But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
1 Peter 2:9
As I was starting a study on the New Testament, I got stopped in my tracks as I read the opening verses of the book of Matthew. The first 7 verses begin with an overview of the genealogy of Jesus Chrsit. It provides the backdrop to help us better understand the origin story that God so carefully created to highlight the value and significance of family, heritage and lineage.
I paused for a moment, remarking specifically on the women named in this section of the text. These women in the bloodline of Jesus were the following: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, The wife of Uriah (Bathsheba), and of course, Mary.
Interesting.
If you’re like me and are familiar with the stories of these female biblical characters, you probably started to make a mental list of the things these women were known for. My list consisted of something like this:
- Tamar: Victim of domestic abuse and mistreatment by her biological family and in-laws, posed as a prostitute to trick her father-in-law into sleeping with her so she could have a baby.
- Rahab: “Lady of the night”, sex worker, a woman of the streets, successful and savvy businesswoman, street-smart and quick on her feet, fearless and obedient.
- Ruth: Foreigner, a gentile, an outsider, helpless and destitute, faithful companion to her mother-in-law Naomi, married Boaz and changed the entire trajectory of her life
- Wife of Uriah ( Bathsheba): Adulterer, some would deem her a temptress, became the wife of King David
- Mary: Teenage mother, speculations about the father of her child, virgin, mother of Jesus, meek and strong
Are you seeing what I see?
Nothing about this list screams prim and proper. But…based on these women and their backgrounds, one thing appears quite clear: God's ways are not our ways. He moves different and uses the most unlikely of people to do great exploits.
Many of the women listed would be deemed broken. So, if you feel broken, you are arguably best positioned to be used by God. Because all the women that God (very intentionally) selected to be part of the royal bloodline of the Savior, our Redeemer, Jesus Christ–were not your average, everyday females. They were the talk of the town. They were far from perfect. They had pasts.
Let’s be honest: They were the type of women that most people in the church today would advise you to stay far away from. And yet, God CHOSE them.
This fact sounds an alarm on a very important fact about the nature and character of the God we serve. He does not operate as man does. As we are told in scripture, man looks and judges by the outward appearance. Man goes by what others say. Man will often rely on inherited, second-hand information (i.e. gossip) that is passed down and fueled by insecurity, wickedness of heart, and spirit of condemnation. Man seeks to condemn people for their so-called ‘rap-sheet’ because of course when they hold up the mirror to themselves, the person staring back is perfect, spotless, blameless, and without sin. They have never committed, done, said, or engaged in anything even remotely close to ungodly behavior in their entire natural-born lives.
...Can you detect the sarcasm in my tone?
But, in all seriousness, what we see very clearly in the genealogy of Jesus Christ is that God hand-picked women (and men) who were anything but perfect. They were broken people; overlooked, undervalued, labeled as damaged, reviled, and cast aside–yet, the Lord saw fit to make them a part of the lineage and ancestry of the Savior of the World.
For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.”
1 Samuel 16:7
Jesus comes from good stock. Strong stock. From women who made a place and a name for themselves. Women who were not afraid to dance and color outside the lines drawn by culturally imposed societal norms and structures. Women who made up their own minds about matters and stuck to their guns whether or not those around them agreed with it. Women, who were willing to put their very lives on the line by making difficult choices because they put more value on obedience to God’s instructions, knowing the future glory superseded any present suffering that those choices might present. Women who received a word from the Lord and held on to it with all their strength; not allowing themselves to be talked out of it by the small minds and small faith of others.
These women–bold, dynamic, different, peculiar, misunderstood, unique creatures, wild cards–these are the matriarchs of the bloodline of Jesus.
If God could look past their imperfections, shortcomings, and sometimes questionable life choices to see them for the daughters and queens He called them to be, what does that mean for me and you?
Sis, listen here and listen good:
It doesn’t matter what you’ve done or how far you’ve fallen.
GOD. CAN. USE. YOU.
You’re the one we’ve been waiting for.
You’re the vessel He’s been waiting to use on the earth.
You’re it! No questions, no doubts, no nothing. It’s you. Period.
I challenge you today to silence the voice of every critic. Every man, woman, parent, teacher, politician, or figure in your life telling you that you are too much, that your voice isn’t valuable, that you shouldn’t speak up–It's time for them to shut up. And instead, raise the volume on the only voice that matters. The voice that has been calling and beckoning you since before He placed you in your mother’s womb. That voice. His words. His directions. His leading.
That is the only voice we are choosing to listen to and follow in this season, and in every season to come in our lives moving forward.
The truth is: they don’t know you and if we’re honest, most people either don’t care or aren’t willing to get to know the real you. They would much rather be satisfied with accepting the version of you they’ve created in their own minds, built by scraps and fragments of exchanges with others who also don’t know you.
But, guess what? It doesn’t matter. They do not matter. The only thing that matters is what you choose to do next.
Are you going to wallow in self-pity, grieving over folks who wouldn’t give their bottom dime to help you out if you were in need OR are you going to rise like the Queen that you are and step fully into everything that God is calling you into.
Right now, we are in a season of lifting, elevation, advancement, and acceleration. So my sister, my friend, my girl, my woman–
Be Her.
Stand bold and tall, shoulders squared, with the confident assurance that God has already made the way for you. And whether they like it or not, folks just ‘gon have to watch as you rise!
Aren't you thankful that God’s judgment and ruling is the only one that matters. Women like Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, and Mary would have been “canceled” in the world we live in today. But ain’t it good to know that what man labels canceled, God has marked as Called.
You are called. You are chosen. You are worthy. You are Here!
Make that next move. Go forward boldly in the direction of your dreams and let nothing or no one ever again hold you back from being the woman of God you were created to be.
God’s in your corner–and even if He’s the only one, you already got everybody else beat! So keep showing up, keep pushing, keep praying, keep being your true authentic self and watch as the Lord continues to lift you and guide you to new heights.
I’m rooting for you!
And in the end, when you look back–when the line of your descendants look back, they will hear your story and have no doubt that they come from a royal bloodline, blessed and covered by the spirit of the living God.
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