Small Group Questions:

1. 1. Why do you think Matthew begins his Gospel with Jesus’ genealogy linking him to David and Abraham? How does understanding Jesus’ lineage help us understand his role as the Messiah?
   2. How does seeing Jesus as the fulfillment of God’s promises in the Old Testament impact your faith?
   3. Share a time when you experienced the fulfillment of a promise from God in your own life.
   4. Discuss practical ways we can joyfully share the message of Jesus with others in our school, friendships, and life.

THE MAIN POINT

Every page of Matthew’s Gospel is steeped in this theme of promise and fulfillment. Matthew wants us to know that Jesus is the promised Messiah.

THE BIBLE

Matthew Ch 1

THE CONTEXT

Although not likely the earliest gospel (Mark holds that distinction), Matthew’s placement first in the New Testament is fitting. It is the most Jewish gospel, deeply connected to the Old Testament and its prophecies about the Messiah. Matthew’s core theme is the fulfillment of God’s promises in the Hebrew Scriptures, bringing salvation to Israel and the world through Jesus the Messiah. The Church’s joyful response should be to spread this good news globally and disciple followers of Jesus.

Matthew’s Gospel begins with Jesus’ genealogy, identifying him as the “son of David” and “son of Abraham,” linking him to significant figures in biblical history. Abraham received God’s covenant for a great nation and land blessing all nations (Genesis 12:1-3). Later, God promised David an eternal dynasty and a descendant to reign forever (2 Samuel 7:11-16), echoed by prophets like Isaiah envisioning a restored creation under the Messiah (Isaiah 9:1-7, 11:1-16). Matthew’s genealogy underscores Jesus as the Messiah, fulfilling God’s promises and reshaping human history.

Alongside establishing Jesus’ Messianic legitimacy through his genealogy, Matthew reinforces the theme of promise and fulfillment by repeatedly citing Old Testament passages. These “fulfillment formulas,” used ten times throughout the Gospel, affirm that Jesus fulfills ancient prophecies. Each formula typically states, “This happened to fulfill what the Lord had spoken through the prophet…” For example, Jesus’ birth to a virgin fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14 (Matt 1:22-23), his family’s escape to Egypt fulfills Hosea 11:1 (Matt 2:15), his ministry in Galilee fulfills Isaiah 9:2 (Matt 4:14–16) and so on. Jesus fulfilled over 300 prophecies (promises) in his earthly ministry!!

THE CORE

As you prepare the core of the message using personal stories and questions keep in mind these points:

• Matthew, traditionally believed to be the author of the first gospel, was a tax collector whom Jesus called to be his disciple. While the Gospels are technically anonymous, church tradition ascribes authorship to Matthew, a tax collector who became a disciple of Jesus.
• Matthew’s audience is predominantly Jewish. While Mark tends to explain Jewish customs for his readers (Mark 7:2–4, 15:42) suggesting a predominantly Gentile audience, Matthew often presents them without explanation (ceremonial washings, temple tax, phylacteries, and tassels) Matthew also commonly uses the designation “kingdom of heaven” instead of “kingdom of God.” “Heaven” is a common Jewish circumlocution for “God,” used out of reverence for the divine Name.
• Matthew’s central theme is promise and fulfillment: God’s promises in the Hebrew Scriptures to bring salvation to his people Israel and the whole world are being fulfilled with the coming of Jesus the Messiah. The Church’s response to this joyful news should be to go into all the world and make disciples (followers) of Jesus the Messiah (Matthew 28).
• Matthew could be described as “THE GOSPEL OF THE MESSIAH.” The Messiah who comes and overwhelms us with great joy (Matt 2:10).

THE APPLICATION

As you prepare the application, challenge and/or encouragement, keep in mind these points:

• To understand the gospel of Matthew we must understand the context of who he is writing to and why he writes the way he does.
• The Old Testament is not distinct from Jesus. It is in the OT Testament that we see the creativity, history, beauty, promises, and story that sets up the scene we now call The Gospel. How may your reading of the OT change in this light?
• Jesus fulfills every promise made about him and has never once broken his word. How does this impact our faith on the day-to-day?