Good News of Mega Joy

Matthew 1:18-25
P. G. Mathew | Sunday, December 21, 2014
Copyright © 2014, P. G. Mathew
Language [Japanese]

The Audacity of Hope was a book about having a bold, arrogant hope in man. It does not speak about our hope, which is in our Savior, Christ the Lord, born in Bethlehem about two thousand years ago.

All hope that is based in sinful, dying men is worthless. Paul says, “If only for this life we have hoped in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men” (1 Cor. 15:19). Sinful man’s help is worthless (Ps. 60:11). Sinful man’s hope is only in this world, and his hope is truly hopelessness.

John tells us, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world,” that is, from the devil. “And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” (1 John 2:15–17, KJV). Remember what Jesus said: “What does it profit if you gain the whole world yet lose your soul?” (Mark 8:36).

My hope is not in man or in this world. So I sing,

My hope is built on nothing less

Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.

I dare not trust the sweetest frame

But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

On Christ the solid rock I stand;

All other ground is sinking sand,

All other ground is sinking sand.

The Audacity of Hope is other ground. It is sinking sand. It saves no one. Instead, it makes human beings wicked, arrogant, stubborn, and refusing to trust in Jesus Christ alone for eternal salvation.

Sinful men are without hope and without God in this world. God appointed man once to die and then face God’s judgment. The psalmist counsels us, “O Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption. He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins” (Ps. 130:7–8).

In Jesus Christ alone, as Peter says, we have living hope (1 Pet. 1:3). Man trusts in his puny intellect, in his money, in his fading beauty, in his power, and in his pedigree. But he must die.

The angel spoke to virgin Mary, to Joseph, and to the poor shepherds of Bethlehem about Jesus Christ, the Savior, Christ the Lord. “To you today I bring you good news of great joy” (Luke 2:11). In the fullness of time a Savior was born. He is Jesus Christ the Lord. He is not a sinful man pretending to save sinful men. He is very God and very man, who, by his atoning death and resurrection will save all who repent and believe in him alone. He is the only Savior of the whole world. He is the hope of glory. Only in Jesus do we have the hope of eternal life.

In Matthew 1:18–25, Matthew records the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. My professor John Murray of Westminster Theological Seminary spoke of the incarnation of God’s eternal Son in this manner: “He who never began to be in his specific identity as Son of God, began to be what he eternally was not. . . . the infinite became finite, . . the immutable became mutable, the invisible became visible, . . . the sustainer of all became dependent, the Almighty became infirm. God became man.”¹ Murray also states that incarnation “means the conjunction in one person of all that belongs to the Godhead and all that belongs to manhood.”²

In this incarnation, the Holy Spirit begat and the virgin Mary conceived without the agency of a man. This was miraculous in three ways. It was supernatural begetting of a supernatural person, and there was supernatural preservation, so Jesus alone was born sinless, unlike Mary and any other human being.³

Matthew tells us that Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph (Matt. 1:18). This betrothal created a legal state of marriage. But before they began to live together, which usually took place after a year, it was reported to Joseph that Mary was found to be with a child in her womb. This pregnancy came about ek pneumatos (by the Holy Ghost).

The Bible testifies to this miraculous conception in several places (Matt. 1:18, 20, 23; Luke 1:27, 31, 34, 35). It was also prophesied by Isaiah (Isa. 7:14). Matthew states clearly that Mary’s supernatural virginal conception was the fulfillment of the Isaianic prophecy given 700 years before. Luke 1:37 states that there is nothing impossible for God.

It is very credible that God performs miracles. Consider the words of J. Gresham Machen, the great New Testament scholar and founder of Westminster Theological Seminary. He wrote in The Virgin Birth of Christ, “Our salvation depends squarely upon history; the Bible contains that history, and unless that history is true the authority of the Bible is gone and we who have put our trust in the Bible are without hope.” Only sacred history is totally true. Secular history is filled with lies along with some truth. Machen continues, “Those who reject the virgin birth reject the whole supernatural view of Christ.” And I say, those who reject the supernatural cannot be true Christians who have the life of God in the soul of men. Machen also explains that a man is saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ “as he is offered to us in the gospel.”⁴ Part of that gospel is the stupendous miracle of the virgin birth. Professor B. B. Warfield said, “The supernatural Christ and the supernatural salvation carry with them by an inevitable consequence, the supernatural birth.”⁵

Thus, Joseph came to know about this pregnancy of his wife. Perhaps Mary herself reported to him through an intermediary. It is possible that she also told Joseph that it was through the power of the Holy Spirit that she had conceived. But Joseph did not believe the story. Being a righteous, law-abiding man, Joseph refused to take her as his wife. He went to bed planning to divorce her privately by giving her a bill of divorcement, as we read in Deuteronomy 24:1.

As we read in Luke 1:38, Mary trusted God to work out this thorny problem. And in the night, while Joseph was sleeping, God’s angel appeared to him. He told Joseph that Mary’s conception was virginal by the power of the Holy Spirit. He reassured Joseph that Mary was holy, that she had not violated the seventh commandment, and, therefore, Joseph should not be afraid to take Mary home from her father’s house. Joseph was overjoyed to hear this message from God.

The angel was probably Gabriel, who had previously appeared to Mary. Now he addressed Joseph, calling him “son of David,” because he was heir to the throne of David (Matt. 1:20). The angel commanded Joseph to do a number of things: he was to take Mary home as his wife in domestic union, and to provide for her, protect her, guide her, comfort her, and encourage her. He was also told that she would give birth to a son and he was to adopt him by giving him the God-given name of Jesus.

John Murray says Jesus is a precious name. It is used 150 times in Matthew’s gospel alone. It was not given arbitrarily. God chose and revealed this name to Joseph. It is full of spiritual meaning. Jesus means Joshua. Joshua means Jehoshua, which means Jehovah (God saves). It comes from the Hebrew wordyasha, which means to save.

The Old Testament says only God is the Savior. So we read in Isaiah 43:11, “I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior.” In Hosea 13:4 we read, “But I am the LORD your God. . . . You shall acknowledge no God but me, no Savior except me.” Acts 4:12 identifies this Savior as Jesus: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

All other religions are creations of sinful human beings. They cannot save anyone. Only Jesus Christ saves. Have you trusted in Jesus Christ alone for your eternal salvation?

Consider, then, this logic: The Old Testament tells us that God alone saves. But the New Testament tells us that Jesus saves too. Therefore, we can make the conclusion that Jesus is God who saves. In the same way, we know from the Old Testament that God alone forgives our sins. But in the New Testament we are told that Jesus forgives our sins. Therefore Jesus is God who forgives sins.

Jesus’ name is an exclusive name. In Matthew 1:21 we read that he alone (the Greek word autos conveys this meaning) saves. There is no other savior. Jesus is the only Savior of the whole world. He will save his people totally. He saves our bodies and our souls.

In Jesus, therefore, all the families of the earth will be blessed (Gen. 12:3). He is the seed of the woman (the virgin Mary), and he alone will crush the head of the serpent (Gen. 3:15). He will destroy death, which is the wages of our sin, by his atoning death, and give us eternal life.

Jesus destroys our hell and brings us to God in heaven. He saves his people, all the elect, whose names are already written in the Lamb’s book of life. He will save all whom the Father gives him, all who are chosen in him and are given grace in him. He saves not only Jews but also the Gentiles.

So we read, “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified” (Rom. 8:29–30).

In John 17 Jesus himself prayed, “For you granted [the Son] authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. . . . I pray for them. I am not praying for the world.” In other words, Jesus was not praying for the vast majority of the people in the world. But the ekklêsia, the church, consists of those who are “called out” from the world. So Jesus said, “I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours” (John 17:2, 9).

Paul writes, “[God] has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” (2 Tim. 1:9–10). He also says, “But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thess. 2:13–14).

Jesus saves the despised shepherds, the lowest of the low. He saves the publicans, the prodigals, and the prostitutes. He saves the chiefs of sinners, as Paul called himself: “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life” (1 Tim. 1:15–16).

God mocks and laughs at the mighty, the audacious, the wicked, the arrogant, the rich, the famous, the intellectuals, the philosophers. If you are not convinced, consider Paul’s words: “Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise.” God chose the “foolish” things of the world for the purpose of shaming the wise, the intellectuals, the mighty, the philosophers, the politicians, and so on. Paul continues, “God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him” (1 Cor. 1:25–29).

Mary herself had to be saved by her son, the God-man, Jesus. She confessed that she was a sinner needing a savior: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (Luke 1:46–47). Mary was a sinner just like us; thus, worship of Mary is idolatry. (PGM) The idea of an immaculate conception is false. Like us, Mary was conceived in sin and born a sinner, and the Messiah, her son Jesus, saved her.

Jesus alone saves his people from their sins. They are not saved in their sins, nor in spite of their sins, but from their sins. If you are living in sin, be warned; you are not Christians. Jesus saves us away from our sins and makes us more like him. He justifies the ungodly to make them godly. If a person is not living a holy life, he is not a Christian. His name is Jesus, “because he will save his people from their sins.”

Jesus saves his people from the penalty of sin, which is eternal death, from the power of sin, from the pollution of sin, and even from the presence of sin. By Jesus, his people are saved, they are being saved, and they will be saved in soul and body. It is he who will bring us to glory, both in our bodies and our souls. We are objects of God’s mercy prepared for glory, which is the heavenly happiness of the eternal beatific vision.

Jesus will save every one of his people. Jesus said, “And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:39–40).

Jesus will save his people from their sins and bring them to God. He will save them from the root of sin and its fruits, from their evil hearts and evil actions. Our hearts are the problem. Jeremiah says, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jer. 17:9). Jesus said, “But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’ For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a man ‘unclean’” (Matt. 15:18–20). Paul writes, “Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Cor. 6:9–11). So we read, “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Gal. 5:22–23).

Do you want to know who Jesus is? Friends, salvation from sin is not found in anyone else under heaven. No one comes to the Father except through Jesus. There is no way for us to be saved except by faith in Jesus Christ and serving him all our lives.

Who is Jesus? He is Immanuel, meaning God with us. He is the only Savior of the whole world. He is Messiah, the anointed prophet, priest and king promised in the Old Testament. He is the Lord, Jehovah God. He is our Wonderful Counselor who alone counsels us from his holy Scriptures. He is the Mighty God of creation, providence, and redemption. He is the Everlasting Father, the Father who cares from us from all eternity and to eternity. He is the Prince of Peace. Through him we have peace with God, and because of him, the peace of God comes to our hearts to guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. He is the Son of the Most High, the one and only Son, and we are all adopted as sons. We belonged to the family of the devil. God adopted us and made us sons of God in Jesus Christ. And he is the good shepherd who gave his life for the sheep in his substitutionary and propitiatory death on the cross. So we read, “He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification” (Rom. 4:25). We sinned and we must die. But he died in our place, and we are given eternal life. Our sins have been forgiven forever.

In 2 Corinthians 5 we read, “God [reconciled] the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. . . . God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (vv. 19, 21). We are clothed in an alien righteousness, which is the righteousness of God himself.

Joseph believed and obeyed God’s instruction. He believed the miracle of the virginal conception of Mary was by the Holy Spirit. He took her to his home to provide for her, protect her, guide her, comfort her, and serve her. He adopted her son by naming him Jesus, so that he may inherit David’s throne forever. Joseph by his faith in Jesus was also saved from his sins.

What about you? You hear the gospel, but have you bowed your knees to Jesus Christ and confessed him as your Lord? If not, all the hearing of preaching will only contribute to your increased judgment. The Lord Jesus Christ is King of kings forever and ever. If you submit to him and his rule, he will save you.

The shepherds believed and were saved. Joseph and Mary believed and were saved. A vast multitude of people have believed and been saved by this heaven-sent Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord. And thank God, Jesus saved us also. So we read, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 5:1). We also read, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1). Let me read to you from the Scriptures:

What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Rom. 8:31–39)

If you are outside of Christ, he will save you too. He can do so now. The Bible says, “Now is the accepted time; now is the day of salvation” (2 Cor. 6:2). What, then, must you do to be saved? Paul declared, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). He also said, “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom. 10:9). Peter said, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins” (Acts 2:38).

So believe, confess, and repent. Then pray to Jesus, knowing that, “Everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.” As Peter was walking on the water, he saw the wind and was afraid. Beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” (Matt. 14:30), and Jesus saved him. His name is Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.

If you trust in him, you will possess eternal life. Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life” (John 5:24).

Saved people celebrate and worship God. Therefore, let us celebrate! Let us worship God the Father with the multitude of elect angels and all those who are saved from their sins—all his people, both in heaven and on earth, singing, “Gloria in excelsis Deo! Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among all who by grace believe in the Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord!” Let us say with Paul, “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen” (1 Tim. 1:17). Let us sing with the twenty-four elders in heaven, “And they sang a new song: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth’” (Rev. 5:9–10). Hallelujah!

¹ John Murray, Select Lectures in Systematic Theology, Vol. 2 of Collected Works(Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1977), 132.

² Murray, 133.

³ Murray, Vol. 2, 134–5.

⁴ J. Gresham Machen, The Virgin Birth of Christ (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1965), 385, 391, 396.

⁵ B. B. Warfield, Christology and Criticism, Vol. 3 of Works of B. B. Warfield (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1981), 452.