LifeWay Explore the Bible Series for Dec. 21: This is a time to rejoice at the Savior’s birth_120803

Posted: 12/05/03

LifeWay Explore the Bible Series for Dec. 21

This is a time to rejoice at the Savior's birth

Matthew 1:1-2:10

By John Duncan

Lakeside Baptist Church, Granbury

Handel's “Messiah,” a musical oratorio, has come to be associated with the Christmas season. He set to music prophecies of Isaiah about a king who comes to bring peace, comfort and joy to a violent, troubled and disturbed world. Isaiah's words, “Comfort my people” (Isaiah 40:1), reverberate toward a crescendo as the music flows in an ebb and flow of soft to loud building toward a climax at the end. Matthew 1:1-25 reads like the ebb and flow of a musical score with Christ's birth of Immanuel serving as the climax. God's glory is revealed in Jesus.

Genealogy

Matthew announces the gospel as a gospel of Jesus the King to the Jews. Matthew emphasizes the fulfillment of Old Testament revelation. The genealogy is a study of the life of Jesus in heritage with Joseph's lineage (Matthew 1:1-17). Clearly the genealogy is a list of the names of people God used to accomplish his will and fulfill his plan.

In the genealogy, three things stand out: God's plan in the realm of faith (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob); God's grace at work in that plan (David, Bathsheba, Ruth, Rahab and Hezekiah); and God's plan and grace combining to use the unlikely and unknown Joseph.

God uses those who avail themselves to his plan and grace. On a more general note, you could conclude from the genealogy that God's work in a family spans generations in spite of family problems and that God's grace is the common factor in holding families together by faith.

Joseph and Mary

Joseph was betrothed to Mary (v. 18). The closest explanation for our understanding is a kind of engagement. Betrothal was a time of waiting before marriage that included Jewish feasts, seclusion and a binding legal arrangement taken seriously in Jewish culture. It was a legal arrangement not to be violated.

An apparent violation of that arrangement is mentioned in Matthew 1:18, when it speaks of Mary having a child in her womb. However, there was no broken betrothal because the child was “of the Holy Spirit.” The original language clearly indicates the source of Mary's child and Jesus's birth was not man, but God. Theologians call this indispensable act of God the virgin birth. It is also a basic belief of the first century church as well as of evangelical Christians today.

Matthew describes Joseph's character and faith in two ways– just (“righteous,” a quality of God who does right, honors right and defends justice); and a person of grace (v. 19). Joseph did not wish to disgrace, publicly expose or embarrass Mary, so he quietly planned to protect her by putting her away.

Joseph could have pursued two courses of legal action–repudiated Mary publicly under Jewish law (which might lead to stoning) or even private repudiation through divorce. One might see in Joseph two qualities of God–righteousness and grace, or, put another way, a balance of truth and mercy.

Heroes of the faith always possess these spiritual qualities. Thomas Long says Joseph “seeks to discern the will of God in each new moment and to be obedient to that.” Matthew forever leads the reader to see the coming king and his kingdom as one full of truth and mercy.

Angel

An angel appears to Joseph in a dream to reveal God's plan and grace. The angel reveals God's plan: Do not begin to fear, take Mary to your side as your wife and recognize this is God's plan because the child is “of the Holy Spirit” (v. 20). The angelic appearance and message were startling, surprising and alerted Joseph that both he and Mary were in God's plan and that Mary is without terrible sin in carrying the child. God's grace is revealed in the message of Jesus' birth as a son who shall be called Jesus, or “Helper and Salvation.” Joseph as a Jew might well have thought of Joshua leading the people of Israel across the Jordan River and into the promised land.

Jesus would be a new kind of king, leading people to the promised land of heaven by saving people from their sins (v. 21). The king saves people who “miss the mark” in sin. Prophets long declared this king would come, and now he is coming. Next, Matthew shares the prophet's verse and name. Long ago, Isaiah (7:14) announced a virgin-born son whose name would be called “Immanuel.” The name indicates the role or ministry of the king to and in his people, that is, God will be with them (literally, “God with us”). God's kingly truth and mercy will fill the souls of the citizens and servants of his kingdom.

Joseph's service to God

Joseph awakened from his sleep, obeyed God's message through his angelic messenger, and took Mary to his side to be his wife (v. 24). Joseph possesses two more qualities of service to God–obedience by God's grace to his plan; a faith to follow God even in the unknown and unseen. Faith surrounds Joseph with a godly, angelic message, and faith moves Joseph to action to serve God by grace.

Climax

The Scripture passage climaxes in a crescendo of praise and hope, truth and mercy: Jesus was born. The coming king had come to establish his rule of truth and grace in the hearts of his people.

Question for discussion

What would be the title of your song celebrating Christ's birth?