06/02/2026
Devotion for the Week: The Names We Almost Skip
Matthew 1:1 – “This is a record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, a descendant of David and of Abraham.” (NLT)
Most of us are tempted to skip genealogies when we read the Bible. We glance at the names, struggle to pronounce half of them, and move on to the “important” part.
But Matthew begins the story of Jesus with a family tree on purpose because hidden inside those names are stories of failure, heartbreak, exile, compromise, grief, and redemption. Some were faithful. Some were deeply flawed. Some were outsiders. Some carried painful histories that could never be erased. Yet generation after generation, God kept moving His promises forward.
That matters because many people quietly wonder whether their past disqualifies them from God’s future yet Matthew reminds us that Jesus did not come from a perfect family line. He came through real people with real wounds, real mistakes, and real stories. And somehow, through all of it, God was still writing redemption.
This week, let’s ask ourselves:
- Where have I assumed my past disqualifies me from God’s future?
- What parts of my story might God still be redeeming?
- Am I willing to trust that God is still working even when I cannot yet see the outcome?
The genealogy of Jesus reminds us that God has always worked through imperfect people. Generation after generation, through failure and faithfulness alike, He continued moving His promises forward until Christ entered the world. And He is still writing stories of redemption today.
