An Unlikely Heritage
After the snow day yesterday I was able to get out to some commitments. The main one was traveling to Greeley to be a part of the “Senior’s Circle” radio programmed aired on Sunday mornings. Today was the taping for a program that will be aired this Sunday on KFKA in Greeley. By the time I headed back to Fort Collins the roads had improved. I still was running a little late to a Chiropractor appointment. I believe I am seeing some continued improvement and am able to take a few steps on my own without crutches.
BIBLE VERSE FOR TODAY… “Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah. (Their mother was Tamar.)…Salmon was the father of Boaz. (His mother was Rahab.) Boaz was the father of Obed. (His mother was Ruth.) Obed was the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon. (His mother had been Uriah’s wife.)” Matthew 1:3,5-6 ERV
Have you seen the ads for “Ancestry.com”? It seems every family has those who are the genealogists for the family line. They usually make some interesting discoveries and take on the task of keeping track of the growing family tree. Some years ago my hair stylist commented, “Ken, you must have some Indian blood. You complexion, cheek bones and lack of facial hair are more characteristic of American Indians.” While my features are not that pronounced it was an interesting observation.
A few years later, while campaigning door to door, I met a man with my same last name. We discovered that we had to have some past family connection. He then told me that he had heard that one of our great….grandfathers was married to an Indian woman. He said, “It wasn’t talked about that much, since at the time it wasn’t viewed as somewhat of a scandal.”
Jesus had in his background those who would not seem to fit into the lineage of the Messiah. There are those who it would be easy to “not talk about” and “gloss over” in the record. Instead the only wives of men in Jesus connection to the throne of David were those you would not expect to be found.
We see early on Tamar mentioned, who was Judah’s daughter-in-law. Judah did not fulfill his promise to give one of his younger sons to Tamar after her husband died. As a result, she posed as a prostitute and tricked Judah into having sex with her and she became pregnant. Tamar had twins and one of them, Perez, this “illegitimate” child became an ancestor of King David. We see Rahab was a prostitute from Jericho a Canaanite city devoted for destruction. She gave birth to Boaz the great grandfather of David. We see the name Ruth who was from Moab. This Canaanite nation were historic oppressors and enemies of God’s people. The Moabites themselves were from the incestual relationship between Lot and his daughters after the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Ruth became the grandmother of David.
Then we see the reign of David being passed on through Solomon, who was the son of Bathsheba. She had been the wife of Uriah when David seduced her into a sexual encounter and the David plotted to have her husband killed in battle.
Why are the only women mentioned by Matthew in this Jewish ancestry those who would be easy to “leave in the closet?” The easiest answer is, “I don’t’ know.” But I would suggest that it was not to shame as much as to give hope. These anomalies in the family history of the Messiah reveal much about God’s heart. It shows that God is a God who redeems. He is a God who changes lives and has open arms. The destiny of your life is not who you are or where you are, but it is in who you can be and where you can go, if you submit your life to God’s will and purpose.
I believe we also see the spiritual impact of “adoption.” These women in Jesus genealogy did not have “rights” by virtue of birth and heritage. But they were “grafted in” they were adopted into the family of faith and not just into any family of Israel, but in the direct line that would lead to the Messiah.
In considering the ways of the Lord, Paul stops and exclaims, “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!” (Romans 11:33 NIV)
What we see in the “family tree” of Jesus should stop and allow us to respond not from our minds, but from our hearts as we see in Paul’s words.
The hymn writer of old expressed it in these words, “I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene; and wonder how He could love me, a sinner, condemned, unclean…How wonderful, how marvelous….is my Savior’s love for me.”
Even in the lineage of Jesus, we see God’s plan and purpose for the Messiah…Salvation for the whole world, hope for the hopeless and reconciliation for those estranged from the Father’s family.