“Where We Have Been and Where We Are Going”

The New International Version Chapter 1

This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:

Abraham was the father of Isaac,

Isaac the father of Jacob,

Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,

Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,

Perez the father of Hezron,

Hezron the father of Ram,

Ram the father of Amminadab,

Amminadab the father of Nahshon,

Nahshon the father of Salmon,

Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab,

Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth,

Obed the father of Jesse,

and Jesse the father of King David.

Introduction: I am grateful to stand here today as we celebrate the 107th year anniversary of Johnson Chapel Missionary Baptist Church. We thank God for the founders, the descendants of those founders, the trail blazers who were instrumental in the building of the spiritual and communal presence in Gainesville and ecclesiastical bodies state and national. We are grateful to pioneers and current leadership for the maintaining of our facilities. To our, past and current members, and to all assembled today. We thank God for an amazing journey and for the opportunity to be a part of this Ministry.

Story line: The celebration of an anniversary reminds us that Christian people living in the midst of the world’s history are like Janus of Roman mythology, who looked simultaneously forward and backward. As we reflect back on 107 years let us remain hopeful that the legacy of this Church carries int the next century and continues until Christ comes again. If that is to be done those of us who are here now have a huge responsibility. Our text today is a list of names of who was the father of whom for forty-two generations. What does that have to do with us? Jesus’ genealogy serves two purposes. First, it tells readers just who Jesus was. The original readers of this gospel were Jewish people, who Matthew believed could best understand Jesus if they knew how He fit into their history. “You know who Abraham was,” he says, “and Isaac and Jacob and David and Solomon. This Jesus, the Christ, is their descendant.”

Second, this list of generations told Matthew’s readers the meaning of their own history. In Jesus’ day, the people of Israel looked to the past for their purpose. They were the people who had been delivered from Egypt, had received the Ten Commandments, and had conquered the Promised Land. But they had become subjects of one foreign empire after another, and they were inclined to see all their glory in the past; they also felt as though God had abandoned them.

Matthew’s two reasons for beginning his gospel with Jesus’ genealogy suggest a Christian view of history that shapes our reflections on this anniversary. First, as a church we are formed and identified by our history, by where we have been in our past. And second, the meaning of that history is determined by the future, by where our history is leading us. Let us briefly look at, who has shaped our faith, how it was shaped, and why we should cling to it.

Who has Shape our Faith?

Our faith is shaped by the Holy Spirit working through the word of faith. Faith in God is what has gotten us to this point. We can reflect on the achievements and work of the past but faith is what really got us her. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. He is still working through the Gospel of Jesus Christ as you and I read, study and put into practice the Word in our daily living. Romans 10:8-10 says: God has graced us with His salvation which shapes our faith and inspires us to run on to see what the end is going to be like. He has also given us a glimpse of glory through signs, wonders and descriptive means in scripture, some we understand and some not so clear to us because we can’t handle it now. Many of us will note our parents and grandparents as part of this list. Maybe a significant teacher or mentor. But ultimately God is the author and has shaped our existence up to this point and time.

How is our faith shaped?

The Christian life is a faith-shaped life. Faith is the instrument that unites us to Christ, but it is also the reality that shapes how we live in union with Christ. From beginning to end the Christian lives by faith. The life of faith is not easy. The Christian is engaged in an unrelenting warfare with the world, the flesh and the devil. Every step forward will be contested. The one thing that will keep the believer on track and pressing on is moment by moment trust in God, in His word, in the goodness and perfection of His purposes, and in His exceedingly great and precious promises. ‘This is the victory that has overcome the world – our faith’ (1 John 5:4). It was not of their own that they nor we survived, but it is because of our great God that they made it and we’ll make it too.

Why should we cling to our faith?

Therefore, be very strong to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left…you shall cling to the Lord your God just as you have done to this day. (Joshua 23:6,8) When Joshua was about to take on the leadership role after Moses had died, God gave him some stern instructions that all of us need to consider as we cling to our faith. This was about more than just loving God in their hearts. Clinging—or “holding fast” in the NIV—implies dependence and need. The Israelites faced fierce enemies, as well as the regular hardships that humans have always experienced. Where would they turn for comfort and security? We will continue to experience life and challenges will be just around the corner. However our focus must not change. Never depart from his Word or Way. Yes, hold to His hand God’s unchanging hand, build your hopes on things eternal, Hold to God’s unchanging hand!

Closure: My faith looks up to thee, thou Lamb of Calvary, Savior divine! Now hear me while I pray, Take all my guilt away, O let me from this day Be wholly thine! May thy rich grace impart, strength to my fainting heart, my zeal inspire; as thou hast died for me, o may my love to Thee pure, warm and changless be a living fire!