People Matter To God - 1 Chronicles 1-4

1 Chronicles 1:28-34 (ESV)

The sons of Abraham: Isaac and Ishmael. These are their genealogies: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebaioth, and Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. These are the sons of Ishmael. The sons of Keturah, Abraham’s concubine: she bore Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. The sons of Jokshan: Sheba and Dedan. The sons of Midian: Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the descendants of Keturah.

Abraham fathered Isaac. The sons of Isaac: Esau and Israel.

So, the first four chapters of 1 Chronicles is one long list of names.  The above is part of those names.  Reading this section is like reading an old phone book or a contact list on someone’s phone that you don’t know. The major difference is that God wrote this list and wants us to have it.   Here are a few lessons we can learn from a list like this:

1. People are important to God.   God sent His son to die for mankind.  God loves people.   

2. God knows people by their name.   Jesus said it this way:  

• John 10:3 (ESV) To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
• Revelation 3:12 (ESV) The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.

3. God uses people to accomplish His plan.  God has a plan.  He doesn’t need us to accomplish that plan.  But God chooses to use mankind.  This book of 1 Chronicles is about the men God used to accomplish His plan.  

4. God is faithful to us.   1 Chronicles was written as the people were coming out of captivity.  He wants us to know that He is faithful to His promise to bring a remnant back from captivity, as He promised.  

5.  God uses people who fail.  Many of the names we read on this list have a story of failure before God.  Yet, God still uses them.  

We can rejoice that God knows us by name and is faithful to us, calling us to accomplish a task for Him, despite our failures and flaws.