OK, so now we’ve covered Matthew chapters 1-4 to prepare the way for our study of Sermon on the Mount - The Jesus Manifesto!
Here is our discussion of chapters 2-4 (starting with the last part of 1). Our discussion is in green.
The Birth of Jesus
18-19The birth of Jesus took place like this. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. Before they came to the marriage bed, Joseph discovered she was pregnant. (It was by the Holy Spirit, but he didn’t know that.) Joseph, chagrined but noble, determined to take care of things quietly so Mary would not be disgraced.
Mary and Joseph had an arranged marriage - they were engaged for 1 year and would have lived apart for that year while Joseph prepared a home for them.
Joseph could have rightfully had Mary stoned for adultery. Their engagement was as binding as a marriage and the only way out was through divorce. He certainly could have divorced her, and it looks like this is what he was contemplating.
20-23While he was trying to figure a way out, he had a dream. God’s angel spoke in the dream: “Joseph, son of David, don’t hesitate to get married. Mary’s pregnancy is Spirit-conceived. God’s Holy Spirit has made her pregnant. She will bring a son to birth, and when she does, you, Joseph, will name him Jesus-’God saves’-because he will save his people from their sins.” This would bring the prophet’s embryonic sermon to full term:
Watch for this-a virgin will get pregnant and bear a son;
They will name him Immanuel (Hebrew for “God is with us”).
Who else was named Joseph in the Bible? The favored son of Jacob (also named Israel)! And what did he do? He went into slavery in Egypt, interpreted dreams, and rose to be the right hand of Pharoh. His interpretation of Pharoh’s dream saved not only the Egyptians, but the Israelites (his family) from starvation. So the Joseph of the Old Testament has a connection with dreams and with Egypt and saving his people - just like this Joseph also has that connection.
Also, we see Matthew mention the fulfillment of prophecy here, as he will do several times. He is supporting his case for Jesus being the Messiah as prophesied.
24-25Then Joseph woke up. He did exactly what God’s angel commanded in the dream: He married Mary. But he did not consummate the marriage until she had the baby. He named the baby Jesus.
Jesus means “God saves.” It is the same name as the Old Testament Joshua.
Matthew 2
Scholars from the East
1-2 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem village, Judah territory- this was during Herod’s kingship-a band of scholars arrived in Jerusalem from the East. They asked around, “Where can we find and pay homage to the newborn King of the Jews? We observed a star in the eastern sky that signaled his birth. We’re on pilgrimage to worship him.”
We don’t know the whole story behind the star, but one speculation is that it was an alignment of a star and two planets - Regulus (meaning Royal), Jupiter (father) and Venus (mother). There are some problems with the dating of this matching up exactly, but we also aren’t certain about the exact dates of Jesus’ birth. If you’ve seen the movie Nativity, you see the wise men discussing these three stars and their appearance and significance. Obviously, whatever happened was significant enough for these men to travel and find out what was going on.
3-4When word of their inquiry got to Herod, he was terrified-and not Herod alone, but most of Jerusalem as well. Herod lost no time. He gathered all the high priests and religion scholars in the city together and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?”
5-6They told him, “Bethlehem, Judah territory. The prophet Micah wrote it plainly:
It’s you, Bethlehem, in Judah’s land,
no longer bringing up the rear.
From you will come the leader
who will shepherd-rule my people, my Israel.”
More prophecy.
7-8Herod then arranged a secret meeting with the scholars from the East. Pretending to be as devout as they were, he got them to tell him exactly when the birth-announcement star appeared. Then he told them the prophecy about Bethlehem, and said, “Go find this child. Leave no stone unturned. As soon as you find him, send word and I’ll join you at once in your worship.”
Who was Herod? He was the king of the Jews, Jewish (although perhaps by conversion and not birth), and backed by the Romans - who controlled Israel at the time. He was known for his cruelty and his rebuilding of the Jewish temple.
9-10Instructed by the king, they set off. Then the star appeared again, the same star they had seen in the eastern skies. It led them on until it hovered over the place of the child. They could hardly contain themselves: They were in the right place! They had arrived at the right time!
11They entered the house and saw the child in the arms of Mary, his mother. Overcome, they kneeled and worshiped him. Then they opened their luggage and presented gifts: gold, frankincense, myrrh.
What is the significance of these 3 gifts? Gold - a gift for a king. Frankincense - incense used in the temple. Myrrh - a spice used in embalming the dead. So Jesus received gifts as king, priest, and our savior through his death on the cross.
12In a dream, they were warned not to report back to Herod. So they worked out another route, left the territory without being seen, and returned to their own country.
Another dream.
13After the scholars were gone, God’s angel showed up again in Joseph’s dream and commanded, “Get up. Take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt. Stay until further notice. Herod is on the hunt for this child, and wants to kill him.”
Another dream. And flight to Egypt. Egypt is often used as a picture of slavery to sin or captivity. Egypt was out of the reach of the Romans, so they would be safe from Herod.
14-15Joseph obeyed. He got up, took the child and his mother under cover of darkness. They were out of town and well on their way by daylight. They lived in Egypt until Herod’s death. This Egyptian exile fulfilled what Hosea had preached: “I called my son out of Egypt.”
Another prophecy. Herod probably died March 13 in 4 BC. Jesus was probably born between 6 and 4 BC.
16-18Herod, when he realized that the scholars had tricked him, flew into a rage. He commanded the murder of every little boy two years old and under who lived in Bethlehem and its surrounding hills. (He determined that age from information he’d gotten from the scholars.) That’s when Jeremiah’s sermon was fulfilled:
A sound was heard in Ramah,
weeping and much lament.
Rachel weeping for her children,
Rachel refusing all solace,
Her children gone,
dead and buried.
Another prophecy. And this has happened to the Israelites before. When? When the Pharoh had all the male children killed because the Jews were becoming too numerous - and Moses was saved from the massacre by being put in the Nile in a basket for the princess to find as raise as her own. Later he facilitated the rescue of the Israelites from 400 years of slavery in Egypt.
19-20Later, when Herod died, God’s angel appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt: “Up, take the child and his mother and return to Israel. All those out to murder the child are dead.”
Another dream.
21-23Joseph obeyed. He got up, took the child and his mother, and reentered Israel. When he heard, though, that Archelaus had succeeded his father, Herod, as king in Judea, he was afraid to go there. But then Joseph was directed in a dream to go to the hills of Galilee. On arrival, he settled in the village of Nazareth. This move was a fulfillment of the prophetic words, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”
Another dream and another prophecy.
Matthew 3
Thunder in the Desert!
1-2 While Jesus was living in the Galilean hills, John, called “the Baptizer,” was preaching in the desert country of Judea. His message was simple and austere, like his desert surroundings: “Change your life. God’s kingdom is here.”
Who was John? A cousin of Jesus. They had met before - at least in the womb (Mary and Elizabeth - John leaped in Elizabeth’s womb when Mary came to visit). What is a kingdom? An area that is ruled by a king. The kings rules and taxation, etc., apply in that area. So if God’s kingdom is here now, whose was it before? Satan’s and man’s. A bad kingdom, in other words.
3John and his message were authorized by Isaiah’s prophecy:
Thunder in the desert!
Prepare for God’s arrival!
Make the road smooth and straight!
So John is like this herald - the British are coming! But this is actually good news. He’s fulfilling prophecy as well.
4-6John dressed in a camel-hair habit tied at the waist by a leather strap. He lived on a diet of locusts and wild field honey. People poured out of Jerusalem, Judea, and the Jordanian countryside to hear and see him in action. There at the Jordan River those who came to confess their sins were baptized into a changed life.
What kind of person was John? A prophet. Like Elijah - Elijah also wore a garment of hair tied with a leather belt - 2 Kings 1:8.
7-10When John realized that a lot of Pharisees and Sadducees were showing up for a baptismal experience because it was becoming the popular thing to do, he exploded: “Brood of snakes! What do you think you’re doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think a little water on your snakeskins is going to make any difference? It’s your life that must change, not your skin! And don’t think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as father. Being a descendant of Abraham is neither here nor there. Descendants of Abraham are a dime a dozen. What counts is your life. Is it green and blossoming? Because if it’s deadwood, it goes on the fire.
11-12″I’m baptizing you here in the river, turning your old life in for a kingdom life. The real action comes next: The main character in this drama-compared to him I’m a mere stagehand-will ignite the kingdom life within you, a fire within you, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the inside out. He’s going to clean house-make a clean sweep of your lives. He’ll place everything true in its proper place before God; everything false he’ll put out with the trash to be burned.”
Wow. Hard words. Who were the Pharisees and Sadducees and why was he so mean to them? They were the religious leaders of the day and a lot of them were very concerned about being religious, but apparently had their hearts in the wrong place. It says they came down to be baptized because it was the popular thing to do. The modern day equivalent might be instead of pulling rank by claiming Abraham as father - don’t think that you are producing good fruit just because you grew up in church and go to church. You must be green and blossoming. What does that mean.
Here is where I shared something that happened to me. I’ve shared it with the youth one time before awhile back. I went to Bible school when I was 18. It was a two year school where you studied scripture and did a lot of hands on type ministry. I went with a group of folks to Mardi Gras in New Orleans to witness - with tracts and billboards. Talk about tough. People were awful and I disdained them.
Later on that year I heard a message about ‘bearing fruit’. The pastor said that sometimes we see bad fruit coming from our hearts and we hurry to cut it off before anyone sees it and we tape on what is expected of us - like a nice juicy peach. Well, I totally felt like that. Especially with Mardi Gras - but really, all my life. I had grown up a Christian and I knew the right things to do. Seldom did it seem like any of them came from my heart. It was a lot of work and my heart felt like an old prune or something. So I journaled about it (this is my main way of prayer because I lack focus when I pray out loud - so I write my conversations with God in a journal). I wrote something like - Lord, even if you have to tear my tree out by the roots to plant something new - do it. I’m so tired of my yucky old heart. I want to love people from my heart. I want to serve from my heart.
So then, just to be spiritual about it and because I didn’t know anything else to do at this point, I opened my Bible to a random spot and pointed. I looked at where I pointed and I chuckled because I landed in the concordance part in the back. But it wasn’t funny for long. My finger had landed on the word Ax. And the verse there was referencing this part in Matthew. Matt 3:10 in the Message translation says, “ Is it green and blossoming? Because if it’s deadwood, it goes on the fire.” But in the version I had, it says, “And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees.” And that freaked me out. It meant to me that God was serious and was going to take me up on the offer.
So the next year, I did the Mardi Gras trip again. This time I didn’t push to hand out my tracts. And I hung out and chatted with people instead of trying to drum up Christian conversation. They knew who we were already because we carried signs and weren’t drinking. Anyway, my heart was changed. I did not hate the people. And I wasn’t embarassed to carry the signs and have tracts. And I had a wonderful conversation with a man who was so unhappy and ready to give his life to Jesus. And he did. What a difference. So this verse means a lot to me!
John’s message is about allowing the Holy Spirit to change your heart. The fruit comes from your heart. You don’t drum this stuff up. It’s not that it’s easy, either - but fruit that comes from your heart is real. As opposed to what these religious leaders were doing - trying to look good and do what they thought God and the people expected.
13-14Jesus then appeared, arriving at the Jordan River from Galilee. He wanted John to baptize him. John objected, “I’m the one who needs to be baptized, not you!”
15But Jesus insisted. “Do it. God’s work, putting things right all these centuries, is coming together right now in this baptism.” So John did it.
Jesus baptism is like his anointing. A king or priest was always anointed before taking his post. This is the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. He did not perform miracles before this.
What was a dove for at this time? A dove was used in the temple as a sacrifice for sins. Here it is a symbol of the Holy Spirit.
16-17The moment Jesus came up out of the baptismal waters, the skies opened up and he saw God’s Spirit-it looked like a dove-descending and landing on him. And along with the Spirit, a voice: “This is my Son, chosen and marked by my love, delight of my life.”
Matthew 4
The Test
So now Jesus goes into the wilderness. This passage is reminiscent in many ways of the Israelites being in the desert wilderness for 40 years. Jesus fasts 40 days. He uses Deuteronomy to counter the devil. What is happening in Deuteronomy? The 40 years in the desert. It’s like Jesus is reliving this time of the Israelites. Where the Israelites failed, he passes.
1-3 Next Jesus was taken into the wild by the Spirit for the Test. The Devil was ready to give it. Jesus prepared for the Test by fasting forty days and forty nights. That left him, of course, in a state of extreme hunger, which the Devil took advantage of in the first test: “Since you are God’s Son, speak the word that will turn these stones into loaves of bread.”
4Jesus answered by quoting Deuteronomy: “It takes more than bread to stay alive. It takes a steady stream of words from God’s mouth.”
This first temptation is saying, hey, since you’re the son of God, provide for yourself. Just do it! And Jesus’ reply is from Deuteronomy 8:3. Basically, he says, God is my provider, not me. I depend on what God says. And we are reminded of the Manna that God provided to the Israelites in the wilderness.
5-6For the second test the Devil took him to the Holy City. He sat him on top of the Temple and said, “Since you are God’s Son, jump.” The Devil goaded him by quoting Psalm 91: “He has placed you in the care of angels. They will catch you so that you won’t so much as stub your toe on a stone.”
7Jesus countered with another citation from Deuteronomy: “Don’t you dare test the Lord your God.”
In this test, satan wants Jesus to do a miracle, show off, give a sign. Like the Pharisees and Saducees - if you are so high and mighty, strut around and act like it! But Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:16 don’t test God. This is a quote from Moses when the people were ready to stone him because he led them out to the wilderness and they were afraid they were going to starve. At least they had food in Egypt!
8-9For the third test, the Devil took him to the peak of a huge mountain. He gestured expansively, pointing out all the earth’s kingdoms, how glorious they all were. Then he said, “They’re yours-lock, stock, and barrel. Just go down on your knees and worship me, and they’re yours.”
10Jesus’ refusal was curt: “Beat it, Satan!” He backed his rebuke with a third quotation from Deuteronomy: “Worship the Lord your God, and only him. Serve him with absolute single-heartedness.”
Here satan offers a shortcut to the kingdom. Why don’t you just bow down to me and I’ll give it over? That way you don’t have to die and do all this stuff. And Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy again 6:13. Worship only the Lord. Shortcuts aren’t for real.
11The Test was over. The Devil left. And in his place, angels! Angels came and took care of Jesus’ needs.
This part reminds me of when the ravens provided for Elijah. Cool. God provides.
Tyler brought up a question. Wasn’t Jesus related to Satan? We talked about who satan was - a fallen angel. A creation of God. Probably he heard this from the Mormons who believe Jesus and satan are brothers. The problem with this is that it sets up satan and God as equal rivals. Satan is powerful and awful, yes, but nothing compared to God. He is just a creation of God. There is no cosmic struggle between God and satan.
Teaching and Healing
12-17When Jesus got word that John had been arrested, he returned to Galilee. He moved from his hometown, Nazareth, to the lakeside village Capernaum, nestled at the base of the Zebulun and Naphtali hills. This move completed Isaiah’s sermon:
Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,
road to the sea, over Jordan,
Galilee, crossroads for the nations.
People sitting out their lives in the dark
saw a huge light;
Sitting in that dark, dark country of death,
they watched the sun come up.
More prophecy.
This Isaiah-prophesied sermon came to life in Galilee the moment Jesus started preaching. He picked up where John left off: “Change your life. God’s kingdom is here.”
Same message as John.
18-20Walking along the beach of Lake Galilee, Jesus saw two brothers: Simon (later called Peter) and Andrew. They were fishing, throwing their nets into the lake. It was their regular work. Jesus said to them, “Come with me. I’ll make a new kind of fisherman out of you. I’ll show you how to catch men and women instead of perch and bass.” They didn’t ask questions, but simply dropped their nets and followed.
21-22A short distance down the beach they came upon another pair of brothers, James and John, Zebedee’s sons. These two were sitting in a boat with their father, Zebedee, mending their fishnets. Jesus made the same offer to them, and they were just as quick to follow, abandoning boat and father.
23-25From there he went all over Galilee. He used synagogues for meeting places and taught people the truth of God. God’s kingdom was his theme-that beginning right now they were under God’s government, a good government! He also healed people of their diseases and of the bad effects of their bad lives. Word got around the entire Roman province of Syria. People brought anybody with an ailment, whether mental, emotional, or physical. Jesus healed them, one and all. More and more people came, the momentum gathering. Besides those from Galilee, crowds came from the “Ten Towns” across the lake, others up from Jerusalem and Judea, still others from across the Jordan.
Calls his disciples and becomes very popular. Healing people and preaching in the synagogues.
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