The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14 NIV
What kind of family do you think God would choose when He put on flesh and entered humanity? If you read through the genealogy of Jesus, you’ll find some serious dysfunction in this family! Click here to read it. Let’s take a closer look at some of the people in the lineage of Jesus.
Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar – Read Genesis 38 and you’ll find that Tamar bore these twins to Judah, her father-in-law, after posing as a prostitute, (with whom he willingly slept), because she was angry that he had lied to her and not kept his promise to betroth her to his youngest son after his first two sons had died while married to her.
David the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife – You remember Uriah, right? He was one of David’s most dedicated soldiers, that is before David had him murdered so no one would find out that he had slept with his wife! (2 Samuel 11)
Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth – Rahab was a harlot in Jericho (Joshua 2) and Ruth, although in the lineage of Jesus, wasn’t even Jewish, she was a Moabite. Moab was the son born of the incestuous relationship between Lot and one of his daughters, when his daughters made Lot drunk, after the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. (Genesis 19)
Manasseh – He sacrificed his own son in the fire on the altar of an idol and shed so much innocent blood that he filled Jerusalem from end to end (2 Kings 21)
Jesus was full of grace and truth.
The genealogy of Jesus is full of stories of men and women who fell short. I love that God is all about truth. He didn’t find it necessary to enter into a family that seemed to have it all together. He’s also full of grace, willing to grant favor to those of us who mess up time after time and could never achieve righteousness on our own. Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Mark 2:17 NIV This brings me hope and encouragement! Jesus did not enter our world so he could pronounce judgement on us, instead He came to free us from the bondage of sin and offer us forgiveness. There is absolutely nothing in your past that will shock God or cause Him to reject you; He offers you acceptance, forgiveness and grace!