Before Messiah’s Birth
Pastor Eric J. Hanson
December 11, 2011
All the way back in Genesis, God had a plan for redeeming us from sin and its baleful effects. He announced His plan even while pronouncing judgment on the sin of our first parents. In addressing the Devil, who had introduced temptation into the Garden, the Lord God said the following things: “Because you have done this, cursed are you more than all the cattle, and more than every beast of the field. On your belly shall you go, and dust shall you eat all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed.” (Genesis 3: 14-15)
God continued, but suddenly there was redemption for mankind in His prophetic words. “He (the seed of the woman) shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel.” God also said many other important things in those few fateful minutes in the Garden of Eden. Today however, we shall think about these words directed at the Devil.
That day, humankind had fallen into an ongoing state of sin (fulness). To this day, the whole creation and everyone who has ever lived suffers because of this sinfulness which fills the Earth. However, when God told the serpent (The Devil or Satan) that the seed of the woman would bruise (or crush) his head, he was making a very specific point. God’s point was this: The Devil had gained a position of headship over the man and woman by getting them to obey him, and carry out his plan rather than God’s orders. Later Jesus would refer to Satan as “the Prince of this World” and as “The god of this age”. However, God was informing Satan in no uncertain terms: “It ain’t gonna last Devil.” Your new headship over my people will be crushed by this one who is to come.”
God was not taken by surprise that day. Unlike Satan, God has the future in his hands. God already had the plan of salvation for fallen mankind planned out. By telling this to Satan immediately after Satan’s greatest triumph, God totally took the wind our of his sails. In essence God said: “You cannot ultimately win this planet from me.” “Victory shall be mine, and you cannot stop it, no matter how much you scheme.”
Now let’s step back from that scene in the Garden and think about this. Who could God possible cause to be born to the human race, who would be capable of fulfilling God’s own legal requirements of total and unwavering righteousness? Since humankind was now contaminated with sinfulness, how could this ever happen? The answer is hinted at even earlier in Genesis. In Genesis 1:26 we read: “Then God said, Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness; and let them rule…”
Here God (Elohim in the Hebrew language) referred to himself as “us”. This is consistent, because that Hebrew word Elohim is plural! To amplify this short little passage: Then God, who is one God, but also is plural, said: Let us make man…” Who could God possible send to be the “seed of the Woman” He would go do it Himself!
In order to enter into the human line, without becoming contaminated by sin, God would have to become human by means of bypassing the “seed of Adam”, of the “seed of the man”. Why is this? It is simply because God had stated that the state of sin would be passed down from Adam, because Adam had sinned knowingly. He was not deceived when He sinned in the Garden. Adam knew what he was doing when he chose to sin, thus he became the means by which the sin nature was passed down to all generations.
Once again God had a plan. He had a way to accomplish this sinless entering into mankind. He would cause a miracle to take place, whereby a baby would be born to a virgin. No human fathering would take place. Adam’s line of sin would be cut off from this one to be born, the Seed of the Woman, but not ever called the Seed of the man. Yes, even the Virgin Birth of Messiah was made clear in the words God chose to use in the Garden on the day Adam fell into sin.
Now let’s move ahead in time to the days of Isaiah the prophet. In Chapter 7 and verse 14 we read: “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold a virgin will be with child (pregnant) and bear a son, and she will call his name Immanuel.” This same prophet, later on wrote in great detail of the type of suffering the Lord’s Servant would one day endure. Isaiah chapter 53 stands together with this verse from chapter 7. They are prophetic book ends concerning the Earthly life of the Messiah.
Next week Pastor Dallas is going to speak about the incarnation itself. Incarnation refers to God becoming a man. Immanuel, that word from Isaiah 7 means “God with us”.
Today’s foundation laying message on this topic was for two major teaching purposes.
1. Only a sinless man could break the curse of sin by taking the punishment for it himself. Only such a being could make forgiveness and citizenship in Heaven possible for people.
2. Virgin birth was the only possible way for there to be a sinless man. The virgin birth of Jesus the Christ (Yeshua the Messiah) had to take place, because without it, the plan of salvation could not be fulfilled.
John the Apostle looked back at this miracle in the beginning of His Gospel. Let’s look at Chapter one briefly together.
This message is the merest skeleton regarding the matter of the prophecies Jesus fulfilled in his birth, life, death, and resurrection. There is a great body of some 300 Old Testament prophecies fulfilled in the Savior’s story. Truly we have seen evidence today that Jesus Christ is Lord, Savior, and King.
Are you committed to following Him without reservation today? Have you yet placed your life in His hands and received forgiveness of your sin(fulness) ?
If not, please do so now. --- (call for salvation)
