Christmas 2020 will be very different for most people for reasons that we don’t need to explain. Perhaps this year gives us all an opportunity to reflect on what Christmas is meant to celebrate – the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

The virgin birth is possibly the least understood Christian truth. Some religious leaders have said that it doesn’t matter how He came into the world, as long as He came. That is not true and undermines the Gospel message entirely.

Matthew’s Gospel opens with the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. The genealogy then tells us about the birth of 40 children. Each mention of 39 of those children uses the word ‘begat’.

Simply put, this word describes the natural way that children come into the world through an earthly mother and father. Life is passed from generation to generation, from parent to child. We all have the principle of life within us that began at our conception. But the tragic story of Adam’s race is that along with the life principle come the principles of sin and death. Every baby born into the world today has both those principles working already within them. The virgin birth of Jesus Christ was so very different!

When Matthew records the birth of the 40th child in the genealogy, he writes:

“And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of who was born Jesus, who is called the Christ”.  Matthew 1: 16

Do you see how the word ‘begat’ is missing? For the first time in this world’s history, a child was born who had an earthly mother but a heavenly Father. He did not derive his life from Joseph. He derived His life through the miraculous virgin birth whereby, ‘that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit’. This cannot be explained by science, medicine or theology. It has to be accepted by faith.

The virgin birth is such an important truth because Jesus, the child born, did not have the principles of sin and death within Him. God introduced to the world at Bethlehem a new kind of man – a holy, sinless man. There is no hope for Adam’s race. That is why God sent His Son to be our Saviour. God is forming a new race of men, headed by Christ. All who believe on Him as their Saviour will one day be free from sin and death.

“For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive” 1 Corinthians 15: 22