and mother of a child of whom he was not the father. As his wife it makes her guilty of breaking wedlock.
The parties to espousal must come before the elders of the congregation and pledge their vows. In making her vow the woman committed herself to and assumed all the responsibility of a wife. Before the marriage ceremony was performed she was looked upon by the elders, by the congregation, and the neighborhood, as a wife. When the angel would comfort Joseph concerning Mary’s condition with child, even though they had not yet come together, he said: “ Fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife” (Matt. 1 : 20 ). In the eyes of God and man Mary had all the repu tation and responsibility of a wife to maintain. That Joseph was not the father of Mary’s child ought to be self-evident to every logical, intellectual and decent mind. When he discovered she was about to become a moth er, he determined to divorce her. Divorce in Israel was both solemn and serious. The parties to divorce must present themselves to the elders in open meeting. The case would be fully and searchingly tried. If the woman were found guilty she would be taken out to a public place or field, the whole populace would surround her and under command of the elders, without mercy, they would stone her to death. Joseph knew this would be the doom appointed to Mary if he sought publicly to divorce her. He was not willing to do that. He believed she had proved false to him. But he still loved her. He therefore determined to put her away privately. He would put in the claim of annulment against his own vows and set her aside, having henceforth no more to do with her. This is what Scripture means when it says: “ Then Joseph her husband [mark, even before the marriage ceremony he is recognized as “husband,” as she is, as “wife” ], being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away priv ily” (Matt. 1:19). But the living God never allows us to be in doubt about the truth. After the angel had spoken to Joseph and bade him without fear to take Mary to himself we read in Matthew that he “ took unto him his wife: And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name Jesus” (Matt. 1:24, 25). This is the plain statement that marriage between Jo seph and Mary had not been consummated before he brought her home; that it was not consummated till after Jesus was bom. It is the Holy Ghost demonstration that, so far as Mary was concerned, she was virgin to Joseph till after Jesus was bom. It is the Holy Ghost demonstration that so far as Joseph was concerned, he was virgin to Mary till after Jesus was bom. What more would you have? What more need have you to prove, at the least, that' Joseph was not the father of Jesus? Since then Joseph was not the father of Jesus, behold where it places Mary if Jesus were not virgin bom. It brings her into the light as Joseph’s accredited wife,
It makes her guilty of fornication. It makes her guilty of adultery.
Deny the virgin birth and this is the category in which by inexorable logic you are under bonds to put Mary the mother of Jesus. Deny the virgin birth and you give to Mary, the mother of Christ, a stain, a shame, that all the waters of all the seven seas can never wash out. Think you it a light matter to put this indelible stain upon the mother of our Lord? Deny the virgin birth and this is what you do to the consternation, even, of devils. Consider, I pray you, 2 .T h e effect this denial of the Virgin Birth must have upon the name ayid reputation of Jesus Himself. If some man other than Joseph were His father, and He were begotten and conceived out of wedlock, then He was an illegitimate child, a child who had no legal right to come into the world. This is what you must face — Jesus Christ an illegiti mate son. But that is not all. Deny the virgin birth, make Mary a faithless wife, guilty of breaking wedlock, and you make her son some thing more than illegitimate. It is plain enough what that something more is. It is just this: If some other man than Joseph were the father of Je sus we have to reckon this — that man was not known. He was not known in that day. He has not been known any day since. He is not known now. No man can put his finger upon his identity qnd name and say this is the man who betrayed Joseph and begot Mary’s illegitimate son. There can be no question about it. He was and is unknown. It follows therefore if Jesus had an earthly father and that father was not known, we have to say that Jesus was the son of an unknown father. And what is the name in all languages you give to the son of an unknown father? There is but one name and title. And that is, A bastard. It is an ugly name. It looks ugly. It sounds ugly. A bastard. Would you know what God thinks of a bastard? Hear what He says: “A bastard shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord: even to his tenth generation shall he not enter into the congregation of the Lord” (Deut. 23:2). A bastard could not enter into the congregation of the Lord. The posterity of a bastard could not enter into nor partake of the privileges of the congregation of the Lord for ten generations; that is to say, for three hundred years.
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THE KING'S BUSINESS
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