Thus It Began

AND THUS IT BEGAN

Matthew 1:1-16

Glad you are here. What better way to start off a new year than reading about the beginning of our Lord and our Savior and His life on this earth.

I appreciate Vincent reading the passage…it is not easy.

Every year at this time I extend a challenge to you…last year the challenge was “To Try or Help Turn Someone’s Life Right Side Up.”

How did you do? Did you try? Did you make a difference to someone?
Still on going. One of those deals where we may not see the results for some time.

Here is your challenge for this year. Your challenge for this year is to LEARN MORE ABOUT JESUS!

To learn more about what He was like…what He taught…and what He did….and what God the Father has done through Him.
And the primary reason for doing this is, that is how DISCIPLES…followers…are made.
Jesus Himself said in Matthew 28:18-20: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations…baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit…teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
- A lot of people have been baptized…but a lot of those people are not “disciples of Christ.”
- We must teach people about Christ because if they don’t get Christ…if they are not converted to Christ and become a follower…what do they have?

So, my challenge to you this year is to focus on Jesus…learn more about Jesus…

And that is what we are going to do this morning…and through out the year…we are going to spend a lot of time learning about Jesus.
So, let’s go through this passage that was read.

Today, most people look at these first 16 verses and simply skip over them.

The names are hard…not very interesting…so we skip it.

What we should bear in mind though, is that Matthew is writing primarily for Jews.

That is why in verse 2 he begins this genealogy record of Christ with Abraham instead of Adam like Luke does in Luke 3.
And genealogy was important for the Jews.
- Genealogy was important for determining a family’s place of residence because the land was divided according to tribes and families.
- Genealogy was also important in the selection of priests.
- Royal or kingly succession was linked to one’s genealogy.
  - So this listing of names was important to the Jews…and that is why you often find genealogies listed through out the Scriptures; Gen. 5, Exodus 6; etc.

And this genealogy is important to us also because it, along with the rest of the chapter, proves…confirms…assures us of who Jesus really is…it confirms our faith.

Look at vs. 1 again.

Now, let me give you just a little bit of background information.

Most scholars believe that this gospel was written somewhere around 65 A.D…or some 30 years after the crucifixion and ascension of Christ.

When Christ came the majority of the Jews had rejected Him as the Messiah…the “Promised One from God”, they believed that the Messiah was still to come.
Some were just not sure…they had seen His miracles…and they had heard His teachings…but they were not completely convinced.

So, Matthew writes this to “fully win the Jews for Christ”…to gain those who were still not converted and to reassure those who had been.

So look now in vs. 1 at who Matthew tells these Jews as well as all of us that Jesus is. He says,

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

This verse is the caption…the heading that summarizes the genealogy to follow.
And notice what Matthew says about Jesus.

First he refers to Him as Jesus Christ.

“Jesus” – or Jeshua in the Hebrew or Jehoshua…a name that literally means: “God saves…or God will save.”
In verse 21 the angel tells Joseph that Jesus is to be called Jesus because “He will save His people from their sins.”
So when Matthew refers to Jesus as “Jesus”…He is saying to these Jews that He is “Savior…God saves.”

But then he also refers to Him as Christ…Messiah…”anointed.”

“One sent by God…chosen by God.”
“Chosen by God to save His people.”
He is saying to the Jews, “This is the One you have been looking for…the One that God said would come.”

But then Matthew says that Jesus is the “son of David.”

“son of David” is a reference to the tribe of Judah…and as long as Judah was faithful…the kings of Israel would come through their descendents…and ultimately the “King whose throne would last forever” would come from David. (2 Sam. 7)
So Matthew is saying to the Jews that Jesus is that King!

And when He refers to Jesus as the “son of Abraham”, it was through Abraham that the “seed would come through which all nations would be blessed.”

So with his opening statement Matthew is saying to the Jews that Jesus is “God…He is Savior…He is the “anointed” of God”…He is King…and it is through Him that all nations will be blessed.”
And to prove his point…to prove his claim…he gives us this genealogy.

Now, there are some things about this genealogy that are quite interesting.

Look at verse 3…Perez and Zerah are both mentioned as sons of Judah…but the seed line passed only through Perez…so why is Zerah even mentioned.
And at the end of vs. 3; Hezron and Ram…we know absolutely nothing about them.
And look at some of the characters mentioned in this genealogy…Rahab…a prostitute…Ruth who was actually a Moabitess…Ahaz who made an alliance with the king of Assyria…
There are some interesting people in this genealogy…people you probably wouldn’t pick to be in the lineage of the Messiah.

But the most interesting verse in this genealogy is vs. 16.

…and to Jacob was born Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

Matthew takes special care here to make sure the readers know that Joseph was not Jesus’ “physical” father.
And Matthew elaborates on that in vs. 18-25.

So Matthew makes sure that his readers know that Joseph was not Jesus’ physical father…but he was Jesus “legal” father…and thus Jesus is the “rightful heir to the throne of David”…a throne that 2 Samuel 7:16 says is “established forever.”

So, Matthew says, Jesus…Jeshua…is the Savior…God saves.
Christ…the Messiah…the One anointed by God to save His people from their sins.
The “son of David”…King…whose throne is established forever.
“The “son of Abraham”…the One through which all the nations will be blessed.
Jesus is the fulfillment of prophecy.

And not only that, according to Matthew, Jesus is the climax of three fourteens…look at vs. 17: Therefore all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to the time of Christ fourteen generations.

14, 14, 14…this is no coincidence.
To the Jews, numbers had meaning.
For example the number 1= 1 God.
The number 3= the God head…the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
The number 12= 12 tribes of Israel…the totality of God’s people.
Numbers meant something to the Jews.

Here you have three 14s.

Fourteen = two 7’s.
Seven= is perfection…it speaks of the complete and total holiness of God.
Fourteen to the Jews would mean “twice the perfection and holiness of God.”
And to speak of three fourteens…is to say that a thing is wholly ordained by God!
And notice at the end of vs. 17 who the culmination of this “holy work of God” is…Christ…the Messiah!

Some of these Jews rejected Him when He came…some were still not sure…so here in 17 verses Matthew tells them…and he tells us that He is:

“Jeshua…Savior;
Christ…the anointed One of God sent to save His people.
The son of David…the King who rules forever.
The son of Abraham…the ONE through which all nations will be blessed.
He is also the “rightful” heir to the throne of David.
He is the fulfillment of prophecy…and He is the culmination of the holy work of God.

But now, let’s go on…let’s read starting in vs. 18…Matthew is going to give us more convincing evidence about who Christ is:

18 Now the birth of Jesus (Jeshua…Savior) Christ (Messiah) was as follows. When His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. 19 And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not wanting to disgrace her, desired to put her away secretly. 20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for that which has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 “And she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins.” 22 Now all this took place that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying, 23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” 24 And Joseph arose from his sleep, and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took her as his wife, 25 and kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.

In the “legal” since Joseph was His father…but ultimately how was Jesus conceived?

By the Holy Spirit; “Jews, did you pick up on that?

Joseph wanted to put her away secretly. Why didn’t he?

An angel of the Lord told him not to; “Jews, did you pick up on that? An angel of God…”

“And Isaiah was one of your most respected prophets…and do you know what he said about Jesus 700 years before?”

He said that He was “Immanuel…God with us.” GOD…with us!

So what has Matthew said about Jesus?

“Jeshua…Savior;”
Christ…the anointed One of God sent to save His people.
The son of David…the King who rules forever.
The son of Abraham…the ONE through which all nations will be blessed.
He is also the “rightful” heir to the throne of David.
He is the fulfillment of prophecy…and He is the culmination of the holy work of God.
He was born of the Holy Spirit.
He was confirmed by an angel.
He is the Savior of His people.
He is “Immanuel…God with us!

Do you believe that? If not, why not? That is why Matthew writes this…to give you convincing evidence of who Jesus is…to convince those of you who have not been converted that Jesus is the Savior…and to reassure those of you who may not be sure.

To not believe is to reject the obvious evidence.

This genealogy tells us that Jesus came from some place.

It was exactly how God wanted it to be…He was born precisely when God wanted Him to be born…God used His people to fulfill His plan.

Today, brothers and sisters, we are the people of God…His kingdom…we are the people He is counting on to fulfill His plan…there is no plan B…there is no B team…we are it!

For Brady, we are it… for better or worse there is no other …and I suggest for your better thinking…for every single one of us…we are all here for a reason…there is a purpose in this…we come from some place…there is a genealogy…this is not by accident…we are here for a reason.

Now, I want you think about Jesus’ genealogy again…the people that are listed here.

What does your “spiritual genealogy” look like?

Somebody taught me the Bible…someone encouraged me along…the first I remember was my mom…she first introduced me to God…and to Jesus…and some of the stories…she would be in my genealogy.

Then there were some Bible class teachers at VBS…one lady, Nellie Vermillion comes to mind…she first stirred a real interest of the Bible in me…taught me not to be ashamed of the word of God.
Then an uncle…his example taught me so much.
Some preachers…
My father in law…
A preacher in Pampa…instructors at Sunset…Rex Boyles…Gerald Paden…
Milton Caraway and Bill Glover that helped me as a new minister and kept me out of trouble.
If I wrote a list of the people who have had a positive, spiritual impact on my life…these would all be there.

What would your spiritual genealogy look like?

Think for a moment…who are the people in your history that have had an impact on your faith and shaping your relationship with Christ?
Be sure to thank God for them.

I also wonder, is there anyone out there that would write my name down in their genealogy?

Who are the people you are teaching?…having an impact on?
Whose lives you are touching…shaping…sharing your faith with?
Molding by your service.
Whose genealogy would you be in? Who would thank God for you? Would anyone thank God for me?

How did Joseph respond to the angel?

Did he say, “No way! You’re saying the Holy Spirit did a miracle and got my fiancée pregnant? Right?”
What did he do? He accepted it…he submitted to it…he followed thru and took her to be his bride.
I am guessing that at some point that cost him with people that might have ridiculed and mocked him…or gossiped.

I am encouraging you to have the same spirit that Joseph had.

There are those moments when God speaks to us in His word…through prayer…through meditation…through study…and through others…there are times when God speaks to us…and our response needs to be, “Yes Lord. I will do the hard thing. I will submit to the greater purpose. I will follow through even though it costs me. Because I will trust You and I am a person of faith…and You will have your way with my life whether I see it or not.”
Whether it is the decision to be baptized…or the decision to become a member here at Sunset Ridge…or to be part of a Bible class…I encourage you to follow Joseph’s example and respond to God the way that God wants you to respond…in faith, by faith, and through faith.