Virgin Birth Doctrine
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Announcing the Virgin Birth in Luke 1
Oftentimes people meld the accounts in Matthew 1 and Luke 1 to form the basis for the Virgin Birth Doctrine. However, these accounts are speaking of two different episodes in time. First Things First Despite the fact that Matthew appears first in the New Testament, the first chapter of Luke describes events that happen prior to those described in the first chapter of Matthew. Luke 1 lays out a visitation from the angel to the virgin Mary before she is pregnant. She is identified as being espoused to Joseph, and therefore attached to him. She is his woman, and he is her man. Matthew 1 lays out a visitation from…
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For All Have Sinned
There is a predominant teaching within Christianity that says we are all born into sin and our flesh is innately sinful. The crux of that teaching is based on texts found in Paul’s letter to the Romans. The Romans Road Many years ago, I was taught a “Plan for Salvation” called, The Romans Road. It was an evangelism tool to spread “the gospel message”: a series of various verses primarily from the book of Romans, strung together to formulate a “plan of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ”. The underlying premise of this is that “we are all sinners by nature and choice”, “for all have sinned, and come short…
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Is the Son of Man the Son of a Man?
In the New Testament, the reference “son of man” is attributed to Jesus over 75 times, but what does that mean? The Greek word translated as “man” in that phrase is “anthropos” which means “a human being”, so this seems to mean “son of a human being”. In the Old Testament Ezekiel is often referred to as “son of man”, and the Hebrew word for “man” in that phrase is “adam”, which means “man, mankind”, but is also the name of the first man made from the dust of the earth. So, another way of phrasing this would be “son of adam”, or “son of mankind”. As far as I am…
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Why Send Mary Away?
Why did Joseph think to send Mary away while she was with child? Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily. But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her…
- 3-Grass, Seed-Yielding Herbs, Fruit Trees, 3-Land and Seas, 5-Sea Creatures and Winged Birds, 6-Living Creatures on Land, 6-Man and Woman, Creation, Jesus / Yeshua, Virgin Birth Doctrine
Session 1: In the Beginning – Introduction (DVBD)
Genesis 1 Establishes a Natural Order Generally speaking, all life is made to reproduce after like kind. Given that the Virgin Birth Doctrine deviates from this Natural Order established by the Creator in the beginning, the burden of proof should fall on the proponents of that doctrine to defend their case, not on those who adhere to the Creator’s way. But because this doctrine is so pervasive in our modern western culture, the notion of the Messiah being born by natural means is widely considered to be the deviant position. As a result, those who challenge the Virgin Birth doctrine often find themselves in the weaker position of having to…
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Dismantling the Virgin Birth Doctrine: An Introduction
I was raised to believe… Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary, and Joseph was not his biological father. The idea was that while Mary, a virgin, was espoused to Joseph, she was visited by the Holy Spirit and miraculously became pregnant with Jesus without Joseph’s involvement. And when Jesus was born, Joseph became his adoptive parent. As a result of this miraculous event, the thought continued, God was able to appear to mankind clothed in humanity. This paved the way for another fundamental tenet of my Christian faith: the notion that Jesus was God. I couldn’t really explain it rationally, but I had believed that Jesus was fully God…
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The Great Deviation: The Virgin Birth Doctrine
Biblical Model for Conception In Genesis 4:1 we’re told, “Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and brought forth Cain and said, I have gained a man through God.” This provides a model for us: a man knows a woman, and with the help of God, she conceives and brings forth a child. MAN + WOMAN + GOD’s HELP = CHILD We see examples of this model being played out throughout the Bible in the young and old, or more specifically in the old and young.
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Christ – The Priesthood and The Kingship
The Greek word “Christos” (G5547) translated as “Christ”, and the Hebrew word “Mashiyach” (H4899) translated as “Messiah” in English both mean “Anointed”. Looking back in the Old Testament (Tanakh), we see there are two particular offices that are clearly anointed: the Priesthood and the Kingship. The LORD (YHVH) makes covenants with two particular clans concerning these offices: the house of Levi for priesthood, and the house of David for kingship. The Priesthood “Now this is what you shall do to them to consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests. Take one bull of the herd and two rams without blemish, and unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil,…
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Challenging the “Virgin Birth” Doctrine
I have always struggled with the concept of the Virgin Birth as espoused by the Roman Catholic Church and embraced by nearly, if not all Protestant denominations. In recent years while studying the Old Testament (or Tanakh) more in depth, I find no precedent for a woman to conceive a child without the seed of a man. I say this not to imply that these accounts of Yeshua’s birth are false, but rather what we’ve been taught about these accounts doesn’t line up with the entirety of Scripture. Instead of me simply arguing my belief, I’d like to lay out these accounts in the text and share what I am…