The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. (Matthew 1:1)
One thing I really like about the book of Matthew is that it starts with a long list of Jesus’ ancestors. You might find that boring—I did, once—but it does this for me: It shows me that Jesus, even though He’s God Himself, is completely embedded in the human race.
I mean, look at the people He has in His family tree! I see one murderer and adulterer (David), one spy who married a prostitute (Salmon), and one king who practiced human sacrifice (Manasseh). I see a man who was called the “friend of God” even though his cowardice caused him to put his wife in danger twice (Abraham). I see a wise man who fell into idolatry (Solomon) and a good king who hung out with bad company, and nearly got himself killed that way (Jehoshaphat). I see a poor foreign girl who married a local landowner and became the great-grandmother of a king (Ruth). I see a man who gave in to the urge to show off and doomed his country (Hezekiah) and another one who had the chance to ask God for any miracle he wanted, and actually turned the offer down (Ahaz). This is a wild group of people to have in your family tree!
And Jesus is embedded into this mosaic. Which means He’s embedded into us, the human race—the sometimes glorious, sometimes sick-and-sorry group of sinners Jesus came to save through His death and resurrection.
WE PRAY: Lord, I’m glad You came so close to us. Thank You, and please stay with me! Amen.
Reflection Questions:
Does your family tree contain unusual people?
Why do you think God highlights the failings of Jesus’ ancestors and not just the good sides?
If Jesus’ ancestors are like this, what does that say about how God thinks of you?
