Title: Let's Forsake Prejudice / Luke 3:23-38
Let go of prejudice
Bible Text: Luke 3:23-38
The genealogy of Jesus is introduced in the text and in Matthew chapter 1. You will quickly discover that there are differences between these two genealogies. Matthew adopts a descending order from ancestors to descendants, whereas Luke adopts a descending order from descendants to ancestors. In Matthew, the first person is Abraham, but in Luke it is mentioned as God. More importantly, Matthew deals with the lineage of David and his son Solomon, whereas Luke deals with the lineage of David and his other son, Nathan. This fact indicates that the two genealogies are not the same. Matthew's Gospel deals with the genealogy of Jesus' legal father Joseph, Luke deals with the genealogy of Jesus' mother Mary, but it was customary not to mention a woman's name in the genealogy at that time. will be Today, through the text, we will look at three prejudices that we must throw away.
First, we must abandon the prejudice of age (verse 23).
Our country is deeply rooted in the Confucian tradition. Among the three rivers and five circles, which are the basis of Confucian morality, there is a saying called Jangyu Yuseo (long life Yuseo). It means that adults come first, children last, and that older people should be respected first. During a meal, the adult picks up the spoon first, and the child picks it up later. When a teacher and a disciple go down the road, the teacher leads and the pupil follows. The younger person greets the older person first. It's a good virtue that encourages showing respect for one's age. But this virtue, like other virtues, must not be made rigid.
Jesus was about 30 years old when he began to teach in public. I wonder how people will react if he comes to our country today and starts his ministry. There is no problem for a 30-year-old person to become a teacher in front of our children. However, if we are in our 40s or 50s and a 30-year-old young man comes forward and teaches, how seriously would we listen? When I was 28 years old, I preached for the first time while standing in the pulpit of a church that gathered 500 people. Although the reaction of the congregation varied, we found that there was a prejudice that preachers in their 50s and 60s were more gracious to those with a certain social status or academic background, regardless of the content.
Second, we must abandon our prejudices against knowledge (verse 23).
People knew Jesus as the son of Joseph, but they did not know the exact truth. He was the Son of God, begotten through a virgin body. We should not be too proud of the knowledge we have. Our knowledge of any person, thing, or event may be fragmentary, narrow, or incomplete. You have to be humble enough to admit it.
The same is true of worldly knowledge. Don't think that's all. Don't think of it as being perfect. The prejudice that the universe is the product of evolution still lingers in the minds of many. Man needs the revelation of God that imparts complete knowledge. The Word of the Bible is the revelation of God.
Third, we must abandon the prejudices against peoples and races (verse 38).
Even today, conflicts and conflicts between peoples and races continue in many parts of the world. Many of the wars of aggression and conquest recorded in history stem from false prejudice. Today, things are going differently, but the root causes are the same trade barriers and economic wars.
The genealogy of Jesus goes all the way back to Adam, the ancestor of mankind, and then back to God. According to God's revelation, "we are one." Jesus is the Savior of all nations, not just Jews.
“He made of one blood all the tribes of mankind, to dwell in all the earth…” (Acts 17:26)
Christians ought to be global citizens. Now, we need to break out of narrow nationalism and promote globalism. We must not only live well, but also live well with all peoples on the planet. Between brothers, friendship is more important than arbitrariness. What you give up, you have to give up. The notion of bloody endless competition that you have to sacrifice in order for me to do well is unbiblical.