Matthew #1

Intro

Northside Christian Church

Gospel of Matthew

1/4/26

Intro/1:1-17 (genealogy) `

Good morning, my name is Jamey, and I’m the lead pastor here at Northside! It’s always great to be with you.

Today’s a good day, we are kicking off our brand new sermon series on the Gospel of Matthew…

It’s one of the 4 biographies on the birth, life, ministry, death, and ressurection of Jesus…

Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Of the 4, 3 are referred to as the synoptic gospels… meaning, they contain a lot of the same stuff…

As an example… about 90% of what’s in Mark is found in Matthew.

And while that may seem redundant, it is an incredible gift.

Each author has a different reason for writing and audience… but we’re left with a much fuller picture, a 3D look as to who Jesus is.

Mark’s Gospel was written earliest… Probably around 50-55 AD

Matthew likely was next between 60-70 AD.

There are some that would say Matthew was written later…

Personally, I think 60-70 AD is the latest date… the largest reason is that as a Jew, he would not have just written, but highlighted the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.

It was written by Matthew

… one of the 12 who were closest to Jesus.

We see his calling in Matthew 9, Mark 2, and Luke 5

Luke 5:27–32 (NLT) (may need to summarize)

Luke 5:27–32 NLT

Later, as Jesus left the town, he saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Levi got up, left everything, and followed him. Later, Levi held a banquet in his home with Jesus as the guest of honor. Many of Levi’s fellow tax collectors and other guests also ate with them. But the Pharisees and their teachers of religious law complained bitterly to Jesus’ disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with such scum?” Jesus answered them, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners and need to repent.”

27 Later, as Jesus left the town, he saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. 28 So Levi got up, left everything, and followed him.

29 Later, Levi held a banquet in his home with Jesus as the guest of honor. Many of Levi’s fellow tax collectors and other guests also ate with them. 30 But the Pharisees and their teachers of religious law complained bitterly to Jesus’ disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with such scum?”

31 Jesus answered them, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. 32 I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners and need to repent.”

Jesus called Matthew (Hebrew name Levi) and said “follow me”… he left an incredibly lucrative life behind and did.

There is something telling and powerful knowing that right away, Matthew threw a party to introduce his tax-collecting buddies… to Jesus.

The authorship of Matthew has been questioned some… but in my view, without good reason.

There are many reasons to accept Matthew as the Author…

Matthew was universally accepted historically.

That was big in the ancient world

There wasn’t any competing ancient tradition

Papias (2nd-century historian) as well as many others, attribute authorship to Matthew.

One author said it like this:

“ If Matthew didn't write this, the early church would have said so… If someone was trying to invent an author, they never would have chosen a socially rejected tax collector with 0 pedigree in teaching.”

Matthew is referred to differently in Matthew: (self-reflection)

Matthew purposefully highlights his past as a tax collector (doesn’t hide it) as if he doesn’t want anyone to forget who he was. Highlighting what Jesus had done.

Very much a “I once was blind, but now I see” statement

Matthew’s author had an incredible understanding of Jewish faith and tradition, as well as the Greek culture/language:

There are over 60 OT quotes

Matthew was most likely a Levite…

The tribe tasked with serving God (priests):

Called to teach the Law: Matthew knew more than most.

Becoming a tax collector meant he would have a good handle on the Greek language and Roman customs.

Abandoning his sacred birthright vocation

Aligning with the enemy (collecting the very funds that enabled the very army to keep his people under their thumb)

Becoming rich off the suffering of his own people

They did what was called tax farming:

Every year, Matthew paid the Roman government a set amount… but his income came in whatever he could charge them beyond that.

Matthew got rich off the suffering of his own people.

His job represented betrayal, exploitation, and religious compromise…

In the first century Jewish society, tax collectors were among the most despised people…

That jump between priestly line and tax collector is massive.

As a tax collector… keeping and organizing and detailed records was required… He was a spreadsheet kinda guy… (Bobby, Matthew is your guy)

We see that sort of clarity and masterful organization in the layout of Matthew’s Gospel.

The way Matthew is written is mind-blowing.

God used Matthew to gather and organize the teachings, stories, and ministry…

Mathew is written to:

Jewish believers

Jewish skeptics

Jewish people who were compelled to consider Jesus.

Matthew’s goal is to help the Jewish people connect Jesus to the promises and prophecy of the OT… Trying to show how they clearly point to Jesus.

The way that God communicates and reveals Himself through scripture is… beyond Human.

One author said it like this… Matthew was a brilliant man, but it’s obvious he had some help. (HS)

The basic outline:

Introduction

5 sections that conclude with an extended teaching Jesus

Conclusion

The Jewish leaders would have caught it right away.

These 5 sections, ending with Jesus’ teaching… is mirroring the 5 books of Moses (Torah/Law) of the Old Testament.

Jesus is the new and greater Moses talked about in Deut 18 — the authoritative teacher of God’s final and fulfilled revelation.

Matthew is not saying Jesus replaces Moses. He is saying Jesus fulfills, completes, and surpasses Moses.

Moses was a type or pattern… that God used to point to Jesus.

(JESUS/MOSES SLIDE: Leave up for a bit)

But the Old Testament also hints that:

The covenant Moses mediated would be inadequate (Jeremiah 31:31–34)

A new covenant would come

A better mediator would be required

As you read the OT, you realize it's missing its ending… its searching for it’s conclusion.

Matthew isn’t inventing the idea, he’s claiming the long-awaited figure has arrived IN Jesus!

Several scholars suggest that Matthew is written in layers… It’s easy to read it at the surface layer without realizing what's really happening… and honestly… It's kind of crazy…

The first section of Matthew is a genealogy… a list of names that we are tempted to skip… but we need to learn a lesson from our older friend Tim Buhrkuhl… Skipping can be dangerous (Skinned elbow).

Matthew starts with a genealogy… a list of names. In our culture, it doesn’t make for great reading… we’re often tempted to skip it…

But we need to learn a lesson from one of the older guys at Northside… Time Buhrkuhl… sometimes it’s dangerous to skip.

(story about skinned up elbow)

It looks like a list of names, but Matthew isn’t pulling punches… He’s dropping theological bombs… right out of the gate.

Matthew 1:1 (ESV)

1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

See what I mean… crazy powerful!

Our English translation is terrible (in my view)

Here is the actual Greek:

Βίβλος γενέσεως Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, υἱοῦ Δαυὶδ, υἱοῦ Ἀβραάμ.

(Biblos geneseōs Iēsou Christou, huiou Dauid, huiou Abraam.)

The first two words should sound familiar…

The word we translate as “geology” is not the actual word for genealogy.

It's the word for Genesis… origin… beginnings…

Very literal rendering:

“The book of the genesis/origin of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham.”

This is not Matthew saying… this is where Jesus started.

This is Matthew connecting Genesis… to Jesus.

Matthew’s opening line is doing something very deliberate and very Jewish. When he begins his Gospel with Βίβλος γενέσεως (“book of genesis/origin”),

He is showing Jesus as eternal…

He is intentionally echoing Genesis and Moses to frame Jesus as the climactic figure not just of Israel’s story, but all humanity.

2 modern NT heavyweight scholars say it like this (Davies and Allison)…

“The book of the new Genesis wrought by Christ”

Suggesting not only the fulfillment, but the beginning of the new creation… New covenant, new life… and all that it brings

Matthew, out of that gate, is saying… Jesus is not just some first-century teacher. It’s for you, and for me, for Albany… right here in 2026.

It’s how God, the creator of the universe, stepped into Human history gone bad to rescue and redeem.

Then

Matthew gives Jesus 3 incredibly meaningful titles:

Messiah, Son of David, and Son of Abraham.

Messiah:

Christ was a Greek translation for the word messiah.

Masheock… A long-awaited figure on the horizon, we read about through the OT that would usher in God’s healing, life-giving, mercy and grace… and bring the ultimate deliverance over sin and death.

The son of David:

1 Samuel 2:7… tells us the Messiah would come from the line of David. A royal bloodline. This prophecy was incredibly meaningful to them.

The son of Abraham:

Jesus was the fulfillment of God’s promise to bless all peoples/families through Abraham (Gen 12)

So in one jam-packed opening statement, Matthew is saying Jesus is the fulfillment and climax of the whole story of Israel (and Humanity).

Matthew is saying… Jesus is the ending the OT longs for and the savior/Messiah that all creation has been waiting for.

Matthew 1:2–17 (ESV)

2 Abraham was the father of Isaac (another powerful pattern/type pointing to Jesus), and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3 and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, 4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of David the king.

And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, 7 and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, 8 and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, 9 and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 10 and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, 11 and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.

12 And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 13 and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, 14 and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, 15 and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, 16 and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

17 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.

Jesus' family line is both impressive and… intriguing.

Line of Abraham and David… good stuff

But… it was also incredibly messy.

Jesus' family tree… was… rough.

It reminded me of Christmas vacation… Cousin Eddie and all the in-laws…

In our culture, genealogies aren’t what they used to be.

In that part of the ancient world, your family tree was a vital part of your identity… a core part of who you are and even what you do.

Your family tree… was massively important an.

And understanding the weight they put on the family tree… your genealogy… I hope it helps us understand the depth, importance, and power of the passages that talk about how we have been adopted… grafted into the very family of God (Rom/Eph), and how that deeply speaks into your identity…

For all who are tempted to say… yea, Jamey… but you don’t know where I’ve been or what I’ve done…

Matthew is pointing at Jesus’ family tree… full of messy people who’ve found the true identity restored… who’ve found fullness and freedom in Him.

NT Wright compared it to a parade.

A list of names that sound boring to us… but as each name passed, they were leaning in… not just to see who was next… but to see the heavy hitters that were often left till the end.

Jesus list would have been… great, amazing… wait what, oh no, no way…

Within this genealogy, Matthew is preaching the gospel.

And… at the same time… trying to help us understand… that’s your parade.

The gospel doesn’t just forgive rebels—it adopts them into Jesus’ story.

It doesn’t just pardon outsiders—it grafts them into His family

In Christ, we don’t visit God’s house—we come home.

3 odd things we see about Jesus' genealogy.

The presence of women

In a patriarchal society, women rarely appeared in genealogies… but never in a list of a royal bloodline.

That in itself is odd… Even then, the names aren’t the ones you’d expect.

The 4 matriarchs…

Sarah,

Rebeccah,

Rachel and

Leah… aren’t listed.

Instead, we have:

Rahab: A cannonite sex worder from Jericho

God’s kingdom welcomes those once considered unclean or excluded. Faith (not our past) defines belonging.

Tamar: Cannonite woman whose husband died and was jerked around by his family… eventually dressed as a prostitute and tricked her father-in-law, and ended up becoming pregnant

God’s promises are not derailed by sin or broken systems. God brings righteousness out of injustice.

Ruth: Moabites come from Lot’s sinful and incestuous relationship with his daughters.

God’s redemptive plan moves forward through godly faithful love, even from unlikely people and places.

Uriah’s wife: Matthew doesn’t refer to her as Bethsheba, which is odd. Matthew is purposefully highlighting the sin and brokenness between her and David…

Jesus is greater than our sin and shame.

Not just men… Not just Jewish men… Not just women… but women who in most circles weren’t seen as virtuous. Who many would say… don’t belong here on any level.

Through this list and his own life…

Matthew is screaming… Jesus is

for everyone,

can save anyone

Isn’t swayed by human opinion

If you feel disqualified… remember that in Christ, this is your genealogy. It’s about Jesus’ goodness and now our own.

2. The subtle but intentional name changes in it.

Some scholars will tell you this isn’t a thing…

Alternative spellings

Scribal error

Given Matthew's brilliance and considering the imagery/how this Gospel is written… I think this is intentional.

Part of this genealogy is a list of kings… most of whom were terrible and evil.

If you read the NLT and ESV… there are 2 names that are different (regardless of your translation, likely and asterisk).

The ESV is intended to be a modern word-for-word translation… meaning… that's how it is in the Greek..

In both cases, it's the changing of one Greek letter…

Vs 7

NLT says Asa

ESV says Asaph

(ancient king of Judah), who’s remembered as a pretty good king… calling people back to God)

The ESV says ASPAH

Asaph was a Levite musician, worship leader, and prophet.

He’s connected to at least 12 of the Psalms

(Most are aimed at lamenting Israel’s wickedness and pointing to the future solution, Jesus the Messiah)

That intentional and subtle change highlights Jesus… the good king who fulfills OT prophecy and is to be worshiped… (head of the church).

Vs 10

The NLT says AMON

The ESV lists AMOS

A king of Judah who was evil, following idolatry like his father Manasseh

: A prophet known for justice, righteousness, and calling Israel to accountability

Amos wasn’t a professional prophet

“Matthew names Amos in place of Amon to remind us that Messiah is born into a lineage of human failure and divine faithfulness. Even when kings fail, prophets speak, and God’s plan moves forward. Jesus inherits both the throne and the prophetic heart of God.”

Asa → Asaph (king vs. worshiper)

Amon → Amos (evil king vs. faithful prophet)

Jesus is the one who fulfills the OT and whom all the psalms and prophets have been pointing to.

The original readers… would have spotted that right away.

3. The number 14

We see 3 sections of 14 in this genealogy.

The #7 biblically represents perfection/completion

#14 is like divine perfection/completion

Which is helping them to frame in just how important Jesus is…

The fulfillment and completion of all things.

Before Arabic numerals,

Hebrew letters doubled as numbers, a system called gematria:

If you were to add up the Hebrew letters that make up David’s name… any guesses?

David’s name in numbers is 14

(14) connecting Jesus to the Messianic line of David:

Its confusing for us… but they would have seen and heard it.

One author illustrated it like this…

If you walked into Highmark Stadium to watch the Buffalo Bills play, and someone yelled… Let’s go 17…

Who are they talking about? Everyone in that stadium would know. Josh Allen

Side note… Only one NFL team in the playoffs has a QB #14… My Seahawks… It’s almost not even fair… Super Bowl is a done deal.

It’s from the Lord.

David's name appears as 14th on the list

…

We see 3 lists of 14 names.

And it connects with one of the most interesting prophecies in the OT…

I don’t have time to dig into it super deep… but

Daniel 9 gives the prophetic timetable for the Messiah;

Matthew 1 shows that timetable fulfilled in history.

Daniel 9 (490 years) promises that after a God-ordained period—marked by exile, restoration, and covenant failure—the Messiah will come at the appointed time to deal with sin and bring righteousness.

Matthew 1 presents Jesus’ genealogy as a carefully structured timeline

Three sets of fourteen generations that moves:

from promise (Abraham),

through kingship (David),

through exile (Babylon),

to Messiah (Jesus).

By structuring Jesus’ lineage numerically and around the exile, Matthew is saying to his readers:

The moment Daniel anticipated has arrived. The long wait is over. Jesus is the Messiah who comes right on God’s schedule.

WORSHIP team and Mark who is helping in a time of communion

One last interesting thing…

If you add the fathers up in the last section, you only see 13.

The last line of the genealogy is different.

Matthew 1:16 (ESV)

16 and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband (not father) of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

You’d expect it to say… Joseph, the father of Jesus… but it says Joseph, the Husband of Mary!

The question Matthew is trying to get us to ask is… Who is the 14th father?

Which is connected to next weeks passage…

It's like a huge, red, blinking arrow pointing to both Jesus' humanity and divinity.

This is not just a genealogy; Matthew is preaching the Gospel.

That all of the chaos and brokenness… the missing ending of the OT… finds its conclusion in Jesus. We see God’s faithfulness over a LONG period of time.

It's not just a genealogy

This is an invitation to become part of Jesus’ family.

Matthew… his life and his Gospel is a story of failure and redemption at the deepest level.

Jesus can save anyone…

Jesus can use anyone…

Regardless of their past

Regardless of public opinion

That Jesus has the power to change our names…

Jesus doesn’t just bring hope… but he brings new life.

He doesn’t just save us… but He rewrites our story… No longer marked by our long line of sinfulness… now… highlighted by His goodness and grace… by the fullness and freedom that only He brings.

He is the fulfillment and climax of the entire Bible.

The one they’d been waiting for…

The conclusion to all of the chaos and brokenness

NOT just then… Matthew’s point is… for you too.

Jesus didn’t come to make you healthy, wealthy, and wise.

His plans are so much more than that…

To adopt you… to graft you into his own family tree…

This long list of messed-up and sinful people who, like you, are not beyond the grip of His grace.

This family tree… that is full of all kinds of messy people… then… Jesus and Jesus… changes everything.