Matthew 1:1-17
Introducing Jesus!
Bible Conference:
Prayer: please join me in prayer….
Introduction:
Are you upper class, middle class, or lower class?
How would you know???
For some the clothes one wears determine class. (do you shop at the thrift store or Nordstroms)
For some the cars one drives determine class. (do you drive a brand new BMW or 92 Ford Pinto)
For some the music one listens too determine class (Tchaikovsky’s violin concertos or Justin
Timberlake)
For some the vacation one takes determine class. (Pine River Park or Bermuda)
For some the hobbies one engages in determines class? (do you enjoy horse racing or NASCAR)
For others the school one attended determines class. (WSU, the Harvard of the Palouse, or that big state
school in Seattle, UW)
Maybe it’s the zip code one lives in? (do you live on the South Hill or Hillyard)
Or maybe it’s one’s vocation? (Genetic Engineer or Bag Boy at Fred Meyer)
Every culture since the dawn of time has developed ways to determine one’s position in society and 1st
century Palestine was no different. One of the tools they used to indicate one’s position in society was the
genealogy. It is hard for us to understand how important genealogies were for this culture.
Genealogies were the basis for relating to other people, finding a spouse, a career, and a place to live. If
two people had different genealogies they were not supposed to interact socially.
“…As a matter of fact, Herod the Great was so embarrassed that… his name was not in the official
genealogies, that he ordered their destruction, so that nobody could claim a purer pedigree than his own!”
(Green 56-57 in BST)
Mathew begins his gospel with a very long and impressive genealogy of Jesus because he wants his
primarily Jewish audience to understand how important Jesus is. The implication of this genealogy is rather
simple.
Jesus is someone with very impressive pedigree and we must pay attention too him.
I want to focus on three things we learn about Jesus from this Genealogy. All three of these things are
mentioned in verse 1 and elaborated on in verses 2-17.
Jesus is the savior
Jesus is the son of Abraham
Jesus is the son of David
First, Jesus is the savior!
Look with me at Matthew 1:1 (ESV) — 1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ...
What does the name Jesus mean? God saves!
Jesus is a Greek version of the Hebrew name Joshua. The name Joshua literally means the lord saves or
the lord is salvation. If you know your OT you will quickly think of Joshua from the time of the conquest
roughly 1400 years before the time of Christ.
During the period of the Conquest Joshua saved Israel by defeating Israel’s enemies and then leading
Israel into the Promised Land. He saved Israel from its greatest threat. Our greatest enemy does not carry a
gun or sword. Our greatest enemy is sin. The story of Joshua is meant to point us forward to the greatest
savior in the Bible, Jesus.
Jesus saves us from sin, which leads to death and destruction and ushers us into the true promise land,
the land of Heaven.
Sin has always been mankind’s greatest problem. It is the root of all of our other problems.
Sin is the cause of poverty, racism, adultery, oppressive governments, loneliness, divorce, rape, school
shootings, and death.
Our greatest need has always been and will always be our need to be saved from the consequences of
sin.
We see plenty of sin in the genealogy of Jesus…
Verse 2 mentions Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Abraham lied twice about his wife, Isaac was a wimp,
and Jacob was the great deceiver.
Verse 3 mentions Tamar. She was the prostitute who tricked her father in law into sleeping with her.
Verse 5 mentions Rahab. She was also a prostitute. She helped the spies from Israel escape out of
Jericho.
Verse 6 alludes to Bathsheba. She was the gal who committed adultery with David. Shortly thereafter
David had Bathsheba’s husband killed to cover his tracks.
Verse 7 mentions Solomon. Solomon had thousands of wives and ended up worshipping false Gods in
his old age.
We could go on and on.
Every person (but Jesus) mentioned in this genealogy needed to be saved from the ravaging effects of
sin.
Yes sin has ravaging affects…
Matthew 1:11 (ESV) — 11 and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the
deportation to Babylon.
The sins of Israel were so bad that by verse 11 (586 BC) God raised up the nation of Babylon to destroy
Jerusalem. It was a bloody, violent, and decisive event. The people of God lost their land, wealth, identity, and
freedom. This is where sin always takes us. Sin destroys, enslaves, and finally kills us.
Application:
Maybe this describes you this morning?
You have made a mess of your life and you know it.
Maybe you are currently embroiled in sin, your life is falling apart, and you are sick of fighting.
What should you do? Cry out to Jesus!!!
Jesus saves from the guilt of sin and the power of sin. Explain….
Maybe you think you’re beyond saving this morning? I love the fact that this genealogy mentions
Rahab, Tamar, and Bathsheba. Rahab was a prostitute probably riddled with guilt and shame. Tamar acted like
a prostitute and Bathsheba committed adultery. God loves to save the broken, the weak, the marginalized and
the outcasts. There is no one who is beyond his saving grasp as long as they admit their need and cry out to
him for salvation.
Jesus came to save prostitutes, idolatries, murderers, and church goers. Yes, church goers… Jesus
not only saves us from the bad things we do he saves us from the good things we do to earn favor with God.
Jesus is the savior…
The name of Jesus is not just any name!!! It means God Saves!!! I hope this name means everything to
you… This reminds me of one of my all time favorite hymns.
1. How sweet the Name of Jesus sounds
In a believer’s ear!
It soothes his sorrow, heals his wounds,
And drives away his fear.
2. It makes the wounded spirit whole,
And calms the troubled breast;
’Tis manna to the hungry soul,
And to the weary, rest.
3. Dear Name, the rock on which I build,
My shield and hiding place,
My never failing treasury, filled
With boundless stores of grace!
4. Jesus, my Shepherd, Brother, Friend,
My Prophet, Priest, and King,
My Lord, my life, my way, My end,
Accept the praise I bring.
First, Jesus is the savior
Second, Jesus is the son of David!
Look with me at verses 1 again…
Matthew 1:1 (ESV) — 1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of
Abraham.
According to Matt 1:1 “Jesus Christ, (is) the son of David.” We have already discussed the meaning of
Jesus (it means God saves). The next word, Christ, is not Jesus last name but a title. It means the anointed one
or the Messiah. Jesus was anointed by God or set apart by God for the task of ruling as the Davidic King.
Furthermore Jesus is the great, great, great, great, etc… grandchild of David. How important was
David to the Jews? Supremely important… This genealogy highlights the supremacy of David by placing him
at the center of the genealogy. There were 14 generations from Abraham to David. Then there are 14
generations of David’s dynasty. Then there are 14 generations from the end of David’s dynasty to Jesus. And
the numerical value for the name David in the Hebrew Alphabet is 14. In other words, King David is the most
important person mentioned in this genealogy besides Jesus Christ.
King David lived around 1000 BC. He was Israel’s greatest King because he conquered all her enemies
and ruled over them from his capital in Jerusalem. He was a mighty military leader and warrior. In fact, he
shed so much blood as a warrior that God would not let him build the temple.
The Jews of Jesus day had been oppressed for years and they were waiting eagerly for the promised
Messiah, the son of David, the great heir of David’s throne spoken of so many times in the OT to come and rule
like David of old. They expected this Messiah King to raise and army and crush the Romans. Why did the
Jews think this?
Because of all the OT promises about the heir of David… For example,
2 Samuel 7:12–13 (ESV) — 12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will
raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall
build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
Isaiah 9:6–7 (ESV) — 6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon
his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of
Peace. 7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over
his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and
forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.
Jeremiah 23:5–6 (ESV) — 5 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for
David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and
righteousness in the land. 6 In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name
by which he will be called: ‘The LORD is our righteousness.’
If we had time I would also look at Psalm 2:1–9.
All of these promises were given several hundred years before Christ was born. So each generation of
Israelites wondered if the current King of Israel was the promised son of David…
Verse 8 mentions King Jehoshaphat. He was clearly not the one since he made alliances with wicked
kings for shameful gain. (2 Chro. 20:35-37)
Verse 9 mentions King Hezekiah. He was clearly not the one since he showed off the wealth of the
kingdom, which he paid for dearly later on.
Verse 9 also mentions King Ahaz. He was clearly not the one since he offered up his little boy to the
fires of the Assyrian Gods.
Verse 10 mentions King Manasseh. He was not the one since the Bible says that he was more corrupt
then all the wicked kings of Canaan. (That is bad).
The Israelites waited and waited and waited for the true son of David to come and rule over his people
and bring liberation and blessing.
Illustration: Have you ever waited along time for something??? You’re graduation day, your
wedding day, the first day of your first real job, the birth of your first child, the day of your retirement.
When the true son of David finally came the Jews missed him. Why? They were looking for a military
warrior.
When they read all the promises about the son of David or the anointed king they interpreted them as all
happening at once. This was there problem…
They did not realize that Christ the king would come not once but twice. The first time he came in
humility the second time he will come in glory and power.
This is what theologians call the already and not yet of the kingdom. Yes the kingdom of God came
with Jesus but it will come in fullness only when he returns.
Another way to say this is that the kingdom of God was inaugurated when Jesus came the first time and
it will be consummated when he comes the second time.
Illustration: Driving towards the Cascades on I-90. When you are many miles away it looks like the
mountains way off in the distance are all really close together, but when you are actually driving through the
mountains they are much farther apart then expected. In a similar sense when the Jews of the OT read all the
promises about the coming king they assumed they would all happen very close together. but now we know
that the promises of the messiah king happen in two phases separated by thousands of years. In other words, the
mountains are much farther apart then expected.
So what does this mean?
Yes the kingdom of God came with Jesus. Jesus the great king came to earth to establish his rule. He
came to transfer us from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of his marvelous light. He came to deliver
us from our bondage by dying on the cross for our sins. He came to give us the life of the kingdom, a life of
righteousness, peace, and joy. The kingdom of God is currently found where ever people are submitting to the
great king. Right now the kingdom is sometimes hard to see.
But the kingdom of God is also coming in the future. (Matt 13:24-30, 36-43, 20:1-16, 22:1-14, 25:146) this is discussed in many places in Mathew.
Revelation 19:11–16 (ESV) — 11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one
sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a
flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13
He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the
armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth
comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will
tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name
written, King of kings and Lord of lords.
Jesus is the son of David the anointed king!!!
Application:
The king is here… repent, we are citizens of the great king and we should seek to stretch his rule to
every single area of our lives.
We have a hard time understanding the concept of king in our 21st century democracy!!! High school
football coach…
Does king Jesus rule over your television?
Does King Jesus rule over your money?
Does king Jesus rule over your retirement plans?
Does king Jesus rule over your Facebook page?
Does king Jesus rule over your career?
Does king Jesus rule over your hobbies?
Being a Christian means that we have been transferred from the kingdom of Satan to the kingdom of
Jesus. We now submit to the rule of our benevolent King. If he is not your king you are not his subject.
Not only is the king here…
The king will come again but he will not come in humility and weakness. He will come in power,
strength, and might to crush all of his enemies and usher in the eternal reign of God. If you’re not a Christian
you must prepare yourself for this day. If you are a Christian there is hope for the future. “For the church this
means that we are living in the last days. Our Messiah, the divine warrior, is near, and the great victory is
coming soon.” (Osborne, 69)
Jesus is the savior
Jesus is the son of David the anointed king
Third, Jesus is the son of Abraham!
Look with me again at Matthew 1:1–2 (ESV) — 1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son
of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the
father of Judah and his brothers, …
Verses 2-5 deal with the 14 generations from Abraham to David.
Why does Mathew want us to know that Jesus Christ is the son of Abraham? Abraham was the father of
Israel, the father of the Jews. 2000 years before Christ, God called Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldeans. Jews
loved to boast that they had Abraham as their father often forgetting that Abraham was a pagan and a gentile
before God called him.
Lets go back to Genesis….
Genesis 12:1–3 (ESV) — 1 Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and
your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless
you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who
dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
Genesis 22:18 (ESV) — 18 and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because
you have obeyed my voice.”
God’s plan was always to use Abraham and his descendants to bless the nations. This will only happen
through Christ. Jesus Christ is that great offspring of Abraham who would be a blessing to the nations. He
would bless the nations by dying for their sins to bring them new life.
Here is the thing I want you to see… although the followers of Jesus Christ have often been reluctant to
take the gospel to the nations this was always God’s plan.
Look with me again at the genealogy
Rahab was a Canaanite
Ruth was a Moabite
Bathsheba was a Hittite
David Farley is Scotch Irish, Dutch, and German
What is your ethnicity? If you are not Jewish and you’re a Christian it is because God’s heart is for the
nations.
This brings us to the very end of the gospel of Matthew.
Matthew 28:18–20 (ESV) — 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on
earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And
behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
God did not want and does not want us to keep the good news to ourselves we are to take it to the
nations starting with the people right across your street, your office, your classroom, or the bus!
Do you share God’s heart to bless the nations??? If not ask him to give you his heart for the nations.
Conclusion:
This genealogy tells us allot about Jesus.
Jesus is the savior! He wants to save you from sin, death, and destruction.
Jesus is the son of David the anointed King! Are you a citizen of his kingdom?
Jesus is the son of Abraham he wants his blessings to flow to the nations through you…
Lets pray…