The Genealogy of Jesus July 11 - 17, 2021 MAIN POINT Jesus is a real person from a real family who came to bring real grace, rest, and jubilee for those who follow Him. INTRODUCTION What do you know about your genealogy? Who is the most interesting person that you know about from your family tree? What would you like to discover about your genealogy that you don’t already know? What do you know about the ways your ancestors exercised their faith? Each of the four Gospels begins differently. Matthew begins with Jesus’ family tree. Mark begins with a brief introduction followed by an account of John the Baptist’s ministry. Luke begins with the details of the Christmas story, focusing on Gabriel’s appearance to Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, and to Mary, the virgin mother of Jesus. John’s Gospel starts with a more theological introduction about the Word becoming flesh John( 1:14). Both Matthew and Luke included genealogies of Jesus, but Luke did not include a genealogy until after the record of Jesus’ baptism (Luke 3:23-38). In his gospel, Matthew wants us to see that Jesus is a real person from a real family who came to bring real grace, rest, and jubilee for those who follow Him. UNDERSTANDING READ MATTHEW 1:1-16. What titles does Matthew assign Jesus in verses 1 and 16? What is the meaning of each title? Luke’s genealogy goes back to Adam to emphasize the universality of the gospel (Luke 3:23-38). What is Matthew’s point in beginning with Abraham? What does Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus say to Jewish readers? Matthew began his Gospel with Jesus’ genealogy or historical record. Matthew began the account with Abraham, the first person the Bible called a Hebrew Genesis( 14:13). Matthew probably wanted to assure his Jewish readers that Jesus was a Jew, a descendant of Abraham, the father of the Jewish people (John 8:39). Which people do you recognize in this genealogy? What do you remember about each of these people? Do any of the people on the list surprise you? If so, who and why? What do we learn about God from the stories of the people in Jesus’ genealogy? What impact can this have on your relationship with Him? Among the people in Jesus’ family tree are heroes of the faith, such as Abraham, Ruth, and David. But there are also cultural outsiders, like Rahab and Tamar, and purely evil people such as Abijah (2 Chronicles 13). Many of those listed here weren’t legally qualified to be present in the temple, yet they’re Jesus’ family. What does that tell us? It tells us that Jesus comes to overturn the world’s values. Jesus is the bringer of grace, and in Him the prostitute and the priest sit together as equals. Read Matthew 1:6 and 2 Samuel 7:16. What is the importance of David in Jesus’ genealogy? How might this aspect of Jesus’ ancestry be used in sharing the gospel with others? Matthew stressed that Jesus was the Son of David. The Jews knew that the Messiah, or Christ, would be a descendant of the great King David. When David wanted to build a temple or house for God, God rejected his plan. God promised David, however, that David’s “house” or dynasty would continue forever (2 Samuel 7:16). During the time when Jesus walked the land of the Bible, the Jews used the expression Son of David as a messianic title. Read verses 3, 5, and 6 again. Why do you think Matthew included four women in addition to Mary in Jesus’ genealogy, especially since this was not Jewish custom? Although Matthew highlighted men in Jesus’ family tree, he did include four women (in addition to Mary, Jesus’ mother), an unusual practice in Jewish genealogies. Tamar (Matthew 1:3) tricked her father-in-law, Judah, into fathering her child after her own husband died (Genesis 38). Rahab (Matthew 1:5) was the prostitute at Jericho who protected the Hebrew spies and expressed faith in the Lord (Joshua 2). Ruth (Matthew 1:5), a Moabite woman who displayed deep commitment to her mother-in- law, later married Boaz. The fourth woman was “Uriah’s wife” (Matthew 1:6), Bathsheba, who committed adultery with David. After David and Bathsheba married, she became the mother of Solomon. Including these women was yet another way Matthew reminded us that Jesus’ family tree included all kinds of people. His ancestors included Jews and Gentiles, men and women, common people and royalty, and those classified as sinners as well as those regarded as upright. Jesus came to save all people who will respond to Him in faith. Take a look at the description of Joseph in verse 16. What does Matthew emphasize about Joseph’s relationship to Jesus? Matthew concluded Jesus’ resume by mentioning Joseph the husband of Mary and the birth of Jesus Himself. The wording of this verse clearly emphasizes that Joseph was not Jesus’ human father. Mary’s Son would be named Jesus, but He also would be the Messiah. READ MATTHEW 1:17. Throughout all of those generations, God was paving the way for Jesus and proving Himself faithful to His people. What does it mean to you that God’s promises are trust worthy over the generations? With everything you know about the people in Jesus’ family tree, why would Jesus’ birth have brought rest and Jubilee? How has Jesus brought rest and joy to your life? APPLICATION What is the main takeaway for you from reading Matthew’s resume for Jesus? Why is it important to know the genealogy of Jesus? How can the genealogy in this passage be used in sharing the gospel with others? PRAYER Close in prayer by thanking God for the evidence of His grace throughout Jesus’ genealogy and your own story. COMMENTARY MATTHEW 1:1-17 1:1. It is fitting that the first verse of the first book of the New Testament, Matthew 1:1, identifies Jesus as the Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. These few words sum up the culmination of the entire Old Testament, and in them are the seeds from which the New Testament plan will grow. The long-awaited, promised Messiah, the restorer of God’s kingdom and the redeemer of His people, is Jesus Himself. This is Matthew’s central message, his purpose for writing his book. In his first verse, Matthew made an amazing claim. At the time he was writing, many Jewish readers would have been skeptical about the idea that the man Jesus was indeed also the promised King or Christ. After all, He was merely a carpenter from a backwoods province, and they wanted a king just like other worldly kings—politically connected, militarily powerful, and personally charismatic, with all the accompanying pomp, circumstance, and credentials. 1:2-17. Jesus had credentials all right. Overwhelmingly so. But He was not interested in “pomp.” As Exhibit A to substantiate Jesus’ claim to the throne, Matthew presented Jesus’ pedigree—the genealogy linking Jesus by blood to both Abraham and David. Because the promised Christ must be descended from both of those key historical figures, the documentation of Jesus’ lineage was critically important. When it comes to kings, people want to know just where they come from. These first seventeen verses may at first seem a little boring. But they were not to Matthew’s audience—first-century Jews. These lists serve a practical purpose. In a day before the man on the street had his own copy of the Bible, people had to rely on memory and oral history. So Matthew traced Christ’s genealogy in three sets of fourteen generations. The three sets are broken down into those generations: (1) before the monarchy (2) during the monarchy, and (3) after the fall of the monarchy to Babylon. He did not mention every single ancestor, but traced the generations in systematic, memorable terms. If the reader wanted more detail, it was available through the temple records. But Matthew’s undeniable point was that Jesus of Nazareth is legal heir to the throne of Israel. The king is on the scene. Note one more memorable fact. In the course of tracing the generations, Matthew tossed in a few surprises to help his readers begin to see the mercy and grace of God. He included no less than four women in the lineage, a highly unusual approach for a Jewish genealogy. And some of them are Gentiles. From the outset, Matthew used indisputable documentation to show the first-century Jewish mind that even Gentiles are included prominently in this Kingdom of the new covenant..