By Arvin Kaufman
“Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” – 1 John 5:5.
The book of Matthew starts with a mapping of Jesus’ earthly genealogy, His lineage as the son of David and the son of Abraham.
Earlier promises
God had said to Abraham in Genesis 22:18: “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.”
God spoke this promise to Abraham, concerning his seed who is Christ. Just as God promised, the blessing came upon all the people through the coming of Jesus Christ.
“I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever” (2 Samuel 7:12-13).
Before Jesus was born, God had spoken through His prophets in the Old Testament concerning Him.
In Isaiah 11:1, God said: “There shall come forth a rod from the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.”
In Jeremiah 23:5: “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, that I will raise to David a branch of righteousness; a King shall reign and prosper, and execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.”
At the point of Jesus’ birth, the Bible teaches us there were 14 generations from Abraham to David and also 14 from David to the exile in Babylon and 14 from the exile to the Messiah, who is Jesus Christ the son of God (Matthew 1:17).
Mary, the mother of Jesus, was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.
Before her husband Joseph thought to leave her quietly, the Angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:18-23.)
This fulfilled what God had spoken through the Prophet Isaiah: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel which is translated, God with us” (Isaiah 7:14).
Lessons
Jesus is the son of God who came to the Earth to save us from our sins and restore us to the Father. Speaking of Jesus, John 1:4 states: “And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
The promise of God has been fulfilled through His son Jesus to all those who believe in Him.
Kaufman is the Author of The ABCs of God, a great book for children.
www.salvationengine.com
