Tonight, we're moving to a consideration here of the virgin birth in the incarnation and the truth of this great doctrine that we confess, and this is so important for the Christian faith. We are essentially looking at the two natures of Christ, united in the one person, and considering the implications of that and why that is so important. And I have to say, as I said last time, again, we're up against truths that are too big for our little minds to fully comprehend. These are wonderful truths that we believe because it makes us Christian to believe these things, even when we sometimes can't rationally and fully grasp all of this in our minds. And that's an important point as we open up this great truth tonight of these claims that the Bible makes about Jesus, who he is, and why that matters. And that's really what I've wanted to do with this for the last week. We did the same with the doctrine of adoption, that he is the natural son of God, eternal, natural son of God. We are adopted. And how that great relationship of the eternal son and now us as adopted sons, how practical and helpful that was to encourage us. And in a similar way, that's exactly what these doctrines do. You'll notice that the second question and answer in Lord's Day 14 does that very thing. It takes it right to the heart of the encouragement of these truths for us. Why they matter, why we must believe them, and why we must hold them dear. And I think that's important for us to consider at times and really stop. That's why it's helpful to go through what we believe and why we believe it. We obviously live in times where Christians really struggle to know even the basics of the faith. So the truth of the virgin birth is one of the most important truths in the Bible. It may not immediately seem like that, but it really is one of the most important truths that we confess. It's important to say that rationalism and others who didn't like anything miraculous in the Bible, the first thing they ever cut out of the Bible was this truth. It was an attack always on the truth of the Holy Spirit conception. The virgin birth, as we look at this. I looked it up this week again just to make sure that I was right about this. you've heard it said so many times and I did a little bit of research but if you know anything about the Jefferson Bible that's what Thomas Jefferson did to the Bible where he had a ceremony in a sense and stood over the Bible with a razor and a pair of scissors and he cut the Bible up and the first thing he cut out of the New Testament was the virgin birth did you know that it's important that we understand that about some of our founding fathers He cut it right out. He was a rationalist. He didn't believe in that. Jefferson rejected the notion of the Trinity and Jesus' divinity. He rejected biblical miracles. He rejected the resurrection. He rejected the atonement and original sin, believing that God could not fault or condemn all humanity for the sin of others. He believed that Jesus was, and listen, I quote, first of human sages. Well, that's never been said in history before, has it? Of course it's been said in history. Jesus has always been attacked as to his identity. Noting that his philosophy freed from the corruptions of later times, including, this is what Jesus, the Bible needed to be freed from, the divinity, his divinity, resurrection, and miracles. He preached Jesus in what we call a universal philanthropy way. In other words, Jesus was here really just to give us a great example to neighbors and countrymen and to all mankind and to be a great moral redeemer and helper for us. That's how he preached Jesus. And the church has fallen into that for many years, hasn't it? It's fallen into wanting to make Jesus simply a moral redeemer. In other words, just to help us with morals so that we can be a better person. Well, you see, if you pitch Jesus that way and you preach Jesus that way, the virgin birth has little meaning for you, does it? Why would it even matter at that point? Because what we say of Jesus is very important, isn't it? So I opened the Jefferson Bible, and this is the extent of it. This is the extent of it. And Joseph went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, unto 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 firstborn son wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no room for him in the end that's it now that's drastically reductionistic of what the text really said isn't it what i just read from matthew chapter one so sometimes when you're ever looking at heresy and you're ever looking at people who are being deceptive it's always important to ask what are they not saying it's really an important thing to remember when we come to matthew chapter one what we read there was beautiful an angel of the lord appeared to him in a dream and said joseph son of david do not fear to take mary as your wife for that which is conceived in her is from the holy spirit she will bear a son and you shall call his name jesus for he will save his people from their sins all this took place to fulfill what the lord had spoken by the prophet behold the virgin what did that pass by you the virgin shall conceive and bear a son and they shall call his name what Emmanuel translated if you don't know what that means God with us who is Jesus he's God with us that's a remarkable uh passage in in uh Matthew 1 for it then describes his whole mission that just what I was preaching this morning, that his mission was to save his people from their sins. That's the mission of Jesus. That's the mission. That's why he came. That's what he did. And he accomplished it. The resurrection comes everything else. Brand new bodies and everything that we want in glory. But in conjunction with Luke, the Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the child to be born will be called Holy, the Son of God. Now, we've looked at what it means, the eternal natural son of God. Not adopted sonship. Not like a Jefferson would have made the heir, just a great sage. He's the eternal natural son of God, which equates him with God, which makes him equal with God. The doctrine of the Trinity. God is one God who exists eternally in three distinct persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. So this is a very important truth. There was never a time when Jesus was not. there was there was never a time when he was created uh he always was he always is he always shall be there's no beginning point to jesus um he is eternally begotten and your minds say well explain that and no i don't that we're already back in the mysteries aren't we how do you explain eternally begotten i'm i was born in time these are mysteries to us but it makes us christian to confess these things this is what the scriptures teach us about jesus there was an eternal generation there's not a subordination of the son that's an important truth because that truth has been attacked the eternal generation of the son has been under attack as of recent so these are all very important truths that we we confess together and what we're confessing here is that the eternal son, who is truly God in the incarnation, added this human nature. He added a human nature. He became just like you boys and girls in every single way. He had a real body. He felt it when he was pinched by his brothers. Everything that made him human, emotions, suffering, crying, pain. He was all put under the law for us, just like us. Except one big difference, of course, as the Heidelberg said. He was without sin. He was without sin. And that's why it's important that when we look at the incarnation and the virgin birth, what we're understanding about it, this is why Joseph wanted to put Mary away secretly because they knew that Mary would be ridiculed as a prostitute and every kind of name as playing around in marriage since they were betrothed. And why? Because Joseph understood that what was conceived in her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit overshadowed the womb. The conception was supernatural. Not as Rome says in a sort of immaculate conception as if Mary had no sin in her, but in the conception itself, the human nature was kept free from the stain of original sin. That's the truth of it. He took on a human nature. And he did so without inheriting our sinful nature that we've received from Adam. The Spirit kept it, overshadowing the human nature in that conception. And belief in the virgin birth is absolutely crucial to salvation. It really is. It's a crucial truth to salvation. We have to believe this about Jesus. These are not the truths that we can just take and leave. These are important truths because what we need, as we're going to see here, and as the second question in the Lord's Day 15 says, you need a sinless mediator. That's the whole point of this. That's why it matters. We need a sinless mediator. So what I want to do is just look briefly with you at this great truth and why it's an important truth for us to embrace and how Jesus worked with this great truth in his ministry. Sometimes I think the mistake of preaching on something like Lord's Day 14 and considering the virgin birth is that we only stay in the beginning passages and we don't look at how Jesus used this truth throughout his ministry. It's not that the virgin birth was initially taught and then set aside throughout the course of Jesus' ministry. Jesus was constantly actually teaching about it and calling people to think about it, which I find absolutely fascinating. And that's why I tied together tonight Mark chapter 12 as we look at Jesus here dealing with this series of questions that he has been facing from them trying to catch him in a trap for being a lawbreaker. They're attacking him, and they want to find sin in him. They want to find error in him. They want to find problems with him, all of it showing that he's a failed Messiah. And they were using the Bible against him to try to expose him as a false teacher in this particular passage to make him look stupid among the people. And by the time Jesus was done with them, as we've studied in the Gospels, nobody dared to ask him any more questions. You'd think you'd stop and say, who are we really talking to here? But now, as soon as he had silenced the multitudes, Jesus hasn't a question himself for them. If you've ever thought, you know, what kind of questions did Jesus ask in his ministry? What would matter to Jesus to ask people? What you find remarkable when you think about that is how many times Jesus was asking questions and pressing not only his own, but the people's, to his own identity. Peter, who do people say that I am? Who do you say that I am? And Jesus cared a lot about that. Jesus, when Peter got it right, you are the Christ, the son of the living God. Blessed are you, Simon Barjona. By the way, you didn't get that yourself. The Father gave that to you, so you should bless him. You should bless him. Any truth that we have about Jesus and life and salvation was a divine gift to you to believe. Don't ever lose sight of that because the world looks at us and ridicules us and it's not that they just are going to figure out these things on their own. That's why we should be the most humble of people. These are divine gifts given to you to believe this because you never would on your own. It's all God's sovereign power working in your lives to receive these truths. But here Jesus turns to them and asks them an important question. The multitudes here are there and trying to trap him. Jesus now gives a question of his own, the question really of all questions that should leave us on the edge of our seats, the question that mattered a lot to Jesus, how is it that the scribes say the Christ is the son of David? There it is. See what he's working with. He's working with the truth of the virgin birth. And then he's going to work to the truth of his divine sonship. so so it's a powerful moment it's not that difficult to understand it's so plain it's obvious it's coming across as rhetorical in other words if you think about what it what he asked you really have no response at least initially the question is what am i going to do with it so what are the consequences of this truth the scribes teach that the christ the scribes teach that the messiah is the son of david according to the human nature now he didn't have to say that because they they weren't thinking this way yet that's absolutely true everyone believed that when the messiah would come he would come from the lineage of david he would come from the lineage of david how would that even be so how could that happen and and and this question would be immensely important how then would the messiah whom you are trying to convict as a law breaker how would he be kept free from sin maybe that's an important question you would think for the Jews. What is salvation about? The Lord had proclaimed it in the whole Old Testament. How could somebody just from the lineage of David deal with our greatest problem that the entire Old Testament said needed to be dealt with? The whole sacrificial system said needed to be dealt with. And let me help you with that. Here's your dilemma, dear scribes. This is really powerful. If you think about the truth of the virgin birth and the two natures of Jesus united in the one person, you see all this come together right here off the pages of Scripture. How did David said this? Here's your problem. How can they run around saying that, which is true, when David said, by the Holy Spirit, something else, something in addition? David said by the spirit, the Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand till I make your enemies a footstool for your feet. Do you know where that's taken? Well, they did. That's Psalm 110. That was one of the most celebrated kingly psalms of the entire Old Testament, wasn't it? And the most quoted of psalms in the New Testament, which is interesting. Maybe in the whole Bible. I haven't really done the tally on that. But this was a big psalm that had a big message for people about the identity of the Lord's Messiah. So you'll notice in your Bibles, when you open that up, you see the all capital letters in Psalm 110, and then you see the little Lord. The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until your enemies make your footstool for your feet. Two different names of God are being used there. The Lord, the holy name of Yahweh is being used as he speaks to Adonai. Yahweh said to Adonai, sit here. David is speaking. Yahweh said to my Lord. Yahweh said to my Lord. God is speaking to the Messiah. So Jesus, hear the question. So David said that's his Lord. Who is my Lord? What Jesus is observing here is that the Spirit inspired David saying that his son was also his Lord. It's a very simple argument that the Scriptures proved everywhere. Put it another way, David's son is also God's son. So David calls him Lord. How is he then his son? You see, this is an important moment to come face to face with the most important question that Jesus asked. And again, remember, they tried to test him and try him and catch him in all kinds of traps, and they had a million questions for Jesus. And isn't it interesting that this was his question for them? Whose son is the Christ? Whose son is the Christ? His has a sonship that's eternal, doesn't he? the Son of God, and yet He is still, according to the human nature, the Son of David. How do you reconcile that? And what they did is they all pulled out their Heidelberg Catechisms, didn't they, right at that moment? Because it's really remarkable that in your own Heidelberg Catechism is the answer to that. You see how the truths that we confess one of the things that we've been embarrassed in the church is our own confessions that's been American Christianity we're embarrassed about creeds we're embarrassed about confessions and we've suffered for it and that's why the devil comes along and he raises the same old heresies that he raised in the first century about Jesus that he's created and he's not truly God and that as the Aryans say Jehovah's Witness say Right? He's the first creation of God. I mean, the devil uses the same old tricks. He doesn't have a new bag of tricks. He just uses them on different people. People sometimes who held their confessions knew a lot better how to answer. And that's why this is important for us to look at these things and consider these things. The marvel is David seemed to get it. David seemed to understand this. David had a good understanding of who Jesus would be. Just like Abraham did. Remember what Jesus said about Abraham. He rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it and was glad. Before Abraham was, I am. He was teaching it everywhere. And the saints of old seemed to grasp some conception of this, didn't they? who the Messiah would be and what he would come to do and how he would save. And I think this is important for us to think a lot about how much these truths came out and how much when even people were asking for salvation, they had some conception of this. I always think of blind Bartimaeus. The blind man seemed to have more conception of who Jesus was than the people of his day, walking the very religious leaders of the day. son of david have mercy on me stop saying that so this is a an important moment because um for to say that meant he was receiving the praise for being the messiah they better be careful then in their rejection of jesus this is a really important point for this particular passage they better not get this wrong this is why the the question so important for david himself understood that his messiah was his lord and he steps up the question on if you think that's a problem what about david calling me lord if you don't like saying and me receiving the designation for being called the son of david what about david calling me lord you better figure this out you better think about this remember his crucifixion the high priest said plainly are you the messiah the son of the blessed jesus said i am and you will see the son of man sitting at the right hand of the power and coming with the clouds of heaven whoa whoa he was making claims he just forced them to deal with the most pressing pressing issue of their lives if you reject him as messiah you're rejecting God and what a deadly mistake because there's no salvation given in any other name you see why the virgin birth matters in the incarnation then see why when he assumed a human nature how wonderful what was being declared to us Emmanuel God is with us and that that human nature was kept free from the stain of original sin so that there could actually be a Savior for us? Psalm 110 makes all the sense in the world. David understood that the purpose of the Messiah would be to save and to rule and that there would be a tearing down of all the enemies. The purpose of the Messiah, God's Son, would be to sit and throne until all the enemies are made a footstool for His feet. This was the promise made to David. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you. It shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be to him a father. He shall be to me a son. Embedded in that promise was the promise of David's greater son. And that's why Jesus is appealing to Psalm 110 saying, I'm here, I'm here. I think this is why Jesus was so hard on the religious leaders. I really do. One of the reasons. Don't you think it makes sense that he goes after him now for wearing the long phylacteries and taking that glory themselves? Do you think there's a reason he says, I'm not going to put up with that any longer? See that woman right there putting money into the pot? I'm her mediator, and I'm not letting that stuff happen anymore. As a matter of fact, I'm tearing down this temple. I'm the temple. I'm going to go be seated in my temple. Because I am the greater son. See, you see the trajectory of this. That woman I've come to defend from these wolves who are sitting and putting on the long phylacteries and taking all the glory for themselves and the kingdom for themselves when it's mine. See what he's saying here? And he says, not one stone will be left there upon another for a reason. This whole system's coming down, and you watch what I'm bringing in. And he reigns today in heaven. The greater son of David, the eternal son of God, sits in heaven and throne. Now, I think that's why it helps us. When we come to this last question and answer of Lord's Day 14, it's so beautiful, isn't it? how does the holy conception and birth how does his arrival notice what it says there how does the holy conception and birth of christ benefit you he is our mediator now let's let's make this really personal for a minute he's our mediator and in god's sight he covers with his innocence and perfect holiness my sin in which I was conceived. You think the catechism's a dry document? It just personalized the whole thing for you. 1563, that was written. It's for you. Guess what this means? He's your mediator. He came and got down off his throne, assumed a human nature, stood in your place, and guess what? With that innocent life, that perfect life, that sin-free life, It was all given for you to cover you. And His holiness. It's wonderful because really built into the doctrine of the virgin birth is the doctrine of justification by grace through faith alone. Because there's no other way. If God based any of His acceptance upon you and in your performance, which we always fall back into, by the way. You're going to go out this week and you're going to sin. And you're going to struggle. And you're going to feel like God's face has turned from you. Instead, when he says, that's why come back to me, confess your sins. I'm faithful. I'll forgive your sins and I'll cleanse you from all unrighteousness. That's what he says he'll do for you. That's what he promises to do. He didn't come here just to be a moral redeemer. That's why Jefferson's so wrong. Sure, he teaches us about morals. Sure, we're going to grow in sanctification and look more like him. But the reason he came is right here in Lord's Day 14. That was embedded from Matthew chapter 1. He came to save his people from their sins. He came to cover them with his innocence and perfect holiness because I carry the sinful nature from conception. When conception happened, you were imputed the very sinful nature of Adam. And that's why you're still struggling. And I've got news for you. I understand we all want to achieve perfection now. I understand we all want to be perfect now. There's been doctrines of Christian perfectionism all throughout the time, but it's unrealistic. And you're going to be up and down in this life. And you're going to stumble and you're going to fall. It doesn't justify any sin. But that's why the truth of the incarnation and the virgin birth matters. You were past a sinful nature. The eternal son of God came here without sin and laid down his life for you. But it's even better. Having become one of us, we have a high priest who sympathizes with our weaknesses, who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet was without sin. He knows everything you're facing. He knows all the burdens. He knows all the struggles. He knows the guilt. He knows the hardship. He knows the sorrows. He doesn't just know them. He carried them for you. But he's a compassionate high priest. And he wants you to know that as a compassionate high priest, a high priest that sits enthroned for you, he's for you and he cares for you and he continues to exercise and give grace and help for those in time of need when they need it. That's the promise I rehearsed this morning that he never leaves us nor forsakes us. How wonderful is the incarnation of God for us? It's a beautiful truth. I'm ready to preach it again next week. And it still won't be Christmas. But I hope you appreciate what's being said to you in these beautiful truths that we confess. God has come to us. God has loved us. God has saved us. God has answered us. Believe him and trust him. You're going to have enough battles this week. Trust him. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for a good word to us tonight. And as we go home tonight, we think a lot about your faithfulness to your promises and keep our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of God. We celebrate who has come to us, and we receive it for your word teaches it. Thank you, O Lord, for training us and instructing us in the truth of the gospel. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.