22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,
23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
The prophecy in red, was just one of so many directed at that amazing event. Just as there are so many amazing prophecies directed at His second coming in glory and power.
The second thing (for those that struggle with the concept of polyandry - this is quite the case of it. If you do not like it - you might have to get over it. Father engaged in it to bring YOUR Savior into the world. Period. Unpleasant? Possibly? Any more interesting than the command to Abraham to sacrifice his only son? Nope - simply put: our ways are not God's ways. And, we need to get over ourselves and quit trying to tell the Supreme Being of this universe how to do His business.
Second of all, with the blue text. I featured an article that showed that the DNA from all past partners who share seed with a woman become part of that woman's genetic makeup. I have to wonder if that is not part of how a woman and man become "one flesh". In the act of intimacy, a woman (moreso than the man) bonds to her man as pitocin and other chemicals are released (this is the same chemical that is released right after giving birth to help her bond to her new baby). In part, this is behind the meaning of the scripture, "thy desires shall be to thy husband". In other words, God designed this as part of the bonding that occurs in the relationship. It always jumps out at me when at the temple and we are learning of Adam and Eve and their roles in setting the Plan of Salvation in play.
So, I think it is interesting that Joseph did not "know" Mary (sexually) until after the child she was carrying was born. Before being betrothed to Joseph, she was "sequestered" in an annex of the temple at Jerusalem and her devotions were solely to God and did not confraternize with other men. In short, she was pure - a clean vessel to bear the Son of God. Genetically, Jesus was 100% his Father's son with Mary as the vessel to bear Him.
Now, I will point out the other references in those two chapters where it talked about how Jesus would come from so many different places:
JERUSALEM (Bethlehem of Judea):
1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judæa in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem 2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.
These kings knew that a star would be a sign of the birth of a king - possibly due to where the star suddenly appeared (in a certain constellation??). Not sure how they knew it. But they did. Here is how they knew that it would be in Jerusalem:
he demanded of them where Christ should be born.
OUT OF EGYPT:
CALLED A NAZARENE:
21 And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.
So, there you have three distinct examples of how three different Prophets all said that he would hail from three different areas. Not having the gift of prophecy resting upon you, you would likely miss Him altogether. Indeed, those who professed to be scholars of scripture completely missed the boat and ended up stringing him up, while those who had the Spirit confirm His greatness, were able to see and hear because they had eyes to see and ears to hear.
We should never become smug in our "knowledge" of prophecy and scripture or get hung up on our pet doctrines (such as the Temple in Jerusalem must be built before Christ can come to rescue His people), as it might just cause us to look beyond the mark and miss the most important event of all generations. The one that the Prophets since the beginning have looked forward to.
Yep, God's ways are not our ways. But, we do need to strive to make our ways God's ways. Not always easy. Cultural baggage to overcome and university fed vanity to scrub from our minds; but worth it in the end.
ReplyDeleteThe first thoughts that came to my mind when looking at the Nova on one of the links was the Lord on His way here as a Light Coming From the East. A Super Nova that explodes on the scene and would definitely be noticed by everyone! So much is happening and I can see more and more why we should be immersed in the scriptures, studying and praying for further Light and Knowledge about the coming times.
ReplyDeleteThe one thing that intrigues me greatly is the subject of the one Mighty and Strong from Section 85. The Davidic Servant in the Last Days. Anyone care to illuminate on the subject?