The Fathers God Chose for His Son
Click below to download the Cornerstone Connections leader’s guide and student lesson. This week’s resources also include two lesson plans and a discussion starter video which offer different ways of looking at the topic. Each lesson plan includes opening activities, scripture passages, discussion questions, and real-life applications.
Usually when the Christmas story is shared, Jesus’ genealogy is completely ignored. However, the details of Jesus’ background are critical to understanding the full story of His life.
Beginning of the End (Patriarchs and Prophets)
Chapter 70 - The Prosperous Reign of
David
Humble Hero (Desire of Ages)
Chapter 2 - The People Who Should Have Welcomed Him
What would it be like to know that your many-generations-deferred grandchild would be the Messiah? How would you feel? Would you be excited? What would you tell your kids? Would you leave a written message? In our lesson today, we will take a look at David’s encounter with God’s messenger, Nathan the prophet, when he is told that the Messiah is going to be born to his family.
It’s been a little over a week since the beginning of the year, and many people make New Year’s resolutions. For our activity today, let’s check to see how things are going. Ask each student to come up with two resolutions that they didn’t make and one that they did. Give each student the opportunity to share their fake New Year’s resolutions along with the real one. Have the other students guess which one was the real resolution.
How much do you know about your extended family? Would you have liked knowing that one of your relatives was going to be the parent of the Messiah? Would that change the way you live? I am sure that David had many questions. In today’s lesson, we are going to look at the promise and talk about what type of individuals were part of the genealogy of the coming Messiah.
Read the genealogy of Jesus from one or both of the following sources.
Matthew 1:1-17.
The Genealogy of Jesus the Messiah
1 This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:
2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
3 Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram,
4 Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon,
5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse,
6 and Jesse the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,
7 Solomon the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa,
8 Asa the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Jehoram, Jehoram the father of Uzziah,
9 Uzziah the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
10 Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, Amon the father of Josiah,
11 and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.
12 After the exile to Babylon: Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father ofZerubbabel,
13 Zerubbabel the father of Abihud, Abihud the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor,
14 Azor the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Akim, Akim the father of Elihud,
15 Elihud the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob,
16 and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.17 Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah.
Read Luke 3:21-38.
The Baptism and Genealogy of Jesus
21 When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
23 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 eri,
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,
35the 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.
Both genealogies are an interesting read and slightly different. Matthew started toward the beginning of history and Luke started with Joseph and went all the way back to Adam. Both genealogies tell a story from a different perspective.
What type of people are in Jesus’ family tree? Here are a few to look at:
1. Judah: Read Genesis 38:1-2.
1 At that time, Judah left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam named Hirah. 2 There Judah met the daughter of a Canaanite man named Shua. He married her and made love to her;
2. Rahab: Read Joshua 6:25.
25 But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, with her family and all who belonged to her, because she hid the men Joshua had sent as spies to Jericho—and she lives among the Israelites to this day.
3. Bathsheba: Read 2 Samuel 11:2-4.
2 One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, 3 and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” 4 Then David sent messengers to get her.
4. Solomon: Read 1 Kings 3:1.
1 Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt and married his daughter. He brought her to the City of David until he finished building his palace and the temple of the Lord, and the wall around Jerusalem.
5. Hezekiah: Read 2 Kings 18:5.
5 Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him.
Read 2 Samuel 7:8-10.
8 “Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. 9 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men on earth. 10 And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning . . .
When we look at the family tree of the Messiah, it is quite easy to see that God chose a unique group of people to put in the human lineage of Jesus. It should give us hope to realize that all kinds of people—both good and bad, rich and poor, people of Israel or outsiders—were chosen to be part of Jesus’ extended family. That means that there is room for all of us. To be a child of God requires only one special trait—the willingness to be part of His family. God wants each of us to be His. That’s all!
All of us are tired of Covid-19 by now. Many people have gone through the holidays without the normal gatherings of family and friends to celebrate with. Many are lonely. There aren’t really any big holidays on the horizon for a few weeks. Take a moment to go through an inventory of the people that you know. Are there any in this group that need a kind word or a message of hope? Take a moment to text, FaceTime, or call two people this week who need to hear the message of our lesson today—God wants them to be part of His family.
For a Relational Bible Study (RBS) you’ll want to get into the Scripture passage and encourage the youth to imagine participating in the story while it’s happening. Then you will be able to better apply it to your own situation today.
You will need to ask God for the Holy Spirit to be present as your small group discusses the questions (no more than 3-6 people in a group is recommended). Start with the opening question. It is a personal question and the answer is unique for each individual. There is no right answer and nobody is an expert here, so don’t be surprised when you hear different responses. You are depending on the Holy Spirit to be present and to speak through your group. Say what God prompts you to say, and listen to what others share.
Take turns reading the chapter out loud. Follow that with giving the students some time to individually mark their responses to the questions (a PDF version of the handout is available as a download). This gives each person a starting point for responding when you start to share as a group. Next, begin the discussion by asking the students to share what they marked and why on each question as you work your way through. Feel free to take more time on some questions than others as discussion warrants.
Encourage each person in the group to apply what is discussed to their personal lives and to share with the group what they believe God wants them to do. Then ask them to pray that God will help each of them to follow through in doing so. Remind them to expect that God will show them ways to live out the message of this passage in the coming week, and that they are free to ask others in the group to help hold them accountable.
God’s plan of salvation had begun and everything was set into motion. Hundreds of years had passed between the end of the Old Testament and the beginning of the New Testament. Prophets had come and gone and Israel had been exiled and welcomed back home, but they still never seemed to learn their lesson. They continued to fall back into old ways. Among all the hustle and bustle of the people, an incredible series of events was about to be started.
Last week we read about the beginning of this wonderful plan of salvation. We learned that Jesus had to become a human of flesh, but before this could happen someone was sent to prepare the way. This person was John the Baptist. He was to prepare the way for Jesus’ mission on this earth. His job was to prepare the hearts and minds of the people of Israel to be ready to accept Jesus and His salvation.
This week we are going to learn about the genealogy of Jesus. Who were His ancestors? Were they great influential people? Let’s find out!
What is your favorite part of your house?
Read 2 Samuel 7:1-29.
God’s Promise to David1 After the king was settled in his palace and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, 2 he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.”
3 Nathan replied to the king, “Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the Lord is with you.”
4 But that night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying: 5 “Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in? 6 I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day. I have been moving from place to place with a tent as my dwelling. 7 Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their rulers whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?” ’
8 “Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. 9 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men on earth. 10 And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning 11 and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies.
“ ‘The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you: 12 When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with a rod wielded by men, with floggings inflicted by human hands. 15 But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.’ ”
17 Nathan reported to David all the words of this entire revelation.
David’s Prayer 18 Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and he said: “Who am I, Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? 19 And as if this were not enough in your sight, Sovereign Lord, you have also spoken about the future of the house of your servant—and this decree, Sovereign Lord, is for a mere human!
20 “What more can David say to you? For you know your servant, Sovereign Lord. 21 For the sake of your word and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made it known to your servant.
22 “How great you are, Sovereign Lord! There is no one like you, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears. 23 And who is like your people Israel—the one nation on earth that God went out to redeem as a people for himself, and to make a name for himself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations and their gods from before your people, whom you redeemed from Egypt? 24 You have established your people Israel as your very own forever, and you, Lord, have become their God.
25 “And now, Lord God, keep forever the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house. Do as you promised, 26 so that your name will be great forever. Then people will say, ‘The Lord Almighty is God over Israel!’ And the house of your servant David will be established in your sight.
27 “Lord Almighty, God of Israel, you have revealed this to your servant, saying, ‘I will build a house for you.’ So your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to you. 28 Sovereign Lord, you are God! Your covenant is trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant. 29 Now be pleased to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever in your sight; for you, Sovereign Lord, have spoken, and with your blessing the house of your servant will be blessed forever.”
Read Matthew 1:1-17.
The Genealogy of Jesus the Messiah
1 This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:
2 Abraham was the father of Isaac,Isaac the father of Jacob,Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
3 Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,Perez the father of Hezron,Hezron the father of Ram,
4 Ram the father of Amminadab,Amminadab the father of Nahshon,Nahshon the father of Salmon,
5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab,Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth,Obed the father of Jesse,
6 and Jesse the father of King David.David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,
7 Solomon the father of Rehoboam,Rehoboam the father of Abijah,Abijah the father of Asa,
8 Asa the father of Jehoshaphat,Jehoshaphat the father of Jehoram,Jehoram the father of Uzziah,
9 Uzziah the father of Jotham,Jotham the father of Ahaz,Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
10 Hezekiah the father of Manasseh,Manasseh the father of Amon,Amon the father of Josiah,
11 and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.
12 After the exile to Babylon:Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel,Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
13 Zerubbabel the father of Abihud,Abihud the father of Eliakim,Eliakim the father of Azor,
14 Azor the father of Zadok,Zadok the father of Akim,Akim the father of Elihud,
15 Elihud the father of Eleazar,Eleazar the father of Matthan,Matthan the father of Jacob,
16 and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.
17 Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah.
Read Luke 3:21-38.
The Baptism and Genealogy of Jesus
21 When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”23 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.
David, just like all of us, made a lot of mistakes in his life and would continue to make more. Even though he was a sinner, he was forgiven. He was given the great honor of being a direct ancestor of the Messiah. There is an important lesson to be learned here: no sin is too great to be forgiven if you repent. This was very important later in his life when he made some even bigger mistakes.
Jesus’ genealogy is very interesting. Some unexpected people were His ancestors, people that most thought to be sinful and unworthy of such a great honor. This goes to show that whatever our walk in life has been, we always have a second (or seventeenth) chance to get on the right track. Looking at all the different people that Jesus descended from shows us that no matter who we are, we are loved. This was the whole idea of His mission of salvation.
1. A HOUSE OF CEDAR
2. ANCESTORS
3. YOUR FAMILY TREE
