Good Weekend to you my ‘Walking with Jesus’ friends,
What is your FOCUS this weekend and these last few days before Christmas 2025? Honestly now, how much time and energy are you investing in preparations for family gatherings, buying and wrapping of gifts, traveling plans etc., and how much time nurturing your SOUL for this annual celebration of God’s ultimate gift to our world… Jesus?
I’m sure you’ve noticed when the media covers a news story there is wide disparity on FOCUS, right? So today let’s take a close look at how and why Matthew, Luke and John draw our world to Christmas in such dramatically different ways!
Did you know Matthew was a tax collector? Matthew was employed by the Roman government to collect taxes from his fellow Jews in the Galilee region. Exact record keeping was key to his job. It shouldn’t surprise us, therefore, that Matthew begins his Christmas story with the long genealogy record tracing Jesus’ family heritage all the way back to Abraham! For Jews, in those days, the only people in the world who really mattered, were those who could trace their lineage to one of Jacob’s 12 sons!
In Matthew’s day tax collecting was very profitable because the tax collector was free to keep for himself whatever tax they collected above what Rome required! Sometimes they used Roman soldiers to pressure those being taxed to pay up! It was an ugly business. Jews collecting Roman taxes from their fellow Jews. Matthew was seen as a traitor! It’s safe to say everyone who knew him hated Matthew.
But one day Jesus stopped by Matthew’s tax collecting booth and challenged Matthew to resign his job, leave his tax collecting, and follow Jesus! (Matt. 9:9) Matthew did and soon he became a radically changed man, and a fanatic for convincing Jews that Jesus really is their God sent Messiah! Matthew not only wanted his readers to know the family tree of Jesus, he also wanted all Jewish men to understand that Joseph was NOT the biological father of Jesus, but Joseph demonstrated God style mercy and was courageously obedient to God’s clear instructions, by taking pregnant Mary home to be his wife! (Matt. 1:18-25)
Only Matthew gives us the story of Joseph’s gut wrenching decision to believe Mary’s story and protect her as her husband. Only Matthew tells us about Magi coming from the east looking for the newborn king of the Jews and leaving amazing gifts with Mary and infant Jesus in Bethlehem, before they returned to their country! (Matt. 2:1-12) Only Matthew tells us about the tragic, horrific slaughter of Bethlehem baby boys ordered by ruthless, paranoid King Herod. (Matt. 2:13-18) And only Matthew tells us that Joseph, warned by an angel, fled Bethlehem that night, taking his little family to live as refugees in Egypt until Herod died. Only Matthew tells us why and when Joseph led his little family from Egypt back to Israel and settled them in the town of Nazareth. (Matt. 2:19-23) Oh my, if we didn’t have Matthew’s Christmas story, do you see how much we’d be missing?
Did you know Luke was a Greek doctor? That’s right, Luke was not a Jew, he never met Jesus, and Luke didn’t know anything about the Christmas story until perhaps 60 years after Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem! Luke heard about it from the apostle Paul with whom he traveled for several years. Luke then traveled to Jerusalem and Galilee interviewing as many of the friends and family of Jesus as he could find, before he wrote his version of the Christmas story. While Matthew wrote his story for Jews, Luke wrote his for Gentiles, especially Greeks & Romans.
Doctors are like tax collectors; did you know that? They both are very exact in the details and that’s why Luke describes so many little details, in his Christmas story, that no one else tells us about! Luke’s Christmas account is entirely different from Matthew’s. Luke tells us about Zechariah & Elizbeth; and Gabriel’s visit to both Zechariah and Mary. (Luke 1:5-80) Luke makes sure we understand who John the Baptist is and the relationship he and Jesus had.
Luke tells us about the Roman census and Joseph’s requirement to go to Bethlehem at just the precise time Mary was to deliver her miracle baby. (Luke 2:1-7) Have you ever considered that Mary wasn’t required by law to go with Joseph for the census, but no one believed Mary’s story, not even her family, so who would lovingly help her deliver her first baby? Luke tells us about the first visitors to the manger, shepherds, and the late night angelic choir they saw and heard in the sky! (Luke 2:8-20) Only Luke tells us about Joseph and Mary taking Jesus to the Temple and the remarkable encounter both with Simeon and Anna. (Luke 2:22-38)
And then there’s John the disciple. The way John writes his story about Jesus suggests he was perhaps Jesus’ best human friend. Amazingly John doesn’t tell us anything about Bethlehem or angels or Mary, Joseph, Zechariah or Elizabeth! In 14 short verses John wants the world to know the story of Jesus is much, much bigger than Christmas! Jesus is God the Son, eternal with no beginning or end. (John 1:1,2) John wants us to know that Jesus is the Creator of all things, including all life itself. (John 1:3,4) John makes it clear our world, our human race, from the time of Adam and Eve’s mistrust of God in the Garden of Eden, (Genesis 3) have ALL been in darkness. The darkness of Satan’s deceitfulness; the darkness of our sin shame and guilt; the darkness of our rejection of God! (John 1:5)
But John wants to be sure we understand Jesus is NOT affected by all that darkness for Jesus is pure, holy, all powerful, totally truthful and sovereign over all! When Jesus came here, God incarnate among us, everything about Him, all His goodness and His Godness, was rejected by the human race He had created! (John 1:9-11) I know that sounds crazy, but look around your city today, it’s true this Christmas isn’t it? Jesus is minimized, almost pushed out completely by all the glitz, glamour, busyness and bustle, clutter and clamor in our frenzied, confused, too often angry world at Christmas, do you see that?
However... and don’t you love that word, however? John writes this: “Yet to all who receive Him, [Jesus] to those who believe in His name, He gave the right to become children of God – children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.” (John 1:12,13) John wants us to understand Jesus came to make a sin forgiven, exciting relationship with God possible for ANY person...and it begins by believing Jesus IS who God claims Him to be… Immanuel, God incarnate with us!
John then summarizes what Matthew, Luke and he have written about the Christmas story, in one powerful statement: “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14) Oh my! May I urge you to work on memorizing that one statement this weekend and keep it as the FOCUS of your Christmas? Everything good about Christmas emanates from that one statement of ‘God truth’!
More notes for reflection are found in the “Grand Narrative” link below and you’ll find a great Christmas worship song link at the bottom of this page. I’ll be here on Monday waiting for you! God bless you, my dear friends, this Christmas.
Today’s Scripture: Matt. 1, 2; Luke 1, 2; John 1:1-14.
Choose below to read or listen.
Matt. 1, 2
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Matt. 2
Luke 1, 2
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Luke 2
John 1:1-14
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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