Was Christ Born Genetically From Mary?

Dr. Couch, I just heard of a Sunday school teacher who said that Christ was not born in a genetic sense from Mary. This seems dead wrong to me—what do you say? 

 

    It is wrong and it is virtually heresy! The church fathers wrestled over the nature of Christ for generations and they came up with the right approach, the biblical approach, concerning the human nature of Christ. They said He was "fully man and fully God." He was "the God/Man"! Of course His nature is a mystery to us. And of course He existed in the past as the eternal Son of God. He is constituted now, after His human birth, with both natures working together in His one person. And yet too, He is without sin. While we can only conjecture, it seems as if the sin nature is passed down through the man, i.e. Adam, and not through the woman. Thus, Christ has His humanity through Mary the virgin and His divine person came through the mysterious work of the Holy Spirit. 

    What is some of the evidence that tells us about His nature?

   The Bible speaks of Christ as "the Son of God," i.e. "the Son who is related to God." And it speaks of Him as "the Son of Man," i.e. "the Son who is related to mankind or humanity!

1. The hypostatic union of His two natures works to explain Him in His present eternal existence, following His human birth through Mary. His two natures are brought together into a personal union which will continue forever. While often in the life of Christ, in what He did, as recorded in the Gospels, one could see coming forth His divine nature, or His human nature (however without sin), yet He was really just one person. Christ could perform divine miracles, move instantly from one location to another. But too, He could be tired, hungry, and desire for being alone for personal contemplation. However Christ is not schizophrenic. (More on His nature: See Phil. 2:6-11; John 1:1-14; Rom. 1:2-5; 9:5; 1 Tim. 3:16; Heb. 2:14; 1 John 1:1-3)
2. The work of the Spirit in His birth. In Luke 1:35 we read: "The Holy Spirit will come upon you [Mary], and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy offspring shall be called the Son of God." Holy offspring is the Greek "to birth" (ginao) but it is in the Present Passive Participle, Neuter form. ("That birthing process that is being accomplished") Thus the point is that the Spirit is in the conception and birthing process. The "Holy offspring" is not Christ but the process, the happening, in Mary’s womb that will bring forth Jesus in human form, but again, without sin. But too, it is about the mysterious union of His eternal personality joined with human flesh. "Holy" would certainly imply that the results would be the birth of One who was sinless.
3. That Christ was one hundred percent human is made clear in Scripture. Mary was "with child" (pregnant) (Luke 2:5). Christ was conceived in Mary’s womb and she would bear a Son (1:31). Mary was found "with child by the Holy Spirit" (Matt. 1:18). Jesus grew in Mary’s womb ("the days were completed for her to give birth") (Luke 1:6). Mary "gave birth to her first born son" (v. 7).
Paul further comments: The Son of God "was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh" (Rom. 1:3), that is, Mary was a descendant of David.
4. It was the Gnostic cult that first began to deny the full humanness of Christ. John
seems to be addressing the coming incipient Gnosticism that was growing in his day. He writes: "Many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh" (2 John 7). This verse reinforces the idea that Jesus was fully human, but again, without sin.
5. In the prophecy of Psalm 16 about the death of Christ, it is made clear that the grave
could not hold Him because He was "The Holy One" of God. Therefore His flesh would not undergo decay (v. 10).
6. That the Lord was fully human but also sinless is made certain by many passages of
Scripture. Paul writes: Christ "knew no sin" but was made sin on our behalf (2 Cor. 5:21). He was called the "Holy and Righteous One" (Acts 3:14). Also, He was a high priest "who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin" (Heb. 4:15), who was "holy, innocent, undefiled, separated fro sinners and exalted above the heavens" (7:26). As well, He "committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth"(1 Peter 2:22). And finally, "You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin" (1 John 3:5).

    To say that Christ had no genetic connection with His earthly mother, Mary, is ludicrous and heretical! That a Sunday school teacher would say this shows how limited is the theological education! 

Thanks for asking.

Dr. Mal Couch