Luke 1:26-33, “In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
Watch how all of these prophecies are coming together. The name Jesus means “God saves.” He is the Savior who is to come, and further than that, he’ll be called Son of the Most High. There is no doubt to the divinity of Christ and the purposeful humanity of Christ in this announcement. He will be that servant who is bound to suffer for the sins of his people, he would be the one who would bear our iniquities. But he is also the King who will sit on the throne of David, ruler of an everlasting kingdom.
If Romans 5 is correct, and of course it is, then we inherit sin by our natural descent from Adam. Every person is born of man and woman, and by that natural order, sin, first incurred by Adam, is transferred to every person. Jesus would be born of Mary, but she’s a virgin, he’s not conceived of in the natural order, instead the Holy Spirit has given her this child. Jesus then does not inherit our sinful natures - there would be no sin in him (1 John 3:5; 2 Cor. 5:21). That he would be born of a virgin shows that God is in complete control of this miraculous plan, but also that he would be both God and man. He’s the eternal Son of God, free from sin, but also very much a person, who ate food and breathed and slept and could feel pain. He would then be an appropriate sacrifice - he could die for man who was destined to die due to sin. That’s what makes his humanity so important: that he could die. But he could also live a full life - 30 years or so - being tempted, feeling pain, carrying our burdens, yet without sin and full of trajectory towards the cross.
Hymn for Reflection: Once in Royal David’s City. Here’s a Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TT3cfXd3Shk