Back to sermon search
JB

Bramhall, John WThe Incarnation 02 ~ Luke 1;26-35

Download audio

Full transcript

Beloved friends, welcome to the broadcast of God's precious word today, and our present study upon the incarnation of the Son of God made the Holy Spirit strengthen us, strengthen every one of us in our faith, that we will faithfully acknowledge the truth that we have seen in our previous message, that it was God who was manifest in the flesh. coming down from heaven to the earth, born at Bethlehem, and that he was gone from all eternity past. Let us never permit Satan to take this truth away from us. Regardless what intellectual or ignorant person it may be that speaks for Satan, we should always remember that when Christ was upon the earth, he declared two facts. regarding Satan. First, he said he is a liar. Never forget that. Second, he said he is a murderer. Neither forget that. Then why should anyone listen to him? But rather, in simple faith, accept the teaching of the Word of God, the Bible. Today we wish to consider the historical account written by Dr. Luke, the beloved physician of Christ's incarnation in his gospel, in chapter one, which may be read from verses twenty-six through thirty-five. You may have the record of it before you to read, but there are only two particular leading facts in this account which we would emphasize in our study of the incarnation of Christ today. First of all, From Dr. Luke's account, consider the conception of Christ's humanity. The conception of his humanity was contrary to all human conception, but it is recorded in Luke chapter one and verse thirty-five, when Gabriel said to the Virgin Mary, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee. My beloved listener, take this truth in. The human body of our Blessed Lord was formed by the Holy Ghost, and by the power of the highest, according to these words, never was it formed by the corruptible seed of a human man. If you will read Psalm chapter forty, as you will read the repetition of that Psalm in Hebrews chapter ten and particularly in Hebrews ten and verse five the words that are recorded where you can realize that God the Son is speaking to the Father about his coming into the world and on that occasion declares a body hath thou prepared me My beloved, it is wise that you and I emphasize the fact that it was God who prepared his human body so that in conception and development that body was divinely formed by God. Luke tells us that the Holy Ghost, one who was co-equal and co-eternal in the Godhead, divinely perform this miracle. A divine work that Christ may be born of a woman when he was brought into the human scene. Read the account in chapter one of Matthew and recognize the truth was emphasized there before Joseph and Mary came together. We read that she was found with child of the Holy Ghost, Matthew one and verse eighteen. And note that in Matthew chapter one and verse twenty-five, Joseph knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son. My beloved, take in the truth. The conception of the Blessed Lord Jesus in his humanity was by the Holy Ghost. But now a second important fact in Luke's account we should consider. the perfection of his humanity. Known in Luke chapter one and verse thirty-five, another blessed truth, when the angel said, That holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God, that the angel Gabriel declared, emphasized three particular words, naming that blessed one, that Holy thing. My beloved friend, you and I were born sinners, because your father and my father and my mother and your mother were our parents. They were sinners, and they could only produce another sinner. Not so with the birth of Christ. According to Hebrews chapter seven and verse twenty-six, It is recorded that He was holy, that He was harmless, that He was undefiled, that He was separate from sinners. And at His conception and birth, He never took upon Him our sinful, fallen nature into union with His body and His nature. In His perfect humanity, He had nothing to do with sin, whether personally or relatively. Oh, my beloved, do not fail to realize that in absolute perfection, Christ became both very God as well as very man. Truly the God man, one person, but both having the deity and the humanity in his blessed person. My beloved the babe of Bethlehem, born in the stable and cradled in the manger. When thus born, he was absolute perfection, both in his deity and in his humanity. Very God and very man. Now my beloved friend, Don't you make any attempt to explain it, as I have had some try to do it to me. The best thing that you can do and I can do is believe it. First Timothy chapter three and verse sixteen tells it is a great mystery. Saying great is the mystery of godliness, that God was manifest in the flesh. And my beloved, may I imply and emphasize, we must never forget that in all of his life upon the earth, that blessed Son of God retained his deity along with his perfect humanity. And both deity and humanity dwelt in him perfectly. Let me give some brief evidences of that fact during his life, which you can never deny. First of all, You may have read, and you can in John chapter four and verse six. He was weary, tired. But he called the weary to rest. As you may read in Matthew eleven, twenty-eight, come unto me, all ye that labor and heavy laden and are weary, I will give you rest. He was also during his lifetime hungry. Hungry indeed, as you read in Mark chapter eleven and verse twelve. but he fed five thousand men and women beside children with five loaves and two small fishes. As you can read in John chapter six. He was thirsty, as you can read in John four in verse seven, but he speaks of himself as being the water of life in John seven in verse thirty seven. He prayed many times this is recorded with him, but again and again He also answered prayer, as we well know. He was also once in great agony, as you read in Luke twenty-two, verse forty-four, in Gethsemane. But he was the very one who healed all manner of diseases. He wept, he went tears at the grave of Lazarus. Jesus wept. But he called the body of Lazarus out of the grave, in the same chapter as we read it in John eleven. My beloved friend, he also died. Humanly, his body experienced death on the cross, and yet he is eternal life, and a giver of eternal life to all of his sheep. I give unto my sheep eternal life, and they shall never perish. Every honest reader of his life, as recorded in the Gospel, will find unmistakable evidence that Jesus Christ, who was born in Bethlehem, was both God and man. Yet it should be carefully observed, though his divine person was never limited by his humanity, that blessed Son of God, that Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, he never ministered to his own human needs out of his own divine resources. All of his divine power was used exclusively to bless and to help others, never for himself. My beloved radio friend, please let me impress upon you, while the world around us seeks to celebrate, if they can call it celebration of his birth, the manifest so much, the greed, the selfishness. the pleasure, and all that goes along with it. Little realizing, nor caring who and why and what Jesus is. My radio friend, let you and I do some serious reflecting about the one who was the mystery babe of Bethlehem. May I ask, what do you think of him? When he was upon the earth, the Lord Jesus asked his enemies, What think ye of Christ? And today will you answer the question, What do I think of Christ to yourself? From the presentation of the biblical record that we have covered today, do you confess and believe he is both very God as well as very man? Let me repeat with emphasis. You and I needed, all the world needed, a superhuman Savior, both God and man. Thank God He came from heaven to be born into this scene to become our Savior. Christ Jesus came into the world To save sinners, my friend, as he saved you. Father, bless thy word and sanctify it by thy spirit in his precious name. Amen.