²¹ Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, ²² and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son;^[c] with you I am well pleased.”^[d]

²³ Jesus, when he began his ministry, was about thirty years of age, being the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the son of Heli, ²⁴ the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, 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 Josech, the son of Joda, ²⁷ the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel,^[e] the son of Neri, ²⁸ the son of Melchi, 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 Sala, the son of Nahshon, ³³ the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Arni, 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 Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, ³⁸ the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.

Jesus as Man

Some people steer away from the man Jesus and make him solely the Christ.  The Christ,in their mind, transcends the Messiah that it is derived from.  He becomes some cosmic force that is shrouded in a human body for a time before becoming what he truly is, the cosmic God figure.  However, Jesus is both God and man.  As man he was born into a line of other men.  The genealogy is not just an irrelevant intrusion into a good story, it is Jesus’ real heritage.  Daryl, my son, inherits the Worrall legacy because he has been adopted into the Worrall family.  Jesus inherited the body and life of a Son of Adam because he is a man.  However, mankind is a creation of God and Jesus is the Son of God.  Both aspects of his identity are declared in the passage.  He is the Son of Man and he is the Son of God.

We can look to Jesus as one who has lived the life humans live.  This does not mean that he was an alien life form borrowing a body, but he felt the body’s aches and pains.  There is nothing sinful in thirsting or being tired and Jesus faced both.  In such a way we can look to him both as our saviour and as our model for how life is to be lived.

Prayer

May I live life in a way that follows the model of life that you lived out as a Son of Man and as a Son of God.  May I be submissive and obedient, but also in harmony with what it means to be truly human as you have designed humanity to be lived.

Questions

1. Who is Jesus?
2. What key figures are in his lineage?
3. Where do both of these passages lead?
4. What is your lineage?
5. How do you have dignity because of your identity?