Reflect:

• It’s not a magic number, but it is significant. Some Hebrew letters are also numbers. What appears in English as the consonants for David—DVD—total 14. We might not see that, but a Jewish reader would recognize the significance of three sets of 14. It would point clearly to David, the king in whose name and image Messiah would come.
• Not only that, but in verse 2 and 17, attention is called to David. And, in verse 6, David completes the first list of 14 and begins the second list of 14. Matthew’s genealogy clearly points to the role of David and how Jesus comes to fulfill the promise that Messiah would come in David’s family and occupy David’s throne.
• However, few thought the Messiah would come as a baby in a manger in a borrowed room. They certainly didn’t expect Him to come from an unwed mother who eventually married into a simple carpenter’s family. They clearly would never expect Him to die on a tree like a common criminal. After all, what’s the point of being royal if you are not going to rule?

Respond:

• In what ways has Jesus failed to meet up to your expectations? How does that impact you?
• If you were to explain this to a Jew, how would you go about convincing them that Jesus really is the Messiah?
• What are your expectations of Jesus? Are you living with the idea that there is something He can, will, must do for you, because you have chosen to follow Him?

Pray: Ask God to help you wrestle with your expectations and bring them in line with Jesus’ desires. Pray that we are open to allowing God to do whatever it is He wants to do. Pray that we are clear in our communication of who Jesus is.

Reflect:

• Fourteen more generations. No surprises here; or is there? This isn’t really Jesus’ ancestry. Well, it is…but it isn’t. This is Joseph’s lineage, the earthly “father” of Jesus. But Jesus is not strictly the carpenter’s son. He is the husband of Mary, “of whom Jesus was born.” As the adoptive father, Joseph is the lineage that matters, but it does seem odd, just the same.
• Jesus is “adopted”—like some of us. And for those of us who are Jesus followers, all of us. Our heritage may include many generations of believers, but ultimately, no human is the direct descendant of God. We are all adopted into the family. Chosen, if you will, to be part of the family tree.
• Spiritual adoption is our heritage. And it’s marvelous. God chose us. He moved into human history and accepted us into His remarkable family. Not because we had the right to be there. We didn’t deserve it. He simply gave us that privilege out of the depths of His love and mercy. No wonder the song writer wrote, “How deep the Father’s love for us…beyond all measure.”

Respond:

• Read Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:4-5.
• From a spiritual perspective, what’s the difference between being born into a family and being adopted into one?
• How would you explain to a young person what being adopted by God means?

Pray: Thank God for accepting you into the family. Pray that you are a faithful son or daughter who honors his or her new name. Pray that we may help many come to understand and experience this privilege.

Reflect:

• Fourteen more generations. This time, all men. But this part of the list ends differently. It ends with a time reference.  “…the time of the deportation to Babylon.” Not Israel’s finest hour…nor their favorite memory. In fact, it is their darkest hour and among their worst memories. They failed. And because they failed, they lost their inheritance—the land; they lost their religion—the temple; they lost their story.
• In one resource, Manasseh and Amon are listed as the worst of Judah’s kings—ever. Of the 14 listed here, over half are bad or worse. Not just a list of ancestors, this is a rogue’s list, full of the proverbial “horse-thieves” we often joke about. Not exactly the lineage you’d expect for the Messiah.
• Because of their sin, Israel/Judah ended up in captivity with their future at risk. Could it be that God was communicating that sin could not stop the coming of the Messiah? Could He be communicating that sin was the very reason for His coming? Could it be that the message is even clearer—Jesus came to redeem us from our sin? Verse 21 would seem to indicate that was a possibility.

Respond:

• Have you ever traced your ancestry? Any people whose names you’d just as soon purge from the list?
• How does this impact your view of Jesus? If it doesn’t impact your view of Him negatively, why should such ancestors trouble you about yourself or someone else?
• Is it possible that God is still trying desperately to communicate that His grace is for everyone?

Reflect:

• Fourteen generations named; 4 women included. Unheard of. Amazing. Unprecedented. All those words come to mind. Any Jewish reader would have done a double take to see those women in this list. They simply were not included, ever. Women couldn’t testify in a court of law. Most men wouldn’t speak to a woman in public—including his wife. Yet here they are.
• But it’s not just that they are women. At least two, if not three, are Gentiles.  Outsiders. Gentiles. Goyyim. Unclean. The promise came to Abraham that through his family would come a Messiah. That family was identified as Israel just two generations later. Yet here they are, Gentile women in the lineage of Jesus.
• We could stop there, before things get worse. Not only are these Gentile women, but three of them are openly immoral. Tamar plays a prostitute to get Judah to act justly. Rahab is a prostitute who hides the Jewish spies. Bathsheba isn’t even named, the shame of committing adultery with David is so repulsive. Yet here they are, in the line of the Messiah.

Respond:

• Surprised?  What does the presence of these immoral women infer? Could it be that sinners are welcome in Jesus’ story?
• If your story were there, what would it say? Of what sin are you most ashamed?
• So, what sin should keep someone out of Jesus’ family? Is there one that you just cannot see being there?

Pray: Thank God that Jesus came to save sinners, like you. Pray that you never see yourself as too good to be listed in the lineage with Jesus. Pray that Madison Park makes it clear that all sinners are welcome here.

Reflect:

• The beginning of the Bible (Genesis) features multiple genealogies, each of which marks the beginning of a new story. Matthew’s gospel, which is likened unto the Torah (Genesis through Numbers) also begins with a genealogy. Literarily it imitates Genesis. Symbolically it indicates a new story is beginning.
• This story is the story of Jesus. He’s the promised Messiah (son of David) and promised ancestor (son of Abraham). He comes to bring to completion the story that began before the foundation of the world, the redemption of humanity. His lineage points to both promise and royalty, faithfulness and crown.
• With Jesus’ arrival, all of history is focused on a single person. Everything previous has pointed to His coming; everything subsequent reflects that coming. This is the “good news according to Matthew”—Jesus comes and brings redemption. Jesus comes and fulfills God’s promises. Jesus comes and sets the world right. Jesus comes and teaches us the ways of God. Jesus comes and shows us what God is like.

Respond:

• What’s the beginning of your story? Who is the head of your spiritual lineage? Write it out. “I am the son/daughter of… who is the …”
• How many generations of believers come before you? Do you know where it all began?
• How many generations come after you? Have you communicated to those who follow you how grateful you are that they carry on the legacy?

Pray: Thank God for your spiritual heritage. Pray for those who come in your wake—that they will be faithful. Pray for any future generations yet to come.

I was actually quite elated to discover another “Sackett” who was a believer. So far as I know, I’m the only one. I know I’m not. That would be foolish. But to actually have a name and face was more than I could imagine. And even more, he’s a preacher.

So why the reaction? Why is it exciting to think there are other people with my name who follow Jesus? Lots of people with other names follow, so it’s not like the whole world rests on this particular family. I honestly don’t know why I reacted as I did. But I’m honestly thrilled to know there are other Sackett believers.

Lineage, heritage, legacy…it means something. We want to be known for something. We want to leave something behind. We want that something to be a good something. We want to be proud of what we leave behind.  My problem is that there is just too much junk that I’ve left in my wake to be comfortable. When it’s all said and done, I’m hoping there’s more good on which to reflect than there was bad.

I don’t need my name in lights. I certainly don’t need my name to be honored. I just want my name to elevate the name of Jesus and make His name exceptional. If that happens, I’ll be one happy person.

For a printable version of this week’s devotional, see the attached file: Insert 05-13-2012

Reflect:

• We revisit this great Christmas text because in these few verses, the whole story gets told. And the story is that Jesus came for everyone. For some reason, that subject just keeps resurfacing. Maybe it’s because the church is so adept at forgetting this one fundamental truth—the gospel is for everyone.
• Matthew clearly indicates this truth by including Gentiles in the lineage of Jesus at the beginning of his gospel and then recording Jesus’ final words at the end—go into all the world. Both ends of Matthew’s story involve outsiders.  Within the genealogy are Gentiles and women. Saints and sinners are included. Notables and no-names are mentioned.
• Matthew’s “tweet” of the story is simple—Jesus came to save sinners…all sinners. No questions asked, no reservations, no hesitations…just make the story known to everyone.  Throughout the centuries this has been hard for the church. For some reason humans struggle to realize that they were once the very outsiders they now exclude. Frustrating when you see it in others; nearly impossible to see in yourself.

Respond:

• Read Romans 1:16-17. Connect it to today’s text.
• Note Matthew 1:6. Why do you think Matthew might have avoided naming Bathsheba? Is there anyone in your life you’d rather not include?
• Revisit your list of people you’d like to see come to know Jesus. Anyone on there that might be considered an outsider? What will you do to help them feel welcome?

Pray: Thank God that He accepted you when you came to Him. Thank God for the Christians who welcomed you into the family of God. Pray that we are a welcoming body of believers.

Reflect:

• When Satan could not stop the birth of the male child and when he could not destroy the child after his birth, Satan turned to the only place he could—back to the woman. Satan’s attack is against the people of God—the New Testament church.  If he can’t take his anger and outrage out on Jesus, he will attack the brothers and sisters of Jesus instead.
• The more faithful disciples are, the more they can expect Satan’s attacks. He’s going to “kick the cat” and we are, unfortunately, the cat. But, as with God’s protection of the child, He’s going to protect His church.  Satan cannot destroy the church. But he can make life miserable for those who seek to faithfully give testimony of Jesus.
• The early church suffered intense persecution. At various times throughout history, regional and seasonal persecution has sought to destroy the people of God. Apparently Satan just doesn’t ever quite understand—the blood of the saints is the seed of the church. When Christians are persecuted, the church grows. He has far greater success when he seeks compromise with the culture instead.

Respond:

• In what ways is the church so much like the world that Satan need not bother with us? What should be done about that?
• Would you number yourself among those that “obey the commands and hold to the testimony”?
• Who seems to be watching you to see if you will remain faithful under duress?  Is your witness faithful?

Pray: Thank God for His faithfulness to us. Ask God for the strength to faithfully witness to others in spite of discrimination. Pray that Madison Park is living so well that we are worthy of persecution.

Reflect:

• Once more we see a frightening description of Satan’s activities.  He’s the “accuser of our brothers.” Satan is constantly making accusations against believers. He’s constantly calling our faith into question. Constantly challenging the reality of our trust in God. Continually casting our struggles into terms of rebellion and rejection of God.  All to convince us that we aren’t really real disciples.
• The only successful response—withstand—stand up—be strong—love God. The words of John indicate those willing to be obedient to God, speak up for Jesus, and if necessary, die for their faith. We don’t see a lot of direct attack and actual physical persecution in the United States, but it exists around the world. More people were martyred for their faith in the 20^th century than in the previous 19 centuries combined.
• It’s a fascinating phrase—“did not love their lives so much…” The reason we fail to be faithful is because we love our life to too much. We think that what we have here and now is better and too valuable to be lost. Under duress, we pray for release or relief; those accustomed to suffering for their faith pray for faithfulness and witness. The stronger we are, the more we can expect attack, so we should pray now for faithfulness.

Respond:

• Visit www.persecution.com and read of modern day persecution of believers around the world.
• Describe a time when you felt as if you were challenged in the “love your life too much” realm. How did you handle the temptation?
• Who do you know that you consider especially strong at withstanding mistreatment for their faith? Send them a note that encourages them.

Pray: Pray for those around the world who suffer for their faith (Kazakhstan, Southern Sudan, Azerbaijan, etc). Ask God to give you the courage needed to be faithful. Ask God to help Madison Park be a source of strength to all who are faced with challenges to their faith.

Reflect:

• A second, this time gruesome, sign appears. Hollywood’s most ferocious dragon can’t compare to the savagery of this giant, red, fearsome, powerful symbol of evil. Evil personified wants to stop God from sending His son to redeem the world. He’s there seeking to devour the child at His birth so the story of God is stopped before it starts.
• Historically, that’s a scene repeated over and over. From the sin of Adam and Cain in Eden to the slaughter of the innocents in Egypt, from the barrenness of Sarah to the near genocide of Esther, Satan has sought to stop God. It culminates in Herod’s savage killing of innocent children at the birth of Jesus. But it never works.
• God intervenes and cares for both mother and child, people of God and Jesus. The entire story of redemption is found in verse 5. Birth and ascension serve to encapsulate the entire story of the Messiah’s life and death and resurrection. This is genuinely the Twitter version of the story. The whole message in a very few characters.  No other verses are so complete.

Respond:

• Try to write the story in as few words as possible. Send me your version (chuck@madisonparkchurch.com).
• List the stories from Scripture that come to mind where redemption was nearly stopped (e.g., Sarah taken into Pharaoh’s harem).
• Read Psalm 2:7-9. This is considered a prophetic Psalm of the Messiah’s coming.

Pray: Thank God that He is more powerful than Satan. Pray that Satan not be allowed to stop the story from progressing right here in Quincy. Ask God to move in the lives of your friends—that they may come to know Jesus.