His father gave him a name meaning gift from God, and the son grew up to be a tax collector whom his own people despised as a traitor and a thief. The sermon begins on the day Jesus stopped at his tax booth and opens a journey through Matthew’s Gospel, because the four Gospels are not four photographs but four portraits of the same Person (Matthew 1 and 28). We see why Matthew’s portrait is unique: it is the story of a King who steps into our history to give us a new beginning. Listen, and ask whether the King stands at the centre of your own puzzle.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- Matthew opens his Gospel with the genealogy and the name Immanuel, and closes with Jesus' words: "I am with you always" (Matthew 28:18-20). What does this frame tell us about Jesus as King?
- How do the parallels with Israel's story (fleeing to Egypt, baptism in the Jordan, 40 days in the wilderness, the Sermon on the Mount) help us see who Jesus was for Matthew's first Jewish readers?
- Matthew, a tax collector seen as a traitor, heard Jesus say: "Follow me." What does his story tell you about how Jesus sees people whose reputation seems ruined?
- The preacher noted that many rulers sent their subjects to die, but only one King went to die for his subjects. How does that shape your understanding of Jesus' authority?
- A little girl told her mom she needed someone "with skin on." When does God feel distant to you, and what does it mean to you that Jesus is Immanuel, God with us?
- Like the puzzle where "the king has to be in the middle," which area of your life most needs Jesus at its center this week, and what concrete step can you take?
