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Monday, December 3, 2018

Read Matthew 1:1-17

A record of the ancestors of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham. —Matthew 1:1

A friend of mine was a missionary in a South Pacific island some years ago. She introduced the indigenous people to Jesus, but they were only mildly interested—until she showed them Jesus’s genealogy. “This was a real man?” they asked in wonder. It was because she could demonstrate Jesus’s ties to his community that they understood him to be an authentic, genuine person.

Jesus did not just wander onto the stage of human history. His history is entwined with humanity, as part of community. Each one of his recorded ancestors invoked a story that was told among his people, a rung on the ladder to salvation, and cemented Jesus’s connection with every person who heard of him. Scheming Jacob, wise Solomon, and faithful Jehoshaphat were heroes in the ancient stories of the Hebrew people. His genealogy includes kings and commoners, women and men, Jews and Gentiles, saints and sinners. He was the essence of Israel, a child of that heritage and an integral part of their society.

Included in the list are the names of five women: Tamar, Rahab, Bathsheba (listed as Uriah’s wife) Ruth, and Mary. It was unusual and even shocking to include women in an ancient genealogy, but these were all unusual women. Every one of them influenced Israel’s history in bold and unexpected ways. Perhaps their inclusion was to signal the bold and unexpected event of the life of Jesus, which their courage foretold.

Yet the introduction to this heritage also states exactly who Jesus is—Jesus Christ, which is the Greek word for Messiah. Although this is a human genealogy, Jesus was the Son of God. But as the Messiah was prophesied to be of the Davidic line, it was crucial to show this connection. And as Abraham was the father of all Jews and the patriarch of the faith, Jesus was of course a son of Abraham. Through him, all nations would be blessed.

Jesus Christ was born into a community of faith and rich heritage as the fulfillment of Israel’s history. Through every one of the people in Matthew’s long list, God was shaping history, guiding and molding the people and events that would lead to that glorious moment when the angels would announce, Christ the Savior is born. And behind that tiny infant in the manger was the stories of all who came before, a community of the faithful whose lives all led to that moment in time.

Prayer

Lord, ground me in my own faith community. Amen.