And Jacob, the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary, was the mother of Jesus, who is called the Messiah. 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.
Matthew 1:16-17
Forty-two generations existed between Abraham, the father of our faith, and Jesus the author and finisher of our faith. Joseph, His "earthly father," was number forty-one on that list and the one who raised Jesus as his son. Think about it, Joseph watched the King of Kings and Lord of Lords grow up. He was honored to teach Earth's creator how to work with wood.
I am sure Joseph in heaven has many stories about his experiences with Jesus growing up. Still, his best story is the one about almost missing the opportunity to have Jesus as his son. If Joseph had divorced Mary when He found out she was pregnant, he would have created a mess and missed the greatest honor of his life.
That is what happens when we react in our flesh to circumstances. We create messes and miss divine opportunities. Cain reacted in his flesh and killed his brother. In a moment of uncontrolled anger, an innocent man lost his life, and Cain lost his family forever. Jacob lost his birthright because he was hungry. King Saul lost his kingdom for his lack of patience, and Judas hung himself after betraying Jesus.
They all had so much potential and lost their destiny because they allowed their flesh to rule them. My friends, before we finish making our list of resolutions for next year, I suggest we add spiritual maturity to it. A spiritually mature person gets to choose how to act in situations instead of reacting to them.
A spiritually mature person does not create messes and gives the devil no opportunity to rob him of his destiny. Yes, that maturity comes with a price. We need to spend time in prayer and in the word to mature in Christ. We need to walk through a few fires and go through a few trials to shape our souls, but it is all worth it. No one ever regretted a mature soul.
In 2023, I pray the Holy Spirit continues to work in us so that we think, look, and act more like Christ. I pray that God will help us avoid messes next year to ensure we do not miss all He has for us.
Have a blessed New Year's week!
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