Hope for Restoration
“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”—Matthew 1:1
So begins the book of Matthew: “The genealogy of Jesus Christ…” For most Bible readers, this is superfluous information that not too many people care about except scholars, pastors, and theologians. But, to skip over the genealogy of Jesus would be to skip over one of the sweetest passages in all of scripture. Jesus came to save us from our sins; He came to give us hope beyond this life and ourselves. The genealogy of Jesus demonstrates hope made real in lives where hope was never thought possible. Consider for a moment some of the names included in it: names such as Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, David, the wife of Uriah, and Mary. These names were not associated with moral perfection, but with people with real sins and real problems.
Rahab was not a person I would pick in putting together the lineage for God’s Messiah, yet God chose her. She was a prostitute and a foreigner, outside of the covenant community of God. She was a resident of the famous city of Jericho, a town that the Israelites sought to conquer when they took the Promised Land. Joshua, the leader of the Israelites, had sent two spies to check out Jericho on a reconnaissance mission. The spies’ attempt at remaining undercover was a dismal failure. The king discovered them and sought to have them captured. Aware of the king’s plan, Rahab came to the spies’ rescue.
She made a pact with the two spies offering to help them in return for her and her families’ lives. They complied with her request, offering a visible and tangible sign of her salvation. If she placed a scarlet thread in her window, her family would be spared; if she didn’t then they would not. She had come to believe in the God of Israel and knew God would give His people the Promised Land. She had heard of the miracles that God had done on Israel’s behalf—how He had dried up the waters of the Red Sea and defeated the armies that stood in His way. The God of Israel was God “in the heavens above and on the earth beneath.” There was no other. And He would not be defeated.
She knew that her own city would be captured. She protected the two spies, and then placed the scarlet thread in the window when the Israelite army arrived. The walls came down, the city was destroyed, but she and her family were saved. Her act of faith is a rallying cry for anyone marked by the scars of sin. She was given hope, a second chance, and her act of faith enabled her to be an example of faith in action (James 2:25), included in God’s Hall of Fame of faith (Hebrews 11:32), and most importantly, an ancestor to the coming Christ (Matthew 1:5).
Rahab is one of the greatest examples of hope during the Christmas season. Her life is an example of what God will do with the worst of sinners. He will take them, transform them, and use them to do great things. I pray that this Christmas season will be a time of hope and restoration for you. It doesn’t matter who you are, what you have done, or where you have been. God is ready and willing to transform you to be the person He can use for His purpose and His glory. Amen.
So begins the book of Matthew: “The genealogy of Jesus Christ…” For most Bible readers, this is superfluous information that not too many people care about except scholars, pastors, and theologians. But, to skip over the genealogy of Jesus would be to skip over one of the sweetest passages in all of scripture. Jesus came to save us from our sins; He came to give us hope beyond this life and ourselves. The genealogy of Jesus demonstrates hope made real in lives where hope was never thought possible. Consider for a moment some of the names included in it: names such as Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, David, the wife of Uriah, and Mary. These names were not associated with moral perfection, but with people with real sins and real problems.
Rahab was not a person I would pick in putting together the lineage for God’s Messiah, yet God chose her. She was a prostitute and a foreigner, outside of the covenant community of God. She was a resident of the famous city of Jericho, a town that the Israelites sought to conquer when they took the Promised Land. Joshua, the leader of the Israelites, had sent two spies to check out Jericho on a reconnaissance mission. The spies’ attempt at remaining undercover was a dismal failure. The king discovered them and sought to have them captured. Aware of the king’s plan, Rahab came to the spies’ rescue.
She made a pact with the two spies offering to help them in return for her and her families’ lives. They complied with her request, offering a visible and tangible sign of her salvation. If she placed a scarlet thread in her window, her family would be spared; if she didn’t then they would not. She had come to believe in the God of Israel and knew God would give His people the Promised Land. She had heard of the miracles that God had done on Israel’s behalf—how He had dried up the waters of the Red Sea and defeated the armies that stood in His way. The God of Israel was God “in the heavens above and on the earth beneath.” There was no other. And He would not be defeated.
She knew that her own city would be captured. She protected the two spies, and then placed the scarlet thread in the window when the Israelite army arrived. The walls came down, the city was destroyed, but she and her family were saved. Her act of faith is a rallying cry for anyone marked by the scars of sin. She was given hope, a second chance, and her act of faith enabled her to be an example of faith in action (James 2:25), included in God’s Hall of Fame of faith (Hebrews 11:32), and most importantly, an ancestor to the coming Christ (Matthew 1:5).
Rahab is one of the greatest examples of hope during the Christmas season. Her life is an example of what God will do with the worst of sinners. He will take them, transform them, and use them to do great things. I pray that this Christmas season will be a time of hope and restoration for you. It doesn’t matter who you are, what you have done, or where you have been. God is ready and willing to transform you to be the person He can use for His purpose and His glory. Amen.
Comments
Post a Comment