Laying the groundwork

so we’re starting a new seires tonight - and we’re gonna

Why study a book of the Bible?

To get to know Jesus

Nothing else in the Bible matters, if we don’t get Jesus

To understand the Bible’s major themes and topics

sometimes we go to the bible with all of these quesitons and things we want to learn about, and I feel like i did that when I was yalls age too. But what was crazy was, is when I started reading through the bible in college, and actually started to study it, I realized it didnt really focus on my questions a lot. BUT it talked about some other things a lot.

and so if we go to the Bible only when we want to know something, we’ll miss what that the bible wants us to know.

If we only go to the Bible for what we want to hear, we’ll miss what the Bible wants us to hear

And whats crazy is, the more I studied the bible, the more I learned about Jesus and the topics that the Bible thinks is important, the less my questions actually mattered, or the more they worked themselves out.

About the book of Matthew

Who?

- Matthew

When?

-Written about 30-40 years after Jesus died

Where?

- Circulated to many churches

To whom?

-Primarily Jewish audience(religious people)

-People familiar with the story Jesus

Matthew was writing to a primarly Jewish audiencewe think. Who were the Jews? yeah right, Israel, God’s chosen people. But these were the religious people - they have grown up knowing God, they know all of the sunday school stories.

Matthew 1:1–17 ESV

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon. And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ. 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.

But i really want to focus on one verse

Matthew 1:1 ESV

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

this one verse, this opening sentence is, I think, a summary of the entire book of Matthew. And I actually want to work through this verse backwards - which is a little weird for me, but I think it makes it more dramatic.

“son of Abraham”

Genesis 22:17–18 ESV

I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.”

son of David

“The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you: 12 When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his father, and he will be my son … 16 Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me[b]; your throne will be established forever.

2 Samuel 7:11-16

Jesus Christ

Geneology

so putting all that together

Through a descendant of Abraham, God is going to bless the entire world. Through a descendant of David, a goldy king will come who’s reign will never end.

Both find their fulfilment in Jesus of Nazareth, “the anointed one” of God, the King who’s rule will never end, and who will bless the entire world through his life and death.

And this book is only the beginning…

the gospel of Matthew presents Jesus as the God appointed king of Israel, and the God appointed king of the entire world. But one important question the book of Matthew will ask, and the only question I’m going to ask you tonight is this - is he your king?