Today’s scripture: Matthew 1:1-17 (ESV-text and audio) (KJV) (The Message) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (David Squire):
Today we’re beginning a new study of the Gospel of Matthew. And what a reading to start with!
If you’re anything like me, right around …Amminadab the father of Nahshon… the names begin to blur together, and I wonder, What use is this?
Anthropologist Patrick Chapman warns us of the danger of one form of naïve realism: assuming that people of other cultures think and act just like you do. [1] These words would mean something very different to a first-century Christian living in Israel than what I can glean from them with my twenty-first century worldview.
So we need to ask ourselves, Why was this included in Matthew’s Gospel? And stepping back a bit more, Why was this book written? What was the author’s goal? Who was his audience?
Scholars are generally in agreement that Matthew was written primarily to a Jewish Christian audience. “All four gospels emphasize a different facet of Jesus Christ, though Matthew’s emphasis is easily the clearest to perceive. He presents Jesus as Messiah, Son of David, King of the Jews.” [2]
Messiah and King. What did that mean then, and what would that mean for us today?
King
No offense to our English readers, but monarchy today isn’t what it used to be. A tea-and-crumpets, figurehead-only image comes to mind when I think of king. But back in the day, the king was the law. His word became reality. When we sing, All Hail King Jesus, or call him King of Kings, which version of king do we mean?
Messiah
“To the Jew, the Messiah has a most important mission, namely to bring the world back to G-d, and make it a place of peace, justice and harmony.” [3] To the Christian, Messiah can be Savior (however you define that), or “pioneer, embodiment of the culture and living presence of the kingdom of God” [4] (or both, or even more). How do you see Jesus as Messiah?
Thought for the day: As we explore the Gospel of Matthew in the coming weeks, look for all the ways the book presents Jesus as Messiah and King. What do those terms mean to you?
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the guidelines on the How to Pray page.
[1] http://www.gaychristian.net/community/showtopic.php?tid/13720475/post/
[2] http://bible.org/seriespage/matthew-introduction-argument-and-outline
[3] Kaplan, Rabbi Aryeh (1976, 1985). The Real Messiah: A Jewish Response to Missionaries (Jews for Judaism Edition). National Conference of Synagogue Youth (NCSY), Orthodox Union (OU) and NCSY in cooperation with Jews for Judaism. pp. 14.
[4] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Messiah