Matthew 1:1-17
1 The family tree of Jesus Christ, David’s son, Abraham’s son:
2-6 Abraham had Isaac,Isaac had Jacob,
Jacob had Judah and his brothers,
Judah had Perez and Zerah (the mother was Tamar),
Perez had Hezron,Hezron had Aram,
Aram had Amminadab,Amminadab had Nahshon,Nahshon had Salmon,
Salmon had Boaz (his mother was Rahab),
Boaz had Obed (Ruth was the mother),
Obed had Jesse,Jesse had David,and David became king.
6-11 David had Solomon (Uriah’s wife was the mother),
Solomon had Rehoboam,Rehoboam had Abijah,
Abijah had Asa,Asa had Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat had Joram,Joram had Uzziah,
Uzziah had Jotham,Jotham had Ahaz,
Ahaz had Hezekiah,Hezekiah had Manasseh,
Manasseh had Amon,Amon had Josiah,
Josiah had Jehoiachin and his brothers,
and then the people were taken into the Babylonian exile.
12-16 When the Babylonian exile ended, Jeconiah had Shealtiel,Shealtiel had Zerubbabel,
Zerubbabel had Abiud,Abiud had Eliakim,Eliakim had Azor,Azor had Zadok,
Zadok had Achim,Achim had Eliud,Eliud had Eleazar,Eleazar had Matthan,
Matthan had Jacob,Jacob had Joseph, Mary’s husband,
the Mary who gave birth to Jesus,
the Jesus who was called Christ.
17 There were fourteen generations from Abraham to David,
another fourteen from David to the Babylonian exile,
and yet another fourteen from the Babylonian exile to Christ.
Two seemingly unlikely women are included early on in Jesus’ lineage; one faces down one man, the other faces down an entire army. It may be difficult for us to see what they did as honorable; they trick people, they lie, both use their sexuality in ways we probably don’t approve of. Their methods are not ones we’d endorse or recommend. Yet they are singled out in scripture, and they become part of what God is doing. As we read about what they did we are reminded that we don’t have to understand the whole of what God is doing in order to be part of it. Neither of these women mentions any interest in or vision of winning a place in Israel’s history. They are not bent on being heroes, they are simply living their lives. Tamar is owed a family and pretends to be a prostitute in the presence of her father-in-law to accomplish that. Rahab, an actual prostitute, wants safety for herself and those she loves. As Tamar and Rahab attentively live the lives they have been given, God uses them. What they do becomes a part of what God is doing, part of something that will change the world- in ways they never foresee. These women tell us that in our daily acts of dealing with our own responsibilities, we are part of something beyond our small sphere of influence. Ordinary people shape us and through all of us, the world. Tamar and Rahab present a picture of people working alongside a God whose hands already show the marks of involvement in our lives, they illustrate hope that confronts, that honestly names needs and dreams, hope that is willing to risk, to take whatever action it can, and to trust God to do the rest. Tamar and Rahab invite us to consider that God is at work as we work, that God is using and will use our lives to bring new life into the world. They invite us to name before God our dearest hopes- the dreams we hold in our hearts – and to welcome God into those hopes and dreams.
~ Upcoming Events ~
Sunday, December 31
Please note that we will not be having Sunday School or Family Worship
~
School Vacation Boredom Busters
Join us for something every day during Christmas Break
Please contact Heather for any further information.
Tuesday, January 2
Including a possible trip to the Doc McStuffins Exhibit
$18 for Adults, $13 for kids
Wednesday, January 3
$11 for 30 minutes / $16 for 60 minutes / $21 for 90 minutes
Thursday, January 4
“Ferdinand” at the Santa Anita AMC
Tickets: $15 for adults, $12 for kids
Friday, January 5
Ice Skating
Pasadena Ice Skating Center
$11 entry, $4 skate rental
~
Sunday, January 7
Team 1 Acolyting
Family Worship
10 am | Chapel
Sunday School
10:30 am | Sunday School Classrooms
~
Sunday, January 14
Team 2 Acolyting
Family Worship
10 am | Chapel
Sunday School
10:30 am | Sunday School Classrooms
~
Sunday, January 21
Team 3 Acolyting
Family Worship
10 am | Chapel
Sunday School
10:30 am | Sunday School Classrooms
