Miracle Birth!

December 20, 2021 Monday Message

Matthew 1:20 NLT: “An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit.”

Wedding traditions were different 2k years ago. After a couple was married, they then went separate ways to prepare everything for their life together. Different Bible translations say Mary and Joseph were “married,” or just “engaged.” It makes little difference. Mary was, in fact, still a virgin; the couple had not yet consummated the marriage. But a divorce would have been required if they were to separate.

Imagine getting everything ready for your new bride, and when you arrive to re-claim her, to start your married life together, you find that she’s already pregnant! Yikes! God knew this would be a problem, so he had an angel appear to Joesph in a dream, explaining that the child was conceived through the Holy Spirit, and counseling Joseph to follow through with the marriage. This requires a huge amount of faith, and a lot of trust in the Lord!

And that’s the point of today’s message. When we hear this miraculous story 2k years later, do we believe? Incredible as a virgin birth sounds, do we truly believe? Do we trust God enough to share this miracle birth of the Son of God with our friends? God wants you to believe because he wants to include you in the Kingdom. “To all who believed ... he gave the right to become children of God.”

It’s not easy being the earthly stand-in father for God’s Son!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship, 3249 30th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406