Sermon: Christmas At First – Did We Really Need a Virgin Birth? – Gal 4.4 (12/21/25)
Introduction
Turn in your Bibles to Galatians 4.
Let us be honest, the story of Jesus's life, from beginning to end, is strange.
It is not just surprising.
It is not merely unexpected.
It is genuinely odd.
If Hollywood were given the assignment to write a movie script featuring God coming to earth, the Jesus story is not what they would write.
Hollywood would give us a coronation, not a cradle.
They would open with brilliant lights exploding across the sky...
Fireworks visible from all corners of the planet...
A global broadcast announcing, "GOD HAS ARRIVED!"
They would include a chorus of 10,000 archangels circling the globe, shaking the planet with their voices...
They would have had God coming to earth with some grand demonstration of power and wealth...
They would have every knee bowed and every tongue confessing...
GOD HAS COME TO EARTH!
Instead, we have...
A vulnerable baby...
Born to a young peasant woman...
A virgin...
In a borrowed stable...
In an unfamiliar town...
With little fanfare...
This is not the arrival we would script...
BUT IT IS EXACTLY THE KIND OF ARRIVAL OUR SALVATION REQUIRED!
Scripture
Let's look at the verse we began to study last week to see what happened and why.
Galatians 4.4 | When the time came to completion, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law. (CSB)
When the time came to completion...
God sent his son...
His son...
Born of a woman...
Born under the law...
Let's circle back to the most recognizable Christmas phrase in this verse...
Born of a woman...
This points to one of the most important and helpful truths in Scripture.
I want us to see what this means...
Biologically
Theologically
Practically
What does it mean that Jesus was Born of a Woman?
I. It means something biologically.
Recently, I heard someone ask an interesting question...
When the Bible says Jesus was "born of a woman," what does that actually mean?
Was Jesus, the divine Son of the Father, IMPLANTED in Mary's womb?
Something like what doctors today call gestational surrogacy?
In GESTATIONAL SURROGACY, an already fertilized embryo is implanted in a woman's womb.
And the child receives no genetic contribution from the woman who carries the pregnancy.
OR was Jesus conceived in a mysterious but real way...
Such that he is genuinely and genetically connected to Mary?
Was Mary Jesus's surrogate mother?
OR was Mary Jesus's biological and genetic mother?
DID JESUS LOOK LIKE MARY?
Well, while the Bible does not give us a medical report, it does answer that question...
And the answer to that question is important both theologically and practically.
Let's turn to see how the start of Mary's pregnancy is described in the Gospel of Luke...
Scripture
Luke 1.26–31
Luke 1.26 | In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, (CSB)
Luke 1.27 | to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. (CSB)
Luke 1.28 | And the angel came to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you.” (CSB)
Luke 1.29 | But she was deeply troubled by this statement, wondering what kind of greeting this could be. (CSB)
Luke 1.30 | Then the angel told her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. (CSB)
Luke 1.31 | Now listen: You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. (CSB)
The Greek word translated "conceive" (συλλήμψῃ) is also used to describe how Elizabeth became pregnant.
This is significant.
Luke intentionally uses ordinary pregnancy language to describe both Elizabeth's and Mary's conception.
So, clearly, Mary is identified as the true MOTHER of Jesus, in a real, biological, and genetic sense.
Does the Bible tell us more?
Yes. Let's keep reading.
Luke 1.34–35
Luke 1.34 | Mary asked the angel, “How can this be, since I have not had sexual relations with a man?” (CSB)
Luke 1.35 | The angel replied to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. (CSB)
Luke does not describe mechanics, but he clearly describes AGENCY.
The conception was accomplished by the AGENCY of the Holy Spirit.
There was no human father involved.
Joseph was in no way the father of Jesus.
So, Mary is the true mother (in both a genetic and gestational sense) of Jesus.
JESUS'S HUMANITY IS DERIVED FROM MARY.
Yet Jesus is not a human person who later becomes divine.
He is a divine person.
He is the eternal Son of the Father.
He takes on true human nature through conception by the Holy Spirit.
This exact truth is confirmed throughout Scripture...
John 1.1 | In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.(CSB)
John 1.14 | The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (CSB)
1 John 4.2 | This is how you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, (CSB)
This is important, probably more important than you know or recognize.
As Gregory of Nazianzus (Fourth Century Cappadocian Father) wrote:
Whoever does not accept Holy Mary as the Mother of God has no relation with the Godhead. Whoever says that he was channeled, as it were, through the Virgin but not formed within her divinely and humanly ('divinely' because without a husband, 'humanly' because by law of conception) is likewise godless.
To understand just how important this is, let's look at what it means THEOLOGICALLY...
II. It means something theologically.
Our salvation requires that Jesus is both divine and human.
If Jesus were not divine...
He would not be the true expression of the Father's love.
John 3.16 | For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. (CSB)
He could not approach God on our behalf and present an infinitely sufficient offering to God for us.
Hebrews 9.14 | how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works so that we can serve the living God? (CSB)
Hebrews 7.25 | Therefore, he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, since he always lives to intercede for them. (CSB)
Ephesians 5.2 | and walk in love, as Christ also loved us and gave himself for us, a sacrificial and fragrant offering to God. (CSB)
He could not be our Savior.
Isaiah 43.11 | I—I am the Lord. Besides me, there is no Savior. (CSB)
If Jesus were not human...
He could not represent us.
Hebrews 2.14 | Now since the children have flesh and blood in common, Jesus also shared in these, so that through his death he might destroy the one holding the power of death—that is, the devil— (CSB)
Hebrews 2.15 | and free those who were held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death.(CSB)
Hebrews 2.16 | For it is clear that he does not reach out to help angels, but to help Abraham’s offspring. (CSB)
Hebrews 2.17 | Therefore, he had to be like his brothers and sisters in every way, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in matters pertaining to God, to make atonement for the sins of the people. (CSB)
Hebrews 2.18 | For since he himself has suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted. (CSB)
He could not obey for us.
We learned about this last Sunday...
Look at how Paul says it in Romans...
Romans 5.19 | For just as through one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so also through the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.(CSB)
A Word Picture of the Incarnation
Paul gives us a word picture that captures the theological meaning of the incarnation.
Scripture
2 Corinthians 8.9 | For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ: Though he was rich, for your sake he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich. (CSB)
Though he was rich...
The glory and honor that was his before the incarnation...
Philippians 2.6 | (Christ) who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. (CSB)
Philippians 2.7 | Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, (CSB)
He became poor...
He emptied himself...
Philippians 2.7 | Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, (CSB)
Theologians call this the kenosis.
This is the Koine Greek word for "emptying."
It is not Christ becoming less than God, but humbling himself by becoming a man.
The theological word is condescension.
He emptied himself by laying aside the privileges of divine glory...
For your sake...
Why?
Why did he EMPTY HIMSELF?
Why did he BECOME POOR?
He did it for our sake!
So that by his poverty you might become rich...
What are our riches?
Salvation
Adoption
Inheritance
Paint picture outlined by this verse...
Jesus went from rich to poor...
So, that we can go from poor to rich!
That is the message of Christmas!
GOSPEL PRESENTATION
III. It means something practically.
Why did we spend time on the biology and theology of the incarnation?
It matters practically.
It matters in the daily practice of living.
Doctrine is never just doctrine.
It cashes out in daily life.
Because Jesus took on real flesh, and because we share one Father by grace, He is not ashamed to call us brothers and sisters.
When we read Hebrews 2, we find a long passage about the mechanics of the incarnation of Jesus...
Highlights...
Hebrews 2.9 | But we do see Jesus—made lower than the angels for a short time so that by God’s grace he might taste death for everyone—crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death. (CSB)
Hebrews 2.14 | Now since the children have flesh and blood in common, Jesus also shared in these, so that through his death he might destroy the one holding the power of death—that is, the devil— (CSB)
Hebrews 2.15 | and free those who were held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death. (CSB)
But one of the sweetest lines in the whole passage is that Jesus calls you and me:
Brothers and sisters!
Hebrews 2.11 | For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, (CSB)
Hebrews 2.17 | Therefore, he had to be like his brothers and sisters in every way, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in matters pertaining to God, to make atonement for the sins of the people. (CSB)
Without the incarnation, Jesus could not and would not be our brother!
What is so amazing about Jesus being our brother?
I have five categories in your notes.
I'm going to give you some homework.
I'm only going to explain two of these.
And I'm going to let you think through how the brotherhood of Jesus accomplishes the other three.
A. The brotherhood of Jesus secures our salvation.
B. The brotherhood of Jesus banishes our shame.
What is shame?
Many people talk about SHAME today, and for good reason.
Shame is more than guilt.
Guilt focuses on a specific failure.
Guilt says: I did something wrong.
I owe a debt.
Shame focuses on BEING a failure.
Shame says: I am disgraced.
I do not belong.
I am a failure.
Shame cuts deeper than guilt.
It isolates.
It keeps people out of church.
If fuels addiction, despair, and even suicide.
How does the brotherhood of Jesus banish our shame?
FIRST, JESUS WAS NEVER GUILTY OF SIN, BUT HE FULLY EXPERIENCED SHAME.
Can I give you a quick and incomplete list of the ways Jesus faced shame in his earthly life?
He was conceived under suspicion.
The Pharisees accused Jesus of being illegitimate.
John 8.41 | You’re doing what your father does.” “We weren’t born of sexual immorality,” they said. “We have one Father—God.” (CSB)
He was born into poverty.
He was ridiculed for being a manual laborer.
Mark 6.3 | Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And aren’t his sisters here with us?” So they were offended by him. (CSB)
He was rejected in his home town.
He was accused of blasphemy and demon possession.
John 8.48 | The Jews responded to him, “Aren’t we right in saying that you’re a Samaritan and have a demon?” (CSB)
He was thought to be out of his mind by his family.
Mother, step-father, siblings...
Mark 3.21 | When his family heard this, they set out to restrain him, because they said, “He’s out of his mind.” (CSB)
He was abandoned by his disciples.
He was betrayed by a close friend.
He was arrested like a criminal.
He was mocked, beaten, and wrongly accused.
He was stripped naked.
Crucifixion involved public exposure.
Nudity was profoundly shameful in Jewish culture.
He was executed as a criminal.
So, what did Jesus do?
Hebrews 12.2 | keeping our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy that lay before him, he endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (CSB)
What does that mean for us?
Shame pronounced its verdict over Jesus:
You are unworthy.
You do not belong.
You deserve rejection.
But Jesus, our brother:
Bore that verdict...
Refused its authority...
TRUSTED THE FATHER’S VERDICT INSTEAD.
And the resurrection is God’s answer to shame.
God PUBLICLY overturned the world’s verdict on Jesus.
The shamed One was vindicated.
The rejected One was enthroned.
Now here is the key:
Because Jesus is our brother, his vindication becomes ours.
Shame no longer gets the final word.
So when shame speaks to me…
When shame says...
When shame says, “You are a failure...”
When shame says, “You do not belong...”
When shame says, “God could never accept you...”
We look to Jesus.
We stand with our brother in his death...
We stand where shame was exhausted...
And we stand with our brother in his resurrection...
We stand where God declared, once and for all, “This one belongs.”
Shame may accuse...
But it can no longer exile those whom Jesus is not ashamed to call brothers and sisters.
C. The brotherhood of Jesus lightens our suffering.
As Christians, when we suffer, we usually default to one of two attitudes or interpretations.
1. We can see our suffering as evidence that God has abandoned us.
We assume...
God is distant.
God is displeased.
God has stepped away.
Suffering becomes isolating.
Pain turns inward and hardens into despair.
2. We can reframe our suffering as fellowship with Christ.
Not punishment...
Not neglect...
But PARTICIPATION...
And our suffering can draw us closer and closer with the Lord.
We can learn to even celebrate our suffering.
Philippians 3.10 | My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death. (CSB)
Our suffering does not have to drive us away from Christ...
It can draw us into deeper communion with him.
How can we do the second one?
It goes back to the incarnation...
Jesus born of a woman (Galatians 4.4).
Jesus is fully human as well as divine.
Jesus is our brother.
And our brother suffered deeply.
Jesus suffered terribly in order to identify with us in our suffering.
Hebrews 2.18 | For since he himself has suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted. (CSB)
Hebrews 4.15 | For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin. (CSB)
Romans 8.17 | and if children, also heirs—heirs of God and coheirs with Christ—if indeed we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him. (CSB)
Because Jesus is our brother, suffering is no longer proof that God has left us...
It is evidence that Christ understands us.
Suffering Often Brings People Together...
Examples...
Groups of ladies who have lost their husbands...
Groups of men who have fought wars together...
Parents who have lost a child...
Teammates who have gone through 2-a-days together...
Disaster survivors...
That is a real thing that points to an even more real truth...
Shared suffering FORGES STRONG BONDS that comfort alone cannot.
Your suffering can bring you closer to your brother, Jesus, who suffered.
And walking with your brother Jesus will give you strength in your own suffering.
Let me show you how this can work...
(This is a $1000 worth of biblical counseling for free!)
Let's say, I am suffering.
Life is hard...
Medical...
Finances...
Relationships...
My instinct is to ask:
Where is God?
Then I remember:
My brother, Jesus, suffered too.
He suffered with me in mind.
And now, as I suffer, I keep him in mind.
I make a deliberate choice...
I choose to view my suffering not as abandonment by God, but as fellowship with Christ.
I reframe my suffering as fellowship with Christ.
I am not walking this road alone.
I am walking it with my brother.
D. The brotherhood of Jesus safeguards our inheritance.
E. The brotherhood of Jesus gives us a mission.
Conclusion
Do you understand from the biology to the theology to the practicality, the significance and value of the virgin birth and the full humanity of Jesus?
One of my favorite Puritans, Stephen Charnock, wrote...
That God should be manifested in the flesh is the most astonishing wonder that ever astonished men or angels.
Let us celebrate that Jesus was as Paul said, "born of a woman," this Christmas season.