January 2nd, 2016
Today’s reading from Encounter with God

Who Is This Man?

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Opening Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, I love You as my brother, I worship You as my God.

Read LUKE 3:21-38

[21] When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened [22] and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” [23] Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph, the son of Heli, [24] the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melki, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, [25] the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Esli, the son of Naggai, [26] the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josek, the son of Joda, [27] the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri, [28] the son of Melki, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, [29] the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, [30] the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, [31] the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, [32] the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon, [33] the son of Amminadab, the son of Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, [34] the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, [35] the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, [36] the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, [37] the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel, the son of Kenan, [38] the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.

Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Meditate

“I believe…in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary…” (from the Apostle’s Creed).

Think Further

I have long wanted to see a Bible in which different genres were represented by different typefaces and present-day conventions were observed (some things being put in footnotes, for example). Genealogies would go into an appendix, represented by a family tree and set out in diagram form. But my impatience with typesetting may be misplaced. Genealogies had a meaning and significance in antiquity that can be lost on us today. One of their functions was to preserve historical continuity, which was important as God’s covenant promises were fulfilled over the generations. We should not read them as though they had the detailed precision of a family tree. Of necessity, generations were telescoped. The genealogy we have here belongs in the text. It is not here as background information but as an integral part of Luke’s unfolding of who Jesus was.

Luke here presents us with the dual identity of Jesus: Son of God (22) and Son of Man (38). He is baptized in complete identification with us, but Luke’s emphasis is on what happened afterwards. Verse 22 is packed with resonances of the Old Testament. (See Psa. 2 and Isa. 42:1.) The open heaven gives us a glimpse of God’s point of view. Jesus is God’s son. The Holy Spirit rests on him. Aware of this identity, he is tested by the devil, he teaches and heals, and he sets out resolutely, the Suffering Servant, for Jerusalem and the cross.

Unbelievable as it may seem, Jesus invites us to identify with him and to share in his ministry. N. T.  Wright comments, “As we make his story our own in our own prayers, and indeed in our own baptism, we too should expect both the fresh energy of the Spirit and the quiet voice which reminds us of God’s amazing, affirming love and of the path of vocation which lies ahead.”

Apply

Which is harder for you–to think of Jesus as a historical person or to remember that he is the Son of God? Why do you think that is?

Closing prayer

Jesus, my pioneer in faith, I pledge my allegiance anew to You. Be my pathfinder. Yours is the way I follow.

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