Kathleen Schwartz's Advent Devotional December 6 – The Ancestors

“This is a record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, a descendant of King David and of Abraham:  Abraham was the father of Isaac…..Perez and Zerah (their mother was Tamar)…..Boaz (his mother was Rahab)…..Obed (his mother was Ruth)…..Solomon (his mother was Bathsheba, the widow of Uriah)….Mary was the mother of Jesus, who is called the Messiah.”  Matthew 1:1-16

Although I don’t usually like reading genealogies found in the Bible, this genealogy for Jesus, found in Matthew thrills me and fills me with joy.  In this list of the ancestors of Jesus there are the rich and famous, like Abraham, Isaac, King David, and King Solomon.  We would expect Jesus to come from a line of Jewish patriarchs and kings . But Matthew makes a point of listing five women.  Would we expect to see listed a woman who slept with her father-in-law in order to get pregnant, a prostitute, a foreigner, an unfaithful wife, and a very young girl not yet married? 

What do you think when you see these women in the list?  Maybe God made a mistake?  Couldn’t he have done better?  Why use these women? Why list them in the Bible genealogy of Jesus?

OR

Doesn’t it make you love God more?  It doesn’t matter where we come from, or what we’ve done.  God still loves us and can use is in His important work of bringing His life to the world.  God can use you and me in His redemptive work in the world.

I was the Music Director at our church for over 15 years.  I trust that I made a witness for Christ as I led in worship.  But being here in Zambia I am awestruck by how God is using me in more obvious ways than I ever could have imagined.  Imperfect and weak as I am, God can use even me!  Even you! 

Dear Lord, Thank you for saving and then using all kinds of people.  Thank you for sending your son with ancestors as flawed as we are.  Lord, give us courage to step out in obedience to be used by you no matter what our personal history . Help us to put aside our excuses and step forward to do what you have given us to do.  Amen, Come, Lord Jesus.