Judah & Tamar

[Read Genesis 49:8-12]

The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet

Genesis 49:8-12 tells us that Judah (meaning ‘praise’) would become the leader among the tribes. Judah would be strong as a lion and so secure that no one would dare to oppose him. This passage is speaking of the coming of Messiah to set up His millennial kingdom giving peace to the world. This is the second coming.

But in order for this to take place, Messiah (Jesus, the Christ), had to come the first time, which He did, at His birth in Bethlehem through the virgin, Mary. When Matthew records the genealogy of Christ, we find that Christ is in the line of Judah (and actually is the Lion of Judah).

Now what took place is that Judah had a sexual relationship with who he thought was a prostitute, only it was his daughter-in-law, Tamar, who tricked him and since he had wronged her, he realized that she was more righteous than he was (Genesis 38).

Yet the product of that wrong was twins, Perez and Zerah. Jesus then came in the line of Judah (from the tribe of Judah and Perez). This not only fulfills prophecy – that Christ would be in the line of Judah – but also challenges our lives.

God used a sinful man, Judah, to bring into this would our Savior, Jesus Christ. You see, God works in spite of us. Do you see your failures? Do you get discouraged because of them? Do you feel guilty? Well, in spite of all of our failures, God can and will use us. He took a sinful girl, Mary, and she became the vehicle to bring the Savior into this world. God can and will use you, sometimes in spite of you, and sometimes because of you.


Interim Pastor Ken Muck
Sturgeon Bay Community



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Noah

Image
[Read Genesis 6:8, 22; 1 Peter 3:20; Hebrews 11:7 ] By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. Here on the island, we know the importance of finding safe passage through the waters. And we’re pretty blessed to have the ferry providing year-round service across the “Door.” It truly is our lifeline. If you’ve been on one, you know their boats are unique. They’re not cruise ships or fishing boats. Each is specifically designed to safely take vehicles, humans, and cargo to and from the mainland. For Advent this year, as we look forward to Jesus’ Second Coming, we’re remembering Jesus’ ancestors. It turns out that one of his distant relatives also ran a ferry boat. His name was Noah and God told him to build a boat, or Ark. Its purpose? To carry people and animals to safety from a catastrophic flood (see Genesis 6:9-8:22). This must have seemed pretty random for Noah. Yet, with no evidence...
Read more

Josiah

Image
[Read 2 Chronicles 35:1-3 ]  Now serve the Lord your God and his people Israel. It was a scene that could have happened in Imperial Rome, a king assassinated by close advisors, his young son thrust onto the throne. Such was the story of Josiah, son of Amon, King of Judah, the last remaining lands of the once great Davidic Kingdom. The nation was a mess. Solomon's Temple was in a state of disrepair, and the people were divided, worshipping false gods. The king started small, directing that Temple funds be used to repair the building. It was in that process that a long-lost scroll of the Law was “discovered.” Today, scholars believe that scroll was Deuteronomy, and while this seems a minor incident in the scope of the Hebrew story, it set off a national and theological reform with consequences to this day, responsible for historical books that tell us the story of that people, influencing the Prophet Jeremiah. Josiah consulted the great proph...
Read more

Methuselah

Image
[Read Genesis 5:27 ] Thus all the days of Methuselah were 969 years, and he died. Often people lament that life is too short. Even when blessed with a relatively long life, people feel it isn’t enough time. In Genesis we read of Methuselah. He bore a son at the age of 187 years, and he lived another 782 years; this is a total of 969 years. He died in the year of the flood. As noted in Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary, even the “longest liver must die at last.” Methuselah’s life might remind us that such a passing has long been considered a relief from struggle. Methuselah’s grandson is named Noah to signify rest, and his father complained of the “calamitous state of human life… Our whole life is spent in labor, and our time is filled up with continual toil.” How true this is! We sometimes forget that no matter how good life is, it seems that it always includes struggles. They may be because of loved ones, or addictions, or poor choices, or politics of the day, but often it seems life...
Read more