This morning, a friend sent me a text with a picture of the bible. It was somewhere in Matthew and I decided to do something I have never done on Christmas before. Read about the birth of Jesus.
For those of you who read my posts, you probably know by now I'm not such a great writer and you probably know by now, I'm not a preacher and don't know the bible so well. In fact, real preachers tend to despise me because I am pretty open about my short comings and most churches have a reputation they need to uphold. In short, I am often rejected by churches. I tend to sit somewhere in the middle where the world tends to think I am a "Goodie 2 Shoes" and feels apologetic in my presence. And the church goers tend to think I'm a rebellious bad boy who needs to repent, and quickly at that. There is truth to both sides. I say, show grace to those who think you are a "Goodie 2 Shoes" and truth to those who think you need to repent, while all along, think they are better than you.
So my blog posts are really about worship and sharing my love of God with others. Matthew 1:1-17 reads
1 This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:
2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
3 Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram,
4 Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon,
5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse,
6 and Jesse the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,
7 Solomon the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa,
8 Asa the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Jehoram, Jehoram the father of Uzziah,
9 Uzziah the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
10 Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, Amon the father of Josiah,
11 and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.
12 After the exile to Babylon: Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
13 Zerubbabel the father of Abihud, Abihud the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor,
14 Azor the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Akim, Akim the father of Elihud,
15 Elihud the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob,
16 and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.
17 Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah.
Why is it important to know the geneology of Jesus? Well, because if you know Jesus came from a long line of adulterers and murderers and slanderers and coveters, then you will know that out of generations of sinners, from such humble beginnings comes the greatest King who ever lived. It isn't just that Jesus came from generations of sinners. It is that, this was the only way Jesus could come. In your life, perhaps you have lived seasons of sinfulness. Perhaps, you believe that there is no way Jesus could ever live in you because of who you are are perhaps what you have done. But I am here to tell you, that is the only way he could be birthed in you. Until you realize your own depravity, you will never have a reason to rely fully on the grace of God.
Matthew 2:16 reads "When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi."
When Jesus comes, if we reject Him or turn from Him, it is then that great depravity overtakes us. Great destruction comes. But, more surprisingly, when we accept Him, this Great Physician performs a miraculous pruning. Matthew 3:10 reads "The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire."
Our new life feels like a tremendous destruction of everything we have ever known. But God only cuts at the roots. He does not destroy. He leaves the roots so that something new may grow. The baby is not thrown out with the bath water.
In Matthew 3:11, John the Baptist continues, “I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."
While water purifies, fire consumes. And from the ashes, new life begins. And just like a child struggles for 18 years, to become an adult, our new faith will face many challenges. As such, Matthew 4:1-11 explains these challenges as Jesus is immediately taken into the wilderness following His baptism. The three temptations explain how the devil will twist our God given desires to serve his purpose. They also demonstrate exactly what James 4:7 means by "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."
Again, Jesus shows us that only from the darkness can his light emerge. Only those who have been tempted can preach. Only those who have fallen or struggled in particular areas can comfort and help save those who have fallen in the same areas, without coming from a place of judgement or condemnation. Only they can truly understand that the kingdom of heaven is closer than we think.
16 "the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned."
17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
Truly, the kingdom of heaven lives here on Earth. Truly, Jesus may live in us. And Jesus has told us how that looks. Matthew 5:3-10 reads,
3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus goes on to blow us away with how "anger in our heart" is likened to murder and "lust" is likened to adultery. He blows us away with guidance on how to have compassion. What do we do when our loved ones sin greatly? He reminds us three times to humble ourselves.
Matthew 5:34-37 reminds us how simple we are: "34 But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37 All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one."
We cannot promise to never commit murder or never commit adultery. I would never do that you might think. But it would only be your sinful pride that would suggest such a thing. Truly, it is only by the grace of God that you might be protected by Him in such a way that temptation from the devil would never overcome you, in such a way that you might perform such sins. All we can ask is that He continue to shower us with such grace so that we may be able to obey Him. With this compassion, we might extend grace towards those who sin.
Matthew 6:9-13 reads:
9 This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
Again, we are told only to ask for our daily bread. I know in my life, as soon as I promise to never do something again, sinful pride boils up within me and the devil overtakes me. It is only through humility that I can ask God for my daily bread so that I might not sin. There is nothing done by another human being that I might be able to avoid without God's grace. Even the sins to which my heart is most disgusted by. I can only thank God for blessing me with such disgust and protecting me from such sins.
Proverbs 30:8-9 expands on how God blesses us with our daily bread and how this blessing is the only means by which we may avoid our sinful nature.
8 Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.
9 Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.
The third lesson in humility comes from Matthew 7:3-5 and again emphasizes that we can only lift up others and comfort others when we realize the short comings that we see in them are small compared to the short comings we have within ourselves. This is the only vantage point from which we may offer grace. Every other place of correction bestows condemnation, shame and guilt.
3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye."
From humble beginnings, to rebirth to an inheritance of the kingdom of heaven. A glorious story.
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<SI> Scott Izu, PhD
Copyright December 2015
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