I thought about Jesus the other day, and I was a amazed the kind of person He was. How can the Israelites not recognize that He is God?
I have studied the earthly life and ministry of Jesus and I can say that who else is there to emulate? Bible says that it pleases God that “in him should all the fullness of the Godhead dwell bodily”. And if God, “in these last days, now speaks to us through His son Jesus Christ”, who else then is there to listen to, and obey?
Look at the way Jesus handled people, irrespective of what their lives has been like, and you will see that He is only interested in changing their story for good.
The plan of God to redeem mankind from sin and death was revealed by God Himself from the beginning, in that very garden where sin entered the world. It was a kind of prophesy, which was to be brokered by the “seed of the woman”( Genesis 3:15, Revelation 12:17). Eve was the first woman.
But in the Bible, we see some women who featured in the genealogy of Jesus Christ, and almost all of them were associated with one scandal or another. But there is something about God and scandalous women, which proves that He is the only One who can change a persons ugly narrative for good. God has a plan for us.
God's plan can be said to be God's intended actions, or methods or procedures in accomplishing His will or purpose. God chooses who, where and how. Our ugly story or past may not be His intention for us but He can change all that and give us a new life with meaning and purpose.
The issues here is that:
We are the beneficiaries of God's plan. John 3 vs 16.
Satan is the sole enemy of mankind and of God's plan for us. The only time huamanity can enjoy the fullness of God is when Satan is finally taken out of the way (John 10:10, Revelation 12:12).
Satan cannot stop God's plan. However, he has a way of perverting it, or rather, perverting us so that we will not be found fitting in God's plan. Because, he knows fully well that sin seperates us from God.
Tamar. Rehab. Bathsheba. Ruth. Mary. These women have their names written among the genealogy of Jesus. Three things they have in common are:
Some of them were foreigners (Rehab and Ruth)
Almost all of them had issues that were sexual in nature
All of them were of a lowly social status.
Satan perverted the stories of these women but God had better plans for all of them.
Tamar slept with an entire family including her father-in-law.
Rehab was an international prostitute
Ruth was a widow from a foreign land
Bathsheba slept with King David, an adulterous act that caused the life of her husband.
Mary carried a controversial and embarrassing pregnancy
Satan has no new strategy. He always repeats the same old trick —to pervert one from fulfilling God's plan for their life.
When he perceives God's hand upon a life he tries to muddle the situation with one fault or another. But despite Satan's perverting of theses women's stories, they still fit in God's perfect plan.
It doesn't matter what your past or present life looks like, God's mercy can change your story and make you fit into His plan.
The woman at the well of Samaria had 5 husbands but she carried the message of Jesus to her people.
The woman who proclaimed the risen Lord was a prostitute and had seven demons (Mary Magdalene).
We should not be in a rush to judge people based on their past or present life. It doesn't take God anything or forever to change their story and give them a blank slate.
Thank you for reading.
We ppray for grace to love people like Jesus did.