| The Messiah - Part 11 | |||
| Born of a Virgin Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14 (KJV) There are many prophecies in the Old Testament that have double meanings. It takes discernment and prayer often to be able to see what the Lord is trying to tell us. Isaiah 7 verse 14 refers to the coming Messiah while some of the other verses may imply Isaiah's own son. We know that Isaiah's son was not born of a virgin so verse 14 has to refer to the coming Messiah born by a miracle from God. Immanuel means, "God with us." That sounds so beautiful. How I long for God to dwell among us. He was once with the children of Israel in the wilderness when they built the tabernacle. Sin drove God away. He was so close but unbelief limited His presence among them. That is the same with us. I heard a preacher once say, "You are as close to the Lord as you want to be." That is so true. It is we that stay away from God. He is not the one who is refusing fellowship. Jesus Christ was born of a virgin and is Immanuel, God with us. He is God who came into the flesh, born of woman and dwelt among us for a season. Many did not recognize him and still do not. Yet we can know the Lord. We can receive Him into our hearts and lives. We do not ever have to be alone. He will come into your life, change your life and dwell with you. He will give you the presence of the Holy Spirit. When He was resurrected He told his disciples to tarry in Jerusalem until they be endued with power before they went out to preach. In the book of Acts it tells us about the disciples and many others being filled with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost and all throughout the book of Acts many were baptized in the Holy Spirit. We do not have to be alone. Immanuel means God with us. Our unbelief is the only thing keeping us away from God. Fulfillment in the New Testament: Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, 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 publick 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. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, 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. Matt 1:18-23 (KJV) Notice verse 21 in the above scriptures in Matthew. "And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins." Now we see that the Messiah comes first to save people from sins. All need to be saved from sin. This message came to the Jews first. They rejected this message and so after their rejection the message of salvation from sins and eternal life was given to the Gentiles. Jesus came to save from sin. This is the gospel. We need to be saved. Every last person on the face of the earth needs to come to Jesus to be saved. Our sins must be repented of and turned away from. We ask Jesus into our lives forever. He will come the moment we turn to Him and believe. He is waiting for us to just ask. Ask and you shall receive. Seek and you shall find. Knock and He will open the door. He loves you and is waiting. And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: 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. And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. Luke 1:26-35 (KJV) In Matthew we read that Jesus came to save people from sins and now we see that Jesus is the Son of God. The Son of God became one of us to live among us to show us the way to God. And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda; And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth 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, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord. And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name. And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree. He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away. He hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy; As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever. Luke 1:39-55 (KJV) Elizabeth also was carrying a child, John the Baptist. When Mary came to visit and entered her house, the baby in Elizabeth's womb leaped for joy. This is how great the very presence of God is. Even a baby leaped for joy at His presence. Do not think some churches are strange because people shout and praise God, when God's Spirit is present it will cause shouting, weeping, crying, praising, singing and many other emotions. We shout when our favorite football team scores a touchdown. Crowds go wild with joy. Isn't our God worth more that that? Mary then prophesied of the purpose of the child she was carrying. He shows mercy to those that fear Him not only in that generation but in ages to come. Some of her prophecy is yet to come to pass. He also will restore Israel as He promised Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Jesus Christ will one day come and set up His everlasting Kingdom. The good part is that we do not have to wait for that day to receive Jesus. We can have Jesus Christ within us now. All we have to do is ask Him to forgive us of sin and take our sin away. We then ask Him to come into our lives. He will send His Holy Spirit to help us and lead us. When we take one step toward the Lord, he takes two steps toward us. He loves you and you do not have to be alone. Ever. |
 Son of Abraham part 1 part 2 part 3 part 4 part 5 The Anointed One The Messiah's Birth The Forerunner His Ministry
Prophet & Priest |