Joel M Bradshaw

5Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse, 6and Jesse the father of King David.–Matthew 1

Here is a snapshot moment in the genealogy of Jesus.

Rahab. A former prostitute that was willing to risk her life to save God’s people. Here is a famous quote. I added emphasis to a key part.

 When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.“Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.” (Joshua 2:11-13)

Ruth. A young widow willing to care for her mother-in-law when she could have chosen comfort. With her new family came a new faith.

But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.” (Ruth 1:16-17)

What they teach us:

1. It was always God’s plan to welcome foreign Gentiles who showed faith into the lineage of the Jewish Messiah.
2. Faith matters more than heritage when it comes to God.
3. Your past doesn’t have to define you. It didn’t for Rahab.
4. Rahab didn’t stay the prostitute. She saw her story transform to an honored mother in the line of King David! And then Jesus!
5. Ruth’s foreign status didn’t limit her faith with our God. The Messiah would literally come from her lineage!
6. Trust in Jesus is the most important thing.
7. As Christians, the Jesus that unites us is more important than the societal categories that divide us!–JMB