#DailyDevotion Biblical Genealogies Are Not Boring (If you are a genealogist and like promises fulfilled)
December 25th
Read Matt 1:1–17
Mat 1:1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham… Mat 1:5-6 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, (6) and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,.. Mat 1:16-17 and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ. (17) So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.
Some people, well a lot of people find the genealogies in the Bible boring. But being a genealogist I find them quite fascinating. You never know what you’ll find in them. And like us, the Bible tends to give us the most interesting characters in the genealogies. Jesus’ genealogy is interesting and important concerning the promises of God.
Of first importance as to why we have this particular genealogy is that we see fulfilled in it two great promises of God being fulfilled in Jesus. The first being to Abraham, it is shown fulfilled. Gen 12:2-3 “And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. (3) I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” A promised repeated to Jacob, Gen 28:13-14 “And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, “I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. (14) Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” Indeed, in Abraham was Jesus and in Jacob was Jesus and Jesus is the One in whom all the families of the earth are blessed. They are blessed in Jesus because in Jesus they raised from death to life. We all receive salvation from sin, death and the power of devil through Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. This is a gift offered to all for free. It is a gift from God. 2Sa 7:16 “And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.” God makes a promise for David to have a descendent who will sit on his throne forever. Jesus also is that fulfilled promise as he ascends to the right hand of God Eph 1:21-22 (21) far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. (22) And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church,…”
Finally we get some of the interesting characters in Jesus’ genealogy. There is Rahab the prostitute from Jericho, Ruth the Moabite, and Uriah’s wife Bathsheba who was an adulterous. Everyone has to have a horse-thief in the family and Jesus’ is showing us that God wants to save all nations. And finally ending it Mary, for it was the seed of Mary God used to bring us salvation as He promised in Gen 3:15 “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
Heavenly Father, you are great God because you keep your promises. Grant us faith in your Son Jesus Christ that we may believe you will keep the promise of Salvation through faith in your Son Jesus Christ so we may receive eternal life on the day of his return. Amen.