Today’s passage: Matthew 1:18-25

Helpful information:

• Biologically, Jesus is Mary’s son. The seed of the woman.
• Jesus is NOT Joseph’s son biologically.  He was born to a virgin woman, conceived by the Holy Spirit.  Jesus is the Son of God.
• Legally, by a one-of-a-kind adoption, Jesus is Joseph’s son. The son of David (verse 20)
  • So, Jesus is fully man, fully God, and the rightful King.
• Remember, the name of “Jesus” means, “The LORD (Yahweh) saves.”  Jesus was coming to save His people from their sins.
• “Immanuel,” meaning “God with us” reminds us that Jesus is God the Son.
• The quote in verse 23 is from Isaiah 7:14.  Jesus is fulfilling prophecy.  We will see many Old Testament prophecies fulfilled as we continue to read through the Gospel of Matthew.  Jesus wasn’t a surprise according to Scripture.  He was exactly who the Old Testament said He was going to be.  He did exactly what the Old Testament said He was going to do.

Questions to consider:

1. How do you think you would have responded if you were Mary?  What difficulties/consequences would have been presented as a result of being pregnant prior to her marriage?
2. How do you think you would have responded if you were Joseph? What difficulties/consequences would have been presented as a result of marrying a woman who is already pregnant?
3. What made the difference for Joseph and Mary?  Why were they able to handle this situation seemingly so well?
4. What do you think it was like having God the Son as your baby?  (Remember: Jesus is fully God AND fully human!)
5. Why did God the Son need to be fully human? (Hint: Acceptable sacrifice)

Today’s passage: Matthew 1:1-17

Helpful Information:

• Matthew’s Gospel was primarily written to the Jewish people.
• Matthew wanted his readers to know that Jesus was the King, the Son of David, the seed of Abraham and the promised Messiah/Anointed One/the Christ.
• The name “Jesus” is the Greek form of “Joshua.” Which means, the LORD (Yahweh) saves.
• Every person in this genealogy was a sinner, except Jesus Christ.  They all desperately needed the grace of God.
• Some of the people in this genealogy loved God, some of them hated God.
• There are five women mentioned.  None of them might be the typical women you would choose to brag about in the genealogy of the Messiah:
  • Tamar – Perez and Zerah conceived through incest (Fathered by Judah) – Genesis 38
  • Rahab – The prostitute at Jericho – Joshua 2
  • Ruth – The Moabitess – Ruth
  • Bathsheba (The wife of Uriah the Hittite) – Married to David after sexual sin and murder – 2 Samuel 11
  • Mary – A young girl, engaged to be married, who was discovered to be pregnant

Questions to Consider:

1. Why would this genealogy be necessary given the audience and purpose of this Gospel?
2. After reading through the genealogy, who is Jesus?  What is his position and title?
3. Not everyone in this list loved or followed God.  What does that teach us about the sovereign will of God?
4. How can the sins and the history of the people in this genealogy serve as an encouragement to us? (Hint: Think about the Gospel and your own salvation!)