Matthew chapter 1
"This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham..."
From Abraham to the Messiah, by his seed (Abraham's), some 42 generations later, the birth of Jesus Christ (the Messiah) came to pass. Jesus' earthly father Joseph, the descendant of king David by the line of David's son Solomon, bore the genealogy of a cursed royal line because of Jeconiah. And yet Luke looks to Jesus as the son of Mary who traces her lineage from Nathan the son of king David, though Nathan is not of the kingly line, but he's also not cursed by the sin of Jeconiah. It seems that Jeconiah birthed quite a bit of trouble, I'm thinking about his grandchild Zerubbabel who was particularly problematic. Looking back to the minor prophets we've recently studied, maybe we'll recall, that Zerubbabel tried to lead a messianic movement for himself. Whether or not he did indeed try to lay claim to Messiah status is a little unclear, but he was indeed involved in the coming of Christ. Both Matthew and Luke list this Babylonian-born, Persian-appointed governor of Judah as the forefather of Joseph, the adoptive father of Jesus (see Matthew 1:12-13 and Luke 3:27).
But all this generational intrigue aside, what's the point we're to take away from this first chapter of Matthew?
I believe this verse boils it down nicely...
Matthew 1:16
"and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah."
...Joseph accepted his adopted son as the Messiah. As did Mary his mother. This is the importance of Matthew chapter one. The facts are presented, and the witness's testimony is given for one purpose. To make the case that Jesus is the Christ, the long-anticipated Messiah.
Matthew begins his gospel by making a claim that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of David, and the Son of Abraham. Matthew is saying that Jesus is the theme of ALL the scriptures. That he is the fulfillment of all scripture. That everything written in all sixty six books of the Bible are having to do with Jesus the Christ, king of the universe. They are his words. Every book in the Bible are his words. The entire Bible is his. He is The Word of The Lord.
Jesus said, all the things written in the prophets "must be fulfilled."
Luke 24:44
Then he said, “When I was with you before, I told you that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and in the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
And he is eternal and so are his words...
Matthew 24:35 Jesus says...
"Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear."
Matthew claims in chapter one that Jesus has been uniquely anointed by God for the work of salvation, the work of the Messiah. But more than that, Matthew makes the case that Jesus is the culmination of all scripture, the fulfillment. He makes the case that Jesus is the beginning and the end. Matthew ties together all the scripture in Jesus, and therefore Jesus gives meaning to the Old Testament as a whole and to every event and passage found within all scripture.
Matthew does this because he's inspired and instructed by the Holy Spirit. And he was uniquely qualified to take on this task. As a former tax collector, and a Levite, Matthew was qualified to write an account of Jesus’ life and teachings. He would know the Greek language, he'd be literate, and probably a well-organized person. It is thought that Matthew was the scribe among the disciples and that he took notes about the ministry of Jesus, and his teachings.
Most New Testament scholars believe that the Gospel of Matthew was not the first of the four gospels written, but there is good reason to believe that Matthew had in his possession a very good firsthand record of all that had transpired during Jesus's three year ministry, and more importantly the words of Jesus recorded firsthand.
The Gospel of Matthew is deeply rooted in Judaism. But to say that Matthew is “pro-Jewish” would be incorrect. What we learn from Matthew is that he is “pro-Jesus", or "pro-Jewish Messiah". Matthew's gospel is distinctly Jewish in nature. For instance, Matthew uses the more Jewish phrase “Kingdom of Heaven” instead of “Kingdom of God.” Matthew refers to Jewish customs without explanation, and assumes the reader knows the Hebrew roots of many of the events he recorded in his gospel.
Matthew doesn't just focus on the male lineage of Jesus. Matthew includes notable women like Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba (Uriah's wife). Matthew's gospel is known for its focus on ethical teachings (e.g., the Sermon on the Mount), so it's a fun ride to examine closer the significance of these women in the light of this patriarchal society. The inclusion of women stands out as a profound symbol of God's redemptive plan. Each woman listed in Matthew's narrative resonates with themes of faith. Their decisions and actions show the unexpected ways that God works through all of humanity. I encourage you to take a closer look back into that family history of Jesus.
Matthew chapter one takes us from the significance of Jesus’ ancestors to the profound implications of His divine origins. He lays the historic foundation for the Christian faith. He begins the journey and helps us to discover how Jesus' words reveal God’s perfect plan for our salvation. And maybe as significant is the fact that Jesus is the fulfillment of ALL scripture.
Matthew chapter one doesn’t just focus on Jesus’ family tree; he also shares the miraculous account of His birth. Born of the Virgin Mary through the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus, Immanuel – “God with us.”
But that's for the next devotion/article. Stay tuned.
See This Article On X - https://x.com/MICAH_SIXEIGHT/status/1835653078613172464
Philippians 1:10b-11
"Live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ’s return. May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ—for this will bring much glory and praise to God."
Since the fall of man, Adam and every human being that followed, lost the capability to exercise holy reign over the whole of creation. Adam violated the holy command and every generation that followed did likewise. David and the nation of Israel continued this sinful trend. They too were unable to fully manifest God’s kingdom here on earth because of their unrepentant sin. Zerubbabel’s lackluster performance after returning to Jerusalem following the exile into Babylon proved that there always remains a spiritual problem of faithlessness to the law of God, a problem so prevalent that even God's wrath cannot cure it.
And I suppose this is why many Israelites rejected Jesus as the Messiah. His earthly mission was to inaugurate the kingdom and restore ...
Isaiah 5:18-19
"What sorrow for those who drag their sins behind them with ropes made of lies, who drag wickedness behind them like a cart! They even mock God and say, 'Hurry up and do something! We want to see what you can do. Let the Holy One of Israel carry out his plan, for we want to know what it is.'”
The soul believes that God is. The hearts believes that Jesus is the truth and full of grace, the heart believes that he's telling us the truth. And the Spirit through the word of God reveals the truth about grace and brings that truth both into recognition and into remembrance, making that truth clearer and more relevant for the believer. Spirit, soul, and body. By the works of these supernatural forces, faith comes to the hearer. Christianity then becomes what that hearer does with that truth and grace.
Today, there's a dichotomy of worldly ideologies surrounding the Christian church. The polarization is split between progressivism and bigotry. Neither is a good thing. Neither is a Christian worldview. The progressives starting ...
Zechariah 14:4-5
In that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley...Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him."
The Mount of Olives is east of the city across the Kidron Valley and is higher than the temple mound. Jerusalem becomes the source of living water when The Lord splits the Mount in two and a valley opens up from East to west. And a vast underground river rises up and pours out over the land towards the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean. The Dead Sea is healed and becomes a fishing resort. And Jerusalem will be raised up, elevated above her geographical surroundings.
Zechariah 14:10
"The whole land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem."
And all the heavens will change. All we know about the universe will change. There will no longer be day or night. No darkness. Only the light of The Lord. One day, neither day nor night, as if ...
The interpretation in question:
Isaiah 7:14b (RSV, amplified)
"Behold, a young woman (Alma, virgin) shall conceive (future tense) and bear a son, and shall call his name Imman′u-el"
In the Old Testament prophecy, (Isaiah 7:13-14), we have the Lord promising a sign to Ahaz that “the virgin shall conceive and bear a son.” The Gospel of Matthew claims that Jesus’ conception by The Holy Spirit in the Virgin Mary is the fulfillment of that promise, citing, Isaiah’s prophecy explicitly (Matthew 1:23). And so, conversely, unbelieving scholars do not take it for granted that Matthew’s interpretation of Isaiah is valid as pretty much all first century Christians did. These scholars are men who do not believe in the divine, and supernatural miracles. They maintain that Jesus was born like anyone else, with a human mother and father, and that his virgin conception was a later legendary embellishment. And they also weren't convinced that Matthew, the gospel writing evangelist, was even the same Matthew of Jesus' apostle fame.
...
Matthew 1:16
"and Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary, who gave birth to Jesus who is called the Messiah."
Joseph and Mary were engaged. In the Hebrew culture this was the first of three steps in the marriage process. This engagement is basically an arrangement to be married. This could have taken place very early in their lives, even as small children. Engagement was usually arranged by the parents. Espousal followed this arrangement period and lasted about a year in the case where the couple are of age. This espousal stage was considered to be marriage to a certain degree, but the couple were set apart to prepare themselves for full consummation and so they were kept apart sexually. In fact the father kept tokens of his daughter's virginity in case any questions arose later on. It was at this point that "it was discovered before they came together that she was pregnant from the Holy Spirit." (Matthew 1:18b)
Joseph was a righteous man, a Nazarene, a descendent of David. And he didn't want to disgrace Mary and open her ...
Yesterday I wrote an article/devotion about Nostra aetate and the notion that some hold that there are many paths to God, or that all religious paths lead to the same cross of Jesus. The impetus was the Pope's recent comments about his belief in what I believe is a heretical doctrine.
Today, I want to address what's really going on here for so many in the Catholic Church and in Christian universalism in general. It's really about evangelism, or the lack thereof. Maybe you could say, if you were Methodist, it's about prevenient grace. The desire is to open doors for evangelism. I get that. I also know it only ever really opens the window, but hardly ever the door.
Why?
Why doesn't it work to convert and disciple the worshippers of other "gods" to just meet in ecumenical mingled worship?
Simple answer:
They aren't making disciples, they're making excuses.
And unfortunately this Nostra aetate universalist notion has bled out into all the many Christian communities. And the result is, evangelism and disciple making has been nearly eliminated in most Christian ...
