By The Rev. Dr. Paul A. Leggett
Sunday, November 29, 2009 · First Sunday of Advent
Sermon Text: Matthew 1:1-2
Sermon Theme
The psalmist says, “In Judah God is known, his name is great in Israel” (Psalm 76:1). What is special about Judah? Judah is the fourth son born to Jacob and Leah, a marriage based on deception. Judah is part of the plot to do away with his brother Joseph (although he doesn’t want to kill him). He impregnates his daughter-in-law thinking she is a temple prostitute. How is God known through him? God’s ways are not our ways. It is through the tribe of Judah that Jesus is born. At a climactic moment, Judah will offer to give his life to save his brother, Benjamin. In Judah, we see God’s plan of redemption beginning. Jesus’ origin helps us understand his mission.
Sermon Outline
- Resent Judah is the fourth of twelve sons of Jacob. He with the rest of his brothers strongly resents, indeed hates, his younger brother Joseph. Joseph is favored by their father Jacob (or Israel). Judah proposes sending Joseph into slavery and then deceiving their father by telling him that Joseph is dead. They sell Joseph for twenty pieces of silver (cf. Matthew 26:15). Their father is plunged into despair. Judah and his brothers are despicable, hateful and deceptive. Yet these are God’s chosen people. What is God thinking?
- Reject Judah becomes accustomed to betrayal. He marries outside the family of faith. He has three sons. The first marries a Canaanite woman, Tamar. God kills the first son because of his wickedness (how about Judah himself?). Following the custom and indeed later, the law (Deuteronomy 25:5-6), Tamar is given to Judah’s second son who exploits her. God then takes his life. Judah tries to keep her from marrying his third and last son. Knowing she has been betrayed, Tamar poses as a temple prostitute and becomes pregnant with twins by Judah. Judah realizes that she was more right than he was (Genesis 38:1-30). Matthew tells us that it is through the line of Judah and Tamar, with its deceit, betrayal and idolatry, that Jesus will be born.
- Redeem God’s plan of redemption through the tribe of Judah finally begins to become clear when the brothers come to Egypt during a famine. They do not recognize their brother Joseph who is now Prime Minister of Egypt. Joseph threatens to keep the younger brother, Benjamin, with him. Judah then emerges as a leader. He acknowledges the brothers’ guilt. More than this, he offers himself in the place of Benjamin. What is the point of this story? It is to show that redemptive, sacrificial love is the highest expression of love. Redemption through sacrifice restores the loved one at the cost of one’s own life. Jesus said, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13). Judah’s action points forward to Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice. To be restored in this way is to be reborn. God’s sacrificial love conquers the world. This is the message of Advent and Christmas. This is the message of the gospel.
Questions for Us
- Why do you think God chooses Judah and not the more faithful brothers, Joseph or Benjamin, to be the ancestor of Jesus Christ (Psalm 78:67-68)?
- What lesson do you think Judah learns from his encounter with Tamar whom he betrays, not unlike his betrayal of his brother Joseph (Genesis 38:1-30)?
- Paul says that God sent Jesus “in the likeness of sinful flesh” (Romans 8:3). Why do you think Scripture presents the picture of “sinful flesh” often in graphic detail? How does this prepare us for the reality of the gospel?
