Sharing the Beauty of Advent Together!
During Covid in 2021, Tim and Kathy Keller recorded 4 Advent Sermons. They run between 8 and 15 minutes, but are packed with wisdom, and, as a bonus corollary, model a good marriage! This first week, they look at Matthew’s genealogy. Watch this:
The message we all will listen begins on Wednesday and is only 10 minutes and there is a transcript. If you’d like to listen to Keller go deeper on this genealogy, you could multitask and listen while baking cookies or wrapping gifts. Here is that link:
https://gospelinlife.com/sermon/the-history-of-grace/
Sunday:
- How did you experience the presence of God this week?
- Share your thoughts on Poor Bishop Hooper’s song. Ponder first!
Monday: The Text: Part I.
Personal request — I’m speaking tonight at a Christmas tea and would love your prayers for God too bring people who are open, for His anointing, and for the tech to work!
I remember a testimony from a member at Redeemer. He said he FINALLY got his friend to come to Redeemer with him and that the sermon was on Matthew’s genealogy! He thought “OH NO!” But then it was AMAZING. This is such a savvy group, I’m going to pull out the excerpts Keller read and get your meditations.
3. This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
- Why do you think Matthew begins with a genealogy? Why doesn’t he begin like other sacred books with “These are the teachings of Jesus…”
- Why does he begin with Abraham instead of Adam, as Luke does?
4. Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,
- Read Genesis 38 and summarize what happened.
- What negative and positive things do you see about Judah?
- What negative and positive things do you see about Tamar?
- How, in a sense, did Tamar rescue the line of the Messiah?
- Read Ruth 4:11-12. What did they mean when they prayed that Ruth’s family would be like the family of Perez?
Tuesday: The Text Part II.
5. Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab
- What do you remember about Rahab that was positive and negative? (Her story is in Joshua 2 and 6:22-25)
If you’ve not read any of Tessa Ashfar’s books, I recommend her book on Rahab — A Pearl in the Sand.
B. How might having Rahab as a mother contributed to the godliness of Boaz? (After listening to Keller I realize Rahab could have been a grandmother or great grandmother, yet still, as Mary sings, godliness can impact generations to come.
C. How did God use the faith of Boaz and Ruth to rescue the line of the Messiah?
6. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife
- Challenge: Why do you think God puts it this way instead of just mentioning Bathsheba?
- How was Solomon a merciful gift to David and Bathsheba? Again, you see a rescue of the line of the Messiah.
7. And Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.
- Since Joseph was not the biological father of Jesus, why do you think he is listed?
- What positive qualities do you see in Joseph?
8. Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen more from the exile to the Messiah.
- How many generations from Abraham to the Messiah?
- This makes Jesus the 7th seven. What do you know about the significance of the number 7 in Scripture?
9. What puts you in awe about the genealogy?
Wednesday: Good News, not Good Advice
Andrea Piacquadio
Notice that the story of Jesus’ life does not start off ‘Once Upon a Time’. It doesn’t say ‘Once Upon a Time’. It starts with the genealogy. See, ‘Once Upon a Time’ is the way fairy tales start. But a genealogy says this is history. This has been rooted in history. What happened to Jesus Christ that we’re going to tell you about actually really happened historically.
Now, there’s a lot of people who say, “Who cares? So what if it’s a legend?” “After all,” they say, “what really matters is not doctrine and things like that. What really matters is that you’re a good person. So, if you read the story about Jesus Christ, then you try to be like him. That’s really what God wants. That’s really what we need. Doctrine doesn’t matter. It just matters that you’re a good person living like Jesus Christ, whether or not he actually ever lived or not. He’s a great moral example.”
Well, now, you know, it’s funny that the doctrine, well, to say the doctrine doesn’t matter but just live a good life, that actually is a doctrine. We call it the doctrine of justification by works. It’s a belief that it doesn’t really matter what you believe as long as you live a good enough life. But I want you to know that if you decide that what will make God happy with you or what will get you into heaven is living a good life you will either become an incredibly proud person who thinks, I’m better than everyone else. I’m living up to my standards. Or you’re going to be a person always under guilt because you’re not living up.
Jesus Christ actually came not to show us how to live so that we could save ourselves. He came to save us. He came to live the life we should have lived. In our place, and then die the death we should have died in our place, so that God could forgive us, so the penalty for our sins could be put on him. If Jesus Christ didn’t actually live, then you can’t be saved by grace. You can’t be saved by God. You have to save yourself. And that’s deadly. And so, the genealogy starts right off saying the gospel is good news, not just good advice on how to live. It’s good news that not advice on how to save yourself, but it’s good news, God has saved you.
So, right here at the very beginning, the genealogies are just dripping
10. Watch/read Keller though his first point
- What stands out to you and why?
- Why is it important to realize the Bible is good news instead of good advice? List everything you can.
- What else stands out to you from this part?
Thursday: The Gospel of Grace
Here’s the second thing though.
The genealogy also shows that the gospel turns the values of the world upside down. Now, you and I see a genealogy and we say, that’s interesting. But in the old days, the genealogy was like your resume, because family was everything. And what you always did was you gave your resume by giving people your genealogy, and you always bragged about the people who were well known or were great, so you would say, “I, on my father’s side, I was related to the Duke of Walford shire” or something like that. The one thing you always kept out of your genealogy was anybody who, you know, wasn’t quite right, wasn’t respectable, you just kept that out. But right here in Jesus’ genealogy, you have four women. And women were almost never back in those patriarchal times ever included in genealogies. It was always father to son, father to son. There’s four women. And look who those women are. Tamar, who committed incest, Rahab, who was a prostitute, Ruth, who was a Moabite, she wasn’t Jewish, she was of a different race. And then what the text calls Uriah’s wife, which of course was Bathsheba, who was married to Uriah, and David commits adultery with her and then kills her husband. And so why in the world would those people be in the genealogy? And here’s what it’s telling us. Even at the very beginning, the genealogy is speaking to us of grace. First of all, what we see here is Jesus is not ashamed of these people. These are his mothers. These are women, not men. These were, in some cases, people of a different race, not Jews. Some of them were immoral, not moral. And yet Jesus is saying, Anyone can be a member of my family. Anyone can be a member of my family. You’re not saved by your pedigree and by your respectability. You’re saved by grace. There is no sin so small that it doesn’t deserve condemnation. So King David, who’s in the genealogy, needs God’s grace. But there’s no sin so great that it can bring condemnation on those who truly repent.
And it also shows that in the gospel, the gospel turns the world’s values upside down. It doesn’t say men are better than women. Jews are better than non-Jews. It doesn’t say even the moral are better than the immoral. It really says that all people are sinners and all people can be recipients of grace. So, pedigree and credentials and beauty and money and things like that should not matter to us as Christians because they don’t matter to God. I don’t care who you are or what you’ve done. I don’t care whether you’ve camped out right near the gates of hell, you can be a member of Jesus Christ’s family if you turn to him.
11. Listen/read the rest.
- What stands out to you and why?
- How does listing the people who had questionable resumes show you something about how our God is different than the gods of other religions?
- How does this make you feel about yourself and your place in God’s family?
12. What was Keller’s point about Jesus being the seventh seven?
Friday: Kathy’s Input
And now here’s Tim and Kathy Keller for a short time of Q&A on today’s meditation. Matthew starts with a genealogy, and Luke starts with a genealogy, but they’re different. And I know they weren’t making things up, But why are they different? Why does Matthew highlight some people and not others, and then Luke highlights other people and not the same ones? Why are they different?
Tim
That’s a great question because it’s actually a helpful question.
Kathy
Inquiring minds want to know.
Tim
Do they?
It’s also a helpful question because Luke’s genealogy takes Jesus’ line back to Adam, whereas Matthews takes it back to Abraham. Right there that’s significant because it just tells us something about the fact that the book of Luke is thinking more about the Gentiles and thinking more about Jesus as the savior of the whole world. The book of Matthew is thinking more about how Jesus is the fulfillment of all the prophecies of Israel. But the main thing to point out is that the genealogy is not just in Matthew and in Luke and in 1 and 2 Chronicles, 1 and 2 Kings, they differ from each other because they’re selective and this is the key you have to understand. When it says Joe begat Sam. The word begat or the word, which is the old, the Hebrew word, which is translated begat, which means Sam is, well it says fathered basically, generated, literally. Right. When he says, when he says, Engendered. Engendered, yes. It doesn’t necessarily mean the person, that’s the person father, it could be their grandfather, their great-grandfather.
Kathy Keller
So if, Was the progenitor of.
Tim Keller
Yes, so if it actually, yeah, so it says, Tom is the progenitor of Dick, who is the progenitor of Harry. That doesn’t mean that’s father-son-grandson. It could easily be great-grandfather, etc. And the reason they did that was they would collapse the genealogies in some cases to either be short or just to be brief or in some cases, by the way, like Matthew, it points out that there was 14 generations, 14 generations and 14 generations from Abraham to Jesus, which of course is seven sevens.
Kathy Keller
So kind of like highlight reel.
Tim Keller
It was a way of making the case that Jesus was the 7/7, which was the perfection number, and also the number of the Sabbath, so that he’s bringing the final rest. And so, it was a symbolic way to talk about who Jesus was. But it in no way actually is an error. It’s not a historical error. There are people who say, “Ah, you see their Bible’s filled with contradictions because this one says it’s so-and-so begat so-and-so, but this one says that person didn’t begat so-and-so, he begat somebody else.” But it’s just It’s selective.
Kathy Keller
Can I just make a comment? It’s kind of a cautionary tale because if you read through the Bible, any part of it, New Testament, Old Testament, and you think you’ve found an error or a contradiction, before you go rushing away and throw your faith out the window, have a little humility and say, maybe somebody besides me in the last 2,000 years noticed this and has thought about it, and there might be another explanation, or there might be something I don’t know, like what you just told me about s genealogy kipping the generations that so-and-so was not the actual father. He might have been the grandfather or the great-great- grandfather. So, yeah, that’s sort of a cautionary tale.
Tim Keller
Study and compare.
Kathy Keller
Slow down before you freak out.
Tim Keller
Amen. Okay.
13. What did Kathy have to say about when you think you have spotted an error in the Bible, as some might question why generations were skipped?
14. What did you see modeled in their marriage that was good?
Saturday:
15. What is your take-a-way and why?
16. Do you have any thoughts on how to make this Advent meaningful for others?
105 comments
I have listened to this song by the Poor Bishop before and loved it, but couldn’t have loved it more today! The arrangement and the words, their voices, and the instruments, and to finish with Isaiah 9:6-7 and Christ as the last Word! The abrupt stop was a grand finish! Why am I crying?
I know. So beautiful!
Sunday:
1. How did you experience the presence of God this week?
I went to a workshop hosted by my daughter, Ruth’s former employer, the Center for Conflict Resolution. Not only was the workshop an insight into what my daughter had done for the last few years, including a time in Seattle. It was also an excellent presentation of ways to deal with interpersonal conflict. Although it was geared towards the workplace, the principles surely applied to any setting.
I befriended one of the ladies who is a case manager from Lees Summit. In the course of our 2-day interactions, we got to know each other to a comfortable level. During lunch, she shared her past pain with the church and told me she has not been to one for 10 years now. Our conversation was very respectful, and I felt like we parted as potential friends, exchanging phone numbers for future conversations. And she is so different than me! Pray I will take time to stay in touch. I know we being paired as partners during the practice times was by God’s design.
2. Share your thoughts on Poor Bishop Hooper’s song. Ponder first!
Music has always been special to me. This was no different. I first heard this husband-and-wife team from a few years ago when they sang for the TGC Christmas presentation.
While I was listening this morning, the instruments and lyrics were very clear. There was such excellence, a holy experience, and perhaps because the words were taken from Scripture. Isaiah 55:11 “…so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it”.
The following verse came to mind also, as there was so much joy in following Jesus’ genealogy as they sang, you can almost hear creation clap!
You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace;
The mountains and hills will burst into song before you,
And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.
Thank you, Dee, for sharing this song. I look forward to listening to the Kellers. They have such a wonderful marriage, as evidenced by how they relate to one another.
Oh Bing, I so agree with you and Thankyou for the context of the scriptures. 💕
I love what you shared about the conference! Wow. Sounds beneficial and the Lord gave you a new potential friend. So cool. And I always appreciate your perspective on music. 😊
All true wisdom comes from God, even secular sources.
And such good comments on the song.
Dee, yes, indeed, “All true wisdom comes from God, even secular sources.” While at the workshop, I kept thinking, “What is missing? Where is God in all of these?” And I told myself, there is really nothing new to God under the sun. Men just think they have discovered things and are the originators of them. How wrong we are! Everything we have and are from Him, including true wisdom. And it is available in His Word.
Oh, what a wonderful time, meeting this new friend at this conference of Ruth’s former employer, Bing. I love how the Lord brought you and this new friend together, in this situation. I love how God never wastes moments, these moments are so purposeful if we recognize that they are from Him.He is so good and His plans are always perfect. I love your insights into the song, Bing.
Thank you, all! I have exchanged texts with this lovely woman and shared a passage from the Bible with her. She replied, “I am going to dust off my old Bible and will look up the verses.” Please pray, dear friends, that she may have a softened heart toward God.
Sunday:
How did you experience the presence of God this week?
—For the last several months my husband Terry and I have been in the process of making a major life decision to move from our home in Broken Bow to Lincoln, Nebraska which is 3 hours away. Broken Bow is our place of birth and our home town. We have lived here together in the same home for 35 years now. When we were in Lincoln with our children in September they all felt we should consider moving to Lincoln as a good place for us to be. It actually was our plan or a number of years to move to Lincoln. when Terry retired but at that time our son Tyce and his family of five children were living in Broken Bow and we assumed a role in helping them.
This has been a matter of much prayer. We will soon be putting our home on the market and are in the process of looking at our options in Lincoln and working with realtors. This weekend we are in Lincoln and actually made an offer on a townhome. God closed the door on that particular home but we are looking at a number of options and just trusting it all to God’s timing and to Him putting us where he wants us to be. This weekend we have felt God’s presence in all of this and feel very much at peace that He is leading us. We serve a gracious and loving Heavenly Father and we trust his wisdom in our lives. I appreciate the prayers of this group in particular as we walk through this life change.
Share your thoughts on Poor Bishop Hooper’s song. Ponder first.
—When I put in my iPods and listen to this arrangement the sounds are so rich and musically it blesses my soul in that it is so beautifully done. But also the richness of the reality of our Savior and his human heritage stand out as I considered the history of His story and at the right time in the history of mankind the Son of God was born to Mary. And his name is Jesus! Who is called Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, Almighty One, Who is called the Christ!
Dee, I’m so glad you revisited this piece by Poor Bishop Hooper. I loved hearing it again. 💕
Praying for your decisions in moving and for the perfect place to be available at the right time, Bev.
Such a big change, but it sounds like the Lord has been preparing you well. Prayers as you navigate the move. I love your perspective of your loving Father. I remember when my grandmother had to sell their home of many years on the river and move to a condo when she couldn’t keep up anymore after my grandfather’s health began to fail. Later, I learned that she and her sister packed up the whole place themselves. I still remember that she saved a nursery rhyme book for me that gave me treasured memories of sitting on her lap in the rocker with that book. She was so thoughtful that way. I’m sure it is hard packing up all the memories and choosing what to keep and what to give away or sell.
Wow, Bev. Big decisions. Lord, thank You for guiding them, for their children wanting them near, and please put them in the living quarters You know they should be in. In Jesus Name I pray
Bev, praying for your move and its details. So excited you will be closer to me!
Sunday:
1. How did you experience the presence of God this week? A difficult situation came up this week in the family, and the Lord helped us work through it to some degree and remain united. We are looking to Him as we continue to navigate.
2. Share your thoughts on Poor Bishop Hooper’s song. Ponder first! I do love this song. The words themselves are interesting but the music and tone put with the music makes it worshipful and come to life. You can hear the culture/events in some ways. I never tire of this one.
Chris, whatever difficult situation you were in, I am thankful that you have seen God helping you through it.
I pray that the Lord will continue to help you and your family walk through this situation, Chris.
Praying for God’s anointing as you speak at the Christmas Tea on Monday night, Dee. Prayers that you are at peace and filled with God’s joy. Praying that all tech works well. May our Mighty God draw many hearts to Jesus.
Thank you so much, Patti.
1. How did you experience the presence of God this week? I’ve been spending more time reading the bible and I’ve noticed that throughout the day my thoughts are focused more on the Lord. I find myself with hymns in my mind instead of the random songs that usually float around there, which I know is from the Holy Spirit.
2. Share your thoughts on Poor Bishop Hooper’s song. Ponder first! I liked how it got more intense and up beat as it got closer and closer to Jesus.
I love how the Holy Spirit is influencing your thoughts, and I love the ending of the song as well.
Good observation on the intensity!
Dawn, I agree. There is so much richness in hymns and praise songs.
1. How did you experience the presence of God this week?
I have been so wrapped up in things for work that I had trouble completing last week’s Bible study. I finally did this morning.
My friend, who is so in tune with others needs, insisted we come for dinner with our grand parenting group (even though we were an hour late, once again due to my job!) because she knew we needed care. We went yesterday afternoon, and it was very refreshing to my soul. Thank You Lord for giving us people in our lives who actually care about us.
2. Share your thoughts on Poor Bishop Hooper’s song. Ponder first!
Always love Poor Bishop Hooper! Great way to understand the genealogy 😉. I love how they, as a married couple, use their talents together.
Laura, thank God for friends who really care!
I love that you have dear people who care so much for you, Laura. You are balancing lots of things in your busy life. I pray that God will give you His peace and strength.
Monday: The Text: Part I.
Personal request — I’m speaking tonight at a Christmas tea and would love your prayers for God too bring people who are open, for His anointing, and for the tech to work!
Prayers for your Christmas tea, Dee. May the Lord open hearts, may he anoint your speech and may the tech work like it should that the message of the gospel may be proclaimed.
I remember a testimony from a member at Redeemer. He said he FINALLY got his friend to come to Redeemer with him and that the sermon was on Matthew’s genealogy! He thought “OH NO!” But then it was AMAZING. This is such a savvy group, I’m going to pull out the excerpts Keller read and get your meditations.
3. This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Why do you think Matthew begins with a genealogy? I think the genealogy shows credibility. It is history, not a fairy tale. Keller says the genealogy is like your resume in those days and women would not have been included, but Matthew does. He is speaking of grace, saying anyone can be a member of my family-not your pedigree. Why doesn’t he begin like other sacred books with “These are the teachings of Jesus…” I’m guessing it was what his audience needed to hear.
Why does he begin with Abraham instead of Adam, as Luke does? I guess I cheated and listened to Keller first-Abraham shows that Matthew is looking at Jesus being the fulfillment of the promises, where Luke is looking at Jesus being the savior of the whole world. At any rate it is not an error, but a focus on different parts.
Thanks for your prayers, Chris!
Monday: The Text: Part I.
Personal request — I’m speaking tonight at a Christmas tea and would love your prayers for God too bring people who are open, for His anointing, and for the tech to work!
—I am praying and will ask for God’s favor for these requests.
3. This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Why do you think Matthew begins with a genealogy? Why doesn’t he begin like other sacred books with “These are the teachings of Jesus…”
—It would seem Matthew was establishing the credibility of who Jesus was as a man. His human roots met the requirement of the Messiah being in the genealogical line of David. Matthew was a Jew writing to Jews and genealogy mattered to them.
Why does he begin with Abraham instead of Adam, as Luke does?
—As I said above since Matthew was a Jew writing to the Jews and it would seem because Abraham was the father of the Israelites and the beginning of the Jewish nation and he was revered for that. Matthew is appealing to his particular audience.
4. Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,
Read Genesis 38 and summarize what happened.
—Judah the oldest son of Jacob disobeyed God’s plan for the His people by marrying a Canaanite woman. Then when his son Er grew up and married Tamar he was a wicked man and died not leaving a heir. It was customary for the next son to marry the widow of their brother in order to produce an heir for the dead brother. Judah’s next son Onan didn’t want a son who wouldn’t be his own heir so when he had sex with Tamar he refused to complete the intercourse and spill his semen outside of her keeping her from becoming pregnant. God condemned him for that and he died too. Then Judah refused to give his third son Shelah to Tamar even though he had promised to do so. He sent her back to her original family to be condemned to live as a widow the rest of her life.
Later when Tamar saw that Judah had refused to give her his youngest son to be her husband she acted like she was a prostitute and trapped Judah into having sex with her and she became pregnant by him. She asked for a guarantee of payment of a young goat from him for the sex they had and he left his signet and cord and his staff with her. When he learned Tamar was pregnant and didn’t know he himself was the father he was going to have her burned and killed she produced his signet and staff which proved he was the father. He admitted his sin against her and provided for her care but didn’t become her husband. Tamar gave birth to twins and the first born Perez became God’s intended heir in the genealogical line.
What negative and positive things do you see about Judah?
—He was deceptive, disobedient and a self serving fleshly man but when push came to shove he seemed to end up doing the right thing. Like with his brother Joseph when the threw him in the pit to die he wouldn’t let his brothers kill Joseph but rather sold him to slave traders. He ended up doing right by Tamar when proven guilty. Later he was willing to stay in captivity in Egypt rather than let Benjamin his father’s youngest son be held there.
What negative and positive things do you see about Tamar?
—She practiced deception to gain her own advantage over Judah. She understood the proper order of things and held Judah responsible to do them.
How, in a sense, did Tamar rescue the line of the Messiah?
—That line was to come through Judah and then down through his first born son Er. It then needed to come down through Tamar as the wife of Er after he had died through his own brothers. By having her sons through a sexual relationship with Judah they produced a legitimate heir.
Read Ruth 4:11-12. What did they mean when they prayed that Ruth’s family would be like the family of Perez?
—Ruth was a gentile woman like Tamar and they prayed specifically that descendants would come from the marriage of Ruth, also a gentile and Boaz like Perez who was the son of Tamar and Judah.
—Wiersbe points out that Tamar a Canaanite women, Ruth a Moabitess, and Bathsheba all who are mentioned in the lineage of Christ are examples of God’s grace and acceptance of Gentiles and their inclusion in the Old Testament accounts of the earthly family of Jews that he used to produce Jesus the Christ. They were individuals that demonstrated God’s grace and salvation being for all people.
Monday: The Text: Part I.
Personal request — I’m speaking tonight at a Christmas tea and would love your prayers for God too bring people who are open, for His anointing, and for the tech to work!
I remember a testimony from a member at Redeemer. He said he FINALLY got his friend to come to Redeemer with him and that the sermon was on Matthew’s genealogy! He thought “OH NO!” But then it was AMAZING. This is such a savvy group, I’m going to pull out the excerpts Keller read and get your meditations.
Praying for your time at Christmas Tea tonight, Dee. May the Spirit work His way amidst all of you.
3. This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
A. Why do you think Matthew begins with a genealogy? Why doesn’t he begin like other sacred books with “These are the teachings of Jesus…”
Because Matthew was a man of numbers? People who are factual want to see evidence.
B. Why does he begin with Abraham instead of Adam, as Luke does?
He must be familiar with OT and remember the story of God telling Abraham to have offspring as many as the stars? (Genesis 15)
4. Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,
A. Read Genesis 38 and summarize what happened.
Judah had three sons, Er, Onan, and Shelah, with his wife, Shula. Judah gave Er a wife named Tamar. But Er did a wicked thing before God, and he died. So, Onan, as the next brother, was given to Tamar, but the same thing happened to him. Shelah was the youngest and last, but was not given to Tamar. So Tamar disguised herself and had sexual relations with Judah (she was perceived by Judah as a shrine prostitute). This happened after Tamar asked for a pledge of his seal and staff until he paid her a young goat. Later, Judah found out about Tamar being pregnant, and it was revealed to him that he was the father of her child.
B. What negative and positive things do you see about Judah?
Judah provided a wife for his oldest son, Er, and fulfilled the Levirite law requirement by giving Onan to Tamar, the second son, upon Er’s death. He did not carry through with Shelah. He slept with somebody he did not know and was not married to, even after his wife died.
C. What negative and positive things do you see about Tamar?
Tamar should have confronted Judah about Shelah. She did not look to God to provide for her and took matters into her own hands.
D. How, in a sense, did Tamar rescue the line of the Messiah?
Jesus is the Lion of the tribe of Judah and a descendant through Perez.
E. Read Ruth 4:11-12. What did they mean when they prayed that Ruth’s family would be like the family of Perez?
I have read that the Perezites were outstanding men. King David was a descendant of Perez, through Hezron.
Good answers. Matthew was also writing to the Jews so traced it back to Abraham; whereas Luke to the Gentiles so went back to Adam
I love finding out about this historical significance in the genealogy of our Savior, Dee. All the gleanings that I have through the years here have helped me have a heart greater in gratitude for the patience and goodness of God.
MONDAY
3. This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Why do you think Matthew begins with a genealogy? Why doesn’t he begin like other sacred books with “These are the teachings of Jesus…” Matthew’s purpose is to show that Jesus was Messiah and fulfilled prophecies. Genealogies were very important and established the identity of a person. Also by stating the number of generations it showed that Jesus was the number of ultimate perfection.
Why does he begin with Abraham instead of Adam, as Luke does? Matthew was speaking to Jews, proving that Jesus was Messiah to Israel. Luke’s gospel is showing that Jesus is Savior to the world (Jesus and Gentile).
4. Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,
Read Genesis 38 and summarize what happened. Tamar was married to Judah’s oldest son. That son dies, and Judah told his second son to marry Tamar (continuing the first son’s heritage). He had relations with her, but emptied his sperm on the ground, angering the LORD who slew him. Judah told Tamar to go live with her parents as a widow and wait while the youngest son grew up. He promised Tamar she could marry him, but broke that promise. Tamar disguised herself as a harlot and sold herself to Judah. He gave her his personal jewelry as a pledge that he would send her a sheep. Tamar conceived, went back home, and resumed her life as a widow, When Judah sent men to redeem the jewelry from the “harlot,” she was no where to be found. Tamar was pregnant with Judah’s child, but he thought she had been unfaithful to his dead son. He ordered that she be killed, but she produced the jewelry, proving that Judah himself was the father.
What negative and positive things do you see about Judah?
Positive: faithful to his wife while she lived
initially had his second son marry Tamar
told Tamar to return to her parents for awhile (provided emotional support)
Negative: formed a strong friendship with Hirah outside his faith/family
took a Canaanite for a wife (I suppose on the advices of Hirah, whom he was visiting at the time)
did not keep his promise to Tamar
had sex with a “prostitute”
What negative and positive things do you see about Tamar?
Positive: Obedient, intelligent
Negative: Took matters into her own hands, seduced and had sex with her father-in-law
How, in a sense, did Tamar rescue the line of the Messiah?
She was trying to make sure that her husband’s line continued. This is an example of God’s grace that He used something bad and turned it around.
Read Ruth 4:11-12. What did they mean when they prayed that Ruth’s family would be like the family of Perez? Pharez was an ancestor of Boaz, and he had a prolific heritage.
Wish you were in my church! So wise.
Thank you for all of this, Cheryl! So well said and such great details.
Love this entire post, Cheryl. Thank you for all the details!
Dear friends I’m just popping in here because I have a prayer request. It’s been a very difficult few days.My dog Piper has been in ICU since yesterday. The neurologist is having a very difficult time getting her seizures to stop. They’re keeping her another day and giving her some IV meds. She’s in a very dangerous place physically and I just would appreciate your prayers so much. Only the Lord can turn this around, because they’re running out of options. She’s a sweet angel dog, who has been my constant companion since I lost my husband. I don’t know the Lord’s will or Plan, but I pray that He will heal her if it’s in His will.
Thank you, Patti
Oh Father, You are our dear Father and know every detail of our lives. How we love You! Right now Patti is so concerned about sweet Piper. Father, You gave Piper to Patti knowing that Piper would be a comforting companion. Now it seems as if Piper may not live much longer. Oh, Lord, we don’t want Piper to suffer, please heal her. Give the vets wisdom needed to treat her. And Lord, just wrap Your loving arms around Patti, hold hre close, and give her Your peace right now. In Jesus name and for His glory, amen.
Dear Patti, praying for sweet Piper and you. It’s so scary to see your dog have seizures. May God give the neurologist wisdom in how to treat Piper.😘
Oh Lord, please give the vet wisdom and Piper your mercy! And Patti your peace. In Jesus Name I pray
I so sorry Patti! I pray in agreement with the others here. Sending love your way ❤️🙏.
Thank you all for your prayers. Piper is better and coming home tonight. This will probably be a life long problem for her, which saddens my heart, but I will appreciate every day I have her.
3. This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Why do you think Matthew begins with a genealogy?
I’m not sure, but maybe it was to bring credence to Jesus. The Jews would have known all the OT stories, so they would have known the people of which Matthew spoke. He is saying the Jesus came from this long line of Jewish people. It also may have been to show that everyday people were part of His life too.
Why doesn’t he begin like other sacred books with “These are the teachings of Jesus…
Because Jesus was a baby and His “teachings” had not yet developed?
Why does he begin with Abraham instead of Adam, as Luke does?
I actually wondered this when I listened to “Christ” again, this morning, before I read this post. Is Abraham given the “credit” as the father of the Jewish people because he obeyed God, where Adam disobeyed Him? I’m not sure.
4. Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,
Read Genesis 38 and summarize what happened.
Judah had three sons. The oldest married Tamar. The Lord believed the oldest was wicked and had him killed. The second son was to then marry Tamar and have a child that was the heir of the first son. He would not ever impregnate Tamar because he didn’t think it was fair that he would not have an heir. God did not approve and he was then killed. The youngest son was not old enough to marry but Judah told Tamar he would allow the marriage when he grew up. This never happened. Tamar took things into her own hands and decided to trick the FIL by having intercourse with him, getting pregnant, and having his child. She did this by hiding herself under a veil and pretending to be a prostitute. She wanted a goat for payment but Judah didn’t have one right away. She took his cane and signet ring (?) to hold until the payment arrived. When he finally got around to paying, he sent his friend to find her. He couldn’t find her so she never got the payment. Later, someone told him she (Tamar) was pregnant. He yelled to bring her and burn her. When they did, she pulled out the cane and signet and he realized the baby was his own.
What negative and positive things do you see about Judah?
He sometimes followed the law and sometimes didn’t, based on his own desires. He ended up taking care of Tamar in the end.
What negative and positive things do you see about Tamar?
She tried to control the situation. She was a smart cookie, withholding his things. She was willing to become a prostitute to get her way.
How, in a sense, did Tamar rescue the line of the Messiah?
She got pregnant and had the twins.
Read Ruth 4:11-12. What did they mean when they prayed that Ruth’s family would be like the family of Perez?
I don’t know, but everyone was excited that he was a “breach” or “breakout” baby. I’m not sure why that was good.
Yes, Abraham is when God began His family — later included Gentiles as the genealogy shows.
Tuesday: The Text Part II.
5. Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab
What do you remember about Rahab that was positive and negative? (Her story is in Joshua 2 and 6:22-25)
—From a Christian perspective negatively Rahab as a practicing prostitute was an immoral woman living in a pagan culture and lifestyle.
Positively she had faith in the One true God of the Israelites and she believed in Him by the great testimony of what He had done for the Israelites by the great miracles of his own hand. She said to the spies in Joshua 2:11 “No wonder our hearts have melted in fear! No one has the courage to fight after hearing such things. For the Lord your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below.” Her belief was enough for her salvation and the salvation of her family even though her works had been self serving and sinful.
B. How might having Rahab as a mother contributed to the godliness of Boaz? (After listening to Keller I realize Rahab could have been a grandmother or great grandmother, yet still, as Mary sings, godliness can impact generations to come.
—If anyone understood the grace of a loving, accepting and rescuing God it had to be Rahab. She had lived it first hand because she believed Him. So Boaz grew up knowing the powerful story of her testimony and he would have observed and understood how hard it would have been for her to be a foreigner to the Jewish culture. It obviously gave Boaz a heart for foreigners and especially for Ruth the foreigner who also had demonstrated great faith in the One true God.
C. How did God use the faith of Boaz and Ruth to rescue the line of the Messiah?
—Their son Obed became the father of Jesse who became the father of David to whom God promised to send the Messiah through his own progeny.
6. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife
Challenge: Why do you think God puts it this way instead of just mentioning Bathsheba?
—I know that it demonstrates the grace of God that he used David to be part of the line of the Messiah in spite of his adultery with Bathsheba but I think God is gracious to the memory of Uriah who was an honorable man and the rightful husband of Bathsheba.
How was Solomon a merciful gift to David and Bathsheba? Again, you see a rescue of the line of the Messiah.
—After the death and loss of the baby son born to them out of their sin of adultery it would have been a very gracious gift from God.
7. And Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.
Since Joseph was not the biological father of Jesus, why do you think he is listed?
—I feel Joseph was chosen just as much as Mary to be part of the physical earthly life of Jesus. He was given and accepted the responsibility to parent and be a father to Jesus. His faith in God to carry out his task as Mary’s husband and being an earthly father to Jesus is significant as was his own heritage and genealogy.
What positive qualities do you see in Joseph?
—First I don’t see any real negatives about him or his character. His positive qualities were many. His faith was demonstrated in that he listened to and trusted God’s instructions in caring for Mary and Jesus. He was a very responsible person.
8. Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen more from the exile to the Messiah.
How many generations from Abraham to the Messiah?
—42 which is 6 sets of 7
This makes Jesus the 7th seven. What do you know about the significance of the number 7 in Scripture?
—It is the number of perfection.
9. What puts you in awe about the genealogy?
—How God was graciously exercising his faithfulness and power to many undeserving sinners who were part of that genealogy. It is a wonderful testimony to God’s provision of Salvation to anyone who believes. The birth of Jesus at the culmination of that genealogy is the ultimate gift in God providing the offer of Salvation to the whole world. It was a plan of God completed and accomplished with order ending in the number of perfection by the birth of the perfect Son of God. I am personally encouraged that in my own life God will accomplish his perfect purposes in spite of me.
Dee,
I am wondering how the Christmas Tea went last night.
After listening to Poor Bishop Hooper’s song on the genealogy of Christ and then listening to Tim and Kathy Keller, I was reminded of another beautiful song that helps me ponder the scandalous and beautiful genealogy of Christ.
This song is called “Rahab’s Lullaby”. This is a three minute back story to how and why the song was written.
“Rahab’s Lullaby (God Above, God Below)” LIVESTREAM Story Behind the Song | FAITHFUL
This is the 4 minute song.
FAITHFUL – Rahab’s Lullaby (God Above, God Below) [Official Live] – YouTube
Nila,
Thanks so much for sharing this beautiful rendition and the story behind it. I do remember it from a few years ago and not sure if it was here on the blog or elsewhere but blessed again by it. 💕
That’s lovely, Nila. Thank you!
Thank you for these links, Nila! I love the story of the song and the beautiful rendition of it. So much that is so meaningful to ponder on all of this genealogy…scandalous and beautiful is right!
Beautiful, Nila!
1. How did you experience the presence of God this week? Thank you all for your prayers for Piper. She has had a difficult few days. I am so grateful that she is coming home tonight.
1. Share your thoughts on Poor Bishop Hooper’s song. Ponder first! I love the “old world style” (is that a word?) of this presentation. I love the legacy put to music. This piece is a so beautiful and so meaningful. I love re-listening to it, while reading the genealogy. Every time I hear this song, I am impressed by how important the details of Jesus’s family history are.
Patti, So good to hear Piper is better and you could bring her home. I really believe animals can be gifts from God for companionship and comfort. They can certainly be heart stealers.
Oh such goodnews about poooor little Piper. How is she today?
Piper is doing better. Thank you so much for the prayers. The vet says this will just be a lifetime thing, and it will probably mean that she won’t live a long long life, but God can do anything. She Is such a sweet pup and great companion.
Dee,
I submitted a post here early this morning. It said “pending approval”.
Then it disappeared. (Probably because I included a link to a song??)
Should I try resubmitting my post?
Thank you.
Yes — probably — but we love your songs. I was traveling to speak so slow to approve.
I typed a lengthy response to Tuesday’s questions, fascinating questions, his submit and nothing happened. As I was waiting to try and submit a few moments later, I go kicked out of the website with the notice that my session had been timed out? Not sure what is happening. Unfortunately my comments were written directly on the comment page and not saved elsewhere, so I cannot resubmit them.
Oh that’s so frustrating — I’m sorry.
Cheryl, when you write a comment, do a copy of it before you hit submit. That way if the webpage goes “wonky” you can go back just paste it in. I have lost many a comment over the years! Sorry that happened to you. It is very frustrating! Last week I must have had to repost what I wrote (not much) 5 times because every time I moved my phone (?!) it would refresh the page. Annoying!
Now that it’s happened to me, that’s just what I’ll do. Thanks, Laura.
3. This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Why do you think Matthew begins with a genealogy? Why doesn’t he
begin like other sacred books with “These are the teachings of Jesus…” Genealogy is important to the Jewish community, especially when it it pertains to the Messiah.
Why does he begin with Abraham instead of Adam, as Luke does? Maybe because everyone was already familiar with the genealogy of Adam to Abraham.
4. Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,
Read Genesis 38 and summarize what happened. Judah was Tamar’s father in law, but he failed to follow the law and give his youngest son in marriage to her. Instead, he slept with her thinking that she was a prostitute and produced a set of twins. Perez and Zerah.
What negative and positive things do you see about Judah? He attempted to follow the law when he gave his 2nd son to Tamar to marry (positive). He didn’t give his last son to marry Tamar (negative). He slept with Tamar (negative). He acknowledged his paternity (positive).
Tuesday: The Text Part II.
5. Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab
What do you remember about Rahab that was positive and negative? (Her story is in Joshua 2 and 6:22-25)
Rahab was a prostitute in Jericho. She hid the Israelite spies in her house and helped them escape. She asked them to spare her and her family from death when they came in and conquered Jericho. She demonstrated faith in God by taking the actions she did. I was pondering what she might have been thinking when she heard news about the conquests of the Israelites. And now they are in their land!
If you’ve not read any of Tessa Ashfar’s books, I recommend her book on Rahab — A Pearl in the Sand.
B. How might having Rahab as a mother contributed to the godliness of Boaz? (After listening to Keller I realize Rahab could have been a grandmother or great grandmother, yet still, as Mary sings, godliness can impact generations to come.
Because Rahab was not an Israelite, Boaz would have grown up with two parents who were different from each other culturally and family backgrounds. He would have seen how God orchestrated his family to be a part of God’s family through the marriage of his parents. He also might have noticed the grace that was given to his mother. In the book Ruth, his character was put to the test with the coming of Ruth and Naomi. He showed integrity and compassion to the two widows. He married Ruth, who was a Moabite and knew his grandmother or great-grandmother, Rahab, was a Canaanite.
C. How did God use the faith of Boaz and Ruth to rescue the line of the Messiah?
They saw past their different race, cultures and standing to follow God’s design for them.
6. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife
Challenge: Why do you think God puts it this way instead of just mentioning Bathsheba?
Maybe to bring the reader to an awareness of the sacrifice Uriah had to make, and that even when man makes an awful decision, such as David’s, God is still very much in control.
How was Solomon a merciful gift to David and Bathsheba? Again, you see a rescue of the line of the Messiah.
God could have struck Solomon dead just as He allowed their firstborn baby to die in judgment of David’s sin. David did not deserve mercy. God is sovereign. Our sins could not prevent the sovereignty of God.
“I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted. Job 42:2
7. And Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.
Since Joseph was not the biological father of Jesus, why do you think he is listed?
He was the earthly father assigned by God. He is Jesus’ adoptive father. I love the side lesson of the beauty of adoption!
What positive qualities do you see in Joseph?
Obedient to God; faithful to Mary, sacrificial
8. Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen more from the exile to the Messiah.
How many generations from Abraham to the Messiah? 42
This makes Jesus the 7th seven. What do you know about the significance of the number 7 in Scripture?
7 symbolises perfection, completeness, and may I add joy? (Smile)
9. What puts you in awe about the genealogy?
It has been written in Scripture to show us that all things live, move, and have their being in Jesus.
For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ Acts 17:28
Love all of this, Bing. Thank you for the book recommendation. It has been written in Scripture to show us that all things live, move, and have their being in Jesus.
Patti, the book by Tessa A. was recommended by Dee. I am so happy that Piper is better. And I pray you will still have her company for a while.
Love this verse from Bing on the genealogy – Tamar — the whole plan:
no purpose of yours can be thwarted. Job 42:2
Wednesday: Good News, not Good Advice
10. Watch/read Keller though his first point
What stands out to you and why?
—Keller said “if you decide that what will make God happy with you or what will get you into heaven is living a good life you will either become an incredibly proud person who thinks, I’m better than everyone else. I’m living up to my standards. Or you’re going to be a person always under guilt because you’re not living up.”
I would say that trying to live by good works to gain favor with God is a lose/lose situation.
Why is it important to realize the Bible is good news instead of good advice? List everything you can.
—Jesus came to save us.
—He came and lived the life we should live in our place.
—He died the death we should have died in our place so God can forgive us.
What else stands out to you from this part?
—From Keller:
“If Jesus Christ didn’t actually live, then you can’t be saved by grace. You can’t be saved by God. You have to save yourself. And that’s deadly.”
—His comment “And that’s deadly.”
Without Jesus and the truth of the Gospel we would be without hope and any promise of rescue from our sinful condition. We would die trying to save ourselves. Anything apart from the Gospel is deadly!
Wednesday: Good news, not good advice
10. Watch/read Keller though his first point
A. What stands out to you and why? The phrase, “He came to live the life we should have lived. In our place, and then die the death we should have died in our place,..” stands out to me. I had always understood that Jesus paid my penalty and died in my stead, but that He lived the life I should have lived is a new thought for me. It changes my perspective. Being conformed to Jesus, Romans 8:29, would actually be like returning to the life God originally intended for all of us. This has given me much to ponder,
B. Why is it important to realize the Bible is good news instead of good advice? List everything you can. – It’s not a fairy tale or legend, it’s true – Jesus did not come to show us how to save ourselves, he came to save us (actually FROM our sinful selves) – Trying to live a “good life” apart from the Lord will not gain favor with God – what you believe (doctrine) will determine where you spend eternity
C. What else stands out to you from this part? When Keller said that believing doctrine is not important, it’s how you live; that this is actually a DOCTRINE, the doctrine of justification by works. This can lead to a very proud attitude or a tremendous weight of guilt.
I liked the point as well that it is a doctrine – -the doctrine of justification by works.
5. What do you remember about Rahab that was positive and negative? (Her story is in Joshua 2 and 6:22-25)
She was a prostitute. She hid God‘s spies. She believed in God. She wanted to save her family.
10. Watch/read Keller though his first point
What stands out to you and why?
The gospel is good news, not just good advice.
Why is it important to realize the Bible is good news instead of good advice? List everything you can.
Jesus came to save us from our sin and its penalty. We are saved by grace, not by ourselves. We cannot be justified by the doctrine of good works. The Good News is a Person, a Someone, and not something.
What else stands out to you from this part?
Justification by good works is also a doctrine, a daily reminder for me to self-check and to always look to Scripture and be guided by the Holy Spirit. I always love the “In Christ Alone” song by the Gettys, as sung by Shane and Shane.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2ld1wI2hT8&list=RDh2ld1wI2hT8&start_radio=1
5B. How might having Rahab as a mother contributed to the godliness of Boaz? (After listening to Keller I realize Rahab could have been a grandmother or great grandmother, yet still, as Mary sings, godliness can impact generations to come.
Surely the stories of rescue of her and her family would have been passed down through the generations. Her faith!
C. How did God use the faith of Boaz and Ruth to rescue the line of the Messiah?
Not sure about the details here, without reviewing the story, but Boaz did the right thing in following the law, and Ruth, although a gentile, believed in her MIL’s faith so much that she was “converted.” I’m not sure how it was a “rescue” though. Was it because Naomi’s family line would have been gone since all her sons were dead? I would need to follow the “trail” from the beginning to know this and I’m not sure how I would do it other than read a third of the Bible!
Yes — you got it on Naomi’s family line.
6. Challenge: Why do you think God puts it this way instead of just mentioning Bathsheba?
He might put it this way to remind us that imperfect people are welcome in His kingdom.
How was Solomon a merciful gift to David and Bathsheba?
David and Bathsheba lost their baby. God allowed them to conceive again.
7. And Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.
Since Joseph was not the biological father of Jesus, why do you think he is listed?
He was faithful to God and to Mary. He did the hard thing by staying with her; on faith.
What positive qualities do you see in Joseph?
He took care of Mary, he followed the law, he had faith in God, he listened to the angel He taught Jesus.
8. Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen more from the exile to the Messiah.
How many generations from Abraham to the Messiah?
14 x 3 is 42.
This makes Jesus the 7th seven. What do you know about the significance of the number 7 in Scripture?
It is perfection!
9. What puts you in awe about the genealogy?
I suppose the fact that it is recorded and known from so many years ago.
Right on imperfect people. Also, reminding us that even David was a great sinner.
10. Watch/read Keller though his first point
What stands out to you and why?
I guess what’s stands out is that know people who believe this way. I don’t know how to make them understand there is hope in Christ.
Why is it important to realize the Bible is good news instead of good advice? List everything you can.
– It’s truth. It’s history.
– It doesn’t require me to do stuff.
– I can be either too proud or too guilty if I try to save myself. This is deadly. I’m not responsible for saving myself.
– Jesus came to save me! That’s good news!
Thursday: The Gospel of Grace
11. Listen/read the rest.
* What stands out to you and why?
—Keller makes the point twice that the gospel turns the values of the world upside down. People of the world look to their own background or as he said pedigree and credentials and beauty and money and things like that which should not matter to us as Christians. They seek to find value in things that don’t matter to Jesus because if we repent and turn to him He takes us for the sinners that we are and gives us new life and meaning from himself and saves us in spite of what or who we are. Out of His wonderful grace everything about Jesus and the Gospel gives us hope. Hope has been my word for the year and it has been rich from God’s Word for me as I have meditated on it.
* How does listing the people who had questionable resumes show you something about how our God is different than the gods of other religions?
—In all other religions you are required to do works of some kind and achieve certain standards of behavior to attain its goals. God takes us right where we are and as bad as we are and saves our souls for eternity if we believe and trust in Jesus. Because we are sinners we don’t and can’t bring any qualifications to receive his approval to make ourselves acceptable.
* How does this make you feel about yourself and your place in God’s family?
—I feel completely loved and accepted by Him.
12. What was Keller’s point about Jesus being the seventh seven?
—Seven in the Bible is the number of completion and perfection. Jesus became the final perfect completion of his genealogy.
Also seven was the number of the Sabbath so Jesus in his person was bringing the final rest. God instituted the Sabbath on the seventh day of Creation when He rested from his works. The purpose of Sabbath was to rest. I like the analogy that we can find our rest in Jesus. Life is so full of striving but the Gospel should bring rest to our souls. Grace, peace and rest are gifts of the Good news about Jesus.
From Bev:
I like the analogy that we can find our rest in Jesus. Life is so full of striving but the Gospel should bring rest to our souls. Grace, peace and rest are gifts of the Good news about Jesus.
Thursday: The Gospel of Grace
11. Listen/read the rest.
What stands out to you and why? What stood out to me was when he said, Jesus is not ashamed of these people (referring to the four women). Moral/immoral, Jew/non-Jew, male/female, all are accepted through grace. And the grace of God was so evident in those women’s lives. The next statement that stands out is, “ So, pedigree and credentials and beauty and money and things like that should not matter to us as Christians because they don’t matter to God.” This is a great truth of the Gospel today, Galatians 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
How does listing the people who had questionable resumes show you something about how our God is different than the gods of other religions? I’m not really sure. Maybe because those with questionable backgrounds would not be accepted? I’m not really familiar with gods of other religions. Can anyone give me an example?
How does this make you feel about yourself and your place in God’s family? I am confident in my identity in Jesus. I have never been impressed or intimidated by anyone. No one is better than me, and I am no better than anyone.
12. What was Keller’s point about Jesus being the seventh seven? On the seventh day of creation, God rested, everything was complete/perfect. Jesus fulfilled the law (complete) having lived a perfect life. Our perfect rest is in Jesus, “Come unto me…” both now and in the future in eternity.
I would say since acceptance depends on works righteousness in other religions that their acceptance would definitely be in question.
Thank you, Dee. That helps a lot. In other words Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims, etc. can never be sure of their final acceptance/destination because everything depends on them, not the god they worship.
11. Listen/read the rest.
What stands out to you and why?
You are not saved by your pedigree but by grace. I also appreciate the way Keller weaved historical contexts, such as the patriarchal society, and applied them to the genius of including women of “less” repute as the world saw them.
All people are sinners, and all people can be recipients of grace.
I don’t care whether you’ve camped out right near the gates of hell, you can be a member of Jesus Christ’s family if you turn to him.
How does listing the people who had questionable resumes show you something about how our God is different than the gods of other religions?
He is a God of grace rather than judgment.
C. How does this make you feel about yourself and your place in God’s family?
This humbles and makes me very grateful, joyful, and amazed at how God has included me!
A hymn (Hah!) comes to mind: (the last 2 verses)
Ever God’s Spirit is saying, “Come!”
Hear the Bride saying, “No longer roam”;
But I am sure while they’re calling home,
Jesus included me, too. [Chorus]
“Freely come drink,” words the soul to thrill!
O with what joy they my heart do fill!
For when He said, “Whosoever will,”
Jesus included me, too.
12. What was Keller’s point about Jesus being the seventh seven?
The number of the Sabbath. Jesus is our Sabbath rest. Jesus fulfilled the law. He completes everything because he is perfection personified!
Wonderful hymn!
Friday: Kathy’s input
13. What did Kathy have to say about when you think you have spotted an error in the Bible, as some might question why generations were skipped? “…think you’ve found an error or a contradiction, before you go rushing away and throw your faith out the window, have a little humility and say, maybe somebody besides me in the last 2,000 years noticed this and has thought about it, and there might be another explanation, or there might be something I don’t know,…”
14. What did you see modeled in their marriage that was good? They really listened to each other (listen for understanding), They did not interrupt each other before either was finished talking.
Great quote from Kathy Keller. They were such an interesting couple! One reporter said she is pure Pittsburgh, whereas he is much more refined. But both crazy smart.
Absolutely, and it shows!
Friday: Kathy’s Input
13. What did Kathy have to say about when you think you have spotted an error in the Bible, as some might question why generations were skipped?
—She says to anyone who is reading through the Bible and they think they have found an error or contradiction that causes them to dismiss the validity of the Scripture and just give up their faith it would be more wise to practice some humility and consider that over the last 2000 years of people reading and examining the Bible their might be other explanations or things they wouldn’t understand. I would agree with her in that with the Bible there is always more to understand and the depth of It’s wisdom and knowledge can not be fathomed.
14. What did you see modeled in their marriage that was good?
—There was a comfortable warmth and respect between them.
Saturday:
15. What is your take-a-way and why?
—It would be that “The Gospel is Good news not just good advice.”
The points made in Wednesday’s lesson were:
—Jesus came to save us.
—He came and lived the life we should live in our place.
—He died the death we should have died in our place so God can forgive us.
My thought then based on Kellers comments was “Without Jesus and the truth of the Gospel we would be without hope and any promise of rescue from our sinful condition. We would die trying to save ourselves. Anything apart from the Gospel is deadly!”
16. Do you have any thoughts on how to make this Advent meaningful for others?
—I continue to look to God for a way to influence Yuri with the truth of the Gospel. I have decided to give him and his family some small gifts which will include a Bible.
Lord, please give Yuri a hunger for your Word!
Saturday:
15. What is your take-a-way and why? My take-a-way is that genealogies are more than just a list of names. They show the steps taken in the fulfilling of God’s purposes/plans. I also learned that a genealogy might be selective, not always father to son to grandson.
16. Do you have any thoughts on how to make this Advent meaningful for others? Through my weekly women’s study where we’ve been studying Elizabeth (Zachariah) and Mary (Joseph). Our group is lighting the 3rd advent candle this Sunday, and I’ve encouraged each one to select a verse of joy and briefly explain to the congregation why that verse was chosen. I’ll be starting with the angel’s announcement to the shepherd, “Behold, I bring you tidings of great joy…” Each woman will stand up right where she is and eotalk. I hope to be able to access the Kellers’ video onTuesday (using a smart board) for our study.
Friday:
13. What did Kathy have to say about when you think you have spotted an error in the Bible, as some might question why generations were skipped?
To take things humbly and think that there might be somebody who has thought of an explanation before, and it is just a matter of time before the truth comes to light. Like her aha moment about “progenitor”. There is always hope because we KNOW that all things will be made right and new when we get to heaven, or even now.
14. What did you see modeled in their marriage that was good? They took turns sharing their insights. There was an obvious gentleness in how they respond to each other. Their body language also illustrates respect for one another.
Like your observations on their marriage.
11. Listen/read the rest.
What stands out to you and why?
Jesus wasn’t ashamed of His lineage. I feel ashamed of my family. The disappointments, the sadness, the broken-ness. We are not a picture of the “happy family.” I wish I didn’t feel this way, but so much has happened and it makes me sad. It odd to think He was ok with the sin in His family.
How does listing the people who had questionable resumes show you something about how our God is different than the gods of other religions?
We are accepted, just who we are. I don’t know much about other religions, but I do know that I have heard of “mercy killings” in the Muslim faith. Girls killed for their relationships with men and homosexuals thrown off buildings.
How does this make you feel about yourself and your place in God’s family?
I am accepted, just who I am. Flaws and all.
12. What was Keller’s point about Jesus being the seventh seven?
He was perfection.
13. What did Kathy have to say about when you think you have spotted an error in the Bible, as some might question why generations were skipped?
Have some humility. Realize that there have been others before you who have perhaps seen these things and studied them and can explain them from their studies.
14. What did you see modeled in their marriage that was good?
They respect each other.
Laura, yes, how did it go? I know what you mean by some of the pain-inducing movements that were easier for us when we were younger. Even with just guitar playing, I have noticed that I tire more easily. I have resumed doing yoga exercises to help myself. Hang in there! I hope you surprised yourself with what you were able to do.
15. What is your take-a-way and why?
Luke’s genealogy versus Matthew’s. Luke’s focuses on the gentiles and Matthew’s on the Jews. I never knew this.
16. Do you have any thoughts on how to make this Advent meaningful for others?
I am dancing in a Christmas variety show tonight. I have been rehearsing with some younger ladies (40, 20) for the last few weeks and I am exhausted. The dance is not my style, and my body is feeling the pain. Please pray that I make it through the day and touch someone with my work tonight. Help me focus Lord. Help me complete what I started, well.
Oh Laura — how did it go?
It’s tonight (Sat). Taking ibuprofen! I never take anything…
Laura, I hope you had fun, and the ibuprofen helped. I commented above and thought I typed it under Dee’s!
All good now. It went fine, and several young ladies have asked that we dance together for Easter. This includes the ladies I danced with tonight who don’t even go to our church. Thank You Lord. You are so good to me.
Here it is if you want to watch us.
https://www.youtube.com/live/zWZHMBozwJc?si=5UGpz5rGLqTmuKcC
We dance around 16:50. It was some good clean fun tonight 😉
Laura, It was lovely! So graceful and meaningful, I could see the joy you had in the dance.
Beautiful, Laura! EVeryone — dance starts at 16 minutes
Thanks for your encouragement. I had so many people say they appreciated it. It has been something that has really helped me over the years. After we danced we had a reception. I was thinking how I should do some sort of “therapeutic” dance for people. Never thought of that before. I don’t have a license to do therapy, but I do think God is pushing me in that direction…hmmm.
You would not have to call it therapy, Laura. Closer to the Lord through dance, comes to mind. I would sign up for that. If the Lord leads, He will give you the guidance about the details.
Saturday:
15. What is your take-a-way and why?
We are all sinners, but we can all be recipients of grace. I tend to explain away my reasoning at times, why certain people look hopeless to me. Like the stacks are against them. This study refutes that once again, there is nothing too difficult or impossible with God. As a recipient of God’s grace, my sins are all forgiven, and there is no more condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1
16. Do you have any thoughts on how to make this Advent meaningful for others?
I am thinking of three people who are going through a very rough time right now with their health, both physically and spiritually. I pray that God lead me on how to make this Advent meaningful to them. And especially for me not to depend on myself or what seems to be the right way. To be still before God and wait on Him, and to be confident and bold to do what He leads us to do.
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9
And may I add that I just love Tim and Kathy Keller?
You sure may! That encourages me.