As mentioned in my previous post I had encouraged you to HEAR the VOICE of the 3 authors of “Christmas story Event”
So I thought I would start a nice little series for you that would highlight some info regarding these so-called VOICES!
So here we go:
VOICE #1: MATTHEW So here is his Bio: His name means “gift of God,” he was a tax collector who left his work to follow Jesus (Matt. 9.9-13), In the books of Mark and Luke you may also find Matthew known by his other name, LEVI
- Some argued on the basis of its Jewish characteristics that Matthew’s Gospel was written in the early church era, possibly dated in the early part of AD 50… but the debate rages on
-The Jewish nature of Matthew’s Gospel may suggest it was written while in the Holy Land, though any think it may have originated in Syrian Antioch
-The readers of Matthew’s Gospel were obviously Greek speaking, as the Gospel was written in Greek. They also seem to be Jewish. Many elements point to a Jewish readership including: focus on fulfillment of OT; his Tracing Jesus descent to from Abraham, his use of Jewish terminology, etc…
-Matthew’s main purpose is to prove to his Jewish readers that Jesus is Messiah. He does this primarily by illustrating how Jesus life and ministry fulfilled the OT Scriptures. To accomplish this purpose, Matthew also highlights Jesus Davidic lineage…
So there is a brief overview … many thanks to the books on my shelf, including the works of J.S. Baxter and The NIV Study Bible research team
//blessings//pastorbrett
