MATTHEW 1
12 Outlines
MATTHEW 1-2
THE MEN OF CHRISTMAS
There are several men
who are very much a part of the Christmas story in the Gospel of Matthew. From some of them we learn negative lessons,
and from some we learn positive lessons.
JOSEPH - A TRUSTED MAN
Not just any man could
be trusted to be the guardian of the Son of God! Notice 3 qualities that make Joseph a trusted
man.
1. He was just. Vss.
18-19
2. He was compassionate.
Vs. 19 - Not willing to publicly expose what he thought was Mary's sin, he
would privately divorce her.
3. He was obedient.
Matthew 1:20-25,
HEROD - A TREACHEROUS
MAN
Herod wanted the wise
men to find the Christ Child, and report back to him. He said he wanted to
worship Him, but he wanted to kill Him.
Notice his act towards
the children of
THE PEOPLE OF
When Herod was troubled,
the whole city of
Where was
the joy that
When there is unbelief,
there is trouble! Hebrews 11:6
THE WISE MEN -
THOUGHTFUL MEN
1. Thoughtful to visit.
Matthew 2:1-2
2. Thoughtful to worship. Matthew 2:11
3. Thoughtful to share.
Matthew 2:11
4. Thoughtful to obey.
Matthew 2:12
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Matthew 1-2
JOSEPH’S DREAMS
Like the Old Testament Joseph, the guardian of the Lord
Jesus in the New Testament was also a dreamer.
God spoke to Joseph often through dreams.
THE DREAM THAT BROUGHT PEACE – Matthew 1:18-25
It was a dream that allayed any of Joseph’s fears
about marrying Mary, who was pregnant.
THE DREAM THAT SUPPLIED PROTECTION – Matthew 2:13-18
Herod, in jealousy, would kill babies in the
THE DREAM THAT GAVE PROMISE – Matthew 2:19-21
It was then safe to move back to
THE DREAM THAT PROVIDED PLACEMENT – Matthew 2:22-23
Joseph was guided back to
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Matthew 1&2
THE UNSUNG HERO OF CHRISTMAS
We hear much about the virgin, the angels, the shepherds, and
the wise men.
All of these, of course, can be considered "heroes",
in a sense, because of their roles in the Christmas Story. However, we tend to
forget God's servant, Joseph, who valiantly served His God. To me, he is the
unsung hero of Christmas.
HE WAS A SPIRITUAL MAN 1:19
We are shown here that Joseph was both just and compassionate.
HE WAS SENSITIVE MAN 1:20-23,
Four times we are told that God spoke to Joseph in a dream.
He was sensitive to God's leading in his life.
HE WAS A SUBMISSIVE MAN 1:24-25,
Joseph was not a free thinker. He simply did as God instructed
Him.
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Matthew 1 and Luke 1
GREETED BY ANGELS
Angels played an
important part in the events occurring before the death of Christ.
They delivered specific
messages.
A MESSAGE OF PROVISION -
Luke 1:5-26
Zacharias and Elizabeth
were childless.
The Angel appeared to
announce that God would provide a child to this godly couple. This was God's
provision for their need, and also God's provision of fulfilled prophecy.
Malachi 3:1
A MESSAGE OF PROMISE -
Luke 2:26-38
The Angel appeared to
Mary with a great message of promise.
She would be the mother
of God's promised Messiah.
A MESSAGE OF PEACE -
Matthew 1:18-25
Joseph was troubled over
the pregnancy of his promised bride.
The Angel explained the
situation to Joseph and gave him peace.
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Matthew 1:1-17
SPECIAL WOMEN
There are some
special women in my life. My wife,
Dottie, is of course, special and important to me. My mom is also of special importance, as is
my daughter, Donna! The Lord has blessed
me with two more daughters by way of marriage to my sons. Carletta and Candace have also become special
to me. And now we have two granddaughters, Nicole and Elyssa. I don't think I
have to tell you that my granddaughter are special! J
(You may want to introduce your message by mentioning those special
women in your life.)
In the genealogy
of the Lord Jesus in Matthew 1, there are four special women mentioned. They are, of course, special because of their
being included in the lineage of our Lord.
But they are also special because they remind us of the types of people
our Lord receives.
TAMAR (THAMAR) - THE FORGOTTEN WOMAN - Vs. 3
According to
custom, Tamar was to have a husband from among her dead husband's family. Although
Many people feel
like they have forgotten, especially during the holidays. However, the Lord
Jesus died for all, forgetting nobody!
In a special way,
He has not forgotten or forsaken those who have trusted Him as Savior. Hebrews
13:5
RUTH - THE FOREIGN
WOMAN - Vs. 5
The book of Ruth
in the Old Testament tells of this woman who was born a foreigner. First of
all, she placed her faith in the Lord God of
Just as God
received this foreign woman into the His Son's genealogy, God receives those
who are foreign to church and/or Christianity into his family. One does not
need to be brought up in the church in order to be received into God's
family. It's a matter of faith (John
David and
As Christians, we
often fall into sin. Although God is not
pleased, there is always forgiveness available (1 John 1:8 - 2:2)
MARY - THE
FAITHFUL WOMAN - Vs. 16
Mary was a sinner just
like the rest of us!
However, she was a
woman of great faith and sterling character (Luke
We Christians need
to remember that faithfulness is a quality that is pleasing to God (2
Corinthians 4:2).
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Matthew 1:1-17
TOKENS OF GOD’S GRACE
These women are found in the genealogy of our Lord
Jesus Christ:
THE ABANDONED – Tamar – Vs. 3, Genesis 38
THE ALIEN – Ruth – Vs. 5, Ruth 1:16-18
THE ADULTERESS – Bathsheba – Vs. 6, 2 Samuel 11-12
THE AVAILABLE – Mary – Vs. 16, Luke 1:26-28
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Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 1:26-38
PRE-BIRTH CLASSES
When couples are expecting their first baby they often
attend pre-birth classes. God gave
Joseph and Mary pre-birth classes.
MARY - Luke 1:26-38
LISTENED – Vss. 26-33
LEARNED – Vss. 34-37
LEANED – Vs. 38
JOSEPH - Matthew 1:18-25
HE WAS RIGHTEOUS – Vss. 18-19
HE WAS RECEPTIVE – Vss. 20-23
HE WAS RESPONSIVE – Vss. 24-25
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Matthew 1:18-25
GROWING UP WITH JOSEPH
Joseph, the step-father of Jesus, was tested by God
through the pregnancy of Mary. In this
passage we learn how trials in our lives will help us “grow up”, as Joseph did.
GOD WILL ALLOW EVENTS TO STRENGTHEN US
GOD WILL SURPRISE US – Vs. 18
GOD WILL STRETCH US – Vs. 19
GOD WILL SUPPORT US – Vss. 20-23
God sent and angel to appear to Joseph. God has sent His Word and His Holy Spirit to
support us.
GOD
GOD WILL EXPECT US TO SUBMIT – Vss. 24-25
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Matthew 1:18-25
INTERVENTION!
MARY’S DILEMMA – Vss. 18-19
She was pregnant because of
the work of the Holy Spirit. Luke 1:26-38
Joseph was ready to quietly divorce
her. Mary was innocent of any wrong
doing, but could not prove it.
GOD’S DEFENSE – Vss. 20-23
God’s angel intervened to
explain Mary’s pregnancy to Joseph.
JOSEPH’S DEPENDABILITY –
Vss. 24-25
Joseph did as he was told by
God.
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Matthew 1:18-25
A BABY IS ON THE WAY!
A MIRACLE - Vs. 18
Mary became pregnant
through the work of the Holy Spirit of God.
Isaiah 7:14, Luke
1:34-35
A MISUNDERSTANDING
- Vs. 19
Joseph, of course,
thought that Mary was guilty of unfaithfulness.
Espousal was a very
serious commitment. Even though the
couple had not come together physically, they were considered married.
Joseph was thinking of
privately giving her a divorce, rather than causing her public shame. Notice, he was a righteous man.
A MESSAGE - Vss. 20-23
Joseph is told that Mary
is pregnant by the Spirit of God, and that his name will be Jesus. (Vss.
20-21) We are told that all of this was
done to fulfill the Scriptures. (Vss. 22-23)
A MARRIAGE Vss. 24-25
Notice the faith and
obedience of Joseph.
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Matthew 1:18-25
JOSEPH'S DILEMMA
Matthew 1:18-25
It's happened before! It
will happen again! An engaged young lady is found to be pregnant by someone
other than her intended husband. In this case the young lady is Mary, who was
pregnant because of the work of the Spirit of God. You can imagine how hurt
Joseph, who appears to be a godly man, must have felt.
JOSEPH'S CONFUSION -
Vss. 18-19
Joseph did not realize
that God the Holy Spirit was responsible for the pregnancy.
He was considering his
options, the key one being that of divorce. In those days engaged people were
considered "married" even before they did not yet live together. In
the case of adultery there were the possibilities of stoning or a quiet
divorce. Joseph, "being a just man" was considering the kinder of his
options.
JOSEPH'S COMFORT - Vss.
20-23
Joseph was told not to
fear taking Mary as his wife. The angel
that appeared to Joseph explained that the pregnancy was the result of the work
of God's Holy Spirit. The child's name was given as "Jesus" because
He would the Savior of His people. (Vss. 20-21)
Verses 22-23 tell us
that all of these things happened in fulfillment of prophecy. (Isaiah 7:14)
JOSEPH'S COMPLIANCE -
Vss. 24-25
Joseph had the faith to
believe the Angel's message.
Joseph acted immediately
to do as he was told.
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Matthew 1:18-25
A PREGNANCY - Vs.
18
A PROBLEM - Vs. 19
A PROCLAMATION -
Vss. 20-21
A PROPHECY - Vss.
22-23
A PERFORMANCE Vss.
24-25
Joseph did as he
was told.
In a sense of the
word, Joseph is the unsung hero of Christmas, who trusted what God had to say,
and obeyed!