Daily Devotions
John
"The Son of David, the Son of Abraham" Matthew 1:1
Text: John 1:1-18
“THE SON OF DAVID, THE SON OF ABRAHAM” MATTHEW 1:1
Matthew began his Gospel by making this formal statement concerning Jesus. He wrote,
“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ,
the Son of David, the Son of Abraham.”
Matthew 1:1
There was great theological significance when he presented Jesus in this way. One did not introduce a genealogy this way. The parents of Jesus were most humble folk. Joseph was but a carpenter, and his mother a housewife. Nevertheless Matthew wanted to present Jesus as the Son of David, and the Son of Abraham.
The first reason why Matthew wrote this way was to show to his readers that Jesus was an illustrious Personage. Jesus came from the royal line of David. More than that, he wanted to show his readers that He was none other than the special Son of David, the Messiah!
Matthew also wanted to show that Jesus was a man of true worth. In those days when you wanted to describe someone as “worthy”, you call him a “Son of Abraham”. Jesus was obviously no ordinary Person as far as Matthew was concerned.
“THE SON OF ADAM, THE SON OF GOD” Luke 3:38
Luke also attempted to trace the genealogy of Jesus. In the most unique way, Luke wanted to demonstrate that Jesus was both Son of Man (Adam) and Son of God.
“Now Jesus Himself began His ministry
at about thirty years of age, being
(as was supposed) the son of Joseph…The son of Enos, the son of Seth,
The son of Adam, The Son of God.”
Luke 3:23, 38
What a peculiar presentation of the Person of Jesus. Luke actually “traced” His ancestry all the way back to Adam, the first created man! Then he went on to suggest that Jesus was “The Son of God”.
“THE ONLY BEGOTTEN OF THE FATHER” John 1:14
John was therefore not alone in his commitment to present Jesus as no ordinary human being. John came up with a special phrase to describe Jesus. He wrote,
“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.”
John 1:14
John clarified further just who Jesus was when he wrote about why Jesus put on flesh and dwelt among men. He came to teach people about God in the way that only He, the Son of God could.
“No one has seen God at any time,
The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of His Father,
He has declared Him.”
John 1:18
“NO ONE HAS SEEN GOD AT ANY TIME” John 1:18
John had a difficult task to perform. It was a difficult thing to write and to prove that Jesus was “the only begotten of the Father”. But we must not imagine that it was any easier to write of Jesus as the greater Son of David (Matthew) or “The Son of God” (Luke, and Mark – cf. Mark 1:1).
He who writes Scripture must do so with complete honesty, no matter how readers may respond. John with special unction from the Spirit of God sought to present Jesus for who He really was – no matter how difficult or awkward that may seem to be!
John was aware that the Jews would have great difficulty accepting what he had written! But would other readers necessarily find it easy to understand just who Jesus really was?
Many assume that they know what there is to know about God! This was a wrong assumption in the very first place. John realized this from personal experience. One cannot, indeed must not, assume that he knows God.
John went on to suggest that the only person who really knew God, because He was the only begotten Son of God, who was in the bosom of the Father, was Jesus – He was truly able to explain and teach people about what God was really like. Thus Jesus was indeed the Word, in that His teaching about God revealed Him for who He really was!
“FULL OF GRACE AND TRUTH” John 1:14
How does one even begin to teach about God? There were some who seem to present God as One filled with wrath. There are others who speak about a God who is far removed from the reality of life on earth. There are so many variations!
Even in the days of Jesus, there were many who sought to teach about God in different ways. There were different religious factions among the Jews, and they did not seem to agree among themselves as to what God was really like!
In the midst of all these troubled situations, John presented Jesus as the only begotten and Divine Son of God. He possessed all the characteristics of Deity, and yet He was to be distinguished from the God of the Hebrews. As John studied Jesus most carefully, from daily contact as one of the Disciples, he was deeply impacted by His life. How filled with grace His life was. What great truths came from His lips! His perception and His teaching concerning God was so refreshingly different. There was authority and power besides grace and truth! No one had ever spoken just like Jesus – and no one could. He was the Word Incarnate. He was the only begotten Son of God. “But we see Jesus!”