Gospel Reading for December 17, 2025 – Matthew 1: 1-17
IMMENSE LOVE
The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Abraham became the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse, Jesse the father of David the king.
David became the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon became the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asaph. Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Uzziah. Uzziah became the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amos, Amos the father of Josiah. Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the Babylonian exile.
After the Babylonian exile, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, Azor the father of Zadok. Zadok became the father of Achim, Achim the father of Eliud, Eliud the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ.
Thus the total number of generations from Abraham to David is fourteen generations; from David to the Babylonian exile, fourteen generations; from the Babylonian exile to the Christ, fourteen generations.
————
The gospel reading for today traces the lineage of Jesus which may seem unimportant to some of us who are used to hearing gospels about the teachings and life of Jesus.
The lineage of Jesus is very important because it establishes the reality that Jesus, Son of God, indeed became man, and the preparations for his coming was IMMENSE, taking so many generations, so many personages, and so many events.
One thing we have to ponder upon in the gospel of today is the IMMENSE LOVE of the Father for us. The Father went into long and tedious preparations. The Father could have sent someone else and not his Son. Why would he be part of humanity that went against him in the first place? Or if he really wanted his Son to be the Saviour, he could have made him a superhero who the people will surely accept and look up to. Or, he would have made Jesus come from a wealthy family where he could get reputable education and not be looked down upon by the Jews. God had so many options, but he took the only option that is GODLY. He made sure that his Son Jesus will really live among the poor, by which he would learn the meaning of mercy and compassion, and be able to make the Father’s love felt by those who need hope and assurance. He was to be the Saviour, therefore, those who needed him badly were those who needed to be saved.
There are lots of parents who mind what kind of family their children will get into when they marry. Most will mind that their children will not get into a family of gamblers, alcoholics, etc.. In short, they make sure that if their children marry, they will get spouses who are of the same stature and reputation that they themselves have. These became the ways of the world when we lost GODLINESS.
Lord Jesus, as we prepare for the celebration of your birth, may we cleanse ourselves of worldly attitudes so our hearts may be a manger where you may be born!
