As demonstrated by our previous article, we are worshiping the one and only God who has offered salvation to mankind. Because of this offer of salvation, He becomes mankind’s Saviour. In fact of the 24 times that the word is used in the New Testament, 8 of these refer directly to our God. An example is found in I Tim. 4:10 — ‘For therefore we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe’.
To bring about this salvation God has worked through people. In the past, the children of Israel were miraculously delivered from the land of Egypt by God when He established Moses as his representative. In fact we are told Moses was to be as God unto them. However it was not Moses that led the Israelite’s into the land of promise, but another was appointed for this distinction. His name was Joshua which means Saviour.
In exactly the same manner God has seen fit to lead the believing part of mankind to a promised land of salvation. He did this, as in the past through another whose name also means Saviour, even the Lord Jesus Christ. It is this Jesus then whom God has appointed to be His instrument in bringing about redemption. He even named him through His angel. We read in Luke 1:30-31 “And the angel said unto her, fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favor with God, and behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call His name Jesus.”
Yet, there was another uniqueness about this person for he was not just another of the saviors that God had provided but was His very own Son. This was a direct act of God to bring salvation to man who was wandering in the way of death. This Jesus of Nazareth was the Son of God. In verse 34 of that same chapter of Luke we find “Then said Mary unto the angel, how shall this be, seeing I know not a man ? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.”
To emphasize that Joseph who became Mary’s husband was not the father of this child and that his origin came from some other source, God provided both the genealogies of Mary and Joseph to be left on record. We find Joseph’s line developed in the 1st chapter of Matthew and in Luke 3 we have Mary’s lineage. Although women’s genealogies were never given, it was absolutely necessary in this case. Since Christ had no earthly father to develop from, it was necessary to prove that he was from the line of David because the Saviour had been prophesied to come from this household. Hence Mary’s lineage. In fact, the angel talking to Mary made it very plain that Jesus Christ was that promised seed when he said, “He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of his Father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever: and of his kingdom there shall be no end.” (Luke 1:32-33). That statement was a direct answer to the promise recorded in 2 Sam. 7:10-16.
Further making His parenthood known, He caused to be written in Matt. 1:18- 24, .. “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found of child of the Holy Spirit.” . . . “Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name Jesus.” In the three gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke we find God attesting to the fact, Jesus was His beloved Son. The two occasions were at the baptism of Jesus and at His transfiguration on the mount.
Here then quite plainly we have read of the Holy Spirit (God) working among mankind, through the virgin Mary, creating His only begotten Son. “God is a Spirit” (John 4:24). That which eminates from Him is power or the ability to perform any of those things which He sees fit to do. When the power is manifested in a super-natural way, ‘Holy’ is added to it to show a separate or sanctified act. It is this that we see manifested through the Apostles in the form of miracles performed in the Name of Jesus. It is the same thing that is shown through many of the early believers when they received a special gift such as the ability to speak in a foreign tongue without first learning it or to interpret that tongue without first learning it.
This same power that worked on Mary to produce the Son of God was that which we read of when we for the first time looked at the beginning of this book of God and read in the 1st chapter of Genesis at verse 2, “And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” All of creation was by our God so this was no new thing as we get to Jesus’ time.
When Jesus was about 30 years old, it became time for Him to start His ministry. Once again God was there, ensuring that He was the ‘Christ.’ That name means Anointed. So it became fitting that God would publicly anoint Jesus with the Holy Spirit (with His power), making Him the Anointed Saviour. The testimony reads, “And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matt. 3:16-17).
The baptist, John, had this additional testimony to make when he was queried about Jesus; “For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand.” (John 3:34-35) That power was shown to all in the short ministry of our Lord. Never did He attempt to take the credit for anything He did, but always pointed to the Father as the source of His strength. In John 9:4 He declared: “I must work the works of Him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.” Again in John 8:28 it is recorded, “Then said Jesus unto them, when ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am He, and that I do nothing of myself, but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.” Thus, the Anointed Savior, Jesus with the Spirit or power of God, proceeded to conquer sin and cause salvation to become a possibility for all men.
We read in Isaiah 7:14 “Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” Do we believe that sign that was given to us from our Creator? Isaiah also states in 11:1 “And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord”. If we believe the sign and are convinced that this is a legitimate claim from God, are we prepared to partake of that wisdom, of the understanding, of that counsel, of that might, of that knowledge, and most of all, partake of that fear of the Lord that is offered in this Bible? There is no price attached to the offer of God to supply the word of life to us. He only asks that we partake of Jesus that we might gain the salvation that is offered to all mankind.
Lay hold of this escape from the road to death by believing that God is our Saviour and _________ that Jesus of Nazareth was the Son of God, begotten of the virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit, without the intervention of man, and afterwards anointed with the same spirit, without measure, at His baptism.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One