Sermon for Sunday, October 20, 2024 at First Presbyterian Church at Unionville, NY (BPC)
Old Testament reading:
[Psalm 132:11-18 ESV] 11 The LORD swore to David a sure oath from which he will not turn back: “One of the sons of your body I will set on your throne. 12 If your sons keep my covenant and my testimonies that I shall teach them, their sons also forever shall sit on your throne.” 13 For the LORD has chosen Zion; he has desired it for his dwelling place: 14 “This is my resting place forever; here I will dwell, for I have desired it. 15 I will abundantly bless her provisions; I will satisfy her poor with bread. 16 Her priests I will clothe with salvation, and her saints will shout for joy. 17 There I will make a horn to sprout for David; I have prepared a lamp for my anointed. 18 His enemies I will clothe with shame, but on him his crown will shine.”
New Testament reading:
[Galatians 3:15-18 ESV] 15 To give a human example, brothers: even with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified. 16 Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring,” who is Christ. 17 This is what I mean: the law, which came 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to make the promise void. 18 For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; but God gave it to Abraham by a promise.
Gospel reading:
[John 7:40-44 ESV] 40 When they heard these words, some of the people said, “This really is the Prophet.” 41 Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Is the Christ to come from Galilee? 42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the offspring of David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?” 43 So there was a division among the people over him. 44 Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.
Sermon Text:
[Matthew 1:1-17 ESV] 1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, 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.
Introduction
I’m pretty exited to be preaching now through the Gospel of Matthew. The first sermon series I did here at Unionville was on the Gospel of John, and in some ways that is my favorite Gospel. But I have another “feel” and love for the Synoptic Gospels—Matthew, Mark, and Luke. They feel so “close” to Jesus, with tangible stories, and real life accounts.
When I think of the Gospels I think of the “children’s lessons” I’d hear from my pastor’s growing up. The children would all come up front in the church, and sit with the pastor. And he’d given a lesson related to the text. And, after a while, I think the pastor’s ran out of ideas, so they had “the box.” A kid, each week a different kid, was to bring this shoe box to church with some item in it. And the pastor would open it up, see the item, and SOMEHOW have to make a connection to the sermon! That would be tough. Well, ONE TIME, at the children’s lesson they handed out candy, so I never missed it again. Until I was too old to and “cool” to go up there.
Well, the Gospels are something special. For children, most definitely, and for adults as well. In the Gospels we have JESUS more so than in any other books. While Paul (and Peter and James) speak so wonderfully of Christian doctrine, Jesus in the Gospels SPEAKS and LIVES out that truth more than any other. In the Gospels we have simple stories — fish, rocks, sand, trees, and fruit — all things that we know from our world. The Gospels speak to the common man, and common woman, and common child. And while they speak in simple words, they are profound beyond measure.
In the Gospels …
We have the call to repentance from John the Baptizer.
We have the birth of Christ.
We have the life of Christ and His parables.
We have the miracles of Christ.
And finally, we have the death of Christ.
Well, before any of the well-known and loved stories of Matthew’s Gospel we have this opening about the genealogy of Jesus Christ.
Part of the goal of this sermon is to “convert” you if you think the genealogy here is borrow or tedious. It is, in fact, a valuable part of Matthew’s Gospel. In fact, Luke has a genealogy of Christ section as well. Clearly the Gospel writers saw this as very important.
The purpose of this opening — with the genealogy, as well as the birth of Jesus, and the visit of the wise men—is to declare to the first readers (thought to be Jewish Christians) that HERE HE IS, the person we’ve been waiting for.
That is indeed the title of the sermon today, “The Person We’ve Been Waiting For.”
Jesus Christ,
the person THEY were waiting for.
And the person, above all others, whom we need as well.
Well, I want to look at the text today in three points.
I. The Importance of this Genealogy
II. The Notorious Ancestors
III. The Person We’ve Been Waiting For
I. The importance of this genealogy
And we should begin by asking, “why is this genealogy given?” Why is it important?
Didn’t Paul warn each Titus and Timothy against people who “devote themselves to endless genealogies?”
Well, not all genealogy is bad. There are lengthy ones in the Old Testament. And Luke, just like Matthew, has a genealogy in his Gospel.
A. Fulfillment of Prophecy
So what is the importance here of Matthew’s genealogy of Christ.
This importance is this: IT SHOWS THE FULFILLMENT OF PROPHECY, of promises in the Old Testament.
We see that especially in the two individuals emphasized at the beginning of this genealogy.
It says that Jesus is “the son of David, the son of Abraham.” David and Abraham are mentioned each for important reasons.
First, it was promised to Abraham that the Christ should descend from him.
[Genesis 12:3 ESV] 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
And it promised to David that Christ should descend from him as well.
[2 Samuel 7:12 ESV] 12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
[Psalm 89:3-4 ESV] 3 You have said, “I have made a covenant with my chosen one; I have sworn to David my servant: 4 ‘I will establish your offspring forever, and build your throne for all generations.'” Selah
So Matthew, calling out that Jesus Christ is the son of David, the son of Abraham, is saying “this is the person we’ve been waiting for.” This is the promised Christ, the promised Messiah.
And one of the powerful features of these items of prophecy fulfillment is that Jesus could have had nothing to do with them, for he was not yet born. That is, if a man by some trick was able to turn water into wine, and convince people he healed others, and perform all those miracles attributed to Christ, you could say he set out to fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament. But no one can set out on something like their birth; no one can chose their parents. The fulfillment of Jesus as the son of David and of Abraham is a prophecy fulfilled by the power of God.
B. A Book about Jesus.
The first verse also tells us that this is “The BOOK of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”
Indeed, the Gospel of Matthew is itself a BOOK ABOUT JESUS.
But what is meant to in verse 1 is that this genealogy list is “the book” of the genealogy of Jesus Christ.
It is saying “He is legit.” Here is the man you’ve been looking for. The one who the people have been looking for, for generations. Now he is here.
So the Jewish reader would have especially noted the genealogy. They knew that they had to look to the descendants of David to find the promised messiah.
That is a hard thing to do today. The Jews, who have rejected Jesus as the Christ, continue to look to the descendants of David for the messiah to come. Will they ever find a messiah? Is it even possible to know who is a Son of David?
Whether a person today could show genealogy from David is doubtful. Some argue that because all the Jewish records were destroyed with the temple, there is no way to show who is descended from David. Others use “tradition” to say certain Rabbis were descended from David, and so if you are descended from those rabbis, you are descended from David. Others have pointed out that given that it has been 100 generations since David, virtually everyone (or at least all Jewish people) are descended from David, so it wouldn’t be particularly notable today to say that the messiah is a son of David. Regardless of whether it is possible or not for someone now to show their descent from David, the claim that Jesus is descended from David is stronger than anyone could claim today.
II. The Notorious Ancestors
Now, you’ll notice that Jesus has notorious ancestors.
While there are many “good” people, there are none who are sinless among them. And they even are quite notorious for their sins. David was an adulterer. Rahab was a harlot.
Some of these not Jewish by birth.
Some of them are not Jewish by birth.
Some of them are “good kings”: David, Asa (or Asaph), Uzziah, Jotham, Hezekiah, Josiah,
And some of them are “bad kings”: Rehoboam, Abijah, Joram, Ahaz, Manasseh, Amos, Jechoniah.
What does this list tell us?
Well, for one, no one has a perfect family, or perfect ancestors. Not even Jesus.
But over and above that, this list is a list of people who need the grace of God.
That is the common feature. All need the grace of God. None can save themselves.
In fact, if you think about Old Testament genealogies, like Genesis 5, they say something that is omitted here in Matthew. In Genesis it always says of a person “and he died.” That is assumed in Matthew. So it is a list not only of sinners, but people who have died because death comes from sin.
This is serious business. Everyone on the list needs a messiah. That is why it is such a big deal when they find the person they’v been waiting for.
Some “great” people on the list. Notable in the Bible. Prophets and Kings. But none of them compare with the Christ who they’ve all been waiting for; the one who shall come to take away the sins of the world.
III. The Person We’ve Been Waiting For.
So there are “notorious ancestors” listed, but the focus is not on them; it is on Jesus Christ, “the person we’ve been waiting for.”
They are many “peculiarities” of these genealogical charts. And it takes some effort to understand them and defend the Scriptures against those who would attack them for supposed inconsistencies. There are a number of “problems,” none of which are insolvable.
Matthew’s genealogy doesn’t match Luke’s; but that is easily understood in that they are following different lines; perhaps one following Mary’s line and the other following Joseph’s line.
Then, there are “missing generations.” Certain men are said to be the “father” of another, when in reality they are the grandfather or the great-grandfather. That is, not all generations are listed. And I’ve long wondered about why that is.
And I’ve long wondered about the whole idea of “14 generations.” You see, in this account Matthew emphasizes the number 14. He seems to make the genealogy fit into that pattern. 14 generations from Abraham to David; 14 from David to the Babylonian Captivity; and 14 generations from the Captivity to Christ.
So, I did the work writing out the full list, and they are indeed 14 generations for each division, if you count in a certain way.
1. Abraham was the father of Isaac
2. and Isaac the father of Jacob,
3. and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
4. and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar
5. Perez the father of Hezron
6. Hezron the father of Ram,
7. and Ram the father of Amminadab,
8. and Amminadab the father of Nahshon
9. and Nahshon the father of Salmon
10. and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab,
11. and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth
12. and Obed the father of Jesse,
13. and Jesse the father of David the king.
14. (1) And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,
15. (2) and Solomon the father of Rehoboam,
16. (3) and Rehoboam the father of Abijah
17. (4) and Abijah the father of Asaph,
18. (5) and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat
19. (6) and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram
20. (7) and Joram the father of Uzziah
21. (8) and Uzziah the father of Jotham
22. (9) and Jotham the father of Ahaz
23. (10) and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
24. (11) and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh
25. (12) and Manasseh the father of Amos
26. (13) and Amos the father of Josiah,
27. (14) (1) and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
28. (3) And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel
29. (3) Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel
30. (4) and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud
31. (5) and Abiud the father of Eliakim
32. (6) and Eliakim the father of Azor
33. (7) and Azor the father of Zadok,
34. (8) and Zadok the father of Achim,
35. (9) and Achim the father of Eliud,
36. (10) and Eliud the father of Eleazar
37. (11) and Eleazar the father of Matthan
38. (12) and Matthan the father of Jacob
39. (13) and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ. (14)
So, ultimately, I want to ask, why does Matthew skip certain generations AND emphasize “14.”
I read about a proposal that I think really makes good sense of what is going on.
First off, we have to be careful with numbers. We don’t want to read too much into numbers in the Bible. That is a recipe for disaster in interpretation. But I think this proposal does make a lot of sense.
Here is the idea. 14 is not a commonly used Biblical number; not a number used to represent anything in particular. But the number 7 (half of 14) is a common number used in the Scriptures. The world was made in 6 days and God rested on the 7th. And 7 is often said to the “perfect” number.
So, with the generations, we have 14, 14, and 14.
Or 7 and 7, 7 and 7, and 7 and 7.
That’s six 7’s.
Now comes Christ. A time of rest. And bringing to completion a perfect number 7.
So this is just another way to point the reader the fact that everything else is pointing to: here, this is the person we’ve all been waiting for.
The son of Abraham, and the promise God gave to Abraham.
The son of David, and the promise God gave to David.
And the perfect 7th 7 who brings rest to his people.
One other thing to note. Most of the people in the lineage are spoken of in detail in the Scriptures. We see then God’s sovereignty; the stories of the Scriptures are not a random assortment of Jewish history, but a chronology of the sinful ancestors of Jesus who all need the Christ to reconcile them to the Father.
Application: Jesus identifies with sinners in His genealogy
We have an application then from this text. “Jesus identifies with sinners in His genealogy.”
Of course, Jesus did not sin. He lived a sinless life.
But he suffered from the consequences of original sin. All the difficulties of life that the common man suffers, Jesus also suffers. And from sin there comes death as well. Jesus experienced that. So we know that he understands us.
That is strengthened by his genealogy.
You know, there is no perfect family.
Imagine if it were so. We wouldn’t be trying to keep up with the Joneses, we’d be trying keep up with the Jesus’s. And if Jesus had the perfect family, we’d be saying “he had it easy.”
But his family was sinful too. [Even Mary, who the Roman Catholics think was without sin.] All people and all families are sinful. Just like mine and just like yours. And while we might be able to hide from the deeds of our ancestors, the deeds of the ancestors of Jesus are recorded for all time in the Bible! Imagine if your grandfather’s sins were known to the whole world!
Jesus had that. While he had “great” ancestors, they were also sinful. And any embarrassment of family, is an embarrassment he would have to suffer.
But Christ’s turns this all around. He starts a new family, “HIS family” that we are all part of. And instead of being ashamed, we can be honored to be connected to Christ; to be his people. And even though Christians sin, we are saved by Christ.
What does Paul say: I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.
So the person we’ve been waiting for (Christ Jesus) brings us into the family we all want and need; his family.
That is one thing that is great about Unionville Presbyterian Church. Our little church. Part of the greater church of Christ. WE are family. And it is always a great day when a new member joins us. A great day for him, and a great day for us.
Conclusion
This is just the beginning of the deeds of Jesus Christ. Even, it is before the deeds of Christ. It is just a list of his ancestors. But as we continue in this book we’ll delve into the life of Christ. And the death of Christ. A great blessing it is to us to know what God has revealed to us in the Scriptures about our savior.
Let us look forward to that.
And let us pray.