THE SHOCKING FAMILY BACKGROUND OF JESUS
Matt. 1:1-17
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. Why are Christmas trees bad at sewing? They always drop their needles!
2. What did the gingerbread man put on his bed? Cookie sheets.
3. How did the Jedi know what he was getting for Christmas? He could sense their presents.
4. How do Christmas trees get ready for a night out? They spruce up!
B. GROWING INFLUENCE OF GENEALOGIES
1. Genealogies have become a big thing in our society. Libraries across our nation now contain rooms dedicated to genealogical records. Huge internet sites are dedicated to the pursuit of researching genealogies.
2. I had a great uncle who traced our family tree back 14 generations. My son John Wesley became interested in our families’ past and sent some skin-scrapings to Ancestry.com. Then he got me to mail a sample in and they discovered that I am:
43% England/Western Europe
25% Scotland
16% Ireland
13% German
3% Wales (not the animal, the place)
It gives me some kind of idea of my origins. It DIDN’T tell me that I had any Chimpanzee in my background. Sorry Darwin!
3. When it comes to reading the genealogies in the Bible, it’s about as exciting as reading the dictionary! Most people probably think it’s okay to just skip over the genealogies.
4. But 2 Tim. 3:16 says, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.” So tonight we’re covering the “begats” of Christmas.
5. Our KEY TEXT is Matt. 1:1-17, but we’re not going to read it! I’ll give you a thumbnail sketch in a minute.
6. So what is the importance of the Christmas genealogies?
I. IMPORTANCE OF JESUS’ GENEALOGY
A. ESTABLISHING JESUS’ IDENTITY
1. The genealogy of Jesus is crucial for establishing His identity as the Messiah. HOW?
2. It connects Him to significant figures in Jewish history, specifically Abraham and David. Why are these two important? Because God covenanted with both Abraham and David in perpetual, unconditional covenants.
a. Abraham – Genesis 17:1-22; sampling; “I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8 The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.” Gen. 17:6-8
b. David – 2 Sam. 7:8-16; “I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom....13 I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 16 Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before Me; your throne will be established forever.’” (vss. 12-13, 16)
c. The claim that the Jews forfeited these promises because they rejected Jesus is false because 1). the promises were unconditional, 2). later prophecies reaffirmed the earlier prophecies (Jer. 31:35-36), and 3). the promises were “everlasting” and “eternal” in scope.
3. Matthew's emphasis that Jesus is the "son of David," fulfills Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah.
a. Of the Bible's 31,124 verses, 8,352 contains predictive material (27%). 81% of its prophecies have been documented as being fulfilled. The remaining 19% deal with the events yet future. God Almighty says, "I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come" Isa. 46:10.
b. But the most significant area of prophecy was concerning Christ's first coming. Over 300 prophecies foretold great detail about Him: Born of a virgin (Is. 7:14; Lk.1:7); born in Bethlehem (Mic. 5:2; Lk. 2:4); move to Egypt (Hos. 11:1; Mt. 2:14-15); of tribe of Judah (Gen. 49:10; Mt. 3:3); speak in parables (Ps. 78:2; Mt. 13:34); ride a donkey into Jerusalem (Zech. 9:9; Mt. 21); be rejected by the Jews (Is. 53:3; Jn. 1:11); betrayed by a friend (Ps. 41:9; Mt. 26:23); sold for 30 silver pieces (Zech. 11:2; Mt. 26:15); silent before accusers (Is. 53:7;Mk. 15:5); they cast lots for His robe (Ps. 22:18; Jn. 19:23); be crucified (Ps. 22:16); say “my God, why forsaken me?” (Ps. 22:1; Mt. 27:46); not one bone was broken (Ps. 34:20; Jn. 19:36); buried w/ rich (Is. 53:9; Mt. 27); Rise from the dead.
B. STRUCTURE OF THE GENEALOGY
1. Matthew organizes the genealogy into three sections of fourteen generations each:
a. From Abraham to David
b. From David to the Babylonian Exile
c. From the Exile to Jesus
2. This structure not only aids memorization but also highlights the continuity of God's plan through history.
C. WHO’S INCLUDED IN THE 3 PERIODS?
1. 14 GENERATIONS – ABRAHAM TO DAVID
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, Perez whose mother was Tamar, Hezron, Ram, Amminadab, Nahshon, Salmon, Boaz whose mother was Rahab, Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Jesse, King David.
2. 14 GENERATIONS – DAVID TO EXILE
David was the father of...Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife, Rehoboam, Abijah, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Amon, Josiah, Jehoiachin.
3. 14 GENERATIONS – EXILE TO THE MESSIAH
Jehoiachin, Shealtiel, Zerubbabel, Abihud, Eliakim, Azor, Zadok, Akim, Elihud, Eleazar, Matthan, Jacob, Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.
II. LESSONS TO DRAW
A. GOD’S FAITHFULNESS.
1. The genealogy shows that God keeps His promises across generations. Abraham lived in about 2,000 B.C., yet over 4,000 years later, God had not forgotten His promises to him and was still looking after His people Israel!
2. We make promises and forget about them in a couple of weeks, but God never forgets. This should give us great confidence – that God NEVER forgets His promises! God’s Word SHALL come to pass!
B. INCLUSION. Jesus' lineage includes diverse individuals, emphasizing that His message is for everyone.
1. THOUGH WE SIN. The Bible doesn’t gloss over the mistakes of its greatest heroes. Abraham lied about his wife; Isaac showed shocking favoritism, Jacob was a conniving deceiver, Jacob’s sons sold their brother into slavery, etc. All of us have our faulty sides and wrong decisions, yet – praise God – God never will reject us for our sins if we’ll repent. No matter how far we fall God is merciful and gracious.
2. THOUGH OTHERS STIGMATIZE US. There are 5 women included in Jesus’ genealogy. You’d think, “Oh, God probably included the noble women like Sarah, Rebecca, and Leah, etc. No! He only included the unmentionables! Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, and Mary (who herself had an unwed pregnancy). Most had shocking stories.
a. 2 WEREN’T EVEN JEWISH! Rahab was one of the wicked Amorites, and Ruth was a Moabite.
b. 3 INVOLVED IN SEXUAL SCANDALS.
1). Tamar tricked her father-in-law, Judah, into having a child by her by disguising herself as a prostitute.
2). Rahab didn’t have to disguise herself as a prostitute – she was a prostitute in Jericho.
3). Bathsheba. She was a woman married to one of David’s 30 Mighty Men. She was pulled into an affair with King David. We don’t know if she was a willing participant or a victim.
c. These were women who failed to bring credibility to Jesus’ Jewish heritage – most would consider them contamination to the bloodline.
3. But God lets us know that His love is bigger than the Jewish race, or human mores, & that Jesus is the Savior of all people. God is not sexist nor is He racist!
4. God is teaching us about His mercy. God is reaching out to all people to have mercy on them, whatever their past.
C. HISTORICAL CONTEXT.
1. Understanding the genealogy helps to ground the New Testament in historical reality, reinforcing that JESUS’ LIFE and mission are ROOTED IN HISTORY.
2. When Jesus was born, genealogy was very important. In order to own land in Israel, you had to be able to prove your descent. To be King over God’s people, Jesus (like presidents in the U.S.) needed to show He was a genuine Israelite, descended from Abraham & David.
3. Ezekiel 48:1-29 tells us that during the 1,000 year reign of Christ, Canaan will again be apportioned to each of the tribes of the Jews. Genealogy will again play a part and the promises to the Jewish people of land, fruitfulness, and peace will finally be fulfilled.
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUS.: GOD’S PROVISION, Even in the Little Things
1. Corrie Ten Boom caught a bad cold in the concentration camp. She told her sister Betsy, “I’ve got to have a handkerchief for my nose!” Betsy said, “Pray! I will pray for you too. God will send you a handkerchief.”
2. The next day someone called Carrie’s name outside her window. It was another prisoner that worked in the hospital. She passed Carrie a small package. It was a handkerchief.
3. “How did you know that I wanted a handkerchief?” “I was cutting old sheets into handkerchiefs for the patients, and a voice in my head said, “Give Carrie a handkerchief. I’m sure it was the Lord.”
4. Carrie was so happy that God took care of all her needs there in the concentration camp. She said, “God knows the big things and the little things that are important to us!”
B. THE CALL
1. Verse 16 says, “And Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.” Matthew didn’t say that Jesus was Joseph’s son; He’s Mary’s son! He is God’s Son!
2. It’s the bloodline of Christ that washes away our sins! The amazing thing is that we can, by faith in Jesus Christ, become God’s child.
3. John 1:12-13 says, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.”
4. Tonight’s message reminds you that God wants to include you in His family; that God is a God of mercy, that He wants to put away your sins by the blood of Jesus. He loves you. God has never forgotten you; He’s faithful and wants you to go to heaven.
5. PRAYER
[Sources for some of this are Wikipedia & robertjmorgan.com]
