Biblical genealogies are areas of the scripture which most
believers (I especially) often overlook. I often think that no insight or real
lessons other family histories/trees can be extracted. Upon listening to Matthew 1 (from the bible experience
audio), I realized that I couldn’t be farther from the truth.
I have read through it a couple of times, or should I rather
say that I have taken a couple of cursory looks through that chapter in time
past; and honestly, it simply bored me out, and I quite often drift off
(mentally) while reading through such scriptures. On listening to it being read
out, new insights just kept flooding in, and now I realize that I should have
taken more than just a cursory look into scriptures such as this.
Romans 10:17
says: “so then Faith cometh by hearing,
and hearing by the word of God” NIV puts it this way: “Consequently,
Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word
about Christ”
The scripture above looks pretty straight forward at first
glance, but I feel it’s much deeper than it looks.
What is ‘the message’ being referred to
above?
I feel the Holyspirit ministers’ messages into our hearts
and soul; but how do we truly hear what he speaks?
When we read or hear (listen to) the word (about) of Christ
– that is the scripture – then the message comes loud and clear to us.
Christianity is Faith-based and the scripture says as much in Hebrews 11:6;
“But without Faith it
is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that e is,
and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”
Pleasing God is our mandate as Christians (Matthew 22:36-37). If we can’t please
him, then we have failed. Faith is not an option, but a must to all
believers.
For us to build our faith, we must “hear the message” from
the Holyspirit. To hear this message, the channel/medium is “the word about
Christ”.
Now coming to the scripture under consideration (Matthew 1);
in Verse 5 – 6 reveals something quite fascinating. You will notice that this
genealogy (as was customary in biblical time) is replete with male members of
the bloodline, but two exceptions pop out in Verse 5; Rechab – the prostitute
of Jericho who saved the Israeli spies, and Ruth – who steadfastly and loyally
stuck to her mother-in-law, Naomi, even after the death of her husband. This
gives us a great lesson – God never forgets the good done. Diligence in seeking
the lord never goes unrewarded (Hebrews
11:6).
Take note of verse 6 as well; it doesn’t mention Bathsheba
(Solomon’s mother), she was rather referred to as – the wife of Urias, because
it was referring to the sin committed! Two lessons can be picked from here;
firstly, though God is a merciful and loving father, consequences for our sins
and inactions still abound. God is a God of justice, and he certainly didn’t
allow the sin against Urias go unpunished. God is very much able to turn what
seems like a dead certain disaster into a jaw-dropping testimony. A union
initially enmeshed in sin later resulted in an offspring who now was in the
bloodline of Jesus!
Verse 19 shows us a lesson on being JUST.
God doesn’t just allow anything happen for the sake of it
happening. The angel of the Lord could very well have informed Joseph about the
conception of the virgin Mary rather than allowing him find out himself. God
didn’t permit it to happen that way, because I feel he had a lesson in store
that he wanted to dispense to us. Joseph I must say would have been justified
to feel betrayed and to take due actions (by human standard). Joseph didn’t
succumb to bitterness or discard his moral values. He still had the intention
of treating Mary in the right way!
As Christians, we shouldn’t treat people badly because they
treat us that way. We must learn to live above the world/earthly code, which
dictates that we give what we get. Treat everyone right! Do good to all men
when opportune and not just the ones who treat you right.
Image from: http://hanoverlibrary.ca/free-genealogy-sites-tools/
