The New Testament starts off with the Gospel of Matthew. Originally it was thought that the Book of Matthew was written by Matthew the Apostle. In more recent times, the authorship of this book has been hugely debated, but it is generally agreed upon that whether Matthew, or an anonymous Christian, wrote it, the passages are based upon Matthew’s teachings about Jesus Christ.
Another topic for debate is when the book was actually written. Scholars have speculated it was written anytime between 50A.D. to 80A.D., but 60A.D. is most widely accepted. Matthew 24:2 is proof that it could not have been written after 70 A.D.: “‘Do you see all these things?’ He asked. ‘I tell you the truth, not one stone will be left on another; every one will be thrown down'” (NIV). This passage is a prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem which occurred in 70A.D.
The Book of Matthew was written to prove Jesus is the Messiah prophesized about in the Old Testament. The author references over 60 passages from the Old Testament to show how Jesus fulfilled these prophecies.
Part of the four Gospels, Matthew focuses more on Jesus’ parables than the other three do, dedicating a majority of the book on this. Besides proving Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God, Matthew tells about the life of Jesus, the miracles He performs and is a written record of over 200 examples Jesus gave us to follow in order to live as God wants us to live.
The Book of Matthew can be broken up into eight sections, the first of which is the genealogy of Jesus Christ which shows He is a descendent of King David; this is followed by the story of the miracle birth. The second section describes Jesus’ ministry, explaining His baptism and details the temptations He overcomes. The largest section, section three, spans ten chapters and describes Jesus’ ministry in Galilee. This is when He chooses His twelve disciples, preaches the Beatitudes and performs great miracles. This section also contains numerous lessons on how we are to lead our lives.
The fourth section consists of parables told by Jesus to serve as examples for the lessons he taught in section three. The miracles Jesus performs when walking on water and feeding 5,000 people with five loaves of bread are also within this section. Section five is an account of the transfiguration as witnessed by John, James and Peter, while the seventh section tells of Jesus entering Jerusalem and ends with the crucifixion. In section eight, we read about Jesus conquering the grave and His speech to spread the good news to everyone. “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20 (NIV).
This is a brief introduction to the Gospel of Matthew. It is my goal to post at least one chapter a day so we can all grow from the Word of God and learn from His wisdom. Keep in mind, I am only human so my interpretation may not match what you believe to be true, I feel that we learn best when challenged to be our best so be sure to leave a comment below letting me know what you think. Thank you.
