I've never written a daily Advent blog before, but today I decided I needed to develop some sort of outline so I cover all of the most important things. Outlines are good. They provide us framework. In fact, God also has an outline for the world that we have not truly paid attention to. I cover a little of that in my book, and plan to get back to sharing more about it after New Year's, but for now I have created a "loose" agenda to follow!
Today I want to focus on God's promise he made to Abraham in Genesis 28:14(ESV):
Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
That promised blessing was to come through Isaac, and Jacob (who was renamed Israel), and the blessing was Yeshua (Jesus).
There are two genealogies of Jesus in the Bible: Matthew's and Luke's.
Matthew's is Joseph's lineage - and even though he was not the sperm donor, it is significant to note that he was also of the lineage of Abraham and David. (Matthew 1:1-17)
Luke 3 tells the genealogy of Jesus through the lineage of Mary, and it goes back past Abraham to Adam. Dr. Luke was very thorough in his documentation.
I used to skip over reading all of the names - but not any more. There are some real characters in Jesus' lineage, and I am grateful for that. That reality just affirms that Jesus came for ALL people, and that his offer of salvation is for EVERYONE who believes.
God also made a promise to Abraham that his other son, Ishmael (who was a half brother to Isaac) would be fruitful and multiply. Genesis 17:20 states: "As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and multiply him greatly. He shall father twelve princes, and I will make him into a great nation."
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