At church this morning, two of the Scriptural texts were II Samuel 7
and Matthew 1. In II Samuel 7, God promises to build David a house, a
lasting royal dynasty. Matthew 1 consists of Matthew’s genealogy of
Jesus. It demonstrates that Jesus is royal yet also includes women who
were Gentiles or perhaps of ill repute: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and the wife
of Uriah.
Being Lutheran, the pastor interpreted these texts in light of God’s
grace. According to the pastor, many Christians try to make the
Christmas story all about us and what we should do (law): we should not
be like the innkeeper in the Gospel of Luke who did not make room for
Mary and Joseph, but we should imitate the shepherds, who went to see
Jesus; similarly, we should clean ourselves up and make God room. But
God did not require Israel to become clean before he came and became
their God, bringing them forgiveness, grace, love, and provision. God
came to Israel even though she has disrepute and sin in her background.
In the case of David, David offered to build God a house, but God
responded by affirming that God will build David a house. It was about
God’s promise and activity.