New Testament survey (01): Matthew

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 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. (Matthew 28:19-20)

Overview

[1] “Matthew” from Thru The Bible Radio with Dr. J. Vernon McGee ©, with free downloads Notes & Outlines (PDF), Complete 5-Year Study (MP3), From the Top of the Mount of Olives You Can See Forever (PDF), How God Prepared the World for the First Coming of Christ? (PDF), Some Seed.?! (PDF), Why Four Gospels? (PDF)

This remarkable book is a key book of the Bible because it swings back into the Old Testament and gathers up more Old Testament prophecies than any other book. One might expect it to do this since it was first written to the Jews. But then, it moves farther into the New Testament than any of the other Gospels. For instance, no other Gospel writer mentions the church by name; but Matthew does. He is the one who relates the Word of our Lord, “… upon this rock I will build my church …” (Matt. 16:18). Even Renan, the French skeptic, said of this Gospel that it “is the most important book in Christendom, the most important that has ever been written.” That is a remarkable statement coming from him! Matthew, a converted publican, was the choice of the Spirit of God to write this Gospel primarily to the people of Israel. (Read the complete article)

[2] “Matthew” from gotquestions.org (this website is also available in Afrikaans, Arabic, Bengali, Burmese-Myanmar, Cebuano, Chinese- Simplified, Chinese – Traditional, Hausa, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Malaysian, Persian-Farsi, Portuguese, Quechua, Sesotho, Spanish, Swahili, Tagalog, Tamil, Thai, Urdu, Vietnamese, Zulu, and 70 other languages)

Matthew intends to prove to the Jews that Jesus Christ is the promised Messiah. More than any other gospel, Matthew quotes the Old Testament to show how Jesus fulfilled the words of the Jewish prophets. Matthew describes in detail the lineage of Jesus from David, and uses many forms of speech that Jews would have been comfortable with. (Read the complete article)

[3] The Gospel According to Matthew, from Blue Letter Bible

The overriding theme shows Jesus as the messiah, but there are also several minor themes, some of which directly relate to the major theme. These other themes include the kingdom of heaven, the conflict between Jesus and the religious leaders, Jesus as the fulfiller of the law, and the king who will return in the clouds. (Read the complete article)

[4] From Scofield Reference Notes (1917 Edition)

WRITER: The writer of the first Gospel, as all agree, was Matthew, called also Levi, a Jew of Galilee who had taken service as a tax-gatherer under the Roman oppressor. He was, therefore, one of the hated and ill-reputed publicans.

DATE: The date of Matthew has been much discussed, but no convincing reason has been given for the discrediting the traditional date of A.D. 37.

THEME: The scope and purpose of the book are indicated in the first verse. Matthew is the "book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham" (Matthew 1:1). This connects him at once with two of the most important of the Old Testament Covenants: the Davidic Covenant of kingship, and the Abrahamic Covenant of promise. ; 2 Samuel 7:8-16; Genesis 15:18.

Of Jesus Christ in that twofold character, then, Matthew writes. Following the order indicated in the first verse, he writes first of the King, the son of David; then of the Son of Abraham, obedient unto death, according to the Isaac type Genesis 22:1-18; Hebrews 11:17-19.

But the prominent character of Christ in Matthew is that of the covenanted King, David's "righteous Branch" Jeremiah 23:5; 33:15. Matthew records His genealogy; His birth in Bethlehem the city of David, according to Micah 5:2, the ministry of His forerunner according to Malachi Malachi 3:1. His rejection by Israel; and His predictions of His second coming in power and great glory.

Only then (Matthew 26-28) does Matthew turn to the earlier covenant, and record the sacrificial death of the son of Abraham.

This determines the purpose and structure of Matthew. It is peculiarly the Gospel for Israel; and, as flowing from the death of Christ, a Gospel for the whole world.

Matthew falls into three principal divisions:

1. The manifestation to Israel and rejection of Jesus Christ the Son of David, born King of the Jews, 1:1-25:46. The subdivisions of this part are:

1. The official genealogy and birth of the King, Matthew 1:1-25;
2. The infancy and obscurity of the King, Matthew 2:1-23;
3. The kingdom "at hand," Matthew 3:1-12:50 (the order of events of this subdivision is indicated in the text);
4. The mysteries of the kingdom, Matthew 13:1-52;
5. The ministry of the rejected King, Matthew 13:53-23:39;
6. The promise of the King to return in power and great glory, Matthew 24:1-25:46.

2. The sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of Abraham, Matthew 26:1-28:8.
3. The risen Lord in ministry to His own, Matthew 28:9-20.

Discussion

[1] Four hundred years of silence divided the last book of the Old Testament and the gospel according to Matthew.

[2] The word “gospel” means “good news” (Matthew 4:23, for example).

[3] The Pharisees were a Jewish sect that emphasized strict interpretation and observance of the Mosaic Law in both its oral and written form. The Sadducees, another Jewish sect, were marked by their denial of resurrection of the dead. The scribes were professional expounders of the Mosaic Law, while the Herodians were a political party.

[4] The Gospel of Matthew was written primarily to the nation Israel, to prove that Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah. His genealogy of Jesus Christ traces his lineage up to Abraham.

Matthew contains more than 60 prophetic passages of the Old Testament, showing how Jesus fulfilled them. Examples of these fulfilled prophecies are:

• Christ’s virgin birth (Isaiah 7:14) in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:1)
• His return from Egypt after the death of Herod (Hosea 11:1)
• He will be betrayed by a friend (Psalms 41:9, 55:12-24; Matthew 26:21-25, 47-50)
• He will be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (Zechariah 11:12; Matthew 26:16)
• His price will be used to buy a potter’s field (Zechariah 11:13; Matthew 27:7)
• He will be forsaken by His disciples (Zechariah 13:7; Matthew 26:31, 56)
• He will be struck on the cheek (Micah 5:1; Matthew 27:30)
• He will be spat upon (Isaiah 50:6; Matthew 26:67, 27:30)
• He will be mocked (Psalms 22:7-8; Matthew 27:31, 39-44)
• He will be beaten (Isaiah 50:6; Matthew 26:67, 27:26, 30)
• He will be thirsty during His execution (Psalms 22:15; John 19:28)
• He will be given vinegar to quench that thirst (Psalms 69:21; Matthew 27:34)
• He will be considered a transgressor (Isaiah 53:12; Matthew 27:38)
• He will be buried with the rich when dead (Isaiah 53:9; Matthew 27:57-60)
• Be accepted by the Gentiles (Isaiah 11:10, 42:1-4, 49:1-12; Matthew 12:21)
• He will perform miracles of healing (Isaiah 53:4)
• He will speak in parables (Psalm 78:2)
• His triumphal entry into Jerusalem (Zechariah 9:9)

[5] The term “Kingdom of Heaven” occurs 32 times in Matthew and is peculiar to it (Matthew 3:2; 4:17; 5:3, 10, 19, 20; 7:21; 8:11; 10:7; 11:11-12; 13:11, 24, 31, 33, 44, 45, 47, 52; 16:19; 18:1, 3, 4, 23; 19:12, 14; 20:1; 22:2; 23:13; 25:1, 14).

[6] Key verses: Matthew 5:17, 43-44; 6:9-13; 16:26; 22:37-40; 27:31; 28:5-6; 28:19-20

Further study (Be like the Bereans! Acts 17:11)

[1] Learning Basic Bible Study Methods, An Inductive Guide to Studying the Gospel of Matthew, by Allen Ross, Th.D., Ph.D.

[2] Matthew: Introduction, Argument, and Outline, by Daniel B. Wallace, Th.M., Ph.D.

[3] Materials by John F. Walvoord

• Introduction, A Commentary on the First Gospel
  
• Chapter 1 The Genealogy and Birth of Jesus Christ

Sermons on Matthew 28:19-20 (Be like the Bereans! Acts 17:11)

[1] The Purpose of the Church, by Stephen Jones, First Southern Baptist Church

[2] Rediscovering the Go In Gospel, by Daniel P. Thompkins, Jr.

[3] Motives for Our Mission, by Joshua Cropsey

[4] Am I Called to Ministry, by Jacob Vanhorn

[5] Missions and You, by Andrew Rappaport

[6] Why Take The GC Seriously, by Mark DeMateo

[7] Magic Carpet, by James Bing

[8] Reach Teach Minister, by Mark Anderson

[9] The Life-Saving Station, by Bruce W. Logue

[10] His Last Convert, by Robby Roberson

For other available sermons, please surf to Sermon / Preaching resources. Sermons are also available from South McGehee Baptist Church, McGehee, Arizona; Central Baptist Church, Lowesville; First Baptist Church, Mountain View, Missouri; Swift Creek Baptist Church; Word of Life Baptist Church, Pottsville, Philadelphia; Palm Springs Baptist Church, California; South Woods Baptist Church; Grove Baptist Church, Ulster; Dudley Baptist Church, United Kingdom; Independent Fundamental Baptist Sermons, Fundamental Christian Radio Broadcasts, Off-Site Audio Page and The Christian Radio Tuner

Notes: (1) This ministry does not necessarily endorse or share all the views and opinions expressed in the materials, resources or links mentioned in these posts. Please always refer to the Articles of Faith and Biblical distinctives of Baptists when you study these materials. (2) This lesson is part of the projected 300 plus lessons. From time to time, the lessons will be updated, revised, combined, formatted, and edited to comply with the VOA Simplified English word list. Later on, these lessons will be categorized, numbered sequentially, and made available as PDF downloads.