Book Description
In the spring of 1927, Dr. J. Gresham Machen delivered the Thomas Smyth Lectures at Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, Georgia, about the virgin birth of Christ. The content of these lectures comprise the substance of his book, The Virgin Birth of Christ, which was first published in 1930 by Harper & Row Publishers, and reprinted seven times with special permission between 1965 and 1980 by Baker Book House. Additional supplementary material was also drawn from a number of Machen’s articles published in the Princeton Theological Review—”The Virgin Birth in the Second Century,” “The Hymns of the First Chapter of Luke,” and “The Origin of the First Two Chapters of Luke,” which appeared in 1912, and “The Integrity of the Lucan Narrative of the Annunciation,” which appeared in 1927.
The first eleven chapters attempt to demonstrate that the virgin birth of Christ is a historical fact, and defends the character of the birth narratives in Matthew 1 and Luke 2 as authentic and reliable witnesses thereto. In chapters twelve through fourteen, he interacts with the competing claim that the idea of the virgin birth of Christ was derived from Jewish or pagan sources and only later added to the Christian creed.
In his second preface, Dr. Machen expresses encouragement by many affirming interactions with critical Protestant scholars who valued his work, despite their disagreement, as at least a useful “compendium of information.” “The author is encouraged by such recognition, since he believes that truth is furthered by full and open debate” (page vii). This work exemplifies a depth in Evangelical scholarship which is so often dismissed by skeptical and critical scholars, and Dr. Machen “makes bold to think that the scholarly tradition of the Protestant Church is not altogether dead even in our day, and he looks for a glorious revival of it when the narrowness of our metallic age (of modernist liberalism) gives place to a new Renaissance” (page x).
Dr. J. Gresham Machen (1881-1937)
About the Author
John Gresham Machen, (born July 28, 1881, Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.—died January 1, 1937, Bismarck, North Dakota), was born to a prominent family in Baltimore. Machen studied at Johns Hopkins University, Princeton Theological Seminary, and the universities at Marburg and Göttingen. In 1906 he joined the faculty of the Princeton Theological Seminary. He criticized liberal Protestantism as unbiblical and unhistorical in his Christianity and Liberalism (1923), What is Faith? (1925) and struggled to preserve the conservative character of the Princeton Theological Seminary. Machen defended the historical reliability of the Bible in such works as The Origin of Paul’s Religion (1921) and The Virgin Birth of Christ (1930). He left Princeton in 1929, after the school was reorganized and adopted a more accepting attitude toward liberal Protestantism, and he helped found Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. His continued opposition during the 1930’s to liberalism in his denomination’s foreign missions agencies led to the creation of a new organization, The Independent Board for Presbyterian Foreign Missions (1933). The trial, conviction and suspension from the ministry of Independent Board members, including Machen, in 1935 and 1936 provided the rationale for the formation in 1936 of the Presbyterian Church in America, which became the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) in 1939. Machen was the principal figure in the founding of the OPC if for no other reason than that the Presbyterian controversy in which he played a crucial role provided the backdrop for the founding of the denomination.
Sources: Britannica, and OPC.org
415 pages
Publisher: Baker Book House; distributed by Westminster Discount Book Service
Publication Date: 1930; Seventh Reprint, 1980
ISBN: 0801058856
On Sunday, December 25, 2016, Pastor 
Status: 
Mid-Cities Presbyterian Church Library 
The Incarnation in the Gospels (Reformed Expository Commentary)
Book Description
This seasonal addition to the Reformed Expository Commentary series presents twelve biblically and theologically grounded Christmas messages, as the authors explore the canonical teaching on the birth of Jesus Christ in the gospels of Matthew, Luke, and John.
As a sample of the exposition found in the series, this volume is accessible to both pastors and lay readers. Each commentary gives careful attention to the biblical text, is doctrinally Reformed, focuses on Christ through the lens of redemptive history, and applies the Bible to our contemporary setting.
In addition, this volume includes four special appendices of Advent material and worship aids useful in the planning of a Christ-centered Christmas service. With five new carols, essays and reflections on the Advent season, and a program of lessons and carols, this material is valuable to any pastor or worship leader seeking meaningful ways to celebrate the coming of Christ during the season commemorating his birth.
All Christians seeking a deep, worshipful, and gospel-centered Advent season will benefit from the insight and worship material in this helpful commentary.
Table of Contents
Series Introduction
Preface
Part 1: The Incarnation in Matthew: The Hope of Israel
DANIEL M. DORIANI
1. The Identity of Jesus Christ (Matt. 1:1-17)
2. The Origin of Jesus, Our Immanuel (Matt. 1:18-25)
3. The Adoration of Jesus (Matt. 2:1-12)
4. The Protection of Jesus (Matt. 2:13-23)
Part 2: The Incarnation in Luke: Songs for the Savior
PHILIP GRAHAM RYKEN
5. MAgnificat (Luke 1:39-55)
6. Benedictus (Luke 1:56-80)
7. Gloria in Excelsis Deo (Luke 2:1-20)
8. Nunc Dimittis (Luke 2:21-38)
Part 3: The Incarnation in John: The Coming of the Light
RICHARD D. PHILLIPS
9. The Divine Word (John 1:1-3)
10. The Light of Men (John 1:4-5)
11. Light for Everyone (John 1:6-13)
12. The Word Became Flesh (John 1:14-18)
Appendix 1: Gospel-Centered Worship Connected to Christ’s Nativity
MARK L. DALBEY
Appendix 2: A Christmas Eve Service of Lessons and Carols
RICHARD D. PHILLIPS
Appendix 3: Five Recent Advent Carols
PAUL S. JONES, JAMES MONTGOMERY BOICE, ERIC J. ALEXANDER, DEREK W.H. THOMAS, PHILIP GRAHAM RYKEN
Appendix 4: Meditations on Christmas Customs
DANIEL M. DORIANI
Index of Scripture
Source: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing
About the Editors
Dr. Daniel M. Doriani
Daniel M. Doriani (M.Div., Ph.D., Westminster Theological Seminary; S.T.M., Yale Divinity School) is vice president of strategic academic projects and professor of theology at Covenant Theological Seminary. Previously he was senior pastor of Central Presbyterian Church in Clayton, Missouri.
Dr. Richard D. Phillips
Richard D. Phillips (M.Div., Westminster Theological Seminary) is the senior minister of Second Presbyterian Church of Greenville, South Carolina. He is a council member of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, chairman of the Philadelphia Conference on Reformed Theology, and coeditor of the Reformed Expository Commentary series.
Dr. Philip Graham Ryken
Philip Graham Ryken (D.Phil., Oxford University) is president of Wheaton College. He is Bible teacher for the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, speaking nationally on the radio program Every Last Word. He is the author and editor of more than fifteen books and coeditor of the Reformed Expository Commentary series.
Source: Dust jacket
Hardcover, 227 pages
Publisher: Presbyterian & Reformed Publishing
Publication Date(s): 2008
ISBN: 978-1-59638-140-7
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