The Birth of Christ

Introduction

INDUCTIVE INTRODUCTION — a scandal in a small town

In a community like ours, news travels fast.

You know how it works. Someone’s truck is parked at the wrong house too late, someone sees something, and by breakfast the next day, it’s not “I saw a truck,” it’s “I heard they’re leaving their spouse,” and by lunch it’s “Their whole family is falling apart.” In small towns, reputations can be built over decades and shattered in a weekend.

Now put yourself in Nazareth—tiny, obscure

the kind of place nobody important comes from.

Mary is betrothed to Joseph.

He’s waiting, working, building, preparing.

She’s a godly young woman—everyone knows it.

And then: she’s pregnant.

At that moment, the text forces a tension that we often skip because we already know the story. But Joseph didn’t.

What would you think—honestly—if the person you trusted most did something that looked like betrayal?

What happens when you can’t reconcile what you’re seeing with who you believe them to be?

That’s where Matthew takes us—into the ache of confusion—so that when God speaks, the truth lands with weight.

If you have your Bible...

Matthew 1:18-25

This is God’s word

Thanks be to God

Pray

Be seated

This morning we are going to look at 5 things with the virgin birth of Christ

Conceived

Confronted

Clarified

Connected

Consummated

Those are nothing fancy, just something to help us stay on track.

I. Mysteriously Conceived (v. 18)

“Before they came together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.”

A. “Before they came together…”

Matthew is careful with words.

He tells us when and how far the relationship had gone. No intimacy. No consummation.

This isn’t a sentimental line—it’s a theological claim: Jesus has no human father.

You’ve probably seen a courtroom drama where the attorney says, “Let the record show…” That’s what Matthew is doing. He’s not writing a bedtime story. He’s filing a sworn statement.

B. Betrothal: covenant-like commitment with real consequences

Joseph and Mary were Betrothed.

What does this mean?

Engaged?

Going steady?

Mary wore Joseph’s class ring or letterman jacket?

In the OT there were 2 distinct stages of marriage.

Kiddushin

Betrothal period

From same root word where we get Holy from

Set apart for her husband

Usually 12 months

Period of Protection for the husband and the wife

Time to prove fidelity

Long enough to prevent someone from getting pregnant and getting married quickly to cover it up

Mohar (Bride Price) is paid

Paid at the point of betrothal

According to Gen 34 it was some sort of good or service

Price of the girl would vary, depending on the family and the girl

whole flock of sheep - lame chicken

Had a few purposes

Compensate the father for the great cost of the wedding (several days)

Life insurance for the wife

Normally the Jewish father would hold it in trust and if the husband died he would give it to the daughter

Divorce insurance - If husband left, or didn’t marry her, would lose it all.

Still used the terms, husband and wife

Good as valid, just not consummated yet.

If ended, would have to end in a formal divorce

Chuppah

This was the wedding itself, when the marriage was consummated

It was in this betrothal period that Mary was made to be with child by the Holy Spirit.

C. The Spirit’s role signals “new creation”

Genesis 1:2 — the Spirit hovers over the waters and God speaks creation into being. Here, the Spirit acts again—not to form planets, but to form the Redeemer.

This is not God “borrowing” a man from the world; it is God entering the world. And it’s fitting that the Spirit who gives life is the One who brings forth Life Himself.

D. Why this matters: salvation requires a Savior unlike us

Why does this matter? Why point this all out?

If Jesus is merely another man...inherits sin nature If Jesus is not truly man...can’t stand in our place

So God does what only God can do: True humanity from Mary + true deity by the Spirit = one Savior able to save.

If the virgin birth is “no big deal” to you, the incarnation has become a cliché. Worship fades when wonder fades.

II. THE RIGHTEOUS Confrontation (vv. 19–20a)

Read vs 19

“Joseph… being a just man… resolved to divorce her quietly.”

A. Joseph is both righteous and compassionate

“Just” means he takes God seriously.

He is righteous, so he cares deeply for God’s glory and doing the right thing

BUT he also refuses to shame Mary publicly.

This is a rare blend:

righteousness without cruelty,

compassion without compromise.

Some people use “truth” like a hammer—every problem looks like a nail.

If something is true, I am going to say it, no matter what!

I have known many people like this.

Tend to care more about doctrine than people...

1 Corinthians 13:1–3 ESV

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Others use “love” like a blanket—cover everything, pretend nothing’s wrong.

Afraid to call out sin for fear of offending someone.

If I see someone walking toward a cliff, it is not loving to allow him to continue.

Love does not affirm what God says will destroy us.

Just a few verses after Paul told the Corinthians that truth without love is nothing...

1 Corinthians 13:6 ESV

it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.

Love cannot celebrate in something that God condemns.

Joseph shows biblical maturity: love and truth are not enemies.

B. The text invites you to feel Joseph’s pain

Matthew doesn’t give us a paragraph of Joseph’s emotions, but the phrase “as he considered these things” is loaded.

He’s replaying conversations.

He’s thinking about Mary’s face.

He’s wondering: How could this be true?

Matthew wants us to see Joseph’s pain and feelings here...and to see how he was wrestling with how to handle this.

He loved Mary, and cared deeply for her and her honor, but wanted to do the right thing.

C. God often brings clarity after honest wrestling

Joseph thinks. He prays. He weighs his options. Then God speaks.

Listen up, Godliness doesn’t mean you never feel confused. It means you refuse to sin in your confusion.

III. THE DIVINE CLARIFICATION (vv. 20b–21)

Read vv20s-21

A. “Joseph, son of David” — identity before instruction

Before God tells Joseph what to do, He reminds Joseph who he is.

That matters. Because obedience flows from identity.

Many men collapse under pressure because they don’t know who they are before God.

Joseph is steadied: “son of David”—you have a place in God’s plan.

B. “Do not fear” — the fear is real

He is told, “do not fear”.

His fear was real... Fear of:

disgrace

confusion

responsibility

the future

the unknown

But God doesn’t scold him; He comforts him.

C. The angel gives Joseph two anchors

Explanation: “Conceived… from the Holy Spirit.”

Purpose: “He will save His people from their sins.”

**Notice the gospel clarity here:

the baby’s mission is not political revolution.

It’s not “be a good example.”

It’s not “teach moral lessons.”

It is, to save his people from their sins.

D. “His people” — a definite redemption note

“He will save His people…”

I won’t get into today how much this speaks to the doctrine of Definite Atonement....That is a topic for another day...

This language points to covenant ownership. God is keeping promises. He is gathering a people.

Cross references:

Matthew 20:28 — “Son of man...to give His life as a ransom for many”

John 10:11 — “the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep”

Titus 2:14 — “to redeem… a people for His own possession”

Quote (Spurgeon):

“Christ did not come to make sin excusable, but to make sinners new.”

Application

Christmas is not mainly about your family traditions. It’s about God’s rescue mission.

IV. THE PROPHETIC CONNECTION (vv. 22–23)

Read vv22-23

“All this took place to fulfill…”

A. Matthew’s point: this is not random, not late, not improvised

God did not react to human failure like,

“Well, I guess I’ll send Jesus now.”

We don’t serve a God that is sitting in Heaven ringing his hands wondering

what will take place

when should I intervene

He is not a God that needs to have a plan B because his people rejected him

This is covenant history unfolding exactly on schedule.

B. Isaiah 7:14 — God’s sign is bigger than the immediate crisis

In Isaiah’s day, fear threatened the Davidic line.

The northern kingdom planned to overtake Judah and wipe out the Davidic line

God promised: the line will stand.

Not because Ahaz was faithful ( He wasn’t )

Not because Judah was strong ( They weren’t)

But because God is faithful to fulfill his promises.

In Matthew’s day, sin threatens the entire human race.

God fulfills his promise in a way that no human enemy could stop

Through the virgin birth: the King arrives.

C. Immanuel: “God with us” is not sentimental—it’s staggering

Not “God sends help.”

Not “God texts encouragement.”

Not “God provides a boost.”

God comes down to his people.

When a blizzard hits and you find out your pastor is shoveling the church parking lot, you don’t just call and say, “Praying for you.”

Real love is friends showing up with shovels and Casey’s coffee.

Christmas is God showing up—not with advice, but with Himself.

Covenant Theology Insight

Eden: God with man (presence)

Fall: exile, separation

Tabernacle/Temple: God with His people in shadows and symbols

Christ: God with us in flesh

New Covenant: God with us by the Spirit

New Creation: God with us forever (Rev. 21)

This is the arc of Scripture: God’s presence with his people regained through redemption.

V. THE OBEDIENT CONSUMMATION (vv. 24–25)

Read vv24-25

A. Joseph’s obedience costs him socially

Let’s not pretend this was easy. Joseph takes Mary as his wife knowing the town will assume the worst.

He absorbs the shame to protect her—and in God’s providence, to protect the Child.

There’s a kind of obedience that costs you comfort but buys you integrity. Joseph chooses integrity.

B. "Physical” restraint becomes a testimony

He “knew her not until…”

This wasn’t out of spite or anything like that;

it’s proof.

God is protecting the clarity of the miracle.

C. Naming Jesus: legal adoption into David’s line

By naming Him, Joseph secures the legal, royal claim.

God uses Joseph’s faithful fathering in the story of redemption.

Believers, Your obedience matters more than you think. God writes history with quiet faithfulness.

Fathers: your home is not “small.” Your obedience shapes the next generation.

BIG IDEA — revealed late

As we step back for a moment, let’s remember where Matthew has taken us.

We began with confusion— a young woman who appears disgraced, a righteous man whose heart is breaking, a situation that seems to contradict everything we know about God’s holiness and faithfulness.

We walked with Joseph through the tension. We felt the weight of unanswered questions. We stood in that uncomfortable space where obedience is costly and clarity has not yet come.

And slowly—carefully—Matthew let the truth unfold.

This was not sin masquerading as a miracle. This was not God reacting to a crisis. This was God keeping His word.

What we have seen today is that the birth of Jesus was not merely unusual—it was ABSOLUTELY necessary.

If Jesus were only the son of Joseph, He could sympathize with us, but He could never save us.

If Jesus were only the Son of God without true humanity, He could judge us, but He could never stand in our place.

So God did what only God could do.

By the Holy Spirit, He formed true humanity in the womb of Mary. Without a human father, He entered our world unstained by Adam’s guilt. Fully man—able to obey where we failed. Fully God—able to bear wrath and conquer death.

And Matthew wants us to see that this was not random, rushed, or improvised. Every detail was tethered to promise. Every step was anchored in covenant. Every moment fulfilled what God had spoken centuries before.

The child born in Mary’s womb is Immanuel— not God watching from a distance, not God shouting instructions from heaven, but God with us.

With us in our shame. With us in our confusion. With us in our suffering.

And the angel tells us why He came: “You shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Not from inconvenience. Not from discomfort. Not merely from consequences. But from sin itself—the root of all that is broken in us and in this world.

And the story ends, fittingly, not with spectacle—but with obedience. Joseph rises, believes, obeys, and names the child. A quiet act of faith that becomes part of the greatest rescue story ever told.

So now the question that Matthew presses upon us is the same one Jesus will later ask in this very Gospel:

“What do you think about the Christ?” Whose Son is He?

If He is only a teacher, we may admire Him. If He is only an example, we may imitate Him. But if He is Immanuel—God with us— then He demands our worship, our trust, and our lives.

Because the miracle of Christmas is not simply that a child was born— but that God came near to save sinners like us.