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I confess that when it comes time to read the passages of Scripture that include a genealogy, I do not read all of the words, nor all of the names. Since I cannot pronounce many of the names and I know none of them personally, I see it as a boring facet of Bible ready. Until I pass a name of someone whose story I am familiar with, or I see the name of a woman, for example, I don’t stop to consider the lives of each person listed.
In Matthew’s genealogical account, five women are mentioned (four by name: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Maria, and Bathsheba by reference). But what if any of the men or women listed had not lived his or her life?
Matthew speaks of the fourteen generations between Abraham and David, the fourteen between David and the Babylonian exile, and the fourteen from the exile to Christ. Would we get to Jesus without the life of Nashon, the father of Salmon? What if Eleazar weren’t the father of Matthan? Salmon was Boaz’s father, who we know well from Ruth’s story. Matthan was the father of “and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ” (Mt. 1:16).
Each one of these characters were real people in the Bible story, the Bible history. They lived here on the earth and played their part in the story of Christ. If it were not for each one of them, we would not have the opportunity to know Christ as our Lord and Savior. Each one had their part in what we now celebrate as the greatest story ever told.
Sometimes we wish we could live a big story of great impact. A recent college graduate wants to get a job where she will make a difference and do great things. The preacher wants to prepare awesome sermons that bring many to Christ.
But not everyone has a “big” part. Not everyone can. Not everyone should.
17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? 18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? (1 Cor. 12:17-19)
God places every member of the body exactly where He knows they fit best. He chose each person in the genealogy in order that, through them, His Son would come to earth.
But now, O Lord, you are our Father;
we are the clay, and you are our potter;
we are all the work of your hand. (Is. 64:8)
Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use? (Rom. 9:21)
Thanks be to God, the Potter, for making us part of His body. Thanks be to God for using us as a small part of His big story, especially when we feel that our part is not as grand, impactful, or important as we had hoped. Without your part, God cannot do all of what He wants to do in the body. And without the parts that others play, we cannot fulfill His plan.
We don’t know what God will do with each part, but we will understand later with 20/20 hindsight. Meanwhile, let’s trust Him and celebrate the parts that everyone has in the body!
P.S. Congratulations and Happy Father’s Day to all of the Dads who play their part in the kingdom, in our lives, and in God’s body!
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Written by: Tiffany Jacox, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Bellevue, Nebraska
One of my favorite things to do is to encourage others to see themselves the way God created them. People often struggle to see exactly where they fit in or to see the gifts with which God has equipped them. There are many reasons for these doubts and many of us have shared in that same struggle.
We can put our faith in the truth of God’s Word and use that truth to weed out the lies of Satan. We were created by God on purpose for a purpose! Jeremiah 29:11 states, "'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.'”
Every person on this planet was created by God, in the image of God for God’s purpose. Genesis 1:27 says, “God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”
God created each of us for His purpose and provided us each with special gifts to do His good work. Ephesians 2:10 affirms, “For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”
No two people are exactly the same. God did that on purpose! I encourage you to read through 1 Corinthians 12 and 13. You will see those gifts explained and that we are instructed to use our gifts in love. We come together as the body of Christ, made up of many members—all of equal importance using our individual gifts together as the complete body of Christ. Doing our part in love allows God’s love to shine through. “For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13).
We don’t have to worry about being perfect or doing it all. God provided us with others to help lighten the load and encourage us and He is also working in you! “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6).
We are to love one another; it is the second greatest commandment behind loving God with all that we are and all that we have. That means celebrating what each of us has to offer because God specifically equipped each one of us. It means coming together and sharing in one another’s joy and in one another’s pain and weakness. It means sharing in our good works that come from our deep faith and love of Christ. 1 Timothy 6:18 states, “Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share.”
No doubts. No comparisons. Just a celebration of the gifts each of us has been given to use in our part of God’s story.