Where is your name

Matthew 1:1–2 KJV 1900

1 The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren;

Matthew 1:6–8 KJV 1900

6 And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias; 7 And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa; 8 And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias;

Matthew 1:17 KJV 1900

17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations.

Getting to Messiah

Last week we started our Christas series that will continue through today and the next two Sundays.

We began by looking at the genealogy of Jesus as listed in Matthew chapter 1 verses 1 through 17. That hard to read portion of the scripture that just lists this person begat that person who began another person and so on...

However, the 17 verses are more than just a list of names and lineage…it is the writer Matthew prefacing his record of the works and miracles of Jesus with legal evidence that Jesus was indeed the Messiah and heir to the throne of David. This list of begats connects Jesus not only with the throne of David, but also the promise of Abraham. Any devout Jew reading the lineage as listed by Matthew would know that every name listed in this archive of ancestry, was indeed both an heir of promise and the throne.

Theologians and biblical scholars point out that even in the formation of Matthews crafting of the genealogy from Abraham to Joseph, there is royal imagery being communicated. First of all Matthew lists the lineage in 3 groups of 14. In Jewish writings and culture, the number 7 and the multiplicative factors thereof were considered to be sacred and holy number…the number of God’s perfection. By using the number 14 in 3 groups, he not draws attention to this lineage being the perfect work of God. Another factor is that every Jewish letter has a numerical value, therefore every word and name also has numeric value. The name David, the great King of Israel would have the numeric value of 14. In Jewish culture there would have been no greater mark of distinction and pedigree than for them to be a descendant of David. We find this reinforced throughout the Gospels as individuals and multitudes alike would call upon Jesus as the “son of David”

As Matthew lists the names of patriarchs and kings, he is drawing lines of indisputable evidence that Jesus was in fact the Messiah. Yet mingled among the names of dignitaries and royalty, Matthew also paints deeper pictures of just who this child born in Bethlehem is and what His kingdom will be about.

As we discussed last week, mingled in among names like Abraham and David are names of prostitutes like Rahab and Tamar…women of poor reputation like Ruth and Bethsheba. Names that culturally, never would have been placed within a lineage to begin with…but certainly not one establishing the right of royalty. Yet Matthew draws our attention to these women of low reputation to inform us that the Messiah would come with Grace…that his kingdom would exalt those of low reputation!

He includes the names of those that simply don’t belong to emphasize, in His kingdom you don’t have to end where you started.

I’m not going to re preach last weeks sermon, but I’ll just say Messiah came to bring grace to mankind! As the prophet Isaiah wrote of the coming Messiah or anointed one, in he would come to comfort those that mourn; To give beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they might be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified!

Tamars beginning was playing the part of a harlot, but in the end she gave birth to breakthrough

Rahab lived the life of a harlot, but she married praise...

Each of these women started off terribly, but ended up in the lineage of the savior of the world!!

Your end can be better than your beginning in Jesus Christ!

This is the Good news! This is the Gospel! This is the true meaning of Christmas! this is the Grace of God!!

Grace has been most simply defined as God giving us what we don’t deserve...

Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and Bethesheba testify to the very grace of God.

However, today I want to identify another aspect of the message of Messiah as told by the lineage listed in Matthew chapter 1.

This one begins much different than the story of the 4 woman whose reputation would cause us to wonder…how did you get here.

As we begin reading verses 1 through 5, we make our way from the promise of Abraham through the lineage of patriarchs. At verse 6 we make the transition from the leaders of the tribes of Israel, to the kings that would rule of Israel. Verses 6, 7 through 8 we are cruising along....

David begat Solomon

Solomon begat Rehoboam

Rehoboam begat Abia

Abia began Asa

Asa begat Jehoshaphat

Jehoshaphat begat Joram

Joram begat Ozias (Uzziah)...

Pause...

hidden from our eye, but would have been every much know to the Jewish reader to whom the Gospel account had been written. What they would have known immediately and what we can come to know through a small amount of study…Uzziah wasn’t the son of Joram. First of all, Matthew wasn’t being deceitful and skipping generations in genealogy was a common practice. However, there was an obvious omission. Not of one generation…not two generations…but the names of three generations of kings of removed from the list of the genealogy of the messiah.

Joram’s son was Ahaziah

Ahaziahs son was Joash

and Joash’s son was Amaziah

three kings names not mentioned in the methodical list of names.

While theologians don’t all agree as to exactly why Matthew chose to omit the names of these three kings, they all agree that it was intentional and it was “attentional”.

Many agree that the purpose was to keep the ancestry in groups of 14 to underscore the perfect lineage and the connection to David.

However, most argue that the reason that Ahaziah, Joah and Amaziah are omitted from the lineage of Messiah in connection with an old Testament passage of scripture. (important to point out…they weren’t omitted from his lineage…they were omitted from the record of his lineage.)

Exodus 20:4–5 KJV 1900

4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: 5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;

the last listed king before the gap that would span 3 kings, Joram had married a princess by the name of Athaliah. The distinction of Athaliah was that she was the daughter of a king by the name of Ahab whose wife was Jezebel.

This royal couple had the dubious distinction of turning Israel away from the worship of Jehovah and turned them toward the worship of Baal.

1 Kings 16:32–33 KJV 1900

32 And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. 33 And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him.

Last week we talked about people that probably should have been left out, but they were added.

This week we look at people that should have been included, but they are left out.

Raham was a harlot that should have never been invited to the party…but by faith…she accepted the spies into her home…and she married Salmon of the tribe of Judah…she married praise…it was what she connected herself to that included her in the lineage of Messiah.

And it is what Joram married himself to that would removed the next three generations from the recorded lineage of Messiah....

I know this isn’t popular preaching in 2019…I know it sure aint popular preaching 2 and 1/2 weeks from Christmas, but you can’t be married to this world and expect to get closer to Messiah!

if you study the life of Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, you would find that she didn’t turn from their wicked ways…if anything she allowed their evil to be amplified in her life.

Ahaziah was a wicked king that followed the influence of his mother Athaliah

Joash, the bible said was a good king as long as Jehoida was the priest…but when the preacher in his life died, he became evil.

Amaziah would also begin as a righteous king, but later would turn to the same evil that had marked his grandparents...

If you look at the 3 kings that are omitted from the record of the lineage of Messiah…you would find that each of them, Ahaziah, Joash

There’s room for a Tamar that will leave the past behind and give birth to a breakthrough...

There’s place for a Rahab that will move by faith and connect her life to praise...

But there’s no place for those that refuse the grace of God and choose to stay connected to the wickedness of this world.

Im preaching within the theme of getting to Messiah…I’ve come to tell someone today, its time to denounce Jezebel and Ahab and its time to commit your life to praise!

And while I know today we are talking about names omitted from the lineage of Messiah...

but there is another list that matters today.

Revelation 20:14–15 KJV 1900

14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

Revelation 20:12–15 KJV 1900

12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

it matters if your name is found in the book!

I’m preaching to people today that you think it a small matter that your life is connected to jezebel!

You think it to be somewhat of a cool thing that you are a descendant of wicked Athaliah…

yet, even in the midst of evil kings whose names were omitted, the mercy of God appears.

the bible tells us that Ahaziah, who had reigned as king of Judah for only a year, was wounded in battle. He never recovered from his wound and shortly after would die.

the bible tells us that Ahaziah, who had reigned as king of Judah for only a year, was wounded in battle. He never recovered from his wound and shortl

When he dies his mother Athaliah kills everything related to him…anyone and everyone that had any right to the throne, including his children…Athaliah killed them all. Imagine that…a grandmother having her own grandchildren executed in order to secure the throne for herself.

Maybe now we can see why Matthew, inspired by the Lord, refuses to etch anything connected to Athaliah into the lineage of Messiah.

Those that don’t belong…but are willing to change…there’s room for them in the lineage of messiah...

But Pride…Selfishness…Arrogance…those that anything that opposes the throne of self has to to die…Matthew don’t you put their name in the book!

However, the fact is that had Athaliah destroyed every child of Ahaziah…the bloodline would have stopped. The link from the promise of Abraham to Messiah would have been destroyed....

And the Bible tells us in , that even though the blood line had become polluted by wickedness and evil…even though the Exodus promise that the sins of the father would be visited upon the 3rd and 4th generation…God knew their had to be a pathway from promise to Messiah. From the promise being spoken to the promise being born.

and so the Bible says that as wicked Athaliah is executing the children of Ahaziah, Jehoshaba grabs Joash and rescues him from destruction and hides him in the bedroom of the nurse so that he was not killed.

the bible says He was hidden with her in the house of the Lord for six years.

In the midst of evil…God stepped in.

God said, i’ve got to make sure there’s a way to get to Messiah!

I know that man is wicked and evil…so even though you don’t deserve it…even though this is the offspring of Jezebel and wicked Athaliah…I’m going to step in...

Titus 3:5 KJV 1900

5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

Titus

mercy placed Joah in the house of the Lord!

Its he mercy of the Lord that you are here today…once again being offered an opportunity to sever your ties to Jezebel and Ahab!

There is a way to Messiah!

It looked like it was over....but he made a way!

Raised in the house of God!!

The mercy of the lord

And the Bible said as long as he had a preacher in his life…he did that which was right...

The sin of Jezebel was she was a preacher killer. She killed preachers by the dozen.

As long as they were prophesying what she wanted…they were ok. But the moment they confronted her sin…they died.

And now 3 generations later…Joash feels the sting of grandma’s sin…when the preacher in his life dies, he goes back to what Ahab was.

God’s been merciful! Joash…his name should have been listed…raised in the house of God. Saved from the wickedness of Athaliah...