) The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

"The charge of contemporary feminists, then, is not that the image of the Virgin Mary is unimportant or irrelevant, but that it contributes to and is integral to the oppression of women.“ - Jane Schaberg The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

The Virgin Birth in the New Testament

“Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.” (Matthew 1:16) The word is feminine, singular, indicating that Jesus was born of Mary only and not of Mary and Joseph. The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

The Virgin Birth in the New Testament

“Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. “She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.”"(Matthew 1:18-23) Virgin: “Parthenos” The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

“How can this be, since I am a virgin?” - Luke 1:26-34

The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

The Virgin Birth in the New Testament

" Now when they had gone, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to destroy Him.”” (Matthew 2:13) "“Get up, take the Child and His mother, and go into the land of Israel; for those who sought the Child’s life are dead.”” (Matthew 2:20) Jesus is always associated with Mary, but is never referred to Joseph’s son.

The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

The Virgin Birth in the New Testament

"“But as it is, you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do. “You are doing the deeds of your father.” They said to Him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God.”” (John 8:40-41) The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

The Virgin Birth in the New Testament

"But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law,” (Galatians 4:4) In the Jewish patriarchal culture, one was begotten by a father, not the mother The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Fulfillment of Genesis 49:10

“The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes, And to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.” Josh McDowell, in his book, Evidence that Demands a Verdict, points out that "the first visible sign of the beginning of the removal of the scepter from Judah came about when Herod the Great, who had no Jewish blood, succeeded the Maccabean princes who belonged to the tribe of Levi and who were the last Jewish kings to reign in Jerusalem.” The crucial turning point came soon after Herod's death when, in about 7 AD, the Romans removed the power of the Sanhedrin Council in Judah to pronounce the death penalty. Thus the scepter (the supreme judicial power) passed from Judah.

There is a notation about this in the Talmud (the Jewish oral tradition). The Talmud states that on this occasion the members of the Sanhedrin were overtaken by "a general consternation." Incredibly, it is further recorded that they "covered their heads with ashes and their bodies with sackcloth, exclaiming: 'Woe unto us, for the scepter has departed from Judah, and the Messiah has not come!‘”What they did not realize was that Jesus the Messiah had been born around 4 BC during the last years of Herod (Matthew 2:1). So "Shiloh" had arrived shortly before the scepter departed — just as prophesied!

The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

The Virgin Myth – A Pagan Myth?

“The notion that Jesus had no human father because he was the son of God … was originally a pagan notion.” -Robert J. Miller, Born Divine Horus Mithras Attis Krishna Dionysus Perseus Skeptics claim all had virgin births… The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

The Virgin Myth – A Pagan Myth?

• • • • • • Horus – Conceived of Isis and Osiris Mithras – Born/emerged out of a rock Attis - Nana puts fruit in her lap that came from a tree started by Zeus’ “seed” and conceives Krishna – Born from Devaki after hairs of Vishnu placed in her womb Dionysus – Only found in post-Christian sources Perseus – Danae impregnated by Zeus who assumed the form of a shower of gold Jesus virgin birth remains unique in history The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Justin Martyr’s Accommodation

“And if we even affirm that He was born of a virgin, accept this in common with what you accept of Perseus.” - Justin Martyr, First Apology Argumentum ad hominem “You hold”, Justin says to his pagan detractors, “that the virgin birth of Christ is unbelievable; well, is it any more unbelievable than the stories that you believe of Perseus?” The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

So What?

…and why all the hostility?

The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Question: What one person would you most like to interview? Answer: “Jesus Christ.” Question: What one question would you ask Him? Answer: “I would like to ask Him if He was indeed virgin-born. The answer to that question would define history for me.” The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Man Created in God’s Image

"Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.“ (Genesis 1:26-27) The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Man Created in Man’s Image

"When Adam had lived one hundred and thirty years, he became the father of a son in his own likeness, according to his image, and named him Seth.” (Genesis 5:3) "Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.” (Psalm 51:5) The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Jesus Escaped Sin via Virgin Birth

"Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned …— Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come…For if by the transgression of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many…For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.” (Romans 5:12-19) The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

"if the Bible is regarded as being wrong in what it says about the birth of Christ, then obviously the authority of the Bible in any high sense, is gone." - J. Gresham Machen, The Virgin Birth

The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Apologetic Points of Virgin Birth

• • • • Refutes Deism – God intervened in history Supports Miracles – A God who supernaturally acted Refutes Gnosticism – Perfect Spirit wedded to a perfect physical body Supports Christ’s Uniqueness – He is not simply a good and moral man Admitting the virgin birth means admitting the Lordship of Christ The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

Christ, by highest heaven adored; Christ the everlasting Lord!

Late in time behold Him come, Offspring of the virgin's womb.

Veiled in flesh the Godhead see; Hail the incarnate Deity, Pleased as man with men to dwell, Jesus, our Emmanuel, Hark, the herald angels sing, Glory to the newborn King.

The Creed – I Believe in the Virgin Birth

I BELIEVE

Son

,

again from the dead

judge catholic the church ; the

resurrection

in

God

of heaven and earth : And in the Father Almighty, Maker

The Creed

dead, and buried ; he descended into ; he ascended into right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence the quick and the dead. I believe in the communion

hell

; the third day heaven his only , born

crucified

,

he rose Holy Ghost

; the holy of saints; the forgiveness of sins ; of the body; and the life everlasting . Amen