A Messy History: A Closer Look at Jesus' GenealogySample

Luke’s Genealogy

You’ve made it to the final day of our Bible Plan about genealogies—a place you may have never guessed you’d find yourself. Because who, besides historians and preachers, actually reads the genealogies, right? But if you’ve read this far, you know better. You’ve realized that, with a little bit of effort, genealogies can provide not only a fascinating glimpse into our past, but a meaningful look into the heart of our loving God.

Before we dive into today’s teaching, let’s recap a bit of what we’ve learned so far.

Back on Day 1, we learned that the Bible is a unified story that leads to Jesus and invites us to become like Him. It’s got good parts, bad parts, and ugly parts. And God uses all of it to tell the story of His overwhelming grace, pursuing love, and our redemption. So, we don’t skip the hard parts—we lean into them.

On Day 2, we looked specifically at the genealogy of Jesus found in the first chapter of Matthew. We read about the heartbreak of Ruth, the faith of Abraham, and the trust of Joseph. None of their stories were perfect, yet God used them to display His justice, mercy, and grace that would be perfectly encapsulated in the person of Jesus.

Today, we’re looking at the genealogy of Jesus found in Luke 3. And right off the bat, we notice a major difference—where are the women?

Matthew’s Gospel includes several women, but Luke only mentions men. But, as is often the case with the Bible, there’s more going on. It’s generally accepted that when Luke writes, “He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph …” that Luke is cleverly cluing us in that he’s actually tracing Jesus’ line through Mary, Jesus’ mother. But why?

One school of thought offers that while Matthew’s genealogy focuses on the kingship of Jesus, Luke’s focuses on His humanity by tracing His line through His mother, with whom He shares blood. When we read Luke’s and Matthew’s genealogies together, we see how they paint a beautiful, fuller picture of Jesus—who was both fully God and fully man.

So, who else shows up in Luke’s genealogy? How about David? He might be the poster boy for “the good, the bad, and the ugly.” As for the good, his example of faith in God from a young age—bravely defeating a giant he was no match for by relying on God’s strength—is powerful! Eventually, he became king and seemed to do everything right. He was kind, he was just, and the people liked him. But then he screwed up. He had an affair that eventually spun into betrayal, deception, and murder. From good, to bad, to really ugly. And yet, God still used David, not only to do great things in his own lifetime but to bring about the Savior of the world through his family line.

But one name stands above the rest in this genealogy. And it’s the very first person named in the entire Bible, all the way back in Genesis. That’s right: Adam. Luke traces Jesus’ line all the way back to Adam—and it’s not just for historical purposes. There’s also beautiful symbolism here that the Apostle Paul summed up best when he wrote:

Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned … But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! Romans 5:12, 15 NIV

That first “one man” that Paul mentions is Adam! So, Luke uses his genealogy to remind us that even though sin entered the world through Adam a long time ago, God has been pursuing us ever since. He’s been working to take steps closer and closer to us, and it’s all culminating in Jesus, the one man who will take away the sins of the entire world. God is that powerful. And the story He is telling is that beautiful.

And it’s all right there, in that long list of names that we so often skip over.

But, the story doesn’t stop with Jesus. He has called us to partner with Him in His good plan to restore the world! When you follow Jesus, you’re adopted into God’s family, you’re part of His line, and you have a place in the story. You belong.

God has worked through some pretty unbelievable stories and some wildly unlikely people. And it’s not by accident; it was all on purpose. Because God wants you to know that He uses all things—the good, the bad, and the ugly—to tell a better story. One of His grace and our redemption.

So remember, no matter who you are or what you’ve done, God still invites you to put your trust in Him and let Him write a better and more beautiful story with your life!

Pray: Heavenly Father, thank You that, through Jesus, You have invited me to be part of Your family. Thank You, Jesus, for rescuing me from sin and redeeming my story. You are the Master Author, and I trust You. I surrender the pen to Your careful hands. You’re worthy of my whole life. In Jesus’ name, amen.

To learn more about Jesus and how you can follow Him, check out this YouVersion Bible Plan: Learning the Jesus Way of Life.