Matthew 1:1-17 | "By Whom Jesus Was Born" [ The Hope of Christmas ]
[Matthew] The Hope of Christmas • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 183 viewsSunday, December 18, 2022. Matthew 1:1-17 | "By Whom Jesus Was Born." Preached to Heritage Bible Chapel in Princeton, MA. This is the first sermon in a Christmas series through the early chapters of Matthew called "The Hope of Christmas."
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I. The Reading
I. The Reading
Our preaching text is Matthew 1:1-17.
This is the first message that will be preached this week in a series of Christmas sermons from the beginning of Matthew’s gospel account.
Today, our textual focus is Matthew 1:1-17.
I’m reading from the New American Standard Bible translation.
This is a reading from God’s Word:
1 The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers.
3 Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez was the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram.
4 Ram was the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon.
5 Salmon was the father of Boaz by Rahab, Boaz was the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse.
6 Jesse was the father of David the king. David was the father of Solomon by Bathsheba who had been the wife of Uriah.
7 Solomon was the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asa.
8 Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah.
9 Uzziah was the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah.
10 Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, and Amon the father of Josiah.
11 Josiah became the father of Jeconiah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
12 After the deportation to Babylon: Jeconiah became the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel.
13 Zerubbabel was the father of Abihud, Abihud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor.
14 Azor was the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud.
15 Eliud was the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob.
16 Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.
17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to the Messiah, fourteen generations.
May God bless the reading of His holy Word.
Will you pray with me?
Pray
[ Title Slide for Display ]
Matthew 1:1-17 | “By Whom Jesus Was Born”
Matthew 1:1-17 | “By Whom Jesus Was Born”
II. The Exhortation
II. The Exhortation
A. Title [ 1:1 ]
A. Title [ 1:1 ]
Admittedly, this text is not one that is often preached, IF it is preached at all.
But remember, our aim in preaching is not to preach texts.
Our aim in preaching is to preach Jesus Christ from every text, including the one before us this morning.
The Bible is all about Jesus, who said:
13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”
We are inclined to skip ahead to the end. But Jesus is the beginning too. And Matthew certainly calls this to mind with his choice for words in his opening title, Verse 1.
1 The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
The word translated “genealogy” is the Greek noun: γένεσις genesis.
Matthew 1:1 (NASB 95)
1 The record of the genealogy [ γένεσις genesis ] of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
This is the same Greek word used in the title for the first book of the Old Testament, the book of Genesis. (LXX)
This suggests that the birth of Jesus is another beginning - God doing something new, just as He promised He would in the Prophets (TNTC, and see Is 43:19).
This Gospel of Matthew is positioned at the beginning of what we call the New Testament, proclaiming Jesus as God’s provision and God’s way for making old things new.
This is the book of the genesis of Jesus Christ (Herm).
We would be unwise to pass over a text that gifts us with such a clearly stated outcome and purpose as this verse does, which is to lead us to Jesus and the faith that He is the Christ.
Look with me again at Matthew 1:1 —
1 The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
Matthew could not be any clearer at the beginning of his gospel account, concerning who this text and this book, is all about.
It is about a very specific person named Jesus, whom Scripture identifies as the Messiah.
That word Messiah is the Greek word Χριστός which is most often translated “Christ.”
“Christ” is not Jesus’ last name. It is a title to identify who He is - it means “Anointed One.”
Jesus is the Anointed One of God.
He alone is the Savior of the world, the Deliverer of God’s people from sin and death. He is the promised Messiah.
This word “Messiah” or “Christ” appears three times in these first seventeen verses.
Matthew wants us to know from the very beginning the Christ-conclusion he will expound about Jesus throughout the course of His Gospel. It is a conclusion God desires all people to arrive at by faith, too.
It is at this point we begin to see the need for this genealogy.
Not everyone believes Jesus is the Messiah.
Think with me about all the uncertainty that exists in the world today about who Jesus is.
This question captivates the attention of scholars and skeptics and even some saints. Because every person must arrive at a conclusion of who Jesus is.
It is an answer every person will ultimately confess before God ( see Phil 2:10-11).
On one occasion, Jesus said to His disciples:
Matthew 16:13 (NASB 95)
13 ...“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
(The “Son of Man” is yet another messianic title for Jesus).
And the disciples answered Him.
Listen to the uncertainty represented among the people of Jesus’ day:
14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.”
There is uncertainty about Jesus’ identity.
After hearing the various responses of what people say, Jesus then redirects the question and makes it personal to his disciples:
15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
We will all have to personally answer this question, and in light of this we may appreciate the details given in this genealogy all the more.
Who Jesus is, is a question that every person must answer and will ultimately confess before God, and may I be so bold as to say, that this is a question that every person must answer correctly?
Who Jesus is, is not subjective to our personal feelings or opinions.
There is a right and wrong answer, for Jesus was and is a real person as evidenced by His birth.
And our lives both now and for eternity, depend upon the correct answer to the question of who He is!
It is an answer that is arrived at by faith.
And for this reason, we are thankful for God’s gracious and abundant provision of His Word.
For this reason we are exhorted as the Church to pay attention now, to this important genealogy for the sake of ourselves and others, that we might know who Jesus is and what He means for our salvation.
III. The Teaching
III. The Teaching
Hear these words again, now as words of confidence and clarity:
1 The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
This title verse can serve as the outline for the following verses, for it tells us everything we need to know about Jesus in this one verse.
The Protestant Reformer, Martin Luther says of verse one:
“It is therefore enough to know from this genealogy that Christ came from the tribe of David, the son of Abraham.” (Martin Luther, M:NTV1)
It is enough to know! … If Matthew said nothing more, then this verse says enough, for it tells us that Jesus is the son of Abraham, the son of David, and He is the Messiah, the Son of God!
B. Genealogy [ 1:2-17 ]
B. Genealogy [ 1:2-17 ]
So Who is Jesus?
First, He is -
The son of Abraham | 1:2-6
The son of Abraham | 1:2-6
This means, first of all, that Jesus is an Israelite. And being an Israelite, Jesus is inseparably connected to God’s plan in history (Herm).
This new work that God is doing through Jesus, is still the old work that God began before the creation of the world, and carried on throughout the generations!
It is a work of promise and fulfilment. A covenantal work. It is a work of faith.
By tracing Jesus’ lineage to Abraham, the story of Israel’s history is being brought into the foreground.
The New Testament is not disconnected from the Old Testament. Jesus is not untethered from what came before.
Jesus said on the Emmaus road:
44 Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
Being the son of Abraham, Jesus fulfills all of the Scriptures.
Being the son of Abraham, Matthew draws attention to where knowledge of who Jesus is truly begins - with faith.
For Abraham was a man of faith, who believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness (Gen 15:6).
God called Abraham to leave his country and relatives and go to a land God would show Him.
And Abraham went forth just as the Lord had spoken to him (Gen 12.4).
God promised to make Abraham a great nation, to bless him, and make his name great so that Abraham would be a blessing to others, so that all the families of the earth would be blessed in him (Gen 12:1-3).
But these promises weren’t only about Abraham.
This Jesus, the Messiah, fulfills these promises to Abraham fully. Jesus is the means by which all the families of the earth will be blessed.
He is the Son of Abraham.
And we notice several names listed after Abraham in this genealogy.
Several of these names represent people and stories that are given significant space in Scripture — Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, Tamar, Rahab, Boaz . . .
Other names are relatively unknown without much repetition or fanfare - Ram, Amminadab, Nahshon, Salmon.
Yet all of these men and women, those who are known and unknown, were an important part of God’s plan for the coming of Jesus, the Savior.
I wonder if this is an encouragement to any of us who might be wondering what our purpose is in life?
Maybe we desire to make a name for ourselves, to leave a plaque on a wall, a legacy, a story for the pages of history.
Is it not true that our lives belong to God?
Is it not true that our stories are God’s to tell?
We are not to live to make ourselves great, but to make the name of God great.
The world doesn’t need our memoirs — our autobiographies — our stories. The world needs most of all, Jesus the Messiah, the Savior of all who call on His name!
And if the sovereign God is pleased to make Jesus known through our stories or without them, then praise Him! May Jesus be known!
And one shining light in this Abrahamic section of Jesus’ genealogy: is the truth that Jesus is not just for the Israelites; Jesus is for the world.
Genealogies most often report the names of men. Yet, among these names following Abraham include not just men, but also some women.
And most of these women are not Israelites.
It is possible Tamar may not have been an Israelite (v.3), but it is certain that Rahab was a Canaanite and a prostitute (v.5) and Ruth was a Moabite (v.5).
These women, along with mention of Bathsheba who was the wife of Uriah who was a Hittite, open the door of Gentile inclusion.
These Gentiles are used by God in the lineage of Christ’s birth.
Jesus is Messiah not just for the Jews, He is also the Savior of the Gentiles — of the world.
We could pause and look at the names in this genealogy, and spend more time on the details of each story (and there is much to glean from them) — the good and the bad — but Matthew seems to assume that these stories are familiar already to his readers.
So he is summarizing and highlighting.
It is enough for him to record names, and add comments here and there to draw out important connections.
But it would be a mistake to drift too far from this text. For there is only one Name at the beginning and end of this list - the name of Jesus.
The other stories have been told, and are preserved for us to read.
How many of us follow a plan to read through the Bible in a year and find ourselves stuck in the Old Testament, never to make it and experience the New?
This genealogy is moving forward to the birth of Jesus and is most importantly about Him.
Jesus is the son of Abraham.
And Abraham had a lot of sons.
The text goes on. It’s not enough that Jesus was only a son of Abraham, for Jesus would say to the Pharisees and Sadduccees —
9 and do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father’; for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham.
Being a son of Abraham was not enough. Jesus is the son of Abraham, and He is also —
The son of David | 1:6-16
The son of David | 1:6-16
The text moves from Abraham to the next major heading according to verse 1 — to David.
Look with me at verse 5:
5 Salmon was the father of Boaz by Rahab, Boaz was the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse.
6 Jesse was the father of David the king. David was the father of Solomon by Bathsheba who had been the wife of Uriah.
Jesus is the son of Abraham, and the son of David.
And the importance of this ancestry is summed up in the word of verse 6 — the word “king.”
Jesus, the Messiah, is of royal descent (Herm).
For Jesus to be a son of Abraham means that He is one of God’s chosen people.
For Jesus to be a son of David means that He is one of God’s chosen kings.
David wasn’t the first king in Israel. Before David there was Saul.
And one of the things Scripture makes clear about Saul’s kingship, is that it was a result of the will of the people, not the will of God.
The people of Israel wanted a king like all the other nations, but God was their king.
And God allowed the people to have what they wanted: Saul, a man who looked the part - a man of stature, head and shoulders above the rest.
But Saul’s kingdom did not last. Saul failed in the most important matter of faith.
God removed Saul from the throne and told Saul that his kingdom would not endure.
And God replaced Saul with David, the youngest son of Jesse, sought out by the Lord as a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam 13.14).
And just as God promised Abraham that all the families of the earth would be blessed in him, God also made a promise to David, the king.
16 Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.” ’ ”
How is it that David’s throne will endure and be established forever, being that David was a man too and eventually died?
Jesus asked the Pharisees a similar question. Jesus asked —
42 “What do you think about the Christ, whose son is He?” They said to Him, “The son of David.”
43 He said to them, “Then how does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying,
44 ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Until I put Your enemies beneath Your feet” ’?
45 “If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his son?”
Jesus is the son of David, meaning that Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s covenant promise to David as only He the Messiah can be!
8 But of the Son He says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, And the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom.
Jesus is God’s chosen, eternal King. He is the son of Abraham, and also the son of David.
Just as Abraham’s section began to open the door of Gentile inclusion through the names of non-Israelite women, David’s section does this too with mention of a deportation.
11 Josiah became the father of Jeconiah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
Abraham relocated based on faith in God’s Word.
But Israel later was relocated by God, exiled out of the promised land as captives to Gentiles, unbelieving lands and unbelieving kings, because of their faithlessness.
This mention of deportation is not only a historical signpost, but it is also also a theological signpost.
It is a reminder of humanity’s need for salvation from sin. It anticipates the work of the Messiah who will not only call out, regather and restore His people Israel, but will save all who call upon His name and submit to His eternal rule and kingdom.
The last verses of this section bring us to familiar names this Christmas season.
The Messiah, because of God’s promises to be fulfilled, had to be a son of Abraham and a son of David, and so Matthew writes beginning with verse 15:
15 Eliud was the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob.
16 Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.
This leads us to:
The [ Christ ] Conclusion
The [ Christ ] Conclusion
For the last word of verse 16 is that title for Jesus once again — the Christ, the Messiah.
It was of Mary, the Scripture tells us, “by whom Jesus was born.”
Not of Joseph, but of Mary.
This is where Matthew’s language takes a very intentional turn, for in every case until verse 16 - a man is the father of another man.
But in verse 16, Joseph is not called the father of Jesus, nor is this even implied.
Joseph did not “beget” Jesus.
Instead, the Scripture says that Joseph is “the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.”
What is the message here, brothers and sisters?
Yes, Jesus is —
The son of Abraham
Jesus is
The son of David
But now Matthew alludes to the most important sonship that will explode forth by the end of His Gospel account —
Jesus is also:
The Son of God (Messiah) | 1:1,16,17
The Son of God (Messiah) | 1:1,16,17
This Jesus did not originate from Abraham.
58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.”
Jesus always was - the eternal Son, one with the Father!
And Jesus was born. Meaning He entered into humanity becoming one of us.
And as He began His public ministry, at His baptism —
17 and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”
As He was ushered into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted by the Devil, it was not Jesus’s Abrahamic or Davidic descent that was in question. Even the Devil knew who Jesus was —
3 And the tempter came and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”
...
Matthew 4:6 (NASB 95)
6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down...
As He walked on the water and calmed the storms —
33 And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “You are certainly God’s Son!”
And while on the Mount of Transfiguration — God echoed again —
Matthew 17:5 (NASB 95)
5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!”
But it was Peter’s confession to Jesus’ question that connects the all the dots:
15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
Brothers and sisters, Jesus is the Messiah - and this means that Jesus is the Son of God!
On this confessionJesus builds His Church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.
Who is this Jesus who was born?
As we consider this genealogy, there is one sin for us to avoid, and it is the sin of unbelief.
Weaved throughout these verses is this message that Jesus is the Messiah and an invitation for all to believe.
This is the Christmas invitation! And it is found at all the major points of Matthew’s Gospel through this questioning of who Jesus is.
When Jesus was put on trial before his crucifixion, the Scripture says:
63 But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.”
64 Jesus said to him, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
Even on the cross Jesus was taunted with this same invitation —
40 and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.”
But for Jesus to save sinners, He would not save Himself.
For sin demands justice, for God is just.
And the wages of sin is death (Rom 6.23).
Jesus, who knew no sin, did what no other person could do - he offered Himself in the place of sinners, paying the debt of sin once for all, laying down His life on the cross.
And even at his death, His identity shined through.
54 Now the centurion, and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, became very frightened and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”
The centurion was only partly right. It’s not that Jesus was the Son of God - Jesus IS the Son of God.
And God proved this by raising Jesus from the dead in power!
32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”
Our text ends with verse 17 —
17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to the Messiah, fourteen generations.
This is the introduction to the birth of Jesus, set within God’s plan, for God’s people, and for the world.
May we forsake any sin and unbelief, and confess with the saints of all ages — that this Jesus is who God says He is — He is the son of Abraham, the son of David, and He is the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of the living God.