King of Christmas Arrives

King of Christmas Arrives

(Christmas Present)

Matthew 1:1-17

December 21, 2025

We started this sermon series with the top Christmas movies of all times. I shared with you my favorite was Charles Dickens’s Christmas Carol. I was later told that I best fit Jim Carry’s the Grinch. Yes, I do have some similar characteristics of the green hero that is used to remind those pesky who’s down in who vill the true meaning of Christmas.

Although there are similarities with me and the Grinch, I want all of you to know that this sermon series has changed my view of Christmas. Like my hero the Grinch, I think my heart has grown two sizes. The reason is that I am seeing Christmas from the beginning of human history (week 1 at the fall of Adam and Eve), then Christmas guaranteed (week two and the promise of Christ’s coming to the throne of David). Then last week Pat showed us the Cost of Christmas.

This week we will look at Christmas Present, or more specifically the coming of the King of Kings. You all would assume that I would go to Luke 2. Although it would be tempting to do that, it does not fit with our series. Again, remember Christmas always was (before creation) always was promised, infinitely costly and ever present. So, with that in mind, let’s go to Matthew 1.

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Many overlook this passage and bypass the importance. But, if we step over it, we are missing one of our greatest needs.

RC Sproul told of a story of a missionary who wanted to translate the Bible into the tribal language to a remote African tribe. She left out this section of Matthew’s genealogy to “get to the meat” of the Gospel quickly. After years of teaching the Gospel to the tribes, she saw little to no response. In her second edition, she included the genealogy. In response, the tribal chief said “Are you trying to tell us that this Jesus you’ve been telling us about for ten years was a real person?”

You see, we don’t so much care about our linage. We don’t pay that close attention to who’s son had what kid. But, once that tribe saw the receipts (genealogy), it verified that Christ was and is exactly who He claimed to be.

Let’s set the context. Matthew was a Jew, writing to Jews who were looking for their Jewish Messiah. Each Gospel has his purpose. If you remember, Matthew depicts Him as King, Mark as the servant, Luke presents Him as Son of Man, and John declares Him as “The Christ, The Only Son of God.”

Matthew was a tax collector, (the worst rendition of Jew). They were looked at as traitors and worse than the Samaritans. He taxed people to use the Roman roads and was presumed to keep his % off the top. He bought the right to tax people for the use of key avenues of use. It would be like me living next to highway 45 and going to the state and paying them to allow me to tax you all who use that section.

It was this guy that Jesus calls to follow Him. Matthew the tax collector, one who would be used to collecting receipts on transactions is now giving us the greatest receipt of all receipts. The list of genealogy of Christ is NOT a step over passage! It is the proof text for Christ’s identity.

Again, he is writing to Jews, so it is natural He starts with Abraham while skipping the generation between Josiah and Jeckoniah. Also, if you read the names in Legacy Bible and NASB they go by different names and spellings (Hebrew is tricky like that). But Matthew’s list is intact enough to show the completeness of the Messiah's pedigree and intentionally breaks in into three sections. (14, 14 and 14.)

I get this from sceptics all the time. How can the Gospels be right if Luke’s genealogy and Matthew’s is so different. Yea, it’s different for a reason and there is NO conflict or issue here. I’ll answer that question in a minute.

1.             The resume of the King.

A resume is a document that should prove who you are and what you have done in your life. What I just read is the introduction to Jesus’s resume. So, who is at the end of the list? The one that the list is all about, Jeshua.

When you get to Matthew 1:16, we read “and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jeshua (Jesus) was born.” Jeshua- the name of Jesus, means Yahweh is Salvation. God’s plan of salvation laid out for us in the names of broken men and women. Yahweh saves through the list of who’s who of failures.

Remember he is writing to the Jews who would have discounted anyone who cannot show up with receipts in hand as to this pedigree. If Matthew would not have given this, no logical Jew would have considered Jesus as the Messiah. To be honest, neither should we! Without this, Jesus would not fulfill the requirement to Messiahship.

Okay, why is Luke’s list different? Look at verse 11 of Matthew. Jeckoniah-1 Chronicles 3:14-16 was the last king before the exile. He was HORRIBLE! God had sharp words for this man.

Is this man Coniah (same name for Jeck oniah) a despised, broken pot, a vessel no one cares for? Why are he and his children hurled and cast into a land that they do not know? O land, land, land, hear the word of the Lord! Thus says the Lord: “Write this man down as childless, a man who shall not succeed in his days, for none of his offspring shall succeed in sitting on the throne of David and ruling again in Judah.”

If we only had Matthew’s genealogy, we would have a HUGE problem. If Jesus was the son of only Joseph, then God does not follow His word. God just cursed Jeckoniah and all of his offspring for his vile and horrible reign. Jeckoniah was a horrible guy and God makes it clear not a single one of his sons will ever sit on the throne of David.

For man, that is a pretty big problem. How is Jesus supposed to sit on David’s throne if God just cursed the royal line from David after Jeckoniah? Remember, Jesus had to be of the line of David to sit on David’s throne. The answer is in Jesus’s adoption! Jesus was heir of Joseph (the royal line) by adoption, so, the curse bypassed Him.

Luke’s genealogy records Mary’s line that was not of Jeckoniah but one of the OTHER lines from David. Mary’s line was that of a nonkingly line yet still of the line of David. Because she was of David still, the curse does not apply to Jesus. Look back at our text:

Vs 11 “and Jacob the father of Joseph the HUSBAND of Mary.” In more accurate Bible translations that use “begat or begot (meaning to father or have biological kids). ” Matthew carefully records that Joseph was “the Husband of Mary.” There is no “beget or begotten” here. Jesus is adopted!

The genealogy of Luke lists a different line of David (all trackable in the OT). Again, some lines are skipped but Luke, who is writing to gentiles takes us all the way back to Adam, (Christmas Beginnings). I told you that these lists are important.

SLOW DOWN FOR THIS: Jesus is the ONLY one who can do this! From Adam to Jesus, the Jews were able to trace all of the lineage to 30 AD. The Jews maintained these lists for several reasons. 1. To prove that you were actually Jewish. 2. Proved your right to the land (no Jew, no land). 3. Proved if you could be a priest or not (Levites). 4. Proved a family’s right to royalty. 5. MOST IMPORTANT, proved who is the Messiah. They knew that the Messiah would have to be of the line of Judah, of the line of David, born in Bethlehem etc.

Matthew is using this cultural method to provide the receipt that Jesus matched all the requirements to be Messiah!

The Jews who are still looking for their Messiah have major problems if they think that their Messiah is yet to come. The reason is because in AD 70 when Rome destroyed the temple the Jews lost the documents that recorded the lineage moving forward. The Word of God preserves the line to Jesus through these writings, but after, the Jews today can not track the line of Judah after AD 70. They can get some of the Levites but not Judah or the other tribes.

God is an amazing God to retain this and prove to anyone who is skeptical still, if you are waiting for another, you are waiting for something that will not have the proof of identity. No other can do what Jesus does. The King is here!

2.             The arrival of the King.

Vs 6“and Jesse the father of David the king.”

Jesus had to be in line with the good King David. But, “good” is a generous word because no one is good except God. For all the good that David was, he is also remembered for his failures as an adulterer and murderer. His name is nestled here in verse 6 among a long list of sinners.

A . Abraham: good=He made into book of faith in Hebrews 11. He was known for His faith, and it was counted unto him as righteous. However, he was also a liar (she aint my wife). He threw complete nations into turmoil -Egypt and even today, his line is currently at war. To this day the Muslim will say Ishmael is the son of promise not Jacob and we see it’s war still wage.

B. Judah, the son of Jacob the promised son: Good=His line is the blessed tribe for rulership; the scepter will never depart from him (Jesus). And that is about it for good. Judah went and got a lady pregnant (Tamar) who he should not have. We will talk about Tamar in a few. (Gen 38)

D. Solomon: Good= wisest and richest king. He asked for wisdom and God blessed him. He was tender in his youth but in his age, proved to be a horrible husband and father. He had 700 wives and 300 concubines. He drifted away from God in his age. “I had it all and is vanity without God.”

E. Hezekiah: was a good king, pursued God and brings the nation back to the Word of God. But is a horrible dad because his son Manasseh leads the country into the darkest spiritual time of the nation.

F. Jeckoniah: Was horrible! We already talked about him. God got so mad, that He curses the entire kingly line because of his wickedness.

The Five ladies:

It is not normal to include women in a genealogy, but God does this to teach us a valuable lesson of His great Grace.

A. Tamar the lady Judah got pregnant. She acts like a prostitute to manipulate Judah. She was a Canaanite (enemy) of the Jews and manipulates herself into Judah’s family. (Gen 38:13-30)

B.    Rahab the prostitute was another Canaanite who let the spies into Jericho. (Josh 2:1) and is forever known by her profession, the prostitute.

C.    Ruth was a Moabite and worshiper of idols. She was the only woman in this list apart from Mary who has clean hands except her past. She comes to Boaz who is a picture of redemption and is in the linage of Christ.

D. Bathsheba- adulterous woman (2 Sam 11) who was married to Uriah and yet, God redeems this sin and we have Solomon.

E.    Finally, Mary. She is the woman who was a sinner in need of a savior. Favored, yes, sinner yes, in need of a savior, yes! Luke 1:46-47 she herself says, “And Mary said, My soul magnifies the LORD, and my spirit rejoices in GOD my Savior.” She knows she needs saving from her sin. She is not, as the Roman Catholic will claim, a sinless co savior.

This is what the genealogies mean to us. This is a list of God’s grace using broken and sinful men and women to usher in the King of Glory. God checks all the physical blocks while demonstrating that His mercy is at play through broken, sinful and fallen man to usher into His plan of salvation! Merry Christmas Church! Through the sin of all men, God is still about redeeming His children.

3.             See your King’s Advent.

We use that word “advent” but do you know what that means? Advent means “the arrival of a notable person, thing or event.” Your king’s advent is here in our passage and here in our lives! The thing that all creation pointed to and now looks back on, is happening. To Mary and Joseph, the advent of the Messiah was at hand. To us, the advent of our king is NOW!

In all of this sermon series, in each sermon and message, we have always presented the GOSPEL message clearly. I want to ask you all a direct and clear question. Is Christ your KING and do you see His arrival?

Let me drill down on this. You don’t make Him LORD of your life. Many will say, you need to make Jesus Lord. I get the intent of that comment but that is not accurate. CHURCH, He is already LORD! Look back at the proof! The genealogy of Christ, the life and work of Christ (what we have studied in John), the death of Christ AND not to mention His resurrection prove beyond a shadow of doubt that HE ALREADY IS LORD well before you came into the picture.

Now, do you see Him for who He is? If you did, it would change who and what you are. That understanding has a direct effect. If He is LORD, you live like He did, you act like He acts, you are righteous, pure and demonstrate His fingerprint in your life. You live like Christmas actually has had an impact on you!

Conversely, if you act like the world, act like YOU want to act, disregard His commands, ignore His WORD, then you are NOT one of His children. You are being deceived. To this person, Christmas is a time a year, not the Person it was really about.

The list of names in our text reads like a who's who of failures. They were not perfect and neither are you and me. If you are in Christ and a part of the Body of Christ, you are on a list not recorded in this text but a text that is eternal. If Christ has shown you your sin, called your heart to turn from that sin then you are on an eternal list of salvation!

CONCLUSION

As I conclude, our goal this Christmas is that you see Christmas in it’s entirety. Again, it is not this spot on a timeline! It’s beginning was pre planned before our first parents plunged all of us into sin. It was always the plan and guaranteed by the God of the universe. Christmas is infinitely expensive as we learned last week. And now, today, we see Christ coming to Joseph and Mary.

Allow me to take you back to my introduction. Maybe you are a little like the Grinch. My goal is to get our hearts to grow two sizes bigger this week and see Christmas differently and more completely. My ask today is that you see your King’s coming and HIM as that, King.