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(John 3:6)
The striking phrase: "The one who is born of the Spirit is spirit", was spoken by the Son of Mary, because he was actually born of the Spirit of God. He deserved to make such an impressive statement. The Qur'an itself confirms this mystery of Christ several times. When Jibril appeared to the Virgin Mary, he assured her that Allah sent him for only one purpose, to give her a blameless, gracious son:
"He said, Anyway, I am a messenger of your Lord, to grant you a pure boy" (Sura Maryam 19:19).
The Virgin Mary’s response to the angel was, that no man had touched her, neither lawfully in marriage, nor by force. She insisted that she was still a virgin; it would be impossible for her to conceive and bear a son. This testimony appears twice in the Qur'an. The virginity of Mary is a firm belief in Islam:
"She said, 'How shall I have a son and no man has touched me, neither have I been unchaste" (Suras Maryam 19:20; Al 'Imran 3:47).
He who reads this verse would believe that Mary was a virgin indeed, when she received her Son from the Spirit of Allah.
From Sura al-Anbiya', we extract more details as to how Christ was conceived in the Virgin Mary:
"She who guarded her virginity, we breathed into her of our spirit and appointed her and her Son to be a sign to the worlds" (Sura al-Anbiya' 21:91).
This well known verse removes several misunderstandings shows that Christ was not born of Mary through Jibril, as some blasphemers claim, but it was Allah himself who breathed into her of his own Spirit! The Spirit of Allah did not generate Christ through physical contact, but only spiritually. The Almighty did ot breathe Jibril, his sent spirit, into Mary, but of his own Spirit. It is reasonable to conclude from this verse that the Son of Mary is at the same time a son born by the Spirit of Allah, otherwise the "spiritual" Son of Allah. It would be blasphemous and unreasoning to think about a physical conceiving of Christ in Mary. No believer would accept such blasphemy.
The Qur'an states 16 times that Allah has no son, and this is true, as long as the claim means that he has no physical son:
"Allah has not begotten, and was not begotten, and no one is equal to him" (Sura al-Ikhlas 112:3-4).
The indwelling of the Son of Mary in his mother was a spiritual act and not physical; therefore, he was born holy and pure. The Qur'an and the traditions confirm that Christ was born immaculate and sinless (Suras Al 'Imran 3:36; Maryam 19:19).
The Testimony of the Gospel
About the Birth of the Son of Mary
He who accepts the Qur'anic verses mentioned above, should also read the text of the Gospel concerning the birth of Christ, as recorded by the Greek physician, Luke, 600 years before the Qur'an was written. Luke was entrusted by a Roman ruler in Antioch named Theophilus, to search carefully in the holy land the manner of Jesus Christ’s birth, what he had said, what he did, and how his death and resurrection took place (Luke 1:1-4).
Luke went and questioned eye-witnesses, especially Mary, because as a physician, he could not understand how a virgin could give birth without a male. Mary told him in detail how the angel appeared and said to her:
"Rejoice, highly favored One,
The Lord is with you;
Blessed are you among women!"
But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. Then 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 bring forth a Son,
and shall call His name JESUS.
He will be great,
and will be called the Son of the Highest;
And the Lord God will give 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."
Then Mary said to the angel,
"How can this be, since I do not know a man?"
And the angel answered and said to her,
"The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
And the power of the Highest will overshadow you;
Therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born
will be called the Son of God."
(Luke 1:28-35)
He, who reads this report in the Gospel with Gabriel’s explanation, can distinguish several titles and characteristics of the Son of Mary from it:
· His name is Jesus, which literally means, "The Lord saves", for he saves his lost and sinful people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).
· He is the highest excellent person, and will be called the Son of the Highest.
· He will be a reigning king, and will be given the throne of his father David.
· His kingdom will be an everlasting and a spiritual one.
· The Holy Spirit will come upon his mother and the power of the Highest will overshadow her.
· Therefore, the one who is born of her will be called the "spiritual" Son of God.
These prophecies are not specifically found in the Qur'an, but Jibril summarized these facts in one verse:
"Christ 'Isa, the Son of Mary, is an ambassador (rasul) of Allah, and His Word that He put into Mary, and a Spirit from Him" (Sura al-Nisa' 4:171).
The Qur'an calls the Son of Mary "a Spirit from Allah". This term testifies that Christ is not an ordinary man, born of a father and a mother, but is the incarnation of the Spirit from Allah. The Almighty committed his Word and his Spirit to the Virgin Mary; thus, her Son is a "walking Spirit", as he himself revealed in the Gospel:
"The one who is born of the Spirit is spirit" (John 3:6).
Many seekers cannot grasp this secret, for the Spirit of God has not yet opened the eyes of their understanding to this spiritual reality. He who asks God to anoint his heart with the spirit of truth and to grant him the gift of discerning the spirits, recognizes quickly that Christ came with many wonderful signs which point to his divine power. The Son of Mary was not only the incarnation of God's Spirit, but also cooperated with him closely to heal the sick, cast out demons, give life to the dead and reconcile the world with God (2 Corinthians 5:18-21). No man is able to do these mighty works unless the Spirit of God is in him.
He who wants to understand the essence, manner, acts and aims of Christ should ask God to anoint him with this blessed Spirit of whom Christ was born, so that he may be able to grasp the reality of the "spiritual" Son of God.
Do you want to know the Spirit of Truth?
If you want to know more about the One who was born of the Spirit from God and about the essence of the Holy Spirit himself, we shall be pleased to send you the Gospel of Christ with explanations and prayers, free of charge, on request.
Help your Friends to Understand
The "Spiritual" Realities
If you have found this leaflet useful to share with your neighbours and acquaintances, write to us and we shall send you a limited number of copies of the same, which you may hand to those who seek the truth.
Path-of-Peace
P.O. BOX 567 • Imperial, PA 15126 • USA
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