Jesus' Ancestors

Reading: Matthew 1:1-17

This is the first reading in the gospel, the good news of Jesus written by one of His followers named Matthew. Matthew traveled with Jesus, heard Him speak and saw His miracles. This book starts with the ancestors of Jesus. It lists his father, grandfather, great grandfather and great greats all the way back to Abraham. This is important because there are promises of God that belong to the children of Abraham and David that are fulfilled in Jesus. Let's read a little, you can read the rest in your own Bible:

"This is a record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, a descendant of David and of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac. Isaac was the father of Jacob..." 

And it continues the generations of Jesus' ancestory. There are many fathers and sons listed here.Each one of these names represents a real person that lived a long time ago. These were the people God chose to bring His son into the world. They must have been pretty amazing people, right? Many of them had strong faith and loved God. But they were also people, like you and I... capable of mistakes, like lying and in some really big sins, too. Why would God allow His Son to come from such sinful people? Let's see what the book of Hebrews says:

"...it was necessary for him to be made like us,

his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful
and faithful High Priest before God.
Then he could offer a sacrifice that
would take away the sins of the people...
Since He Himself has gone through suffering and testing,

He is able to help us when we are being tested."
Hebrews 2:17,18  NLT

"For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard. 

Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. 

He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty of our sins. 

For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. 

People are made right with God  

when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. "
Romans 3:23-25

Jesus was made just like us, His brothers and sisters; so He could understand us, help us, and He paid the penalty for our sins, so we can be made right with God and some day go to heaven to live with Him forever. How should we respond to God for sending Jesus?

"So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God.
There we will receive his mercy, 
and we will find grace to help us when we need it most."
Hebrews 4:16A