“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” Matthew 1:23

An interesting thing happened to me this week!  In my Bible study group, we were studying the first chapter of Matthew.  When I got to church on Sunday, the speaker, Josiah, was teaching on the same chapter, Matthew 1.  It was interesting to hear the sermon, then compare what had really impacted our study group.  In some ways, it was the same, and in other ways, it was different!

In similar ways, the four gentile women mentioned in Matthew 1 had very interesting backgrounds.  None of them were God fearing in their youth but came to love and worship the God of Israel and wanted the blessings afforded them.  They were all jewels of grace!

Tamar – a Canaanite woman whose husband had been killed by the Lord for his wickedness, somehow understood who the God of Israel was and wanted the blessing of a child.  She resorted to trapping Judah into an unholy alliance and the Lord in His grace gave her twin sons, one in the genealogy of Jesus Christ.

Rahab – a prostitute from the city of Jericho.  She hid the Jewish spies who came to spy out the land.  Her house was a good place to hide out and God wanted them there for the salvation of this lady, one on the bottom of the social ladder.  She heard and believed….. “The Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath.”  Joshua 2:11.  By God’s grace, she is in the Messianic line!

Ruth – we know and love Ruth’s story!  She was a Moabitess, a gentile who had no place among God’s people.  She married a man from the tribe of Judah.  When he died, she chose to leave her country and be identified with God’s people through her mother-in-law.  “Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay.  Your people will be my people and your God my God,” Ruth 1:16.   She became the great-grandmother of King David.

Bathsheba – identified as “Uriah’s wife,” Bathsheba’s first husband was a Hittite, so it’s likely she was as well.  She committed adultery with King David, her husband was killed purposely in battle, and she married the king.  Her child, a son, died.  She later had 4 sons, including Solomon who became Israel’s greatest king.   She was another undeserving person who God chose to pour out His grace.   God uses imperfect people to carry out His perfect plan!

In studying this chapter, another character who stood out to me was the person of Joseph, Jesus’ earthly father.  Since Joseph is in the line of kings, this genealogy establishes Jesus’ claim to the throne of David as Joseph’s legal heir and earthly king of Israel.  It’s fascinating to think that Jesus should have been born in a palace, not a stable, and Joseph the legal king instead of Herod.  Joseph is such a sweet character, he is described as a “just” man, wanting to protect Mary from becoming a public example.  He immediately obeyed the angel of the Lord and took Mary as his wife.  I love how he protected her from humiliation.  Later when Herod ordered all the baby boys under 2 years to be killed, Joseph protected his family and fled to Egypt, as the angel of the Lord had spoken.  He immediately obeyed, even in the middle of the night!  Instant obedience!  Love it!

Most of us come from sketchy ancestors!  God in his sovereign grace chose us before we were born!   His grace is sufficient for all, and His love extends to every generation.  “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”  1 Peter 2:9.

Your friend, Jean