Gospel Chapel Stained Glass Windows

1) The long list of ancestors is designed to establish the relationship of Jesus to Abraham and David so that we are ready for the Magi’s question, “Where is he who was born King of the Jews?” (ch. 2:25).

2) Jesus begins His preaching with the pronouncement, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (ch. 4:17).

3) The Sermon on the Mount constitutes the Magna Charta of Jesus’ kingdom (ch. 5:1-7:29).

4) His parables commence with the formula: “The kingdom of Heaven is like...” (chs. 13:24, 31, 33, 44, 45, 47; 18:23; 20:1; 22:2; 25:1). In fact, there are no fewer than fifty references to the kingdom in Matthew’s gospel, and it must be viewed as a leading concept (Johnsson, William G., Religion in Overalls, Nashville: Southern Publishing Assoc., 1977, p. 26, 28).

This is the Greek title: According to Matthew.
 

The lion just below the left hand of Jesus with the children:

Matthew “presents Jesus as the Son of Abraham and the Son of David, the father of the nation and its most illustrious King” (5 BC - 273). What animal depicts a King better than the king of beasts—the lion. Jesus is called “the lion of the tribe of Judah…” (Revelation 5:5).
 

The ten lamps at the bottom of the glass:

These lamps represent the familiar parable of the ten virgins (ch. 25:1-13) which teaches “personal preparation for our Lord’s return; His coming seemingly delayed. Our need of the Holy Spirit” is also portrayed (5 BC - 207).

 
Forty-one stars:

“Three divisions each composed of 14 generations (ch. 1:17) would total 42 instead of the 41 listed by Matthew. This seeming discrepancy has been explained by various means. Some propose that the name Jeconias should be counted twice, as the last name in the second group and the first in the third group. Others are of the opinion that Matthew originally listed the name Jehoiakim between those of Josias and Jechonias” (see v. 11) (5 BC - 281).

Another explanation for 41 instead of 42 names in the list is that Christ is included and Joseph is excluded from this genealogy because Joseph is recognized as only the husband of Mary and not Jesus’ father (ch. 1:16).

 
The thirty circles:

These circles represent the thirty pieces of silver that Judas betrayed Christ for (ch. 26:15). Thirty shekels of silver was the traditional price of a slave (Exodus 21:32).

The Shekel of Tyre. Phoenician - 126 B.C., “30 Pieces of Silver.” The true international money from the Greek era was the shekel, stater, and tetradrachm, all roughly equal to four days wages for a laborer. Experts consider this coin as one of the 30 pieces of silver paid Judas (about $15) for betraying Jesus Luke 22:47). This coin was also the one found in the fish’s mouth (ch. 17:27). The God Me Karth on the obverse was the Tyrian figure for the pagan god Baal.
 

Jesus with crown of thorns on his head:

Jesus was mistreated and mocked: “Hail, King of the Jews!” (ch. 27:27-31) to demonstrate how much He was willing to endure to give us a place in His kingdom. He wore a crown of thorns in order that we might wear a crown of glory (1 Peter 5:4).
 

Roman numerals VII:XII on the right side of the grapes:

These numerals represent Matthew 7:12—the golden rule. The golden rule summarizes the obligations of the second table of the decalogue—loving our neighbors—and it is the acid test of the genuineness of a man’s religion.

 
Jesus with the children:

This scene illustrates Jesus’ desire to have children as a part of His kingdom (ch. 19:14). It also shows that to enter the kingdom requires becoming like a child—humble and trustful (ch. 18:1-3).

Jesus is telling the children about His great love for them. They are unaware that when He talks about His love, it is tied in with His suffering and death, at which He is pointing in this scene.
 

The phrase: “Our Father”:

This phrase represents the beginning of the best-known prayer in scripture, The Lord’s Prayer (ch. 6:9-13).
 

Flower in the lower right corner:

These flowers represent the “lilies of the field” (anemone coronaria) mentioned in Matthew 6:28. That, perhaps, Jesus used as a term for “wild flowers” to illustrate His not being unconcerned about people’s needs, since He took such good care of the “wild flowers.”

It should be noted that the long-stemmed starlike field flower we know as the lily may be only one of many species called lily in the Bible…. The lily was a common flower of the field (Song of Solomon 4:5), possessing a lovely fragrance (Song of Solomon 5:13) and an artistic form, copied in architecture (1 Kings 7:19, 22, 26; 2 Chronicles 4:5) (SDA Bible Dictionary 653).
 

The grape vine:

The vine represents the pruning in our lives that must precede our abundant fruit bearing, which is needed to enter Christ’s kingdom.

Also, the parable of the laborers in the vineyard is represented (ch. 20:1-16). It illustrates that the rewards of the kingdom are based on God's generosity and man's motive for service.

The grape leaf is that of the Malaga Blanc/Dabouki whose origin and synonyms were Syria. The fruit cluster was conical, fairly large, well-filled and the berries were ellipsoidal and very large, white in color with thick skin (Pierre Galet, A Practical Ampelography: Grapevine Identification).

 
The wise men:

These men illustrate that Jesus is desirous that men from all walks of life enter His kingdom (ch. 8:11).
 

Male-female symbols in center of stars:

This modern symbol is intentional to symbolize Christ as the seed that not only was come (ch. 1:23), but is to come again—possibly in our day (ch. 24:44).