We see the miracle of the incarnation of Jesus—the Son of God—in the well-known announcement of the prophet Isaiah, “Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). This announcement is mighty and unique, for here both the divinity of Jesus and His incarnation are mentioned in one sentence. The key to this is the significance of the name Immanuel.

Matthew reports how an angel appeared to Joseph to speak to him about the birth of Jesus, and then Matthew explains, “Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us” (Matthew 1:22-23). How clearly we see here the incarnation of the Son of God! This Child was not just a human child but “God with us,” Emmanuel! It was God Himself who came to man in this way. He chose this way quite deliberately, “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same…” (Hebrews 2:14). Yes, this Emmanuel, this “God with us,” grew under the heart of a simple, insignificant, Jewish girl, and ultimately she gave birth to the King of all kings!

This event, which surpasses our understanding, is described in the New Testament in an impressive way, “Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:6-7). 

What an unfathomable and mighty fact, that the Son of God (God Himself) became man! It is as though Paul is searching for words when he wrote this to the Philippians. We find the same reverence in connection with this theme in the first letter to Timothy, “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh…” (1 Timothy 3:16). We cannot understand or explain the incarnation of Jesus, the Son of God. It surpasses our understanding. The incarnation of God is and remains a mystery. And yet it happened! Jesus really did come into this world as a child. Why? To die on Calvary’s cross for our sins and to reconcile us with God.

Jesus Christ was not only man and lived as a man. He also died as a man! And this was all for you and for me, to give us eternal life! “(He) made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:7-8).

Did Jesus Christ also become man for you and die for your sins on Calvary’s cross? Have you ever accepted the sacrifice that He brought for you? He became man in order to redeem you from the curse of sin and to give you eternal life! Angelus Silesius, a religious poet in Germany in the 17th century, coined a very true saying, “If Christ were born in Bethlehem a thousand times over, but not in you, you would remain lost forever!” 

As a child, I once read a story that I have never forgotten. A monkey fell into deep mire. As he began to sink in it, in desperation he tried to pull himself out by his hair. The end of the story is obvious. He sank in this fatal mire. This is what it is like in our present world. Man is bogged down in the mire of his own sin. Unfortunately, many are completely indifferent to this, and their dire circumstances leave them cold. But there are people who are conscious of the fact that they are lost, like that monkey in the mire. What do they do? They try to get themselves out of the mire, through good works; for instance, self-castigation, sacrifices, pilgrimages and the like. But this does not help them. On the contrary, they sink slowly but surely deeper and deeper into the mire…unless they grasp the extended hand of the One who left His throne in heaven for them, to become man and to die in their place for their sins at Calvary: Jesus Christ.

You are a lost sinner and condemned to perish in your sins if you do not grasp the hand of Jesus which He is offering you. However moral a life you live, you cannot stand before God. Your sins bar the way to Him. Many people, young and old, have come to realize this and taken the all-decisive step: grasping the hand of Jesus that is extended to them, letting Him pull them out of the mire of sin, and receiving forgiveness. Will you not do that and come to Jesus here and now?

Before Jesus came into this world as a child in Bethlehem, something unimaginable took place: the wonderful conception of Mary. Mary received her child through the Holy Spirit. We actually fear to speak of this, because the whole thing is so special, so wonderful. But the Bible speaks of it, and therefore we want to concern ourselves now with this extraordinary event.

“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” (Matthew 1:18). Here we see, as in Isaiah 7:14, a very special testimony concerning the incarnation of the Son of God, Jesus Christ. This verse is a proof that it really was God who became man about two thousand years ago. Jesus was to become true man, and that is why He was born of a woman. But He was also to be true God, and that is why Mary conceived Him through the Holy Spirit. Jesus was not Joseph’s biological son, but the Son of God, and Mary was His earthly, biological mother.

The virgin Mary of Nazareth bore a child under her heart that she had received of the Holy Spirit. Can we ever explain this? Is it even possible? No, we cannot explain it, but it is possible, of course. Why? Because for God, nothing is impossible.

When the angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would become the mother of a son, whom she should call Jesus, this was a very difficult thing for her to understand. She was not even married to Joseph, but only betrothed to him. A betrothal, or engagement as we call it today, meant more than that then, although the actual marriage had not yet taken place. At that time, marriages were arranged by the parents and marriage contracts were drawn up. When the arrangements had been made, the couple were looked upon as married, and were called husband and wife. But they did not live together yet. The woman lived for a further year with her parents, and the man with his. The waiting time should prove that the bride was still a virgin, as she and her relatives had maintained. If during this time it was found that the bride was pregnant, she was obviously guilty and was not a virgin. The marriage contract could be annulled. If the one-year waiting period proved the purity of the bride, however, the man went to the house of the bride’s parents and took the bride to his house in a great procession. There they lived together as husband and wife, and the marriage was consummated. 

When the angel Gabriel announced to the virgin Mary that she was pregnant, Mary and Joseph were living in this period of waiting. “And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph…” (Luke 1:26-27). Can you imagine how Joseph and Mary must have felt? How shocked they were at that moment? We know of Joseph that he did not want Mary to suffer a public scandal, and therefore he decided to leave her secretly. An angel appeared to him in a dream, however, and told him that Mary’s condition did not come from a man, but was of the Holy Spirit. The angel also explained to him that the Child which Mary bore would be a very special Child, for He would save His people—the people of Israel—from their sins (Matthew 1:18-25). Joseph listened to the voice of the angel, “Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife” (verse 24). 

Let us imagine ourselves in Mary’s situation for a moment, who expected a child and knew that her pregnancy would at some time become visible. What must she have thought? What a shock this must have been for this young, single, Jewish girl! When the angel said to her, “Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son…” (Luke 1:31), she said to him, “How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?” (verse 34). This was a logical reaction. But what did the angel answer her? He began to speak of her extraordinary conception, “The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God” (verse 35). And then he explained to her, “For with God nothing shall be impossible” (verse 37). Gabriel said this with reference to Elisabeth, a relative of Mary, who was elderly and considered infertile, and was now expecting a son. This was to encourage Mary. No further explanation was necessary for this extraordinary event than the words of the angel, Gabriel. And sure enough, in Luke’s Gospel we read that Mary calmed down when she heard these words, “And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her” (verse 38).

Mary still could not understand the whole thing, and she was not given a plausible explanation, but she had been given the glorious assurance, “Mary, there is a God who is capable of doing such things! He was able to give an elderly, infertile woman a son. And it is He who can produce in you such an extraordinary conception!”

The so miraculous conception of Mary and the virgin birth do not particularly surprise Christians today. Why? Because these truths are rooted deep down in their hearts. This is on the one hand good, but on the other hand it is rather a shame. Although this event is very well known to us, it remains inconceivable to our understanding. This very thing should move us to be all the more amazed: what the virgin Mary experienced is humanly speaking impossible, but there is a God who can do anything and for whom nothing is impossible! We should see the extraordinary and miraculous incarnation of Jesus consciously from this point of view again. It happened because for God, nothing is impossible. This whole story testifies of a great God who is almighty and sovereign. This is what we Christians need so urgently in these end times: a completely new consciousness of the absolute omnipotence of our God!

It can happen that a Christian is overcome by an almost paralyzing inner tiredness. Through this, a kind of spiritual apathy can result, which can affect the one concerned greatly. There is this feeling of inability, of inner emptiness. Why do such things take place in a born-again Christian? The answer is, because here on earth we are living in enemy territory. And, we often feel the great pressure of this. The Scriptures do not say by chance in Ephesians 6:12, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” In addition to this, each one of us has some kind of burden to carry, whether it is connected with our health, finances or something else. Life in enemy territory leaves its mark on us. And so we know times in which we feel inwardly tired and weary. Do we not see this in great personalities in the Bible?

Think of John the Baptist, for instance, who asked the Lord Jesus through his disciples, “Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?” (Matthew 11:3). These words, spoken by a man of God, testified to a kind of inner resignation and weariness. This is understandable, for John was imprisoned by Herod at the time; he found himself, in the truest sense of the words, in enemy territory. And yet this does not mean that he was completely cut off from Jesus, for the message of the mighty works of the Lord reached him in prison, “Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ…” (verse 2). And yet John had no light at that moment. The grave circumstances in which he found himself really affected him.

It can be like this for us Christians in the end times. Our presence in enemy territory, and also other circumstances in our lives, can so affect us that we become inwardly weary. Are you feeling inwardly tired and weary at the moment? Are you resigned? Do you lack joy? Think of the wonderful conception of Mary and the virgin birth, and that the angel Gabriel explained to Mary, “With God nothing shall be impossible”! You do not need more vacations, more leisure or an extraordinary, exhilarating experience to come to rest inwardly. What you need is a new vision of the greatness and omnipotence of your God!

Why did these extraordinary things take place at that time? For one thing, because it was God’s will. Secondly, also because for God, nothing is impossible and He can do what He plans. We Christians often read over such mighty testimonies in the Bible and they no longer amaze us. They do not move us to worship because we have gotten so used to them.

Are your problems greater than those which Mary had so suddenly? In other words, can you imagine what this young girl felt when the angel told her that she would become pregnant? Have you any idea what a tremendous thing this must have been for this young Jewish girl, who was still betrothed and in the probationary period of waiting? Suddenly she, a spotless virgin from Nazareth, was going to be pregnant? But she found peace through the words of the angel, “With God nothing shall be impossible” (Luke 1:37). This comforting statement encouraged her to let herself fall unconditionally into the arms of God, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word” (verse 38). 

Christmas 2011—this means that we are confronted anew with the work of redemption of a loving Father: Christ came into this world to die in our place for our sins! But Christmas 2011 should also cause us to see something else in a new light: the extraordinary way which the Father thought out to send His Son into this world. Who can understand that a simple girl would become pregnant through the Holy Spirit? Nobody! Mary also looked at the angel in perplexity when he brought her this message. But she came to a deep, inner peace in this impossible situation, because she had grasped the fact that behind it all stood a great God, for whom nothing is impossible. Does not the same God watch over your life and over all your problems, which seem to be so unsolvable at the moment? The same Lord, for whom nothing at all is impossible, is with you now to give you peace.

Jesus Himself once said, “With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible” (Mark 10:27). They are almost the same words as those which the angel Gabriel spoke to Mary. To whom did our Lord speak them? To His disciples, who had just heard Jesus’ statement, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God” (verse 25). Can a camel go through the eye of a needle? No! In other words, a rich man cannot enter into heaven. No wonder the Lord’s disciples were astonished and said, “Who then can be saved?” (verse 26). We understand this fearful question of the disciples only too well. But Jesus answered them, “With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible” (verse 27). Jesus explained to them, it is possible for a camel to go through the eye of a needle if God wants it to, for with God all things are possible. And it is also possible, therefore, for a rich man to enter into heaven. With man it is impossible, but not with God, for whom everything is possible. Do you know who also came to recognize this, after he had been in the depths of the crucible of suffering? Job, who said, “I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee” (Job 42:2). My dear reader, will you not begin to trust Him anew for whom nothing is impossible? Will you not say like Mary to your God, “Behold the handmaid (servant) of the Lord: be it unto me according to thy word” (Luke 1:38)? Is the Lord waiting for this at this Christmas time?

(MR1210/465)