Theme of Matthew Part 2
The theme of the book is to show that Jesus is the Messiah. It shows that the Lord of the Christians is the Messiah of the Jews and that Jesus is the prophesied King of Israel.
Matthew does not ignore the other aspects of Christ but Matthew is primarily focused on Jesus being King.
We saw how the line of Jesus was traced from Abraham and thru David all the way to Jesus’ Step father Joseph. You can see the purpose of Matthew from the beginning of the book.
In Matthew we saw the prophecy of Zec 9:9 come to pass. Jesus rode into Jerusalem in the exact way that it was foretold that the King would ride in.
Zec 9:10 has not come to pass yet. In the Old Testament the coming King is foretold many times. Some of those have to do with Him coming the first time as a lamb led to the slaughter and others have to do with Jesus’ second coming, when He comes as the lion of the tribe of Judah. When He comes as the King of King and the Lord of Lords.
The Old Testament describes four different aspects of The Branch. In Jeremiah 23:5 the aspect mentioned is He is King.
Jeremiah 23:5 …I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign…
Psa 2:6 Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.
The coming of The King is foretold many times in the Old Testament, and focusing on the fact that Jesus is King is the theme of Matthew.
And there is something about the King and mountains. In fact when He comes back to setup His kingdom He is touching down on a mountain.
Zec 14:4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which [is] before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, [and there shall be] a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
When Jesus comes back as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, he will set his feet down on the Mount of Olives and the power with which He comes back will split that mountain in two. And it is not just a little separation. There will be a very great valley in between. Half the mountain goes north and half of it goes south and a great valley is created between the two.
He really is coming back on a mountain in power as the King. There is something about the King and mountains.
Mountains are special. They are majestic. The elevation provides amazing views. If you are on a mountain you are lifted up above what is below. There is something about the King and mountains.
In the book of Matthew Jesus goes upon a mountain and gives The Sermon on the Mount. The Sermon on the Mount defines the character of those who shall enter into His kingdom and it tells of the experiences through which they will pass while they are being fitted for that Kingdom.
It lays down the laws, which are to govern their conduct. His authority as King was displayed here in Matthew. When Jesus finished the Sermon on the Mount “the people were astonished at His doctrine: for He taught them as One having authority, and not as the scribes” Matt 7:28-29.
The closing verses are a fitting conclusion to the book of Christ as King. They show Jesus on a mountain commanding and commissioning His servants to
Mat 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Mat 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.
There are many times In Matthew that you will find Jesus on a mountain either declaring rules with authority or on a mountain praying.
Mat_5:1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:
Mat_8:1 When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.
Mat_14:23 And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.
Mat_15:29 And Jesus departed from thence, and came nigh unto the sea of Galilee; and went up into a mountain, and sat down there.
Mat_17:1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,
Mat 17:2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.
Mat 17:3 And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.
Jesus was transfigured on a mountain. A glimpse of His glory broke thru on a mountain. He talked with Moses and Elijah on a mountain.
Now remember each gospel does not ignore the other aspects of Christ, each one just focuses more on one of them. Each of the other gospels does mention Jesus on mountains. One of them mentions it 3 times, but Matthew mentions the King on mountains 9 times.
Something about the king on a mountain that speaks of Him being high and lifted up. Of His authority.
The purpose of having the theme of Jesus as king is not to only teach us about that. The theme is supposed to have an effect upon us.
So you will find unique things in each gospel that not only back up the theme but should have a profound affect upon us and in a real practical way.
In Matthew an example would be the wise men.
Mat 2:1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,
Mat 2:2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.
What does this teach? What does it show?
These men came from the east. Some people think maybe as far as the Babylon area and their reasoning is Daniel taught there. And these wise men learned from other men that learned from others that learned from Daniel. They may or may not be right. Somehow these wise men knew about the star. They knew about the promised King. And they knew that He is worthy to be recognized as king.
The wise men’s trip was not easy. It took them a long time as we will see to travel to see the King. Right away in Matthew we are being shown by example that the King is worthy of effort and time and being honored.
So the wise men see the star, make all the preparation which a trip of this type was not cheap. Adjust their schedules and travel all the way to Israel.
When they get close the star could no longer be seen. God could have sent a storm to black out the sky. God had a purpose in this.
So the wise men go ask Herod where they can find the king of the Jews.
Mat 2:3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
Herod is not happy to hear this news. And please catch it. All Jerusalem with him. None of them wanted to hear this. O’ I know there is always a remnant. No doubt a few were looking for Jesus to come. But the masses in Jerusalem were not.
Mat 2:4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.
Mat 2:5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet,
Mat 2:6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.
Herod was an evil man. He had no interest in God. It is no surprise that Herod had to ask what the Bible said about it.
Mat 2:7 Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.
Mat 2:8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.
Herod is a skilled liar. He had no intention to Worship the King. He asked when the star appeared. He wanted to know how old this new king is. They obviously tell him. Herod said search diligently for the young child.
So Herod knows Jesus is no longer a baby but a young child because he knows when the star appeared.
Mat 2:9 When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.
Mat 2:10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.
Once they left Herod the sky cleared and they could see the star again. Notice their reaction. The wise men rejoiced with exceeding great joy. What a way to put it. It is not just rejoiced. It is with exceeding great joy. I mean that is a lot.
This is teaching us something else by example about the king. We should rejoice about our King. And not just a little bit. We have a great king.
A king that is worth the time and trouble and expense of traveling from afar. A king that is worthy of being recognized and worshipped. And a king worth rejoicing over.
Mat 2:11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.
So again we are told Jesus is now a young child. And notice they are in a house and not a stable. Much time has passed since the birth of Jesus.
The example of how the king should affect us continues. They fell down before the king. They worshipped Jesus. And then they opened their treasures and gave Jesus gold, and frankincense and myrrh. All of them expensive.
They were giving out of their heart. No one told them to. They were giving because they wanted to and because Jesus was worthy.
I have no doubt that it was God who put it on their heart. Those men would have no idea that there was a reason. They would not know the need that was about to come up. But God in His perfect foreknowledge knew.
Mat 2:12 And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
The wise men listen to God and go home another way.
Mat 2:13 And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.
Mat 2:14 When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:
Mat 2:15 And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.
Here we see the need. Fleeing to Egypt means leaving your job and your home. You are now with no income have to go to a foreign land. That means travel expenses. That means not being able to eat what you grow for a while. You are going to have to purchase food.
And you are going to have to find a place to live. Either rent or buy a small place. And until you get a garden going again, yep you have to buy more food than normal. I mean this takes money.
But guess who just showed up out of nowhere and provided you with gold and other expensive items. The wise men. No one knew about this need that was coming. No way to prepare for it. But O’ God knew. God prepared.
God provided what was needed for His will to be done and God did it thru the giving of the wise men. Giving to the King matters. We don’t understand all the reasons why God wants something done. That is His place to know that. Our place is just to listen and do what He wants and with rejoicing like the wise men.
Mat 2:16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.
Under two years old. So if Herod added a few months to the time given by the wise men. You know just in case. Then Jesus was maybe 18 to 20 months old when the wise men came.
Matthew is the only Gospel that tells of the wise men. The wise men did not come inquiring where is born the Saviour of the world? No they came inquiring “Where is He that is born King of the Jews?”
So we can learn a lot from the example of the wise men. The King is worthy of taking time for. He is worthy of travel and expense. We should recognize Jesus as King and should worship him. And the king is worth giving to. We see all of that.
But there is also something else going on here.
In literature it is called foreshadowing. A writer will drop hints of what is to come. There are many ways to do this. Sometimes it is subtle and other times they will be real obvious about it. I think man learned to do this from God’s example. God is a master at it. You see all kinds of types and pictures, and allegories and foreshadowing in God’s Word.
We see it in Matthew.
No sooner do we have Jesus declared the King of the Jews that we see Him not in the royal city but outside of it in Nazareth.
We see the indifference of the Jews to the presence of David’s Son in their midst.
The Jews did not go with the wise men. Remember all Jerusalem was troubled with Herod about this. Word got around and quick. All those people heard but not one of them went with to bow before the King.
Their civil ruler was filled with hatred and wanted Jesus killed. Early on in this gospel we see the Jews rejecting Him but we see the wise men having a heart for Jesus and giving Him worship.
This foreshadowed Israel rejecting Jesus as their king and Jesus being accepted as King by the Gentiles.
This is not in the other Gospels.
I am thankful for the book of Matthew and how it focuses on Jesus being King.
And I am very thankful that Jesus is my King.
The King is worthy of our effort, our time, and our service.
See more lessons from the Gospels