Grace and the Incarnation
Matthew
1:1-17
Introduction: A little boy and his slightly older sister were
singing their favorite Christmas carol the week before Christmas one year. When
they got to the final line, the boy sang, “Sleep in heavenly beans!” His sister corrected him, “No, no, no, not beans, it’s PEAS, sleep in heavenly peas!”
Sometimes, in the midst of our celebrations and shopping, we can lose track
of the true reason for the season! In one of my favorite Christmas classics, I
watch it almost every year, Charlie Brown asks in the middle of his celebrating
friends, “What is Christmas all about?!” His friend Linus answers by citing
Scripture.
I decided
to start our Advent series this year with the opening verses of the New
Testament, the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew.
A genealogy? I remember when I came to faith in Christ, as a new
believer, I would typically “skim over” the genealogies in the Bible. I couldn't pronounce most of the names anyway, and I really didn't see the point. Then I remember
being blessed when I heard John MacArthur preach on this passage in Matthew,
and I was amazed by the insights he shared from these verses (some of which are
reflected in this study!). Every word of the Bible is important, and even the
genealogies are there for a purpose. As we look briefly at this one
I think we’ll see Matthew laying a foundation for the gospel of grace that is
at the heart of the New Testament. God’s
story of graciously guiding human history is revealed in the genealogy of Jesus
here in the first Gospel. Scholars suggest that Matthew is tracing the
genealogy of Joseph, which establishes Jesus’ legal right as a descendant of
David to be qualified for the “throne,” whereas Luke traces Jesus’ physical
descent through Mary. Matthew starts
with Abraham and emphasizes David. He points out three periods of the history
of God’s people that together point to the need for God’s intervention in their
history. And he includes the story of four women, four outcasts, foreigners and
sinners, which emphasizes God’s sovereignty and grace.
The Maine Idea: History is His
Story, and the genealogy of Jesus highlights the depth of our need and the
extent of God’s grace. His grace is the true message of Christmas.
I. We see
God’s grace in the prominence of two men
(1:1). Matthew’s gospel is the only one of the four that begins with a
genealogy (Luke also includes a genealogy, but it appears in chapter 3). The
opening verse of the New Testament says,
“The book of the
genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”
The book [or, the record] of the genealogy of Jesus Christ – Matthew begins by
asserting what the genealogy and the Gospel that follows will prove: Jesus is
the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of God.
He is the promised King, the One who the Scriptures had anticipated. The
story will reveal the meaning of his name—Jesus—Yeshua—“salvation.”
He came not to condemn the world, but that the world, through Him, might be
saved.
18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this
way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came
together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a
just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her
quietly. 20 But as he
considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a
dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your
wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you
shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."
We
could stop right there and reflect on what that says, what it means. On this
first Sunday of advent, the Sunday after Thanksgiving, Matthew begins by
stating the name of the subject of his book—a name that tells us already what
he came to do. Humans were lost, separated from God, walking in darkness. As Paul told the Ephesians, “...we were by nature children of wrath, even as
the rest...” That is what you
were, that is what I was. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His
great love with which He loved us, breathed life into our dead stinking corpses
and made us his children—by grace, through faith. His name, “Jesus,” means
“salvation,” and there is no other name under heaven given among men by which
we must be saved! I hope I am not getting “so heavenly minded that I am no
earthly good,” but truly, with all the good blessings he gives us, the first
and greatest gift, the purpose for which He came, needs to be first in our
hearts and minds. That is the message of
Christmas, “THIS is how God showed his
love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live
through him” (I John 4:9).
Matthew also states his title, “Christ,” i.e. “Messiah,” “Anointed One.” The Jews had long awaited the
coming of a deliverer, the Son of David, the promised seed. Matthew states that
it is His story that is being presented, the fullness of time had come, and God
had, in fact, sent forth His Son. The genealogy of Jesus in Matthew apparently
is Joseph’s, highlighting the legal standing of Jesus as a descendant of David
(Luke’s genealogy makes the same connection to David, but through his
biological descent through Mary).
First, Jesus is described as the
“...son of David...” David’s name
in fact appears five times in the genealogy, and his relationship with “...the wife of Uriah...” stands out (1:1,
twice in 1:6, and twice in 1:17 is his name mentioned). He is one of the most
prominent people in the Bible. David’s name appears over a thousand times
(to put that into perspective, the name “Jesus” appears just over 950 times!).
We know many of the stories of his life well, how God chose him, the youngest
of the sons of Jesse, not because of his stature or outward appearance, but
because of his heart. We remember how he stood up against Goliath with a stone
and a sling, and in the name of the Lord was victorious. We remember Saul’s
jealousy of him when David’s fame began to spread among the people, and the attempts
the king made to kill him, and in contrast, David’s refusal to raise his hand
against Saul. We remember his heartbreak, when his beloved son Absalom led a
rebellion against him, and his heart wrenching tears when Absalom was killed.
David. Of all the gospels, Matthew mentions him the most times. The phrase “son
of David” had become one of many titles the Jews of Jesus’ day would use to
speak of the coming deliverer, the Messiah. David was the greatest of Israel’s
kings, but you can’t think of David without thinking of the sins he committed, grievous
sins of adultery and murder. Still this man was called “a man after God’s own
heart,” and to him God promised a descendent, a Son, who would have an eternal
reign. David reminds us that even the best of men falls short, we all desperately
need God’s grace.
In the initial sentence of the Gospel,
Matthew works backward, the son of David, the son of Abraham – The early
chapters of Genesis highlight four great events – Creation – the Fall – The
Flood – and Babel. The consequences of sin are spelled out in the early
genealogies of the Bible with the repeated refrain, “...[so and so lived X
number of years] and then he died...”
God had warned that sin would bring death, and Genesis 1-11 makes it clear that
the effects were universal and total. Humans were sinners, lost, and could do
nothing to save themselves. Then chapter 12 begins with God calling Abraham. His
name appears about 250 times in the Bible, 7 of those in Matthew’s gospel, and
three times in the genealogy.
Abraham
is pointed to in the New Testament as an example of faith, of one who believed
God, taking Him at His word. But Abraham wasn’t without his failures. Twice he
lied about Sarah being his wife (calling her his sister) because he feared for
his own life. Still, as the story goes on, his faith grows. And God’s promise to
him was unilateral, there were no conditions, God simply said, “I will do it,” He
would give him a multitude of descendants and life in the land. It was God’s
sovereign commitment to carry out his plan. But Abraham and Sarah his wife had some
challenges of faith, it wasn’t always easy to take God at his word. As they
grew older and had no children, Sarah gave her maid Hagar to her husband so that
through her she might have a son. But Ishmael was not to be the promised one.
Sarah laughed at the idea of giving birth when she and Abraham were old, but
the angelic messenger asked, “Is anything
too difficult for the Lord?” (Gen 18:14). God was teaching them to trust.
He was reminding them of His power and sovereignty. And so God’s choice of
Abraham, and his prominence in the history of the nation and in the genealogy
of Jesus, shows us God’s grace.
Have you
thought about it this Christmas? The same God who chose Abraham and David, who
was so patient with them, despite their sin and failures, chastening, but
always loving and guiding and drawing them back, that same God knows you and
loves you? He sent His Son so that you could live! Grace! That is reason to
celebrate! History is His Story, and
the genealogy of Jesus highlights the depth of our need and the extent of God’s
grace. His grace is the true message of Christmas.
II. We see God’s grace in the highlighting of three
eras (1:17). Genealogies in the
ancient world were not necessarily complete family trees, but rather they were
intended to show a line of descent, establishing a connection between the past
and the present. Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus is interesting in that it is
structured to highlight three specific blocks of history...
“So all the
generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to
the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to
Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.”
Why
such a breakdown? What was Matthew trying to emphasize? Why not point to other
events, like the Exodus, which seemed so foundational to Israel’s history?
The first period of history
highlighted extends from Abraham to David – We see the birth of a people,
and the transition from a “theocracy,” one nation under God, to a monarchy. It
is a period marked by election, by promise, and by initial fulfillments. The
stories of the patriarchs and of Egypt, of Moses and the Exodus, of the
failures in the wilderness, and of God’s preserving grace. The conquest under
Joshua showed that God was faithful to his promises. Yet the people struggled
to follow God, and without a king “every
man did that which right in his own eyes.”
Remember the story of the little girl who was frightened by a
thunderstorm in the night and came to her parents bedroom. Her mother assured
her,
“Don’t be
afraid dear, God is with you!”
The
little girl said, “Why don’t you go to my room and sleep with God and I’ll stay
here with Daddy, I need someone with skin on!” Having God as their king was a nice idea in
theory, but they wanted a king “with skin on,” a king like the nations around
them. Someone they could see and rally around. Someone that could bring comfort
and courage when they faced their enemies. They chose Saul, a man who stood “head
and shoulders” over others. But God had another idea, he didn’t look on the
outward appearance, but rather upon the heart. And David, the youngest son of
Jesse was chosen. He was even called “a man after God’s own heart.” He was the
best of the kings, the one to whom God promised would be born a “son” who would
have an eternal kingdom. The Davidic covenant was the apex of hope, but the
affair with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah exposed the depravity of humans.
There is none righteous, no not one. Humans could never save themselves by
their own “goodness,” they desperately needed mercy, their only hope was grace.
The
second time period goes from David to the Exile—This is the period when the
nation had human kings, and it points out the failure of the monarchy.
Repeatedly through the Old Testament we see the kings “doing evil in the sight
of the Lord” and “going the way of their fathers,” falling into sin and
apostasy. Ultimately the division of the kingdom after Solomon’s death was only
a step in a downward spiral over the next 400 years, until the northern capital
Samaria fell in 722 followed by the southern capital, Jerusalem, in 586 B.C. Even though they were carried into exile, the
Bible makes it clear that God did not forget Israel, he did not fail them, he
preserved a remnant, but they were chastened for their sin.
The third
period highlighted in the genealogy goes from the exile to Christ. If the first period, from Abraham to
David revealed hope, along with the grace of God, and if the period from David
to the exile showed human failure and our need for the Lordship of God and His
mercy and grace, the third period points to God’s faithfulness to his promises,
and to the extent of His grace. God did not forget his people, his promises
would not fail. He preserved a remnant and at the right time brought them back
to the land. He allowed the walls of the city to be rebuilt and the temple to
be slowly restored. If He did all that, what of the promises of a deliverer? After
400 years of silence, in the fullness of time, He sent forth His Son, born of a
woman, born under the Law, that He might redeem those who were under the Law,
that we might receive the adoption as sons. Redemption implies the payment of a
price. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent His one and only Son
into the world that we might live through him.
These
three eras really point to the gospel: first promise, as from the fall
and throughout the Old Testament there were allusions and reference to the
Coming deliverer. Failure, as
even when He came, he was despised and rejected by men, they would not have this man to be their king! He came to his own, and they did not receive
Him. And finally grace, as God’s plan reaches a climax in the cross and resurrection.
History is His Story, and the genealogy of Jesus highlights the depth of our
need and the extent of God’s grace. His grace is the true message of Christmas.
III. We see God’s grace in the mention of four women (1:3-6). Four woman, all foreigners. Three of the
four were suspected of immorality.
Matthew is intentional in drawing attention to them as they are the only
women he mentions in the the line of the Messiah.
Tamar
(v.3; cf. Gen 38) – the Canaanite daughter-in-law of Judah, who disguised
herself as a prostitute, and conceived a child by Judah. When Judah realized
what had happened, he said, “She is more
righteous than I...” The entire story points to human depravity and the
total inability of people to do good and merit God’s favor. It shows the need
we have for His grace.
Rahab
(v.5; cf. Joshua 2, 6) – The name of Rahab brings us back to the story of the
conquest, and her interaction with and protection of the spies before God gave
the Hebrews the victory by bringing down the walls of Jericho. She is described
in chapter 2 and chapter 6 as “Rahab, the
prostitute...” Yet she was saved when the city was razed because she feared
the God of Israel and protected the spies. By grace she was included in the
messianic line.
Ruth
(v.5) – Ruth’s story is different, there are no signs or hints that she was
suspected of immorality. But she wasn’t a Jew, she was a foreigner, a
Moabitess. And God when she was widowed she clung to her mother-in-law Naomi
and with her returned to the land. She gleaned the leftover scraps of the
barely harvest from the fields and provided for her mother-in-law, and she met Boaz,
and was redeemed from her position of hopelessness and became the mother of Obed,
the grandmother of Jesse, the great-grandmother of David the king. Grace!
And finally in 1:6b,
“And David was the father of
Solomon by the wife of Uriah...” i.e. Bathsheba. There is no cover up here. Remember all the
mystery about a certain president’s lineage, where he was born etc.? Here, in the biblical record, there is complete
transparency. In fact Matthew draws
attention to it by mentioning the mother of Solomon, and draws attention to the
sin of David by calling her “...the wife
of Uriah...” Why draw attention to the fact? It was a sad chapter in Israel’s
history, why not just say “David became the father of Solomon,” and then go on?
Matthew is highlighting human failure. He is showing us that despite our sin,
God is sovereign, and He as the Lord of history will even overrule the sinful
acts of humans to accomplish his good purpose. He wants us to grasp how desperately
needy we are, and how his love, and his grace, is greater than all our sin.
Think about it- Foreigners, without hope and with God. Women,
in their societies, without rights. Sinners, with no righteousness of
their own. They had no hope in themselves, their only hope was God’s amazing
grace. Do you ever feel like you are beyond being forgiven, that your sin is
too much, that your past is too dark? If you have put your trust in Jesus, be
assured of this: whatever you have done, whatever nags you and fills you with
regret, was nailed to the cross. Remember the song: “My sin, O the bliss of this glorious thought, my sin, not in part, but
the whole, was nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more, Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!”
What is God
saying to me in this passage? All of history was pointing to coming of the King of all Grace. And in the fullness of time, God sent forth His
Son. Yet we know the story. Their
Scriptures pointed to his coming, and though “He came unto his own, ...His own received him not...” Know this:
that did not surprise God. He gave his only begotten Son, knowing
exactly what would happen. History is His
Story, and the genealogy of Jesus highlights the depth of our need and the
extent of God’s grace. His grace is the true message of Christmas.
What would
God have me to do in response to this passage? We get so busy this time of the year, don’t we?
Travel, visits, family get togethers, shopping, decorations. All of that is fine, none of it is bad, that
is unless in all of our busyness we forget the One who is the reason for the
season, Jesus. Reflect on Him, remember who he is, and why he came. We deserved
only judgment, but He loved us, and lavished his grace upon us.
One
practical step we can take is for families, or couples, or individuals, is to
do daily “advent readings” during December. Memorize some Bible verses that
point to His coming. Thank him every day, during this month, for the gift of
His grace. Might our desire this advent season be, above all, to know Him
better, and to love Him more. And as we
rejoice in what He has done for us in Jesus, look for opportunities to share a
word, or a gospel tract, or to invite to a Christmas service. May it be true
this Christmas that “the people who walk in darkness would see a great Light”—the
Light of the World, JESUS. Think about
that. Amen.
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