Luke 2:1-15 tells of the birth of Christ. As Joseph and Mary traveled to Bethlehem to report for a census, I wonder what was going through their minds. I wonder if they knew how close the birth was, and how the lives of the world were about to be changed.
God sent His Son to Earth, so that He could fulfill the Law that man had so many troubles keeping. God sent Him so that we could have a way to be reconciled to Him again.
Matthew chapter 1 is normally not read at Christmas, and rarely at all. Why would it be important to God to include this lineage of Christ? I believe it is for many reasons, but first it was to prove that He was the Messiah that was prophesied about in the New Testament, as He was a descendant of David. Of the people we know information about, we see they were people of great faith, and did great things for God. They also sinned greatly as well.
I think it's amazing that God would use people like David, who did many things for God, that he could commit sins like adultery and murder, and still be of the lineage of the Messiah. Solomon was the wisest man ever to live because He impressed God by not being selfish, but he later worshipped idols with his wife and angered God. Rahab the harlot was in the lineage of Christ as well.
I think that it shows that God not only can use people no matter what they may have done, but if they turn to Him, He not only will help them, and bless them, but He wants to! He never takes away His promises, and even though David sinned, Jesus still descended from his bloodline.
This Christmas my prayer for all who read this is that they will embrace the promises that God gives, because He went to great effort to free us from sin. He sent Jesus to be born in the flesh, to lay down His life, and be raised again 3 days later so that we could have eternal life with Him. I also pray that if someone reading this doesn't know Jesus as their Savior, that they would pray to Jesus and ask Him to come into their heart to live, to help them change what needs to be changed, because we are all sinners, and ask His forgiveness. Let Him know that they believe that He died on the cross for their sins, in Jesus' Name, Amen. Merry Christmas!
