Matthew 1; Part 3
The Holy Conduit of Power
Matthew 1:18
“Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.”
We’ve gone through the genealogies and all the covenants for the last 2 weeks in order to lay the groundwork for Jesus’ birth, and we are finally approaching that glorious event! However, there’s a lot to unpack in this single verse as well. I know it seems that I’m crawling through this thing, but I promise there’s going to come a time when we can move much more swiftly. I’m just kind of smoothing the track so the race goes faster and you, the racers, will have the best grip possible.
Is That a Name or Title?
One thing we see before we even get to the colon in the verse above is the name, “Jesus Christ.” An odd fact is, if you were to ask most professing Christians, “What does the word, ‘Christ,’ mean?” a large portion of them couldn’t answer you. Perhaps you are in that same boat. It’s really not a big deal. Some even think Christ is Jesus’ last name! To some that may sound laughable, but those who would laugh should be aware that glass walls are weak in a rock storm! The fact is, Christians have a habit of speaking “Christianese,” using words that only those “in the club” understand. The same thing happens within many circles: I.T. guys and gals, military folks, sailors, doctors, etc. Those who use those specialized words use them so much that they forget others aren’t as familiar. Well, as far as this word is concerned, you will all know it now!
The word, “Christ,” is the English translation for the Greek word, “Christos.” Christos means “Anointed One.” The exact same phrase applies also to the Hebrew word, “Mashiach,” or Messiah when translated into English. They both refer to the Anointed One, Jesus. The term, Messiah, is used 39 times in the Old Testament to refer to the promised Savior to come, the Anointed One. Conversely, the term, Christ, is used somewhere between 940 to 980 times in the New Testament, depending on the specific translation used. Therefore, from this point forward, you can answer that question with confidence!
Words and Meanings
In the 16th century, the word, conversation, meant something completely different from what it means today. In regular usage it was a word used to describe one’s ongoing relationship with a wife, brother, friend, club, or God. In other words, one might say, “I endeavor toward a meaningful conversation with Jesus.” In our language: “I strive toward a close relationship with Jesus.” This is just one example of many where words can change their meaning over time and between cultures. A great example of these cultural and temporal changes is found in our target verse; namely, “betrothed.”
Today, being betrothed simply means being engaged to be married. The man (usually) asks a woman to marry him, and she accepts the proposal. They move forward with setting a date for the wedding, inviting the guests, and all the other arrangements. However, the whole thing can be called off at any point before the “I do’s” are said. In some cases (at least in our present culture here in America), the whole episode can be legally annulled, erased from the records! In Joseph and Mary’s day, that was a far cry from their reality!
To be betrothed in the time of Christ’s birth meant that they were promised to the point that, for all intents and purposes, they were in a legally binding pre-marital marriage! The dowry was legally possessed by the groom, he was legally obligated to protect her and provide for her, and the bride’s penalty for adultery (under strictest observance of the Jewish religious system of law which had come about by that time) was death by stoning! And all that before the wedding! However, the groom was the one who would decide the suspected adulterer’s fate. If he chose to have her stoned to death, he must be the one to throw the first stone. It must also be said that what might have been “legal” as to the Jewish laws of the time, was not actually legal in Roman law, which held jurisdiction. If they had carried out such a punishment, the Romans would have likely exacted an equally harsh punishment.
The Jewish laws were very extreme, especially since, if the groom were to commit adultery, he was only obligated to marry the other woman as well as the one to which he was betrothed. This was because men were allowed to have multiple wives. Though the act would’ve been considered immoral, but socially tolerable at the same time. This type of hypocrisy was rampant in the religious system of the Jews, led by the Pharisees (the very folks that Jesus tangled with 3 decades later).
The Mosaic Laws, handed directly to Moses on Mount Sinai, and later expanded upon as recorded in the book of Leviticus and elsewhere in the Torah (1st 5 books of the O.T.), were meant to be a guide for the betterment of the Hebrews (Jews), serving to keep them pure, as well as keeping them set apart from the pagan, child-sacrificing cultures which populated the entire Middle-Eastern region. However, by the time of Jesus, the ruling class of priests (of which the Pharisees were the most elite) had stopped worshiping the Law Giver and had begun worshiping the law instead. In that way, they had taken the Mosaic Law (what was meant to guide them) and set it up as an idol with which to control the “lesser people” they were supposed to be protecting. They beat them over the head with the full weight of their authority, while making excuses for the heavier sins they themselves committed. (Does any of that hypocrisy sound familiar, or modern, to you?)
This is always the way legalism ends up, be it religious like the Pharisees, or socialistic as has become popular of late! Yes, I know that comment was political in nature. I don’t care! Those who say that Christians should stay away from politics are either too weak in their knowledge of history, or they are the elite socialists who want to subjugate and control those whom they see as “lesser than” themselves!
Keep this in mind, young people: If you have the power to put the socialists into power, you will be a threat to them later, and you won’t have the power to stop what you started! Ask those who have fled socialism if this is not true! I dare you!
The Power Behind Omnipotence
We will now look at the end of our target verse. It states that Mary was “found with child of the Holy Spirit.” Before we go any further, I have to address a misconception of some, and an outright heresy taught by other so-called Bible scholars. The act alluded to in this verse was in no way a sexual encounter of any kind! God did NOT have sex with Mary! The Holy Spirit did NOT have sex with Mary! In fact, no one had sex with Mary! For it to have been a sexual encounter (forgive the graphic nature of the comment), there would have to have been penetration, thereby voiding Mary’s virginity.
For the Messiah to be the Messiah, Mary had to be a virgin! Genesis 3:15 (the 1st prophecy of the Messiah coming through the “Seed of a woman”) alludes to the virgin birth. That verse is called the “proto-evangelium,” meaning the “first gospel.” The “Seed of a woman” exempts any man’s involvement, thus, the virgin birth.
Also, Isaiah 7:14 says, “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Emmanuel.” (Emmanuel means, “God with us.”)
That said, while it was indeed a very unique act of God, you may be surprised to learn that it was not entirely without precedence; not the specific, but the method employed. Let’s go to Genesis 1:1-2:
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God hovered over the face of the waters.”
Notice the part in bold as we look at another passage, Luke 1:34-35, which tells a parallel account to our target verse in Matthew. The angel Gabriel is telling Mary what was to come. Notice the wording:
“Then Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I do not know a man?’ And the angel answered and said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.’”
“Hovered over” and “overshadowed” are essentially the same phrase when translated. At creation, God spoke and the Holy Spirit conducted the power from God, into creation. In Mary’s case, the Holy Spirit came upon Mary (hovered), and the power of the Highest flowed through the Holy Spirit, thereby immaculately implanting the Seed to be born of a virgin. In other words, God the Father enacted His plan for the salvation of the world (available if they will only accept it); God the Son willingly clothed Hid deity with humanity, becoming fully God and fully man (more on that later in our studies), and subjecting Himself to the same sufferings of all mankind; and God the Holy Spirit provided the Creator’s power to do so. The Triune Godhead acted in complete fidelity on our behalf!
One Verse?
I know, this entire article, and we’ve only covered one single verse of Scripture? I said this a few weeks ago, but it still holds true: By the time you get through this first chapter of Matthew, you will have a foundational understanding of more than just the verses we are covering! You will have gained vastly more knowledge than most of the Christian world! This is way more than just internet Bible lessons. Without realizing it, what you are learning through this piece-by-piece breakdown is Master’s level theology! Though I can’t give out degrees (yet), to get this kind of in-depth study and insight, you would have to pay thousands in tuition. So…you’re welcome!
God Bless!
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