The Nativity, The Wise Men, and The Baptism – Matthew 1-4

Joy: You’re listening to Season 2 of the Lifting Her Voice podcast.   This is Episode #275 and today we’ll read Matthew chapters 1-4 together.   The genealogy, the nativity, the wise men, and the baptism.  

Welcome

Welcome to the Lifting Her Voice podcast, Season 2!  I’m your host, Joy Miller, and I invite you to grab your Bible and join me – from the beginning – simply reading God’s word together.  We built some spiritual muscles in 2020 with just the New Testament.  But this year we’re going all out, cover-to-cover, Old Testament and New.  So, whether with your first cup in the morning, your commute to work, or as the last thing on your mind before sleep, God’s Word will equip you for every good work.  I’m really glad you’re here!

Intro to Matthew

At one time, everyone assumed that Matthew was the first gospel to be penned.  Probably because the intended audience were Jews.  You see, each of the Gospels was written with different readers in mind.  That’s why stories are repeated; some in all four Gospels.  At first you may think there are contradictions, but they are only experiences being written from different perspectives.  

Matthew was one of Jesus’ chosen.  He was a hated tax collector who exposed a lot of his cheating friends to Jesus.  You’ll find, if you never read the New Testament, that Jesus had no intention of hiding away in an ivory tower, even though He was indeed, God in the flesh.  He wanted to be in the trenches, where people lived and hurt and struggled.  He wanted to be where He could find the lost.  By the way, the word Gospel means, “Good News.”  And indeed it is.

Matthew Chapter 1

The Genealogy of Jesus Christ

An account of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:

From Abraham to David

Abraham fathered Isaac,

Isaac fathered Jacob,

Jacob fathered Judah and his brothers,

Judah fathered Perez and Zerah by Tamar,

Perez fathered Hezron,

Hezron fathered Aram,

Aram fathered Amminadab,

Amminadab fathered Nahshon,

Nahshon fathered Salmon,

Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab,

Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth,

Obed fathered Jesse,

and Jesse fathered King David.

From David to the Babylonian Exile

David fathered Solomon by Uriah’s wife,

Solomon fathered Rehoboam,

Rehoboam fathered Abijah,

Abijah fathered Asa,

Asa fathered Jehoshaphat,

Jehoshaphat fathered Joram,

Joram fathered Uzziah,

Uzziah fathered Jotham,

Jotham fathered Ahaz,

Ahaz fathered Hezekiah,

Hezekiah fathered Manasseh,

Manasseh fathered Amon,

Amon fathered Josiah,

and Josiah fathered Jeconiah and his brothers

at the time of the exile to Babylon.

From the Exile to the Messiah

After the exile to Babylon

Jeconiah fathered Shealtiel,

Shealtiel fathered Zerubbabel,

Zerubbabel fathered Abiud,

Abiud fathered Eliakim,

Eliakim fathered Azor,

Azor fathered Zadok,

Zadok fathered Achim,

Achim fathered Eliud,

Eliud fathered Eleazar,

Eleazar fathered Matthan,

Matthan fathered Jacob,

and Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary,

who gave birth to Jesus who is called the Messiah.

So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations; and from David until the exile to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the exile to Babylon until the Messiah, fourteen generations.

The Nativity of the Messiah

The birth of Jesus Christ came about this way: After his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, it was discovered before they came together that she was pregnant from the Holy Spirit. So her husband, Joseph, being a righteous man, and not wanting to disgrace her publicly, decided to divorce her secretly.

But after he had considered these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what has been conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet:

See, the virgin will become pregnant

and give birth to a son,

and they will name him Immanuel,

which is translated “God is with us.”

When Joseph woke up, he did as the Lord’s angel had commanded him. He married her but did not have sexual relations with her until she gave birth to a son. And he named him Jesus.

Matthew Chapter 2

Wise Men Visit the King

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, wise men from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star at its rising and have come to worship him.”

When King Herod heard this, he was deeply disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. So he assembled all the chief priests and scribes of the people and asked them where the Messiah would be born.

“In Bethlehem of Judea,” they told him, “because this is what was written by the prophet:

And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

are by no means least among the rulers of Judah:

Because out of you will come a ruler

who will shepherd my people Israel.”

Then Herod secretly summoned the wise men and asked them the exact time the star appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. When you find him, report back to me so that I too can go and worship him.”

After hearing the king, they went on their way. And there it was — the star they had seen at its rising. It led them until it came and stopped above the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overwhelmed with joy. Entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and falling to their knees, they worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their own country by another route.

The Flight into Egypt

After they were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Get up! Take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. For Herod is about to search for the child to kill him.” So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night, and escaped to Egypt. He stayed there until Herod’s death, so that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled: Out of Egypt I called my Son.

The Massacre of the Innocents

Then Herod, when he realized that he had been outwitted by the wise men, flew into a rage. He gave orders to massacre all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, in keeping with the time he had learned from the wise men. Then what was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:

A voice was heard in Ramah,

weeping, and great mourning,

Rachel weeping for her children;

and she refused to be consoled,

because they are no more.

The Return to Nazareth

After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, because those who intended to kill the child are dead.” So he got up, took the child and his mother, and entered the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned in a dream, he withdrew to the region of Galilee. Then he went and settled in a town called Nazareth to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene.

Matthew Chapter 3

The Herald of the Messiah

In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, “Repent, because the kingdom of heaven has come near!” For he is the one spoken of through the prophet Isaiah, who said:

A voice of one crying out in the wilderness:

Prepare the way for the Lord;

make his paths straight!

Now John had a camel-hair garment with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then people from Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the vicinity of the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.

When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Therefore produce fruit consistent with repentance. And don’t presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones. The ax is already at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

“I baptize you with water for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is more powerful than I. I am not worthy to remove his sandals. He himself will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing shovel is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn. But the chaff he will burn with fire that never goes out.”

The Baptism of Jesus

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. But John tried to stop him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you come to me?”

Jesus answered him, “Allow it for now, because this is the way for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John allowed him to be baptized.

When Jesus was baptized, he went up immediately from the water. The heavens suddenly opened for him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased.”

Matthew Chapter 4

The Temptation of Jesus

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. Then the tempter approached him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

He answered, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

Then the devil took him to the holy city, had him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written:

He will give his angels orders concerning you,

and they will support you with their hands

so that you will not strike

your foot against a stone.”

Jesus told him, “It is also written: Do not test the Lord your God.”

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. And he said to him, “I will give you all these things if you will fall down and worship me.”

Then Jesus told him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.”

Then the devil left him, and angels came and began to serve him.

Ministry in Galilee

When he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:

Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,

along the road by the sea, beyond the Jordan,

Galilee of the Gentiles.

The people who live in darkness

have seen a great light,

and for those living in the land of the shadow of death,

a light has dawned.

From then on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, because the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

The First Disciples

As he was walking along the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter), and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea — for they were fishermen. “Follow me,” he told them, “and I will make you fish for people.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him.

Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat with Zebedee their father, preparing their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

Teaching, Preaching, and Healing

Now Jesus began to go all over Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. Then the news about him spread throughout Syria. So they brought to him all those who were afflicted, those suffering from various diseases and intense pains, the demon-possessed, the epileptics, and the paralytics. And he healed them. Large crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.

Close

I delved into my scripts from last year when we did the New Testament a chapter at a time, thinking that a could pull from them to write the conclusions for our more condensed reading this year.  Do you know what I concluded?  First, wow!  I talk A LOT!  Honestly, it’s faster to just allow the Holy Spirit to inspire me and write anew than to wade thru all those words!  

Second, I miss praying with you and for you everyday.  I miss turning our impressions from the Word into prayer to Him who wrote it.  So, here’s my idea.

How about I make one point that stands out to me from our daily reading.  If you want more, you can definitely go back to our times together from last year.  The mic I started with was awful and hence, the recording quality was too.  We can laugh together at that!  Okay, enough housekeeping…here are my two quick takeaways from the first four chapters of Matthew.

I love reading the genealogy!  I never get bored with it.  They are not foreign names…I know them from the Old Testament.  I know the stories and now you do too.  Next, I need to be more like Joseph.  I need to obey immediately.  No, “Hang on just a minute, Lord, let me just finish what I’m doing.”  Do it now!

Prayer

Let’s pray.  “Father, thank You so much for sending Jesus.  I don’t know if it’s the repetition or reading out loud for the podcast, but the horror of the Old Testament – the prophets’ warnings, the sin, the rejection of Your love, the sum total of the tragic human condition – it weighs heavy on me this time.  You could so easily have said, “I’m done.”  But You didn’t.  You are so compassionate.  You love us so much that You took matters into Your own hands and sent the Savior we so badly needed.  Thank You.  I ask Your blessing on the reading of Your Word, Lord.  Open our eyes. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

As always, I love hearing from you at Lifting Her Voice.com, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

Thank you for joining me here today.  I pray that by spending time in His Word every day, you will be changed.  Visit me at Lifting Her Voice.com with your comments and questions.  And don’t forget to visit the Blog page while you’re there.  If you like the podcast, it would be great if you’d give it a five-star review and share it with everyone you know.  Don’t forget to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.  See you tomorrow!

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible(r), Copyright (c) 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible(r) and CSB(r) are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.