Thank you. excuse me next to last Sunday of the year so that means that we're on the 51st Sunday or 51st week of the Pines Baptist Church Bible reading plan and that's a two-year trek through the Bible where we read the Old Testament once in two years and we read the New Testament and the Psalms twice every year so I don't know how well you've tracked if I was a betting man I would probably win a lot of money right now but you just don't know how I would bet But I just know I can't. So I want to lose some money next year. And please make sure you're on the Bible reading plan. Alright? And you can probably deduce how I would bet this year. And we ask you to do so, so we can be on the same page. Again, there's benefits to that. Because when we speak when we talk that we can go beyond just a shallow. Hey, how's this? How's that and go a little deeper to see what God's Word is doing in our lives and that that is Facilitated by by a Bible reading plan that we're all reading together So when we gather whether it's in small groups and in homes and whatever it is We're doing that. So if you didn't do a good job this this year, that's okay. There's always next year All right, but year number two, there's some hard copies available to you on the back counter or at the welcome table If not, you go to our website pinesbaptistchurch.org and there's a link there for the pines baptist church bible reading plan go to year two and And then get on that. All right, and we will continue to do the same We read throughout the week and from there we seek the lord and we ask him to direct us erect direct our focus and our attention and we preach from that week's reading We do that most of the time, all right? But, and you'll get, I'll get to that in just a moment, but for the almost year, okay, the year's almost over, I start pretty much the same way. You have anything that you wanna share that you got from your Bible reading plan? We wanna hear how the word of God is impacting you, and so we do that. So I'm just gonna, listen, it's 51 times. This is the 51st time I'm doing this, all right, in this year. So, well, not really, because DJ was preaching last week, so I've skipped a couple. But listen, safe to say the majority of the year, I've been saying the same. So listen, you got something to say, go for it. Not everybody at one time. We have folks that were here before, Brad and Pam Pape. You're going to make us look that way? Like this? Just like that? Man, they moved all the way to the villages now by way of North Carolina. Okay? They know Florida. You can't beat this weather. All right? So, no? No? Okay. Anybody else? Before I go to Rachel. And Rachel's not going to be here next Sunday. So it's going to be, this is how it's going to be next Sunday. Like that. Like that. Just like that. So, all right. Go ahead. No, no, no, no. I don't want to know the week before. Come on. Come on. Yeah, that's true. That's true. Okay, go ahead. Here I'm complaining about this. Go for it. Okay. Okay. Okay. to the life of King Jehorad. He was so wicked that the Bible says in 2 Chronicles 21, verse 20, he went into Jerusalem eight years and to no one's sorrow he parted. Yeah, I remember reading that, yes. that somebody passes away, and the Bible takes the time to insert this to no one's soul. So no one would miss him, and he was so wicked that they didn't even bury him with the other king. That's why God helped me to live my life so that when I die, it's not going to be to no one's soul. The last message that the Lord gave me is not just for me, it's for this church. In contrast to the life of Devorah, Boash did what was right in the sight of God. And the Spirit of the Lord prompted him to think about how the house of God was left in disarray. So he had called the high priest and asked the high priest to collect burgers to put things in order. They didn't respond, so he had to call them a second time. He said, look, the house of God is not being attended to. So then when they called the people together, that is in 2 Chronicles 24, verse 11, and this is for us, the church. And thus, they did, day by day, and gathered money in abundance. They gathered so much money to complete the work, that money was left over, and then they brought the additional amount of money that was not That's right. My prayer for our church is that just like the children of Israel, at some point they didn't care to contribute the way that they were supposed to. That the spirit of giving and generosity be called our church so that we have plenty to do the work of the Lord and have so much more to help start Amen. Amen. Good word. As the ushers come forward now, we just sing just as I am. But that was a really good word. I'm so glad that he spoke to you from 2 Chronicles and not Revelation. I thought you were going to bring the bulls of wrath upon us or something. Like, oh my gosh. Alright, here's Nietzsche. The bulls of wrath? Yeah? Okay. Oh boy, well that's coming. That we know. That we do know. Thank you, Rachel. And again, enjoy reading God's word. And as God, you know, He speaks. He's the one who initiates. Oh, Eddie, you got something? Sorry, I did not do this on purpose. Go for it, bro. Well, I hesitated at the beginning because I was thinking, did I really read? Because I didn't want to bring forth any false testimony. Right. Oh, amen. Did you read this week, though? That's the question. Oh, OK. Well, good then. OK. It's all yours now. It's all yours. Good. I'm trying to be faithful under this new commitment to getting the word. I want to share with the President is that, a rule that has been helpful to me is that in the world that we live in, that we have so many resources available to us, is that there's audio files that's out there. And if you struggle reading for whatever reason, As connected as we are, you know, there's those audio resources, and we wear glasses, and whatever excuse you want to put before the Lord that why you're not being paid, you know, there's resources of it. And that's what I did. I picked up an audio file, I started playing it, I tried to follow along with it. As I read from her relations, you know, it's a very difficult book, you know, because it has to be something that has to be led by the spirit through action and deterrence, because otherwise, and there's a lot of bracing places in us. We have a lot of cult teachings up there that use, this is one of their favorite resources. Right. With that said, you know, it was mentioned, I believe, in last week's sermon that I was at the beginning of chapter 1 and 2, when we see how Christ reveals his true nature, who he is. And we, if you've been in church for a while, you hear this time and time again, where Christ is the Word of God made flesh, the Word of God. He became a man, and through him all things were made, and without him nothing was made. So we need to make a connection that the Bible, the Holy Scripture, is Christ. And that we cannot be in Christ, worship God, and not have this profound respect and love for His Word. Amen. Listen the reality is that the written word points to the to the living word and and our relationship with the Lord If it's gonna grow it's gonna grow through where he has revealed himself specifically Not naturally in natural revelation through our creation, but specifically in his word so He doesn't stutter, he's made his will known, he has an opinion, and his is the one that counts the most, because it's beyond opinion, it is truth. So dedicate yourself to that, learn it, apply it, and you'll be better for it, alright? Well, for this morning, we do break from our regular programming. And some of you remember this appearing on your TV sets. If you do, you're just old. All right? You're just old. I just want you to know that. The younger generation, they just don't know this kind of stuff. All right? But if you remember these color bars, that meant something was being interrupted, or there was no service, or whatever. So this is one of those times in our Bible reading plan. I, unlike DJ, am not that good. I can't take the bowls of wrath and sort of connect the birth of Christ to it. So I'm gonna go ahead and just, you know, go from there and go somewhere else. In your Bible, Matthew chapter 1, Matthew chapter 1. And it's the first 17 verses of that first chapter of the gospel according to Matthew. One of these exciting portions of scripture that you and I, we wake up on Christmas day to read and to really enjoy these strange names appearing on this page in scripture. I'm going to read it and you're going to follow along. The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ. the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, and Judah the father of Perias, and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nashon, and Nashon the father of Salmon, and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed, Obed by Ruth, Nobad the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Esau, and Esau the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the deportation to Babylon. And after the deportation to Babylon, Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel. And Shealtiel, the father of Zerubbabel. And Zerubbabel, the father of Abiud. And Abiud, the father of Eliakim. And Eliakim, the father of Azor. And Azor, the father of Zadok. And Zadok, the father of Acham. And Acham, the father of Eliud. And Eliud, the father of Eleazar. And Eleazar, the father of Mathan. And Mathan, the father of Jacob. And Jacob, the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ. So all the generations from Abraham to David were 14 generations. From David to the deportation to Babylon, 14 generations. And from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ, 14 generations. If you think this is just an exercise of trying to pronounce difficult names, it's far from it. Why would a gospel writer inspired by the Spirit of God begin the story, the Christmas story, the biblical account of Christmas, that's Emmanuel, Christ with us, the incarnation, God in the flesh. Why would he start this Christmas account with a genealogy? Why not? The reality is that you and I are more interested today in our ancestry than we've ever been. Some of us don't want to find out that we have certain ancestors. But for most, you got it there. We go to ancestry.com and 23andMe and MyHeritage. I wrote them down. FamilyDNAtree, DNAtribes, and there's many more. We may not like reading genealogies unless it's about us. And for the Jews, this was something that was very important. If you take into account the four gospel writers, the ones that God chooses to reveal Himself and say something about the birth of His Son, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, you're going to find out that not one of them says it all, and some of them don't say anything about the Incarnation. Just think about it. There's not one gospel record that contains everything about the birth of Christ. And in one in particular, Mark, nothing is said. about the birth of Christ yet in his totality of life and mission and teaching and death and resurrection that's what you get it is a constant reminder it is a full picture of what Christmas is about according to Matthew Christmas the incarnation is rooted in history we'll take a look at that this morning For Mark, Christmas requires repentance. That's each, it's throughout the gospel according to Mark. He's going to draw your attention to the son of man who works in such a way, who was born, doesn't mention he's born, but he says in Mark 10 45, I have come to serve as a ransom. I have come means I arrived, that's Christmas. Not to be served, but to serve. And to be a ransom for many. Luke invites our worship and that's where you find the traditional, original Christmas carols. Where there's the Magnificat preceded by... by Zechariah and Benedictus. And after that, you have Simeon and he sings his song, the Nunc Dimittis. And those are all the Latin phrases to introduce those songs that you and I may know, may have grown up in a tradition that said it. But Luke just emphasizes that Christmas, the Incarnation leads us to worship. And the Gospel according to John is, in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was our God. No, no, no. It was God. And that Word became flesh, verse 14, and He tabernacled with us. And we saw His glory, like the glory of His only begotten Son. And He came to His own, but His own rejected Him. But to those who receive Him, who believe in His name, they're given the right, they're given the privilege to be called the sons of God. So through John, The Lord reminds us that Christmas restores our relationship with the Lord. And if it restores, it's because we have ruined it. That relationship is ruined outside the grace and the life of Jesus Christ. But for this morning, we turn to the account of Matthew on the birth of Christ. And again, you and I, on Christmas day, I don't think, my kids can bear witness, I don't think we've ever woken up and read the first 17 verses as part of the Christmas story. We just go directly to verse 18, which says, now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. We sort of skip the 17 preceding ones. All this endless list of names. We routinely skip genealogies to get to the good stuff. But for the Jews, Jews loved genealogies. Not because they just wanted to know who is who in the zoo, but because genealogies meant something. Genealogies were essential when land was bought or sold because there were different tribes. And they had to make sure that the tribes, one didn't capitalize on another one. So when one person wanted to buy land or sell land, they would consult the genealogical records to make sure that whoever was buying it, whoever was selling it, was within that tribe. And you can do that. to protect ancient tribal boundaries. Genealogy was crucial in determining the priesthood. No one can just go, hey, I want to be a priest. From where did you have to be? What tribe? Levi. That's right. If you were from the tribe of Judah and tried to be the priest, what would happen? If they didn't get you, God would. Go ahead and try to step into the temple, into the Holy of Holies, and not be from the tribe of Levi. God would make sure that it was your first and only time in that Holy of Holies. Because you'd be dead. So when someone said, I want to aspire to the priesthood, they would check the genealogy. Can we trace it back to Levi? When it was time to, for the throne, heir to the throne, the rightful heir to the throne, they consulted genealogical records. That's why when they return from their time in Babylon, as it's referred there, in Ezra and in Nehemiah, they contain lengthy lists of names, endless lists of names, because they have to establish who was there and how do we trace it back to make sure that we respect what needs to be respected. And as they re-established themselves in Israel, it was, listen, it was crucial to find out which families held which positions back in the day. So they created these lists to make sure, so genealogies were important. The reality of knowing where you were from even plays into the account of the incarnation of the birth of Christ. If you turn to Luke chapter 2, it says, In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. And everyone went to his own town to register. And the only way you knew you were from Miami, it was because there was a genealogy that traced your progress your ancient, your forefathers back to Miami. If I ran Ancestry.com with me, they would just say, you're from Cuba, leave it alone. We don't even want to tell you where you're from, what part of Cuba, you know? So, the reality is they knew. How did Mary, how did Joseph know they had to go to Bethlehem? They understood, they knew their genealogy. Why is this passage important, these first 17 verses? Because it reminds us that our faith is rooted in history. It is not a myth. It is not a legend. This is not something that someone just, you know, goes to the mountaintop after a bad night of indigestion because they ate pizza too late, and they come up with this kind of stuff. And the more you and I study it this morning, you're gonna see that you can't come up with this, because if you were a respectable Jew, you would not have written this the way it's written. So our faith is rooted in history, not in a myth, not in a legend. Matthew was writing primarily to his target audience, his primary target audience, his Jews. That's why time and time again, as you and I read the Gospel according to Matthew, it's going to read that phrase, and to fulfill the Scriptures. To fulfill the Scriptures, because his target audience needed to connect that this Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah. Why? Because you can trace all about him and find it that was foreshadowed and foretold in the Old. And He's the completion, He's the fulfillment. In fact, Galatians 4.4 says, When the time had fully come, and the phrase had fully come, or the fullness of time, has the idea of fruit ripening for the moment of harvest. When it was just right, Jesus the Christ was not born a day early or a day late. At the right time, everything was in place for Jesus to be born and to fulfill all the prophecies anticipated and foretold in the Old Testament. When the time was right, when the time had fully come, God prepared every detail of the history. Every detail of history before he sent his son into this world. If you read the historians of that time, there was this expectation. Whether you read the mythologies of Rome or the mythologies of Greece, whether you read the histories of the Persians. Those are the wise men from the East. Those are folks from Iran and modern day Iraq. They're the ones studying the stars and saying, there's something going on in the constellations. We've seen a star that we've never seen before. And that's the star that they follow over. So the Persians understood it. Listen, they weren't expecting necessarily Jesus, but they knew that there was something proverbially in the air. So Matthew chapter 1 is telling us that Jesus had roots. He's not a fictional character. He's not Zeus. He's not Jupiter. He's not this thing, fictional gods that just appear off of Mount Olympus somewhere and they just, no, no, no. Jesus had roots. A real person born into a real family at the fullness of time, when time had fully come. But this morning, please note, in this 17 verses, there's two realities, two important truths I just want to remind you about, as we head into these next couple of days, where we really focus in on the birth of Christ. It's much bigger, Christmas is much bigger than family. I was at the store yesterday picking out some cards, and it's interesting what the cards say and read. Because they make it about, forget about Santa. I mean, you know, hopefully you and I have grown up enough that we're beyond that. But just instead of saying something that's significant about Christmas, it's merry wishes and warm fuzzies and this and that and this and that and here and there. We missed the point of the big picture of what God was doing through the incarnation. Let me remind you of just two truths that emerged from the text. Number one, Christmas is a promise that's fulfilled. Christmas is a promise that's fulfilled. God had promised a Redeemer. Way back when, talk to me, way back when did He promise a Redeemer? First mention. That's right, and he said in Genesis 3.15, you're going to bear a son, and he's going to crush the snake's head. So way back then, the Gospel, the Redeemer has been announced. When God makes a promise, unlike you and me sometimes, that we find... What's the word I'm looking for? interesting ways to explain why we didn't fulfill them, right? We can be very ingenious sometimes. And sometimes if you're a teacher, you hear the proverbial dog ate my homework, and this and that, and I had it on a flash drive, but I got the wrong flash, and blah, blah, blah, blah. If you're a husband and the honey do list never gets honey done, you know, you and I can be very, very ingenious as to why, you know, this ached and that ached and this happened and that happened and so forth and so on. When God makes a promise, He keeps it. At every cost. At every cost. And you see that there. In this genealogy, Matthew traces Jesus' bloodline to two specific people. And these two specific people were given promises. And what he's saying is, when you look at these two specific people, you will see that God makes sure that He keeps His promise, and that's how He ties it in that Jesus is the Messiah. What are the two specific people mentioned in Matthew chapter 1, verse 1? You can read your scriptures now again, and say again, the book of the geniality of Jesus Christ, the son of David and the son of well done class well done all right David and Abraham in fact in fact he goes out of the way to make sure that David is emphasized God fulfills his promise because Jesus is the son of David and it's more about David is said that even Abraham if you notice Why? Because it is important. He's the fulfillment of a very important promise. You can divide the 17 verses pretty much, or you can summarize them as orient them around David. In the beginning, the first few verses, talks about the origins of David's kingdom. Then from verses 6 through 11, the rise and decline. And then in verses 12 and following is the eclipse. It just disappears. And what he's trying to go out of his way is, listen, listen, the promise that God made to David back in 2 Samuel chapter 7 verse 16, that's a verse reference that you should have in your Bible marked. Because that's none other than the Davidic covenant. That's God covenanting, promising to David an astounding promise. Can you imagine? He looks at Brandon Orsini and he says, there will be a fire chief sitting in your house and there will be a fire chief in the Pembroke Pines fire department forever. And Brandon says, may it start with me. out with that guy and with this guy. Can you imagine? 2,000 years later, one of your boys is like, what happened to that? This is what happens in 2 Samuel. And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever. God told David, one of your descendants will always sit on the throne of David. Forever and ever. And there's one that's coming that will reign forevermore. And he says, that person is Jesus, the Christ. Just when it looked like this was madness, just when 2,000 years come and go and you're like, what in the world? Where's that promise? Where's that promise? Matthew goes out of his way to say, listen, that's what's happening here. Jesus is qualified to be the king because you can trace his genealogy all the way back to David and beyond. There's more. God fulfilled His promise because Jesus is the son of Abraham. He is the one that fulfills the promise made to Abraham back in Genesis chapter 12. So now you have the two main covenants. Two of the main covenants of the Old Testament. You have the Davidic covenant or the Davidic promise. God promising to David something. And you have the Abrahamic covenant. That is the God promising something to Abraham. and in Genesis 12 he says I will make of you a great nation and I will bless you and make your name great so that you will be a blessing I will bless those who bless you and him who dishonors you I will curse and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed Genesis 12 and here the gospel writer Matthew says listen Jesus is the fulfillment of what was told to Abraham he is the heir he is the king no matter what happens That's why in 2nd Corinthians you find the words, for the promises of God find their yes in Him. That is why it is through Him and that we utter our amen to God for His glory. So right off the bat, right off the bat, 1 1 reminds us that God keeps His word. God keeps his word to bless and God keeps his word to curse And we're reading about that as you we wind down the historical books in our Bible reading plan When you start finalizing 2nd Chronicles, it's just bad news Yeah, there's some good news somewhere in there and it's like the silver lining in that dark cloud But just as God had told his people you obey me. I bless you you disobey me. I curse you listen child of God nothing changes You walk humbly before your Lord and your God, God will take care of you. You walk proud before Him, you're coming not against a pastor, not against a denomination, not against a force of nature, you're coming against God Almighty. And do you actually think that you and I are going to stand against Him and farewell? He who controls how many times your heart beats? How many times your lungs expand and contract? Do you actually think that you're going to go up against the Creator and Sustainer of life itself and you're going to end well? Your rebellion will be squashed just like any other rebellion before you and after you. Because you're dealing with the King. You're dealing with God. And he goes out of his way to say, listen, God is a faithful promise keeper. He made a promise in Genesis 12 to this pagan out of Iraq, Babylon, in Ur of the Chaldees, over there in Iraq. And he said to him, I will bless you because you're following me. Years later, he looks at this shepherd king and he says, I'm going to make you a promise. One of your kids will always sit on the throne and there's a coming kid who will reign forevermore. And then Jesus is born. And Matthew says, what was said to these two, finder for ultimate fulfillment in this guy right here. That's Christmas. That's big picture Christmas. That's going beyond the decorations and the wrapping paper, Christmas. That's going beyond the eggnog, even the spiked one, Christmas. Number two, let me tell you, from yesterday, J.B.' 's funeral service, if you were here, they come from that production background, I was talking to David about it, and it was scripted, one of his boys, it was scripted, three minutes this, Gary had 10 minutes, they gave me 12 minutes. I told the guy, listen, I'm Hispanic, it takes me about 10 minutes to say hello. My name is Louis, right? And I said, if you really want to shut me up, you tie my hands down. I've got nothing to say. But once I'm free, I can go. So they only gave me 12. I usually go for about 30 or 40. So 12 minus 30 or 40 is 20. I'm adding it on to the day. I'm just kidding. Just kidding. All right? The second truth is Christmas is a display of God's grace and that's where my prayer is this morning, that you would see it. Family trees can be interesting. The truth is that all our family trees have some shady characters. Some shadier than others. And Jesus is Family tree is no different. On this list you have kings. But Matthew does something else that, this is where you see the hand of God and the grace of God. He includes some shady characters. He gives the other side. Most ancient genealogies were not, first of all, include women. Women were property. You don't, you didn't include them in anything. But not only does He include women, He includes four specific women that tell us God is a God of grace. Take Mary out of the picture, you're left with four women in this genealogy that appear here. Three of these women are Gentiles, the fourth was married to a Gentile, and three were notorious for their immorality. How's that for the pedigree of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords? That's God's grace. That's God's grace towards the chief of sinners. If there's nothing else, like we say around here, if Christmas doesn't lead you to Calvary, what? You've missed the point. Christmas leads you to Calvary. It has to. For unto us a child is born, a Savior. A Savior. That means you and I need saving. We don't need entertainment. We don't need a physician. We don't need whatever. We don't need a philosopher. We need a Savior. That's the dark side of Christmas that reminds us. It's in your bulletin. A trustworthy saying. What? Jesus Christ came into this world to save sinners. Paul says, of whom I am the first. That's the reality here, a display of God's grace. No one in their right mind, no Jewish person in their right mind would include, number one, women, number two, these women. These women. And listen, they all have something in common, which we do too. Whether you're relatively good or notoriously bad, you're all in need of a Savior. were sinners needing a Savior. So let's take a quick look at them. First one that comes up there is in verse 3, and her name is Tamar. Tamar. That takes you back to Genesis 38. How's this? How's this for the genealogy of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords? It includes Tamar. Genesis 38. Who knows Tamar? Yeah? Talk to me about Tamar, Jessica. Go ahead. This like TMZ stuff. Give me a second. Give me a second. She pretended to be a prostitute You don't believe that, do you, Christina? I mean, it's in the Bible, but you don't have to believe it. Can you imagine, Tamar, she's married to one guy, he's deceased, back down to practices, the brother comes in, okay, and he fulfills his duty, but he fails to do that, he dies. Now she's now the twin curse of widow and childless. So she takes it upon herself, she says, I know what I'm going to do. She goes to her father-in-law who's in charge of her and say, listen, Anita, we need to do something about this. He goes, sorry, I'm not going to do anything about it. She goes, I got me a plan. She hatches up a plan. She dresses herself as a shrine prostitute and parks herself along the way. Here comes her father-in-law, remember his name? Judah, are you telling me Judah like that guy, that Judah? Oh man, it doesn't get any worse. But yet it does. Here comes Judah, married by the way. My boy goes like this, he goes, it's time to worship. It's time to worship. Shrine prostitutes means you include sexual practices in the worship of God, of the false God. So he goes and does that. And I have to be mindful that we have children here. So he takes care of business. And after the worship service, he leaves. But she's smart enough and says, let me have something from you to make sure that you come back. She disappears. Judah does come back. He goes, hey, where's so-and-so? She's nowhere to be found. Except with a baby. So when it's found out that she has a baby, Judah goes all righteous on her. And she goes, who's the father? Well, whoever owns this. Listen, it's not that she's, you know, that Judah's righteous and she's unrighteous. It's just she's less bad than her father-in-law. But this is Tamar, and listen, this is the story, this is the story of human frailty, of the wickedness and the evil that resides not only in Tamar's heart, not only in Judah's heart, but in yours and mine outside the grace of Christ. And here's the application from Tamar. Reminds us that salvation, the salvation that Christ brings is for sinners, like you and like me. Boy, what an auspicious start. Can it get any better? Who's the second one on this list? Talk to me. Say it. Rahab. Who wants to name their daughter Rahab? Come on, talk to me now. Jen, next one around? Because you know you're going to have about seven, all right? So Rahab, not Charlotte, not anybody, no, no, no. Rahab, we're going with that one. Bridget, nah, nah, nah. Too easy, too easy. No, you're not going to call her Rahab, all right? So Rahab, Rahab. Listen, what do we know about Rahab? How's she always described? Keep in mind, this is a PG. How would you like to be known by your descriptor of work title? Because of your trade. Rachel, the teacher. Louis, the slacker. That's an ancient word for pastor. Rahab was a Canaanite. Rahab was a harlot or a prostitute. Rahab was a liar. That's what she's known for. A Canaanite. In fact, her story is tied with the larger story of who? Of Joshua, right? And he sends these spies into the land, into Canaan to spy it out. Why do you think those spies ended up in Rahab's place? Because... Well, that's exactly, because you can hide there because they're used to men in and out. So they went there. But when she realizes what she's up against, she then says, listen, we're all in fear here, and what we need, and remember me when God brings his vengeance upon these, my people. She was, and she told a bold-faced lie, but yet Hebrews 11 31 says she's a woman of faith. Because it says, by faith, Rahab. And in the course of time, she becomes the great, great grandmother of King David. Now, what do we get from Rahab? Here's the application. The salvation that Christ brings comes to sinners through faith. She had to believe in God. She exercised faith in a God she did not fully know, but she fully trusted. She said, when they come, they told her, this is what you need to do. You put a scarlet thread down there. We'll know. And if you read the story, when it was time to destroy, when they go around the Jericho, everything falls down, falls inward. But she is spared because she obeys by faith. That's Rahab. So, so far, we're off to a great start. Got Tamar. Got Rahab. So, just so like to give us a little breather, we're introduced to Ruth. We're introduced to Ruth. The most significant point about Ruth is that she, too, is not a Jew. Where is she from? Moab. Let's talk. Let's talk about Moab. All right? That takes you back to Genesis 19. Who wants to talk? Jessica, you want to give me the TMZ version of Moab? You really? Okay. Anybody else want to give me the TMZ version of Moab? All right. Go ahead, Rachel. Well, that's a great start right there. That's the word. What's up, sis? Let's cook it. Go ahead. Okay, God sent brimstone and fire to Sodom and Gomorrah. That's right. Lot's wife didn't listen, turned around. They told him, leave, don't look back. She turns into a pillar of salt. Boom. So now Lot had a problem because he didn't have a wife. Yeah, but I think his daughters have the bigger problem. Yeah, okay, come on. Talk to me. The bloodline. So they said, let's get our father drunk. Because he's used to drinking, evidently. And while he was drunk, they decided to have a relationship. Yes, yes. One one night, the other one the other night. And go ahead. They both had children. Yes, and their names? One, you have Moab and Ammon. There you go, TMZ scores again. And out of those two boys come the Ammonites and the Moabites, which are the great enemies of the Israelites. Everybody's an I-T-A-E-S right there. Moabites, Israelites and Ammonites. But this is who Ruth comes from, Moab, which is a nation born out of that relationship. Again, do you think if you're writing your genealogy, you include Ruth? You definitely won't include Rehab. We know that much, right? Uh-uh. That's that horse thief that never makes it to any genealogy. My uncle, the crazy uncle? No, we keep him in the cellar. We don't even write about him, right? Well, here is Ruth. Here's Ruth. Yet, what makes her story gracious and what makes her story worth telling is not the origins of her clan, but how God works in her life after disaster. And she finds grace in the eyes of a Kinsman Redeemer, of a relative that comes and redeems her and grants her a future. And if that's not the story of what Christ does for you and me, I don't know what is. He who pays redemption, He who pays the price for His own, so He can give them a better future than their past. And this is what we get out of Ruth. What's the application? The salvation that Christ brings is for people condemned by the law, but is redeemed by grace. And you and I have broken God's law, whether you want to acknowledge it or not. Because you have stolen, you have taken God's name in vain. You have, you have looked at other people in wrong ways. You have coveted, you have been jealous, you have wished upon others something that you don't want for yourself. You and I, so whether you break one of God's commandments or all of them, they're all broken. Thus you and I, outside the grace of Christ, stand condemned by a holy God. And on one day He will say, pay up! Pay up and what are you going to say on that day? Only by the grace of God through Jesus Christ are you redeemed and your future is better than your past. Last but not least, We have Bathsheba. And how would you like to end this way? Find me the name Bathsheba in those verses. Talk to him. Go ahead. Read your scriptures. Read in the original Hebrew. Go for it. Go for it. Go ahead. Find me the name. When you find the name Bathsheba, raise your hand in the air like you just don't care. Bathsheba. No, the name. The name. Not the description. The name. If you have a name of Bathsheba in your scriptures, they're fake. I haven't read every scripture, so I may have gone overstated that. But my scriptures, which are the right ones, you know what I mean? It says, and David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah. How would you like not to even be mentioned? Your name is not even mentioned. We know who he's talking about, so we put Bathsheba. But in the genealogy, they go, there was Tamar. Rahab, Ruth, and the wife of Uriah. Really? Not even my stinking name? Not even my name. That woman. Have you ever heard that before? Probably from the lips of politicians. That woman. That is so dismissive. If you're a woman, you would have been insulted immediately. That woman? Are you kidding me? That woman is created in the image of God. That woman has a name. That woman is the daughter of someone. That woman will grow up to be somebody's wife. Not that woman. Yet here we have the father Solomon by the wife of Uriah. Because, listen, the story of Bathsheba's adultery with King David was so well known. Listen, you didn't even have to repeat it. All you had to do was refer the wife of Uriah and everybody. Scandalous. Scandalous. But you know what's more scandalous than that? God's grace. That's scandalous. That He chooses to set His love on you and me. That's scandalous. He is worse than David who committed adultery, worse than Bathsheba who committed adultery, worse than David who commits then murder ultimately. We've all transgressed. We all have treated God in a very worse way because He's granted us all His gifts for us to enjoy. We've all taken all His good gifts and we've run with them away from Him. There's no No one is spared here. David, a result of this relationship, David's whole family spins out of control. The child born out of this union dies. But God in His grace grants Bathsheba yet another child and his name is what? Solomon. Solomon. You can find grace in the eyes of the Lord. The application is and the salvation that Christ brings is the display of God's grace. So as you and I gather, whether it's tomorrow night or Tuesday for Christmas dinner, lunch, whatever, Christmas is a lot more than just family. Christmas is a lot more than just decorations, merry wishes, warm fuzzies. Christmas is God taking care of the biggest problem you and I have, sending a savior. What can you and I take with us this morning? Listen, properly understood, Christmas must confront before it comforts. Properly understood, Christmas must confront before it comforts. Properly understood, Christmas will disturb you before it delights you. Because it is God right there in the forefront saying, you're a sinner that needs a Savior. Are you there this morning? See, there's two responses. Number one, you should be amazed. You should be amazed that God would choose to relate to sinners. He didn't have to. He chose to. You should be amazed that after you and I made a mess of His world, we rebelled against His reign. He then said, I will take the initiative. Christmas is about the offended taking the initiative to make amends. Think of that this Christmas. Christmas is about the offended taking the initiative to make amends. Be amazed. Be amazed that you and I get to enjoy family and friends and food and a great time and this is going to be wonderful. But be amazed. Be amazed at the sacrifice. Worship Him. Marvel again that God would choose to do something this amazing. And number two, join the story. These four women illustrate from different angles that the great news of Christmas is that God saves sinners. Listen, listen, there's some family trees, you know, there's always skeletons in every family. Listen, you might be the skeleton. I might be the skeleton. And here's the trick, we sometimes try to tout ourselves as, I am the skeleton, I'm the black sheep of the family. Listen, listen, what's that gonna do for you in the day of judgment? What's that gonna do? So you're the skeleton. And? That's your only claim to fame? It's not enough. Every family has skeletons. Every family is dysfunctional. I've shared this with you. The only family that wasn't dysfunctional is the one that created dysfunction. Adam and Eve. So if they created it, your family is dysfunctional. Welcome to the human race. But God, in His wisdom and in His mercy and in His love, sends His Son. And in Christ, God sends a Savior for sinners. A painful past is no excuse for refusing the salvation that Christ offers you today. Will you take it? Will you take it? I hope you don't skip Matthew 1 in your Bible reading. The first 17 verses. Jesus' family tree reminds us that God keeps His promise and God displays His grace. Amen? Let's bow our heads and close our eyes for just a moment as we reflect and we respond to what God has said through His Word. Where are you this morning? Where are you this morning? Are you still treating Christmas as a myth, functionally? Oh, you'll take the story of baby Jesus. But that baby grew up, lived a perfect life, died the perfect death, and now stands as Lord and Judge. How will you respond to Him on that day, when you see Him again, not as baby Jesus, but as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords?