“Do you really believe in the virgin birth?”

Steve Brown:
“Do you really believe in the virgin birth?” The answer to that, on this edition of Key Life.

Matthew Porter:
Welcome to Key Life. Our host and teacher is Steve Brown. He’s no guru, but he does have honest answers to honest questions about the Bible. God’s grace changes everything, how we love, work, live, lead, marry, parent, evangelize, purchase and worship. So, here’s Steve and Pete Alwinson from ForgeBibleStudy.com with street-smart Bible teaching for real life.

Steve Brown:
Thank you Matthew. Hi Pete.

Pete Alwinson:
Hey.

Steve Brown:
Hey, what’s up?

Pete Alwinson:
How you doing?

Steve Brown:
Don’t you hate it when people say, what’s up?

Pete Alwinson:
What’s up? I mean the air, sky, you know?

Steve Brown:
Yeah. Last time I checked, nothing’s up that wasn’t up the day before.

Pete Alwinson:
I know.

Steve Brown:
I don’t know what to tell you?

Pete Alwinson:
It’s that convenient way of initiating, you know, a conversation.

Steve Brown:
Chit chat.

Pete Alwinson:
Chit chat.

Steve Brown:
That’s true. Listen, how are things going with Forge?

Pete Alwinson:
Doing well, doing well, man. And we hit summer, so it’s busy time. I know we’re recording these ahead of time, but that’s where we’re at right now.

Steve Brown:
Hey listen, you ought to, if you live in Central Florida, or if you have money and can fly here, you ought to do it. And be a part of Forge. It’s changing men’s lives in profound ways. And, Pete has an audio version of his hard copy book Like Father Like Son. You can get both at Key Life or any good bookstore and you ought to check them out. And you’ll see why Forge is changing so many lives. By the way, check out the website, ForgeTruth.com. As you know, Pete comes in and has for a number of years and we sit in the studio and do nothing, but answer your questions. And, we love your questions. You can call 1-800-KEY-LIFE, 24 7. Or you can send your question to

Key Life Network
P.O. Box 5000
Maitland, Florida 32794

in Canada, it’s

Key Life Canada
P.O. Box 28060
Waterloo, Ontario N2L 6J8

or you can e-mail your question to [email protected]. And we’ll take you and your question seriously. And if you can help us financially, we’ll take that seriously too. Won’t turn anything down. Even if you won a lottery, cause it’s tainted. It just ain’t enough. And I’m so sorry. But we do appreciate those who are able to stand with us financially and we rise up and call you blessed. Thank you so much. Hey Pete, why don’t you lead us in prayer? And we’ll get to these questions.

Pete Alwinson:
All right. Let’s pray together. Our Great Father, thank you for the opportunity on this Friday to stop for just a minute and come into your presence to remember who you are. And then to remember who we are, father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the triune God, loving, graceful, powerful, merciful. Lord, you have done everything for us that we need, and we rest secure in your power and in who you are. Lord Jesus, if it weren’t for what you have done and what you are doing for us, we’d be lost. So, we ask for your continued leadership in our lives, every day. You know our issues and you know our needs, right now. But we do look forward to this week-end and an opportunity to meet with your people on whatever day we worship Lord this weekend. And we come to you and ask that you would enable us to show up. We pray for our pastors and teachers and priests and leaders and worship directors and Lord that all of them would be able to be of one mind and heart, as they lead us into the gospel. So, we give you praise and honor for this time now of Q&A, as well. And we commit it and ask that you would take us one step further as we walk with you now. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.

Steve Brown:
Pete, this is an e-mail that says, do you really believe in the virgin birth?

Pete Alwinson:
I mean, do you?

Steve Brown:
Well, you wouldn’t be here if I didn’t and I wouldn’t have you, if you didn’t.

Pete Alwinson:
That’s right.

Steve Brown:
So, obviously yes, we do.

Pete Alwinson:
We do.

Steve Brown:
That’s a serious question.

Pete Alwinson:
Why is it so important as a theological belief?

Steve Brown:
Well, it has to do with a whole incarnation with everything that went on, I mean it is extremely important and it’s taught clearly in Scripture. And the stories surrounding the virgin birth are magnificent, as they reflect that God has done something amazing and incredible and wonderful. When I was in graduate school, I did not, by the way, or no, I just didn’t. I mean, because I was an intellectual because I knew things that cretins didn’t know because I was educated and then God whacked me up the side of the head and I changed those views radically. And yes, I do. In fact if the Bible says it, I believe it and it’s the one place I can go I know that nobody will lie to me.

Pete Alwinson:
Yeah, that’s right. The Scriptures, and that’s ultimately why we do believe in the virgin birth because the Bible teaches it, but it is crucial because if Jesus and those birth narratives of Jesus in the gospels are crucial. If he is purely human, then he would pass on Adamic sin to us.

Steve Brown:
That’s right.

Pete Alwinson:
The virgin birth is absolutely crucial for that, that Jesus is not tainted by sin. He’s God come in the flesh, but he’s not tainted by human flesh. And therefore can be the second Adam who could take away our sin.

Steve Brown:
That’s true. And it doesn’t work if the virgin birth isn’t true.

Pete Alwinson:
That’s right.

Steve Brown:
And, as you know, and we’re not gonna do this, there are great reams of material on this issue. How did it happen? What did it mean? Be specific, look at the details and I guess scholars will debate that forever, but all you and I need to know and all that our leaders need to know is that it happened. And that God did it, and God is an amazing God.

Pete Alwinson:
That’s right.

Steve Brown:
That’ll be enough. Don’t you think? How, this is an e-mail too. How do you deal with and accept the silence of God? That’s a good question.

Pete Alwinson:
Yeah, it is. You know, in one sense, in recent years, I’ve kind of ha taken a little bit different feel toward that. I feel like God is a great communicator. I guess at this point in my life, I know that many people do struggle with feeling like God is not speaking, but I think he speaks through what he’s made of his creative ability, power, and beauty and care for us, but also in the word of God, the Bible, back to what you just were talking about, I feel like he’s such an able and clear communicator, that I don’t feel that he’s silent. I think more, my issue is I’m probably not listening.

Steve Brown:
That’ll work. That dog will hunt. You know, I think a question like this is often asked in the middle of suffering, darkness, and pain. When somebody feels they’ve gotten a diagnosis from the doctor, that’s horrible. They’ve lost a loved one and God seems to not say anything. Well, as you said, he does, but you have to be kind of careful, that you don’t try to speak for God or in his stead, to let the silence itself be a healing time, to know that that won’t be true forever. And I think, but I also think, as you said, a lot of people when they ask that question, just say, I haven’t heard his voice. You know, and he shouts at us all the time and we just don’t listen.

Pete Alwinson:
I am so hardheaded. You know, and I, and so there’s the Babylon Bee just did a little post recently of this man who’s standing there with his hands up in the air, like. I can’t believe it. His wife is just telling him something and the wife’s hands are covering her face. And the caption is something like, the man is surprised of something his wife’s been telling him for the past 30 days.

Steve Brown:
That is so good.

Pete Alwinson:
It’s hysterical.

Steve Brown:
It really is.

Pete Alwinson:
And I feel like that’s the way I am. It’s like to God, sometimes it’s like, But in suffering, I know that my tendency is to want to pull aside. And what I really need is to come to you and somebody else and say, this is what I’m going through.

Steve Brown:
You know, that brings us to the places and you mentioned a couple of them, of course, Creation and Scripture, but how does God speak? Does he speak, does he use you to speak to me?

Pete Alwinson:
Yeah. I mean, I think he can. You typically don’t listen to me, but other than that.

Steve Brown:
What do you mean? I listened to you for 20 years.

Pete Alwinson:
I know. I’m kidding.

Steve Brown:
Every sermon you preached was God speaking to me.

Pete Alwinson:
Well, yeah. And so, I think that yes, we have to see, you know, the priesthood of believers is that understanding. That the Holy Spirit works through other Christians. And so, he does help us see things. Now, sometimes we say incredibly trite and superficial things to each other. And that’s a problem.

Steve Brown:
That’s why we have the second way, that’s the most important through Scripture. And if it doesn’t balance and if it isn’t balanced, and you can’t make it work in Scripture, it didn’t come from him.

Pete Alwinson:
Right. Yeah. And I think that, I think that one of the skills that has to be developed is learning to listen to God in Scripture, you know, call that daily devotions, daily appointment with God, whatever you want to call it. It does take some time to develop and to listen and to hear his still small voice, through the Scripture taking what’s there applying it to your existential situation of today.

Steve Brown:
So true. You know, today we, Jeremy, our producer and I have been recording the New Testament. And I was telling you, when you came in, you want to try something that’s really cool, start reading the Bible aloud, it’ll blow you away. I am seeing things and hearing his voice, in places I didn’t, I mean, I’ve, for instance, we’re recording John and eventually the New Testament. And, as we go through John and I’ve taught John, I just can’t tell you how many times I’ve taught that book and how many I, hundreds of times I’ve read it. But new things are coming to me, hitting my mind, and making me think things I hadn’t thought before. And that’s him.

Pete Alwinson:
Absolutely. It absolutely is. And so, the word, the Spirit, and the voices of other people help us to hear his voice. Yeah. Good. And everybody ought to go run to the Key Life website and start listening to you read because people have said in the past, I mean, I could read the newspaper and hear the voice of God, if Steve’s reading it, you know.

Steve Brown:
I’m good looking too, but nobody ever refers to that thing.

Pete Alwinson:
Steve, they’ve never said that about me either. So there it is. Right?

Steve Brown:
I have a friend who is getting older and he said to his neighbor, that I hope I look as good as you do when I get to be your age. And his neighbor said, you will never look as good as I do. Guys, we’re out of here. But one other thing before we go. Key Life is a listener supported production of Key Life Network.