John has just finished his scathing denunciation and condemnation of Israel's religious leader and while they are still standing there in stunned silence. As he looks up he sees Jesus coming down the bank toward him to be baptized. John was just as shocked to see Jesus coming for baptism as he was to see the Pharisees but for totally different reasons. John knew the Pharisees did not believe they had any sin to repent of and John also knew that Jesus just had no sin at all. Why then is Jesus coming to John for Baptism? Jesus said it was to "fulfill all righteousness" but what does that actually mean?
Out in the wilderness, camped by the Jordan river, John has been preaching repentance and confession of sins followed by a concrete action called baptism. Baptism was not the means to Salvation but was the evidence that a person had repented and confessed their sin. So when John looked up and saw a crowd of Pharisees and Sadducees coming near to be baptized he was shocked. Both sects were insufferably proud, arrogant and godless. Both looked on everyone else with disgust. Both were expecting to be rewarded by God. The Sadducees worked to get theirs in this life while the Pharisees expected the royal treatment in the life to come. Their hearts, minds, and actions were insidious. Jesus warned His hearers and us to …
Matt. 16:6 ….. "Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees."
"For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said, "THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, 'MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT!'" [Matt. 3:3]: We often take notice of the prophecies about Christ in the Old Testament! Here is one that adds a twist. People, even in our day, are always looking for a sign that Christ is about to return. Isaiah offered a true one regarding Christ’s first coming. That sign was John the Baptizer. He had a miraculous birth and was filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb.
Under inspiration, Matthew traces the genealogy of Jesus right back to Abraham through King David insists that Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit in Mary and not by Joseph. Jesus’ human ancestry was exactly what God had said The Messiah's would be. Chapter two records 4 prophetic fulfillments surrounding the birth of Christ Jesus. Born in Bethlehem! An Escape into Egypt! The slaughter of children in Ramah and Christ’s ultimate return to Nazareth rather than Bethlehem as one might expect. In His quest to prove that Jesus is Messiah, Matthew is off to an amazing start!
With no advanced notice a large caravan of strangers appears. They were seeking “The King of the Jews” but they themselves were not Jews. They came asking and seeking. Asking implies: “desire to know” Seeking implies “desire to find.” Matthew wrote to establish the authority of Jesus to take the throne of His father David. He started with a meticulous genealogy, summarizing the human path leading to Christ’s birth and then fast forwards directly to the arrival of the Magi. God raised up these Wise Men for the purpose of calling attention to the birth of the King of Israel who is the King of Creation as well!
God made Christ a fully human, yet sinless man by stepping around Adam’s dead, fallen nature. God conceived Christ in Mary with no human father. Sin entered the world through Adam and it passed to all other humans through their fathers. All men have human fathers and are therefore sinners. Jesus did not have a human father and was therefore sinless. Not only was this a notable miracle, but it was an absolute necessity for Salvation. Adam was without sin when he was created, but then chose to sin. Jesus, being The Eternal Son, never sinned. Jesus reversed what Adam did. God would become one of His own creatures. He would be a man without sin and because He was also God the Eternal Son He would not sin. He will never sin!
God the Son was eternal, but Jesus the man, had a history. His birth place and time would confirm His credentials. His ancestry would reveal the Sovereignty of God. This God breathed genealogy in Matthew will qualify Jesus as Messiah and King by decent!
What if there was a bright and blessed future just ahead for you, but you know little or nothing about it? All trials are easier to endure if we know…
All men need hope. In dark times hope is an absolute necessity. Scripture tells us that the world is in darkness and that our hope must be in God and…
After months or even years of training there comes a time when the training ends and the doing begins. The runner finally takes his place on the track for the race. A good coach has taught him how to run but he knows that he cannot run the race for him. Nevertheless his purpose is not over. On the day of the competition the coach does not go on vacation. He does not stay home and cut the lawn. He goes over to that stadium and he gets as close to his athlete as the rules allow. He rises early to meet his runner, hopefully to pray with him and for him, as I have often seen done. He goes over the training once again and expresses his confidence that he will finish well in the race. God's Word likens this life to that race. He compares the coach to God and His Word of instructions and the others cheering us on are the weak, broken sinners that have already successfully made it to the finish line. They are not stronger than us. They are like us. God helps the weak. We ALL Need Help to Run!