Truth #6 - God loves and uses all types of people! Matthew 1-2

Matthew 1:5-6
Salmon was the father of Boaz "by Rahab", Boaz was the father of Obed "by Ruth," and Obed the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of David the king.
David was the father of Solomon "by Bathsheba" who had been the wife of Uriah.

This might be a strange couple of verses to pick out of such a rich couple of chapters that focus on the birth of the Messiah.   In the first sixteen verses of the first chapter we have a simple chronological outline of the ancestry of Jesus.  In Matthew 1:17 we read there are 14 generations between Abraham and David; another 14 generations between David and the captivity; and another 14 generations between the captivity and the birth of Jesus.  Matthew, the tax collector keeps perfect records.  He is precise about he writes and knows the names of each man in the generational pool of the Christ Child.  However, in three mentions of the male name, the mother of the male is also mentioned.   We read in the above two verses that Rahab, Ruth and Bathsheba were the mothers of someone in the genealogy of Christ.  What does this tell us about God?    It should be noted that two of the three (Rahab the harlot and Bathsheba the adulterer) would be shamed in any society.   What we learn about God in this long list of names is that people matter to God and He uses all types to accomplish His task.    Ruth was a Moabite.    Rahab was a citizen of Jericho.   Bathsheba was a wife contently married to her warrior/soldier Uriah and was seduced by the most powerful man in the world.    Today, if King David were to do such a thing, it would occupy the 24-hour news cycle for months, if not years.    Yet, despite the background of these three women, they are honored to be mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus.  There is nothing that escapes God about the people He has created.  He allows things to happen to them so that He can ultimately accomplish His plan for the Messiah and the glorification of Him.   We ought never to forget that God sees us and notices us.  God uses us the way He wants to accomplish the plan He wants:  The glorification of His Son.    Whereas we are focused on our comforts, God is focused on His mission.    We might find ourselves to be a Rahab, a Ruth, or a Bathsheba in our walk on this earth.   At the time, neither of those women would have become aware of their role in such a grand event.   We don't always know what God is doing with us, but we need to, in faith, continue to submit to what He is doing.  Only later might we know of the plan.