The Genealogy of Jesus - Myths and Truths

 BY Argie Simonis

In this message we will examine the genealogy of Jesus as presented to us by Matthew and Luke in their gospels.

Both genealogies are the same from Abraham to David, but from David to Jesus they are completely different, and this argument has been used by some to question the integrity of the Scriptures.

Despite these differences, both these genealogies were accepted by the Church, which indicates their reliability. And I will explain why.

Matthew records the genealogy from Abraham to Jesus (Matt. 1:1-16), while Luke traces it from Jesus to Adam (Luke 3:23-38).

Matthew traces the lineage of David through Solomon (Matthew 1:6),

"And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias;" Matt. 1:6

while Luke traces the line through Nathan, another son of David:

"Which was the son of Melea, which was the son of Menan, which was the son of Mattatha, which was the son of Nathan, which was the son of David," Luke 3:31

For Nathan as David's son, there is a reference in 2 Samuel:

"And David took him more concubines and wives out of Jerusalem, after he was come from Hebron: and there were yet sons and daughters born to David." 2Sam. 5:13

"And these be the names of those that were born to him in Jerusalem; Shammuah, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon," 2Sam. 5:14

Here is where the curse on the seed of Coniah mentioned in Jeremiah 22:24-30 is bypassed:

"As I live, said the LORD, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet on my right hand, yet would I pluck you there;" Jer. 22:24

"And I will give you into the hand of them that seek your life, and into the hand of them whose face you fear, even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans."

 Jer. 22:25

"And I will cast you out, and your mother that bore you, into another country, where you were not born; and there shall you die." Jer. 22:26

"But to the land whereunto they desire to return, thither shall they not return." Jer. 22:27

"Is this man Coniah a despised broken idol? is he a vessel wherein is no pleasure? why are they cast out, he and his seed, and are cast into a land which they know not?" Jer. 22:28

"O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD." Jer. 22:29

"Thus said the LORD, Write you this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days: for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting on the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah." Jer. 22:30

---------------

--- The reason for the two genealogies is that Matthew records the linage of Joseph while Luke records the linage of Mary. ---

In Luke's record it appears that Joseph was the son of Eli, and that Luke also follows the Joseph's linage, but this is not so.

-- There is Biblical reference in the book of Numbers, that a man's first son is counted in the mother's linage if her father had no sons --

"And they stood before Moses, and before Eleazar the priest, and before the princes and all the congregation, by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying," Num. 27:2

"Our father died in the wilderness, and he was not in the company of them that gathered themselves together against the LORD in the company of Korah; but died in his own sin, and had no sons." Num. 27:3

"Why should the name of our father be done away from among his family, because he has no son? Give to us therefore a possession among the brothers of our father." Num. 27:4

"And you shall speak to the children of Israel, saying, If a man die, and have no son, then you shall cause his inheritance to pass to his daughter." Num. 27:8

This explains the substitution of Joseph's linage for Mary's linage in Luke's account. Matthew writes:

"And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob;" Μatt. 1:15

"And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ." Μatt. 1:16

But look what Luke writes:

"And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was THE SON OF HELI," Luke 3:23

"Which was the son of Matthat, which was the son of Levi, which was the son of Melchi, which was the son of Janna, which was the son of Joseph," Luke 3:24

--- This means that JACOB was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and ELI was the father of Mary, who died without leaving a son, so Jesus as the firstborn of Joseph according to Num. 27:8, is recorded in the lineage of His mother, Mary. ---

Luke, in addition to being a physician and writer, is considered by modern scholars to be a historian. And the record of the genealogy of Jesus that he makes from the side of Mary's linage, is more appropriate, since Jesus was the SEED OF THE WOMAN, not the seed of the man:

"And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and HER SEED; it shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel." Gen. 3:15

-----------------

I would also like to expose a myth and present the truth:

I explained that according to Luke, Mary's father was Eli. According to tradition though, Joachim and Anna are her parents, and that information is taken from the 2nd century "First Gospel of James" and the 3rd century "Gospel of the Birth of Mary", which especially in the West, were explicitly referred to as apocryphal (non-canonical) gospels and were EXCLUDED FROM THE CANON.

According to these non-canonical sources, Anna was born in Bethlehem of Judea. She married Joachim and, although they enjoyed a rich and pious life in Nazareth, they were childless.

Joachim was condemned in the Temple for their barrenness, retired to the countryside to pray, while Anna, saddened by his disappearance and her barrenness, prayed to God that if he gave her a child, she would dedicate it in the service of the Lord.

So according to the myths, they both received a vision of an angel, who announced that Anna would miraculously conceive and give birth to a child. The couple rejoiced at the birth of their daughter, whom Anna named Mary. When the child was three years old, Joachim and Anna, fulfilling her promise to God, brought Mary to the temple in Jerusalem, where they left her to grow up.

The story of the life of Joachim and Anna bears many similarities to the Old Testament story of the barren Anna and the conception of Samuel (1 Samuel 1), where she dedicated her child to the service of God.

According to later myths, Joachim died shortly after Mary's birth, and Anna remarried, after the encouragement by the Holy Spirit,.

Some traditions hold that Anna in her supposed second marriage became the grandmother of the Apostles John and James (sons of Zebedee), Simon, Judas and James the Younger (son of Alphaeus) and also of James, the "brother of the Lord."

The worship of Anna was fervent in the Eastern church as early as the 4th century, and many churches, (the first dating from the 6th century), were built in her honor.

In the early 8th century Pope Constantine probably introduced her devotion to Rome, while the worship of Joachim was introduced to the West in the 15th century.

The "First Gospel of James" became the foundation for the establishment of the liturgical feasts of the "Nativity of the Virgin" (September 8) and the "Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary" (December 8), things that are totaly against the teachings of the Bible.

The dedication of Mary in the Temple became so important in church teaching that by 1585 Pope Sixtus V included in the Western church calendar the liturgical feast of the Entry of the Virgin (November 21).

This position of the Western Church was based on the work

Decretum Gelasianum, which designated a long list of scriptures and considered those texts as  "composed or recognized by heretics or schismatics."

The Decretum Gelasianum commented that the books in this list of apocryphal writings  "are by no means accepted by the Catholic and Apostolic Roman Church" 

----------

In summary,

all the information about Joachim and Anna that presents them as Mary's parents and all the traditions and myths introduced by the Church surrounding their lives, are based on the false "Gospel of the Infancy" of false-Thomas and the "First Gospel of James", respectively.

Although they were considered apocryphal and non-canonical in the West, they were extremely well received in the Christian East.

Revelations and lessons from the Christmas story

 BY Argie Simonis

In this message we will see revelations and lessons learned from the Christmas story.

The total number of prophecies fulfilled in the person of Jesus is over 300. Several of them were fulfilled at His birth.

The odds of 8 prophecies being fulfilled in a particular person are 1 in 10 with 17 zeros behind.

48 of them are 1 in 10 with 157 zeros!!!!

For the 300 prophecies, this number of course becomes even more astronomical!

Nowhere else are there any prophecies describing the birth of other religious leaders or any other founders of the world's religions. However, the Old Testament is full with prophecies describing in detail the birth and life of the Son of God and Savior of the whole world.

We saw how:

- God became man:

"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelled among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." John 1:14

- Jesus came as a man and condemned sin in the flesh:

"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:" Rom. 8:3

"That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Rom. 8:4

"For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead." 1Cor. 15:21

"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." 1Cor. 15:22

Paul goes on and says:

- Jesus revived us:

"And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit." 1Cor. 15:45

- Jesus is the only mediator between us and God:

"For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, ΤΗΕ ΜΑΝ Christ Jesus;" 1Τim. 2:5

------

Let's see some information and some important lessons we learn from the story of the birth of our Lord:

Bethlehem is the city where Jesus was born.

In Hebrew it is called Bethlehem, and wherever you see the prefix -Beth- in the Scriptures, it means -the house-.  (This information is available online).

So:

- Beth-saida is the house of fish. Bethsaida was a fishing village and is referred to in Matt. 11:21.

- Beth-phage is the house of figs and Beth-any the house of happiness. 

"And it came to pass, when he was come near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called the mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples..." Luke 19:29

- Beth-esda means the house of mercy, where the paralytic man was healed.

"Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches." John 5:2

- And of course Beth-el is the house of the Lord, because El, Elohim means God.

So, Beth-lehem is the house of bread:

"But you, Bethlehem Ephratah, though you be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall he come forth to me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." Μic. 5:2

It is the place where Jesus Christ, the bread of life was born:

"And Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life: he that comes to me shall never hunger; and he that believes on me shall never thirst." John 6:35

--------------------------------

I'd like to go back a bit and look at some lessons we can learn from the Christmas story, which is the greatest miracle of all time:

-- 1. The place of Bethlehem.

I read from Matthew chapter 2:

"Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem," Matt. 2:1

"Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him." Matt. 2:2

"When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him." Matt. 2:3

"And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born." Matt. 2:4

"And they said to him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet," Matt. 2:5

Here, in verse 6, the wisemen quote the prophecy of Micah 5:2:

"And you Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, are not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of you shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel." Matt. 2:6

Bethlehem is not known to the whole world for something good it DID as a city, but for something that HAPPENED within that city. Today, it continues to be a small town with 25-30,000 inhabitants, meaning it was even smaller back then.

This place, little Bethlehem was chosen by God for the birth of the Savior of the whole world. Have you thought why did He chose it?

Because it was the smallest, the least among the cities of Judah and so God chose a small and insignificant place for His Son to be born.

The lesson we learn:

--- Just as God chose a small and insignificant place to perform the greatest miracle known to mankind, in the same way, if we feel small and insignificant, the Lord can manifest gloriously in our lives. ---

------------------

-- 2. The people involved in this story.

Before talking about Joseph and Mary, I would like to mention another well-known person who came from Bethlehem: David.

"And the LORD said to Samuel, How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? fill your horn with oil, and go, I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite: for I have provided me a king among his sons." 1Sam. 16:1

"And Samuel did that which the LORD spoke, and came to Bethlehem. And the elders of the town trembled at his coming, and said, Come you peaceably?" 1Sam. 16:4

That is why Joseph and Mary had to go from Nazareth to Bethlehem, because David was from Bethlehem, and since Joseph and Mary came from the lineage and house of David, they were registered in Bethlehem.

Two ordinary and insignificant people, Joseph the carpenter and young Mary, who was around 14-16 years old, go to a small and insignificant place for the birth of the Savior of the world.

The lesson:

--- NEVER let the devil tell you that God cannot use you because you see yourself small and insignificant, because God delights in using such people. ---

"But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;" 1Cor. 1:27

---------------------------

-- 3. The problems they had to face.

Joseph and Mary must travel to Bethlehem, which is about 120 km from Nazareth, at a time when Mary is very far pregnant.

Try to get into their shoes:

Two ordinary people on a very difficult journey certainly faced many problems, BOTH in their emotions and BOTH physical conditions.

In fact, when they arrive in Bethlehem, there is not even a room for them to stay.

The reason I mention this is that apart from the beautiful story of the birth of our Lord, there were many problems in the backscenes that had to be dealt with.

The lesson we get here:

--- We must ask the Lord to give us eyes to discern, so we see beyond the natural. ---

"... Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD sees not as man sees; for man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart." 1Sam. 16:7

-----------------------

-- 4. The promise:

"But you, Bethlehem Ephratah, though you be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall he come forth to me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." Μic. 5:2

"And he shall stand and feed in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God; and they shall abide: for now shall he be great to the ends of the earth." Μic. 5:4

"And this man shall be the peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise against him seven shepherds, and eight principal men." Μic. 5:5

In Thursday's message we explained that Jesus did not come to bring peace between people:

"Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword." Matt. 10:34

"For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law." Matt. 10:35

"And a man's foes shall be they of his own household." Matt. 10:36

"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:" Rom. 5:1

"By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." Rom. 5:2

However, I would like to see this from a more practical point of view:

Peace is NOT the absence of problems. Peace is the fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives (Gal. 5:22). The problems never stop, but we have the confirmation in our heart and we know that God is with us, and guides us, and supports us, even

 in the midst of difficulties.

We saw this with Joseph and Mary, the journey they made, the difficulties they faced, Jesus, the Son of the living God had to be born in a stable, in a manger that was used to feed animals.

And yet, He is the Lord of peace (Isaiah 9:6), who brings peace to all the world,

The lesson:

---No matter how small, weak or insignificant you may feel, no matter how big you think your problems are, Jesus IS the Lord of peace that calms EVERY storm you are facing right now. ---

"And He arose, and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, 

--- PEACE, BE STILL. ---

And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm." Mark 4:39

------------

When the angels prophesied the saving work of our Jesus:

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." Luke 2:14

it does not mean that because our peace with God has been restored everything will magically go well.

This means that Jesus will always be in the middle of every problem, and with the peace He gives us we can face it.

This is also the word of the Lord for all of us today:

"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you: not as the world gives, give I to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John. 14:27

Amen!

The true meaning of Christmas - Part 3

 BY Argie Simonis

Ιn this series, as we examine  why the birth of Jesus was the greatest miracle human kind has ever seen, the following questions will also be answered:

- Why did God wait 4000 years to send Jesus to redeem us?

- Why did Jesus have to become a man and suffer death on a cross?

- Why didn't God choose another, more painless way to redeem humanity?

- Why did Jesus have to be born of a virgin?

"And the LORD God said to the serpent, Because you have done this, you are cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; on your belly shall you go, and dust shall you eat all the days of your life:" Gen. 3:14

"And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; it shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel." Gen. 3:15

From that moment God prophesied and revealed His plan for the salvation of mankind. He made it known to man as well as to the devil. That is why the devil throughout history did everything he could to prevent this plan.

- When Moses was born, satan had Pharaoh kill all the male Jew infants to stop the genealogy that would lead to the birth of Jesus.

- Satan brought such a chaos and sexual immorality to Sodom and Gomorrah,  that if God did not judge and destroy them with fire, there would NOT have been a virgin left on the face of the earth to bring Jesus into the world.

- Satan drove king Herod on a furious hunt to kill Jesus, and had him kill all male Jew infants up to 2 years old to accomplish his goal.

I also explained that there are limits to how God operates. I explained that God

- CANNOT lie,

- CANNOT break His Covenant,

- CANNOT take back His word,

and

- CANNOT intervene in people's affairs by violating the spiritual laws that He has established.

I have explained everything in detail in last Sunday's message.

------------------------

God wanted to bring His people out of the land of Egypt:

"Come now therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh, that you may bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt." Ex. 3:10

In the book of Exodus in chapters 24-31, we see how He gave the Law through Moses, and if the people of Israel did everything the Lord told them, it would only take them one year to pass from Egypt to the promised land.

But because of their disobedience, they suffered in the desert for 40 years:

"Doubtless you shall ΝΟΤ come into the land, concerning which I swore to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun." Num. 14:30

"But your little ones, which you said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which you have despised." Num. 14:31

"But as for you, your carcasses, they shall fall in this wilderness." Num. 14:32

"And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your prostitutions, until your carcasses be wasted in the wilderness." Num. 14:33

"After the number of the days in which you searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall you bear your iniquities, even forty years, and you shall know my breach of promise." Num. 14:34

It was NOT the Lord's will for this to happen:

"And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good land and a large, to a land flowing with milk and honey; to the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites." Ex. 3:8

The disobedience of the people of Israel had consequences. God had to judge this disobedience, for this is what the law of sowing and reaping says:

"Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatever a man sows, that shall he also reap." Gal. 6:7

Paul describes this spiritual law long after it had been put into effect. Actualy, this law was in effect from the moment the Lord said to Adam and Eve:

"And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat:" Gen. 2:16

"But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die." Gen. 2:17

So according to the scriptures, the generation of the people of Israel that came out of Egypt, NEVER entered the promise land. They did NOT see the fulfillment of the Lord's promise, and that was not because God willed it, but because of their disobedience to Him.  

"For the children of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the people that were men of war, which came out of Egypt, were consumed, 

BECAUSE THEY OBEYED NOT THE VOICE OF THE LORD: 

to whom the LORD swore that he would not show them the land, which the LORD swore to their fathers that he would give us, a land that flows with milk and honey." Jos. 5:6

This example confirms that what is happening in the world is NOT always in God's will.

-- Another example:

"The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." 2Pet. 3:9 

Here we clearly see that it is NOT God's will for anyone to perish. But according to Jesus, this does not come to pass:

"Enter you in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads to destruction, and MANY there be which go in thereat:" Μatt. 7:13

"Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leads to life, and FEW there be that find it." Μatt. 7:14

If nothing happens without God causing or "allowing" it to happen, then why do you think Jesus prayed like this:

"After this manner therefore pray you: Our Father which are in heaven, Hallowed be your name." Matt. 6:9

"Your kingdom come, Your will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." Μatt. 6:10

This means that God's will does NOT automaticaly come to pass on earth!

This is a very important truth that the Scriptures teach us and reveals a very important aspect of God's character.

Death was never in God's original plan. It was the consequence of man's disobedience (Gen. 2:17)

God WANTS ALL people to be saved, but it is NOT coming to pass, and that is not because God wills it, but because the Lord has given US the choice to choose whether to spend the rest of eternity with Him or not.

When a man gets to the point of stealing, killing, raping, and doing all these awful things that we see in today's society, it is not because God "allowed" it to happen.

Do you know how someone can get to this point? It doesn't just happen overnight.

- It first begins by violating his conscience. Conscience is the ability that God gave to ALL people, (Christians AND non-Christians), to tell good from evil. You do not need to be a christian to know that killing or stealing is not good. 

- Then, they break a number of spiritual laws set by God,

- Little by little, they sear their conscience to such a point, that this person does evil and do not care at all.

- So, this person ends up giving himself completely to the devil and becoming satan's puppet.

That is why we see all this ungodliness in our society today. As I said, it is NOT because God "allowed" it, or because the devil "forces" us to do his things. All of this is caused by us, by the wrong choices we make, and the misuse of the privilege of free will that God gave us:

"I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore CHOOSE LIFE, that both you and your seed may live:" Deut. 30:19

In the same way that God does NOT control you nor dictates what you do, the same goes for ALL people.

So having in mind all  I have said so far, we understand why the devil did not use a strong and intimidating animal against Adam and Eve, but the cunning and crafty snake. He didn't have the power to force them to sin, but only deceive them with lies, so that they would disobey God out of their own free will.

Satan's goal was to make them question God's word:

"... has God said, You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" Gen. 3:1

Along with Jesus and the Comforter (the Holy Spirit), the Bible is the greatest gift that God gave to humanity! 

The Scriptures reveal to us who God is, His character and His ways.

And yet, there are many people, even Christians, who consider the Bible irrelevant and outdated.

On Christmas, even some who claim to be Christians, have no idea of the true meaning of Christmas and what we are actualy celebrating. 

Few are those who put the word of God above their personal beliefs, and that is the main reason why many  fall into sin.

Satan would never have made Adam and Eve to fall into sin, unless he first made them question the word of God.

Look what God told them:

"But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die." Gen. 2:17

But satan told them:

"... has God said, You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" Gen. 3:1

The devil will not come to remind you of how good God is, but he will focus your attention on the one and only tree in the entire universe that God has forbidden you to eat from. 

He makes you see the tree and miss the whole forest!

He will get you to a place where you get obsessed over some wrong you have done, and you will forget all the other good things God has done in your life. Throughout human history, satan uses exactly the same strategy in different variations.

It is not necessary to become a satanist to turn away from God and join the opposing camp. 

You can submit to the devil through fear or ignorance.

The spirit of religion and the traditions of men have created a strong and terrifying satan that is very difficult to resist, which of course is a big lie.

I have already explained that the only power satan has is deception, and anyone who does not understand this reacts with fear, which gives satan direct access into their lives.

The truth that you KNOW will set you free:

"And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:32

and the truth you do not know will destroy you:

"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge..." Hos. 4:6

Everything that has been said so far, leads to the importance of the virgin birth of Jesus. In the book of Ezekiel we read:

"Son of man, take up a lamentation on the king of Tyrus, and say to him, Thus said the Lord GOD; You seal up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty." Ez. 28:12

"You have been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of your tabrets and of your pipes was prepared in you in the day that you were created." Ez. 28:13

"You are the anointed cherub that covers; and I have set you so: you were on the holy mountain of God; you have walked up and down in the middle of the stones of fire." Ez. 28:14

"YOU WERE PERFECT IN YOURWAYS from the day that you were created, till iniquity was found in you." Ez. 28:15

When God drove away Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden:

"... He placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life." Gen. 3:24

So since then, NO ONE has been allowed to enter the garden of Eden.

After that, the only information we have about the tree of life is in the book of Revelation:

"In the middle of the street of it (the New Jerusalem), and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bore twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations." Rev. 22:2

So when we see this anointed cherub, Lucifer, in the Garden of Eden, this is BEFORE the fall of man. The description we have in Ezekiel shows us a beautiful angelic being in the garden of Eden, with a mission to serve man:

"Are they not ALL (the angels) ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?" Heb. 1:14

Isaiah prophesied the fall of Lucifer, when he rebelled against God and became the devil:

"How are you fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how are you cut down to the ground, which did weaken the nations!" Is. 14:12

"For you have said in your heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also on the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:" Is. 14:13

"I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High." Is. 14:14

"Yet you shall be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit." Is. 14:15

Lucifer's true sin was not that he hated God, but that he was jealous of Him and he became arrogant. He wanted to become like God:

"I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High." Is. 14:14

So how did he actualy rebel against God?

Let me describe you a great truth with a practical example:

A robber who enters to rob a bank cannot under any circumstances prevail against the armed guards of the bank or the police who will come.

He can take hostages at gunpoint though, and use them as a shield to protect himself.

The police could easily start shooting and kill this robber, but they won't do it, because they don't want to hurt the hostages.

This is exactly what satan did. He knew that under no circumstances could he, as a created being,  prevail over his Creator.

He also knew that if God wiped him out for sinning, He would have to give man the same treatment, because man willingly cooperated with satan. As I explained in the previous message, the spiritual laws that God sets apply to EVERYONE, even to Himself. 

God created us out of love, so that He could have fellowship with us. When satan saw how much God loved man, he managed to deceive him, to make him willingly sin , and thus used him as a hostage to protect himself from the wrath of God, because a spiritual law set by God came into motion:

"Know you not, that to whom you yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants you are to whom you obey; whether of sin to death, or of obedience to righteousness?" Rom. 6:16

--- That's why it took God 4000 years to send Jesus and redeem humanity! ---

 

As the first Adam was spoken into being, so Jesus, the last Adam (1 Cor. 15:45) had to be spoken into being.

But when God created heaven and earth, there was NO resistance, because as I explained, the devil did NOT exist yet.

But since God gave the absolute control and dominion of the earth to man (Ps. 115:16), and man turned that authority over to satan, God was now limited by His own word, so He had to speak the last Adam into existence only through men.

Remember what we read from Ephesians:

"Now to Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, ACCORDING TO THE POWER THAT WORKS IN US," Eph. 3:20 

God no longer acts independently of us, but moves through men. He needs people to execute His will upon the earth.

He used Moses to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt and Joshua to lead them into the promised land. God said to Joshua:

"Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you, and all this people, to the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel." Jos. 1:2

In the same way he used David, Solomon, the prophets, and in the same way he uses us today.

Many christians ignore this truth and believe that God can do everything without any limitation and nothing happens unless He causes or "allows" it.

I have just explained that this is NOT the case (Eph. 3:20).

So, the physical body of Jesus HAD to be spoken into existence. Jesus of course, has NO beginning; He ALWAYS existed:

"In the beginning was (already) the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God (THE God)." John 1:1

"The same was in the beginning with God." John 1:2

"All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made." John 1:3

"​For by Ηim were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Ηim, and for Ηim:" Col. 1:16

Jesus did NOT begin to exist as soon as he was born of a virgin. He existed in eternity. 

Jesus is God in the flesh. But His physical body HAD to be created. And how did that happen? God spoke it into existence through men.

So certain things had to be spoken BEFORE Jesus came as a man. Here's how it was done:

"But you, Bethlehem Ephratah, though you be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall he come forth to me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." Μicah 5:2

"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

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given: and the government shall be on his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9:6

"Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, ..." Isaiah  9:7

Moses also prophesied:

"The LORD your God will raise up to you a Prophet from the middle of you, of your brothers, like to me; to him you shall listen;" Deut. 18:15

Even His resurrection from the dead had to be spoken:

"For you will not leave my soul in hell; neither will you suffer your Holy One to see corruption." Ps. 16:10

So God could not find a man through whom He could speak all this. It took 4000 years for Him to find these people, through whom He would gradually speak all that He needed to say for the physical body of Jesus to come into existence. A little through Moses, a little through David and the other prophets. 4000 years!

God's word is a seed. The original Greek text uses the word -sperm-:

"Being born again, not of corruptible seed (sperm), but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which lives and stays for ever." 1Pet. 1:23

"But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law," Gal. 4:4

The angel Gabriel came to Mary and made her a proposal (Luke 1:26-38). Mary accepted and said

"... Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it to me according to Your word. And the angel departed from her." Luke 1:38

Once she accepted God's proposal, all those prophecies (seeds/sperms) that had been spoken in the past, came and impregnated Mary's womb. The virgin birth of Jesus was in every way normal, except that the seed (sperm) for His conception was NOT provided by a man. The word of God was this seed (sperm).

( -- Here I will open a parenthesis to explain something that will help you. --

When the devil asked God to lay his hands on Job, do you know he had every legal right to do so? Job was sold to the power of sin, like every man:

"For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin." Rom. 7:14

"Wherein (in sin) in time past you walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience:" Eph. 2:2

"Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and WERE BY NATURE THE CHILDREN OF WRATH, even as others." Eph. 2:3

Therefore, God, in a way, "overblessed" Job, surrounding him with His protection. That is why the devil had legal rights over Job and when he asked God to tempt him, the Lord could not refuse, because as I explained He could not break the spiritual laws that He had set.

This truth will help you understand the entire book of Job.

-- Closing the parenthesis.)

So God had to speak through men all the prophecies that 

- would bring Jesus' body into existance, 

- the place He would be born, 

- the way He would be born, 

and everything else that would take place on the day of His birth.

We have so many religious traditions about Christmas that most of the times all our excitement is focused on Santa, the Christmas tree, the lights and  decorations. 

I am not against all this nice holiday atmosphere, but this should not overshadow the real meaning of Christmas, which is the descenting of God, who came down from Heaven and walked on earth as a man.

The same angel Gabriel who visited Mary, appears in the book of Daniel:

"Yes, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation." Dan. 9:21

I continue reading from Luke:

"And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee, named Nazareth," Luke 1:26

"To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary." Luke 1:27

"And the angel came in to her, and said, Hail, you that are highly favored, the Lord is with you: blessed are you among women." Luke 1:28

"And the angel came in to her, and said, Hail, you that are highly favored, the Lord is with you: blessed are you among women."  Luke 1:28

"And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be." Luke 1:29

The spirit of religion has done a lot of damage to people's faith. Jesus came to save sinners,

"This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief." 1Τim. 1:15

and God does NOT save good people:

"For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly." Rom. 5:6

Therefore, in order to be saved, you must first realize and admit that you are a sinner and that you need salvation.

What religion does is that even after one comes to the Lord, gets saved and his relationship with God is restored, this spirit of religion condemns people and makes them feel so unworthy and distant from God, that even when an angel comes and tells you

"... Hail, you that are highly favored, the Lord is with you: blessed are you among women" Luke 1:28,

the average reaction would be to think like Mary: "what kind of greeting is that?" 

This happens because the spirit of religion has attacked you with so much condemnation and guilt, that you find it very difficult to see yourself favored and blessed.

Most  people would accept more easily a condemning greeting from an angel of the Lord than the one that Gabriel spoke to Mary.

Do you know who else besides Maria is favored and blessed? The same exact wording in the Greek text is used in the letter to the Ephesians:

"Having predestinated us to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will," Eph. 1:5

"To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he has made us accepted in the beloved." Eph. 1:6

Do you now understand the damage that the spirit od religion has done? This evil spirit presents an angry and demanding God who is never satisfied with our performance, ready to blast us with the first mistake we make.

God is NOT like that!

He is the good heavenly Father, who loved us so much, that He bacame a man, died on the cross, was raised from the dead, adopted us into His family not because we are good, but because He is good!

Let's continue reading from Luke:

"And the angel said to her, Fear not, Mary: for you have found favor with God." Luke 1:30

"And, behold, you shall conceive in your womb, and bring forth a son, and shall call his name JESUS." Luke 1:31

"He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give to him the throne of his father David:" Luke 1:32

"And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end." Luke 1:33

"Then said Mary to the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?" Luke 1:34

Mary asked a very good question here.

When God told Abraham that he would have a son, while Sarah was barren and they could not have a child for years, Abraham thought he could "help" God to fulfill His promise. So he slept with Hagar, his wife's maid, and had Ishmael, who became the father of all the Arabs (Gen. 17:18-21).

The Lord of course  kept His word and miraculously gave Abraham his son Isaac, the father of all the Jews. 

And this whole Arab-Israeli problem that exists today, started because someone did NOT ask God the right question as Mary did.

It is very likely that all this conflict would not exist today, if Abraham had asked God, because if he did so the Lord would have explained to him how he would have Isaac from his wife Sarah and NOT from Hagar!

There is nothing wrong with asking questions, as long as we ask them with the right motivation.

The very same angel, Gabriel, also appeared to Zechariah, husband of Elizabeth, who was Mary's cousin:

"And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense." Luke 1:11

Zacharias was a priest in the Temple and offered sacrifices to the Lord. The angel Gabriel says to him:

"... Fear not, Zacharias: for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elisabeth shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name John." Luke 1:13

He told him that all this would be done in a supernatural way. Then Zacharias asked:

"... Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years." Luke 1:18

It seems to be the same question that Mary asked the angel, but here the question is asked in disbelief. And the same angel Gabriel who rewarded Mary for her faith, is displeased with Zechariah's unbelief and says to him:

"... I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak to you, and to show you these glad tidings." Luke 1:19

"And, behold, you shall be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because you believe not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season." Luke 1:20

Do you see this? Zacharias became dumb until John the Baptist was born. Amazing!

You know that if Mary had NOT asked the angel how to conceive Jesus while she was a virgin, and just tried to make it happen by sleeping with Joseph, Jesus' conception would have been by a man's sperm and His human nature would have been sinful, as was mine and yours.

We are all descendants of Adam and Eve, and their sinful nature has been passed down through the generations until today.

David says in one of his psalms:

"Behold, I was shaped in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me." Ps. 51:5

Here David does NOT mean that his mother conceived him in adultery. He confirms exactly what I have just explained. We all have a sinful nature because sin entered the world. This is what Paul emphasizes in Romans chapter 7.

But when we come to Christ, we are spiritually born again and the Lord is the One who cleanses us from this sinful nature that we had:

"​And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, has Ηe quickened together with Ηim, having forgiven you ALL trespasses;" Col. 2:13

"​Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His cross;" Col. 2:14

"Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangs on a tree:" Gal. 3:13

"That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith." Gal. 3:14

So, if Jesus was the fruit of a physical union of a man and a woman, ( Joseph and Mary), He would have been born with a sinful human nature. His life would NOT be worth more than the life of a normal person, and therefore He could NOT be able to redeem all mankind.

"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. 1:23

This is referred to in the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14.

Jesus was born of a virgin and did NOT receive the sinful nature from man's seed. He received it from the Holy Spirit, and since He was God manifested in flesh, this made His life worth more than the life of all humanity. That includes the people who lived before His birth, those who lived after, and us today as well.

"And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached to the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory." 1Tim. 3:16

Since Jesus was God in the flesh, His blood and His sacrifice were pure and holy, able to redeem all mankind:

"My little children, these things write I to you, that you sin not.  And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:" 1John 2:1

"And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for our's only, but also for the sins of the whole world." 1John 2:2

This is why it was so important for Jesus to be born of a virgin:

"And the angel answered and said to her, The Holy Ghost shall come on you, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow you: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of you shall be called the Son of God." Luke 1:35

As I explained in the previous message, the term Son of God refers to the Divine nature of Jesus, while the term Son of man refers to His human nature.

"For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day." Matt 12:8

"Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God." John 5:18

The exact same thing happens to us when we get born again, and our sinful nature is cast off:

"Being born again, not of corruptible SEED, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which lives and stays for ever." 1Pet. 1:23

God did NOT force His will on Mary. With her own consent, the Holy Spirit overshadowed her and she became pregnant, fulfilling Isaiah's prophecy:

"... Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." Is. 7:14

The supernatural part of this story is that Mary did not become pregnant by a man, but by the word of God. The Holy Spirit took all these promises of God spoken through 4000 years of prophecies, and impregnated the womb of Mary.

The rest of the process of Jesus' birth was completely normal.

I hope so far all this makes sense and give you a better understanding of the truths that the scriptures teach us about the true meaning of Christmas.

To be continued...