I had a dream two nights ago that I had to come up with a last minute sermon based on the Bible passage of the ancestry of Jesus in order to fill in the bulletin for Church because our Pastor was out of town and didn’t have time to give any notice. I had about thirty minutes or so before the service would start. It was almost like we were broadcasting on a radio show, and I had already read the opening passage that the pastor had left, and now I had to tie in the other events that would be a part of the service. That morning, several men were going to share their testimonies. I had about the time of a long commercial break to tie it all together with a message. I guess this is what happens when you read through the church bulletin overview before bed. So I started wracking my brain trying to think of a way to tie that passage into a message. All of a sudden it hit me and the title came shortly after. Are you part of the family?
Thoughts started flying at me. So fast that it actually woke me up. And the thoughts kept coming as I dosed out of sleep. I woke up thinking, this is good and felt this incredible tug on my heart to write it all down and share it. It was the middle of the night, so I typed as fast as I could on my phone, making an outline of the thoughts that were filling my head so I could go back the next day and write it all out.
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If you’ve ever read any of the genealogy passages in the Bible, you probably had some of the following thoughts. Wow, this is long. How on earth do I pronounce most of these names? Who are these people? Why is this important? It goes on and on and on. I’m getting a little bored. This is kind of a dull passage. Or perhaps you found those passages interesting. Whatever your take away was, bear with me as we dive in a little deeper.
As you read through these family lines, you probably picked out a few names here and there of people you actually recognized like Abraham and David and eventually Jesus. When you finally got to Jesus, you may have thought, Oh, this is why this passage is here. It’s the family tree of Jesus.
Let’s take a moment to talk about the Royal bloodline. In America, we elect people into office, but in many other countries, including England, you are born into royalty. God is the King of Kings and Jesus is God’s Son, the Prince of Peace. His bloodline is one of royalty. The first in the bloodline to be called king was David. After King David reigned, he was preceded by King Solomon, and so forth, but not everyone in the family line became king or was even considered royalty, though ancestry was still of utmost importance to the people, and everyone knew which of Jacob’s twelve sons they came from. This is why Mary and Joseph had to go to Bethlehem where Jesus ended up being born.
“In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to their own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.” - Luke 2: 2-4
So let’s take a look at the family tree of Jesus. You can find two accounts of the genealogy of Jesus. One is found in Matthew 1:1-17 and the other is found in Luke 3:23-38. You will notice that they are slightly different because one is the line of Joseph (found in Matthew) and the other is the line of Mary (found in Luke). The people listed here are not just names on a list. They each had a connection story to the family of Christ. Many of these stories aren’t told in the Bible, but several of them are. Let’s zoom into some of these people’s life stories.
You will find that the account in Matthew starts with Abraham and ends with Jesus, but the account in Luke goes backward from Jesus, through Abraham, and all the way back to Adam. This is where you might have realized that Mary and Joseph were distant cousins. They both came from the line of Abraham. And we can trace Abraham all the way back to Adam with several accounts in the old testament and also the account in Luke, so let’s start with Adam–the first man.
I’m sure you have heard the story of creation and how Adam and Eve were made, sinned, and then had to leave the Garden of Eden. Their son Cain killed his brother Abel, and then Adam and Eve had another son named Seth (along with other sons and daughters). Genesis tells us about the birth of Seth. He was a special gift from God.
Adam made love to his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth, saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.” - Genesis 4:25
From Seth, you can trace his descendants down to Enoch. In Genesis, there is a short passage on the life of Enoch.
“When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters. Altogether, Enoch lived a total of 365 years. Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.” - Genesis 5:21-24
In Hebrews, we read a little more about Enoch.
“By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: “He could not be found, because God had taken him away.” For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God.” - Hebrews 11:5
Then we get to Enoch’s son, Methuselah (the oldest man recorded in the Bible and in all of History). You may have heard the saying, “As old as Methuselah” to refer to someone or something that is really old. Well, he lived to be 969 years-old, so that is pretty old (Genesis 5:27).
From there, you can trace the descendants down to Noah, the man who built the ark. You can read another account of the line from Adam to Noah in Genesis 5:1-32. Now Noah and his family were the only survivors when God flooded the earth, so in a way, he was the new Adam. A new beginning for mankind.
From Noah, you can trace his descendants through his son Shem. You can read a little more about Shem in Genesis 9. Noah had three sons and because Shem was a man of integrity, Noah blessed him greatly.
From the descendants of Shem, we get to Abraham. You can see another account of this in Genesis 11:10-26. Now there are many people in between the generations that are mentioned in the family line, but we’re just going to zoom in on some of them as we don’t know much about most of them because it is not recorded. However, they were still an important part of the family. Without them, the line would be broken, and who knows what kind of great life stories some of them may have had.
Abraham was considered a man of great faith and the father of many nations. You can read his life story in Genesis 11:27 through Genesis 25:11. In the New Testament, Hebrews 11 talks about men and women of great faith (many of whom were in the family line of Jesus). Here, we can read a summary of Abraham’s life and the great faith he had.
“By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise. And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore. [...] By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death.” - Hebrews 11:8-12; 17-19
Now remember the promise God made to Abraham about his descendants. This promise was fulfilled through the miraculous birth of his son Isaac (born to Abraham and Sarah when he was 100 and she was 90). The family line of Jesus is full of amazing life stories that teach us things about God. Here we see that God keeps his promises and that God can do miraculous things.
The story of Isaac being offered as a sacrifice (found in Genesis 22:1-19) foreshadows Jesus’ death on the cross, and there are a lot of parallels in both stories. If you read on, all the way through Genesis 50, you will follow the family line down from Isaac through his son Jacob. You can read all about the life of Isaac and the life of his son Jacob (later named Israel) and his twelve sons (who became the twelve tribes of Israel). The people were now called the Israelites. The family line of Jesus goes through Jacob’s son Judah (whose life you can also read about in these passages of Genesis).
Now there were five women mentioned in the family line of Jesus. It was not customary in those days to mention women in genealogy, but these women were recorded because God used them in mighty ways. The first woman mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus was Tamar (Judah’s daughter-in-law who had twin sons with Judah–one of whom continued the family line of Jesus). You can read this interesting story about Judah and Tamar in Genesis 38:1-30. From Judah and Tamar’s son, Perez, you can trace the family line down to Salmon (not to be confused with Solomon who was a different guy. We’ll talk about him later).
Sometime between Perez and Salmon, the Israelites who had moved to Egypt during the famine (Genesis 46) became slaves, and were led out by Moses (Exodus, Numbers, Deuteronomy) and into the Promised Land by Joshua (Deuteronomy 30 through the book of Joshua).
Now we come to the second woman mentioned in the family line of Jesus. This woman’s name was Rahab. You can read about the incredible story of how Rahab hid the Israelite spies (Joshua 2:1-24) and then how her life was spared (Joshua 6:17; 6:25) after the walls of Jericho fell. Rahab was a prostitute, but she showed great faith in God (which is highlighted again in Hebrews 11).
“By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.” - Hebrews 11:31
God used a prostitute in the family line of Jesus. By this we see God’s forgiveness. God used broken and sinful people in the family line of Jesus. Of course He did. The Bible tells us that we are all sinners (Romans 3:23).
Rahab married Salmon and they had a son named Boaz. Here, the third woman in the family line of Jesus is mentioned. Her name was Ruth. You can read her incredible story in the Old Testament in the book of Ruth. She was not an Israelite, but a foreigner, yet God used her to further the family line of Jesus. She had great faith in God, and He blessed her. She and Boaz had a son named Obed who became the father of Jessie who became the father of David. That’s right, we’re talking about King David.
Now the Israelites wanted a king and God gave them Saul (1 Samuel chapters 8-10). David became the second king of the Israelites and was a man after God’s own heart. You can read all about the life of David in the Old Testament including the many Psalms that he wrote.
You can read the story of David in chronological order by following the following list of passages: 1 Samuel 16-20, Psalm 11 and 59, 1 Samuel 21-24, Psalm 7, 27, 31, 34, 52, 56, 120, and 140-142, 1 Samuel 25-27, Psalm 17, 35, 54, and 63, 1 Samuel 28-31, Psalm 18, 121, 123-125, and 128-130, 2 Samuel 1-4, Psalm 6, 8-10, 14, 16, 19, and 21, 1 Chronicles 1-2, Psalm 43-45, 49, 84-85, and 87, 1 Chronicles 3-5, Psalm 73 and 77-78, 1 Chronicles 6, Psalm 81, 88, 92, and 93, 1 Chronicles 7-10, Psalm 102-104, 2 Samuel 5, 1 Chronicles 11-12, Psalm 133 and 106-107, 1 Chronicles 13-16, Psalm 1-2, 15, 22-24, 47, 68, 89, 96, 100-101, 105, and 132, 2 Samuel 6-7, 1 Chronicles 17, Psalm 25, 29, 33, 36, and 39, 2 Samuel 8-9, 1 Chronicles 18, Psalm 50, 53, 60, and 75, 2 Samuel 10, 1 Chronicles 19, Psalm 20, 65, 66-67, 69, and 70, 2 Samuel 11-12, 1 Chronicles 20, Psalm 32, 51, 86, and 122, 2 Samuel 13-15, Psalm 3-4, 12-13, 28, and 55, 2 Samuel 16-18, Psalm 26, 40, 58, 61-62, and 64, 2 Samuel 19-21, Psalm 5, 38, and 41-42, 2 Samuel 22-23, Psalm 57, 95, and 97-99, 2 Samuel 24, 1 Chronicles 21-22, Psalm 30 and 108-110, 1 Chronicles 23-25, Psalm 131, 138-139, and 143-144, 1 Chronicles 26-29, Psalm 127 and 11-118, 1 Kings 1-2, Psalm 37, 71, 94, and 119.
David’s life is an incredible story starting with the fact that he was only a shepherd boy. Shepherds were considered poor and smelly yet were the first to visit baby Jesus. This reminds us again just how much God loves everyone and how he can use anyone. David goes on to fight the giant Goliath and win many other battles with God on his side. He eventually becomes the king and has many sons.
Here is where the family line of Jesus splits. Remember we have Mary’s line (found in Luke) and Joseph’s line (found in Matthew)–which both lead to Jesus. They were distant cousins, so up until now, the family lines were the same. Now we take two different directions. Remember how Mary and Joseph had to go to Bethlehem? That was because they were both descendants of David, but when we look at the family tree, we see that Mary came from the line that came down from David’s son Nathan and Joseph came from the family line that came down from David’s son Solomon.
Now looking at the story of David, we come to a part of his story that you may have heard. That is, the part about Bathsheba (2 Samuel chapters 11-12). David committed adultery with Bathsheba–the wife of Uriah. Bathsheba is the fourth woman mentioned in the family line of Jesus, although she is not mentioned by name. She is listed as Uriah’s wife. After committing adultery with Bathsheba, David arranged to have Uriah killed and when the time of mourning was over, he took Bathsheba home to be his wife. David had sinned against the Lord in this whole situation, but God still used David and even Bathsheba to be a part of the family line of Jesus. By this we again see God’s forgiveness and how He used broken and sinful people in the family line of Jesus. David and Bathsheba had a few children including Nathan and Solomon–who became the wisest man in the world.
You can read the story of Solomon in chronological order by following the following list of passages: 1 Kings 3-4, 2 Chronicles 1, Psalm 72, Song of Solomon 1-8, Proverbs 1-24, 1 Kings 5-6, 2 Chronicles 2-3, 1 Kings 7, 2 Chronicles 4, 1 Kings 8, 2 Chronicles 5-7, Psalm 136, 134, and 146-150, 1 Kings 9, 2 Chronicles 8, Proverbs 25-29, Ecclesiastes 1-12, 1 Kings 10-11, 2 Chronicles 9, Proverbs 30-31.
Mary the mother of Jesus (and the fifth woman mentioned in the family line of Jesus) came from the line of David and Bathsheba’s son Nathan. Joseph came from the line of David and Bathsheba’s son Solomon. One of the descendants of Solomon who was in the family line of Jesus was named Josiah. He became the king when he was eight-years-old. You can read about him in the Old Testament in 2 Kings 22 through 2 Kings 23:30. When he was eighteen-years-old, the Book of the Law was found in the temple of the Lord. When Josiah heard what the law said, he was distraught because the people had turned away from God. So Josiah had idols destroyed and sought to follow the law. He had great faith in God. It was shortly after Josiah’s reign that the Israelites were taken captive to Babylon because they continued to do evil.
There were many generations from the lines of Solomon and Nathan down to Joseph and Mary and during the lives of these generations, the Israelites were taken captive to Babylon (just after the reign of Josiah). Later on, God rescued them again and brought them back to their own land. These and other events happened over many years. You can read about these things in the Old Testament. Not everyone in the family line of Jesus is spoken of in great detail, but some of them are mentioned.
Eventually, both lines lead to Jesus. Notice the beginning of verse 23 in Mary’s line (found in Luke).
“Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph [...]” - Luke 3:23a
When we read the story of Christ’s birth, we learn that Jesus was not the son of Joseph, but rather, the Son of God.
“This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” - Matthew 1:18-21
Jesus was the One God had told His people about long ago. He was the One who would save the people from their sins. Because sin came into the world back in the garden, we were separated from God. Jesus made a way back to God through his sacrificial death on the cross. And now, because of His resurrection from the dead, we too can live eternally with God after death. Jesus is the Messiah. The one that the Israelites were waiting for. But He didn’t just come for the Jews. He came to offer Salvation to all people–that includes you and me.
The family line of Jesus was full of broken people who have amazing connection stories to Jesus’ family line. We are all broken. But God can use anyone. So what is your connection story? What is your testimony? The Bible tells us that when we accept God’s free gift of Salvation through Jesus, we become part of God’s family. We are adopted into the family tree. Not all the Jews accepted Jesus as their Savior, but the Bible tells us that to all who do (even those of us who are not Jews), we become part of God’s family.
“He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.” - John 1:11-13
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” - Galatians 3:28
“For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.” - Galatians 3:26
“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.” - 1 John 3:1
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” - John 3:16
“So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” - Romans 8:12-18
So what is your adoption story? Don’t be ashamed or think that your story is not great like the story of David or Ruth. Remember all the people whom God included in the family line of Jesus. Some of them are only names to us. We don’t know their stories. Some of them sinned greatly against God, and yet He still chose to use them. Remember, we are all sinners. Your Salvation story is not too small to tell.
All Salvation stories are miraculous and incredible. They all consist of being saved from eternal death because we are all worthy of death because of our sin. We often compare ourselves to others and think we’re not that bad and haven’t sinned that bad, but think of this. The Bible says that even disrespecting our parents is worthy of death. Your story is your connection story to Christ and that makes it incredible and miraculous. It truly is a life-changing story and a story that brings glory to God–our Savior. As Christians we’re part of the family of God.
So what does it mean to be part of God’s family? If you reread the passages above that talk about becoming children of God, you will see that being a part of God’s family means we inherit eternal life in Heaven with God. Not only that, but as our loving Heavenly father, God walks beside us here on earth–never leaving us alone. He takes care of us, He provides for us, He comforts us, He protects us, He does what is best for us–even when we don’t understand.
Are you part of the family? You don’t have to be an orphan anymore. You don’t have to be alone or feel unloved. God loves you more than you can imagine, and He wants you to be a part of His family. Here’s how.
“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” - Romans 10:9
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” - 1 John 1:9
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” - John 3:16
You may have had a bad experience at a church or with someone who claimed to be a Christian, but you must remember a few things. First of all, people don’t define God. When people do wrong, it isn’t a reflection of who God is. It just shows that people need God. Second of all, not everyone who claims to be a Christian really is one. The Bible talks about those who claimed to know Him who didn’t follow Him. In the end, God will tell them that though they claimed to know Him, He didn’t know them (Matthew 7:21-23). We must not get caught up in looking at and comparing ourselves to others. We are all sinners who need God’s forgiveness, and we are called to forgive one another just as God forgives us (Ephesians 4:32).
Don’t miss out on being part of God’s family because of what people around you do and say or because you don’t want to be affiliated with certain people. God knows who is and isn’t really in the family. It doesn’t matter what people think. God knows what’s in everyone’s heart.
One other thing we must remember is that family isn’t perfect. If you have relatives, you will know this is true. Remember David–the man after God’s own heart who sinned greatly against God? Jesus is the only one who is perfect in His family line and that’s because he was God’s Son–both fully human (born of Mary) and fully God (conceived by the Holy Spirit). If you are honest with yourself, even when you try to do what is right, you will disappoint yourself. We must remember this when looking at our Christian family members. Sin is a constant struggle, but God will help us in this struggle if we look to Him. None of us are perfect, but the more we spend time in God’s Word–reading and applying it to our lives, the more we will become like Him.
So how should we function as a family? How do we function as a family? If we’re honest, we all fail to function the way God wants us to, but it’s something we can all continuously work on with God’s help. Remember, He is a patient, forgiving, and merciful God. Here are two passages that tell us the things we should focus on. Here are our Heavenly Father’s instructions to us regarding how He wants us to live as part of His family.
“For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.” - 1 Corinthians 12:12-27
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” - Romans 12:1-21
Remember, people will fail you and you will fail other people, but God never will fail any of us. Being a part of God’s family is a wonderful thing. You will meet people who are genuine and you will know who they are. They will lift you up and walk with you as brothers and sisters in Christ. They will pray with you and show God’s love to you. And even when they fail you, God never will. Being a part of God’s family is, above all, about your relationship with God. So don’t waste another day. You never know what tomorrow will bring. Today is the day to become part of God’s family. When you do, you will be able to say, “I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God.”
The following song explains it all so well. You don’t have to be born into the family line of Jesus to be part of God’s family. I love the lyrics to this song, particularly the part that says, “I’m not worthy to be here, but praise God, I belong.”
Bill Gaither - The Family of God
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