Rejoicing in
the Birth of the Savior
Sunday School Lesson for
December 21, 2003
Background Passage: Matthew 1:1-25
Focal Teaching
Passage: Matthew 1:18-25
The Dilemma
Faced by Joseph (1:18-21)
In this passage, Matthew spoke of the physical “birth” (literally the genesis or
beginning) of the Lord Jesus Christ. The
verse depicts the beginning of our Lord’s earthly existence, or what
theologians refer to as His incarnation—when the “word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). It must be remembered that as the Second
Person of the Holy Trinity, Jesus shares all the attributes of divinity
including eternity. This, therefore, is not His beginning, but only the record
of the advent of His physical existence as the Savior of the world.
Matthew also informs us that “Mary” was “betrothed” to
a man from
It was during the period of betrothal that Joseph
discovered that his wife-to-be was pregnant, presumably by another man. That she was
“found to be with child”
indicates the shock of this discovery on the part of Joseph (according to Luke
1:26-38, the angel had previously informed Mary that she was carrying the baby
Jesus). However, this was no ordinary pregnancy. Her conception and pregnancy
were “by the Holy Spirit.” This incredible phrase reveals the source and
nature of her pregnancy. It was due to
an act of God’s Holy Spirit alone, and not to the work of man. According to Luke 1:26ff, Mary knew the
source of her pregnancy while Joseph did not know until the Lord’s appearance
to him in a dream (v.20). Consequently, this was to be a miraculous,
supernatural, virgin birth that would directly fulfill the messianic promises
(see Isaiah 7:14).
Being a worshipper of God, or a “righteous man,” Joseph found himself in
a dilemma. Apparently, Mary had been
unfaithful to him during their period of betrothal. Yet, out of love for her he
in no way desired to “disgrace her”
by making a public spectacle of her apparent infidelity. Rather, he sought to “put her away secretly.” This seems to indicate that he planned to
divorce her secretly with no public scandal whatsoever. Remember, that adultery was punishable by
death under the Law of Moses (see Deut. 22:23,24), so the situation was fraught
with grave danger. Wishing to avoid this, Joseph opted to pay a fine and
privately cancel the betrothal by presenting her with a bill of divorce without
a public trial.
At the exact moment that Joseph had “considered this” the Lord sent His
angelic messenger to him with a word of comfort and assurance (v.20). The
divine message came in the form of a “dream”
in which Joseph was told not to “be
afraid to take Mary” as his
beloved wife. The word “take” is more fully translated as “take
to your side,” or “take to your home.” It presents a beautiful picture of the
marriage union. Joseph was commanded to
do this without fear knowing that her pregnancy was due to the powerful working
of God—“that which has been conceived in
her is of the Holy Spirit.”
The message of the angel continued in verse
21 with the announcement to Joseph that Mary’s baby would be a “Son” whose name would be “Jesus.” The Greek name “Jesus” comes from the Hebrew name Joshua which literally means
“Jehovah saves,” or “God is salvation.” Furthermore, the angel revealed to
Joseph the unique nature of Jesus’ ministry. He will “save His people from their sins”
by His sinless life, atoning death, and resurrection from the grave (see Psalm
130:8 for the Old Testament prophecy of Christ’s ministry). The term “His people” should be understood to include both believing Jews and
Gentiles (see Gal. 3:13,14; Romans 3:21-25; Titus 2:13,14; 1 Peter 2:4-10) whom
Christ would save “from their sins”
by means of His perfect life and substitutionary sacrifice.
The
Scripture Fulfilled (1:22-23)
Next, Matthew informs us that these events happened in direct fulfillment of the word of God spoken through the prophet Isaiah. His point was to show that the plan of salvation is clearly and emphatically revealed in the Old Testament and is no new invention.
In verse 23, Matthew quoted from Isaiah
7:14 and applied the words of the ancient prophet to the birth of Jesus. Clearly, Matthew “finds in the OT not only
isolated predictions regarding the Messiah but also OT history and people as
paradigms that, to those with eyes to see, point forward to the Messiah” [D.
A. Carson. Matthew, EBC, 76]. In the Old Testament prophecy, Jesus is revealed as “Immanuel,” meaning “God with us.” No greater blessing could ever be given to
His people than that of the promise of His continual presence among and in them. Thus, in the person
of Jesus Christ, God would actually, for a time, be with His people in bodily
form (see Phil. 2:5-8).
The
Savior’s Birth (1:24-25)
In response to the divine message, Joseph got up
from his bed and “did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him.” Note that he “took her as his wife” as he was earlier commanded to do.
He also “kept
her a virgin” until the time that Jesus had been born and, upon Christ’s
birth, “he called His name Jesus.” Thus, Joseph obeyed all that God had required
of him, giving evidence of the reality of his faith and of his complete
confidence in the Word of God.
One: First, we see the glory and uniqueness of
Christ’s incarnation. His birth was the
first step in God’s incredible plan to redeem a fallen people through the
sacrifice of His Son. In this, we see
the grand purpose of the incarnation; it was the only way that God Himself
might pay the penalty for the sins of His people (see Rom. 8:3; 2 Cor. 5:19). For a
fuller statement of the doctrine of the virgin birth see The Baptist Faith and Message (II, B), and The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith (Chapter 8). Also, think about other passages in the New
Testament that display Christ’s full
humanity.
Two: Secondly, we see the centrality of Christ as the
way of salvation. The purpose for His
coming was to save His people from the penalty of their sins. He is the only way of salvation and access to
God (see 2 Cor. 5:21; Acts 4:12).
Three: We also discover the absolute certainty of God’s Word. The prophets of old had testified of the
coming Messiah hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus. Then, at precisely
the right moment, Jesus appeared as Savior and Lord in direct fulfillment of
all of the Old Testament prophecies and promises.
Four: Also in
this passage we see that God has graciously chosen to bring about His plan of
redemption through the use of human
instrumentality. Both Mary and
Joseph were sinners beset with fear, doubt, and anxiety. Yet, God mercifully used them to bring the
Savior into the world. Therefore, we can
serve the Lord with gratitude knowing that He will likewise use each of us in
His service as we trust and obey Him.