Baby Jesus: God Is With Us

But while he thought on these things, behold, 

the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a 

dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of 'David, fear 

not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that 

which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. 

And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call

 His name Jesus: for He shall save His people

 from their sins.  

Matthew 1:20-21

     I am sure that all of you who have attended Church for anytime are aware of these verses. This account about the conception of Jesus has arisen many different theological doctrines. Mormons say that Jesus is a created being and that he has a soul and that soul was implanted into Mary. The Mormons believe that Jesus is the highest intelligent being in all the universe, next to Lucifer who in their theological beliefs causes Satan, to be the brother of Jesus. Jehovah Witnesses follow much along the same line of reasoning as they too make Jesus to be an angel who God transformed into a cell to become a man. Jehovah Witnesses then make Jesus to be a god. Historically Christians have believed that Jesus is God and that He in a hypostatic union with God and Mary is both Man and God. Mormons say that they hold the bible (rightly translated according to Joseph Smith, Jr.) to be true and so do the Jehovah Witnesses albeit they use the Critical Text for their translation rather than the Received Text that contains the majority of all extant manuscripts. 

     This is Christmas the time of the year that we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, so who is this Jesus? Is Jesus just another soul, albeit to be of the highest intelligence, or an angel that God created to create all things? Or is Jesus God?

Is Jesus God and Man in one joined together in a body? 

     The narrative of the birth of Jesus may make you wonder as to the truth. An angel came to Joseph in a dream. Let us look at the Greek to get a better understanding for a Greek person would not have trouble understanding the words written in this narrative. How are we to understand "an angel of the Lord?" Could this "an angel" be just another angel being used as the means to bring this narrative to Joseph? The word angel means a messenger, a supernatural being who at times bears a message on behalf of God. In the Old Testament the angel of the Lord is identified with God and in instances there is a distinction between the Lord and the angel. These terms: "the angel of the Lord," and the Lord," and "God" are interchangeable. When the angel came to Hagar in the Sarai desert she stated and names Him: "You are the God who sees me" (Genesis 16:13). There was a curse put on the people of Meroz by the angel of the Lord (Judges 5:23), and only God can execute a curse so this calls into question as to who this is angel of God. The angel of the Lord executes judgment, carries out a ministry of reconciliation. There is a connection between the angel of the Lord and the preincarnate appearance of Jesus Christ which cannot be denied. Furthermore, the angel of the Lord accepts worship as He did from Manoah and his wife (Judges 13:9-22). The functions by the angel of the Lord in the Old Testament can be seen to prefigure the reconciling ministry of Jesus. The Greek in this case, in this verse is:
άγγελος (a singular masculine noun without the article and can be translated: a angel, or the angel or angel, and the text will determine if the word "an" can be used)  κυρίου (A noun that is genitive: of is the word that is genitive, or of the). So we can use angel of the Lord, the angle of the Lord, or angel, but the context is referring to a being so the words could be "an" or "the" and we now know that this angel is of the Lord. 

     The narrative then state: "For that which is conceived in here is of the Holy Ghost" and the Greek is: τό (the) γὰρ (for) (those to words are to be translated "that") ὲν(in) αὺτη̣ˆ(her, this word is feminine) γεννηθὲν (nominative, singular,neuter, participle, arorist, passive") this word refers to coming into existence, to be crated, to exist in its etymology but in this case it means what is born or produced, offspring, progeny. ὲκ (denotes origin or source and after passive verbs as is γεννηθὲν it can be translated by6, of, or from, making the agent. νεύματός  (Nominative, masculine, without the article can be translated the spirit, a spirit, or spirit and the context determines the article that is implied. The next determines that that the article is "the." ὲστιν (third person singlular, present tense, indicative) therefore is a strong word meaning "is" άγίου (this word is genitive and means "of" holy). 

     Begotten is from beget and means to generate, offspring, to produce as an effect. Nothing can be begotten which is not produced from that which is begetting. What this begotten was producing was of the Begetter an is holy as the one Begetting. Jesus was not created but begotten, or produced from the One who is the Begetter, and this one begotten is holy as is the Begetter. Therefore this One conceived by the Holy Spirit which is God produces Himself to be joined with humanity and is God while taking on the form of a human. Jesus as His name was to be called then is both God and Man in one flesh. He came to die for sin, to pay the debt owed tot the Godhead, to God Himself. Man could never pay this debt so God paid it Himself. 

      This is Christmas, that God came to earth to become the Savior, not as a Spirit, but as Man, a Man who revealed God to us, this God who cannot be seen by human eyes. this Baby had but one mission, to die, and to die sinless, not having the sin of Adam that plagues mankind who are the progeny of Adam. 

     Now this One who will be brought forth shall be called "Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. This can only be true if God is actually with us and this is the case with this Baby Jesus, God now resided until His death with men on earth, God is with us, and will be with us for all eternity. This is the Baby lying in a manger, the Savior. 

     This is Christmas.

The LORD also shall roar out of Zion,

     and utter His voice from Jerusalem;

and the heavens and the earth shall shake:

     but the LORD will be the hope of His 

people, and the strength of the Children 

    of Israel. So shall ye know that I am

the LORD your God dwelling in Zion,

    My holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem

be holy, and there shall no strangers pass

   through her any more.

                         Joel 3:16-17

God Is With Us: Celebrate His Birth

Richard L. Crumb