For unto us a Child is
born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And
His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6).
The implications of the virgin birth are far reaching.
First, Jesus Christ existed from eternity past as the second member of the
Trinity. Before Abraham was, I am
(John 8:58). He had all the attributes of Deity prior to His birth in the
manger because He was God; all – power (omnipotence), all-knowing
(omniscience), everywhere at all times (omnipresence), righteousness, justice,
love, etc. He is co-eternal and co-equal with God. Jesus said if you’ve seen Me
you’ve seen the Father (John 14:9)!
When the Son of God was born, He laid aside His Divine
powers, and lived the way we must live, by the power of the Holy Spirit (see
Philippians 2: 5-11). He did not rely on His God powers to do anything as a
man. He showed us that it is possible to live above the temptations of the
world, the flesh, and the devil!
Jesus was born with total authority over Satan and his
demons. Because He was born with God as His Father, He was not subject to
Satan’s rule. He was born as Satan’s master! Also, Jesus was not subject
physical death when He was born. He was not mortal (death doomed). Physical
death is a result of sin. Because Jesus was not born as a sinner, He was not
subject to death. He died only when He became
our sin and allowed death to seize Him.
So here’s the picture. Jesus was born as a full human being
that was also Deity. He was the God Man! He was just like Adam before He
sinned. Satan tried to have Jesus killed as a child because he knew that Jesus
was his master. As Jesus grew up, He came to realize who He was. Jewish boys
had to memorize the first five Old Testament books by age twelve. As Jesus
read, He came to know who He was! He came to see His mission in life.
At age thirty, the power of the Holy Spirit came upon Him,
and in that power He ministered for three and a half years. He healed sickness
and disease through the gifts of healings; He multiplied food through the
working of miracles; He calmed the storm through the gift of faith; He knew
what was in man by the word of knowledge; He knew what would happen in the
future by the word of wisdom; He saw demonic forces and took authority over
them through the discerning of spirits.
He developed His prayer life the way we must, through
perseverance and diligence. He put His flesh under by fasting. He exercised His
faith the way the Father expects us to exercise faith.
When Jesus allowed Himself to die, He brought many sons unto glory! What He possessed
became ours. He took our sins to give us His righteousness. He took our
sickness to give us His health. He took our poverty to give us His prosperity.
He defeated Satan to give us His authority. He is seated at the right hand of
the Father to give us the same standing in heaven as He! We’re seated with Him in heavenly places in
Christ. What He was, we are! As He is, so
are we in this world!
The works He did, we are to perform (John 14:12). We are the
branches, He is the vine. His life flows through us today. He took the sting
out of death for us. We are those that live unafraid of anything! We are more than conquerors! Nothing can
separate us from His love! No foe can defeat us. We are kings and priests unto
God because of Him. We can do all things through Him who strengthens us! Our
past is forgotten, our present is blessed, and our future is bright! And in
eternity we will rule and reign with Him! Thank God for the virgin birth!
Great blog today Pastor Mitch. I knew that Jesus did all His works through the Holy Spirit but I never heard it explained like that such as
ReplyDeletegift of miracles for multiplying the food etc. It was one of those Ohhhhhhh, ok moments! Thanks.