The Genealogy of Jesus Christ

The Genealogy of the Jesus Christ Matthew 1.1-17 Genealogy was a big thing in Old Testament and New Testament times. Genealogy still is a big thing in the Middle East. The whole conflict over there is between the descendants of two sons- Ishmael and Isaac, half brothers, the son of Hagar and the son of Sarah. Abraham was the father of both. One was the father of the Arab people, the other the father of the Israel, the Israelites, today what we call the Israelis (and all the Jews around the world). One son was of the Spirit, the other of the flesh. One son was the fulfillment of God’s Promise the other man’s attempt to help God out. This is what wrong thinking which leans on your own understanding will bring: conflict... inside a family. Since the beginning God had promised Jesus (Genesis 3.15). From Abraham that promise became personal and part of a family, the children of Israel, the Jews. God promised the Messiah through this line. This line had special promises and people. 1. Jesus had Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and David in His ancestry line. *Abraham- the father of the faithful. God fulfilled His promise to Abraham through His Son Jesus Christ Genesis 12.3 “... All peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” Peoples= mishpachah : clan, family, tribe, people, nation Abraham believed and it was credited to him as righteousness. (Galatians 3.6) God honors faith. *Isaac, the promised son Isaac submitted to death on Mount Moriah. His father was up in years and Isaac could have run away but he placed his life (and death) in the hands of his father. Jesus would come to that same place and go through similar things with His Father in heaven but the Father would not take away death from His Son. Jesus died there for the sins of the whole world. Scripture was being fulfilled. Prophecies concerning Jesus were completed that day on the cross. Even the gifts offered to Him as a young child in Bethlehem, gold, frankincense and myrrh all had to do with this day- the day on the cross. The manger and the cross were tied up in the same promises of a Redeemer, the Savior of the world and Him being that Great Shepherd of the sheep, the Good Shepherd, my Shepherd. This Christmas make your way back to the manger. *Jacob, the heel grasper who became Israel= God prevails, governed by God *David, Israel’s most beloved King was an ancestor of Jesus David wrote Messianic Psalms. The Psalm of the cross was written by David (Psalm 22) David led Israel in worship of the LORD God. David was a comforter of broken hearts. He had one. David was a man after God’s own heart. I think the two are tied together. Isaiah 53.3 He was despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows , and familiar with grief/ suffering Like one from Whom people hide their faces He was despised, and we held Him in low esteem. One of the ways God is able to endure seeing suffering is that He knows what happens in the end. Bob Pierce‘s book let my heart be broken with the things to break the heart of God was a dose of overwhelming reality. that was his prayer. He asked for God to show him things as they really are. Every Christmas People drift off into it unreality. They spend money that they don’t have. They buy gifts for people that don’t need them. They have a nostalgic feelings, which in and of themselves are not bad, but they create something that is not true. That is what makes Christmas vacation movie so funny and yet so appealing. Clark Griswold finally faces the fact by asking his father the question, “Dad, why are the holidays such a always such a mess?” His father answers, “I know.” Clark then asks, how did you get through them. His father chuckles and says, “I had a little help from Jack Daniels.” I don’t want to live like that. No one does. Perhaps, in the first time in 65 thanksgivings this year I discovered it’s true original meaning... of our nation and in God’ Word and in prayer. I’m out to set the course for Christmas as well. I want to be able to say now, I am free to enjoy Christmas. It is a glorious event! It is the focal point of human history. It is gods story. It has been covered up by tinsel in unreality. I’m not against decorating for Christmas. I’ll do it myself. Just so blessed the decorations and the gift buying and all of the warm fuzzy feelings are not covering over reality of Christ’s Birth. I am making my way back to the manger. Reality will eventually come to you. For many comes on their deathbed. Others in this life. But the free people, the really free people are those whoever broken spirit, an open heart and a new direction in which to travel. Gordon MacDonald calls them the freest people on the earth. When we get there we are filled with joy unspeakable. We’re not fretting, worrying, angry, we are like children, children of God. And whom the sun sets free is free indeed! “Let my heart be broken with the things that break the heart of God.” Prayer of Dr. Bob Pierce, founder of World Vision and Samaritan’s Purse We want to be used but we don’t want to be broken. We want the Resurrection without the crucifixion, We want to hide our scars when Jesus shows us His. Philippians 3. 10 I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, 11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead. The greatest spiritual blessing we receive is when we come to the knowledge that we are destitute. -Oswald Chambers 2. Note the women where details are given. Before you do that, prejudice against women is spoken against here. To include them in a genealogy was radical back then. It was outrageous! Jesus comes and turns over things that are wrong. He upsets things that need to be upset. He is doing that in this Pandemic. But these women were not ones we would have picked (which shows how often we pick the wrong people ) Verse three Tamar, a foreigner and of doubtful morality (Genesis 38) Verse Five Rahab, another foreigner and once a prostitute(Joshua 2.1) Ruth, a Moabitetess Verse six Uriah’s wife Bathsheba committed adultery with David (II Samuel 11) 3. There were some men who fell short in this line Abraham shows us that having faith does and being justified by faith does not mean we will be perfect. David shows us we can have a heart for God and be a man after God’s own heart and fall into sin if we do not guard our hearts. Solomon shows us that we can have great wisdom but if disobey the LORD it will hurt many many people. All have sinned and come short of God’s glory. This is why Jesus came. His Name shall be called Jesus for He shall save His people from their sins. 4. Jesus’ Birth was humble. His ancestry line has both prestige and at the same time things you could not be proud over. He relates to sinful situations. He is the King of Kings. But He is also the Friend of Sinners- What a Friend We Have in Jesus All our sins and griefs to bear We love Him because He first loved us. He accepts us with all of our imperfections Amazing Grace,. He take people whose lives are a mess and puts them back together. He came for all people. You may be listening by Livestream this morning. It just showed up in your newsfeed. You may be very rich. But deep down in your heart you are empty. You aren’t hearing this on accident. This is your time, your day. Christ is calling you to follow Him. Come now to Jesus! We have been grafted in... Romans 11.17 and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root All the promises... Galatians 3.8 The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: All nations will be blessed through you. 9 So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith....29 If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. Because God adopts us as His children when we believe we have the line of Abraham as our genealogy. We are descendants of his. Hebrews 2.10 In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering. 11 Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers. Isaiah 53.8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken... vs.9-12 Who are your ancestors? If you are a believer, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, David. If you are a believer Jesus is not ashamed to call you a brother or sister. You have God as your Father God’s Family is made up of all who have believed on His Son for salvation. God’s family is the family of believers. Let’s let Him tie our story into His Story. His family is still growing and will be until the final one has come in... Let’s keep sharing the good news! Sent from my iPad

O Tne Joys of Those Who Take Refuge in Him!

O The Joys of Those Who Take Refuge In Him! Psalm 34.8 Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him. I will extol the LORD at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. 2 I will glory in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. 3 Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt His name together. This Psalm was written by David at a horrible time in his life. It was very bitter and yet here he is giving thanks. How can this be? He has been anointed king over Israel while Saul was still in office. Saul had the crown and the palace but David had the anointing. That made King Saul very jealous. He did not know how David would ascend to the throne. Would he take it by force or let the natural course of events take place? Saul did not know David very well. But David knew Saul. He was a spear thrower. And he gave the command to hunt David down. After that he had to flee from Saul. For an entire decade all the way through his 20’s until he was 30 David was on the run from Saul. It was a nightmarish hell. He wrote this psalm after he had to fake being insane before Abimilech. God was with him. David once more was safe. As far as he knew this was his lot in life. The dreams of ascending to King over Israel came down to running for his life, getting enough food for each day and hoping that Saul would never catch him. However David did say one day Saul is going to kill me. But David thought to himself, “One of these days I will be destroyed by the hand of Saul.” (I Samuel 27.1) That shows where his emotional being was at one point. We could probably relate a lot to David during this time we are in. Today is Thanksgiving Sunday! This is going to be a different thanksgiving than we have ever experienced before and right on it’s heels comes Christmas. We keep trying to recapture what we have lost not realizing that C.S. Lewis said, “Reality never repeats. “ Be thankful for the memories. Embrace the reality of today. Based on the recommendations from the CDC and our own state I will be remaining alone in my home Thursday. It’s going to be different. Even my daughters have said that. But I won’t be alone. In fact the house will be filled! With memories, with joy because of the LORD! We need to find our refuge in the LORD. The LORD. The LORD Jesus Christ Who was born outside and placed in a feeding trough for the animals! That is Christmas! That’s the original. All that we have added over the centuries and millenniums is not bad... it is just excessive. The bad thing is has crowded out Christ. This Christmas just maybe we can get back to some of the reality of the first. Yes reality doesn’t repeat but it can be remembered. And so with Thanksgiving let’s go back to the pilgrims. Here’s some things we tend to forget. The Pilgrims struggled to build homes, and many families crowded into the few homes that were built. Food was scarce, and many Pilgrims starved to death that first winter. ... In the first winter, nearly half of the pilgrims struggling to build the Plymouth settlement died from cold and sickness. Even before they landed... Diseases, storms, vigorous winds, ship damages, strong ocean currents, terrible living conditions and overcorwdness. they were forced into Plymouth, an unfamilar territory during a harsh winter. nobody knew any easy access to food, shelter or medicine. The Pilgrims first had to make shelters for their winter ordeal and find water and what food they could. Unfortunately for them, they had no knowledge of the local wild life and even if they had, they lacked the knowledge of how to capture it. David, in his struggles against Saul and against foreign powers in his time of running found that God, the LORD was his refuge. In this pandemic as we celebrate Thanksgiving differently this year, perhaps more than we ever have before, we can be thankful for the wonderful blessings God has poured out upon us even in this time of national and international stress, difficulty, disappointment, and wondering about the future. We have these blessings no matter what. The Joy of Knowing Him The greatest thing in the world is knowing Christ. It surpasses all other things Peace, strength, grace, eternal life Think of the blessing of praying! David and the LORD had a very close relationship. The Joy of His Protection Refuge Psalm 46.1 God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Psalm 18.2 The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. Psalm 91.2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." Refuge= Seek refuge Flee for protection Trust in God Hope in the LORD .The Joy of His Provisions Philippians 4.19 and my God shall supply all of your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus. seeking first His Kingdom as He provides food to eat and clothes to wear Matthew 6.33 Watching God Himself provide Genesis 22. 8 Abraham answered, “God Himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together. The Joy of His Promises Being Fulfilled As we walk with Him Living them out Seeing Him work Overwhelmed by His goodness... Haiti 102 children in the schools, 64 in Pastor Joes! Amazing! Donation as we met. Thanks be to God for His Indescribable Gift! Yet to be Fulfilled His Return “Yes, I am coming soon.” Revelation 22.20 Thanks be to God! Sent from my iPad

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ Acts 25. 18 When his accusers got up to speak, they did not charge him with any of the crimes I had expected. 19 Instead, they had some points of dispute with him about their own religion and about a dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive. Christ has indeed been raised from the Dead. I Corinthians 15.20 If not... *Your faith is in vain. 15.7 *We are of all men most miserable I Corinthians 15.19 *He is a liar. He said to Martha John 11. 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in Me will live, even though they die; You cannot say well I believe Jesus was a good man but not God. C.S. Lewis: I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to. Here we are in a season of dying, the autumn will bring the winter. We are watching the trees shed their leaves, birds getting ready to migrate... our thoughts turn to Thanksgiving and Christmas/ Advent. Today I want to jump to the Spring Season and talk about Jesus’ Resurrection. Two huge wonders re how Jesus was born and how after He died He rose from the grave. Both events are celebrated in beginnings. Christmas, His birth as they days are getting longer. Easter His Resurrection in the beginning of Spring, the growing season. One at the end of the harvest, the other in the beginning of planting. In our lives we have beginnings and endings. We have birth and death. We have times of celebrations and sorrow. But for the believer death is the last enemy. After that there is the Resurrection, eternity with Jesus. We ought to live with one foot in heaven and one on earth. The Resurrection of Jesus and His Promises associated with it are for now and forever. With Christ’ Resurrection we have... *The Empty Tomb The empty tomb in Jerusalem stands today in a beautiful well kept Garden. In the Cesarean Coliseum Paul gave his defense. Back to the Empty Tomb That is a historical fact. He Arose That is a present reality. He walks with me and He talks with me... That is a future hope. I Thessalonians 4. 13 Brothers, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the LORD’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the LORD Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the LORD in the air. And so we will be with the LORD forever. *The Risen Life Romans 6.4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. The most visible sign of the Resurrection is changed lives. God, Who raised Christ, working in us. Christ living in us. The Resurrection power at work in a redeemed soul. We are His witnesses. The Risen Life implies spiritual death before and the physical death to come. Psalm 39.4 “Show me, Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is. 5 You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before You. Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure. 6 “Surely everyone goes around like a mere phantom; in vain they rush about, heaping up wealth without knowing whose it will finally be. Colossians 3:1-2 Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. Isaiah 26.19 Your dead will live; Their corpses will rise. You who lie in the dust, awake and shout for joy, For your dew is as the dew of the dawn, And the earth will give birth to the departed spirits. 2 Corinthians 5:15 and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf. Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. 1 Corinthians 15:31 I affirm, brethren, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. Philippians 3:8-10 More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; In this time of suffering we have to ask ourselves, what are we going to do with our pain? Are we going to blame others for it? Are we going to try to fix it? No one lives on this earth without it. It is the great teacher, although none of us want to admit it. -RR 1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, Colossians 3:10 and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him— 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. We are His witnesses today, in 2020. Paul indicated that his sufferings resulted in wider spread of the Gospel. Philippians 1. 12 Now I want you to know, brothers that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. 13 As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard[c] and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. 14 And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear. We see the infancy of the faith in Festus’ words. *The Coming Savior Jesus Christ Crucified, Risen and Coming Again He will come again. No one knows the Day or the hour. We must always be ready. Live in the power of the Resurrection today! Wait for the Resurrection Day! Share the Good News! Be at peace. Give Grace. Sent from my iPad

Resting In God’s Sovereignty Acts 24. 27 When two years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus, but because Felix wanted to grant a favor to the Jews, he left Paul in prison. There is man’s story and there History, His Story. If we just see it as our story then it can be discouraging and even depressing. If we see it as God’s story, His Story and how we fit into it we will have such a different view. You can always tell if a person is a Christian by how they view History. One of the things about His Story is He is in control. Somehow He works all things together for our good. I don’t know how but He does. Psalm 37.7 Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him; How often I have come to places in my life where I thought, it’s all over. This is the end. Only to find out that God is opening up new doors and doing new things in me and through me! This is my story, His story. He has a plan for our lives. Psalm 139.16     all the days ordained for me were written in your book     before one of them came to be. Ephesians 2. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. What did Paul do in those two years in prison? Prayed. Wrote letters to churches and one individual that we know of while there... probably more. Waited. God often has plans that we are unaware of. Interruptions are often His opportunities, a part of His plan. What appears to be an interruption is God’s Sovereignty at work. God is the ruler over the earth because whatever happens on the earth happens because God has allowed it to happen. And yet, in a narrower sense, Jesus recognized that Satan was ruling the earth at the present time. Now, Satan only rules because God allows him to rule. So in an overall sense, yes, God rules, but God in His rule has given man free moral agency, self-determination, the power or capacity of choice. God has allowed man to choose who he desires to rule over him. And the majority of men have chosen that Satan should rule over their lives. And God has not violated man's choice. He's allowed him to make the choice and then respects the choice that man has made. The bottom line is always, “God is in control.” I wonder if Paul would have felt the need to write letters if it were not for the prison. With his desire to travel and being cut out for it he would have preferred visiting those churches in person. We have learned to be much more effective in the Pandemic Shut down. Many things are staying with us, part of the work of ministry now. We are working with a new app called Larix Broadcaster which will enable us soon to broadcast Livestream to not only Facebook Live but our You Tube Channel and Instagram as well! Paul discovered he could cover more territory, encourage the churches and get the Gospel out more effectively than if he were “free” to travel. This was a restful time, if you are going to be in jail it might as well be on the Mediterranean! The Roman Government “sponsored” many things for the Gospel. Built roads for Paul to travel on, got Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem to have Jesus born there, was responsible for the Prison Epistles. You can read more about them here: https://www.gotquestions.org/prison-epistles.html Sometimes the LORD gives us glimpses into His plan, sometimes we cry out to Him like Jehoshaphat, II Chronicles 20.12 For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on You.” We have those letters from Prison. Philippians, Ephesians, Colossians and Philemon Philippians 1.12 Now I want you to know, brothers that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. I don’t believe that as Paul wrote those letters to the churches founded on his second missionary journey he was aware he was writing the Bible! He doesn’t mention his letter writing in that way. So we can be going about our daily lives, surrendered to a Jesus and not be aware that God is at work through us? Sure! We can just be writing or talking and our words carry much greater weight to a much larger audience? Of course. Then there our lives, the testimony of faithfulness. Almost 2,000 years ago they were penned, dictated by Paul. He did not realize that he was writing letters which would be come part of the Bible, the New Testament and form our beliefs, give us wonderful promises and reveal to us the mysteries of God’s Grace. He wrote to the Ephesians Ephesians 2. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. One of the works in advance that God prepared Paul for was the writing of these books, letters. He was writing encouraging and instructive letters to churches in the First Century. He would have been amazed if God told him that we would be talking about those letters 2,000 years later, basing the church upon them. We go through prison experiences. The virus has been one. So often we are prevented from doing what we desire only to find out God has a greater work for us. *Prayer is the greater work! Well, all that we can do is pray. It is there we meet the LORD. This is a time to cry out to God. *The greatest of faith, hope and love is love. We are placed by God’s Sovereignty where we can express His love the best. That is so often through painful places, painful times. Joseph... So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “You’re the man for us. God has given you the inside story—no one is as qualified as you in experience and wisdom.” Genesis 41.39 Joseph would have never been in such a position without his sufferings, his troubles with his family, his brothers. We want to be free from pain. That is normal. That is natural. Sometimes there is a way to escape but it may not necessarily be God’s way. He wants to take us on the Calvary Way, the Way of the Cross. We love comfort. My friend, Pastor Tim Lemont, whose Bible Study I shared on our Church Facebook Page this week, spoke about the Blessedness of being persecuted for righteousness sake. You would do well to listen to such things. In this time of media glut, a time of Netflix and Amazon Prime shows and movies, do not let the gems get away. I see this time as a time of opportunity like we have never ever had. A time when we can learn from the least of these. The day of large gatherings has been suspended. Who would have dreamed that the World Series would be played in near empty stadiums? Or the large churches would be at a disadvantage? God is speaking to America. He is calling on His people to pray, come aside with Him, learn of Him. I see it clearly. Don’t miss what He is offering you in this time when what we knew as normal has been replaced. The safest place for the Apostle Paul at that time was in that prison! Paul probably sat in prayer in the prison. I am sure he did. Then at one point in those 2 years of waiting he thought, “I am not going anywhere soon. I eventually will go to Rome. The LORD made that clear. I cannot visit the churches so I will write to them.” We have these letters, filled with the promises of God. I close with the benediction from one of those letters in Ephesians 3. 20. Now to Him Who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, 21 to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.