The Bible tells us, "The righteous shall live by faith" (Galatians 3:11), a principle echoed by the apostle Paul when he said, "for we walk by faith, not by sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7). Faith is not a matter of believing something without evidence. The scriptures also reveal that "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Romans 10:17). Many look at faith as something an individual follows blindly. Jehovah does not expect us to follow blindly in areas where the truth can be verified. In areas that cannot be verified, God gives us ample evidence of the reliability of His word. It is foolish to argue the subject of faith, because everyone applies it in life. Even the atheist that believes in the "Big Bang" theory accepts it by faith. Any belief that is not based upon empirical knowledge is based upon faith. A recent article was published that affirmed the "current theory holds that the universe began with the Big Bang, an event that caused space to expand in a fraction of a second from a tiny speck to an immensity bathed in heat and radiation. It took an estimated 300 million years for the universe to cool and for the first stars to form from hydrogen and helium" (Paul Recer, Associated Press Writer). The same astronomers that contrived their admitted "theory" would possibly laugh at someone who held the position "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (Genesis 1:1). Yet, they cannot tell you where their "speck" came from nor what caused it to explode into "an immensity bathed in heat and radiation." Regardless of the position a person holds regarding creation, it requires "faith." This article isn’t intended to debate, nor address the skeptic. It is to affirm, out of faith (that comes by hearing the word of God), how God brought His Son into the world.

The scriptures tell us, "Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found with child of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 1:18). The scriptures say, concerning the Messiah, "Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body didst thou prepare for me" (Hebrews 10:5). When Jesus said, concerning the Messiah, "If David then calleth him Lord, how is he his Son" (Matthew 22:45), he established the fact that the Messiah pre-existed David. Matthew chapter one expresses how the body came to be that the Messiah would utilize to the glory of the Father, in the giving of himself for the salvation of mankind. The scriptures tell us how this came about. The apostle affirms that the statements of Isaiah, "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel" (7:14), applied to the Messiah. The virgin birth of Christ is not something that can be proven by empirical knowledge. But prophecies necessitated that such was to be the case, and it should not seem impossible, even to the atheist that believes the universe grew from a speck to "an immensity bathed in heat and radiation" in "a fraction of a second," that a God, who is purported to have created the heavens and the earth in six days could cause a virgin to bring forth a child. Other prophecies related to the birth of Christ foretold where he was to be born. When Herod the king heard that the King of Jews had been born, he made inquiry of the scribes, and they directed him to the scripture, saying, "And thou Bethlehem, land of Judah, art in no wise least among the princes of Judah: for out of thee shall come forth a governor, who shall be shepherd of my people Israel" (Matthew 2:6; Micah 5:2). What brought Joseph and Mary from Nazareth to Bethlehem was the enrollment: "And it came to pass in those days, there went out a decree from Cæsar Augustus, that all the world should be enrolled…And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judæa, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David; to enrol himself with Mary, who was betrothed to him, being great with child. And it came to pass, while they were there, the days were fulfilled that she should be delivered" (Luke 2:1-6).

The particulars of the birth of Christ are not only interesting but also a matter of prophecy. The birth of Jesus was well-planned and well-executed by God, that He could bring about salvation for all mankind. Have you thought about your relationship with God, in connection with Jesus of Nazareth?