We sit chatting, she and I, about ancestry. She shares how the TV commercials, for discovering your background and DNA, drive her crazy. She makes the statement, “All our roots go back to the beginning.”

A few days later, hubby and I make a stop to Home Depot and before we even get in the door, Christmas is everywhere before me. I comment to my husband, “This gets more ridiculous every year. Why can’t they at least let us enjoy Thanksgiving first?”

My friend sends me an article to read about Christmas. It is then I begin to wonder if God is wanting me to begin to think about Christmas.

And so I opened up to read in the Gospel of Matthew, where the recent events shared above, all finally come together.

“This is a record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, a descendant of David and of Abraham.” (verse 1)

Remembering the DNA commercials, I smile and find this most curious. Matthew did not take us back to the beginning. He did not start with Adam and Eve. And this is the only Gospel account which does include the ancestry of Christ.

Ancestry was obviously important as the Old Testament is filled with genealogies and yet, in the most important of all genealogies, Matthew does something entirely different. Why?

Matthew was writing to establish that Jesus is the long awaited Messiah, the One who fulfills all the Old Testament prophecies.

This is a royal ancestry.

And more.

This is an ancestry proving the faithfulness of our God to His Word.

The very names – David and Abraham – are meant to bring us back to two covenants God made with His people.

• God’s Covenant with Abraham. God called Abraham to leave his country, relatives and family and go to a land which God would show him. He told Abraham that all people would be blessed through him. You can read of this covenant in Genesis 12 and 15.
• God’s Covenant with David. God formed this covenant with King David in which He promised to provide the line of kings promised to Abraham, which would lead to the King of Kings. You can read of this covenant in2 Samuel 7:8-13.

Matthew was making certain all people for all times know
God is faithful to His Word.
He will do exactly as He said.

“I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved.” (Matthew 5:18, NLT)

Today I am joining …  Trekking Thru the Week and Unite and #RaRaLInkup and Teaching What Is Good  .