Today’s Scripture Reading (February
22, 2016): 1 Chronicles 2
I have to
admit that I have enjoyed watching Jeb Bush stand up for his family in the
current election cycle. I get it, not everyone likes George W. Bush. But there
comes a time in each of our lives where we understand that we are not our
family, but we are connected to our family. Great families understand that
dynamic. Maybe one of the saddest epitaphs on the Bush legacy describes George
W. as the Bush that no one ever thought would be President, but was, and Jeb as
the Bush who was born to be President, but might never be. But no matter what
the eventual political outcomes might be for the Bush’s as they move forward in
their careers, it seems that they will embrace the idea of family – even if
there is a hint of scandal hiding in the background. And that is the way it is
supposed to be.
The Bible
has the same outlook on scandal. The book simply refuses to hide the scandal,
but rather embraces the scandal as an important part of its own history. And
even in the genealogies, the scandal is there.
So Judah had
three sons, and then he had two sons because he slept with his own
daughter-in-law. Okay, I know he didn’t recognize her when he slept with her,
but the reality is that Judah was in the wrong in the story from the very
beginning. While most of us would be tempted to keep that story hidden away in
a closet somewhere, the Bible just lays it out there for us to see and begin to
retell the story in our own minds. It would have been easy for the Chronicler
to have simply said that Judah had five sons and left it there. It is exactly
what most of us would do, hiding the scandal away. But the Bible tends to revel
even in it own scandal. It is part of what makes the fabric of the story so
interesting.
It is also a
reminder of the incredible grace of God. Even in our worst moments, God is
simply waiting for us to acknowledge our sin, so that he can forgive us for it.
King David was not a “man after God’s heart” because he was perfect. He was God’s
man because he was willing to identify the sin and scandal in his own life, and
then run to God for forgiveness. And this was an important message for the
exiles to remember. They were in Babylon because of the sins of the nation. But
God had no intention of just leaving them there. Forgiveness and the return to
the land of their fathers was possible – if only they would recognize their own
sin.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 1
Chronicles 3
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