Scripture: Matthew 1:1-17
Theme: The Genealogy of Jesus
Let's face it: Many of us zone out when the preacher reads a list of names like the one we find in this passage, and if we're reading on our own, we probably skip it altogether. And yet, here in Matthew's gospel, the author begins his theological reflection with this genealogy of Jesus. We come across the names of famous Old Testament figures like Abraham, Jacob, Ruth, David, and Solomon, while also reading names that might not be so famous to our western ears, but would have been famous to first century Jewish listeners. This list contains upstanding characters as well as tricksters, an adulterer or two, kings who strayed from God's path, and one prostitute. In the end, Joseph, Jesus' earthly father is even said to be the child of a man named Jacob, possibly echoing the story of Joseph from the Old Testament.
From the beginning, the author of the gospel according to Matthew places the story of Jesus withink the ongoing salvific story of Yahweh. This will not be a story set outside of all other stories. No, this will be placed in the context of a God who has plans for God's people and will find all sorts of ways to accomplish those plans. The New Interpreter's Bible commentary series says, "God works through the nitty gritty of ordinary human beings to bring the divine purposes to fulfillment." This genealogy is full of just such people. Simply put, every story is God's story, and God is always the main character.
As we engage with this text, may we reflect on the many ways God has shown up in our lives to guide our paths. In preparation for worship, I'd love for you to think about and talk about the following questions:
- Who has gone before you to set the stage for your faith development? Parents, family, friends, sunday school teachers, preachers, authors?
- If you could create a genealogy for your life, what historical figures would you include?
- How do you tell the stories of your life? Do you include the not-so-complimentary events? Who features prominently in the stories you tell?
- How might you retell some of the big stories of you life if you thought of God as the main character?
Matthew 1:1-17
The Genealogy of Jesus
1 A record of the ancestors of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham: 2 Abraham was the father of Isaac. Isaac was the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez was the father of Hezron. Hezron was the father of Aram. 4 Aram was the father of Amminadab. Amminadab was the father of Nahshon. Nahshon was the father of Salmon. 5 Salmon was the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz was the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed was the father of Jesse. 6 Jesse was the father of David the king. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. 7 Solomon was the father of Rehoboam. Rehoboam was the father of Abijah. Abijah was the father of Asaph. 8 Asaph was the father of Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat was the father of Joram. Joram was the father of Uzziah. 9 Uzziah was the father of Jotham. Jotham was the father of Ahaz. Ahaz was the father of Hezekiah. 10 Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh. Manasseh was the father of Amos. Amos was the father of Josiah. 11 Josiah was the father of Jechoniah and his brothers. This was at the time of the exile to Babylon. 12 After the exile to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel. Shealtiel was the father of Zerubbabel. 13 Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud. Abiud was the father of Eliakim. Eliakim was the father of Azor. 14 Azor was the father of Zadok. Zadok was the father of Achim. Achim was the father of Eliud. 15 Eliud was the father of Eleazar. Eleazar was the father of Matthan. Matthan was the father of Jacob. 16 Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary—of whom Jesus was born, who is called the Christ. 17 So there were fourteen generations from Abraham to David, fourteen generations from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen generations from the exile to Babylon to the Christ.
