A Woman God Can Use - Final

After studying these four women mentioned in Matthew 1 (the lineage of Jesus) I have learned several things.  First, our past does not define who we are.  Second, God can use ANYONE to fulfill His purposes. And finally, all things really can work together for the good of those that love Him!

Were you a promiscuous woman?  Did you conceive a child out of marriage?  Is there rape, incest or infidelity in your past?  Did you live through a terrible tragedy?  Have you lost a spouse or child?  Most women can answer yes to some or even all of these questions.  But do you believe that your past defines who you are? God showed us these four women for a reason.  Their past did not define them, and your past does not define you.  In the end, they were all considered to be righteous women: Tamar in Genesis 38:26, Rahab in James 2:25, Ruth in Ruth 2:11-12, and Bathsheba in Proverbs 31:28-31.  You, too, can leave a legacy of righteousness!  2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”

Maybe you feel that God cannot use you because of your past.  Do you feel unworthy or weak?  Do you use your circumstances in life as an excuse not to step out and make a difference?  If God can take these women out of their bad situations and use them for His purposes, He can definitely take and use YOU.  1 Corinthians 1:26-29 NIV “…think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth.  But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.  He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things--and the things that are not--to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.”

In the midst of every circumstance, every tragedy, every place of shame, guilt and pain…there is always a promise that we can hold on to.  My number one favorite scripture, my life verse…Romans 8:28.  “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”   Do you love Him?  Has He called you?  Do you belong to Him?  If so, He WILL take all of the broken pieces of your past and He WILL fit them back together into a vessel that He can use.   Thank you Lord for showing us these four women and what you were able to accomplish through their lives…and for what You can accomplish through each of us if only we will let you!

A Woman God Can Use - Part 5

The final woman mentioned in Matthew 1 was Bathsheba.  In 2 Samuel, chapter 11, she was introduced.  She became the object of King David’s desire and committed adultery with him while her husband, Uriah the Hittite, was off at war.    

I have heard many sermons preached on the relationship between David and Bathsheba.  Some people interpret that Bathsheba knew what she was doing when she had the affair.  Others say that David raped her.  Either interpretation would have impacted her life in a terrible way.  Let’s look at both scenarios: 

Scenario One:  If it was an affair that she willingly took part in, Bathsheba would have had incredible shame and guilt to live with.  Her loyal husband was off fighting for the very man that she had slept with!  She knew there was no way to hide the affair because she was pregnant.  Everyone in town knew that her husband had been gone for months. She would be labeled an adulteress.  Then, when David had Uriah killed, I cannot imagine the guilt she felt knowing that she was the reason he had to die. What a terrible secret to keep!    

Scenario Two: If Bathsheba was raped, then she had all of the terrible shame and pain that went along with that.  She would have to break her husband’s heart when she told him what happened and she would have to bear the child of the man that raped her.  But then David had her husband killed, so she had to deal with that terrible loss.  I’m sure David would have threatened her with her life if she told anyone what had happened.  A terrible secret to keep!    

Either scenario is bad.  Bathsheba had to deal with many terrible consequences of what happened, including losing the child that she had conceived with David.  But God took this broken woman and blessed her.  He gave her other children, including Solomon, who she helped to become king. He is known as the wisest man to ever live, according to 1 Kings 3:11-12.

Bathsheba the adulteress (or rape victim, whichever scenario you interpret) became a Godly wife and mother.  Many say that Proverbs 31 was written by King Solomon in memory of her.   If that is the case, then her terrible past did not define her.  Her fear of the Lord defined her.  Proverbs 31:28-30 NLT says: ‘Her children stand and bless her. Her husband praises her: “There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all!" Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the LORD will be greatly praised.’  

A Woman God Can Use - Part 4

Today we are going to take a look at Ruth.  She was a Moabite (Gentile) woman that married an Israelite (Jewish) man who was living in Moab.  After her husband died, she stayed with her mother-in-law Naomi.  Naomi had lost her husband and both of her sons.   In Ruth 1:16-17, Ruth declares her loyalty to Naomi and even stated that Naomi’s God would be her God.  The two of them set out for Bethlehem, Naomi’s home.    

I am sure the last thing that Ruth wanted to do was leave her own family to go with her mother-in-law, but she knew it was the right thing to do.  Naomi was all alone and elderly.  When Ruth and Naomi returned to Bethlehem, they were so poor that Ruth had to glean in the fields.  Gleaning was basically an early form of welfare.  The farmers would leave the corners of their fields unharvested, and they would not harvest any left-overs that had been forgotten when they had harvested the majority of a field.  This was left for the poor.   Naomi was too old to work, so Ruth was responsible for both of them.

While she was gleaning in the fields, she caught the eye of Boaz, the wealthy property owner.  He showed her favor and told the harvesters to leave a little extra for her to pick up.  He even offered her lunch and a place to “glean” for the rest of the harvest.  (He knew who she was because her reputation had preceded her.  Her kindness and loyalty to Naomi was very impressive.)    When she told Naomi about his kindness, Naomi knew who he was.  He was family!  She sent Ruth to the threshing floor to show Boaz that she wanted to be his.

At the end of their story, Ruth marries Boaz and has a son named Obed.  Obed was the grandfather of King David!  Even though she lost her husband, moved from her home to live with strangers, and was so poor that she had to beg for food, God worked everything together for her good.   Romans 8:28 NLT “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”      

A Woman God Can Use - Part 3

Today we will take a look at Rahab.  She was the prostitute that hid the two spies that Joshua had sent to check out Jericho (see Joshua 2).  Why would she, a lowly prostitute, be used by God? 

If we take a look at the facts that we can see in the scripture, Rahab was clearly unmarried and without children.  We know that she had a father, mother, brothers and sisters.  What we don’t know is why the men of her family weren’t taking care of her.  We could assume that it was a situation of a family in dire poverty.  This young woman may have had to find a way to provide for herself, and maybe even for ailing parents. We aren’t told why she was a prostitute, just that she was one.  Sometimes people are victims of circumstance.  Sometimes people just make bad choices.  Either way, she ended up living this life. 

In Rahab’s line of work, she must have had the opportunity to talk to many men.  She had heard tales of how the God of the Israelites was making a way for them to take over the land.  She knew about the parting of the Red Sea and about the complete destruction of Sihon and Og.   In her destitution, I’m sure she longed to be taken care of and provided for like this God of Israel was doing for His people.  She had a fear of that God and had faith that He might protect and provide for her, too, if she did something for Him. She risked her life to help those spies escape.

                             

Because of what she did for God’s people, He saved her and her entire family.  They were taken in by the Israelite nation and lived among them.  According to Matthew 1, Rahab apparently married and had a son named Boaz. We will find out more about him in Ruth’s story later on, but he was a wealthy man.  That must mean that his parents were probably wealthy also.  This poor prostitute was blessed beyond what she could have ever imagined because of her faith in God and because she acted on that faith. 

In James 2: 24-26 Rahab’s faith is used as an example to all of us.  “You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.  In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction?  As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.”

A Woman God Can Use - Part 2

Let’s take a closer look at these women mentioned in Matthew 1.  The first woman mentioned was Tamar.  Her story is found in Genesis 38.  She was a Canaanite woman that married two of Judah’s sons.  Eventually, she posed as a prostitute and slept with her father-in-law Judah and became pregnant with twins.

How could God use a woman like Tamar?   Her story sounds pretty awful by our standards today.  But actually, by ancient Hebrew standards, her actions were legal and considered moral.  According to the Levirate Law, a child born of marriage to the brother of a dead older brother was the heir of the dead husband. He was also the heir of his real father. In this way, family property was preserved and consolidated. It was not only a disgrace for Tamar not to have a child, it meant that she had no way of providing for herself.  She had no property or inheritance without a son. 
Judah had promised her his youngest son Shelah after the other two older sons had both died, but Judah did not keep his promise. Even though Tamar had to trick Judah into producing an heir with her, she was doing the right thing.  Judah eventually called her “righteous” (Genesis 38:26) because he knew that he was the one that actually was in the wrong.    
Tamar was a strong woman.  She was widowed twice, publicly embarrassed by her 2^nd husband’s actions and sent back home to her parents to live in disgrace.  Instead of feeling sorry for herself and just accepting her life as it was, she took action and God worked all of it out for her good.  He blessed her with two sons, one of which was included in the direct lineage of Jesus.

What can we learn from Tamar?   She knew her rights, and she acted upon them.  As children of God, we are co-heirs with Christ and we need to know our rights!  We need to act on them!  We don’t just sit back and wait for God to bless us, we need to get out there and bless others.  We must study the life of Jesus, and pattern our lives after His.  He used His authority and so can we!  No matter what life throws at you, know that ALL of it will work together for your good if you are a child of His.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.  For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.  And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.  What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?”  Romans 8:28-31 NIV

A Woman God Can Use - Part 1

Matt 1:1-6 NLT - This is a record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, a descendant of David and of Abraham: Abraham was the father of Isaac. Isaac was the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah (whose mother was Tamar). Perez was the father of Hezron. Hezron was the father of Ram. Ram was the father of Amminadab. Amminadab was the father of Nahshon. Nahshon was the father of Salmon.  Salmon was the father of Boaz (whose mother was Rahab). Boaz was the father of Obed (whose mother was Ruth). Obed was the father of Jesse.  Jesse was the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon (whose mother was Bathsheba, the widow of Uriah)....Matt 1:16 NLT  - Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Mary gave birth to Jesus, who is called the Messiah.

I know that you just skimmed over all of those names! I have done the same thing many times. But go back and read them! Most of us just skip over these scriptures entirely because we can’t pronounce most of the names. One Sunday morning, while the preacher was reading out of Matthew 1, something just jumped out at me.  Look back at the entire scripture…verses 1-16.   There are only 4 women listed.  What really caught my attention was that a couple of them I recognized as women who had a very sinful past.  So I decided to do a study of the 4 women listed here.  If the Holy Spirit thought they were important enough to include in the bible, then there is something that we need to learn from the lives of these women.

The first woman mentioned was Tamar.  Her story is found in Genesis 38.  She was a Canaanite woman that married two of Judah’s sons.  Eventually, she posed as a prostitute and slept with her father-in-law Judah and became pregnant with twins. 

Next, there is Rahab.  She was a prostitute that hid the two spies that Joshua had sent to check out Jericho (see Joshua 2). 

Ruth was a Moabite woman that married an Israelite man who was living in Moab.  After he died, she stayed with her mother-in-law Naomi and moved with her back to Judah. Her story in found in the book of Ruth. 

The final woman mentioned was Bathsheba.  In 2 Samuel, chapter 11, she was introduced.  She became the object of King David’s desire and committed adultery with him while her husband, Uriah the Hittite, was off at war.