Genealogy
Series: Find HOPE
Speaker: Sam Low
Date: 12th December 2015
Passage: Matthew 1:1-17
00:00:00 --> 00:00:05 I remember the first job that I ever got was as a counter worker at KFC.
00:00:06 --> 00:00:08 It was an exciting first career step.
00:00:09 --> 00:00:11 But I remember when I was applying for that job,
00:00:11 --> 00:00:14 I got really focused on developing my resume to hand in,
00:00:14 --> 00:00:16 to convince them that they should employ me.
00:00:17 --> 00:00:20 The difficult thing about writing a resume when you're about 14
00:00:20 --> 00:00:22 is that you don't really have a whole lot you can put on it.
00:00:23 --> 00:00:25 I had no previous employment, and so instead,
00:00:26 --> 00:00:29 once I got the first bit with my name and address and date of birth
00:00:29 --> 00:00:31 and all the really official things down,
00:00:31 --> 00:00:35 I set about filling my resume and padding it out as best as I could
00:00:35 --> 00:00:37 with all the mad skills that I had that I could think of,
00:00:38 --> 00:00:41 some of which didn't completely apply to working at Kentucky Fried Chicken.
00:00:42 --> 00:00:46 I was sure to notify my future employer that I drank close to a litre of Coke a day
00:00:46 --> 00:00:48 because I thought that was impressive.
00:00:49 --> 00:00:52 I was sure to alert him also that I had a gift for watching movies
00:00:52 --> 00:00:55 and then being able to quote key lines at appropriate moments in conversations
00:00:55 --> 00:00:58 and then laugh at them regardless of if anyone else knew what I was talking about.
00:00:59 --> 00:01:02 I also informed him that I had two brothers and two sisters,
00:01:03 --> 00:01:05 as if that would somehow make me a better employee.
00:01:06 --> 00:01:08 But as if that wasn't the worst,
00:01:08 --> 00:01:12 just to make sure he knew what a valuable asset I would be to the company,
00:01:12 --> 00:01:16 I also told him exactly how many grand finals I'd played in
00:01:16 --> 00:01:18 as a junior footballer playing Australian Rules football.
00:01:20 --> 00:01:23 Now, none of this, in pretty much everything on my resume,
00:01:23 --> 00:01:25 had absolutely nothing to do with working at KFC.
00:01:25 --> 00:01:28 Luckily, not a lot has to do with working at KFC,
00:01:28 --> 00:01:30 so I think you hand in your name and you'd get the tick.
00:01:30 --> 00:01:31 No offence to anyone who works at KFC.
00:01:32 --> 00:01:36 But the point is, resumes are supposed to include information
00:01:36 --> 00:01:41 that is appropriate or pertinent to the job that you're trying to get.
00:01:42 --> 00:01:43 You know, had I maybe liked chicken,
00:01:44 --> 00:01:45 then that might have been a tick on my resume.
00:01:46 --> 00:01:47 I did, but just forgot to mention it.
00:01:48 --> 00:01:50 But the point is, you include things that are going to convince
00:01:50 --> 00:01:52 whoever you're handing this piece of paper to
00:01:52 --> 00:01:55 that you are the right person for the job.
00:01:56 --> 00:01:59 Now, the reason I tell you that is because this exciting bit of Scripture
00:01:59 --> 00:02:02 that I have just worked my way through in the reading here
00:02:02 --> 00:02:04 is actually more like a resume.
00:02:05 --> 00:02:10 It's not a simple genealogy where we just go,
00:02:10 --> 00:02:13 this person's son and their person's son and so on and so on.
00:02:13 --> 00:02:17 In the ancient world, genealogies are more like resumes.
00:02:17 --> 00:02:21 They're designed to tell you a little bit about the credibility of a person.
00:02:21 --> 00:02:24 Now, this one traces all the way back to Abraham,
00:02:24 --> 00:02:26 which is a huge chunk of human history,
00:02:26 --> 00:02:30 and there's actually not enough generations for this to be a full, complete one.
00:02:31 --> 00:02:34 But that's okay, because that's not how genealogies worked.
00:02:34 --> 00:02:38 The point was to give you the highlights or the important people
00:02:38 --> 00:02:44 that showed you that Jesus is qualified for the job that he's applying for, if you like.
00:02:45 --> 00:02:49 This is a resume to give us Jesus' credentials.
00:02:49 --> 00:02:54 Not every detail, not every person is in there, just the ones that matter,
00:02:54 --> 00:02:55 just the ones that are important.
00:02:55 --> 00:02:58 And a little bonus bit of information that I didn't mention this morning,
00:02:58 --> 00:03:00 but someone asked me a question about it.
00:03:00 --> 00:03:02 Why the 14, 14, 14?
00:03:03 --> 00:03:05 Well, this, when it was originally written,
00:03:05 --> 00:03:07 would have been designed like an acrostic poem.
00:03:08 --> 00:03:11 And the 14s, that would have been in really simple language,
00:03:12 --> 00:03:14 in Greek and in Hebrew when it was written,
00:03:14 --> 00:03:17 it would have been designed to be something memorable
00:03:17 --> 00:03:20 so that you could have just spat it out like a memory verse,
00:03:20 --> 00:03:22 because they thought this was so important,
00:03:22 --> 00:03:24 they wanted it to stick in people's minds.
00:03:25 --> 00:03:27 So it's not a complete genealogy,
00:03:27 --> 00:03:31 it's a highlights reel to tell us something about Jesus.
00:03:32 --> 00:03:35 And so straight away we know that even though deep down
00:03:35 --> 00:03:37 we're hoping I'm going to jump to verse 18
00:03:37 --> 00:03:39 and the bit they come after and the bit we can understand really easily,
00:03:39 --> 00:03:41 that we should pay attention to this.
00:03:42 --> 00:03:45 Because of everything that happened from Abraham to Jesus,
00:03:46 --> 00:03:49 Matthew, when he was inspired by God to write this gospel,
00:03:50 --> 00:03:53 thought that this list of names was a good place to start.
00:03:55 --> 00:03:58 With everything that Jesus had done in his life,
00:03:59 --> 00:04:01 all the miracles, all the excitement, all the teaching,
00:04:02 --> 00:04:02 everything that happened,
00:04:03 --> 00:04:06 Matthew thought this would be a good first interaction
00:04:06 --> 00:04:08 for people with Jesus.
00:04:09 --> 00:04:11 And you've got to ask yourself the question,
00:04:11 --> 00:04:13 why would you start with that?
00:04:14 --> 00:04:15 If you were writing the gospel,
00:04:15 --> 00:04:17 if you were going to be informing people
00:04:17 --> 00:04:19 about this incredible person Jesus
00:04:19 --> 00:04:20 that you'd met or heard about,
00:04:21 --> 00:04:23 why would you start with something which, let's be honest,
00:04:23 --> 00:04:26 doesn't come up in anyone's favourite Bible passages?
00:04:27 --> 00:04:29 It is the bit we skip over.
00:04:29 --> 00:04:31 It's the one day in our quiet times
00:04:31 --> 00:04:32 where we're motivated to read more.
00:04:35 --> 00:04:37 So why start with this?
00:04:38 --> 00:04:39 Why is this a good spot?
00:04:39 --> 00:04:44 Well, I was reading this week a story
00:04:44 --> 00:04:47 about a missionary who worked in Papua New Guinea.
00:04:47 --> 00:04:49 He was doing some work with some translators
00:04:49 --> 00:04:53 and they were translating this particular bit of scripture,
00:04:53 --> 00:04:54 all of Matthew's gospel,
00:04:54 --> 00:04:56 but they'd given it to the locals to start reading.
00:04:57 --> 00:04:58 They were just in early stages.
00:04:59 --> 00:05:01 And the locals came back with this page open
00:05:01 --> 00:05:04 with a look of wonder and amazement on their face.
00:05:04 --> 00:05:06 And they showed it to the missionary and the translator.
00:05:06 --> 00:05:07 They're ready to ask questions.
00:05:08 --> 00:05:10 And the translator apparently confessed
00:05:10 --> 00:05:12 that he was ready to flip them over to chapter 2
00:05:12 --> 00:05:14 so that they could get into some good and exciting things.
00:05:15 --> 00:05:16 And they said, no, no, no, no.
00:05:16 --> 00:05:17 This is amazing.
00:05:18 --> 00:05:20 And he's like, maybe we've translated it wrong.
00:05:20 --> 00:05:23 And they're like, no, this is amazing.
00:05:23 --> 00:05:25 They explained that up until that point,
00:05:26 --> 00:05:28 up until they got to Matthew chapter 1,
00:05:29 --> 00:05:32 they'd always thought that Jesus was kind of like a fairy,
00:05:34 --> 00:05:34 imaginary.
00:05:35 --> 00:05:36 Good stories, impressive.
00:05:37 --> 00:05:40 But now they could look at his lineage,
00:05:40 --> 00:05:41 they could look at his ancestry,
00:05:41 --> 00:05:44 and they said, so Jesus is real.
00:05:44 --> 00:05:48 It totally changed the way that they had to re-engage
00:05:48 --> 00:05:51 with every other thing that they'd heard about Jesus.
00:05:51 --> 00:05:54 See, it matters that we start at this particular point
00:05:54 --> 00:05:55 because if we don't,
00:05:57 --> 00:05:58 there's always the possibility
00:05:58 --> 00:06:01 that people hear the story of Christmas, Easter, whatever,
00:06:01 --> 00:06:03 the miraculous birth,
00:06:03 --> 00:06:05 and file it away under stories like Santa
00:06:05 --> 00:06:07 or the tooth fairy.
00:06:07 --> 00:06:10 It's nice.
00:06:11 --> 00:06:12 They're good.
00:06:12 --> 00:06:13 They sound impressive.
00:06:14 --> 00:06:17 But it's just imaginary.
00:06:19 --> 00:06:21 And so it's important that we start here.
00:06:23 --> 00:06:25 The senior minister from a church down the road,
00:06:25 --> 00:06:26 down at Roseville, John Dixon,
00:06:27 --> 00:06:28 who is a fairly esteemed historian,
00:06:29 --> 00:06:31 has a quote, and I could be misquoting him,
00:06:31 --> 00:06:32 so I need to put a disclaimer on this.
00:06:33 --> 00:06:34 But he says something like,
00:06:35 --> 00:06:37 and he does this publicly, online, regularly,
00:06:37 --> 00:06:40 if you can find me a credible historian
00:06:40 --> 00:06:42 who denies the existence of Jesus,
00:06:42 --> 00:06:44 I'll eat a page of my Bible.
00:06:45 --> 00:06:47 And this is a guy who has thousands of Facebook friends,
00:06:47 --> 00:06:49 many of whom are atheists,
00:06:49 --> 00:06:51 and try to argue with him regularly,
00:06:51 --> 00:06:54 and no one has found a credible historian
00:06:54 --> 00:06:56 who will try and say that Jesus didn't exist.
00:06:57 --> 00:07:00 And that might be really comforting for us as Christians,
00:07:00 --> 00:07:02 but the reality is,
00:07:02 --> 00:07:05 every single one of us has had a conversation with somebody,
00:07:05 --> 00:07:07 a work colleague, a neighbour,
00:07:07 --> 00:07:09 someone we care about, a family member,
00:07:09 --> 00:07:12 who does believe that Jesus didn't exist,
00:07:13 --> 00:07:15 who does believe that it's all just a nice myth,
00:07:15 --> 00:07:17 it's just a comfortable thing for us to hold on to,
00:07:17 --> 00:07:20 and so the gospel begins here,
00:07:20 --> 00:07:21 because this is really important.
00:07:23 --> 00:07:25 Before we hear about what he's done,
00:07:25 --> 00:07:26 what he's going to do,
00:07:26 --> 00:07:27 who he is, anything else,
00:07:27 --> 00:07:29 we need to understand,
00:07:30 --> 00:07:32 Jesus is real.
00:07:32 --> 00:07:36 The point of these generations,
00:07:37 --> 00:07:38 the point of this list,
00:07:38 --> 00:07:40 is to say that there's ancestry,
00:07:40 --> 00:07:41 he's human,
00:07:41 --> 00:07:42 he's a person.
00:07:42 --> 00:07:44 It's not just magic,
00:07:44 --> 00:07:44 it's real.
00:07:44 --> 00:07:46 It's like in the end of Luke's gospel,
00:07:46 --> 00:07:48 when Jesus has died and he's risen,
00:07:48 --> 00:07:49 and he appears to his disciples,
00:07:49 --> 00:07:51 he does something really strange.
00:07:52 --> 00:07:54 He asks them for food.
00:07:54 --> 00:07:57 And he does it for their sake,
00:07:57 --> 00:07:59 so that they can realise he's a person.
00:07:59 --> 00:08:00 He's hungry.
00:08:00 --> 00:08:01 He says, touch me.
00:08:01 --> 00:08:02 It's not a vision.
00:08:02 --> 00:08:03 I'm not a ghost.
00:08:03 --> 00:08:04 I'm a human.
00:08:04 --> 00:08:05 And the same goes here.
00:08:06 --> 00:08:07 Before we move into the rest of this gospel,
00:08:08 --> 00:08:09 and we're going to over the next few weeks,
00:08:10 --> 00:08:12 we need to start by understanding,
00:08:12 --> 00:08:14 Jesus is real.
00:08:14 --> 00:08:21 Because if he's not real,
00:08:22 --> 00:08:24 then everything we're going to read
00:08:24 --> 00:08:26 becomes kind of unimpressive and unimportant.
00:08:28 --> 00:08:29 We need to know he's real
00:08:29 --> 00:08:32 when we open up to a passage like Hebrews chapter 2
00:08:32 --> 00:08:34 and verse 14 and read this.
00:08:34 --> 00:08:36 Since the children, that's us,
00:08:36 --> 00:08:38 have flesh and blood,
00:08:38 --> 00:08:39 he too, Jesus,
00:08:40 --> 00:08:41 shared in their humanity
00:08:41 --> 00:08:43 so that by his death,
00:08:43 --> 00:08:46 he might destroy him
00:08:46 --> 00:08:47 who holds the power of death,
00:08:48 --> 00:08:49 that is the devil,
00:08:49 --> 00:08:51 and free those who all their lives
00:08:51 --> 00:08:52 were held in slavery
00:08:52 --> 00:08:54 by their fear of death.
00:08:56 --> 00:08:58 For what Jesus does later in his life
00:08:58 --> 00:09:01 to matter or be powerful or significant,
00:09:01 --> 00:09:03 we need to have as a starting point,
00:09:03 --> 00:09:04 he's real.
00:09:05 --> 00:09:06 He's human.
00:09:06 --> 00:09:07 He's flesh and blood.
00:09:07 --> 00:09:08 He's like us.
00:09:08 --> 00:09:09 He's tempted like us.
00:09:09 --> 00:09:11 He suffers like us.
00:09:12 --> 00:09:13 Why start here?
00:09:14 --> 00:09:16 Because we need to start from a place
00:09:16 --> 00:09:19 where we recognise who is lying in that manger.
00:09:19 --> 00:09:21 It's a human baby.
00:09:22 --> 00:09:23 It's a real person.
00:09:24 --> 00:09:26 The second question we need to ask
00:09:26 --> 00:09:28 as to why this genealogy is,
00:09:29 --> 00:09:31 why would you include these people?
00:09:32 --> 00:09:34 Remembering this doesn't cover every generation
00:09:34 --> 00:09:35 from Abraham to Jesus.
00:09:35 --> 00:09:36 It's a highlights package.
00:09:37 --> 00:09:38 Why choose these names?
00:09:41 --> 00:09:42 And the answer to that
00:09:42 --> 00:09:43 is going to tell us a whole lot
00:09:43 --> 00:09:45 about how God works.
00:09:45 --> 00:09:47 A whole lot about what we should expect
00:09:47 --> 00:09:48 to see from Jesus
00:09:48 --> 00:09:50 as we continue to walk through Matthew
00:09:50 --> 00:09:51 and even now in our lives.
00:09:53 --> 00:09:54 Earlier this week,
00:09:54 --> 00:09:55 Sal and I were having a conversation.
00:09:55 --> 00:09:58 Bailey is a little over three and a half now.
00:09:58 --> 00:09:59 And so we're getting to the point
00:09:59 --> 00:10:01 where we're trying to explain more to him.
00:10:01 --> 00:10:02 You know, Christmas comes up.
00:10:02 --> 00:10:03 We're trying to talk about
00:10:03 --> 00:10:05 how God came as a baby
00:10:05 --> 00:10:06 and stuff like that.
00:10:06 --> 00:10:07 And I don't know if you've ever tried
00:10:07 --> 00:10:08 to do that to a three-year-old,
00:10:09 --> 00:10:10 but suddenly you start doing
00:10:10 --> 00:10:11 these backflips and U-turns
00:10:11 --> 00:10:12 because you realise you're getting
00:10:12 --> 00:10:14 into really convoluted
00:10:14 --> 00:10:15 and complex language.
00:10:15 --> 00:10:16 And look, it is amazing
00:10:16 --> 00:10:17 and complex and beautiful
00:10:17 --> 00:10:18 and majestic,
00:10:18 --> 00:10:19 but it's hard to explain
00:10:19 --> 00:10:20 to a three-year-old.
00:10:21 --> 00:10:22 And Sal and me were chatting
00:10:22 --> 00:10:23 about it afterwards
00:10:23 --> 00:10:24 and she was just kind of sitting there going,
00:10:24 --> 00:10:26 I just can't imagine Jesus
00:10:26 --> 00:10:28 as like a three-year-old,
00:10:29 --> 00:10:30 as Bailey's age.
00:10:32 --> 00:10:33 But he was.
00:10:34 --> 00:10:36 Like, it is actually
00:10:36 --> 00:10:37 a really ridiculous thing
00:10:37 --> 00:10:38 for us to process
00:10:38 --> 00:10:40 that the God who is infinite,
00:10:41 --> 00:10:42 the God who created everything,
00:10:42 --> 00:10:43 the God who sustains everything,
00:10:43 --> 00:10:45 we sung it just a second ago
00:10:45 --> 00:10:46 that while he's lying on the hay,
00:10:46 --> 00:10:48 he's maintaining the stars
00:10:48 --> 00:10:49 and the planets and everything.
00:10:50 --> 00:10:52 It's an illogical story
00:10:52 --> 00:10:55 that an infinite God
00:10:55 --> 00:10:56 could be packed into a little baby,
00:10:56 --> 00:10:57 but that's actually
00:10:57 --> 00:10:58 kind of the point.
00:11:00 --> 00:11:02 This genealogy,
00:11:02 --> 00:11:03 this story of this beginning
00:11:03 --> 00:11:04 of Jesus' life
00:11:04 --> 00:11:06 reminds us that God's plans
00:11:06 --> 00:11:07 and our plans
00:11:07 --> 00:11:08 are often not the same thing.
00:11:09 --> 00:11:10 The way God works
00:11:10 --> 00:11:12 and the way we expect him to work
00:11:12 --> 00:11:14 are often not the same thing.
00:11:14 --> 00:11:16 We just don't think the way he does.
00:11:16 --> 00:11:18 If by some weird twist
00:11:18 --> 00:11:20 we could end up in the driver's seat
00:11:20 --> 00:11:22 and our job was to plan a way
00:11:22 --> 00:11:23 to save people
00:11:23 --> 00:11:25 by using a specific nation in history,
00:11:25 --> 00:11:26 there is no way
00:11:26 --> 00:11:27 that our plan would look
00:11:27 --> 00:11:28 anything like his did.
00:11:29 --> 00:11:30 At any point.
00:11:31 --> 00:11:32 Just time after time
00:11:32 --> 00:11:34 through this list of names,
00:11:34 --> 00:11:35 he does it different.
00:11:37 --> 00:11:38 Let's pick a couple.
00:11:39 --> 00:11:40 Rahab.
00:11:40 --> 00:11:42 She's there in verse 5.
00:11:42 --> 00:11:44 She's the mother of Boaz.
00:11:44 --> 00:11:46 So there's a few women in here
00:11:46 --> 00:11:47 which is strange in itself.
00:11:47 --> 00:11:48 In an ancient genealogy,
00:11:48 --> 00:11:49 women did not get a run.
00:11:50 --> 00:11:51 But Rahab gets a mention.
00:11:52 --> 00:11:54 Rahab is not even an Israelite.
00:11:54 --> 00:11:55 She's not even one of the nation
00:11:55 --> 00:11:56 that God chose.
00:11:56 --> 00:11:57 She's not even technically
00:11:57 --> 00:11:59 one of the pure breeds,
00:11:59 --> 00:11:59 if you like,
00:11:59 --> 00:12:01 from the bloodline
00:12:01 --> 00:12:03 that he chose
00:12:03 --> 00:12:04 out of all creation.
00:12:05 --> 00:12:07 She belonged to the city of Jericho.
00:12:08 --> 00:12:09 The way she comes into the story
00:12:09 --> 00:12:13 is by protecting a few Jewish spies
00:12:13 --> 00:12:14 who were in there
00:12:14 --> 00:12:15 scouting out her city
00:12:15 --> 00:12:15 to conquer it.
00:12:15 --> 00:12:17 Basically,
00:12:17 --> 00:12:18 all we know about Rahab
00:12:18 --> 00:12:20 is she was a prostitute,
00:12:20 --> 00:12:22 she betrayed her city
00:12:22 --> 00:12:23 by protecting the spies,
00:12:23 --> 00:12:26 and she was the mother of Boaz.
00:12:27 --> 00:12:28 That's about all we know.
00:12:30 --> 00:12:32 If you were designing a lineage
00:12:32 --> 00:12:34 for your king
00:12:34 --> 00:12:35 and saviour of the world,
00:12:35 --> 00:12:38 would you give the prostitute a run?
00:12:38 --> 00:12:42 If you had countless generations
00:12:42 --> 00:12:42 to choose from,
00:12:42 --> 00:12:43 this isn't even
00:12:43 --> 00:12:44 everyone's in there
00:12:44 --> 00:12:45 so you've got to include her,
00:12:46 --> 00:12:47 would you pick her out?
00:12:49 --> 00:12:50 And so I want everyone to know
00:12:50 --> 00:12:52 that she was part of the story.
00:12:53 --> 00:12:54 She was part of the journey
00:12:54 --> 00:12:54 to get to Jesus.
00:12:55 --> 00:12:56 There's no way
00:12:56 --> 00:12:58 we would pick this path,
00:12:58 --> 00:12:59 but God does.
00:13:00 --> 00:13:01 Let's pick another name.
00:13:02 --> 00:13:03 Verse 7.
00:13:04 --> 00:13:04 Sorry, verse 6.
00:13:05 --> 00:13:06 Jesse, the father of King David.
00:13:06 --> 00:13:08 David, the father of Solomon,
00:13:08 --> 00:13:09 whose mother
00:13:09 --> 00:13:11 had been Uriah's wife.
00:13:12 --> 00:13:13 This one doesn't even get named.
00:13:14 --> 00:13:15 She's Uriah's wife.
00:13:17 --> 00:13:18 This is Bathsheba.
00:13:18 --> 00:13:19 For those who are familiar
00:13:19 --> 00:13:20 with the story,
00:13:20 --> 00:13:22 David is the king.
00:13:22 --> 00:13:23 He's wandering on his roof.
00:13:23 --> 00:13:24 He spots an attractive woman
00:13:24 --> 00:13:25 taking a bath.
00:13:25 --> 00:13:27 Finds out she's married,
00:13:27 --> 00:13:27 doesn't care,
00:13:27 --> 00:13:28 sleeps with her,
00:13:28 --> 00:13:29 gets her pregnant,
00:13:29 --> 00:13:29 has a baby,
00:13:29 --> 00:13:30 kills her husband,
00:13:30 --> 00:13:31 takes her as his wife.
00:13:32 --> 00:13:34 Not exactly a high moral point
00:13:34 --> 00:13:36 in David's life,
00:13:36 --> 00:13:37 let alone Israel's history.
00:13:38 --> 00:13:39 And yet,
00:13:40 --> 00:13:41 this woman,
00:13:42 --> 00:13:44 this wife of another man,
00:13:45 --> 00:13:48 is not only part of the bloodline,
00:13:48 --> 00:13:50 she's included in the highlights package.
00:13:52 --> 00:13:52 Again,
00:13:53 --> 00:13:53 that's just not how
00:13:53 --> 00:13:54 we would write the story.
00:13:56 --> 00:13:56 Can you imagine
00:13:56 --> 00:13:58 a politician's PR team
00:13:58 --> 00:14:00 including this sort of history
00:14:00 --> 00:14:02 in the election campaign?
00:14:03 --> 00:14:05 We don't think like this.
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 We don't function like this.
00:14:07 --> 00:14:08 And God is saying,
00:14:08 --> 00:14:10 before we get to Jesus' life,
00:14:10 --> 00:14:12 before we get to the way he acts,
00:14:12 --> 00:14:12 the teaching,
00:14:12 --> 00:14:13 the miracles,
00:14:13 --> 00:14:13 anything else,
00:14:13 --> 00:14:15 we need to be reminded
00:14:15 --> 00:14:16 that God doesn't work
00:14:16 --> 00:14:17 the way we do.
00:14:17 --> 00:14:19 His plans are not our plans.
00:14:19 --> 00:14:21 He has unique ideas
00:14:21 --> 00:14:23 about the ways that things,
00:14:23 --> 00:14:24 the ways things,
00:14:24 --> 00:14:26 the way things should work.
00:14:28 --> 00:14:29 But there's something
00:14:29 --> 00:14:30 really encouraging about that.
00:14:31 --> 00:14:33 Not just these women,
00:14:33 --> 00:14:34 plenty of the men,
00:14:35 --> 00:14:38 are people that we wouldn't choose.
00:14:38 --> 00:14:40 but they are people
00:14:40 --> 00:14:41 that God chose.
00:14:43 --> 00:14:44 It tells us a little bit
00:14:44 --> 00:14:45 about the fact
00:14:45 --> 00:14:46 that God is somebody
00:14:46 --> 00:14:47 who chooses people
00:14:47 --> 00:14:50 who don't belong.
00:14:50 --> 00:14:51 Chooses people
00:14:51 --> 00:14:53 who maybe society doesn't like.
00:14:53 --> 00:14:53 Chooses people
00:14:53 --> 00:14:54 who are broken.
00:14:55 --> 00:14:55 Chooses people
00:14:55 --> 00:14:57 who maybe they're full of shame.
00:14:58 --> 00:14:59 And draws them
00:14:59 --> 00:15:00 not only into the nation,
00:15:00 --> 00:15:02 not only into that group of people
00:15:02 --> 00:15:03 that he's chosen,
00:15:03 --> 00:15:05 but gives them positions
00:15:05 --> 00:15:06 of prominence,
00:15:07 --> 00:15:08 lifts them up,
00:15:09 --> 00:15:10 includes them in the story,
00:15:11 --> 00:15:11 in the bloodline,
00:15:11 --> 00:15:13 in this resume
00:15:13 --> 00:15:15 for his saviour.
00:15:17 --> 00:15:18 One other one
00:15:18 --> 00:15:19 that comes up there.
00:15:21 --> 00:15:22 Verse 11 and 12.
00:15:23 --> 00:15:23 Josiah,
00:15:23 --> 00:15:24 the father of Jeconiah
00:15:24 --> 00:15:25 and his brothers
00:15:25 --> 00:15:26 at the time of the exile
00:15:26 --> 00:15:27 to Babylon.
00:15:28 --> 00:15:29 Now the exile is in there
00:15:29 --> 00:15:30 almost like it's a person.
00:15:33 --> 00:15:34 The exile
00:15:34 --> 00:15:35 is the time
00:15:35 --> 00:15:35 when Israel
00:15:35 --> 00:15:36 was at its lowest.
00:15:38 --> 00:15:38 The exile
00:15:38 --> 00:15:39 was the time
00:15:39 --> 00:15:40 after it had its high peaks
00:15:40 --> 00:15:41 with Solomon as king
00:15:41 --> 00:15:42 and everything was great
00:15:42 --> 00:15:44 and suddenly now
00:15:44 --> 00:15:44 in judgment
00:15:44 --> 00:15:45 they get carted off
00:15:45 --> 00:15:46 in slavery
00:15:46 --> 00:15:47 to the Babylonians.
00:15:47 --> 00:15:48 They lose
00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 their national identity.
00:15:50 --> 00:15:51 They lose the temple
00:15:51 --> 00:15:51 where they used
00:15:51 --> 00:15:52 to worship God.
00:15:53 --> 00:15:54 They lose confidence
00:15:54 --> 00:15:55 in God himself,
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 confidence in his goodness.
00:15:57 --> 00:15:57 They lose confidence
00:15:57 --> 00:15:58 in his promises.
00:16:00 --> 00:16:02 It really is the point
00:16:02 --> 00:16:02 where for many
00:16:02 --> 00:16:03 God's plans
00:16:03 --> 00:16:04 start to fail.
00:16:04 --> 00:16:06 Many in Israel
00:16:06 --> 00:16:07 gave up
00:16:07 --> 00:16:08 and improvised
00:16:08 --> 00:16:09 their own version
00:16:09 --> 00:16:09 of who God was.
00:16:10 --> 00:16:11 Many began to doubt
00:16:11 --> 00:16:12 that he could actually
00:16:12 --> 00:16:12 deliver
00:16:12 --> 00:16:13 on the things
00:16:13 --> 00:16:14 that he had promised
00:16:14 --> 00:16:15 at that point.
00:16:16 --> 00:16:17 So why would you
00:16:17 --> 00:16:18 include that
00:16:18 --> 00:16:20 in this highlights reel
00:16:20 --> 00:16:21 in this resume
00:16:21 --> 00:16:22 of getting to your saviour?
00:16:23 --> 00:16:23 Isn't that the bit
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 you'd try and skip over
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 and try and pretend
00:16:25 --> 00:16:26 never happened?
00:16:30 --> 00:16:30 Well again,
00:16:31 --> 00:16:32 God is saying
00:16:32 --> 00:16:33 I don't work like you.
00:16:34 --> 00:16:36 even in the bits
00:16:36 --> 00:16:37 that we don't understand,
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 the bits where it feels
00:16:38 --> 00:16:39 hopeless,
00:16:40 --> 00:16:41 he was still
00:16:41 --> 00:16:43 marching towards
00:16:43 --> 00:16:43 Jesus.
00:16:45 --> 00:16:46 Everything that happened
00:16:46 --> 00:16:47 throughout all
00:16:47 --> 00:16:48 of Israel's history
00:16:48 --> 00:16:49 was building up
00:16:49 --> 00:16:50 to Jesus.
00:16:50 --> 00:16:51 Even the bits
00:16:51 --> 00:16:52 that they thought
00:16:52 --> 00:16:52 were failures
00:16:52 --> 00:16:53 or wrong bits,
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 he was still using them.
00:16:57 --> 00:16:57 And now
00:16:57 --> 00:16:58 at the end
00:16:58 --> 00:16:58 of this
00:16:58 --> 00:17:00 somewhat unique
00:17:00 --> 00:17:01 and colourful
00:17:01 --> 00:17:02 family line,
00:17:02 --> 00:17:04 we meet
00:17:04 --> 00:17:04 the Messiah,
00:17:05 --> 00:17:06 the descendant
00:17:06 --> 00:17:07 of David,
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 the chosen one,
00:17:08 --> 00:17:09 the promised one.
00:17:10 --> 00:17:10 And so God
00:17:10 --> 00:17:11 is saying to us
00:17:11 --> 00:17:12 before we get
00:17:12 --> 00:17:13 into his life,
00:17:13 --> 00:17:14 before we see
00:17:14 --> 00:17:15 what he does,
00:17:15 --> 00:17:15 be excited
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 that he's here,
00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 be expectant
00:17:18 --> 00:17:18 for what he's
00:17:18 --> 00:17:19 going to achieve,
00:17:20 --> 00:17:21 but just remember
00:17:21 --> 00:17:24 he might do
00:17:24 --> 00:17:24 things differently
00:17:24 --> 00:17:26 to how you
00:17:26 --> 00:17:27 would have him
00:17:27 --> 00:17:27 do them.
00:17:29 --> 00:17:29 He might have
00:17:29 --> 00:17:30 a plan
00:17:30 --> 00:17:30 that is slightly
00:17:30 --> 00:17:31 unique compared
00:17:31 --> 00:17:32 to your plan.
00:17:33 --> 00:17:34 How he'll work,
00:17:35 --> 00:17:35 what he'll achieve,
00:17:35 --> 00:17:36 all that will come
00:17:36 --> 00:17:36 next,
00:17:37 --> 00:17:39 but before we get
00:17:39 --> 00:17:39 there,
00:17:39 --> 00:17:40 there's this sense
00:17:40 --> 00:17:41 and this reminder
00:17:41 --> 00:17:42 that God
00:17:42 --> 00:17:43 has a unique
00:17:43 --> 00:17:44 wisdom,
00:17:45 --> 00:17:46 a unique perspective
00:17:46 --> 00:17:46 on the world
00:17:46 --> 00:17:47 that we live in.
00:17:48 --> 00:17:49 He works in ways
00:17:49 --> 00:17:50 that we don't expect.
00:17:51 --> 00:17:52 And even this
00:17:52 --> 00:17:53 beautiful,
00:17:53 --> 00:17:53 miraculous birth
00:17:53 --> 00:17:54 that we're going
00:17:54 --> 00:17:54 to get to
00:17:54 --> 00:17:55 over the next
00:17:55 --> 00:17:55 couple of weeks
00:17:55 --> 00:17:57 will end
00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 in a bloody
00:17:58 --> 00:17:58 execution.
00:18:03 --> 00:18:04 And that will
00:18:04 --> 00:18:04 be good.
00:18:06 --> 00:18:06 That will be
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 part of his plan.
00:18:10 --> 00:18:11 It could be
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 that right now
00:18:12 --> 00:18:12 in your life,
00:18:13 --> 00:18:14 the challenge
00:18:14 --> 00:18:15 you are feeling,
00:18:15 --> 00:18:16 the wrestle
00:18:16 --> 00:18:16 that you're having
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 with God
00:18:17 --> 00:18:18 is that he's not
00:18:18 --> 00:18:19 doing what you
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 want him to do.
00:18:20 --> 00:18:21 He's not answering
00:18:21 --> 00:18:22 that prayer
00:18:22 --> 00:18:23 that you keep
00:18:23 --> 00:18:23 bringing to him.
00:18:24 --> 00:18:25 He's not delivering
00:18:25 --> 00:18:26 on what for you
00:18:26 --> 00:18:27 is just the obvious
00:18:27 --> 00:18:28 good that he should
00:18:28 --> 00:18:28 deliver on.
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 And the encouragement
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 and the challenge
00:18:33 --> 00:18:35 of this passage
00:18:35 --> 00:18:36 is
00:18:36 --> 00:18:38 just because he's
00:18:38 --> 00:18:38 not working
00:18:38 --> 00:18:39 the way you want
00:18:39 --> 00:18:40 him to
00:18:40 --> 00:18:40 doesn't mean
00:18:40 --> 00:18:41 that he's not
00:18:41 --> 00:18:41 working.
00:18:44 --> 00:18:45 Even in the
00:18:45 --> 00:18:46 situations that
00:18:46 --> 00:18:46 you might not
00:18:46 --> 00:18:47 choose,
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 he's still at
00:18:49 --> 00:18:49 work.
00:18:49 --> 00:18:51 even in the
00:18:51 --> 00:18:52 bits that you
00:18:52 --> 00:18:52 might have
00:18:52 --> 00:18:53 been ashamed
00:18:53 --> 00:18:53 of,
00:18:54 --> 00:18:55 like Israel
00:18:55 --> 00:18:55 and its
00:18:55 --> 00:18:56 exile,
00:18:56 --> 00:18:58 God is
00:18:58 --> 00:18:58 still at
00:18:58 --> 00:18:58 work.
00:19:02 --> 00:19:03 And just
00:19:03 --> 00:19:03 because he's
00:19:03 --> 00:19:04 not working
00:19:04 --> 00:19:04 the way you
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 want,
00:19:06 --> 00:19:07 it's actually
00:19:07 --> 00:19:07 okay.
00:19:10 --> 00:19:11 Even though he
00:19:11 --> 00:19:11 might not be
00:19:11 --> 00:19:12 doing the things
00:19:12 --> 00:19:12 that you wish
00:19:12 --> 00:19:13 he would,
00:19:13 --> 00:19:15 that's actually
00:19:15 --> 00:19:16 okay.
00:19:17 --> 00:19:18 Because God's
00:19:18 --> 00:19:19 plan is always
00:19:19 --> 00:19:19 bigger and better
00:19:19 --> 00:19:20 than your plan.
00:19:20 --> 00:19:23 A couple of
00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 weeks ago,
00:19:24 --> 00:19:25 a week ago
00:19:25 --> 00:19:25 now,
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 I went away
00:19:26 --> 00:19:26 on holidays
00:19:26 --> 00:19:27 with my family,
00:19:27 --> 00:19:28 with Bailey and
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 Hudson and Sal's,
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 the first family
00:19:30 --> 00:19:30 with the four,
00:19:30 --> 00:19:31 first holiday
00:19:31 --> 00:19:32 with the four of
00:19:32 --> 00:19:32 us.
00:19:33 --> 00:19:33 And it was
00:19:33 --> 00:19:33 really fun.
00:19:34 --> 00:19:34 We stayed in a
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 caravan park,
00:19:35 --> 00:19:36 and caravan parks
00:19:36 --> 00:19:36 have got this
00:19:36 --> 00:19:37 whole holiday
00:19:37 --> 00:19:37 thing sussed.
00:19:38 --> 00:19:38 Keep the kids
00:19:38 --> 00:19:39 happy,
00:19:39 --> 00:19:39 which keeps the
00:19:39 --> 00:19:40 parents happy,
00:19:40 --> 00:19:40 which keeps
00:19:40 --> 00:19:40 people coming
00:19:40 --> 00:19:41 back.
00:19:41 --> 00:19:41 And the
00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 caravan park
00:19:42 --> 00:19:42 we went to
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 had more kids
00:19:43 --> 00:19:44 equipment and
00:19:44 --> 00:19:45 activities and
00:19:45 --> 00:19:46 stuff than I've
00:19:46 --> 00:19:47 ever seen in
00:19:47 --> 00:19:47 like a theme
00:19:47 --> 00:19:48 park.
00:19:48 --> 00:19:49 This one had a
00:19:49 --> 00:19:50 jumping pillow.
00:19:50 --> 00:19:51 If you don't
00:19:51 --> 00:19:51 know what that
00:19:51 --> 00:19:51 is,
00:19:51 --> 00:19:51 it's like a
00:19:51 --> 00:19:52 jumping castle
00:19:52 --> 00:19:53 that's somehow
00:19:53 --> 00:19:54 been buried into
00:19:54 --> 00:19:54 the ground.
00:19:54 --> 00:19:55 Very entertaining
00:19:55 --> 00:19:56 for kids.
00:19:56 --> 00:19:56 Bailey would have
00:19:56 --> 00:19:57 stayed on it for
00:19:57 --> 00:19:57 hours.
00:19:57 --> 00:19:58 It had play
00:19:58 --> 00:19:58 equipment,
00:19:59 --> 00:19:59 it had putt-putt
00:19:59 --> 00:20:00 golf,
00:20:00 --> 00:20:01 it had trampolines,
00:20:01 --> 00:20:02 it had go-karts.
00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 It also had a
00:20:03 --> 00:20:04 water theme park
00:20:04 --> 00:20:05 in the caravan park.
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 This is all just
00:20:06 --> 00:20:06 free.
00:20:07 --> 00:20:07 Just wander in
00:20:07 --> 00:20:07 there whenever you
00:20:07 --> 00:20:08 want.
00:20:08 --> 00:20:09 There's slides,
00:20:09 --> 00:20:09 there's a tipping
00:20:09 --> 00:20:10 bucket,
00:20:10 --> 00:20:11 there's a whirlpool,
00:20:11 --> 00:20:12 there's water pistols
00:20:12 --> 00:20:13 to shoot at each
00:20:13 --> 00:20:13 other,
00:20:13 --> 00:20:14 there's waterfalls.
00:20:14 --> 00:20:15 It was amazing.
00:20:15 --> 00:20:16 Bailey thought that
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 he was in heaven on
00:20:17 --> 00:20:17 earth.
00:20:18 --> 00:20:19 Every morning he
00:20:19 --> 00:20:19 would wake up at
00:20:19 --> 00:20:20 6am and be like,
00:20:20 --> 00:20:21 water park?
00:20:21 --> 00:20:21 I said,
00:20:21 --> 00:20:22 it opens at 9,
00:20:22 --> 00:20:22 mate.
00:20:23 --> 00:20:24 He would ask me
00:20:24 --> 00:20:25 every five seconds
00:20:25 --> 00:20:25 for the rest of
00:20:25 --> 00:20:26 the day.
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 He loved it.
00:20:27 --> 00:20:28 He had a fantastic
00:20:28 --> 00:20:28 time.
00:20:28 --> 00:20:29 He was pretty
00:20:29 --> 00:20:29 emotional when we
00:20:29 --> 00:20:30 had to come home,
00:20:30 --> 00:20:30 I won't lie.
00:20:30 --> 00:20:31 We really had to
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 break it to him
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 easy that we
00:20:33 --> 00:20:33 weren't turning
00:20:33 --> 00:20:34 around at any
00:20:34 --> 00:20:34 point and
00:20:34 --> 00:20:34 returning.
00:20:35 --> 00:20:35 Every day since,
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 just about,
00:20:36 --> 00:20:36 he said,
00:20:36 --> 00:20:36 can we go to
00:20:36 --> 00:20:37 the water park?
00:20:37 --> 00:20:38 No,
00:20:38 --> 00:20:38 no we can't.
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 It's a six-hour
00:20:39 --> 00:20:39 drive.
00:20:41 --> 00:20:42 Now that he's
00:20:42 --> 00:20:42 starting to
00:20:42 --> 00:20:43 understand holidays
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 and understand that
00:20:44 --> 00:20:44 they're good and
00:20:44 --> 00:20:45 they're fun and
00:20:45 --> 00:20:45 that we as a
00:20:45 --> 00:20:46 family get to do
00:20:46 --> 00:20:47 some fun things,
00:20:47 --> 00:20:48 we thought we'd
00:20:48 --> 00:20:49 let him know that
00:20:49 --> 00:20:49 we've got a big
00:20:49 --> 00:20:51 family holiday plan
00:20:51 --> 00:20:51 for next year,
00:20:51 --> 00:20:52 something special,
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 something unique.
00:20:53 --> 00:20:53 We're actually going
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 to go overseas.
00:20:55 --> 00:20:55 And we said,
00:20:55 --> 00:20:56 are you excited for
00:20:56 --> 00:20:56 holidays?
00:20:56 --> 00:20:57 And he said,
00:20:58 --> 00:20:58 will there be a
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 water park?
00:21:00 --> 00:21:00 I said,
00:21:00 --> 00:21:00 no,
00:21:01 --> 00:21:01 but that's okay
00:21:01 --> 00:21:02 because we're
00:21:02 --> 00:21:03 going to Fiji and
00:21:03 --> 00:21:03 they're going to
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 have afros and
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 pools and we can
00:21:05 --> 00:21:06 go snorkeling.
00:21:06 --> 00:21:07 And he just looks
00:21:07 --> 00:21:07 at me and says,
00:21:08 --> 00:21:09 water park?
00:21:10 --> 00:21:11 He hasn't quite
00:21:11 --> 00:21:11 got it yet.
00:21:11 --> 00:21:13 He's so obsessed
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 with his thing,
00:21:15 --> 00:21:15 with how good it
00:21:15 --> 00:21:16 was,
00:21:16 --> 00:21:16 that he doesn't
00:21:16 --> 00:21:17 even comprehend
00:21:17 --> 00:21:18 that there might
00:21:18 --> 00:21:19 be something better,
00:21:20 --> 00:21:20 that Fiji might be
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 an improvement.
00:21:21 --> 00:21:22 As good as the
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 caravan park was,
00:21:24 --> 00:21:24 that there might
00:21:24 --> 00:21:25 be something that
00:21:25 --> 00:21:26 is even more fun
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 and more exciting
00:21:27 --> 00:21:27 than what he's
00:21:27 --> 00:21:28 already experienced.
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 And often we do
00:21:29 --> 00:21:30 this with God.
00:21:30 --> 00:21:31 We come to him
00:21:31 --> 00:21:31 and say,
00:21:31 --> 00:21:31 God,
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 please do this.
00:21:33 --> 00:21:33 And we get so
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 obsessed with
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 whatever this is,
00:21:35 --> 00:21:36 give me a job,
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 fix my health,
00:21:37 --> 00:21:37 give me a partner,
00:21:38 --> 00:21:38 whatever it is,
00:21:38 --> 00:21:39 that we can't
00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 possibly imagine
00:21:40 --> 00:21:41 that there's a
00:21:41 --> 00:21:41 better,
00:21:42 --> 00:21:43 that God has a
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 plan other than
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 ours that is
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 still good for us.
00:21:48 --> 00:21:50 And so we start
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 Matthew's gospel,
00:21:51 --> 00:21:51 we start looking
00:21:51 --> 00:21:52 at Jesus,
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 we start to meet
00:21:53 --> 00:21:54 our saviour by
00:21:54 --> 00:21:55 being reminded
00:21:55 --> 00:21:57 that God works
00:21:57 --> 00:21:58 different to us
00:21:58 --> 00:21:59 and his plan
00:21:59 --> 00:22:00 is always
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 better.
00:22:03 --> 00:22:03 We get to
00:22:03 --> 00:22:04 Jesus and we
00:22:04 --> 00:22:05 meet our
00:22:05 --> 00:22:06 saviour.
00:22:07 --> 00:22:08 His name
00:22:08 --> 00:22:09 itself means
00:22:09 --> 00:22:10 saviour.
00:22:11 --> 00:22:12 Jesus means
00:22:12 --> 00:22:13 God who
00:22:13 --> 00:22:13 saves.
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 Christ means
00:22:14 --> 00:22:15 the chosen
00:22:15 --> 00:22:15 one.
00:22:15 --> 00:22:15 He's the
00:22:15 --> 00:22:16 chosen saviour.
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 It's his job
00:22:17 --> 00:22:17 description.
00:22:18 --> 00:22:18 It's his name.
00:22:18 --> 00:22:18 It's what he's
00:22:18 --> 00:22:19 here to do.
00:22:21 --> 00:22:21 The challenge
00:22:21 --> 00:22:22 for us is to
00:22:22 --> 00:22:23 trust him to
00:22:23 --> 00:22:23 do it his
00:22:23 --> 00:22:24 way.
00:22:26 --> 00:22:26 This
00:22:26 --> 00:22:27 newborn
00:22:27 --> 00:22:27 king,
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 this humble
00:22:29 --> 00:22:30 baby,
00:22:30 --> 00:22:31 will identify
00:22:31 --> 00:22:32 with his
00:22:32 --> 00:22:32 subjects,
00:22:33 --> 00:22:34 will bear
00:22:34 --> 00:22:34 their shame,
00:22:35 --> 00:22:36 take their
00:22:36 --> 00:22:36 punishment,
00:22:37 --> 00:22:37 offer them
00:22:37 --> 00:22:38 love instead
00:22:38 --> 00:22:38 of judgment,
00:22:38 --> 00:22:43 and he'll
00:22:43 --> 00:22:43 do it in a
00:22:43 --> 00:22:44 way that none
00:22:44 --> 00:22:44 of us would
00:22:44 --> 00:22:45 have chosen.
00:22:46 --> 00:22:47 We wouldn't
00:22:47 --> 00:22:47 have sent
00:22:47 --> 00:22:48 our king
00:22:48 --> 00:22:48 to the
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 cross.
00:22:53 --> 00:22:53 God's plan
00:22:53 --> 00:22:54 was always
00:22:54 --> 00:22:54 bigger.
00:22:55 --> 00:22:56 This
00:22:56 --> 00:22:56 genealogy
00:22:56 --> 00:22:57 starts with
00:22:57 --> 00:22:57 Abraham.
00:22:58 --> 00:22:59 The promises
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 that God made
00:23:00 --> 00:23:00 to Abraham
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 way back in
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 Genesis chapter
00:23:02 --> 00:23:02 12, right
00:23:02 --> 00:23:02 near the
00:23:02 --> 00:23:03 beginning of
00:23:03 --> 00:23:03 the Bible,
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 was that he
00:23:04 --> 00:23:04 would give
00:23:04 --> 00:23:05 him land,
00:23:05 --> 00:23:05 that he
00:23:05 --> 00:23:06 would give
00:23:06 --> 00:23:06 him lots
00:23:06 --> 00:23:06 of descendants,
00:23:07 --> 00:23:07 that they'd
00:23:07 --> 00:23:07 be a
00:23:07 --> 00:23:08 nation,
00:23:08 --> 00:23:08 and that
00:23:08 --> 00:23:08 he would
00:23:08 --> 00:23:09 be a
00:23:09 --> 00:23:11 blessing to
00:23:11 --> 00:23:12 Abraham and
00:23:12 --> 00:23:13 through Abraham.
00:23:14 --> 00:23:14 And pretty
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 much right up
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 to Jesus,
00:23:16 --> 00:23:16 the biggest
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 picture that
00:23:17 --> 00:23:17 anyone had
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 about that
00:23:18 --> 00:23:18 centred around
00:23:18 --> 00:23:19 a piece of
00:23:19 --> 00:23:19 land that's
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 now in the
00:23:20 --> 00:23:20 Middle East,
00:23:21 --> 00:23:22 centred around
00:23:22 --> 00:23:23 as many great
00:23:23 --> 00:23:24 grandchildren as
00:23:24 --> 00:23:24 Abraham could
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 muster,
00:23:25 --> 00:23:26 and centred
00:23:26 --> 00:23:27 around them
00:23:27 --> 00:23:27 being kind
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 of rich.
00:23:30 --> 00:23:31 And Jesus
00:23:31 --> 00:23:31 turns up and
00:23:31 --> 00:23:32 says, no,
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 there's always
00:23:33 --> 00:23:33 been a better
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 plan.
00:23:34 --> 00:23:36 God walks
00:23:36 --> 00:23:36 them through
00:23:36 --> 00:23:37 things like
00:23:37 --> 00:23:38 the exile to
00:23:38 --> 00:23:38 say, no,
00:23:39 --> 00:23:39 I've always
00:23:39 --> 00:23:40 had more in
00:23:40 --> 00:23:40 mind for
00:23:40 --> 00:23:41 you.
00:23:42 --> 00:23:43 The whole
00:23:43 --> 00:23:44 nation thing
00:23:44 --> 00:23:46 is now open
00:23:46 --> 00:23:46 to anyone
00:23:46 --> 00:23:47 who would
00:23:47 --> 00:23:48 follow Jesus,
00:23:49 --> 00:23:49 open to
00:23:49 --> 00:23:50 people like
00:23:50 --> 00:23:50 Rahab.
00:23:52 --> 00:23:53 The whole
00:23:53 --> 00:23:54 land thing
00:23:54 --> 00:23:54 is not just
00:23:54 --> 00:23:55 about some
00:23:55 --> 00:23:55 country somewhere
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 on the earth,
00:23:56 --> 00:23:56 but it's
00:23:56 --> 00:23:57 heaven.
00:23:58 --> 00:23:59 It's a
00:23:59 --> 00:24:00 perfect creation
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 for us to
00:24:01 --> 00:24:01 enjoy.
00:24:03 --> 00:24:03 And the
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 blessing thing,
00:24:04 --> 00:24:06 that's more
00:24:06 --> 00:24:06 than we can
00:24:06 --> 00:24:07 even begin
00:24:07 --> 00:24:08 to comprehend.
00:24:12 --> 00:24:13 One of the
00:24:13 --> 00:24:13 things I love
00:24:13 --> 00:24:14 about Christmas
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 at the moment
00:24:15 --> 00:24:15 is as a dad
00:24:15 --> 00:24:16 I'm rediscovering
00:24:16 --> 00:24:17 how to talk
00:24:17 --> 00:24:17 about Christmas
00:24:17 --> 00:24:18 in really
00:24:18 --> 00:24:19 basic language.
00:24:19 --> 00:24:20 Like I said,
00:24:20 --> 00:24:20 I struggle
00:24:20 --> 00:24:21 when I'm
00:24:21 --> 00:24:21 trying to do
00:24:21 --> 00:24:21 it, but
00:24:21 --> 00:24:22 thankfully some
00:24:22 --> 00:24:22 gifted people
00:24:22 --> 00:24:23 have written
00:24:23 --> 00:24:23 kids' books
00:24:23 --> 00:24:24 about it.
00:24:24 --> 00:24:25 And one of
00:24:25 --> 00:24:25 the books
00:24:25 --> 00:24:26 that we read
00:24:26 --> 00:24:26 with Bailey
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 that goes
00:24:27 --> 00:24:27 through the
00:24:27 --> 00:24:28 nativity story,
00:24:28 --> 00:24:28 it's one of
00:24:28 --> 00:24:28 those great
00:24:28 --> 00:24:29 textured books
00:24:29 --> 00:24:29 that's full
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 of glitter,
00:24:30 --> 00:24:30 so you don't
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 scratch your
00:24:31 --> 00:24:31 hands over it.
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 Anyway,
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 recommend it.
00:24:33 --> 00:24:34 for your
00:24:34 --> 00:24:34 summer reading.
00:24:35 --> 00:24:36 I love the
00:24:36 --> 00:24:36 line in it,
00:24:36 --> 00:24:37 when the
00:24:37 --> 00:24:37 angels appear,
00:24:37 --> 00:24:38 and we're
00:24:38 --> 00:24:38 sitting there
00:24:38 --> 00:24:38 with Bailey,
00:24:38 --> 00:24:39 I've read it
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 so many times
00:24:40 --> 00:24:40 before I even
00:24:40 --> 00:24:41 paid attention
00:24:41 --> 00:24:41 to what I
00:24:41 --> 00:24:42 was saying.
00:24:42 --> 00:24:43 This textured
00:24:43 --> 00:24:44 angel was
00:24:44 --> 00:24:44 talking to
00:24:44 --> 00:24:45 the shepherds
00:24:45 --> 00:24:45 in the field
00:24:45 --> 00:24:46 and says,
00:24:47 --> 00:24:48 tonight Jesus
00:24:48 --> 00:24:49 has been
00:24:49 --> 00:24:49 born,
00:24:51 --> 00:24:51 a saviour
00:24:51 --> 00:24:52 has been
00:24:52 --> 00:24:52 born,
00:24:52 --> 00:24:53 and he
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 will bring
00:24:54 --> 00:24:56 all of
00:24:56 --> 00:24:56 God's
00:24:56 --> 00:24:57 blessings
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 to people
00:24:58 --> 00:24:59 on earth.
00:25:03 --> 00:25:05 All
00:25:05 --> 00:25:06 of God's
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 blessings,
00:25:09 --> 00:25:10 forgiveness,
00:25:11 --> 00:25:12 mercy,
00:25:13 --> 00:25:13 hope,
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 comfort,
00:25:16 --> 00:25:16 provision,
00:25:18 --> 00:25:19 everything
00:25:19 --> 00:25:20 found in
00:25:20 --> 00:25:21 Jesus.
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 These small
00:25:23 --> 00:25:24 plans that we
00:25:24 --> 00:25:24 have for our
00:25:24 --> 00:25:25 life where
00:25:25 --> 00:25:26 God might fix
00:25:26 --> 00:25:26 a circumstance
00:25:26 --> 00:25:27 here or a
00:25:27 --> 00:25:28 difficulty
00:25:28 --> 00:25:28 there.
00:25:31 --> 00:25:31 Before we
00:25:31 --> 00:25:32 see what he
00:25:32 --> 00:25:32 does,
00:25:33 --> 00:25:33 God is
00:25:33 --> 00:25:34 calling us
00:25:34 --> 00:25:34 to lift
00:25:34 --> 00:25:35 our eyes
00:25:35 --> 00:25:35 and understand
00:25:35 --> 00:25:36 that he
00:25:36 --> 00:25:36 can and
00:25:36 --> 00:25:37 will do
00:25:37 --> 00:25:37 more than
00:25:37 --> 00:25:37 we've
00:25:37 --> 00:25:38 begun to
00:25:38 --> 00:25:38 dream of.
00:25:43 --> 00:25:44 This is
00:25:44 --> 00:25:44 not a
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 message from
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 God to
00:25:46 --> 00:25:46 come and
00:25:46 --> 00:25:47 fix our
00:25:47 --> 00:25:47 problems.
00:25:48 --> 00:25:49 The baby
00:25:49 --> 00:25:49 in the
00:25:49 --> 00:25:50 manger is
00:25:50 --> 00:25:50 God
00:25:50 --> 00:25:50 himself,
00:25:52 --> 00:25:52 showing
00:25:52 --> 00:25:53 up,
00:25:54 --> 00:25:54 drawing near
00:25:54 --> 00:25:55 to people
00:25:55 --> 00:25:56 like us,
00:25:56 --> 00:25:57 people who
00:25:57 --> 00:25:57 have
00:25:57 --> 00:25:57 ignored
00:25:57 --> 00:25:57 him,
00:25:58 --> 00:25:58 treated
00:25:58 --> 00:25:59 him like
00:25:59 --> 00:25:59 he didn't
00:25:59 --> 00:26:00 matter.
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 So why
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 start here?
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 Why include
00:26:09 --> 00:26:10 these people?
00:26:10 --> 00:26:10 Why this
00:26:10 --> 00:26:11 particular
00:26:11 --> 00:26:11 resume for
00:26:11 --> 00:26:12 Jesus?
00:26:14 --> 00:26:15 Well,
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 last week I
00:26:16 --> 00:26:16 got to meet
00:26:16 --> 00:26:16 my nephew
00:26:16 --> 00:26:17 for the
00:26:17 --> 00:26:17 first time.
00:26:18 --> 00:26:18 My older
00:26:18 --> 00:26:18 brother had
00:26:18 --> 00:26:19 a little
00:26:19 --> 00:26:19 boy called
00:26:19 --> 00:26:20 Xavier.
00:26:20 --> 00:26:21 He's
00:26:21 --> 00:26:21 tiny.
00:26:22 --> 00:26:22 He was
00:26:22 --> 00:26:23 born,
00:26:23 --> 00:26:23 well,
00:26:23 --> 00:26:23 he's
00:26:23 --> 00:26:24 relatively
00:26:24 --> 00:26:24 tiny compared
00:26:24 --> 00:26:25 to my
00:26:25 --> 00:26:25 boys,
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 but he
00:26:26 --> 00:26:26 was born
00:26:26 --> 00:26:26 at three
00:26:26 --> 00:26:27 kilos,
00:26:27 --> 00:26:27 he's now
00:26:27 --> 00:26:27 about
00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 3.7
00:26:28 --> 00:26:28 and that's
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 smaller than
00:26:29 --> 00:26:29 my boys
00:26:29 --> 00:26:30 were even
00:26:30 --> 00:26:30 born.
00:26:31 --> 00:26:31 So when I
00:26:31 --> 00:26:32 was holding
00:26:32 --> 00:26:32 him,
00:26:32 --> 00:26:32 I was really
00:26:32 --> 00:26:33 nervous.
00:26:33 --> 00:26:33 I'm like,
00:26:33 --> 00:26:34 I'm a dad,
00:26:34 --> 00:26:34 I've had two
00:26:34 --> 00:26:35 newborns,
00:26:35 --> 00:26:36 I've held
00:26:36 --> 00:26:36 many of
00:26:36 --> 00:26:37 your newborns
00:26:37 --> 00:26:39 and I was
00:26:39 --> 00:26:40 freaked out
00:26:40 --> 00:26:40 that he was
00:26:40 --> 00:26:40 going to
00:26:40 --> 00:26:41 break.
00:26:41 --> 00:26:42 He had
00:26:42 --> 00:26:42 the tiniest
00:26:42 --> 00:26:43 little arms
00:26:43 --> 00:26:44 and legs
00:26:44 --> 00:26:45 and when
00:26:45 --> 00:26:45 they're
00:26:45 --> 00:26:45 newborn and
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 they just
00:26:46 --> 00:26:46 have that
00:26:46 --> 00:26:46 squeaky
00:26:46 --> 00:26:47 cry and
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 you just
00:26:48 --> 00:26:48 sit there
00:26:48 --> 00:26:48 and go
00:26:48 --> 00:26:49 the slightest
00:26:49 --> 00:26:49 thing and
00:26:49 --> 00:26:50 this could
00:26:50 --> 00:26:50 be all
00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 over.
00:26:51 --> 00:26:52 He's so
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 helpless and
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 he was really
00:26:54 --> 00:26:54 cute as
00:26:54 --> 00:26:55 well but
00:26:55 --> 00:26:56 there was a
00:26:56 --> 00:26:56 big bit of
00:26:56 --> 00:26:57 just nervousness
00:26:57 --> 00:26:57 whenever I was
00:26:57 --> 00:26:58 holding him
00:26:58 --> 00:26:58 because he's
00:26:58 --> 00:26:58 not even
00:26:58 --> 00:26:59 mine so I
00:26:59 --> 00:26:59 can't even
00:26:59 --> 00:27:00 sort out the
00:27:00 --> 00:27:00 mess later
00:27:00 --> 00:27:01 in life if I
00:27:01 --> 00:27:01 do something
00:27:01 --> 00:27:02 wrong so I
00:27:02 --> 00:27:03 kept giving him
00:27:03 --> 00:27:03 back to my
00:27:03 --> 00:27:03 brother and
00:27:03 --> 00:27:04 saying thanks
00:27:04 --> 00:27:04 for the
00:27:04 --> 00:27:05 short hold.
00:27:05 --> 00:27:06 the reason
00:27:06 --> 00:27:07 that we
00:27:07 --> 00:27:07 start here
00:27:07 --> 00:27:09 the reason
00:27:09 --> 00:27:09 we find
00:27:09 --> 00:27:10 out who
00:27:10 --> 00:27:11 Jesus is
00:27:11 --> 00:27:11 going to
00:27:11 --> 00:27:12 be the
00:27:12 --> 00:27:12 reason we
00:27:12 --> 00:27:12 find out
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 his credentials
00:27:13 --> 00:27:14 before we
00:27:14 --> 00:27:14 meet that
00:27:14 --> 00:27:15 little baby
00:27:15 --> 00:27:15 in the
00:27:15 --> 00:27:16 manger is
00:27:16 --> 00:27:17 so that we
00:27:17 --> 00:27:17 don't look
00:27:17 --> 00:27:18 and see what
00:27:18 --> 00:27:19 I saw when
00:27:19 --> 00:27:19 I met my
00:27:19 --> 00:27:19 nephew.
00:27:20 --> 00:27:21 We don't
00:27:21 --> 00:27:22 look and see
00:27:22 --> 00:27:22 a helpless
00:27:22 --> 00:27:23 little baby.
00:27:26 --> 00:27:27 When we
00:27:27 --> 00:27:27 come to
00:27:27 --> 00:27:28 Christmas when
00:27:28 --> 00:27:29 we come to
00:27:29 --> 00:27:29 Jesus even
00:27:29 --> 00:27:30 as the baby
00:27:30 --> 00:27:31 in the
00:27:31 --> 00:27:33 manger we
00:27:33 --> 00:27:34 need to look
00:27:34 --> 00:27:34 and see the
00:27:34 --> 00:27:35 one who
00:27:35 --> 00:27:36 brings hope.
00:27:38 --> 00:27:39 We need to
00:27:39 --> 00:27:39 look and
00:27:39 --> 00:27:40 understand that
00:27:40 --> 00:27:40 even in a
00:27:40 --> 00:27:41 baby God
00:27:41 --> 00:27:42 is still in
00:27:42 --> 00:27:43 control.
00:27:43 --> 00:27:44 Even though we
00:27:44 --> 00:27:45 would have sent
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 a warrior this
00:27:46 --> 00:27:46 baby is the
00:27:46 --> 00:27:47 means by which
00:27:47 --> 00:27:48 God will
00:27:48 --> 00:27:50 bring blessing.
00:27:51 --> 00:27:52 This baby is
00:27:52 --> 00:27:52 the means by
00:27:52 --> 00:27:53 which God will
00:27:53 --> 00:27:54 provide forgiveness
00:27:54 --> 00:27:56 and love to
00:27:56 --> 00:27:57 people like
00:27:57 --> 00:27:57 Rahab,
00:27:59 --> 00:28:00 people like
00:28:00 --> 00:28:00 you,
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 people like
00:28:03 --> 00:28:03 me.
00:28:03 --> 00:28:08 we start
00:28:08 --> 00:28:10 here because
00:28:10 --> 00:28:11 we need to
00:28:11 --> 00:28:12 know this
00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 Christmas and
00:28:13 --> 00:28:13 every Christmas
00:28:13 --> 00:28:16 the baby is
00:28:16 --> 00:28:16 real.
00:28:18 --> 00:28:18 It's not just
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 any baby.
00:28:21 --> 00:28:22 This is the
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 baby that brings
00:28:23 --> 00:28:23 hope.
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 This is the
00:28:25 --> 00:28:25 baby that
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 changes everything.
00:28:26 --> 00:28:30 this is the
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 baby that
00:28:31 --> 00:28:32 brings all
00:28:32 --> 00:28:33 of God's
00:28:33 --> 00:28:35 blessings to
00:28:35 --> 00:28:35 people on
00:28:35 --> 00:28:35 earth.
00:28:37 --> 00:28:38 Let's pray.
00:28:38 --> 00:28:38 Let's pray.
00:28:38 --> 00:28:44 Father God,
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 we want to
00:28:45 --> 00:28:47 just thank and
00:28:47 --> 00:28:48 praise you
00:28:48 --> 00:28:49 for all that
00:28:49 --> 00:28:50 you have done
00:28:50 --> 00:28:50 throughout history,
00:28:51 --> 00:28:53 for the way you
00:28:53 --> 00:28:54 have persevered and
00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 been patient with
00:28:55 --> 00:28:55 your disobedient
00:28:55 --> 00:28:56 people,
00:28:57 --> 00:28:59 for your
00:28:59 --> 00:28:59 commitment to
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 and your
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 faithfulness to
00:29:01 --> 00:29:01 your promises.
00:29:01 --> 00:29:01 promises.
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 We want to
00:29:05 --> 00:29:05 thank you that
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 even though we
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 sometimes have
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 different plans or
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 different ideas of
00:29:09 --> 00:29:09 what should be,
00:29:10 --> 00:29:12 that your plan is
00:29:12 --> 00:29:13 always better.
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 That in spite of
00:29:15 --> 00:29:16 our complaining and
00:29:16 --> 00:29:17 whinging sometimes that
00:29:17 --> 00:29:18 you're not doing what
00:29:18 --> 00:29:19 we want, you
00:29:19 --> 00:29:20 continue to give us
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 better than we
00:29:21 --> 00:29:21 deserve.
00:29:24 --> 00:29:25 Father, please open
00:29:25 --> 00:29:26 our eyes so that
00:29:26 --> 00:29:27 this Christmas and
00:29:27 --> 00:29:28 every day of our
00:29:28 --> 00:29:29 lives we see not a
00:29:29 --> 00:29:29 helpless baby,
00:29:29 --> 00:29:32 but we see a
00:29:32 --> 00:29:33 significant act where
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 you entered our
00:29:34 --> 00:29:34 world.
00:29:36 --> 00:29:37 We see hope on
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 offer.
00:29:40 --> 00:29:40 We see the
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 beginning of your
00:29:41 --> 00:29:43 work to ultimately
00:29:43 --> 00:29:44 take our shame and
00:29:44 --> 00:29:44 our punishment.
00:29:49 --> 00:29:49 Father, this
00:29:49 --> 00:29:50 Christmas we pray for
00:29:50 --> 00:29:51 ourselves and we pray
00:29:51 --> 00:29:52 for those who we
00:29:52 --> 00:29:53 know and care about
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 who don't know you
00:29:54 --> 00:29:54 yet.
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 Help them to see
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 you in the manger.
00:29:59 --> 00:30:01 help them to see
00:30:01 --> 00:30:03 the love that you
00:30:03 --> 00:30:03 offer.
00:30:04 --> 00:30:04 Help them to
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 recognize that
00:30:05 --> 00:30:06 Christmas is an
00:30:06 --> 00:30:07 invitation.
00:30:08 --> 00:30:09 It's an opportunity
00:30:09 --> 00:30:10 to taste your
00:30:10 --> 00:30:10 blessing, your
00:30:10 --> 00:30:13 goodness, to know
00:30:13 --> 00:30:14 your incredible
00:30:14 --> 00:30:14 love.
00:30:16 --> 00:30:17 Father, may we
00:30:17 --> 00:30:18 taste afresh this
00:30:18 --> 00:30:19 year.
00:30:20 --> 00:30:21 Amen.
00:30:21 --> 00:30:21 Amen.
00:30:21 --> 00:30:21 Amen.
00:30:21 --> 00:30:21 Amen.
00:30:21 --> 00:30:21 Amen.