Jesus Christ the son of David the son of Abraham

Bible Reading: Matthew 1

Matthew 1:1 The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

Matthew’s gospel begins with a genealogy of the husband of Mary – Joseph. The very first line however tells us that Jesus is the son of David and the son of Abraham. This immediately reminds us of two covenants. The older covenant is the covenant that God made with Abraham.

Genesis 12:1-3 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

God said that through Abraham, all the families of the earth would be blessed! The New Testament tells us how God would do this:

Galatians 3:16 Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

As the son of Abraham, Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant. As the son of David, Jesus is the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant. Through the prophet Nathan, God told David:

2 Samuel 7:16 And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.

David’s descendants would sit on the throne of Judah forever. And Jesus is the rightful heir to the throne. When the angel appeared to Mary, he said:

Luke 1:30-33 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

As the son of Abraham, Jesus is the promised seed who would bless all families of the earth. As the son of David, Jesus is the king. Let’s praise him who is worthy of all praise!

In Christ,

Rody

I will build my church

Matthew 16:18-19 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

Jesus did not build his church on the authority of the man Peter, but on the confession that Peter had made.

Matthew 16:16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Jesus continues to build his church on the confession of men and women who are born again.

1 Peter 2:5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

This is the first mention of the church in the New Testament. Jesus promised us that he would build his church and the gates of hell would not prevail against it. How wonderful to know that his building plans will be successful! The church will be a mighty force that will break down the gates of hell. Not only that, but the church has the keys to the kingdom of heaven. As followers of Jesus Christ, we can open wide the gates of heaven for others to come in. Do you know how to loose something on earth? You prayerfully proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ! That is the key that opens heaven’s gate. It is sad when believers have the keys to heaven and by keeping our mouths shut, we keep the doors locked.

Are you a part of the church? If you are a believer, then you are a part of the worldwide church. But I mean the local church. Are you actively involved with a loving, Bible preaching, soul winning church? Jesus said that is what he would build. Are you a part of the army that is storming the gates of hell? Are you throwing wide the gates of heaven with the keys that you have? The church is important. It is built by Jesus Christ himself.

In Christ,

Rody

How long ye simple ones

Bible Reading: Proverbs 1

Proverbs 1:22 How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?

The Proverbs give us three classes of people who don’t listen to the Word of God. The simple one, the scorner and the fool are all devoid of understanding. These are like three degrees of hardness or three rungs on a downward ladder of reprobation. To be simple is to be young, immature and foolish in understanding. The word is used three times in this chapter of Proverbs. The purpose of the Proverbs is:

Proverbs 1:4 To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.

A young person is simple because they do not yet have knowledge and discretion. The book of Proverbs is designed for older disciples to use with younger disciples to help them learn wisdom. To be simple is not a sin – to stay simple is. A simple man who is young in the Lord has the opportunity to become subtile. He can learn knowledge and discretion.

Unfortunately, some people like to remain simple. They love simplicity. They love immaturity. They refuse to grow. Solomon did not want this for his son. He knew that it would lead to disaster. To stay simple, one must continually turn away from the Words of God.

Proverbs 1:32 For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.

A person who stays simple has to ignore the Word of God. It is my prayer that we will not stay simple. We must listen to the Word of Jesus and obey. Let us pray that we will have ears to hear what the Spirit says this year.

In Christ,

Rody