Today’s Reading:  Matthew 12:46-50; Mark 3:31-35; Luke 1:26-38, 46-56; 2:1-7, 21-38, 8:19-21

There are five women in the genealogy of Jesus – five women with stained reputations but also five women whom God chose to bless by placing them in this royal lineage.  As Jesus was growing up, I am sure his parents taught him the stories of his ancestors.   

What would Jesus have said regarding his precious mother, Mary, the fifth of the women in this genealogy recorded by Matthew?  Let’s look at her story – a story of a young woman who was the object of gossip, speculation, condemnation and, best of all, the love of Jesus.  

Mary – a simple young woman seen by God to be worthy of the task of raising God’s Son.  

Mary – a virgin waiting for her upcoming marriage to the carpenter Joseph.  

Mary – found to be with child before her wedding day.  

Who would believe her when she said an angel appeared to her?  

Who would be convinced she was still a virgin?

Who would be the first to call out for her stoning?

This is the story of how Mary came to be in the lineage of Jesus:

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary.  She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David.  Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman!  The Lord is with you!”

Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean.  “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God!  You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus.  He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High.  The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David.  And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!

Mary asked, “But how can this happen?  I am a virgin.”

The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.  So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.  What more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age!  People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month.  For nothing is impossible with God.”

Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant.  May everything you have said about me come true.” And the angel left her. – Luke 1:26-38

She could have panicked.  She could have argued, “Why me?!!”  She could have worried about her reputation or what her community might do to her.  But Mary, precious Mary, responded in submission to God’s holy plan with a humility that is still highly respected today.  

Mary – who sang a song of praise, “…Oh, how my soul praises the Lord.  How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!  For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and from now on all generations will call me blessed…” (1:47-48).

Mary – who traveled to Bethlehem in Judea, while far along in her pregnancy, only to arrive in labor with no place but a simple manger to give birth to the Christ child (2:4-7).

Mary – who listened to the shepherds’ story of what the angels had said to them and kept all these things in her heart, thinking about them often (2:16-19).

Mary – who presented her baby to the Lord in Jerusalem and was amazed by what Simeon had to say about the baby she held in her arms.  Can you imagine what she was thinking when she heard his words:  “This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall, but he will be a joy to many others.  He has been sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose him.  As a result, the deepest thoughts of many hearts will be revealed.  And a sword will pierce your very soul” (2:34-35).

Mary – who, while talking to Simeon, was approached by the prophet Anna, who began talking to everyone who had been waiting expectantly for God to rescue Jerusalem (2:36-38).

At what point do you think Mary began to feel a little overwhelmed?  She was human and would have felt the same things we would feel if we thought we had lost our twelve year old in Jerusalem during the crowded Passover festival (2:48).  She was his mother, no wonder she pushed him toward greatness at the wedding in Cana (John 2:3-5).  She was his mother, no wonder she interrupted his ministry with the desire to talk with him and spend time with him (Matthew 12:46).  He was her son, no wonder she wept as he hung on the cross dying (Matthew 27:56).

What would Jesus have to say about this fifth woman listed in his genealogy?   She was his mother and he loved her.  

Standing near the cross were Jesus’ mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary (the wife of Clopas), and Mary Magdalene.  When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside the disciple he loved, he said to her, “Dear woman, here is your son.”  And he said to the disciple, “Here is your mother,” and from then on this disciple took her into his home (John 19:25-27).

Jesus said very little while on the cross, but he took the time to respond to his mother’s breaking heart.  His love for her must have been so great!  Wouldn’t it be great to be loved by Jesus in that way?  But wait, we are!   Remember this conversation:

Jesus asked, “Who is my mother?  Who are my brothers?”  Then he pointed to his disciples and said, “Look, these are my mother and brothers.  Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!” (Matthew 12:48-50)

This fifth woman in the genealogy of Jesus was no doubt loved and cared for by her son, but that same love and care was poured out for us when Jesus gave His life on the cross so that we might spend eternity with Him.  Let’s consider how much Jesus loves us as we finish our morning coffee…

Today’s Reading:  Luke 7:37-50, Psalm 90

There are five women in the genealogy of Jesus – five women with stained reputations but also five women whom God chose to bless by placing them in this royal lineage.  As Jesus was growing up, I am sure his parents taught him the stories of his ancestors.  

What would Jesus have said regarding Bathsheba, the fourth woman in his paternal genealogy?  Let’s look at her story – a story that includes foolishness, adultery, intense grief and finally redemption – a second chance.

Salmon was the father of Boaz (whose mother was Rahab).
Boaz was the father of Obed (whose mother was Ruth).
Obed was the father of Jesse.
Jesse was the father of King David.
David was the father of Solomon (whose mother was Bathsheba, the widow of Uriah). – Matthew 1:5-6

The fact that Bathsheba is described in the genealogy of Jesus as the widow of Uriah is a reminder of the sin that brought her into this family tree.  Bathsheba made a foolish decision that led to a weak moment which led to a tragic death of an innocent man, her husband.

In the spring of the year, when kings normally go out to war, David sent Joab and the Israelite army to fight the Ammonites. They destroyed the Ammonite army and laid siege to the city of Rabbah. However, David stayed behind in Jerusalem.

Late one afternoon, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath. He sent someone to find out who she was, and he was told, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” Then David sent messengers to get her; and when she came to the palace, he slept with her. She had just completed the purification rites after having her menstrual period. Then she returned home.  Later, when Bathsheba discovered that she was pregnant, she sent David a message, saying, “I’m pregnant.” – 2 Samuel 11:1-5

David’s first mistake is that he was not where he should have been.  He should have been on the battlefield with the Israelite army but chose to send them out alone.  Bathsheba’s first mistake was similar.  She was not where she should have been.  Even if the weather was warm and a bath on the roof was permissible, she should have set up a covering to prevent anyone from being able to see her.  Bathsheba would have been fully aware that she could be seen from the roof of the palace.

Ladies, there is a strong warning in here for us.  We know when our choice of clothing draws the eyes of men.  When we wear something that reveals more than it should, we are no less foolish than Bathsheba was for bathing on the rooftop.

“Stay ever so close to me, and you will not deviate from the path I have prepared for you.”  This is great advice from Sarah Young’s Jesus Calling devotional.  This would have been good advice for David and Bathsheba.  If they had stayed close to God, they would have been where they were supposed to be and would not have given into sexual immorality.  Their union led to shame and an unplanned pregnancy, which led to a murder to cover up the transgression, which led to their grief when their son died seven days after birth.

David confessed his sin to the Lord and, although there were still some harsh consequences, God forgave David his sin (12:11-14).  God blessed David and Bathsheba with another son and David named him Solomon.  The Lord loved the child and sent word through Nathan the prophet that they should name him Jedidiah (which means “beloved of the Lord”), as the Lord had commanded. – 2 Samuel 12:24b-25

This is the story of how Bathsheba came to be in the lineage of Jesus. What would the young man, Jesus, have to say of this woman in his family story – the one with the “scarlet letter”?

When a certain immoral woman from that city heard he was eating there, she brought a beautiful alabaster jar filled with expensive perfume.  Then she knelt behind him at his feet, weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Then she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on them.

When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. She’s a sinner!”

Then Jesus answered his thoughts. “Simon,” he said to the Pharisee, “I have something to say to you.”

“Go ahead, Teacher,” Simon replied.

Then Jesus told him this story: “A man loaned money to two people—500 pieces of silver to one and 50 pieces to the other.  But neither of them could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?”

Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he canceled the larger debt.”

“That’s right,” Jesus said.  Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Look at this woman kneeling here. When I entered your home, you didn’t offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair.  You didn’t greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet.  You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume.

“I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.”  Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven…Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” – Luke 7:37-50

If you can relate to Bathsheba’s foolish decisions and sinful behavior, if you understand the grief and regret she suffered, then perhaps these words are what you need to hear from the Prince of Peace himself, “Your sins are forgiven…Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”  If you relate more to the Pharisees who stood in condemnation of the sinful woman who was kneeling at Jesus feet, if you have focused on the sins of another person instead of on their need for Jesus, then perhaps these words are also for you – “Your sins are forgiven…Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Today’s Reading:  Psalm 26, 49, 72 & 77

There are five women in the genealogy of Jesus – five women with stained reputations but also five women whom God chose to bless by placing them in this royal lineage.  As Jesus was growing up, I am sure his parents taught him the stories of his ancestors.  

What would Jesus have said regarding Ruth, the third of the women in his paternal genealogy?  Let’s look at her story – a story that includes the loss of a husband and leaving everything she knows to go to a strange land, only to be treated as an outsider or foreigner.  Ruth’s stained reputation had nothing to do with her actions and everything to do with the color of her skin and her ethnic heritage.

Just like Rahab, Ruth was a foreigner who took refuge under the wings of the God of Israel (Ruth 2:12).  When given the opportunity to return to her family and their false gods, Ruth said to her mother-in-law, Naomi, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back.  Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live.  Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.  Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried.  May the Lord punish me severely if I allow anything but death to separate us!” – Ruth 1:16-17

In those days, the nearest relative to the patriarch in the family was referred to as the “Family Redeemer.”   They had three responsibilities:  

1. If you became so poor that you were going to have to sell your land, the Family Redeemer was to pay off your debt so the land would remain in the family.
2. If you became so poor that you had to sell yourself into debt-slavery, the Family Redeemer was to purchase your debt and save you from slavery to a non-relative.  You would then become a servant to the Family Redeemer to work off the debt.
3. If you were killed by another’s hand, the Family Redeemer was to pursue justice for you.

Boaz became the Family Redeemer for Naomi and Ruth when they returned to Israel from the country of Moab.  Naomi returned to land that had been inactive in her husband’s absence.  With no one there to plant the seed, there would be no harvest.  Naomi sent Ruth out to gather what was left after the workers had harvested the fields.  But God’s plan for Ruth was not for her to survive on leftovers, but that she would thrive in abundance.  She had been faithfully devoted to both Naomi and to the Lord, and He was about to do something for her that was beyond her understanding.

Boaz was a wealthy and influential man and a close relative to Naomi’s deceased husband, Elimelech.  Boaz was not the closest relative however, so he went on Ruth’s behalf and arranged to buy the land and take Ruth as his wife.  I love the blessing of the elders and people who witnessed the generosity of Boaz:

“We are witnesses!  May the Lord make this woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, from whom all the nation of Israel descended!  May you prosper in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem.  And may the Lord give you descendants by this young woman who will be like those of our ancestor Perez, the son of Tamar and Judah.”  – Ruth 4:11-12

Ruth was receiving a blessing similar to another young widow whom God blessed generously – Tamar.  Like Tamar, Ruth was a widow who was left without children to carry on the family name.  But God had a plan of redemption for Ruth, just as He had for Tamar.  Not only would Ruth’s family be famous in Bethlehem, Bethlehem would become famous because of Ruth’s family.  

The women in the town saw this union of Boaz and Ruth as Naomi’s redemption.  She had lost her husband and both of her sons and was left alone with only her daughter-in-law to support her.  Knowing that the Christ child who was to be born in this family lineage, consider the powerful words of these unsuspecting women as they speak a blessing on Naomi and her descendants.

“Praise the Lord, who has now provided a redeemer for your family!  May this child be famous in Israel.  May he restore your youth and care for you in your old age.  For he is the son of your daughter-in-law who loves you and has been better to you than seven sons!”

Naomi took the baby and cuddled him to her breast.  And she cared for him as if he were her own.  The neighbor women said, “Now at last Naomi has a son again!”  And they named him Obed.  He became the father of Jesse and the grandfather of David. – Ruth 4:14-17

So Ruth was the great-grandmother to David, the first King of Israel and the one whose lineage would produce the Messiah.  From the union of Boaz and Ruth, the ultimate Family Redeemer would be born.  Because of our own sinful choices, we were slaves to our sin, but Jesus paid the debt for our sins and rescued us from slavery with the shedding of his scarlet blood.   

“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” – Matthew 20:28

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 for 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 3:23-25a

He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. – Ephesians 1:7

He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds. – Titus 2:14

This is the story of how Ruth came to be in the lineage of Jesus.  Though others saw her as less because of where she came from, God saw her as more because He knew where she was going.  God’s plan of redemption was not only for Tamar and for Rahab and for Ruth; God’s plan of redemption is for all of us.  No matter who we are or what we have done, Jesus is our Family Redeemer.  Though we are poor and have nothing of earthly value to offer him, He has paid our debt and delivered us from slavery to sin.  

Let us worship our Family Redeemer – the One who was born and died to offer us eternal life.  Let’s humbly bow down and offer to Him all that we are, along with all of our past regrets, so that we can walk into His future and thankfully accept His gift of salvation.  

Today’s Reading:  John 8:1-11

There are five women in the genealogy of Jesus – five women with stained reputations but also five women whom God chose to bless by placing them in this royal lineage.  As Jesus was growing up, I am sure his parents taught him the stories of his ancestors.  

What would Jesus have said regarding Rahab, the second of the women in his paternal genealogy?  Let’s look at her story – a story that includes prostitution, deceit, dishonesty and finally REDEMPTION and a new life.

Tamar had disguised herself and acted as a prostitute one time in an act of deceit but Rahab made a living from prostitution.  Rahab opened her home up to strangers as an inn or hotel in the walled city of Jericho.  It was common for women who owned this kind of business to also offer more than just a place to sleep for the night but to also offer their body to the strangers passing through town.

But this night was different.  Her guests served the God she had heard so much about, the God who drew her to Himself in a way that perhaps made her feel loved and worthy for the first time. So when she received orders from the king of Jericho to bring out the spies, Rahab lied and said the spies were no longer there.  To protect these godly men, she hid them beneath bundles of flax she had laid out on the roof and lied about their whereabouts in order to help them escape safely.

Before the spies went to sleep that night, Rahab went on the roof to talk with them.  “I know the Lord has given you this land,” she told them.  “We are all afraid of you.  Everyone in the land is living in terror.  For we have heard how the Lord made a dry path for you through the Red Sea when you left Egypt.  And we know what you did to Sihon and Og, the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan River, whose people you completely destroyed.  No wonder our hearts have melted in fear!  No one has the courage to fight after hearing such things.  For the Lord your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below.

“Now swear to me by the Lord that you will be kind to me and my family since I have helped you.  Give me some guarantee that when Jericho is conquered, you will let me live, along with my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all their families.” – Joshua 2:8-13

Rahab’s desire was to live.  But beyond the idea of escaping death, Rahab’s heart desired to REALLY live – to experience the kind of life the God of Israel could give her.  She had heard the stories and her heart longed to be a part of what God was doing.  This foreign prostitute had developed a faith in God in the midst of a pagan world.  

So Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute and her relatives who were with her in the house, because she had hidden the spies Joshua sent to Jericho.  And she lives among the Israelites to this day. – Joshua 6:25

This is the story of how Rahab came to be in the lineage of Jesus.  In this story, Rahab risked her life in order to spare the life of two men of God.  She walked away from everything she had ever known – the sin, the shame, the regret, the scarlet rope – and began worshipping the God who had always loved her.    

A man named Salmon (a descendant of Tamar’s son Perez) looked beyond Rahab’s past and gave her a future as his wife.  Perhaps Salmon remembered the redemption of Tamar when he looked at Rahab and was willing to offer her the same grace that had been extended to his ancestor.  Together they had a son and they named him Boaz.  All three of these names can be found in the genealogy of Jesus Christ.  

What would the young man, Jesus, have to say of this woman in his family story?  What would Jesus have to say of this woman with a history of sexual immorality?  Perhaps Jesus’ thoughts went to Rahab when he knelt down and wrote in the sand:

Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, but early the next morning he was back again at the Temple.  A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and taught them.  As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery.  They put her in front of the crowd.

“Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery.  The law of Moses says to stone her.  What do you say?”

They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger.  They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned through the first stone!”  Then he stooped down and wrote in the dust.

When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman.  Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers?  Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”

“No, Lord,” she said.

And Jesus said, “Neither do I.  Go and sin no more.” – John 8:1-11

Perhaps there is a “scarlet rope” in your past that has kept you in bondage when God wants to use it for your escape.  Just like Tamar and Rahab, God’s perfect plan for you includes redemption and forgiveness – new life in Christ.  

Or maybe it is not YOU that you are using the “scarlet rope” against.  Perhaps there is someone in your life for whom God intends redemption and forgiveness but you are using the “scarlet rope” to keep her in bondage, unwilling to forgive or forget the sinful decisions she has made.  

Jesus is stooping down and writing something in the sand.  Listen closely.  He is saying something.  “But let the one who has never sinned through the first stone!”  Let’s put down the stone in our hand, unwrap the “scarlet rope” from around her reputation and offer her the same thing that God offers her – redemption and forgiveness – new life in Christ.

Today’s Reading:  John 4:1-42

There are five women in the genealogy of Jesus – five women with stained reputations but also five women whom God chose to bless by placing them in this royal lineage.  As Jesus was growing up, I am sure his parents taught him the stories of his ancestors.  We know that Jesus was well studied in the law and history of the Israelites.  He would have known the stories of all those names in his genealogy – both the family lineage of the man who was known as his father, Joseph, and the family lineage of his mother, Mary.

What would Jesus have said regarding Tamar, the first of the women in his paternal genealogy?  Let’s look at her story – a story that includes grief, abuse, rejection, abandonment, prostitution, deceit and finally redemption.

In the course of time, Judah arranged for his firstborn son, Er, to marry a young woman named Tamar.  But Er was a wicked man in the Lord’s sight, so the Lord took his life.  Then Judah said to Er’s brother Onan, “Go and marry Tamar, as our law requires of the brother of a man who has died.  You must produce an heir for your brother.”  But Onan was not willing to have a child who would not be his own heir…the Lord considered it evil for Onan to deny a child to his dead brother.  So the Lord took Onan’s life, too.

Then Judah said to Tamar, his daughter-in-law, “Go back to your parents’ home and remain a widow until my son Shelah is old enough to marry you.”  (But Judah didn’t really intend to do this because he was afraid Shelah would also die, like his two brothers.)  So Tamar went back to live in her father’s home.

Some years later Judah’s wife died…Someone told Tamar, “Look, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep.”

Tamar was aware that Shelah had grown up, but no arrangements had been made for her to come and marry him.  So she changed out of her widow’s clothing and covered herself with a veil to disguise herself.  Then she sat beside the road at the entrance of the village of Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah.  Judah noticed her and thought she was a prostitute, since she had covered her face.  So he stopped and propositioned her…not realizing that she was his own daughter in law…

About three months later, Judah was told, “Tamar, your daughter-in-law, has acted like a prostitute.  And now, because of this, she’s pregnant.”

“Bring her out, and let her be burned!” Judah demanded.

But as they were taking her out to kill her, she sent this message to her father-in-law:  “The man who owns these things made me pregnant.  Look closely.  Whose seal and cord and walking stick are these?”

Judah recognized them immediately and said, “She is more righteous than I am, because I didn’t arrange for her to marry my son Shelah.”  And Judah never slept with Tamar again.

When the time came for Tamar to give birth, it was discovered that she was carrying twins.  While she was in labor, one of the babies reached out his hand.  The midwife grabbed it and tied a scarlet string around the child’s wrist, announcing, “This one came out first.”  But then he pulled back his hand, and out came his brother!  “What!” the midwife exclaimed.  “How did you break out first?”  So he was named Perez.  Then the baby with the scarlet string on his wrist was born, and he was named Zerah. – Genesis 38:6-16, 24-30

God had a plan – the Messiah would be a descendant of Abraham and a descendant of Judah and a descendant of Perez.  But Judah married a Canaanite woman, whose influence on his sons caused them to be evil in the eyes of the Lord.  In spite of all of this, God continued to work out his plan.  In spite of Judah’s sins of selfishness, God took the unholy union of Judah and Tamar and made a beautiful thing.   Tamar was pregnant with twin boys.  Zerah began to come out first but God’s plan was for Perez so he caused Zerah to pull back and Perez to be born first.

This is the story of how Tamar came to be in the lineage of Jesus.  In this story, Tamar is first a victim of the sinful choices of three men in the lineage of Jacob, but Tamar did not remain innocent in this story.  Desperate for love, she devised a plan of deception that included sexual immorality.  Instead of trusting God to take care of her, Tamar stepped out of His plan and created her own.  What would the young man, Jesus, have to say of this woman in his family story?  What would Jesus have to say of the man, Perez, whose birth was the result of a crisis pregnancy?

Perhaps Jesus’ thoughts went to Tamar when he met the Samaritan woman at the well – a well that was near the field that Jacob gave his son Joseph.  Perhaps he was thinking of Jacob’s daughter-in-law who would have perhaps drawn water from this same well at one time.  

The story of the Samaritan woman had some resemblance to the story of Tamar – multiple husbands and then union with a man who was not her husband.  Her story might have included the same elements as Tamar’s – grief, abuse, rejection, abandonment, prostitution, and deceit.  What we know is that her story included redemption.

If you have some of these same elements in your story, perhaps these words of Jesus are for you today:  

“If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.”

“Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again.  But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again.  It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” – John 4:10, 13-14

God’s perfect plan for your life probably did not include a lot of the junk that makes up your story but His plan for you has always ended in redemption.  He sent His son to be born of a woman pledged to be married to Joseph – whose family story was far from perfect.  That same son died on a cross in order to complete your story – to be sure that it can include a story of redemption from sins and eternal life that can be found by accepting the living water that He offers you today.  

Let us worship the One who was born and died to offer us eternal life.  Let’s humbly bow down and offer to Him our past so that we can walk into His future.

Today’s Reading:  Matthew 1:1-17, Luke 1:1-4 and 3:23-38

My parents pastored on the Northwestern Illinois District of the Church of the Nazarene for 31 years.  I love those moments where someone comes up and introduces themselves by adding their connection to my parents.  “Your father was my Bible teacher at camp” or “Your mother was my camp counselor” or “I loved it when your parents were quizmasters at all the area quizzes” or “I was a student in several of the classes your father taught for the course of study” or “Your parents played a large role in where I am at today.”  I love those moments because I am proud to be the daughter of Larry and Dora Fortado.  I am grateful when people know WHO I am because they know WHOSE I am.

Two of the writers of the gospel – Matthew and Luke – saw the importance of their readers knowing where Jesus came from.  Both genealogies showed that Jesus was a descendant of David, one more indicator that he truly was the Messiah.  Matthew shows us the genealogy of Jesus from his paternal lineage.  He starts with Abraham and lists all of the descendants until he lands at Joseph (Matthew 1:1-16)

“Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary.  Mary gives birth to Jesus, who is called the Messiah.  All those listed above include fourteen generations from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the Babylonian exile, and fourteen from the Babylonian exile to the Messiah.” – Matthew 1:16-17

I love verse 17 because I, like Matthew the tax collector, love numbers and playing with statistics.  I find the pattern between generations intriguing (14+14+14), as it seems Matthew did.  

Now Luke takes it from the perspective of the maternal lineage of Jesus.  Mary, too, was a descendant of David and therefore a descendant of Abraham.  Mary descended from David’s son Nathan while Joseph could trace his ancestors back to Solomon, the son of David and Bathsheba.  

Matthew traced Jesus’ family back to Abraham, showing that Jesus was the promised Messiah of the Jewish people.  Luke traced Jesus’ family even farther back to Adam, showing that Jesus came to be the Savior for ALL people everywhere (Luke 3:23-38).  And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).  Who will He save?  HIS people.  Who are His people?  We ALL are His people because we have all descended from Adam.  Salvation is for each and every one of us.

Consider your family on both sides.  Take a moment to think of the influence the family on your mother’s side has had on your life.  Now consider the impact of your father’s family on who you are and where you are at today.  

When you look at the genealogy of Jesus, you will see a list of people who made mistakes.  Almost each one has a story of how God in grace reached out to them and used them even after they had messed things up.   We have spent the last four and a half months studying many of the people listed in these genealogies.  You can probably look up at your family tree and see a lot of imperfections in those who have come before you.  Yet the God of grace still chose them to give the world YOU!

Let us not take lightly the role God has played in our lives since before we were born.  Each story that precedes us sets the backdrop for our story.  God has known us, loved us and developed a plan for our lives in spite of our family tree – whether that tree is one of a strong spiritual heritage or a weak faith of our fathers.  God had a purpose for the life of Jesus, His only Son – to save the world.  In the same way, the genealogy of your fathers comes to you and leads to a moment in history when you carry out God’s plan for your life.  

You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb.  

Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!

Your workmanship is marvelous – how well I know it.

You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,

as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.

You saw me before I was born.

Every day of my life was recorded in your book.

Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.

How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.  They cannot be numbered!

I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand!

And when I wake up, you are still with me! – Psalm 139:13-18

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord.  “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope” – Jeremiah 29:11  

Plans for your future – plans for you and for those who will follow you in your family tree.  What story will be told of you?  Will you submit to God’s plan – the plan for which He created you?  Those coming after you are counting on you.  

Today’s Reading:  John 1:1-18

Jesus.

My Savior, my Redeemer, my LIFE.

Jesus.

My Counselor, my Comforter, my LIGHT.

Jesus.

My King, my Best Friend, my LOVE.

Jesus.

Now that we have completed the Old Testament and studied the prophecies of the Messiah, it is time to look at the life of Christ.  As we start our study of the gospels, I pray that the Spirit reveals something new to each one of us and increases our understanding of our Savior’s love for us.  

Life, light and love – three powerful words that describe the difference Jesus Christ makes in our life.  These three gifts from God are made possible by the presence of Christ in our life, the presence of the Word.  

In the beginning the Word already existed.

The Word was with God, and the Word was God.

He existed in the beginning with God.

God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him.

The Word gave LIFE to everything that was created, and his life brought LIGHT to everyone.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. – John 1:1-5

Jesus gives us LIFE.  

He was there in the beginning when life was created.  In fact, all life was created through Him because He is the One who gave life to everything that was created.  We would not be here, we would not experience physical life, if it were not for Jesus – the Word.  But we would also not experience a rebirth or a second gift of life if it were not for Him.

He came into the very world he created, but the world didn’t recognize him.  He came to his own people, and even they rejected him.  But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.  They are reborn – not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God. – John 1:10-13

Jesus gives us LIGHT.  

Just as God spoke light into existence at creation, Jesus brought light when he came into the very world he created.  Jesus – the true light – came into a world that had been darkened by sin in order to cast His light into the world He created.  

…His life brought light to everyone.  The light shines in the darkness and the darkness can never extinguish it…The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. – John 1:4-5,9

Jesus gives us LOVE.  

When He entered the world of darkness full of unfailing love and faithfulness, He gave us blessing after blessing from the abundance of His love.  Before this time, God’s people had experienced the love of their Creator who had faithfully cared for them but it was through the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ, that God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came down so close you could see it!

So the Word became human and made his home among us.  He was full of unfailing LOVE and faithfulness.  And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son…

From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another.  For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ.  No one has ever seen God.  But the unique One, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart.  He has revealed God to us. – John 1:14,16-18

LIFE, LIGHT & LOVE – we will experience all three of these today but it is our choice whether or not we acknowledge the presence of these gifts in our life.  Today I can choose to recognize God’s blessings in my life that overflow from the abundance of His unfailing love and faithfulness, or I can focus on the loud cries of the darkness that try hard to extinguish this gift of life.

Jesus came into the world He created and they rejected Him, but all who believed Him and accepted Him were given the right to become children of God (v.10-12).  I am a child of God!  I have been given life, which brought light into the darkness I was living in, and today I will see God in every blessing He has abundantly allowed to overflow into my life out of His great love!

Today’s Reading:  Malachi

Do you ever question why we have some of our traditions or why we do the same things year after year?  Is my responsibility to carry on these traditions? After God’s people returned to Jerusalem, they asked the question:  “Should we continue to mourn and fast each summer on the anniversary of the Temple’s destruction, as we have done for so many years?”

The Lord of Heaven’s Armies sent me this message in reply:  “Say to all your people and your priests, ‘During these seventy years of exile, when you fasted and mourned in the summer and in early autumn, was it really for me that you were fasting?  And even now in your holy festivals, aren’t you eating and drinking just to please yourselves?” – Zechariah 7:3-6

A question of responsibility was answered by a question of sincerity.  The heart of God’s people was being exposed.  I have to admit I felt a little exposed as well.  How often do we go through the motions on a Sunday Morning?  Has the worship become more about what pleases us or are we sincerely offering our praise to God so that He will be pleased?  How often do religious holidays such as Christmas and Easter become more about family traditions, foods and gifts than about God?  Do we have a routine of going to church and participating in church social activities, or do we have a growing relationship with Christ?

The prophet Malachi also spoke of the tendency of God’s people to offer less than their best to God – to sacrifice for the sake of fulfilling a ritual instead of making a true sacrifice of the heart.  

The Lord of Heaven’s Armies says to the priests:  “A son honors his father, and a servant respects his master.  If I am your father and master, where are the honor and respect I deserve?  You have shown contempt for my name!

But you ask, ‘How have we ever shown contempt for your name?’

You have shown contempt by offering defiled sacrifices on my altar.

Then you ask, ‘How have we defiled the sacrifices?’

You defile them by saying the altar of the Lord deserves no respect.  When you give blind animals as sacrifices, isn’t that wrong?  And isn’t it wrong to offer animals that are crippled and diseased?  Try giving gifts like that to your governor, and see how pleased he is!” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

“Go ahead, beg God to be merciful to you!  But when you bring that kind of offering, why should he show you any favor at all?” asks the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

“How I wish one of you would shut the Temple doors so that theses worthless sacrifices could not be offered!  I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “and I will not accept your offerings…  – Malachi 1:6-10

Our sacrifices and offerings to God are defiled when we give less than our best, less than He requires of us.  He wants us to give from our heart, genuinely showing our love and faithfulness.  He wants us to give to please Him and not to please ourselves, or to satisfy the minimum requirement of being a member of a congregation.  

Malachi also speaks of how unconfessed sin can stand in the way of God accepting our worship – again pleasing ourselves instead of obeying God to please Him:  

Here is another thing you do.  You cover the Lord’s altars with tears, weeping and groaning because he pays no attention to your offerings and doesn’t accept them with pleasure.  You cry out, “Why doesn’t the Lord accept my worship?”  I’ll tell you why!  Because the Lord witnessed the vows you and your wife made when you were young. But you have been unfaithful to her, though she remained your faithful partner, the wife of your marriage vows. – Malachi 2:13-14

These blocks to our sacrifice and worship involve loyalty – putting God first includes the vows we made before Him, whether that’s marriage or anything else we have promised to do.  God wants us to put Him first and to give Him first place in our lives.  If we pour out ourselves to God, He will pour out blessings on us.

“Now return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.  

“But you ask, ‘How can we return when we have never gone away?’

Should people cheat God?  Yet you have cheated me!

But you ask, ‘What do you mean? When did we ever cheat you?’

You have cheated me of the tithes and offerings due to me.  You are under a curse, for your whole nation has been cheating me.  Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple.  If you do,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you.  I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in!  Try it!  Put me to the test!  Your crops will be abundant, for I will guard them from insects and disease.  Your grapes will not fall from the vine before they are ripe,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.  “Then all nations will call you blessed, for your land will be such a delight,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. –  Malachi 3:7b-12

SINCERITY – Are we going through the motions of our Christian walk or are we sincerely following Him?

QUALITY – Are we giving our best or doing our best with what God has entrusted to us?  Are we hanging on tight to it or do we live as if everything we have comes from Him and belongs to Him?

LOYALTY – Are we committed to God?  Are we faithfully following through on all we have promised before God and to God?

Lord, open our eyes to the areas of our life where we are cheating you, and therefore cheating ourselves of your blessings.  Lord, open the windows of heaven for us.  Pour out a blessing so great we will not have enough room to take it in!  Lord, bless us with your presence today and reveal where we have lost our spiritual fervor.  Give us the desires of your heart and help us to see what you see.  We love you, Lord – sincerely, giving our best to you, and remaining forever committed to who you have called us to be.  Everything we do, we long to do for you and not just to please ourselves.  Amen.

Today wraps up the last book in the Old Testament.  Thank you for joining me on this journey through the Scriptures, starting at Genesis 1 in January and ending in Malachi in May.  Tomorrow I will start going through the New Testament in what is believed to be chronological order.  I hope you will join me each morning as I start my day with the word of God and a hot cup of my morning coffee.  

Today’s Reading:  Joel, Psalm 42

Tell your children about it in the years to come, and let your children tell their children.  Pass the story down from generation to generation. – Joel 1:3

This hard time that you are going through, this time of loss and mourning over what you used to have, pay attention for this is a time you need to tell your children about and they need to tell their children.  For generations, your children will have these stories to share with their children – times when the Lord has provided and brought you out of the valley of trouble.  These stories of God’s provision will provide a gateway of hope for future generations, when they find themselves going through a difficult time (Hosea 2:15).

The grapevines have dried up, and the fig trees have withered.  The pomegranate trees, palm trees, and apple trees – all the fruit trees – have dried up.  And the people’s joy has dried up with them. – Joel 1:12

At times, everything that has sustained you and all that has given you pleasure will be taken from you.  It will dry up and with it your joy.  You will begin to wonder, “Is God really a merciful and loving God?  Am I being punished for something?”  God responds to your need for answers and confirms His identity to you.  He instructs you on how to respond to this difficult time – this time of uncertainty.

Announce a time of fasting; call the people together for a solemn meeting.  Bring the leaders and all the people of the land into the Temple of the Lord your God, and cry out to him there.  – Joel 1:14

This is why the Lord says, “Turn to me now, while there is time.  Give me your hearts.  Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning.  Don’t tear your clothing in your grief, but tear your hearts instead.”  Return to the Lord your God, for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.  He is eager to relent and not punish.  Who knows?  Perhaps he will give you a reprieve, sending you a blessing instead of a curse.  Perhaps you will be able to offer grain and wine to the Lord your God as before. – Joel 2:12-14

Why am I discouraged?  Why is my heart so sad?
I will put my hope in God!
    I will praise him again— my Savior and  my God!

Now I am deeply discouraged, BUT I WILL REMEMBER YOU…

each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me,
    and through each night I sing his songs,
    praying to God who gives me life. – Psalm 42:5-8

God confirms who He is.  Look back at all He has done for you over the years.  REMEMBER HIS FAITHFULNESS to you and know with confidence that He has more blessings to pour into your life.

Surely the Lord has done great things!  Don’t be afraid, my people.  Be glad now and rejoice, for the Lord has done great things.  Don’t be afraid, you animals of the field, for the wilderness pastures will soon be green.  The trees will again be filled with fruit; fig trees and grapevines will be loaded down once more.  Rejoice, you people of Jerusalem!  Rejoice in the Lord your God!  For the rain he sends demonstrates his faithfulness.  Once more the autumn rains will come, as well as the rains of spring.  The threshing floor will again be piled high with grain, and the presses will overflow with new wine and olive oil.

The Lord says, “I will give you back what you lost to the swarming locusts, the hopping locusts.  It was I who sent this great destroying army against you.  Once again you will have all the food you want and you will praise the Lord your God, who does these miracles for you. – Joel 2:20b-26a

God is in the middle of all of this.  None of this has caught Him by surprise.  REMEMBER HIS FAITHFULNESS and trust that He has great plans for your future, that your joy will not be dry forever but that you will rejoice again in how your God has provided during a difficult time.  You will have a story of God’s provision and His redemption to tell your children and your children’s children.

Let each generation tell its children of your mighty acts;
    let them proclaim your power.
I will meditate on your majestic, glorious splendor
    and your wonderful miracles.
Your awe-inspiring deeds will be on every tongue;
    I will proclaim your greatness.
Everyone will SHARE THE STORY of your wonderful goodness;
    they will sing with joy about your righteousness. – Psalm 145:4-7

Remember His faithfulness and pass the stories down from generation to generation.

Today’s Reading: Nehemiah 8-13, Psalm 107 & 135

The book of Nehemiah always brings my thoughts back to a book written by Bill Hybels, Just Walk Across the Room. In this book, he speaks of how important it is for us to take time to think through our story and be prepared to tell it as it fits into God’s greater story. What is your before and what is your after? What journey has God brought you on and how does that affect the way you live your life today?

Over and over again in the Old Testament, a prophet would gather the people of Israel together and review their story once more. This was often at a time of confession and repentance – a time of re-entering a covenant with God. Nehemiah retells the story of God’s people in a beautiful way in chapter nine. Retelling the story reminded them of how wonderful and full of grace God is. It reminded them of where pride and stubborn hearts had led them in previous years – how God had forgiven them time and time again, providing for them and blessing them abundantly.

“May your glorious name be praised! May it be exalted above all blessing and praise!
You alone are the Lord. You made the skies and the heavens and all the stars. You made the earth and the seas and everything in them. You preserve them all, and the angels of heaven worship you.

“But our ancestors were proud and stubborn, and they paid no attention to your commands…But you are a God of forgiveness, gracious and merciful, slow to become angry, and rich in unfailing love. You did not abandon them, even when they made an idol shaped like a calf…In your great mercy, you did not abandon them to die in the wilderness…You made their descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and brought them into the land you had promised their ancestors.

“They went in and took possession of the land. You subdued whole nations before them…Our ancestors captured fortified cities and fertile land. They took over houses full of good things, with cisterns already dug and vineyards and olive groves and fruit trees in abundance. So they ate until they were full and grew fat and enjoyed themselves in all your blessings.

“You warned them to return to your Law, but they became proud and obstinate and disobeyed your commands…In your love, you were patient with them for many years…What a gracious and merciful God you are!… (Nehemiah 9:5-31).

Then God’s people said, “In view of all this, we are making a solemn promise and putting it in writing…” (9:38) They were recognizing that they deserved all of the punishment they had received and yet God had forgiven them over and over again. They were once more making a covenant with God – a covenant full of written promises to obey the Law of God and God’s commands.

If we were to write out our stories today, what would they say? My story would include several of the same elements of the prayer told in Nehemiah: praise to God, recognition of His generosity and blessings, confession of my own tendency to be prideful and stubborn, stories of God’s forgiveness and grace, testimony of God’s provision and second chances, and promises to put God first in my life. I never want to forget what God has done for me. I want to learn from my past mistakes in order to not repeat my errors, but instead grow stronger in my walk.

What has God commanded me to do? Have I done it? I want to be reminded of God’s instructions to me over the years. I want to look back at old prayer requests and see how God has answered those prayers. May God’s faithfulness always be a reminder and a stimulant to the growth of my own faith. May time in His presence stimulate my spiritual growth much more than the caffeine in my morning coffee.

Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest: God is saying to His people, “You are not in love with Me now, but I remember a time when you were.” He says, “I remember…the love of your betrothal…” (Jeremiah 2:2). Am I as filled to overflowing with love for Jesus as I was in the beginning, when I went out of my way to prove my devotion to Him? Is that where I am now, or have I chosen man’s wisdom over true love for Him?…

In view of all this, I am making a solemn promise and putting it in writing…