So often we can be convinced that if we are Christians that we should never have to face suffering. This comes through in questions like "If God is real, why is there evil in the world?" or "Why me, God?"

Matthew 2:13-23 shows us that suffering is unavoidable, even to God himself in the flesh.

So much has been made of trying to be "seeker-sensitive" in churches, but as Matthew 2:1-12 shows us, there are two kinds of seekers of Jesus and if we are not cautious we can be inviting destruction upon our church.

It can be overwhelming trying to determine what God wants for our lives. The actions of Joseph in Matthew 1 can help us understand how to honor the Lord when we are faced with difficult decisions.

All throughout the Old Testament, God makes promises to His people and when the Old Testament ends it seems that those promises were not kept.

What about the promised man who would defeat the serpent (Genesis 3)? What about the promised eternal Davidic kingdom (2 Samuel 7)? What about the suffering servant messiah who would save his people from their sins (Isaiah 53)? What about the promised New Covenant (Jeremiah 31, Ezekiel 36) where the people of God would be given new hearts?

The book of Matthew opens the New Testament with a genealogy that shows God never forgot His promises and that He always intended to keep them in a way no one expected, by sending His own Son.