The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible - Part Eight - C Jul 01, 2018 by: John Herbert | Series: The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible Audio Study Notes PDF https://s3.amazonaws.com/cornerstonejax/sermonfiles/T013_20180701.mp3 Refresh A Recap from the Sermon Lu 3:23 Now Jesus Himself began His ministry at about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, the son of Heli, We will continue to look at the Gospel accounts of the Lord's first advent. The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday July 1st 2018 The Word of God A Survey of the Bible – Part 8C ‘A Son Is Given’ 1). Mt 1:1 ¶ The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham: We had seen last time that Matthew began his Gospel with Jesus’ genealogy which takes us all the way from Abraham, through Isaac and Jacob and the 12 sons to David and Solomon and eventually to Joseph the husband of Mary, to whom the Christ was born. a). And we had seen how this direct lineage through David and Solomon gave Joseph’s ‘Son’ the legal right to David’s throne by regal descent. b). Now, Matthew is not the only Gospel writer to provide us with a genealogy – Luke also gives us one - Lu 3:23 Now Jesus Himself began His ministry at about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, the son of Heli, At first glance it may appear that we have a second genealogy for Joseph the husband of Mary that is at odds with the first seen in Matthew. c). In Luke we see that Joseph is said to be ‘the son of Heli’, whereas in Matthew we are told it was Jacob who ‘begot Joseph’ – so which is it? d). In effect it’s both – Jacob was Joseph’s biological father, which is what the word ‘begot’ tells us, but in Luke we firstly see Jesus ‘being [as was supposed] the son of Joseph’; a phrase that talks of legal standing. Jesus was by law, the Son of Joseph and in like manner Joseph was by law the son of Heli. e). Heli was Joseph’s father-in-law, and so Heli is the biological father of Mary, Joseph’s wife – and so, although Joseph is seen to be Heli’s son we are in effect looking at the genealogy for Mary through her paternal line. f). And if we look through the genealogy that Luke gives us we see in – Lu 3:31 the son of Melea, the son of Menan, the son of Mattathah, the son of Nathan, the son of David, Here then is the direct bloodline from David through his son Nathan to Jesus. Simply put, David’s blood flowed through Mary’s veins and consequently flowed through Jesus’ veins as well, literally making Him the Son of David. g). And so, through Mary we have the bloodline from David, and through Joseph the regal line from David through Solomon and putting these both together we have the Son promised to David of whose Kingdom there would be no end as seen in 2 Samuel Chapter 7. h). Luke also takes us beyond Abraham in the genealogy he gives, taking us all the way back to Adam through Shem, Noah and Seth - Lu 3:34 the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, 35 the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, 36 the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, 37 the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel, the son of Cainan, 38 the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God. And by going back to Adam in the Lord’s lineage Luke gives us the direct link to the Christ being the Seed of the Woman and the promise given to the serpent, the ruler of this age, concerning that Seed - Ge 3:15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel." i). And let’s not forget as we look at Luke’s genealogy, the purpose for which Adam was created, which is the same reason that Adam is shown to be God’s son - as all of this, from the beginning, now comes to fulfillment in the Christ. Which is why He is described this way in –1Co 15:45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. And this way a couple of verses later - 1Co 15:47 The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. All then has to do with Sonship, it all has to do with rulership and rulership with respect to the heavens and the earth – the promise that had been given to Abraham and his descendants - Ge 14:18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. 19 And he blessed him and said: "Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; Ge 22:17 "blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. And it is Matthew who makes clear that Jesus is also ‘the Son of Abraham’ as well as ‘the Son of David’ and it is Paul who unveils that the promises given to Abraham are fulfilled in Christ - Ga 3:16 Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, "And to seeds," as of many, but as of one, "And to your Seed," who is Christ. And it is to the fulfillment of these same promises that Mary prophetically speaks while in Elizabeth’s house - Lu 1:45 "Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord." 46 And Mary said: "My soul magnifies the Lord, 47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. 48 For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed. 49 For He who is mighty has done great things for me, And holy is His name. 50 And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation. 51 He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. 52 He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty. 54 He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy, 55 As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed forever." 2). And we had also seen last time how the prophecy of the promised Son of David was the angel Gabriel’s central focus as he revealed God’s purpose to Mary, when the fullness of the time had come - Lu 1:30 Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. 32 "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 "And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end." a). And to confirm that the Son born to Mary the virgin is indeed the promised Son, the Holy Spirit had the Gospel writers record the occasion of Jesus’ baptism by John in the Jordan River - Lu 3:21 ¶ When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. 22 And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, "You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased." Mr 1:9 ¶ It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove. 11 Then a voice came from heaven, "You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." 12 Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. 13 And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him. Mt 3:16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."…. 4:1 ¶ Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. So, upon Jesus rising from the waters of baptism God’s voice is heard declaring that Jesus is His ‘beloved Son’ – a declaration that would not only confirm the Lord’s identity to the Jewish people through the prophecies in 2 Samuel and Isaiah Chapter 9, but also make known to the god of this world that this is the Seed of the Woman, the Son to whom the scepter of rulership had been given, the One who would remove the crown from Satan’s head. b). And he got the message - Mr 1:23 ¶ Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, 24 saying, "Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are--the Holy One of God!" Mr 3:1 And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, "You are the Son of God." And it is because of who Jesus is and God’s declaration concerning Him and rulership that Jesus is led into the wilderness to be tempted, tested, by the devil. Just as the first Adam was tested to see if he was worthy to take Satan’s place so the last Adam was tested for the same purpose - Lu 4:12 And Jesus answered and said to him, "It has been said, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'" 13 Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time. 14 ¶ Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region. 15 And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. 3). That which Jesus ‘taught in their synagogues’ can be seen in - Lu 4:16 So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. 17 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: 18 "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; 19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD." 20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." And what Jesus taught in this context can be seen in that which we have come to call ‘the sermon on the mount’, recorded in Matthew Chapters 5-7 – Mt 5:1 ¶ And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 ¶ "Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. a). What we will notice at once is that His teaching has to do with ‘the Kingdom of Heaven’, inheriting the earth, being ‘called sons of God’, with deliverance promised – all consistent with the promise given to Abraham and nothing whatsoever to do with eternal salvation. b). Just as God the Father came down on Mount Sinai and gave the Law to the first generation to come out of Egypt – the ‘rules’ by which an eternally saved people were to live with respect to the earthly realm of the Kingdom, so God the Son sat down on a mountain with the descendants of that first generation to give them the ‘rules’ by which an eternally saved people were to live with respect to the heavenly realm of the Kingdom. c). What the Lord taught is precisely that which was begun by John the Baptist - Mt 3:1 ¶ In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.'" And continued by the Lord after John’s imprisonment - Mt 4:12 ¶ Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. 13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: 15 "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: 16 The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned." 17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." The same message that He sent the 12 disciples to preach - Mt 10:5 ¶ These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: "Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. 6 "But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7 "And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' 8 "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. And the 70 - Lu 10:9 "And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.' d). And as we can see the focus is entirely the ‘Kingdom of Heaven’ and hand in hand with the proclamation of this Kingdom are miraculous signs, ‘heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons’. e). And these signs, as we saw from John’s Gospel, were exclusively for the Jewish people for a specific purpose - Joh 20:30 And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name. These signs were a physical manifestation of the spiritual healing that was available for the nation should they believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and repent from their centuries of disobedience and unfaithfulness – Joh 5:36 "But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish--the very works that I do--bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me. f). That which the nation had to do, and that which awaited the nation if it did, had already been foretold by Moses - Le 26:40 ¶ 'But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers, with their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, and that they also have walked contrary to Me, 41 and that I also have walked contrary to them and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if their uncircumcised hearts are humbled, and they accept their guilt- 42 then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham I will remember; I will remember the land. De 18:18 'I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him. 19 'And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of him. 4). There were those who from the beginning understood from the scriptures that the Son of David would come with the fullness of the time and waited for Him – Lu 2:25 ¶ And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. 27 So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law, 28 he took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said: 29 "Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word; 30 For my eyes have seen Your salvation 31 Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, 32 A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel."……………36 Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity; 37 and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. 38 And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem. a). And in addition to these there were those who came to believe who Jesus was with a view to their own deliverance - Mt 20:30 And behold, two blind men sitting by the road, when they heard that Jesus was passing by, cried out, saying, "Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!" b). And by the end of His ministry as the King rode into the city of the King on a donkey in fulfilment of Zechariah’s prophecy - Zec 9:9 ¶ "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey. By this time the multitudes were declaring His identity - Mt 21:8 And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying: "Hosanna to the Son of David! 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!' Hosanna in the highest!" But not all shared the multitude’s enthusiasm - Mt 21:14 Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant c). Now, let’s remember that Jesus’ message and Jesus’ ministry was to cause the nation to repent so that they might receive the Kingdom of the Heavens offered to them. It had to be the whole nation though and all the while the nation’s religious leaders chose to reject the Christ this was never going to happen. And this group had sought out every opportunity to discredit the message and the Messenger throughout the Lord’s ministry. d). And by the time we come to the scenes witnessed in Matthew Chapter 21, the religious leaders had already crossed a line that would have a profound effect upon the nation even to this day - Mt 12:22 ¶ Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. 23 And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?" 24 Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."…………31 "Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. 32 "Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come. 33 "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. 34 "Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. And the conclusion of the matter is presented very plainly at the end of a parable the Lord gave concerning a vineyard - Mt 21:42 Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: 'The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the LORD'S doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes'? 43 "Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. 44 "And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder." 45 Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them. As we close for today let’s be very clear that ‘the Kingdom of God’ taken from Israel is exclusively the Kingdom of the Heavens, that which had been the sole subject of the Lord’s ministry, nothing else. e). That which had been covenanted to David, the earthly realm of the Kingdom, could never be uncovenanted, but the Heavenly realm is covenanted to Abraham and his descendants, not the nation of Israel per se. And it is this heavenly realm that has been rejected by, and taken from, the nation of Israel for all time. f). And just as that which was covenanted to David can never change, nor can that rejected by and taken from Israel ever change. g). But God’s eternal purpose which we first saw when the light shone in the darkness cannot ever change either. More on that next time though – if the Lord is willing. The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible - Part Eight - C Jul 01, 2018 Speaker: John Herbert Series: The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible Category: Sunday Morning https://s3.amazonaws.com/cornerstonejax/sermonfiles/T013_20180701.mp3 Download Audio x
Refresh A Recap from the Sermon Lu 3:23 Now Jesus Himself began His ministry at about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, the son of Heli, We will continue to look at the Gospel accounts of the Lord's first advent. The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday July 1st 2018 The Word of God A Survey of the Bible – Part 8C ‘A Son Is Given’ 1). Mt 1:1 ¶ The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham: We had seen last time that Matthew began his Gospel with Jesus’ genealogy which takes us all the way from Abraham, through Isaac and Jacob and the 12 sons to David and Solomon and eventually to Joseph the husband of Mary, to whom the Christ was born. a). And we had seen how this direct lineage through David and Solomon gave Joseph’s ‘Son’ the legal right to David’s throne by regal descent. b). Now, Matthew is not the only Gospel writer to provide us with a genealogy – Luke also gives us one - Lu 3:23 Now Jesus Himself began His ministry at about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, the son of Heli, At first glance it may appear that we have a second genealogy for Joseph the husband of Mary that is at odds with the first seen in Matthew. c). In Luke we see that Joseph is said to be ‘the son of Heli’, whereas in Matthew we are told it was Jacob who ‘begot Joseph’ – so which is it? d). In effect it’s both – Jacob was Joseph’s biological father, which is what the word ‘begot’ tells us, but in Luke we firstly see Jesus ‘being [as was supposed] the son of Joseph’; a phrase that talks of legal standing. Jesus was by law, the Son of Joseph and in like manner Joseph was by law the son of Heli. e). Heli was Joseph’s father-in-law, and so Heli is the biological father of Mary, Joseph’s wife – and so, although Joseph is seen to be Heli’s son we are in effect looking at the genealogy for Mary through her paternal line. f). And if we look through the genealogy that Luke gives us we see in – Lu 3:31 the son of Melea, the son of Menan, the son of Mattathah, the son of Nathan, the son of David, Here then is the direct bloodline from David through his son Nathan to Jesus. Simply put, David’s blood flowed through Mary’s veins and consequently flowed through Jesus’ veins as well, literally making Him the Son of David. g). And so, through Mary we have the bloodline from David, and through Joseph the regal line from David through Solomon and putting these both together we have the Son promised to David of whose Kingdom there would be no end as seen in 2 Samuel Chapter 7. h). Luke also takes us beyond Abraham in the genealogy he gives, taking us all the way back to Adam through Shem, Noah and Seth - Lu 3:34 the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, 35 the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, 36 the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, 37 the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel, the son of Cainan, 38 the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God. And by going back to Adam in the Lord’s lineage Luke gives us the direct link to the Christ being the Seed of the Woman and the promise given to the serpent, the ruler of this age, concerning that Seed - Ge 3:15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel." i). And let’s not forget as we look at Luke’s genealogy, the purpose for which Adam was created, which is the same reason that Adam is shown to be God’s son - as all of this, from the beginning, now comes to fulfillment in the Christ. Which is why He is described this way in –1Co 15:45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. And this way a couple of verses later - 1Co 15:47 The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. All then has to do with Sonship, it all has to do with rulership and rulership with respect to the heavens and the earth – the promise that had been given to Abraham and his descendants - Ge 14:18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. 19 And he blessed him and said: "Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; Ge 22:17 "blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. And it is Matthew who makes clear that Jesus is also ‘the Son of Abraham’ as well as ‘the Son of David’ and it is Paul who unveils that the promises given to Abraham are fulfilled in Christ - Ga 3:16 Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, "And to seeds," as of many, but as of one, "And to your Seed," who is Christ. And it is to the fulfillment of these same promises that Mary prophetically speaks while in Elizabeth’s house - Lu 1:45 "Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord." 46 And Mary said: "My soul magnifies the Lord, 47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. 48 For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed. 49 For He who is mighty has done great things for me, And holy is His name. 50 And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation. 51 He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. 52 He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty. 54 He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy, 55 As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed forever." 2). And we had also seen last time how the prophecy of the promised Son of David was the angel Gabriel’s central focus as he revealed God’s purpose to Mary, when the fullness of the time had come - Lu 1:30 Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. 32 "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 "And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end." a). And to confirm that the Son born to Mary the virgin is indeed the promised Son, the Holy Spirit had the Gospel writers record the occasion of Jesus’ baptism by John in the Jordan River - Lu 3:21 ¶ When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. 22 And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, "You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased." Mr 1:9 ¶ It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove. 11 Then a voice came from heaven, "You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." 12 Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. 13 And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him. Mt 3:16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."…. 4:1 ¶ Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. So, upon Jesus rising from the waters of baptism God’s voice is heard declaring that Jesus is His ‘beloved Son’ – a declaration that would not only confirm the Lord’s identity to the Jewish people through the prophecies in 2 Samuel and Isaiah Chapter 9, but also make known to the god of this world that this is the Seed of the Woman, the Son to whom the scepter of rulership had been given, the One who would remove the crown from Satan’s head. b). And he got the message - Mr 1:23 ¶ Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, 24 saying, "Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are--the Holy One of God!" Mr 3:1 And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, "You are the Son of God." And it is because of who Jesus is and God’s declaration concerning Him and rulership that Jesus is led into the wilderness to be tempted, tested, by the devil. Just as the first Adam was tested to see if he was worthy to take Satan’s place so the last Adam was tested for the same purpose - Lu 4:12 And Jesus answered and said to him, "It has been said, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'" 13 Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time. 14 ¶ Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region. 15 And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. 3). That which Jesus ‘taught in their synagogues’ can be seen in - Lu 4:16 So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. 17 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: 18 "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; 19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD." 20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." And what Jesus taught in this context can be seen in that which we have come to call ‘the sermon on the mount’, recorded in Matthew Chapters 5-7 – Mt 5:1 ¶ And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 ¶ "Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. a). What we will notice at once is that His teaching has to do with ‘the Kingdom of Heaven’, inheriting the earth, being ‘called sons of God’, with deliverance promised – all consistent with the promise given to Abraham and nothing whatsoever to do with eternal salvation. b). Just as God the Father came down on Mount Sinai and gave the Law to the first generation to come out of Egypt – the ‘rules’ by which an eternally saved people were to live with respect to the earthly realm of the Kingdom, so God the Son sat down on a mountain with the descendants of that first generation to give them the ‘rules’ by which an eternally saved people were to live with respect to the heavenly realm of the Kingdom. c). What the Lord taught is precisely that which was begun by John the Baptist - Mt 3:1 ¶ In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.'" And continued by the Lord after John’s imprisonment - Mt 4:12 ¶ Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. 13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: 15 "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: 16 The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned." 17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." The same message that He sent the 12 disciples to preach - Mt 10:5 ¶ These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: "Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. 6 "But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7 "And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' 8 "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. And the 70 - Lu 10:9 "And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.' d). And as we can see the focus is entirely the ‘Kingdom of Heaven’ and hand in hand with the proclamation of this Kingdom are miraculous signs, ‘heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons’. e). And these signs, as we saw from John’s Gospel, were exclusively for the Jewish people for a specific purpose - Joh 20:30 And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name. These signs were a physical manifestation of the spiritual healing that was available for the nation should they believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and repent from their centuries of disobedience and unfaithfulness – Joh 5:36 "But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish--the very works that I do--bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me. f). That which the nation had to do, and that which awaited the nation if it did, had already been foretold by Moses - Le 26:40 ¶ 'But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers, with their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, and that they also have walked contrary to Me, 41 and that I also have walked contrary to them and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if their uncircumcised hearts are humbled, and they accept their guilt- 42 then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham I will remember; I will remember the land. De 18:18 'I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him. 19 'And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of him. 4). There were those who from the beginning understood from the scriptures that the Son of David would come with the fullness of the time and waited for Him – Lu 2:25 ¶ And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. 27 So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law, 28 he took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said: 29 "Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word; 30 For my eyes have seen Your salvation 31 Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, 32 A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel."……………36 Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity; 37 and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. 38 And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem. a). And in addition to these there were those who came to believe who Jesus was with a view to their own deliverance - Mt 20:30 And behold, two blind men sitting by the road, when they heard that Jesus was passing by, cried out, saying, "Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!" b). And by the end of His ministry as the King rode into the city of the King on a donkey in fulfilment of Zechariah’s prophecy - Zec 9:9 ¶ "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey. By this time the multitudes were declaring His identity - Mt 21:8 And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying: "Hosanna to the Son of David! 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!' Hosanna in the highest!" But not all shared the multitude’s enthusiasm - Mt 21:14 Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant c). Now, let’s remember that Jesus’ message and Jesus’ ministry was to cause the nation to repent so that they might receive the Kingdom of the Heavens offered to them. It had to be the whole nation though and all the while the nation’s religious leaders chose to reject the Christ this was never going to happen. And this group had sought out every opportunity to discredit the message and the Messenger throughout the Lord’s ministry. d). And by the time we come to the scenes witnessed in Matthew Chapter 21, the religious leaders had already crossed a line that would have a profound effect upon the nation even to this day - Mt 12:22 ¶ Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. 23 And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?" 24 Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."…………31 "Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. 32 "Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come. 33 "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. 34 "Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. And the conclusion of the matter is presented very plainly at the end of a parable the Lord gave concerning a vineyard - Mt 21:42 Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: 'The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the LORD'S doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes'? 43 "Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. 44 "And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder." 45 Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them. As we close for today let’s be very clear that ‘the Kingdom of God’ taken from Israel is exclusively the Kingdom of the Heavens, that which had been the sole subject of the Lord’s ministry, nothing else. e). That which had been covenanted to David, the earthly realm of the Kingdom, could never be uncovenanted, but the Heavenly realm is covenanted to Abraham and his descendants, not the nation of Israel per se. And it is this heavenly realm that has been rejected by, and taken from, the nation of Israel for all time. f). And just as that which was covenanted to David can never change, nor can that rejected by and taken from Israel ever change. g). But God’s eternal purpose which we first saw when the light shone in the darkness cannot ever change either. More on that next time though – if the Lord is willing.