Daily Readings - Tue Dec 17 2019
Genesis
2"Assemble and listen, O sons of Jacob, listen to Israel your father.8"Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father's sons shall bow down before you.9Judah is a lion's cub; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down; he crouched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him?10The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.
Matthew
1The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.2Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,3and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram,4and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon,5and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse,6and Jesse the father of David the king.And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,7and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph,8and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah,9and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,10and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah,11and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.12And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,13and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor,14and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud,15and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob,16and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.17So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.
Sermon
The readings today take us on a journey through the tapestry of God’s plan, weaving together the past, present, and future. In the first reading from Genesis, Jacob gathers his sons to bless them, and his words to Judah stand out. He speaks of Judah as a lion, a symbol of strength and courage, and declares that the scepter of leadership will remain with Judah until the one comes who is to be sent—the Messiah. This passage is a prophecy, a promise that God will raise up a leader from the tribe of Judah who will bring hope and salvation to His people.
In the Gospel, Matthew provides a genealogy of Jesus Christ, tracing His lineage from Abraham to Joseph, the husband of Mary. This list of names, though it may seem dry at first glance, is anything but ordinary. It is a testament to God’s faithfulness across generations, showing how He worked through the lives of ordinary people—some faithful, some flawed—to bring about the extraordinary gift of salvation in Jesus Christ. The genealogy reminds us that Jesus is the fulfillment of the promise made to Judah, the Lion who would come to reign not with a physical scepter but with the power of love and redemption.
As we reflect on these readings, we are invited to see ourselves as part of God’s ongoing story. Just as the ancestors of Jesus were called to trust in God’s plan, we too are called to trust in His providence, even when the path ahead is unclear. The readings remind us that leadership, true leadership, is not about power but about service and love. Jesus, the Lion of Judah, shows us what it means to lead with humility and compassion. Let us strive to follow His example, trusting in God’s faithfulness and living as people of hope and love in a world that so desperately needs it.