On Line Bible Study - For the week December 21 - 27, 2009
Lesson 419
Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:23, The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son ...
Luke 1:34 How will this be since I am a virgin?
Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:23, The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son ...
Luke 1:34 How will this be since I am a virgin?
There are two specific references to the virgin birth of Christ in the New Testament. and one reference that is interpreted as messianic in the prophet Isaiah. The reference from Matthew is a citation of the prophecy in Isaiah. In Luke, it is Mary who states that she has not engaged in sexual activity.
There are several things to think about with regard to the virgin birth. First, the two New Testament references are quite "matter of fact". There is no sense in which they are offered as an apologetic, and there is no indication of any defensive maneuvering. Scholar Darrell Bock suggests the scarcity of references to the virgin birth indicates it was simply accepted by the early Christian church as a fact.
The second thing to note is this: The virgin birth is not part of the kerygma. That is, when the essentials of the Christian Faith are laid out by Paul in I Corinthians 15 there is no mention made of the birth. Rather, St. Paul says the things of "first importance" are: Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, he was buried, he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and he appeared to more than 500 persons ... These are the propositions that are central to the Christian Faith.
This leaves us with the sense that the virgin birth was simply accepted as a fact, and that it was not central to the essence of belief in the messianic role of Jesus. In a sense, one might say that Mary's virginity at the time of the conception of Christ is a fact not relevant to faith in Jesus.
Contrast the number of times the birth of Christ is referred to in the Christian Testament over against the number of times his death and resurrection are referred to.
In the next lesson we will begin to look at what Luke tells us happens following Jesus' birth.
There are several things to think about with regard to the virgin birth. First, the two New Testament references are quite "matter of fact". There is no sense in which they are offered as an apologetic, and there is no indication of any defensive maneuvering. Scholar Darrell Bock suggests the scarcity of references to the virgin birth indicates it was simply accepted by the early Christian church as a fact.
The second thing to note is this: The virgin birth is not part of the kerygma. That is, when the essentials of the Christian Faith are laid out by Paul in I Corinthians 15 there is no mention made of the birth. Rather, St. Paul says the things of "first importance" are: Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, he was buried, he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and he appeared to more than 500 persons ... These are the propositions that are central to the Christian Faith.
This leaves us with the sense that the virgin birth was simply accepted as a fact, and that it was not central to the essence of belief in the messianic role of Jesus. In a sense, one might say that Mary's virginity at the time of the conception of Christ is a fact not relevant to faith in Jesus.
Contrast the number of times the birth of Christ is referred to in the Christian Testament over against the number of times his death and resurrection are referred to.
In the next lesson we will begin to look at what Luke tells us happens following Jesus' birth.
posted by Mark D at 10:47 AM
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