Thought for February 27

 History:

• 1670: Jews expelled from Austria
• 1693: First women's magazine--Ladies Mercury of London
• 1813: First federal vaccination legislation
• 1814: Beethoven's Eighth Symphony premiers
• 1827: First Mardi Gras in New Orleans
• 1872: Charlotte Ray is the first African American layer in the US
• 1879: Saccharin discovered
• 1940: Carbon 14 discovered--radiocarbon dating
• 1951: 22nd Amendment ratified--President limited to two terms
• 1974: First issue of People Magazine
• 1981: Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder record "Ebony and Ivory"
• 1996: First Pokemon appearance in a video game
• 2019: Captain Marvel premiers
• 2020: Dow has largest point loss in history--1,190.95
• Born: Constantine, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, William Demarest ["My Three Sons"], Hugo Black, Gene Sarazen, John Steinbeck, Joan Bennett, John Connally, Joanne Woodward, Elizabeth Taylor, Raymond Berry, Ralph Nader, Tony Gonzalez, Josh Groban, Judi Adkisson, John Fielden, Timothy Zielisnki
• Died: Francis Marion, Louis Vuitton, Ivan Pavlov, Adriano Olivetti, Pat Brady [Roy Rogers Show], Fred Rogers, William F Buckley, Duke Snider, Van Cliburn, Leonard Nimoy, 

Thought:

Continuing to go back to passages I have marked in my Bible. This morning I am looking at Matthew's Gospel. Just pondering the genealogy of Jesus presented in chapter 1. I have to admit that most of the time, I read through this list of names quickly and without much reflection. How many of these people do you really know anything about? Of course, several names stand out. We know about Abraham and Isaac and Jacob. And we know that Judah was the eldest son of Jacob. But this is the place where we understand that Jesus is the Lion of Judah. He came as the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world. When He comes again, He will be the Lord of Hosts, the Lion of Judah. 

And of course, three of the women mentioned in this passage stand out. 

• Rahab from Jericho. She believed that the God of the Israelites was the true and living God. She risked her life to save the spies. She was "all in." 
• Ruth from Moab. Married into the family of Naomi and was the faithful daughter-in-law. 
• Bathsheba, wife of Urriah the Hittite. There were apparently two Hittite peoples, one in Turkey and one in Northern Syria. Uriah is likely from the latter. In Genesis these people are called the sons of Heth, descendants of Ham, Noah's son, and Canaan, Noah's grandson. 

Now what does the presence of these women in the line of Jesus tell me today. John 3:16 is true--Jesus came for the whosoevers. His line included not just Jews, but people of Moab, Jericho and probably Syria. Even in his birth, Jesus bridged cultures, ethnic groups, and gender. It reminds me that in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, Black nor White. 

This passage also tells me that God can use anyone to fulfill His plan---even me. What an amazing thought that the God of all creation would choose to use me and you to complete His plan to tell everyone about the Savior. 

Blessings

Larry