Thank you for reading the Weekend Sermon today. It is good to be with you, and I hope that all of you are having a good week.
My week has not been going so well. My car is having trouble, and I don't know how I am going to get to work if they don't get it fixed soon. I'm borrowing a car right now, but I don't know how long I will be able to do that. Please pray that my car will get fixed soon. It seems like its just one thing after another, and I am feeling more than a little down. Also, someone I know passed away this week, and I am upset about that.
In prayer this week, please remember the people in Tennessee, Haiti and New Zealand who have been recovering from disasters. Pray that they will get the aid that they need.
Also pray for peace in the world. Pray for peace in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Ukraine. For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for Mali and Vietnam. Pray that the message of the love of Jesus will reach these nations.
For the past couple of weeks, we have been in a series of messages dealing with the Advent season. This is a special time of the year when we anticipate Christmas and the celebration of the Incarnation of Jesus Christ.
For today's message, I would like to focus on the genealogy of Jesus as presented in Matthew and Luke. Matthew and Luke have differing genealogies of Jesus, and some people find this disturbing. Many try to say that these genealogies are a contradiction disproving the validity of the Word of God.
I don't really see why people have a problem with this. The genealogy of Jesus in the book of Matthew is the descent through Joseph. While Joseph was not Jesus' real father, he was Jesus adoptive father. Jesus' physical genealogy is through His mother Mary, and her descendants down to Jesus are listed in Luke's Gospel.
With that controversy addressed, I want to focus on what we can learn from Jesus' genealogy. Genealogies always interest me because you never know what you are going to discover. I have a great interest in genealogy, and I have been able to trace my ancestors back to England to the 1400s. On my mother's side, I can trace our ancestors back to Germany in the 1700s.
The first thing the strikes me about Jesus' genealogy is the fact that it demonstrates the fulfillment of God's covenant with King David. God promised David that a member of his line would reign forever as king. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant. If you look at the genealogy in Luke, Jesus' line comes through David's son Nathan right down to Jesus. Through His adoptive line, the kingship comes down through those who sat upon the throne in Jerusalem. When Jesus comes again, He will rule and reign over all the earth forever and forever.
The fact that Jesus is the rightful king and Messiah is also demonstrated through the genealogy. He has royal blood, and He has the right to rule on the throne of His ancestor David.
Jesus' genealogy also demonstrates the fulfillment of the covenant God made with Abraham. God told Abraham that all the nations of the world would be blessed through him. Jesus as Abraham's descendant has blessed the world by offering salvation and forgiveness to all who would call upon His name.
Something else I find interesting in the genealogy of Jesus is that Jesus' genealogy demonstrates that all people are accepted in Christ. In Jesus' genealogy, you will not find only Jewish ancestors, you will find gentiles as well. Rahab was from the city of Jericho. Ruth was from Moab, but she left her people to identify with the people of God. No one is excluded from the love and acceptance of God. The Lord will redeem anyone who calls upon His name. His love is extended to all people everywhere.
One other thing that I find in the genealogy of Jesus is that the Lord uses many different kinds of people to fulfill His will. Jesus' genealogy is filled with the high and the lowly. All of them were part of God's plan to bring the Messiah into the world to save the world from sin. Thanks be to God.
Next week, there will be another Advent sermon here on the blog. On Wednesday, I will reveal my choice for cat book of the year. On Monday, I will post the verses. These are tentative dates right now depending on the car situation. Once again, please pray for me about this. I really appreciate it when folks pray for me. Thank you. May God bless you all. Amen.
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