1. THE CHRISTMAS VIRGIN

Adam stood dumbfounded as his wife bit into the very fruit - the ONE fruit - that God had explicitly forbidden them to eat. As she turned around, her hand outstretched, Adam stood at the crossroads of time and eternity with the fate of humanity hanging in the balance. Gazing at this awesome companion that God had given him, he made his choice and raised the fruit to his lips, joining his wife in the death that they were so clearly warned about. It was the original Romeo & Juliet, every word of it true. It is certainly the most tragic love story in human history. Not just for Adam, but for all of us (cf. Romans 5:12,18-19).

As Adam swallowed the sweet tasting fruit, perhaps he thought that the serpent had been right after all -- maybe they had misunderstood God. But if he did think in this way, it wasn't for long. Immediately, they realized that something was terribly wrong. Both Adam and his wife - for the first time - felt shame. When the manifestation of God was heard walking in the Garden, they ran and hid. What followed was a near-tragic dialogue filled with blaming (on the part of Adam and his wife) and cursing (on the part of God).

Did you notice that I wrote "near" tragic? You see, there was a glimmer of hope in those pronouncements -- it was a promise hidden in God's curse on the serpent: "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel" (Genesis 3:15).

Her seed? Even without the benefit of a degree in biology, most realize that women do not possess "seed." No, *men* supply the seed for the woman's egg!

But not this one.

Nearly 3,265 years later, during the war between Judah and Israel-Syria, the prophet Isaiah was a bit more specific: "the Lord Himself will give you a sign: "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14).

That the Jews understood Isaiah to be speaking of a "virgin" (Heb., almah) is clear from the fact that parthenos (Greek, "virgin") was chosen when they translated the Old Testament into Greek (= the Septuagint), approximately 250 years before the birth of Christ.

Roughly 735 years after Isaiah's prophecy, a Jewish girl in her young teens sat at home in Galilee, probably thinking about her betrothal to a local carpenter named Joseph. Needless to say, she was startled when the angel Gabriel interrupted her day to inform her that she was "highly favored" by God and "blessed among women." Gabriel elaborated:

"And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David" (Luke 1:31-32; cf. Matthew 1:18-25).

Young Mary was puzzled, as she was a virgin -- but Gabriel explained that the Child would be conceived supernaturally by the Spirit of God (Luke 1:34-37).

And so He was.

One interesting biological observance is the fact that "virgin births" do happen in mammals on rare occassions through a quirk of nature where the egg splits spontaneously. This is called parthenogenesis ("virgin beginning"). However, since no male chromosomes are provided, the offspring in these instances is always female. From the biological standpoint, then, Christ's birth not only retains its miracle status but is made even more miraculous on the cellular level.

More important than this is the theological perspective. God is not a circus act doing "tricks" for our enjoyment. It has often been said that He would not part the Red Sea if there were a perfectly good bridge intact! We must remember that it is God who set natural law into motion to begin with -- reasonably speaking, He supercedes these laws only by specific design and with specific purpose.

So it is with the virgin conception of Jesus. While it was certainly fitting that the pivotal figure in all of human history should have a miraculous entrance, there are yet deeper reasons involving the circumvention of certain negative factors.

One of these negative factors is an inference from both the Old Testament and the text of Luke 1. Gabriel plainly asserts of Jesus that "the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David."

But there was a problem.

It is found in a curse that God pronounces on a man named Coniah:

"Is this man Coniah a despised, broken idol -- A vessel in which is no pleasure? Why are they cast out, he and his descendants, and cast into a land which they do not know? O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD! Thus says the LORD: 'Write this man down as childless, a man who shall not prosper in his days; For none of his descendants shall prosper, sitting on the throne of David, and ruling anymore in Judah'" (Jeremiah 22:28-30).

The problem comes in when we learn that Jeconiah (= Coniah) is in direct lineage to Jesus (Matthew 1:12)! Yet Old Testament passages promising the Davidic Kingdom to the Messiah abound, and Gabriel summarizes this promise in his pronouncement to Mary. So how can both the curse on Jeconiah's descendants and the promise concerning the Messiah be true?

This seeming difficulty is solved when we realize that Matthew records Jesus' lineage through Joseph. Naturally speaking, Jesus was born of a virgin and does not share in Jeconiah's physical bloodline at all.

The other negative factor is most important of all: the horrible fact of what theologians have termed original sin. Simply put, we come into this world stained with Adam's sin (cf. Psalm 51; Romans 5; 1 Cor. 15) -- Adam was our representative in the Garden. Jesus is the "Last Adam" and the "Second Man" -- He was without sin (Heb. 4:15). This could be possible only if the Messiah could circumvent the sin nature. Thus, a virgin conception.

The radical importance of this cannot be overstated. Jesus came to ransom us from sin -- to be a substitute for those whom God would save. But to be an acceptable substitute for us He had to be sinless Himself. We see, then, that the foundational doctrine of our Faith - the sinless sacrifice of Jesus that saves us by grace - depends on His miraculous birth.

As Protestants, we do not share in the Roman Catholic veneration of Mary that exalts her far above the place given her in Scripture. But we should not go to the other extreme, minimizing the very special role she was chosen by God to occupy. Could God have chosen someone else? I'm sure He could have, but He didn't. And given this fact, her role was indispensible to that first Christmas.

[NOTE: Recently, the Jesus Seminar (those marble playing fools who deny most of scripture on a whim) issued a statement of "faith." Among other things, they believe that the Virgin Birth is "an insult to intelligence." Their minds simply cannot grasp the concept, because their finite intellect is their god. I will cleave to the testimony of Scripture simply because a virgin conception is no problem for an omnipotent God AND there were at least two good reasons for the miracle in question. Furthermore, when we start picking and choosing from the Bible it never ends. Guys like the so-called "Jesus Seminar" would be better off selling Christmas trees. Pray for these "scholars."]

2. WHY CHRISTMAS IS GOD'S ANSWER TO "THE PROBLEM OF EVIL"

"If there is an all-powerful, all-knowing, and loving God, then why is there evil in the world?"

This is a question that has been asked for thousands of years by all kinds of people in all kinds of religions. It is a staple in the toolbox of atheists, agnostics, and skeptics. The question puts in capsule form what has been called the "problem of evil." It is a very good question, and it has been answered in many different ways by Christians and other theists. Here, I simply want to highlight one point.

The Christian scriptures never minimize our pain and suffering. In fact, human suffering plays as prominent a role in the pages of the Bible as it does in the pages of our lives. Joseph, Job, David, the Prophets, the Apostles -- you can't read the Bible without seeing the stark misery of human beings all over the place. The fact that the examples in the Bible are our revered "saints" only complicates the problem further! Yet our Faith makes no attempt to ignore or belittle our suffering. How can God be so bold? How can He acknowledge our painful circumstances so clearly and yet do nothing about it?

Well, He did.

He did do something about it. And what He did was so unbearable that only He could have done it. He took all of our pain -- and all of our evil -- and heaped it on His Own Son. God treated the Innocent Jesus as if He were evil so that He can treat us as if we're not (when we know better!).

The answer was already planned before the creation, was accomplished at the cross (read Isaiah 53!), and will be finalized at the end (Revelation 21:4). If you start to get too concerned about the characters in the Story (which includes you and me), just take another peek at the ending. There will be a day when our PRESENT pain is forever designated a FORMER thing.

Because of Christmas.

Back in 1996, Joan Osborne scored a hit song by asking "What if God Was One of Us?" People ate this up. I don't know if the popularity of the song (and of the question) was an indication of just how disconnected our culture is, or if it was simply a manifestation of what we Calvinists call Total Depravity. In any case, God did become "one of us" and He still is! And in doing so He answered the problem of evil; He provided a remedy for our sickness.

When we suffer unimaginable pain, we must look to Bethlehem, then to the cross, and then back at our own pain -- if we dare. You want God's answer to evil? To pain and suffering? That's easy.

Jesus Christ.

3. QUOTATION WORTH CONSIDERATION

"To show Mary the proper respect, you must always think of her in relation to God -- standing far beneath Him. Mary said that God looked favorably on her for being a humble servant. Don't think about all the honors people have heaped on Mary. These people don't see that they are drowning out Mary's own words in this passage. Their eloquent words make the mother of God sound like a liar and diminish God's grace ... You should marvel at God's unlimited kindness. He generously and tenderly cared for, embraced, and blessed such a despised, insignificant person as Mary. If you think about her in this light, you will be inspired to love and praise God for His undeserved kindness."

Martin Luther (By Faith Alone; Grand Rapids: World, 1998; 12/18).

4. A REMINDER TO LOVE YOUR ENEMIES

In light of the recent showing of the Bin Laden video, I thought it might be appropriate to remind believers of their responsibility to love and pray for their enemies. This does not eliminate the need for justice, of course. But as Christian individuals, our biggest challenge right now is to obey Jesus in our hearts and attitudes.

I recently saw Zig Ziglar on a talk show and heard him make the point that the terrorists in question can be made clean by Christ's blood just as we were. Sunday morning I heard my friend Aubrey deliver a message on Isaiah 6, at one point mentioning that Osama Bin Laden is not the standard for evil and that we are all sinners before a Holy God. Of course, both Zig and Aubrey are really making the same point. If Islamic terrorists are no more sinful than we are, can they be any less redeemed if God draws them to repentance? Of course not.

The logic is air-tight. But the real question is this: Do you believe it? If you do, then pray for those guys. Don't let some festering hatred drive your life under the guise of "patriotism." If you do, you only become the latest victim of the real Terrorists: the world, the flesh, and the devil. Selah.

* Winfried Corduan, No Doubt About It: The Case for Christianity (Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1997)

How I overlooked this one when it first came out, I don't know. With guys like Lee Strobel and Hank Hanegraaff dominating the apologetics section of bookstores, I guess this one got buried somewhere. Pity. This book is no less than awesome. Included are chapters on "Faith, Reason & Doubt," "Truth, Knowledge, & Relativism," "God & Evil," and "Truth & Our Culture."

Corduan is the Professor of Philosophy and Religion at Taylor University in Indiana. He has written this book in a very readable style that can be enjoyed by both "professionals" and "laypeople." Two things stand out about this book.

First, it probes deeper than many apologetic books that treat surface questions. Corduan looks at the root issues: knowledge, faith, doubt, and so forth. Others have done this, but not for John Doe Christian. This book is written in a very understandable way. To provide a comparison, Lee Strobel's The Case for Christ is also well written, but is a different sort of book entirely. While Strobel chips away at the unbeliever's objections in strategic areas, Corduan replaces the unbeliever's entire worldview with something else: a coherent, reasonable Christianity. Both books are great, but they are different.

Second, the book is entertaining. Corduan achieves this by including three real scenarios at the beginning of each chapter, many of them his own personal experiences. For instance, chapter one (Faith, Reason & Doubt) begins with two experiences where Corduan was approached by college students whose faith had been destroyed -- one a girl whose pastor told her that she shouldn't be asking the questions she was asking; the other a guy who felt condemned because he thought only he had experienced doubts about his faith. The third scenario is a personal experience of the author relating to a sermon he heard as a young man, a sermon where the preacher admonished his congregation to "Leave my [Doubting] Thomas alone!" Every chapter begins with three scenarios like this, giving the reader a delightful break from the main text.

Bottom line? Do yourself a favor and find this book. Either use the link above to order online or ask your local Christian bookstore to get it for you. It is a classic waiting to be read.