The Virgin-Birth of Jesus

Matthew 1:18

This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit.

For the next four days, we will consider the Saviour himself and how you can use common ground between the Qur’an and the Bible to witness to Muslims of his salvation and glory.

The Bible records the unique conception of Jesus by a virgin woman, Mary, as a fulfilment of a prophecy seven centuries earlier that such an event would occur and that the son to be born would be known as Immanuel, namely “God with us” (Isaiah 7:14). Luke 1 records the conversation when the angel Gabriel explained to Mary that the power of the Most High would overshadow her, giving her the miracle of a virgin birth. Matthew’s Gospel also covers this subject, though here it is Joseph’s role that is focused on after Mary had already become pregnant When he thought she had been unfaithful to him and resolved to put her away quietly, the angel Gabriel also appeared to him and confirmed that she had conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Qur’an also records the vision to Mary and the virgin birth of Jesus in two passages. Surah 3:45-57 calls Jesus the Messiah and says that Mary will bear a son though no one has touched her. In Surah 19:16-22, it is promised that Mary’s son will be a revelation for mankind. The Qur’an says that Mary was to conceive Jesus in a special way because there was to be something unique and special about her son. The virgin birth is given constant emphasis in the Muslim scripture in the title it gives consistently to Jesus, ibn Maryam, the son of Mary. No other woman is named in the Qur’an.

The virgin birth of Jesus the Messiah is one of the unique things about Jesus that gives us common ground between the Qur’an and the Bible.

Today's Prayer

Praise God for the fulfilment of prophecy in the virgin birth of Christ. Ask the Holy Spirit to enable you to talk freely with your Muslim friends about this shared truth.