Climbing the Family Tree
“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…”
- Matthew 1:1-2 (NIV)
Ahhh, everyone’s favorite passages: genealogies.
Every so often in Scripture, we run into these long lists of names, with Jesus’ genealogy in Matthew being the most famous. And if you’re like me, you’ve probably skimmed them… or skipped them altogether.
They raise an honest question: why include them at all?
They’re long, they interrupt the flow, and most of the names belong to people we barely know or don’t know at all.
After Yoon and I were married in 2014, we knew grad school was ahead for me, which meant we’d soon be leaving Orlando. In those last couple of years before the move, we made it a priority to drive down to Sarasota every few weeks to spend time with family while they were close.
We’d sit with my grandparents for hours, usually with iced tea in hand, just listening to their stories.
Around that same time, I signed up for a FamilySearch account and started digging into our family history. It sparked my Papa’s interest right away. He had always loved history, but he didn’t know much about his own. He was born in Cullman, Alabama, but didn’t stay long, and much of his early story was a bit of a mystery.
This mystery showed up in a funny way when I was a kid.
I remember back in third grade when a teacher asked us to call our grandparents and find out our heritage. I called Papa, and he told me exactly what to say. The next day, as the class went around sharing their heritage, I heard lots of “English” and “German,” responses. Then my turn came.
“Hillbilly,” I said.
The class gave me some puzzled looks. The teacher laughed, said “OK!”, and moved on.
Years later, through that research, I was able to sit with my grandparents and share parts of their story that had been lost. We discovered a teenager who fought in the Revolutionary War, Civil War veterans on both sides of the conflict, and an ancestor who was tried as a witch in New England (very thankful for a not guilty verdict, otherwise I wouldn’t be writing this today).
It was fascinating, but it also raised a deeper question: what does any of this actually mean?
I think that’s where Scripture’s genealogies help us.
They remind us that our lives didn’t begin with us.
We are part of something that stretches far beyond our own experience. A story shaped by faith, failure, courage, and grace across generations. The genealogy in Matthew is a testimony that God has been at work through real people across history.
And that includes imperfect people.
If you read closely, you’ll find brokenness, outsiders, and unlikely people woven into Jesus’ family line. Yet God worked through even them.
That means our stories matter too.
Not because our family lines are impressive, but because God is faithful across generations. The same God who worked through Abraham, David, and countless unnamed people is still at work today, through ordinary lives like ours.
So maybe the next time we come across a genealogy in Scripture, instead of skipping it, we pause.
Because those names are a reminder: You are part of a bigger story. A story God has been writing long before you, and will continue long after you.
Reflection:
What parts of your family story, both the good and the hard, might God be using as part of a larger story of God’s faithfulness?
Prayer:
Gracious God, thank You for the generations that came before me. The stories I know and the ones I don’t. Help me to see my life as part of Your greater story. Use what You’ve entrusted to me to bless those who come after, and remind me that You are faithful in every generation. Amen.
With faith, hope, and love,
Eric Smith