"You are the salt of the earth . . . You are the light of the world." Matthew 5:13-14"I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church." Matthew 16:18The world tries to define us in different ways. We try to define ourselves one way or another. But who are we really? How does God define us?The Gospel of Matthew was written to a group of Christians who didn?t yet know who they were. They were faithful Jews in the synagogue community in Galilee who had found the Messiah. Jesus had changed everything. But how should they think of themselves now, as Jewish or Christian? What did it all mean?Matthew writes his Gospel to help his readers define their new identity as followers of Jesus the Messiah. Michael Card unpacks how Matthew?s emphasis on fulfillment confirms their Jewish connection to the Torah, while his focus on the kingdom helps them understand their new identities in Christ. Matthew presents this process of redefinition as an exercise of the imagination, in which Jesus reshapes who we are in light of who he is.Come alongside Matthew in this pilgrimage, and discover how your new identity in Christ fulfills all that you are meant to be.

In a career that spans 30 years, Michael Card has recorded over 31 albums, authored or co-authored over 24 books, hosted a radio program, and written for a wide range of magazines. An award-winning musician and performing artist, he has penned such favorites as "El Shaddai," "Immanuel" and many other songs. He has branched his ministry beyond music and written numerous books, including A Sacred Sorrow, A Violent Grace, The Parable of Joy and Sleep Sound in Jesus (a children's book). He has also written the Biblical Imagination Series, with a book and accompanying music CD for each of the four gospels. A graduate of Western Kentucky University with a bachelor's and master's degree in biblical studies, Card also serves as mentor to many younger artists and musicians, teaching courses on the creative process and calling the Christian recording industry into deeper discipleship. Card lives in Tennessee with his wife and four children.

PrefaceLearning to Listen to MatthewMajor ThemesJesus as FulfillmentThe Crisis in GalileeThe Gospel of IdentityMatthew 1The Messiah?s PedigreeA Dream Come TrueMatthew 2The World?s Wisdom Bows DownThe EscapeMatthew 3The Voice of One in the WildernessThe Perfect Words of the FatherMatthew 4The Temptation in the WildernessPreaching in GalileeThe First Disciples, the First MissionMatthew 5Jesus? Nine BenedictionsJesus Tell Us Who We AreAn Unexpected FulfillmentA New RighteousnessMatthew 6A Secret RighteousnesTrue TreasureHow to be Worry FreeMatthew 7Do Not JudgeDo Not Give Up AskingSermon SummaryMatthew 8The Disobedient LeperThe Confident CenturionThe One Who Carries Our IllnessThe Homeless Son of ManTwo Demonic ConfrontationsMatthew 9Winning Praise for GodThe Calling of MatthewOld Orthodoxy/New RealityPower Over Disease and DeathOne Request He Will Never DenyFinal Synagogue TourMatthew 10Appointing the TwelveInstructions to the TwelveMatthew 11Jesus' Failure to Meet ExpectationsCapernaum and SodomThe Painful Joy of JesusMatthew 12The Identity of JesusLord of the SabbathThe Fearless HealerGod?s Gentle ServantThe Son of DaviGreater Than Jonah and SolomonA New Family of FaithMatthew 13The Parable of the SoilsThe Parable of the WeedsThe Parable of the Mustard Seed and the YeastThree Parables Unique to MatthewThe End of the Synagogue MinistryMatthew 14The Ludicrous Death of JohnThe Miracle of Perfect ProvisionTheir First Time to WorshipMatthew 15Jesus Attacks the Oral LawBread for the PuppiesA Miracle of AbundanceMatthew 16Engaging the PhariseesThe "Yeast of the Pharisees"Peter?s Confession and BlessingPeter?s Rebuke and CursingMatthew 17The Transfiguration"Have Mercy"An Un-miraculous MiracleMatthew 18Who is the Greatest?The Lonely Lost SheepThe Process of Forgiving Your BrotherA Willingness to Forgive LittleMatthew 19Divorce and the Little ChildrenA Flawed QuestionMatthew 20The Eccentric Employer/A Parable of HeseThe Third Announcement of SufferingA Request to be FirstTwo Blind MenMatthew 21The "Triumphal" EntryA Prophet is in the TempleA Lesson from the LeavesQuestions of AuthorityTwo "Worker" ParablesMatthew 22The Wedding FeastThree Controversy StoriesJesus? Coup de GrasMatthew 23Seven WoesOne LamentMatthew 24Two Questions/Two AnswersA Parable About Not KnowingMatthew 25Three Parables of ConfusionMatthew 26The Plot BeginThe AnointingThe Deal is ClosedThe Last SupperThe GardenThe ArrestBefore CaiaphasRedemptive TearsMatthew 27The Sickness Unto DeathBefore PilateA Vegetative CrowJesus CrucifiedJesus "Dismisses" His SpiritA Rich Man?s Tomb"Make the Tomb Secure"Matthew 28The ResurrectionThe BribeJesus Meets Them Back HomeAppendicesResources