Sermon Discussion Guide: 9/1/24
Sermon Recap
Text: Matthew 1
Big Idea: Everything in the Bible is pointing to Jesus.
Summary: Matthew's Gospel is an intentionally crafted retelling of the life of Jesus Christ. His emphasis is on Jesus as the Messianic King who is bringing His kingdom to earth. As Jesus is the descendent of Abraham, He is the covenant heir of the promises made to bring blessing to all the nations. As the descendent of David, He is the covenant heir of the promises made to David to establish an eternal kingdom of peace. Jesus is thus introduced by Matthew as the heir to the promises, and yet more than an heir, for He is the fulfillment of all that those promises anticipated.
As Matthew moves from genealogy to the revelation given to Joseph, Jesus is introduced as fulfillment of God's promises because He is God. By virtue of the name Jesus (which means "Yahweh saves"), He is prophesied to be the one who will save Israel. In fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14, Jesus is also to be called Immanuel (which means "God with us") because in Jesus, God has truly come to His people. Matthew 1 is a familiar story, yet it is nonetheless, a highly complex and theologically loaded passage that is worth meditating on again and again!
Discussion Questions
1. Share some of the myths of the birth story of Jesus that you know of that have been added in by church traditions, but aren't actually found in the Gospels.
2. Has the birth story of Jesus become so familiar to you that you assume there is much more to learn about it?
3. What from Matthew's genealogy strikes you? (Think of the individuals named and Matthew's selective choosing of names to create 3 sections of 14 names.)
4. Does the fact that Matthew curated his genealogy for thematic purposes make you question the veracity of the Bible? Why or why not?
5. What thoughts or questions come into your mind when you contemplate that in the baby Jesus, the almighty God of the universe was a human baby dependent upon Mary, His mother?
6. Do you ever struggle with believing that Jesus will actually return since it has been so long?
7. How can you look to the first coming of Jesus to minister to your soul and others as doubts plague the heart?
Text: Matthew 1
Big Idea: Everything in the Bible is pointing to Jesus.
Summary: Matthew's Gospel is an intentionally crafted retelling of the life of Jesus Christ. His emphasis is on Jesus as the Messianic King who is bringing His kingdom to earth. As Jesus is the descendent of Abraham, He is the covenant heir of the promises made to bring blessing to all the nations. As the descendent of David, He is the covenant heir of the promises made to David to establish an eternal kingdom of peace. Jesus is thus introduced by Matthew as the heir to the promises, and yet more than an heir, for He is the fulfillment of all that those promises anticipated.
As Matthew moves from genealogy to the revelation given to Joseph, Jesus is introduced as fulfillment of God's promises because He is God. By virtue of the name Jesus (which means "Yahweh saves"), He is prophesied to be the one who will save Israel. In fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14, Jesus is also to be called Immanuel (which means "God with us") because in Jesus, God has truly come to His people. Matthew 1 is a familiar story, yet it is nonetheless, a highly complex and theologically loaded passage that is worth meditating on again and again!
Discussion Questions
1. Share some of the myths of the birth story of Jesus that you know of that have been added in by church traditions, but aren't actually found in the Gospels.
2. Has the birth story of Jesus become so familiar to you that you assume there is much more to learn about it?
3. What from Matthew's genealogy strikes you? (Think of the individuals named and Matthew's selective choosing of names to create 3 sections of 14 names.)
4. Does the fact that Matthew curated his genealogy for thematic purposes make you question the veracity of the Bible? Why or why not?
5. What thoughts or questions come into your mind when you contemplate that in the baby Jesus, the almighty God of the universe was a human baby dependent upon Mary, His mother?
6. Do you ever struggle with believing that Jesus will actually return since it has been so long?
7. How can you look to the first coming of Jesus to minister to your soul and others as doubts plague the heart?
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