Matthew 1:18-25

Okay...once every one or two weeks.

My aim for each of these postings will be two-fold: 1) to highlight the main point of the text; and 2) to show you how we got there. The big question we should always seek to answer is why did Matthew include this narrative or discourse in the book (and we are looking for something more specific than 'because God said to'). What purpose does it serve?


Several kinds of clues will help us to find the main point of any biblical historical narrative:


1. CONTEXT
Contest is king!! Any individual narrative should be interpreted in light of the whole account. The whole account should also be interpreted in light of the individual narrative. It is a constant process of looking at the big picture then zooming in on the details then back out to the big picture, etc.
2. AUTHORIAL/ EDITORIAL/ NARRATOR COMMENTS
The author or narrator gives clues to his reader of how to interpret a text. Sometimes these are almost parenthetical, but very important.
3. THEMATIC STATEMENTS:
The author or narrator sometimes provides a thematic statement which reveals the theme of his work. Have you seen anything like this in your reading of today's passage?
4. REPETITION
Anytime an author uses a phrase over and over is important and must be investigated.
5. AUTHORITATIVE SPEAKERS
The author places key dialogues in the mouths of various speakers. Authoritative speakers can be good or evil. In Mark, the demons know what they are talking about when they identify Jesus as the Son of God - thus what they say about him is important. In our passage for today, there is a very important speaker. Who do you think it is?
6. DIALOGUE OR DIRECT DISCOURSE
When indirect discourse turns to direct discourse this is a clue that careful attention should be paid to what is being said.
7. OT QUOTATIONS
These are not always used to prove a point but to add emotive punch. One thing is certain - they are not there for no reason. Pay close attention to them.

So here we go.

First, lets look at the context. The context of the book of Matthew affirms that one of Matthew’s purposes in writing this passage as well as the entire Gospel was to hold up Jesus as the promised Messiah. The main features of the context which support this understanding are the genealogy in chapter 1 and the numerous references to fulfilled Old Testament prophecies found throughout the book.

The genealogy at the beginning of the book opens with the words, “The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” Here at the outset Matthew immediately refers to Jesus as the Messiah, a key clue as to the theme of the book. The following two phrases, ‘the son of David, the son of Abraham,’ lend strong support to this idea. It was prophesied in Jeremiah 23:5 that the Lord would raise up an heir to David who would be called ‘the LORD our righteousness.’ Also, God promised Abraham that through him all the nations of the earth would be blessed (Gen 12:3); Matthew holds here that Jesus is the promised seed of Abraham. Thus, Matthew shows that Jesus is the fulfillment of the promises to both David and Abraham.

Additionally, we see in the book of Matthew at least twelve times that he points out Old Testament prophecies which were fulfilled in Christ. “This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet . . .” (2:15). “Then what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled . . .” (2:17). “This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet . . .” (4:14). “This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet . . .” (13:35). Time after time Matthew methodically shows that it is Jesus who fulfills the Messianic prophecies. It is Jesus who is the Messiah.

These references to fulfilled Old Testament prophecies are helpful in determining the key verse in 1:18-25, since this passage itself contains such a reference. The key verse is verse 22, “Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet.” If our goal is to determine why Matthew included this narrative, statements like this are pure gold. This verse quite plainly states the reason for the inclusion of this particular story: this event fulfills Scripture which prophesied that the Messiah would be born of a virgin.

Verse 22 sheds light on the whole passage and answers the questions that naturally arise from the text such as: 1) Why was Mary with child by the Holy Spirit? 2) Why was Mary found to be pregnant before she and Joseph had come together? 3) Why did the angel of the Lord appear to Joseph in a dream telling him to take Mary as his wife? 4) Why was Joseph told that Jesus would save His people from their sins? 5) Why did Joseph marry Mary and keep her a virgin until she had given birth? The answer to all these questions is found in verses 22-23: “Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: ‘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.’”

Why is this important? Matthew is writing to a predominantly Jewish audience. They are familiar with the OT Scriptures. They know the Messianic prophecies of the OT. Matthew is saying, "What we have here is the Messiah."

Additionally, we have a prominent authoritative speaker in this passage. Yes, the angel. Any time an angel says something in Scripture it can be trusted. This angel explains the whole thing to Joseph. This child has been conceived of the Holy Spirit. He will save His people from their sins.

So, we have both an angel and the OT Scriptures testifying to who Jesus is. The list of those making the same testimony will grow in the coming chapters, so watch for it.

Matthew’s intended meaning in 1:18-25 is that Jesus is Immanuel, 'God with Us', the Messiah, born of a virgin, the One who was promised in Scripture.

Application? The application of a text should flow from the intended meaning of that text. There is not always going to be a clear imperative. Many times the application is simply to meditate on the truth revealed in the passage. I believe that is the case in this passage.

When was the last time you meditated on the incarnation - God becoming man? This act of love was prophesied long before the Holy Spirit placed that Holy Seed in the womb of Mary. God's provision for the sins of His people was not a last minute idea. It was not plan B. It wasn't contingent upon any other plan not working. It was the only way, the only plan, the one glorious act of God ordained before time began, before creation, before the fall. As God breathed life into the nostrils of Adam, He knew that He would place His Son in the womb of Mary. And here, as Joseph hears the truth about Mary and her child, God is keeping the greatest promise ever made, by sending His son in the form of a human baby. He will save His people from their sins.

Through the end of the chapter and through chapter 2, Joseph never looks back but is a man on a mission, preserving the child from those who would destroy Him. Undoubtedly, those words perpetually echo in his head, "He will save His people from their sins."

Let all the trivial things clamoring for our attention right now be silenced. Let us quiet ourselves. God is with us. He has kept His promise. He has saved His people from their sins.

Take some time to ponder these things. Our next passage will be Matthew 2:1-12.

The Gospel of Matthew - Intro

I've been studying Matthew recently and I thought it might be enjoyable to share some things with you.

This first post will be a short overview of the book. Then in each subsequent blog I will look at one passage in one chapter. For example, in the next post we'll be looking at Matthew 1:18-25, the next post after that we'll look at 2:1-12, and so on. Why not look at every verse in every chapter? There are a couple of reasons, the first of which is that I'd love for our discussions here to pique your interest in the book and inspire you to study some passages on your own. Second, I simply don't have the time - my goal is to post something at least once a week. At that pace it would take us the rest of our lives to go through the whole book. But don't worry - we'll be paying such close attention to the context in the passages we do look at that you will still have a good feel for the whole book.



So, each week I'll post. At the end of each post, I will give you the passage for the next week. I encourage you to read the whole chapter, though, so that you will be familiar with the context. It would be better still if you could read the chapter several times. If you are even more ambitious, make notes of your own observations of the passage and then compare them to my comments. You'll undoubtedly pick up things I missed and I would be thrilled to hear your insights. Just post a comment at the bottom of my post.



Okay, let's get started. There are a number of key themes in Matthew that we want to be aware of as we read. See if you can identify elements of these as we go through each subsequent passage.



1. The Identity of Christ - Matthew will take great care in establishing who Jesus is. The first several chapters are key. It will be clear that he wants us to be aware of Jesus' credentials before we ever hear a word of Jesus' teaching. Of course, Jesus' identity has everything to do with the significance of what He does at the end of the book.



2. The Kingdom - Matthew puts more emphasis on the kingdom than any of the other Gospels. Watch for the phrase 'kingdom of heaven' as you read and note what we learn about the kingdom from what is written.



3. Fulfillment of the Old Testament (OT)/Old Covenant - Matthew vigorously uses the OT, presenting Jesus as the fulfillment of all that has come before. It will be a very interesting exercise to look at Matthew's OT quotations and then look those verses up where they actually occur in the OT. Most Bibles will have Matthew's OT quotes in all caps and then note the OT reference in the margin. If your bible does not, you can look at the passage in the NetBible.



4. "...to the Jew first and also to the Greek..." - Matthew gives a clear representation of this Romans 1:16 phrase. We will see very intentional comments in Matthew about Christ's exclusive mission to the Jews. By the end of the book we'll see an obvious shift in the gospel's focus and also get an idea of when the focus shifted.



5. The Authority of Christ - We'll be able to trace this theme throughout the book, seeing from where His authority came, what it's purpose was, and what He did with it. And what it means for us.




It will be important to be aware of the structure of the book, as well. Here is a quick blue print:

Ch. 1-4 /Narrative/ Intro: main character introduced
Ch. 5-7 /Discourse/ Jesus’ demands upon Israel
Ch. 8-9 /Narrative/ Jesus’ deeds within and for Israel
Ch. 10 /Discourse/ Ministry through others’ words and deeds
Ch. 11-12 /Narrative/ Israel’s negative response
ch. 13 /Discourse/ Explanation of Israel’s negative response
Ch. 14-17 /Narrative/ Founding of the Church
Ch. 18 /Discourse/ Teaching for the Church
Ch. 19-23 /Narrative/ Commencement of the Passion
Ch. 24-25 /Discourse/ The future: judgment and salvation
Ch. 26-28 /Narrative/ Conclusion: passion and resurrection

Don't want to give away any more than this. Next time we'll be looking at Matthew 1:18-25, but don't forget to read the whole chapter. The questions we want to answer are, 'what is the point of this passage? why is it in the book of Matthew?' Also, pay close attention to the genealogy at the beginning of the chapter. Why is it there? (And why doesn't it agree with the genealogy in Luke?!)

Drink deep and I'll talk to you soon. Ephesians 1:15-17.

Family Worship Stuff

Here is a brief outline of the family worship thing. The three basic components are singing, reading, and praying.


1. Sing. We are hymn people so we use hymns that I printed off the internet. If you don't like hymns, I'm sure you can find any number of alternatives on the net. I made several 'hymnals' by stapling together a few favorites. If your kids can read, great. If not, you'll be amazed at how quickly they learn them just by hearing. Even Wyatt, who doesn't read yet, likes to be holding the music. To mix it up a little, sometimes we'll take several verses and do one fast, the next slow, the next soft, and the next really loud. They love it.

2. Read. If your kids are really little, the "Big Picture Story Bible" is great. It does a good job of telling the significance of each story to the whole picture of the Bible. This part of worship is as easy as reading a story to your kids. In fact, it is reading a story to your kids. We have several other bible story books laying around the house and our older kids read them on their own all the time.

Also, acting out the stories makes them even more memorable. We do this as much as possible and it is lots of fun.

3. Pray. Keep it brief but pray for real things; their concerns and yours. Ask what they'd like to pray about and if they'd like to pray. I think it is important to pray about grown-up things too. You are teaching your kids to trust God when they hear you expressing your dependence on Him for the monthly bills, healing for a sickness going around, or comfort for the disappointment you just experienced. Each component of family worship teaches your children something and prayer is no exception.

Extras. This is where I got our catechism. This is great because it teaches theology in a very simple question/answer format. Don't worry about all the Scripture references. Those are for your benefit - it is not essential for the kids to know those. The main thing is to teach them the answers. Go over the first one a few times and they'll have it. Ask them the first question a couple of times a day whenever you think about it - in the car, while they are playing, or at the dinner table. Do that for a week then go to the next question.

Each time you ask them, make sure you ask both questions in order. The questions build on one another as you will see.

Feel free to tweak the questions or answers as you see fit. Some of the wording is a bit archaic. For instance, on # 5 -- 'why ought you to glorify God?' -- I prefer 'why should you glorify God?' I also changed the answer on this one to 'Because I belong to Him.' You just want to make sure that you ask the question the same way every time and that they give the answer the same way every time.

Memorizing Scripture as a family is also a great way to grow together. Again, it is best to do whole chapters (rather than one verse here and one verse there) so that the kids see that the Bible is not a collection of random thoughts but an extended message from Genesis to Revelation. By this, you will be teaching them to respect the context. Some suggested chapters with which to start: Hebrews 1, Psalm 1, Psalm 34, Psalm 139. The Psalms are great for kids. Just do one verse a week or one every two weeks. Say the verse a phrase at a time and have the family repeat after you. You can go through it several times and then try to say it all together. Then go on to the second verse the next week, still taking time to review past verses.

Let me know if you have a questions or if I've not been clear about anything. Remember - keep it simple, no preparation.

If you don't mind spending $6 dollars you can purchase a short book on the subject by Donald Whitney, the man who taught me everything I know about Spiritual Disciplines. All of the other resources on his site I can highly recommend.

Men, this is your responsibility. God has made you the pastor of your home (Eph 5:22-27; 6:4). You are the head of the family. If you are like me and have spent years wondering what it means to lead your family spiritually, here is the place to start.

Ladies, if your husband will not fulfill his responsibility, lead your children in worship while still submitting to your husband's authority. You are not dishonoring him by doing this. Your children must be trained up in the way that they should go. If your husband will not do this, you can do it. Continue to pray that the Lord will grab your husband and raise him up to be a Godly husband.

May the Lord bless you and your family for choosing to worship Him together as a family in your home.

Scripture Memory

The fact that this blog(g) exists represents unprecedented follow-through on my part. Miracles do happen.


Okay, the Scripture memory thing can be found here. This is a link to a church in NC. You can also find a plethora of very good sermons by the pastor, Andrew Davis. I haven't heard any of the other pastors, but I can vouch for Davis.

For those of you who were not at Homebuilders the last two weeks, I talked about an extended Scripture memory program. The link above will tell you the rest.

A word on the Scripture memory plan. You may be intimidated. You probably should be. This is not for the faint of heart. But most of us have been among the faint of heart for too long. Two questions are in order:
1) Will God be glorified by my internalizing His word and daily bathing my mind and heart in it? (yes)
2) Actually question #1 is the only question we really need.

Here are some suggested steps:
1. Embrace the intimidation. This is key. You can't do this memorization plan alone. Acknowledging this before God is the place to start. Then pray for His strength to do it. He loves to answer these kinds of prayers (2Chron 16:9).
2. Step out on faith and do it. Don't wait for a sign - it has already been given: you have a leather bound copy of the Holy Scriptures and the ability to read.
3. Ask someone to join you. It is so helpful and encouraging to be in contact with someone else who is doing it.
4. Contact me when you are discouraged or having trouble. I want to be your encourager. Also, I would love to hear updates.
5. Worship the Lord. What a tremendous blessing to know large portions of His word by heart. As you recite each day, let it be an act of worship.

The bottomline here is that with the Lord carrying you, you can do this. There are no cons, only pros. Let's fill our minds, hearts, marriages, and homes with the precious Word of God.