Good Morning!
Let’s focus our day by spending some time with Jesus before it begins.
Pick a song from one of our Spotify Playlists & let it play in the background.
FOCUS. Our memorization & meditation focus for this study is John 1:12-13.
Breathe in & out slowly. Pray, Jesus, I receive you. God calls me His child.
THANK. Write down or say out loud 3-5 things you’re thankful for from the last 24 hours.
WORSHIP. Read Deuteronomy 7:7-9. Focus on one truth about who God is & thank Him for it.
PRAY. Pray the Lord’s Prayer, a Ripple Prayer, or find more at paradoxchurch.com/pray.
READ. Today’s reading is from Matthew 1:1-17 & Luke 3:23-38
ASK. After reading, ask the following SOS Questions & journal your thoughts.
S = Say. What is the main point? What does it teach about God (Jesus) & yourself?
O = Obey. What can you apply (practice) from this passage today?
S = Share. Who can you share what you’re learning with today?
THINK. A Thought from Pastor Mike
Riveting reading today, huh? Did you have fun with all those names?
You may have asked yourself: why are the lists different? How could Matthew and Luke come up with different genealogies for Jesus, even diverging right out of the gate by listing different fathers for Joseph. Great question! It is one that scholars and theologians have wrestled with for centuries. It is one that many Jewish people will hang their hat on as a reason they doubt that Jesus could be the promised Messiah. After all, the Old Testament says that the Messiah will come from the line of Judah, through King David. If there is uncertainty around Jesus’ lineage, or if it is Joseph, Jesus’ adoptive father, who traces back to David and not Mary, then how can we say Jesus is from the bloodline of David/Judah?
Quick answer, most Christian scholars believe that Matthew’s account is focused on Mary’s lineage, since Matthew was writing to a Jewish audience and bloodline would have been very important to them. Further, Luke’s account is of Joseph’s line, as he was writing to a Greek audience and patriarchal lineage was more the norm. The key to this theory is that Matthew’s original manuscript, written in Hebrew, actually said “Jacob fathered Joseph, the FATHER of Mary” and not “…the husband of Mary”. Joseph was a very common name, and it is not a stretch at all that Mary’s father and husband could both share that name. For a good explanation of why this translation error could have been made and for more about the differences between genealogies, check out this article which I found insightful: https://www.conformingtojesus.com/why_are_jesus_genealogies_in_gospels_different.htm
TALK. That was our take - what’s yours? Share thoughts & ask questions in the forum.
SHARE. Stay focused with a friend! Invite them to text “FOCUS” to (586) 200-6277.

Stay focused on Jesus today, and make it a great one!