Page 78 - Apologetics Student Textbook

Study Section 10: More Questions about Jesus Christ

10.1 Connect

The virgin birth is one of the most important doctrines of the Christian faith. Do you know
why? If Jesus came to earth conceived by Joseph and Mary, then Jesus would have inherited
a sin nature from Joseph. With a sin nature, Jesus would have sinned. But even if He did not
sin having a sin nature, He could not offer Himself up as a sinless Lamb as a sacrifice for the
sins of mankind because He had a sinful nature. So it all comes down to this: If Jesus was
not conceived of the Holy Spirit, then we are all lost in our sins and cannot be saved. See
why it is important? Let’s see in detail why the virgin birth is so very important….

10.2 Objectives

1. The student should be able to explain to a skeptic the absolute necessity for the virgin birth of
Jesus Christ.

2. The student will be able to show why Jesus had to die on the cross to be able to forgive us of
our sins.

3. Skeptics say there are many ways to God. The student should be able to show them the Jesus is the
only way to God.

10.3 Did He really do all the miracles that the Bible says He did, and should we take them
literally?

Yes! The Bible describes hundreds of miracles that occurred throughout history,
generally performed by God but at the hands of one of God’s servants. It appears that
the main reason for miracles, or events that happen contrary to the norm, are God’s way
of endorsing the message of His servants. Let’s look at a few.

The earliest and most profound miracle of all was that of creation. God created
everything ex nihilo—from nothing—and each succeeding miracle reinforced His incredible power. The
book of Exodus is filled with miraculous events God used to bring about His will. The plagues on Egypt,
beginning with the water of the Nile being turned to blood (Exodus 7:17) through the death of the
firstborn of Egypt (Exodus 12:12), were literal events that eventually caused Pharaoh to free the
Israelites from bondage. If the plagues did not happen, why did Pharaoh let the people go? And if the
plague of the death of the firstborn was not real, then God did not move through Egypt that night killing
the firstborn, nor was there any necessity for the Israelites to sprinkle blood on their doorposts. Then
the foreshadowing of the shed blood of Jesus on the cross is voided, which puts the crucifixion itself into
doubt. Once we begin to doubt the reality of any miracle, we have to discount
everything the Bible says came about as a result of the miracle, which puts all of
Scripture in doubt.

Among the best-known Old Testament miracles is the parting of the Red Sea
(Exodus 14), during which Pharaoh and much of his army were drowned. If the
miracle is symbolic, then how do we know what parts of the rest of the story

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