"This is a record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, a descendant of David and of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac. Isaac was the father of...". and it continues the generations of Jesus' ancestory.
There are many fathers and sons listed in this genealogy record. Some of the names are a little difficult to pronounce; but each one represents a person and a life lived. More importantly, these were the people God chose to bring forth His son. They must have been pretty amazing people, right? Many of them were people of strong faith, devotion toward God and humility. But they were also people, like you and I... capable of mistakes and sin... lying and deceiving... and in some cases, really big sins... like adultery, prostitution, and murder. Why would God allow His Son to come from such sinful people? In speaking of God's Son, the author of Hebrews says:
"...it was necessary for him to be made like us,
his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful
and faithful High Priest before God.
Then he could offer a sacrifice that
would take away the sins of the people...
This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses,
for he faced all of the same testings, yet he did not sin. "
Hebrews 2:17,18 4:15
"For everyone has sinned;
we all fall short of God's glorious standard.
Yet God, with undeserved kindness,
declares that we are righteous.
He did this through Christ Jesus when he
freed us from the penalty of our sins.
For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin.
People are made right with God
when they believe that Jesus
sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. "
Romans 3:23-25
"The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ,
the Son of David, the Son of Abraham..."
Matthew 1:1
Abraham is the first main example of faith and is seen as the father of faith.
"Abraham believed God, and God
counted him as righteous because of his faith."
Romans 4:3, Genesis 15:6
Before Jesus died as a sacrifice for sin, God counted people as righteous if they believed in Him and showed their faith by trusting in His promises of what He was yet to do. You will find their stories in Hebrews 11 and originally in the Old Testament. How should we respond to the great gift of righteousness before God through faith in the sacrifice of Jesus?
"So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God.
There we will receive his mercy,
and we will find grace to help us when we need it most."
Hebrews 4:16A
4 comments:
Matthew was writing for the Jews and in order for them to accept that Jesus was the fulfillment of many OT prophecies about the promised Messiah, he needed to establish that Jesus was born from the lineage of David. Thus the lengthy genealogy.
Years ago, a pastor challenged us to look up the meaning of all the names of Jesus' ancestors. Much to my delighted surprise, their names described attributes of God as if unfolding an ever deepening understanding of Him. Here are some of them: The Father is high (Abraham), Beloved (David), Jehovah is Father, Jehovah is Healer, Jehovah is Judge, Jehovah is Exalted, Jehovah is Strength, Jehovah is Perfect. Jehovah Establishes, The Father is Majesty, Epistle, Righteousness, Double Winepress, God has helped, Gift of God (Jacob), May God Add (Joseph), Jehovah will Raise (Mary), Jehovah is Salvation (Jesus), Anointed (Christ).
Yes, His lineage of both David as King and Abraham as the father of faith, God's covenant promises and the Jewish nation had to be established.
I have not studied the names of Jesus' ancestors. Sounds like a great study. :) I do believe Isaac's name means "Laughter"
"Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Christ."
Abraham had been promised, by God, that a Saviour would come and that a great nation was to come from him. Israel was the great nation that would come from him and, by the Ingrafting, the believers in the promised Messiah would also be that great nation.
Through Abraham, we have the man by whom the promise of a Saviour and a nation (both physical and spiriual) was made .
We also have the man by whom the Kingdom of the Messiah would come from, David.
Now the exile to Babylon was not glorious as God's presence had been lifted up from the very disobedient Israel. God's absence from Israel for some 400 years made her long and sigh for Him. The coming of the Messiah - Jesus - was quite timely. He came to bring the people of Israel (and the rest of the world) out of its darkness through the era of His grace.
In the genealogy of Jesus, there are both Jews and Gentiles, making Jesus truly the Saviour of the world! He was Jewish but with some Gentile blood, which is quite significant for the salvation of the whole world.
God's plan is so absolutely perfect! He planned everything, including Jesus' genealogy. Everything God does has a purpose!
To someone unfamiliar with the Old Testament, the genealogy could seem quite boring. But I love it because I know the people God chose to be Jesus' forebears and their stories, both the good and the bad. Many had hearts towards God and yet they were very human and God provided a way for them to be righteous in their faith in Him and His word. I especially appreciate Rahab the Harlot and Ruth the Moabite, both gentiles opening the way for the whole world to find salvation through Christs blood. ~Sheri
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