QandA, Between Crucifixion and Resurrection, Evil In the World, the Virgin Mary

The following e-mail came from Judy:

Hello. I have a question and I hope I can explain it correctly. When Jesus descended into hell before His resurrection, what happened at that time between Him and Satan? Can you answer this? My sister and I have asked this question but no one can really tell us. Please help. Thank you and God bless you.

Dear Sister Judy, thank you for your e-mail. The chronology you’re requesting begins in John 19:30:

When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.

At this place on the cross, the back of Satan’s argument’s is broken. Job 2:1-5:

1 Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.

2 And the LORD said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.

3 And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.

4 And Satan answered the LORD, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life.

5 But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face.

At the cross, Satan is spoiled and all power and authority is delivered into the hands of Christ. Colossians 2:13-15:

13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

Click on to "Why the Blood of Jesus?" for more details.

There was a place Biblically known as Abraham’s Bosom where the righteous dead went and awaited the redemption of their souls. Luke 16:22-31:

22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;

23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.

25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.

26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.

27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house:

28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.

29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.

30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.

31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

After the crucifixion, our Lord Jesus descended into the earth to Abraham’s Bosom and He led them out. Ephesians 4:8-10:

8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.

9 (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?

10 He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.)

Abraham’s Bosom no longer exists.

Forty days after the resurrection, Jesus ascends into heaven. Revelation 12:1-17:

1 And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:

2 And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.

3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.

5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

6 And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.

7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.

9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

13 And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.

14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.

15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.

16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.

17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

The following e-mail is from Melody:

Would you explain what we are to say to unbelievers who ask, "If God is real, and loves us, why does He allow so much evil?"

Dear Sister Melody, thank you for your letter. An understanding of what appears to be a conundrum is to understand how we have been literally made and what transpired in the Garden of Eden. God created man in His own image and after His likeness. Genesis 1:26-31:

26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Man is created in God’s image and after His likeness. Because God has free will, so do we. We were not created as a tree or a rock or a robot. Man was created with a free will.

The source of all life and goodness is God, the first voice in the Garden, and we access Him through faith and only through faith in Christ Jesus. Unfortunately, for the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve, our great-grandparents, they chose to yield themselves to the second voice—Satan’s voice, the voice of disobedience—which was man’s first act of unbelief. Adam and Eve were immortal and given the deed to the earth but they sold their birthright and their eternal souls to the little "g"-od of this earth and of all carnaldom. His M.O. is to steal, kill, and destroy. John 10:9- 10:

9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.

10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Man chose the second voice, to serve the father of lies and death and destruction and that is all that is in Satan’s wake. All evil is a product, directly or indirectly, of the second voice, the voice of disobedience. All sin, all lies, unbelief, hatred, wars, murder, rape, theft, homosexuality, adultery, bestiality, child molestation, sorrow, sickness, bitterness, stress, sickness, storms, and so forth, are a result of choosing to follow the second voice.

God offers life and life more abundantly, and finally eternal life in His glorious presence. Carnal man has chosen death instead. Melody, choosing the words of Satan is the source of the evil you see. For further information, click on to "W.B. Asks How Can A Loving God Destroy Billions? You Will Be Shocked By The Answer," and "W.B. and Free Will."

The following e-mail came from Diana:

Was Mary really a virgin?

Dear Diana, thank you for your question. The virgin birth of the Messiah was prophesied nearly 500 years before Christ by the prophet Isaiah in chapter seven, verse 14:

Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

The Word of God on this subject is clear. Matthew writes in 1:18-25:

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.

19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily.

20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

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.

24 Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:

25 And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.

Luke writes in chapter one, verses 26-35:

26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,

27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.

28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.

29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.

30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.

31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.

32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:

33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?

35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

Many skeptics have challenged the Scriptures on this account. The following excerpt of the publication Creation follows:

The drift away from belief in the Bible extends to church leaders as well. An earlier survey found that only three of 103 British bishops (Anglican, Catholic and Methodist) actually believe the Biblical account of Creation, while 25% do not believe that Jesus was born of a virgin. Neither do some bishops believe that Jesus rose from the dead. [End of quote]

It is obvious to all that a virgin giving birth to a son is a biological impossibility. But with God, all things are possible. Plus, the virgin birth is central to the principle of blood redemption. The sinless Christ was the only begotten son of God and He was also the son of man. He was and is the mediator between God and man.

The official position of Jewish leadership in the days of Christ—and to this very day—is that Jesus was a bastard (fatherless child) and a sorcerer. I know this sounds shocking, but it is critical to Old Testament Jewish theology. They must deny that Jesus was born of a virgin because if He was, Ge fulfilled the Isaiah prophecy, and they in turn crucified their Messiah. Their position is that Jesus was born out of wedlock. In like manner, they must deny the miracles that Christ performed such as raising the dead, opening the eyes of the blind, stopping the raging sea, because if He did these things, it is the endorsement of God and the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy by Jesus, and again they crucified their Messiah. Their position is that He was a sorcerer.

Regardless of who the antagonists of the Gospel are, Jesus Christ was the fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14. He was and is the virgin-born Messiah. Many of the apostles and disciples of our Lord certified their confidence in the virgin-born Messiah at the very cost of their lives.

Finally is this following excerpt from The Bible Has The Answer:

It was promised that the coming Redeemer would be a descendant of Shem (Genesis 9:26), then of Abraham (Genesis 22:18), then Isaac (Genesis 26:4), Jacob (Genesis 28:14), Judah (Genesis 49:10), and finally David (II Samuel 7:12, 13). The line of Judah’s kings extended from David through Jechonias (also called Coniah), but the extreme wickedness of the latter led God to pronounce judgment: "No man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of the house of Israel" (Jeremiah 33:17).

The Bible’s seeming contradictions and paradoxes are always harmonious and satisfying upon deeper study. This one finds its solution in another superficial discrepancy, the apparently contradictory genealogies of Christ in Matthew 1:6-16 and Luke 3:23-31. Matthew gives the legal and royal lineage from David through Solomon and Jechonias (the last man to occupy Judah’s throne) to Joseph, the foster father of Jesus. Luke gives the true biological line from David through Nathan to Heli, the father of Mary. To have the legal right to the throne of David, Jesus must be the legal son of Joseph, but Hhe could not be the true son of Joseph because of God’s judgment on Jechonias. And yet He must actually be of the "seed of David" to occupy that throne. The Virgin Birth resolves this impasse.

There is no reason, except naturalistic prejudice, for anyone to doubt the birth narratives of Matthew and Luke, and these make it very plain that Mary was still a virgin when she brought forth her firstborn son. [End of quote]

Yes Diana, Jesus Christ was virgin-born.




References:

King James Bible

"British Christians a ‘Deviant Minority,’" Creation magazine, Sept.-Nov. 2000, p7

Morris, H.M., E.C. Martin, The Bible Has The Answer, Master Books, 2001, p37

• Go Further With Christ
• Email To a Friend
• Comments or Questions?