It's the fourth week of Advent. This week people are getting ready for Christmas. Children are home from school (I know parents love this.) People are frantically trying to get their last minute shopping done. And in the midst of it all I think we forget the exact circumstances of the birth of Jesus. I think we forget that Jesus' birth was a scandal.
But then I noticed the women.
Any feminist theologian will tell you that women are not mentioned as much as men are in the Bible. They will also tell you that when they are mentioned there is a very specific reason for it. Now when you look at the women mentioned by Matthew you begin to see something very interesting. All the women mentioned are wrapped up in scandal. Let me walk through them with you.
The first woman mentioned is Tamar. Now if you look at her story in Genesis 38 you will find one scandal after another. Her first husband is killed by God because he is wicked. Her brother-in-law was supposed to give her a male offspring by custom. This was so she would be taken care of. (Women could not own property. That is an issue for another day.) However, this guy was a jerk. He had his way with Tamar, but made sure she wouldn't have a kid, because he knew the kid would not be his. So God killed him too. Tamar eventually gets her son, but only after pretending to be a prostitute so she can sleep with her father-in-law.
The genealogy of Jesus is not starting well.
The next woman mentioned is Rahab. Now what we know of Rahab is from Joshua 2. She is the unlikely protector of Joshua. I say unlikely because she was a prostitute. Now we don't know much after this, but apparently she married Salmon. Yet it would seem that Jesus family tree is getting full of scandalous women.
Right after this we have Ruth. Ruth seems to be the only women here not filled with what we would consider scandal. However, if we read the book of Ruth we find out that she was a widow without a son. This was a problem for most women, since it was through their sons that they were taken care of. Yet, Ruth and her mother seem to ignore societal customs and work the system in their favor. It is Ruth who pursues Boaz. Perhaps not a scandal but certainly unusual.
After this we have Bathsheba. Everyone knows the story from 2 Samuel. Like Tamar, the scandal in this case was not her own per se. It was in fact brought upon her by David. But non the less we have yet another woman in the line of Jesus whose story seems to be full of scandal.
So why talk about all these scandals?
First, I want you to see the good that came out of these scandals. Each and every one of these women are part of the line of Jesus. Because of Tamar's determination her son is included in that line. Rahab reconciles her past to marry into the line of Jesus. Ruth's persuasion enables her to be part of this line. And even though Bathsheba lost her husband and was seduced by the king, it is her son that builds the great temple to God.
Second, it is these scandals that make Mary's a little less surprising. Certainly Joseph didn't want the scandal. We find that he had in mind to quietly break off the engagement. Joseph was doing what he thought was right. He knew the child was not his. But he also did not want to disgrace Mary. So he wanted to settle things quietly. Yet after an angel comes to him, Joseph realizes the great joy that will be in his life. He is willing to take on the scandal for God.
Third, and most importantly, it speaks to the nature of God to reconcile sins. In every case we find that God is able to work these scandals out for good. See it is God that makes things new. It is God that does the good work. And it is God who makes us His children. It is because of this that we see the truth.
Jesus understood grace in the midst of scandal.
Consider for a second the numerous times scandalous women were brought before him. The women caught in adultery. The women he met at the well. The women with the alabaster box. Do you think that in every one of these cases he though of his mother? Do you think that he understood that his family tree was full of women just like this? I think that he did.
I want you to take a close look at that last one. Here we have a Pharisee who knows the custom. This man knows the law. He knows that he is supposed to wash Jesus feet. But he does not. He also knows that this woman is a sinner. Yet he has no compassion for her. Why? Because he does not realize his own sin. This sinful woman shows more respect for Jesus than this "perfect" Pharisee. And what is Jesus response to her?
“Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
This is the reason that Jesus came. This is the point of the incarnation. This is the miracle of the virgin birth. Not simply that a virgin has conceived, but that through that incarnation the sins of the world would be forgiven.
How often do we see scandal and look away?
If Jesus were to come the same way today would we know? Or would we be like the Pharisee thinking that we know what is right and good? See Jesus came to show us that anything can be redeemed. His line included these women because it shows that nothing is impossible for God. It shows that God WILL work things for good.
If our God chose to become like us through a scandal then perhaps we need to lean into such scandals and not run from them. The next time you see an unwed mother in your church lean into it. When you hear of someone sleeping with a minor. Don't run. Lean into it. When you hear of pastors with moral failures. Do not judge. Lean into it. It is only when we begin to see grace in the midst of scandal that we truly understand what Jesus came to do.
May you remember the scandal of Jesus. May you lean into the scandals in your own church and town. May you remember that Jesus came to reconcile not to condemn. May the church show grace in the midst of your scandals. And may God continually remind you of the grace He has already shown you.
Amen!
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