Matthew – Page 24 – Be Still…

Matthew 3:1-12 – Preach It, John!

John, known as the baptizer, was preaching in the wilderness. He was called by God to make a way for Jesus. He was using his message to prepare people’s hearts to hear Jesus’ words of love and salvation. It’s all about getting the mindset right first. We know that to be in the case in business, too. You can’t have a successful business without the right thought patterns and beliefs. Much more importantly, you won’t be ready to accept Jesus without the Holy Spirit’s preparation. In this case, John was being used.

John was attracting quite a crowd. Word was traveling around the area about John’s ministry. People were realizing their sinfulness and wanted to be cleansed. John was setting the stage with a sense of urgency. “The Kingdom of Heaven is near,” he was telling people. What would you have thought when you saw John?

Matthew 2:13-23 – Keep Jesus Safe

Read Matthew 2:13-23

God’s plan continues. We hear of at least three prophecies fulfilled in today’s reading. Two are geographical, that is, Jesus, the Son, being called up from Egypt and Jesus being referred to as a Nazarene. In both instances, Joseph was obedient to God’s leading and as a result, Jesus was safe. Joseph’s desire for righteousness continues. The third prophecy points to the evil heart of Herod which led to the brutal death of many young boys, and the cry from Ramah. Ramah is an ancient town not far from Bethlehem. In Genesis, we hear that Rachel was buried there. Her children, descendants now, would be the ones slaughtered by Herod’s men.

Senseless killing for what purpose? It’s hard to understand the actions of an insecure lunatic with power. Over the span of history, we have seen other bad kings, rulers, and leaders whose agendas were totally evil. I think of Hitler, for example.

Matthew 2:1-12 – The Wise Men

Read Matthew 2:1-12

The wise men from the East sure did a number on the status quo in Jerusalem that day when they asked about the birth of Jesus. Little did they know how that simple question would rile the king. King Herod did a great job in deflecting his anger at the news as he craftily obtained the information he needed. Something tells me he isn’t interested in worshiping the new king.

Note that the number of wise men is never mentioned. Our tradition would suggest there were three, but it could have been two, four, or more. The word “some” is open for interpretation. An interesting aside, but certainly not something to get stuck on. What is cool is that they wanted to worship this newborn king. This meeting between Jesus and the magi is referred to as the Epiphany, and in the Christian tradition is celebrated on January 6.

Matthew 1:18-25 – Jesus Conceived

Read Matthew 1:18-25

We can only begin to imagine the conversations that went on between Joseph and Mary. It’s easy for us to put our own present-day slant on the situation as well. To remember the culture of the day is also helpful. What if you had been Joseph? To find out that your bride-to-be was “knocked up” may have been enough to just walk away, be heartbroken, be furious, be confused, etc. But what was Joseph? Righteous.

Joseph wanted to be right with God. In that day, you’d even have to “divorce” before marriage. The engagement period was a much bigger deal than it is today. Joseph wanted to avoid a scandal and do this discreetly. He must have loved Mary very much to spare her that embarrassment.

Matthew 1:1-17 – Jesus’ Ancestors

Read Matthew 1:1-17

The Gospel of Matthew begins with a genealogy running from Abraham to Jesus. It was interesting to see all the names and realize that only a handful of them are used in our country. I’d be curious to know how many of these names are still used in the Middle Eastern countries nearer the events of the New Testament.

I do know from Bible studies that a name in those ancient times would be very significant. The meaning of one’s name would give them their identity or speak of their character. Names these days are usually chosen because the parents like them, or they are a family name they want to keep alive, or perhaps they are just being creative in using words not commonly used as names.