Journey Through The Bible
     Old Testament Reading: 2 Chronicles 19-21
     New Testament Reading: Matthew 1

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” (Matthew 1:22-23).

Although Matthew was Jewish, his chosen occupation of Tax Collector caused him to be despised by his own people. Yet, he is the one gospel writer to write to a primarily Jewish audience. Nowhere in Scripture do we find a single recorded word that Matthew spoke. His humility is further exposed in that in his list of the twelve, he explicitly calls himself a “tax collector” (10:3). Nowhere else in Scripture is the name Matthew associated with “tax collector”; the other evangelists always use his former name, Levi, when speaking of his sinful past.

Matthew’s purpose in writing his gospel account is to show that Jesus is the Jewish nation’s long-awaited Messiah. He documents Jesus fulfilling more Old Testament prophecies than any other gospel writer, establishing the tie between the Messiah of promise and the Christ of history.

Luke reveals Jesus as the Son of Man and traces His genealogy from Adam through King David to His mother Mary, proving Jesus’ physical right to the throne. Matthew wrote to show that Jesus is the King of the Jews and has the legal right to the throne. He begins his Gospel by showing through family records that Jesus was a descendant of both Abraham and King David, concluding with Joseph the husband of Mary, who gave birth to Jesus who is called the Messiah (v16).

Matthew clarifies that Jesus Christ’s birth differed from any of the other Jewish boys named in the genealogy. The words of a messianic prophecy, long dormant, had now sprung to life. Isaiah’s cryptic prophecy (Isaiah 7:14) was now fulfilled in Mary’s Child.

In a humanly impossible situation, a virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son. Matthew informs us that even Joseph could not comprehend it any better than we could. Being a righteous man, and not wanting to disgrace her publicly, decided to divorce her secretly (v19). Thankfully, God stepped in and revealed to Joseph that Mary’s pregnancy represented a miracle, an impossible event the Lord had arranged in fulfillment of His promise.

In our lives and our service to God, we often face impossible odds, heart-wrenching discoveries, and frustrating delays. We can be certain if God has made us a promise, no obstacle, however impossible it seems, will prevent God from fulfilling it. In fact, the impossible situation we see in God’s plan often turns out to be the very means through which God brings it about.