THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST

One of the greatest things that man has been battling with since creation is Sin. God created man to have fellowship with man but sin destroyed that relationship. One way adopted by man to cleanse himself of sin, as in the past, was to use the blood of slain lamb- which could not clean man of sin anyway.

As a loving God, who is always drawing man closer to Himself, He decided on a wonderful plan to get man out of the mess of sin and reconcile with man. But how can God, as spirit as he is, shed blood to cleanse man –for without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sin (Heb. 9:22)

There was then the need to have a perfect sacrificial lamb- without spot or wrinkle, to be sacrificed for this purpose of God. How did God do it? Why would God do such a thing? Why would he come as a baby, instead of appearing in power and majesty? Why make himself a true man and live among us, when he knew fully well how terribly he would be treated?

Jesus

Who was Jesus Christ? Why did He come to this Earth? What did He accomplish? Unlike any other baby, the one born that night in Bethlehem was unique in all of history. He was not created by a human father and mother. He had a heavenly pre-existence (John 1:1-3, 14). By mystery, He is God, the Son—Creator of the universe (Philippians 2:5-11). In the birth of Jesus, we see the eternal, all-powerful and all-knowing Creator come to earth in the flesh.

Why Jesus Was Born

God's great plan for mankind included the necessity of a savior and a redeemer of mankind. Here are a few reasons why the greatest of all, Jesus the Messiah, the very Son of God, had to be born:

1. Jesus had to be born because of mankind's sin.

God created Adam and Eve and placed them in a beautiful environment that supplied their every need. In the Garden of Eden our original human parents found food plentiful, animals tame and a loving teacher—God Himself—accompanying them and teaching them everything they needed to know.

They had access to the tree of life. They had every advantage, so what went wrong? Adam and Eve did what every other human being has done: They sinned. They disobeyed God.

Why did Satan's deception of Adam and Eve cause Christ to be born? The Savior had to be born because mankind, after the sin of Adam and Eve, would have been eternally lost—cut off from God—had Jesus not come to earth and allowed Himself to be sacrificed to save mankind from its sins, which began with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.

2. Jesus had to be born because God wanted to reveal His own character to humanity.

God wanted to reveal His righteous character to Adam and Eve and to all of mankind so they could become like Him in mind and spirit.

God created our two original parents in His own image (Genesis 1:26-27; 2:7). Accordingly, God instructed them to exercise their free will by urging them to look to Him as the revealer of good and evil. God gave Adam and Eve the opportunity to embrace His divine wisdom. Tragically, Adam and Eve followed the father of lies, Satan, which severed their close relationship with God.

So Jesus had to be born because Adam and Eve failed to carry out God's mandate to glorify Him in their lives. It was left for the Son of God, thousands of years later, to ultimately fulfill the divine revelation of God's character and purpose for man.

3. Jesus had to be born to remove the sins of humankind through a perfect sacrifice.

Hundreds of years before Jesus' birth, God revealed through His faithful servant Moses a religious system that included animal sacrifices and offerings. The blood of these animals were purported to cleanse our sins but did not. The need for a perfect sacrifice meant that Jesus had to be born. It was because the earlier, physical sacrifices were imperfect. They could not take away the penalty for sin (Hebrews 10:4).

Jesus had to be born because, without the true sacrifice, humanity was doomed. All would die, with no hope beyond the grave.

4. Jesus had to be born for mankind to have a Mediator.

Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant. Under the old covenant, the priesthood was staffed by the Levites, as revealed in the Old Testament, was imperfect (Heb. 5:1, 7:11, 8:3, and 9:7). Under the New Covenant, God replaced the sacrifices of the Levitical priesthood with the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Himself. Jesus had to be born because the salvation of mankind requires something better (Heb. 8:6, 9:15, 12:24).

5. Jesus had to be born for God to make His Spirit available to all humankind.

Not only did Jesus have to be born, but He had to pay the penalty for our sins through His own death, then be resurrected to ascend to the Father as our High Priest. Only then would humanity at large be able to receive and benefit from the incredible gift of God's Holy Spirit.

On the Day of Pentecost, Peter made a statement in (Acts 2:32-33, 38). Why was Jesus' physical birth essential to His followers' receiving of the Holy Spirit? Because no one is worthy to receive the Holy Spirit and we must be begotten of God through His Spirit to receive eternal life.

6. Jesus had to be born for God to redeem mankind.

The salvation of mankind was dependent on Jesus coming to earth and living a perfect life, then dying as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. Jesus had to be born because He is our Redeemer. God in His infinite mercy foreordained His plan of redemption for sinful mankind through Christ (1 Peter 1:20). Jesus was declared to be "the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world" to redeem humanity (Revelation 13:8).

But why does sin require a redeemer? (Romans 3:23, 6:23). Since the wages of sin is death, redemption requires the sacrificial death of the Redeemer. That is why Jesus came- as our redeemer.

Know this

Jesus the Messiah is the promised Redeemer. He had to be born for humanity to be redeemed from sin. As we noted earlier, Peter summarized what we must do to be redeemed: (Acts 2:38). Through Christ's blood, God forgives our sins, and by Christ we receive the promise of eternal inheritance (Hebrews 9:12-15).

Through Christ, God has restored that which was lost in Eden—access to the tree of life. Moreover, repentant people have become the temple of the living God.

Brethren, God has made it possible for all people to enter an intimate relationship with Him—which is why Jesus had to be born. Do you know this Jesus? Are you sure? Have you accepted Him as your savior and Lord? Is your lifestyle in keeping with repentance? Remember, Jesus is coming soon to judge us. Are you ready? Amen!