December 15, 2025

JESUS THE SAVIOR IS WORTHY OF WORSHIP
Matthew 1:1-17  (HCSB)
The Genealogy of Jesus Christ
1 The historical record of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:
From Abraham to David
2 Abraham fathered Isaac,
Isaac fathered Jacob,
Jacob fathered Judah and his brothers,
3 Judah fathered Perez and Zerah by Tamar,
Perez fathered Hezron,
Hezron fathered Aram,
4 Aram fathered Amminadab,
Amminadab fathered Nahshon,
Nahshon fathered Salmon,
5 Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab,
Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth,
Obed fathered Jesse,
6 and Jesse fathered King David.
From David to the Babylonian Exile
Then David fathered Solomon by Uriah’s wife,
7 Solomon fathered Rehoboam,
Rehoboam fathered Abijah,
Abijah fathered Asa,
8 Asa fathered Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat fathered Joram,
Joram fathered Uzziah,
9 Uzziah fathered Jotham,
Jotham fathered Ahaz,
Ahaz fathered Hezekiah,
10 Hezekiah fathered Manasseh,
Manasseh fathered Amon,
Amon fathered Josiah,
11 and Josiah fathered Jechoniah and his brothers
at the time of the exile to Babylon.
From the Exile to the Messiah
12 Then after the exile to Babylon
Jechoniah fathered Shealtiel,
Shealtiel fathered Zerubbabel,
13 Zerubbabel fathered Abiud,
Abiud fathered Eliakim,
Eliakim fathered Azor,
14 Azor fathered Zadok,
Zadok fathered Achim,
Achim fathered Eliud,15
Eliud fathered Eleazar,
Eleazar fathered Matthan,
Matthan fathered Jacob,
16 and Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary, who gave birth to Jesus who is called the Messiah. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David were 14 generations; and from David until the exile to Babylon, 14 generations; and from the exile to Babylon until the Messiah, 14 generations.

Noah Leighton
Are any of you like me and can instantly name that one family member at the holidays? Maybe it’s the eccentric uncle with endless stories, the cousin who overshares, or the relative who asks way too many personal questions. Every family has one, and somehow, they always seem to end up sitting right next to you. Anyway, can we all agree that our family trees have a few crooked branches and some unexpected stories hanging from them? Matthew opens his Gospel with a long list of names, Jesus’ family tree. At first glance, it’s easy to skim right past it, but if you slow down, you’ll notice something amazing. His lineage is full of broken, unlikely, and even messy people. Scan through and see if you can find a few that stick out. Why include them? Because Jesus came through imperfect people to reach imperfect people. The family He came from reflects the family He came for. What does this mean for us? It means Jesus can save anyone, and He can use anyone—no matter what they’ve done, where they’ve come from, or even if they’re the “weird uncle” at Thanksgiving. Jesus can redeem and work through anyone who’s willing to be part of His story.