Genesis of Jesus (Matthew Series)
Gospel of Matthew • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Intro
Intro
If you have your Bibles
Turn with me to Matthew Chapter 1
and we are going to start reading in verse number 1
but don’t close your Bible
because we are going to stay in the book of Matthew for a while
1 The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
This first verse of Matthew
and consequently the first verse of the New Testament
is the real title of the book in my opinion
I know that your Bible probably calls this book:
“The Gospel According to St. Matthew’
or simply “Matthew”
But Matthew started his book with these words:
The Book of the Generations of Jesus Christ
There is a reason for this
as we begin to talk about the original audience of this book
We will see why Matthew begins his book this way
It would bring to the remembrance of the Jewish reader
verses like
1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him;
The word “generations” in Genesis 5:1 and Matthew 1:1 can both be translated as “Genesis” or beginning.
So, Matthew is taking the reader’s mind from the end of Adam’s book
to the Beginning of Jesus’ book.
As if to say, we’re about to have a New Beginning.
Adam got his Genesis from God as the first man
And Matthew presents Jesus as coming from Abraham
The Father of the Faithful
and from David the King after God’s own heart
The Jewish reader would expect to hear this
as they had long awaited a man
that would come from David and Abraham’s family
Who would be the Messiah
Book Facts
Book Facts
The date of Matthew’s Gospel is uncertain
but it is estimated to have been produced around 50-65 AD
Sometime before the destruction of Jerusalem in 70AD
The author is Matthew
and there isn’t much debate on the genuine apostolic authorship of Matthew
Matthew identifies himself in chapter 9 verse 9 and 10
as a tax collector called by Jesus
and his account says they went to eat “in the house”
Mark instead said, “in the home of Levi”
Which was also Matthew’s name
So, the fact that Matthew says “in the house”
instead of in Levi’s home
indicates that it was his own house
and lends internal evidence that Matthew is writing.
All the early church historians agreed
that Matthew the tax collector was the author.
The original Audience were Syrian Jewish Christians east of Isreal
They most likely were in the well-known city of Antioch
The place where the Bible says they were first called Christians
They went to Antioch to escape the persecution of Saul
but also because God was forcing them to spread the Gospel
We know they were most likely in this location
because Matthew makes several references to Isreal being “Beyond Jordan”
and if you are familiar with geography
that would mean that they were east of Isreal
as the Jordan river and today the nation of Jordan forms the eastern border of Isreal
We know they were Jewish
because most Christians were Jewish at this time
as they had not yet converted Saul aka Paul
who would be the first real missionary to the Gentiles
We also know they were Jewish
because Matthew spends a considerable amount of words
proving who Jesus was
by using Old Testament scriptures
which is something that would only convince a devout Jew
during this time.
Today, the OT would convince Gentiles too
as the Bible has influence world-wide
as a Holy Book
but back then
The Jews, their religion, and their OT Books
were not yet influential worldwide
like they are today
So, the use of OT passages to convince the reader
is evidence that the original readers were devout Jews
When we begin to dissect a book like we are going to do tonight
I often talk about the theme.
This is not so easy to do with a book like Matthew
because it has many themes
It is a biography of Jesus
and of course that it the primary theme
So, I want to point out some things upfront that Matthew appears to highlight in his account of the life and times of Jesus Christ.
Much of these highlights are driven by the audience, who were Syrian Jewish Christians
As we’ve already noted, he placed more emphasis on Jesus being a descendant of David and Abraham than perhaps Luke or Mark did.
This would have mattered to a Jewish reader
As we go through the Book of Matthew, we will find that Mountains play an important part in the story.
You will also find that Matthew highlights teachings or discourses of Jesus, and organizes his Gospel around those teachings.
There are five of them, the first being the sermon on the mount
Another theme is “God with us”
The first readers were on the run from persecution, and Matthew reminds them in Chapter 1 that Jesus is “Emmanuel” and in the last verse of the last chapter, he quotes Jesus as saying “I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world”
Prologue 1:1-17
Prologue 1:1-17
With that introduction to the book out of the way
Let’s dive into Matthew’s Prologue
Which spans from verse 1 to verse 17 of the first chapter.
We’ve already mentioned the significance of verse number 1
Especially the significance to a Jewish reader,
and that is how Matthew presents Jesus
as being the Messiah
by showing how Jesus is a Son of both Abraham and David
The Messiah had to be a son of Abraham and a son of David
to fulfil OT prophecy
So, Matthew starts out by proving that with a genealogy that starts with Abraham and goes through David, and ends with Jesus.
You may be aware of ongoing debates about the difference in Matthew and Luke’s genealogy.
I for one, think that getting caught up in those debates causes people to miss the point.
Matthew is making a point that Jesus is heir to the throne of David
and a heir to Abraham’s promises
Matthew intentionally summarizes his genealogy to 42 generations.
He wanted to show 3 even lists of people
14 people from Abraham to David
14 people from David to exile
14 people from exile to Jesus
The point was to show how Jesus was the climax of Israel’s long story.
And that Jesus was legally the King of the Jews
and heir to Abraham’s promise
Luke was writing to a different audience
a gentile audience
and they would not have cared as much about Jewish tradition
and so Luke showed a more detailed genealogy from Jesus back 77 generations to Adam and therefore to God.
His point was to show that Jesus was one of us
and that He was the Second Adam
come to undo what the first Adam messed up.
You’ll notice a divergence between both of these lists after David
Matthew follows Solomon’s blood line
the royal blood line
and lists the kings of Judah
Luke says that Jesus is a descendant of David’s lessor known son, Nathan.
There are 2 good explanations of this
The first being that Luke followed Mary’s genealogy back to God
to show how Jesus didn’t inherit the guilt of Adam
since Joseph did not conceive Jesus
but Mary was overshadowed by the Holy Ghost
The second explanation
and one that has very early evidence for
is that Nathan had no children
and his wife was taken by Solomon due to levitical law
that a brother had to marry his brother’s widow
and therefore, Nathan was the legal ancestor of Jesus
but Solomon was the biological ancestor of Jesus.
Either way, They both show that Jesus is a descendant of David and Abraham
and they both were inspired by God to write the lists they way that they did
and it isn’t really up to us to figure out why
since the Bible doesn’t tell us why
and the atheist that uses the differences between the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew and Luke
as a reason to not heed the gospel
is going to see how silly that is on Judgement Day.
Paul warned both Timothy and Titus about this
3 As I besought thee to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into Macedonia, that thou mightest charge some that they teach no other doctrine,
4 Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith: so do.
The 4 Women
The 4 Women
When we look at the genealogy of Jesus according to Matthew
He does something a little out of character for Jewish genealogies
It was surely a shocking thing to the original readers,
and it was something that Matthew did intentionally
because while he was writing to Jews
He knew that Jesus told them to “Go ye therefore and Teach all Nations”
So, Matthew hints at this by adding 4 women to the genealogy
4 women that weren’t perfect
and weren’t Jews
The women are:
Tamar
Rahab
Ruth
Bathsheba
A Jew reading this in the first century would have jumped back when they read those names
Normally, in this patriarchal society
the women were not named in such lists
They weren’t even counted when a census was done
If you were going to list some women
Perhaps you might list Sara, Rebekah, or Leah
Most of us have a tendency to put our best foot forward
We try to keep our skeletons in the closet
but not Matthew
He lists 4 women that were not Jews
This was to connect Jesus to the Gentiles
Tamar and Rahab were Canaanites
Ruth was a Moabite
Bathsheba’s husband was a Hittite,
and tradition tells us that she was too.
Also, these 4 women were not perfect brides
Tamar was a widow that played the harlot to sleep with her father-in-law Judah
Rahab was a prostitue in Canaan before she chose to help Isreal’s spies escape Jericho
Ruth was a destitute and penniless widow desperate to remarry
And Bathsheba committed adultery with David while her husband was in battle
This was not to shame the women either
It also reminded the reader that the men were not perfect either
With listing Tamar
A Jew might read the name “Judah”
and think, ah yes, the son of Jacob
The tribe that David came from
and forget that Judah paid to sleep with his daughter-in-law
and that David committed adultery with Bathsheba and killed her husband
These are not the names of people you would expect to find in Jesus’ genealogy
Especially when you have the choice, and traditional precendent to not even list the names of the women at all
and you had other women like Sara and Rebekah to pick from
but Matthew said from the outset
Jesus came to save us all
As we will see in a moment
that is what His name means
He didn’t come to just save the perfect
He didn’t come to save the put-together
He came to save “HIS People”
and no matter how messed up your past is
You are still qualified to be “HIS People”
You don’t have to clean yourself up to be His People
Let him do the cleaning
Don’t worry about your past
Worry about your future with Jesus
Birth Narrative (1:18-25)
Birth Narrative (1:18-25)
After Matthew concludes the prologue
He dives into the Birth Narrative
Now, I know it isn’t Christmas
and We normally read this story December
and it is almost Easter
But We’re not just going to read the story tonight
We’re going to dive deeper into it
Because there are some awesome things we discover when we study the word of God
which is different than just simply reading the word of God
Verse 18
Verse 18
18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.
“On this wise” means, “It happened this way”
So, Matthew is essentially testifying about the way that Jesus was born.
It says that Mary was “espoused”
This means she was engaged to be married
However, Engagements in their culture was something different that we practice today.
An engagement meant that Joseph had already signed a contract to marry Mary
But Mary was still living with her parents
That’s why it says:
“Before they came together”
Matthew is trying to stress this point
because the Jews knew about the prophecy of the virgin birth
So, this detail is important
They were engaged,
but Mary still lived at home.
So, they had not consummated the marriage
and Mary was still a virgin.
Yet, she was found with child
So, Mary is expecting a baby
but she still lived with her parents
So, it wasn’t Joseph’s baby
and Matthew tells us who the Father is…
The Holy Ghost
Since the one that causes the conception
is the Father
therefore, the Holy Ghost is the Father of Jesus
We don’t have any issues with this passage as a Oneness Pentecostal
but Trinitarians are often left scratching their heads
How can the Holy Ghost be the Father?
Well, when you understand the the Holy Ghost is not another person
But the Holy Ghost simply means the Holy Spirit
and God the Father is Holy
and God the Father is a Spirit
Therefore, the Holy Spirit is God the Father
You’ll find Catholic Creeds that say that the Holy Spirit is NOT the Father
But according Matthew and Luke
The Holy Ghost caused the conception of Jesus
Let’s look at verse 19
19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.
Here we find that Joseph is a “just” man
This means he is righteous
This is why I believe he was chosen to the the earthly Father of Jesus
When God needs something this important done
He doesn’t just choose anyone
He looks for a just man
We see this in scripture with other men like Noah
The Bible says there was none righteous but Noah
When you are a Just man or a Just woman
You stand out, and God takes notice
It says that Joseph wasn’t willing to make her a public example
This is because, while they were only engaged to be married
The contract was already in place
and unlike today,
where you can just give him the ring back
and go your separate ways
They had to have a bill of divorce
and the woman could be stoned for adultery
according to Jewish law
So, Joseph said, I’m not going to make you die
even though I have a right to it
Instead, I’ll get a private divorce
and we will pretend nothing happened
20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.
Not only is Joseph a Just man
He is also a man that takes his time to think about it
He did make a quick judgment that could have ended with Mary being stoned
and left for dead
Or even with a private divorce,
she would be left to raise the child alone
and could never be remarried
Joseph recognized the consequences of this decision
and took the time to think about it
This shows his wisdom
It also displays his patience
It also displays his temperance and his meekness
Because he withheld power that he had a right to use
That is meekness.
It quickly becomes clear why Joseph and Mary were chosen
to be the parents of Jesus
To raise the baby boy
that was, as we will see, God With Us
So, Joseph is thinking
and his thoughts are interrupted by an angel
Luke tells about how an angel came to comfort Mary
But Matthew decides to inform us
that the angel came to talk to Joseph too
The Angel calms his fears
tells him to carry out the marriage
and says again that the Holy Ghost is the Father
21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
The angel continues
and says Mary’s son shalt be called JESUS
and the angel says,
that the reason for that specific name
is because the child shall his people from their sins
Now, Jesus is the Greek version of His name
In Hebrew, it is Joshua or Yeshua
and this name literally means
Jehovah is my Salvation
Jehovah or Yahweh as some pronounce it
Is God the Father’s name in the Old Testament
And God the Father often added adjectives or adverbs to His name
Jehovah Jireh meant, God my Provider
or Jehovah Rapha meant, God is my Healer
And so, Joshua, is a name that means God is my Saviour
And the Bible tells us in Acts 4:12
12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
and in Phil 2:9
9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
This is because, the name of Jesus
which means Jehovah is my Saviour
encompasses all the other names of God
If you need healing,
Your saviour can do that
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: The chastisement of our peace was upon him; And with his stripes we are healed.
If you need provision
Your saviour can do that
13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
So, Jesus is the only name we need
It is the name above every name
That is why the bible says:
17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.
So, not only does this name explain that Jesus is our Savior
It also tells us that Jesus is the Father
Matthew and the Angel already made the claim that the Holy Spirit is God the Father
and here, in verse Matt1:21, the Angel
21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
Tells us that Jesus is the Father
Because the name Jesus means
Jehovah is my Saviour
You say, wait a minute
God the Father is not the Savior
The Son is the Saviour
That’s why you have to get rid of the 4th century creeds
that created this idea that God needed to divide himself
into 3 persons in order to do something
Jesus isn’t another person
Jesus is God manifest in the flesh
11 I, even I, am the Lord; And beside me there is no saviour.
LORD in that verse is translated from the Hebrew word YHWH
Which is Yahweh or Jehovah
and that is God the Father
He said, I am the only Saviour
And that is why Jesus can’t be another person
or that would make Jesus another Saviour
But Jesus is Jehovah manifest in the flesh
And if we keep reading,
this truth becomes even more clear to us
22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,
23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
Here, Matthew is quoting directly from the prophet Isaiah
14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, And shall call his name Immanuel.
but when Matthew quotes Isaiah
He also adds the interpretation of the name Emmanuel
It means “God With US”
23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
I told you before,
this is one of the themes of the book
It starts with “God With Us”
and ends with “Jesus With Us”
because Jesus is God with us.
Jesus isn’t the second person of the Trinity with us
Jesus is Jehovah with us.
There is more evidence of this as we continue on
but I want to finish up the lesson here by reading the rest of chapter 1
24 Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:
25 And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.
A few final notes here
Joseph was just,
Joseph was wise
Joseph was patient
Joseph was meek
and in verse 24, we find that Joseph was obedient
It says he woke up from the dream
and he didn’t keep thinking about it
he just obeyed the Lord
and took mary to be his wife
Verse 25 tell us that he “knew her not”
meaning they didn’t have any intimate relations
until after Jesus was born
Just to further stress the point that Mary was a virgin until Jesus was born
It also says that Jesus was the “firstborn”
and there is no indication that Jesus was the only born
As some people teach that Mary remained a virgin eternally
However, Jesus had other brothers
and we see a hint of that here in the word “until”
Joseph knew her not “until”
Meaning, after Jesus was born,
they did go on to conssumate their marriage
and Mary didn’t remain an enternal virgin
These ideas about Mary were invented
centuries after she lived
by people that wanted to worship Mary
but while Mary was blessed
and Mary was chosen to do something very important for God
Mary was still just a human being that needed a savior
In fact, we find Mary obeying Jesus,
her earthly son
but her Heavenly father
When Jesus tells them to all wait in Jerusalem
for the outpouring of the Holy Ghost
They went to the upper room and waited and prayed
and Acts1:14 say that Mary was there with the 120
14 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.
Okay, we’re going to wrap up here
and we will pick back up next week in Chapter 2
I hope you enjoyed this lesson
and I look forward to seeing you all Sunday
Thank You!