Family Bible Series for Dec. 25: Jesus is our conduit to the realm of heaven

Posted: 12/13/05

Family Bible Series for Dec. 25

Jesus is our conduit to the realm of heaven

• Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-2, 11

By Donald Raney

Westlake Chapel, Graham

There is within humanity an inherent sense that there is more to reality than what we experience in the physical world. We seem to instinctively know that there is a supernatural spiritual world beyond our senses from which we have become disconnected. There seems to be a spark of that spiritual world within us which creates within us a longing to reconnect with the spiritual realm.

The history of religion is a history of humanity’s quest to find the path that would lead to such a reconnection. Today, each of the great religions of the world attracts millions of adherents who firmly believe they have found the path that leads to God or to a reconnection with the spiritual source of all life.

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Over the past several decades, it has become widely accepted that, since all religions claim to lead to the same place and since all religious claims are inherently based on faith, no one religion can truthfully claim to be the only true path. Yet this is exactly what Christianity claims.

What is the basis of such a claim and how should one respond to this claim? There is perhaps no better time to examine these questions than on the day when Christians around the world celebrate the birth of the central figure in all of Christianity.

Matthew 1:18-20

While each of the gospels record the events surrounding the birth of Jesus in different ways, each of them maintains his birth was the work of God. All four gospel writers clearly assert Jesus is indeed the Son of God. Here in these three verses, Matthew states twice that Jesus was conceived through the Holy Spirit.

For Matthew, whose gospel was written specifically for Jewish believers, this point especially was important to establish Jesus as the promised Messiah. Yet these gospel writers also were concerned that their readers understood that Jesus also was fully human. He chose a human mother and went through all of the normal parts of a human birth.

This was indeed what made this story unique. When God chose to come and live among us, he chose to live as one of us. He took on human flesh with all of its limitations and frailties. He had earthly parents and experienced all of the stages of human childhood, adolescence and adulthood. Jesus was thus fully human and fully divine. Only by doing so could he truly know our experience of life. By becoming one of us, he also was able to give us a concrete example of a life lived in full righteousness before God.

Matthew 1:21-25

Today, children primarily are named after a highly regarded relative or family friend. During biblical times, the naming of children was a sacred act. The name given was seen as a prophetic statement regarding the child’s future character or purpose.

In announcing the birth of God’s Son, Matthew records two names by which he would be known. These two names correspond to the two names for God found in the Old Testament.

The first name is Immanuel. This name is first found in the Old Testament prophecy of Isaiah and means “God with us.” This name incorporates the divine name Elohim which most often refers to God as the Almighty transcendent Creator. Thus the name Immanuel assures us it is the power and authority of the transcendent God that resides in this child.

The second name is Jesus which is the Greek form of the name Yeshua. This name means “God saves.” This name is based on the divine name Yahweh which is the personal name of God and is most often used to speak of God as the God of the covenant. Thus the name Jesus assures us that through this child, God is seeking to establish personal relationships with humanity. In these verses, God is declaring that the fullness of God as both Elohim and Yahweh is present in this son of Mary.

Matthew 2:1-2, 11

Sometime after his birth, magi from the East come to see Jesus. While these men were likely not royalty, they were likely members of royal courts. It appears they may have been astrologers paid by a king to study the stars and offer advice based on their study. They had noticed a new star and assumed it marked the birth of a new great king. They had thus traveled with gifts from their royal courts to pay homage to this new king.

By including this account of their visit, Matthew clearly is demonstrating that Jesus came not only for the Jews, but for all peoples of the world. The salvation he brought was not to be limited to his own people, but was to be for all humankind.

Matthew also makes note of the gifts these wise men brought to Jesus. The identity of these gifts is significant not only because they were widely associated with royalty, but also because they were gifts that held great value to the one giving the gift.

Thus while Matthew was writing primarily to Jews, he was clearly affirming that Jesus was recognized from birth by people from differing backgrounds as a king sent from God. Today, he offers salvation to anyone who would surrender whatever they consider valuable, kneel before a manger, and worship him as King and Savior and Lord.

Discussion questions

• Do you tend to think more of Jesus’s divinity or humanity? Why? Take a few moments to ponder the union of his divinity and humanity.

• Considering what each of them mean, what do the names Immanuel and Jesus mean to you personally?

• What would be the “gold, incense and myrrh” which you would bring to the baby Jesus this year?