Jesus is like is father God, and his father Adam – fully God, fully man.
Luke 3:23-38
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.
I (Maddie) hate getting up in the morning. I hate having to find a pair of matching shoes. I hate getting sick. Now, they’re pretty mundane facts of life. Stuff we deal with day to day. Things we just accept.
And I think that it’s pretty easy to forget that Jesus, the son of God, dealt with that kind of stuff too. Sure, he may not have spent half his waking hours combing his room for a long-lost sandal. But he was fully man, which meant that he dealt with human problems: and that completely blows my mind.
Jesus probably got the flu at some point! (Or at least the 2000-year-past equivalent.) Jesus was flesh, walking on two human feet, saving human people from their human sin. But despite his human sinuses and his human feet, Jesus was also God – fully, completely, 100% God. He was perfect. A perfect human. He was the son of David and the son of God.
Back in Luke 3:21-22, immediately before today’s passage, Luke tells us of the baptism of Jesus, where he is declared from heaven to be the Son of God. Luke then dives right into a family tree. There’s so much we could take out of this genealogy, but let’s focus on the end of the passage, “… the son of Adam, the son of God.” Adam is the son of God in the sense that he’s made in the image of God, he’s God’s creation. As are we all!
So, Luke reminds us that Jesus is the son of God in two senses: he has both come directly from God, but he is also fully human. And that means that he is the perfect one to fulfil the promises that God has made. He is one of us, and yet not tainted by sin as we are. He can relate to us and the challenges and temptations we face, and yet does not give in. (Come back to read the Grow Daily on Luke Chapter 4!) He is perfectly suited to be the promised Forever King – like us, but also the one who overcomes death.
In Hebrews 2:14-15 we read “Since the children have flesh and blood, he [Jesus] too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.” Sounds like the writer had just been talking to Luke about chapters 3 & 4!
Head: Do you normally think about Jesus as both fully God and fully human? If not, in which direction do you err? How might that skew your ideas about his nature and his purpose?
Heart: Take some time to reflect on the fact that Jesus became just like you, in order to take away your sin and your fear, and to bring you home. Praise God!
Hands: Jesus became one of us. Does this motivate you to put yourself in someone else’s shoes when they’re facing difficulties, or when you are frustrated with them?
Prayer: Our Father, thank you for becoming like us to save us. Please let us appreciate Jesus in all his fullness. Sorry for the times that we make him a one-dimensional caricature. Please let his example motivate us to love others. Amen
A song to listen to: See the Man
Geoff Pryde and Maddie Pryde
