Studying the Bible.

An illegitimate king The Gospel of Matthew begins with a genealogy which leads from Abraham to David to Jesus. The Israelites had long awaited a Messianic king who was to come from the line of David. Jesus is that Davidic king. In Matthew 2, when Jesus is in his infancy, wise men come to Jerusalem…

There are two kinds of important days.  There are the important days that we know are important at the time. And there are the important days when we only know of their significance with hindsight.  A couple weeks ago, we had the anniversary of an important day in American history when we remembered the 80th…

In Matthew chapter 1, Mary and Joseph are both told some amazing news. Mary is going to have a child who has been miraculously conceived through the Holy Spirit.  In verse 21, Joseph is told: She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their…

The wise men come to Herod in seeking the King of the Jews. It’s so much woven into the Christmas story that it can be easy to overlook how bizarre the scene is, but the first people who seek out the newborn Jesus are pagan astrologers. There are different responses to this king. Some will…

In the Gospel of Matthew, when Joseph finds out that Mary is supernaturally pregnant, his initial plan is to divorce her quietly. But an angel appears to him and tells him to take Mary as his wife and that he is not to fear. It’s easier said than done. In marrying Mary, Joseph would have…