Four Women that God Chose…Conclusion

 

Hello dear Ladies,

Today we have the final installment of this series. I hope and pray that you all have been inspired and encouraged in your life of hope and trust in Jesus.

 

Four Women That God Chose to be in the Lineage of His Son, Jesus Christ

by Shari Hervold

 

Bathsheba

In the last three installments of this series, we have looked briefly at the stories of three women in the lineage of Christ Jesus, God's son.  I trust you've found their stories interesting and inspiring.  If you didn't read about any of them, you may do so by clicking on their names: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth.

The fourth and last woman mentioned in the lineage of Jesus is the former wife of Uriah whom we know as Bathsheba.  If you recall, Bathsheba was the very beautiful woman who David lusted for, took to bed and impregnated, then had her husband killed so that he could wed her. Some have cast her as a seductress, but I take issue with that.  2 Samuel 11:4 tells us that David sent his men to get her (he was the king and she had to come) and when she came to him he lay with her.  David is cast as the actor and she the one acted upon.  Dr. Larry Richards calls it outright rape.  David had other wives and many sons, but Bathsheba lay aside fear and advocated for her son to succeed David as king and won David's promise to do so.  She further acted courageously on Solomon's (her son) behalf when it looked like another son was going to claim the throne.  Even though her marriage began on the weakest of foundations, she had the strength and fortitude to put that behind her and be a good wife and mother.  It is said that Solomon wrote the book of Proverbs as a dedication to his mother who strongly influenced his life. 

Matthew gives us a quartet of women whom we would least expect to see in the genealogy of Christ.  Yet, we learn from them that when God wants something done, He will enable it to happen and He used ordinary, imperfect people as His instruments through which to work. His grace and mercy cover all sins and He can turn mistakes and unwise choices into blessings.  Whatever it is that God lays on your heart to do, there's not an excuse that you could use that God hasn't already heard...and He simply replies that: "My strength is made perfect in weakness," (2 Corinthians 12:9).  Nothing or nobody, saint or sinner, can thwart God's plan for your life.  If you doubt that, just remember these four, less-than-stellar women chosen to be in the lineage of Jesus Christ our Savior!

 

Reflection: You can become a child of God by accepting Christ's death as penalty for your sins, and acknowledging Him as your Lord and Savior.  He will come to live in your heart and give you eternal life.  I encourage you to do this now!

 

Four Women that God Chose…Part 3

 

 

Hello Ladies ~ Today we have part 3 in our series. May we all be blessed and encouraged as we read.

 

Four Women That God Chose to be in the Lineage of His Son, Jesus Christ

by Shari Hervold

 

Before we meet Ruth, let me remind you that if your haven't met the two women that were introduced in the first two lessons in this series, you may read about them by clicking on their names, Tamar and Rahab.

 

 

The next woman, Ruth, is greatly admired and loved by all who read her story in the book that bears her name.  She, unlike Tamar and Rahab, did not have a blemish upon her record...except for one thing.  There's always a back story, isn't there?  Ruth was a Moabite and as such, because of a sin the Moabites had committed, according to Deuteronomy 23:3 she "was shut out of the congregation of the Lord." God's Word itself shut her out.  Yet, she, with great courage and strength from God Himself, rejected the gods of the Moabites, traveled to a strange land and culture with Naomi, her mother-in-law, and accepted the Hebrew God.  The trip from Moab to Bethlehem was a long and dangerous one, yet Ruth bravely faced down her fears and made the journey, fully expecting nothing to await her there.  She was an outsider from a heathen country and, as far as she knew, would remain so.  Soon after her arrival she began the hard task of working for food for herself and Naomi.  Ruth 2:12 says that Boaz states this concerning her: "The Lord repay your work, and a full reward be given you by the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge." The one thing Ruth had not reckoned on was God's love and protection for her.  But, because of her love for Him and Naomi, God rewarded her.  God worked out the details so that Ruth went on to marry Boaz, a kinsman of her deceased husband, and bore a son, Obed, who became the grandfather of King David, thus in the lineage of Jesus.  Next, we will meet the last of these four ladies, Bathsheba.

Reflection: If you are reading this blog and have not asked the Jesus of the Bible to become your Lord and Savior, I implore you to do so now.  If you long for a lasting joy in your life, I ask you to trust in Jesus Christ for eternal life made available to you through His death and resurrection.  Jesus Christ himself said that if you come to him, you will become a child of God and joint heir with him in all the wonderful things that God has prepared for those that trust in Him.  It is the best decision you will ever make.

 

Four Women That God Chose …Introduction

 

Hello Ladies ~ We are starting a little series, a study about four women in the lineage of Jesus Christ.

May we all be blessed and inspired as we learn about these four women and their roles in God’s plan for the whole world.

 

Four Women That God Chose to be in the
Lineage of His Son, Jesus Christ
"My Strength is Made Perfect in Weakness," says God

by Shari Hervold

  What are some of the excuses that you've offered for not doing something that was asked of you, something in your heart of hearts you really felt like God wanted you to do?  Some of you think that God only uses "good girls," you know those women with no "unspeakable sins" in their past, or women with certain abilities and capabilities.  When we think like this we are totally limiting God and His ability to enable us to do anything that He wants us to do.  In fact, those really are not only lame excuses, but excuses driven by self-centered instead of God-centered thought patterns.

  Think with me of the women that God chose to be in the lineage of his son, Jesus Christ.  If we go to the first chapter of Matthew and read the genealogy of Jesus, we note that there are forty men named and only four women.  Now, what is astounding isn't that there are only four women, but that women are mentioned at all.  Women were simply not granted the status of appearing in genealogies.  God had ordained that the Messiah would come through the lineage of David, so we would expect that any child would have a pure-blood Hebrew mother, an upstanding woman without a blemish to her name.  Yet, when I look at the names of these women, I again take a double-take, for not all were what we would characterize as "good women." For the next four posts here on the blog we will look at each one briefly to learn more about her life and the circumstances under which she was chosen to be in this august lineage.

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Ancestry of Jesus Christ

Matthew 1 Amplified Bible (AMP)

1 - The book of the ancestry (genealogy) of Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed), the son (descendant) of David, the son (descendant) of Abraham.

2 - Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,

3 - Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Aram,

4 - Aram the father of Aminadab, Aminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahsson the father of Salmon,

5 - Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse,

6 - Jesse the father of King David, King David the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah, Bathsheba.

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To be continued.