“Therefore
the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth
to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14
The current statistics for unwed mothers is
pretty staggering. According to the
Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), 40.7% of all children born
in America were born to a single parent1.
Once stigmatic, it has become commonplace. Back in Biblical times women who were found to
be pregnant while single were stoned to death.
This was the law that Mary and Joseph had to concern themselves with
prior to their union.
An angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream and recited
this verse from the prophet Isaiah.
Joseph was thinking of quietly sending Mary away so as not to bring her
disgrace, but the Lord, Who knows the minds and hearts of all men, spoke to Joseph
in a dream to let him know that what had taken place was done by no mortal man
(Matthew 1:17-24). There was no
disgrace, his betrothed would give birth to the Son of Almighty God. The name the child was to be given was
significant. Immanuel was clear evidence
of just who this child would be … GOD WITH US.
As if that weren’t enough, Joseph was told that he would be called Jesus
for He would save His people from their sins.
What marvelous news!
God entered into history to save man from himself. Without God’s intervention there would be no
hope for man. He would die in his sins
and be cast into a lake of fire for all eternity, just as his actions
deserved. But God is merciful, slow to
anger, abounding in love and mercy.
Scripture is clear that 1) hell was created for the devil and all the
angels who rebelled against God with him (Matthew 25:41); 2) it is not God’s
desire that any man, woman or child in His creation should go there (2 Peter
3:9). The Lord in all His mercy has provided
a way of escape from the fiery future that awaits Satan and his minions. That
way of escape rests in the blood of Christ.
Receive God’s gift of grace and truly live.
If you don’t know Christ in a personal way, come to know
Him. He’s your only hope for
eternity. If you do know Him, embrace Him, immerse yourself in Him. Get to know Him as much as He can be known
and live your life seeking to be more like Him each day. Until next time, walk with the King and be a
blessing!
1 Number of live births to
unmarried women: 1,609,619. Birth rate
for unmarried women: 45.3 births per 1,000 unmarried women aged 15-44 years.
Percent of all births to unmarried women: 40.7% (source: CDC @ http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/unmarried-childbearing.htm).
