In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.
I John 4:9
Hello Firestorm:
In the Monday Night Forum, we have been talking about Jesus Stuff and about Him being, the only begotten God Son of Yahweh. I’m still amazed thinking about God giving birth to His Son. I don’t know all the details of how it was done, but creating life, is certainly not new or too hard for our God!
According to Scripture (John 4:24), God is Spirit, so when He birthed His Son, well then, He is Spirit, too. He is of the same kind and nature as His Father. Spirit begot Spirit and since they are both “Spirit,” my thoughts would be, they probably don’t have flesh like us.
Another thought crossed my mind in all of this. I had not considered the idea of God creating His Son for Himself, but when I read through Proverbs 8, I suddenly saw where they were having a great time and doing things together. Did you see that?
I don’t know how much time it took to create and do all the things mentioned in Proverbs 8, but I assume they could have continued as long as they wanted, except for one thing, God’s love for us. I think He heard our SOS prayers. (SOS = Save Our Souls). God knew we were messed up and needed help and He still wanted us, so He developed a plan to get us back.
Please understand, I am not saying Yeshua was not involved in the plan and/or He did not love us, or want to help us, but it appears God sent Him. Either way….Yeshua, the Son, He was the Plan.
Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. John 8:4 NKJV
Most of you know by now, I have a lot of questions and I ponder and wonder, on how things work in the Kingdom. I am always seeking the Father with my questions of how come, why, and what is that? For instance, I was pondering on how in the world did He put flesh on Yeshua, when I found this Scripture.
Therefore, when He came into the world, He said:
“Sacrifice and offering You did not desire,
But a body You have prepared for Me. Hebrews 10:5
The Scripture didn’t answer my original question, but I figure it could still lead me to the answer.. All I know is, I could not let go of those words: “But a body You have prepared for Me.” God prepared a body for His Son. So, how did that work and what made Him pick Mary and how did He prepare her to carry His Son? As you can see, now I have more questions, but the really cool thing is, I know God has the answer to all of them, so this is a mystery for me to go, dig and seek Him, with all my heart about the things concerning Mary and His Son.I’m going to start digging here.
The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come to you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the holy child developing inside you will be called the Son of God. Luke 1:35 GWT
I have no clue how God did everything He needed to do to get Yeshua from His Spirit form into Mary’s Body, however I do have some basic scientific information about the female body and how He might have placed Him in her womb in a basic embryonic (fetal) life form.Nature reveals there are three basic stages of mammalian gestation: germinal, embryonic and fetal. The first stage is called the germinal stage and is the period of gestation from fertilization or conception, when the egg meets the sperm to implantation of the embryo in the uterus.The embryonic stage of gestation is the period after implantation, during which all of the major organs and structures within the growing mammal are formed. Once the embryo is fully formed, it expands, grows, and continues to develop in what is known as the fetal development stage.As the saying goes, “God’s Got This.”
Evidently God placed Jesus in Mary’s womb in the fetal stage and her job was to nurture and provide all He needed so He could grow and fully develop.I have another question. How could Jesus be conceived in Mary’s womb and not have sin? She was of Adam, so she was born, just like us with his fallen sin nature. If Jesus is a part of her, wouldn’t He also inherit that sin nature?Get this, cause it is really cool…. The answer is in the way an embryonic life develops in the womb of the mother. According to scientific fact, Jesus did not and could not have had any of Mary’s DNA, nor was He related to Mary, by blood or family line (descent) in anyway whatsoever, because of the stage of gestation He was in when His Father implanted Him in her womb. God knows how He created us, it’s a no brainer for Him.
I mean no disrespect here when I share, Mary became what is known as a, “gestational” or Surrogate Mother for Jesus. She was not his biological mother and it is a biological fact, in a womb that carries a child, the mother and the child have their own completely independent circulatory systems and the mother’s blood does not in any way mix with the child’s (fetus’) blood. So no sin nature was transferred to Yeshua through Mary.
I hope you won’t think I am being sacrilegious or making light of what happened with Jesus and Mary and maybe I have seen too many science fiction movies, but I am reminded of a movie called, Fantastic Voyage, a 1966 science fiction film, where a group of people are shrunk to microscopic size, placed in a submarine like a capsule and injected into the blood of an injured scientist to repair damage in his brain. There was tremendous danger in their mission from the get go and some did not survive. Interesting don’t you think?
Think about it. Here is Yeshua and He is being sent on a mission, reduced to an embryonic cell and placed in the womb of a human being, so He can enter the world, sacrifice His life to pay the penalty for the sins of the world and reconcile all of us to the Father. Who knows, maybe the movie makers got the idea for this movie from the story of Jesus and Mary. I know it’s a stretch, but you never know. (smile)
Christ was sent by God in the “likeness” of “Sinful Flesh,” but not in the likeness of the “Sinful Nature.” He did not have the sinful nature all humans inherit from the first Adam. Christ, the second Adam is the image of the invisible God, who has always had a righteous Holy Nature and that’s why He was able to resist the temptations of the world. Maybe Adam and Eve originally were born with the Nature of God like Jesus, but when they sinned, they lost it? For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh. Romans 8:3
For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses,
but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Hebrews 4:15
I kinda have an idea now of what happened after God put Jesus in Mary, but I am still wondering why He picked her. Did you ever wonder about the woman God picked to have His Son? I mean really, The God who gave specific instructions for the building of a temple, telling His People use the finest in Gold, Silver and Jewels, the God who puts Gold on the Streets in Heaven and who is known as, the God of Excellence. He who put the spirit of excellence in Daniel (Dan 6:3) and in 2 Peter 1:3-4 offers us to partake in and of His divine nature and excellence. Would He not be as meticulous in seeking the vessel He would put His Son into? Wouldn’t He require a vessel of excellence?
His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.
2 Peter 1:3-4
Would He just casually pick anyone? Would He not be the Potter who would mold the clay to bring forth excellence? Would He use just anyone, or would He find the perfect, the excellent “Ark,” to carry Yeshua? I say Ark, because whomever would be chosen to carry the Son of God would bring the New Ark of the Covenant into the World.
The Old Ark Was the Physical Dwelling Place of the Shekinah Glory
The New Ark Was the Physical Dwelling Place of the Word Incarnate
The Old Testament Ark Contained the Commandments, Manna, & Aaron’s Rod
The New Testatment Ark Contained Christ Our Lord: Logos, Bread of Life, King/Priest
The Old Was Lost – Jeremiah sealed up (see below)
The New Ark is Found – Mary
2 Maccabees 2:4-8 The Old Testament Ark Sealed
It was also in the same document that the prophet, having received an oracle, ordered that the tent and the ark should follow with him, and that he went out to the mountain where Moses had gone up and had seen the inheritance of God. Jeremiah came and found a cave-dwelling, and he brought there the tent and the ark and the altar of incense; then he sealed up the entrance.
Some of those who followed him came up intending to mark the way, but could not find it. When Jeremiah learned of it, he rebuked them and declared, “The place shall remain unknown until God gathersHis people together again and shows his mercy. Then the Lord will disclose these things, and the glory of the Lord and the cloud will appear, as they were shown in the case of Moses, and as Solomon asked that the place should be specially consecrated.” (NRSV)
The 1611 King James version reads: “… As for that place, it shall be unknown until the time that God gatherHis people again together and receive them unto mercy….”
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I am still searching to find out about Mary, The New Ark of the Covenant, but on the trail to find more information about her, I am picking up some really cool nuggets. I am not sure why it is so hard to find out information about the one and only woman who birthed the Son of God? You would think it would be easy, course I am not looking for just information about her in Bethlehem and the Cross, I am looking for stuff about her personally and what made God choose her, from all the other women in the world at that time. My inquiring mind and spirit are hungry and want to know more.
WHY did Yahweh pick Mary – above all women?
A few years ago I read some things from the Forgotten Books of Eden about the Infancy of Jesus and there were bits and pieces revealing Mary’s heart to people and how they loved her, but again, my search is to find out how God prepared Mary’s body, not just physically, but spiritually? What did He do, or maybe, what I should be saying is, what did she do? No one is talking about that. Shouldn’t there be more about her for us to glean from? I think so!
The Norm….About Mary.
I can find the basics. Her name appears in the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew, she is known as the wife of Joseph, historically a peasant woman from the Tribe of Judah, in the lineage of King David. No one seems to know much about her mom or dad, but some say she came from a home of devout Jews, based on her “character” in Scriptures.
In the time period Mary lived, girls were not always trained in the Holy Scriptures, but to run the home and in the Jewish culture, when Mary was engaged to Joseph, the engagement or betrothal, was binding and could only be dissolved by a legal divorce. This engagement was signed by an official who came at least a year before the marriage took place to check and make sure everything was in order.It is believed Mary was quite young when she married and according to the “Handbook of Live in Bible Times,” by J.A. Thompson, Rabbis set the minimum age for marriage at 12 for girls. Most Israelite boys at that time married in their late teens, but women wed even earlier.In Isaiah 7:14, the prophet Isaiah stated the Messiah (God’s Son) would be born of a virgin, so Mary fit the bill. She was a young, unmarried, pure, godly and a humble small town girl from the insignificant village of Nazareth. Though she was of nobility, being in the line of King David, the family had lost all its status, because of the years of Israel’s captivity and years of foreign domination. This article said, “Mary was a peasant girl, not a princess.”
They continued. “Mary was an obedient follower and God does not look at the outward appearances, but always looks at the heart (I Sam 16:7) and when God looked at Mary, He saw an obedient woman who would live according to His will, just like her ancestor, David (Acts 13:22).
The family was so poor, when she went to the Temple to present Him to the Lord, she could only offer a pair of pigeons, the offering of the very poor. She could not give him any status in the culture of the day. Being poor and enduring a forced exile in Egypt (Matthew 2:13-15), Mary and Joseph had little education to pass on to Jesus.
Mary was a woman blessed by God, though she seemingly didn’t have much to offer. She possessed no wealth or family inheritance, and she boasted no fame or social status. Yet, she has been honored throughout all history, for her faithfulness and obedience to God in saying yes to giving birth to His Son.
According to this information, Mary is a poor peasant, no education, knew some about God, was obedient and I think it implied (God only looks at the heart), she was not pretty in the eyes of the world. Also the comment, “Mary and Joseph had little education to pass on to Jesus,” seems to say, they were all uneducated.
I don’t see any of this showing the nature or excellence of our God. I’m gonna get me a front loader and really start digging now.
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OK, I’m shifting and going to search for information on Mary’s parents to see if I can find out more about Mary through them.
Who were they?
Hallelujah, Got em! They are Joachim and Anne and get this, they are noted as Saints, in the Catholic Church. Interesting, don’t you think?
The Name Joachim: English (default): Joachin, Joachim, Joakhim, Yoachim, Yoyakim, Heli(Prince Alexander III “Helios”) ben Matthan.
The name Joachim is Hebrew meaning: May Jehovah exalt. God prepares.
Saint Anne’s name comes from the Hebrew Channah חַנָּה, (Hannah) meaning “favor” or “grace. Top Surname: ben Mattan, ben Jacob, Mother of Jesus and Salome.
Anne was born in Bethlehem, Judea. She married Joachim and it is written, they shared a wealthy and devout life, but they had no children. Joachim was born in Jerusalem, Israel.
It seems the Catholic Church knows who they are and celebrates them as the grandparents of Jesus Christ and the parents of Mary. The couple is appreciated, especially by the grandfathers and grandmothers of the world. The Greek Orthodox Church has a hymn, which sings gloriously, “As we celebrate the remembrance of thy righteous grand-parents, through them we beseech thee, O Lord, to save our souls”.
There can be no greater touching tribute than to be sung in praise and prayer in the sacred music of the Church. Another hymn contains the words, “Anna doth rejoice now that she is loosed from the bonds of barrenness, as she nourisheth the most pure one, calling all to praise him who hath given the world her who alone is Mother, yet hath known no man”.
The names of Joachim and Anna are an integral part of the Divine Liturgy, always mentioned in the prayerful conclusion of services with the words: “May the risen Christ, our true God, with the prayers of his pure and holy Mother, the power of the precious and life-giving Cross, the protection of the spiritual powers of Heaven…the holy and righteous ancestors Joachim and Anna…and all the saints whose memory we celebrate have mercy on us and save us”.
Since there is no greater part of the divine plan of the universe than motherhood, it follows St.Anna is given individual honour with an observance of a feast day in her name on July 26.
However, St. Joachim is also shown respect in being named as the patron of fathers, grandfathers, grandparents, married couples, cabinet makers and linen traders. Joachim, also known as Imran in Islam, is revered by Muslims for being the father of Mary and the grandfather of Jesus and also for being one of the Prophets of God with the Prophet Zachariah, as his successor. By tradition, Imran’s wife was Hannah, the Catholic Saint Anne.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joachim
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Anne
The information of Joachim and Anne (Ann, Anna, Hannah) is shrouded by twenty centuries of legend, but close scrutiny by biblical scholars has cleared away legend and established a more accurate and factual account, however meager, of the Saints Joachim and Anne.
There is no denying the word of the Apostle James, who saw fit to go to great lengths to glean facts about the parents of Mary and Mary, which he describes in a letter that somehow failed to find official acceptance. Conflicting views notwithstanding, it is definitely known that St Anne was of the prestigious Hebrew tribe of Levi. In the following link there is an excellent article regarding his letter.
http://acrod.org/readingroom/scripture/protoevangelium
Now I have some things to chew on
The following is the letter James the Apostle wrote about 150 AD
The Protevangelium
(The Infancy of Mary)
This is in PDF format and it is a free download. This is a wonderful letter from a long time ago, which the Lord has preserved for us to glean from. Many times we run to the store to buy a book released by someone today, whom we admire and seek to gather revelation and can pass by writings from the time when our faith was being birthed, which can bring forth understanding and revelation of what was happening to people, but more important, revealing what God was doing. After reading this, knowing it may not ALL be perfect, it reveals a better picture of Mary and why God might have trusted her with His most precious Son Yeshua.
http://www.asu.edu/courses/rel376/total-readings/james.pdf
St. Anne was the daughter of the high priest Nathan, who was wed to a namesake Mary. This high priest had two daughters besides the Mary who mothered Anne. They were called Sovin and Anna, both of whom became mothers in Bethlehem, but Anne was married in Galilee where Mary, the Theotokos, was born.
Ancient belief, attested to by a sermon of St John Damascene, was that Anne married once. In late medieval times, legend held that Anne was married three times first to Joachim, then to Clopas and finally to a man named Solomas and that each marriage produced one daughter: Mary, mother of Jesus, Mary of Clopas, and Mary Salomae, respectively. The sister of St Anne was Sobe, who was the mother of Saint Elizabeth. So, Mary’s mom and Elizabeth were cousins, which means Jesus and John the Baptist were related.
God moved in a mysterious way when Joachim and Anna prayed for a child and He granted each one of them their desire for a child. Both received a vision of an angel, who announced that Anne would conceive and bear a most wondrous child, however they didn’t know if they were going to get a son or a daughter and they didn’t have any knowledge of what lay in store for them and/or the world.
The Apostle James in the “Protoevangelium of James,” also known as the “Infancy of Mary,” is the one who quoted an angel of the Lord as saying to Anna, “the Lord hath heard thy prayer, and thou shalt conceive and bring forth, and thy seed shall be spoken of in all the world.”
The Apostle James goes on to say that Anna accepted with the words: “As the Lord my God liveth if I beget male or female, I will bring it as a gift to the Lord my God; and it shall minister unto him holy things all the days of its life.”
The use of the word “it” indicates Anna may have had premonitions but certainly no advance notice that ‘it’ was to be “she,” who in turn knowingly brought forth the Son of God. Indeed God does move in a mysterious way.
The couple rejoiced at the birth of their daughter, whom Anne named Mary. When the child was three years old, Joachim and Anne, in fulfillment of her divine promise, brought Mary to the Temple at Jerusalem, where they left her to be brought up.
Mary remained in the Temple until her twelfth year, at which point she was assigned to Joseph as guardian. According to Coptic tradition, her father Joachim died when Mary was six years old and her mother when Mary was eight. While the story is a legend with no foundation in history, the point is to show that even in her childhood Mary was completely dedicated to God. It is from this account that arose the feast of Mary’s Presentation.
The account of their lives startlingly parallels the Old Testament story of the barren Hannah and her conception of Samuel (1 Samuel 1). According to later legends, Joachim died shortly after Mary’s birth, and Anne, encouraged by the Holy Spirit, remarried.
The Protevangelium became the foundation for establishing the liturgical feasts of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary (September 8) and the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary (December 8). Many churches, the first dating from the 6th century, were built in Anne’s honour. Anne is the patron saint of Brittany and Canada and of women in labour.
Next: Did Mary have more than the one child, Jesus of Nazareth?