Rachel...

Allow me to take a stab at responding to your questions.

Here is an article that gives a good response along with the catholic rebuttal and a rebuttal to that from a biblical perspective!

http://www.justforcatholics.org/a105.htm

Remember to not get too focused on the weeds and keep bringing folks back to our all sufficient savior. Hebrews 7:25

I was interested to notice that the only women mentioned in this genealogy are a prostitute, a Moabitess, a woman who conceived a son because of David's moral failure and a young, unknown adolescent. For some reason it was important to God that this be recorded and that we know it. I am reminded of I Corinthians 1:26-31. "God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God."

I have a Roman Catholic neighbor and after a recent conversation I had with her verse 25 really stood out to me. "but knew her not until she had given birth to a son." This verse clearly states that Mary did not remain a virgin after Jesus was born. So, form an apologetic stance, how do the Roman Catholics look at this verse and what is a good response in defense of their view that Mary stayed a virgin? Also, don't they also view her as holy? What is a good response to that as well?

I had trouble understanding the 14/14/14 count until I realized that Jechoniah is counted in two lists.

thank you BF for settng this up .

Matthew's point for writing this gospel is stated even in the first verse, to show Jesus as the promised Son of David. Looking forward to doing this with y'all!

Genealogy:
Promise to Abraham met in Jesus, check.
Promise to David met in Jesus, check.

So thankful that God is always faithful to His promises!

"and they shall call his name Immanuel”(which means, God with us) absolutely amazing every time I read it! And to know He is still with us through the Holy Spirit.

God's Word is true yesterday, today and tomorrow as evidenced by the fulfillment of prophecies through Jeremiah and Mica in v 6, 18, 23(?). We also see the Magi and Joseph obeyed God and were led to safety. I pray we would be like them and obey God in big life decisions and in the thousands of little moment-by-moment, thought-by-thought decisions.

So excited to read through the NT this year with our church family! Love all the encouraging and insightful comments. What great accountability. Happy New Year 2017!

What grace!! What love the Father has bestowed on us. (Verse 21) She will bear a Son and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.

I love that we are doing this as a Church. A different thought I had - God knows your spouse as deeply as God knew Mary. I just have a feeling that Joseph didn't treat his wife like the "old ball and chain". He knew that God loved her. He knew that Mary was first God's, then his.

I am always encouraged by reading genealogies to remember that God knows and uses individual people to accomplish His purposes. Sometimes it is famous people like Abraham or David, sometimes it is unknown people (at least to me) like Nahshon, and sometimes it is people who are known in negative ways, like Rahab. Yet God can change any of us, can use each of us. What a blessing! Looking forward to see how God uses the people of BF in 2017.

Here's a good cross reference to help explain the magnitude of what was taking place in these verses! Excited also for this opportunity! Gal. 4:3 Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world. 4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” 7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

Kate, I'm with you on that! I underlined verse 19 and reread verse 24-25 multiple times. I think I sometimes forget the obedience of Joseph too in all of this! I also just was awed at knowing that abraham was told all of this so long ago and everything happened exactly as said!

I am so thankful for this chance to read through the NT with all of you.

I'm amazed that God so precisely teaches us the genealogy of Jesus, but don't ask me to recite it to you! So thankful for this opportunity to join the whole family of BF in reading God's Word! Looking forward to connecting with so many others in reading God's Word.

I'm always amazed at Joseph's obedience both here and later when he's told to go to Egypt.... Do I obey like that? Hmmm...

So glad we can read through the NT together as a church family! And what a way to start! Jesus is the Christ! Everything in this chapter establishes this great truth. The genealogy does; the angel does; the prophet does; Joseph does; and so does Matthew. There is no doubt that Jesus is the Christ, the only one who can save His people from their sins! Happy New Year BF! Let us exalt the Lord together in 2017!

Thanks so much for bringing DBR to BF!! So exciting to go through the NT together. And, how wonderful to interact with our congregation online with God's Word at the center of our thoughts.