Lesson for December 22, 2024
The Law of the Spirit of Life
Lesson 7
Romans 8:36
Verse 36
“Just as it is written, “For Your sake we are being put to killed all day long. We were regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
Psalm 44:22 is quoted in this verse as a description of what the Jews of the Old Testament suffered for Jehovah’s sake and is quoted by Paul as a comparison to the sufferings of himself, his fellow companions, and all Church Age believers. However, the greatest suffering in history took place on the Cross when the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ went to the Cross and was sacrificed as the payment for the sin of the human race. Born of a virgin without a sin nature and without Adam’s original sin, Jesus lived a life of perfection, and went to the Cross in sinless perfection, which qualified Him to be our Savior.
Isaiah 7:14, “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and she will name Him Immanuel.”
The Virgin Birth was prophesied in the Old Testament in Isaiah 7:14, about 700 BC. God prepared a nation (Israel) for the virgin birth of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ, according to Genesis 12:1-3. The virgin birth of Christ fulfilled promises from God to Abraham and David. To Abraham the promise was that through his descendant (Jesus) all nations would be blessed. The promise to David was that he would have a son (Christ) who would reign forever. (II Samuel 7, Psalms 89, II Chronicles 21) Both promises were fulfilled by Christ.
The lineage of Mary can be traced to David. (Luke 3:23-38) The lineage of Joseph, Jesus’ legal guardian, can be traced to David as well. (Matthew 1:1-17) Christ, therefore, has both a birthright and a legal right to the throne of David (a throne that will be set up during the Millennium upon which Christ will sit and rule the world).
The historical record of the birth of Christ is well documented both biblically and secularly. Most people are familiar with the story. However, many are not familiar with the doctrine of the birth of Christ and its impact upon the world. It is safe to say that no other person in history has changed the world in the way that Jesus of Nazareth changed it. (Matthew 1:18-25; Isaiah 7:14)
Jesus Christ is the unique Person of the universe. He is the only Person in history to be both fully God and fully human. The term for this unique union is Hypostatic Union and is derived from the Greek word “hupostatis,” meaning same essence. In the case of Christ, it is both divine and human essence in one Person. (Hebrews 1:3) He is superior to mankind because He is God. Even though His two natures are united in one Person, they retain their separate identities. The attributes of one do not belong to the other. Deity remains deity and humanity remains humanity.
The plan of salvation was formulated in eternity past and called for a “sin-bearer” to bridge the separation between God and man. This sin-bearer had to be uniquely qualified. He could have no sin of his own, he had to be equal with both parties involved, and he had to be willing to pay the penalty of sin for the entire human race. Jesus Christ agreed to execute the plan. Jesus Christ therefore became a man, lived a sinless life, and became our sin-bearer. (Romans 5:8; II Corinthians 5:21)
God prepared a person to be the mother of the humanity of Christ, Mary. Mary was a wonderful Jewish believer and especially chosen by God to give birth to the Messiah. Mary was the mother of the humanity of Christ, not the “Mother of God.” God also prepared a man to take care of His Son while He was growing up, Joseph. Joseph, like Mary, was a Jewish believer and a person of integrity. (Matthew 1:18-25) Though Joseph was not the biological father of Jesus Christ, he was His guardian while He was growing up. We can only conjecture as to Joseph’s role in the earlier training of Jesus, as we are not given a great deal of information about Christ’s youth. However, we do see Jesus at the age of twelve in the Temple conversing with the Jewish scholars. (Luke 2:41-52)
We can learn some things about Mary and Joseph from several statements that were made about them and several statements that they made. In Luke, the angel said that Mary was “highly favored,” that “the Lord was with her,” and that she was “blessed among women.” Also, in Luke 1:38, Mary confirmed her obedient attitude toward the Lord. Mary was a faithful believer who knew and quoted the Word of God, according to Luke 1:46-56.
We can also learn something about Joseph. Matthew 1:19 calls Joseph “a just man.” The Greek word for just is “dikaios” and means righteous. Joseph was a believer who lived a righteous life in accordance with God’s will. Joseph was a man of integrity, and he was obedient to the Lord, according to Matthew 1:20-25, 2:19-23. It was into this family of integrity that Jesus Christ was born and was raised.
From humble beginnings this unique Person grew to manhood and began an amazing journey. Part of His journey from age thirty to age thirty-three was recorded for us by four of His followers, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. We are very fortunate to have been given this record. It is this record of Christ that not only teaches us how we are to treat one another, but it also gives us the greatest love story of all time. (Genesis 3:15; II Samuel 7:5-17; Isaiah 7:14)
This love story is between the Creator of the universe, Jesus Christ and His creations, mankind. Because of His great love, Jesus Christ laid down His life. However, the story of Christ’s birth, His death on the Cross, and His resurrection is not the end. Not willing that anyone would perish and spend eternity separated from God, Jesus Christ voluntarily became our sin-bearer and paid the penalty for our sin by His death on the Cross. He then rose from the dead after three days, ascended to Heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father at this very moment. (John 3:16)