1/19/26
When the Lord led me to our text today, I started to think of the children's question that was answered in church yesterday. Part of the question was what year Jesus was born. As we discussed this. We talked about the change in the way we tracked years at His birth. In the fullness of time. We now track time as AD (during the year of our Lord). Jesus changed everything. No one has ever changed the world like the Son of God. Today's text is another example of this.
Nehemiah 12:1-7 NASB95 Now these are the priests and the Levites who came up with Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra, Amariah, Malluch, Hattush, Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth, Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah, Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah, Shemaiah and Joiarib, Jedaiah, Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah and Jedaiah. These were the heads of the priests and their kinsmen in the days of Jeshua.
These verses show that even after 70 years in exile, the people still tracked their lineage. Jerusalem had been destroyed, and they had been spread out over the Babylonian empire, but they still kept track. So they would know who could be preist. They kept track so they could know who was in the line of David. This way they could recognize the Messiah.
This has always been an important part of Jewish culture. However, today there are no records, there came a time when people stopped tracking their tribes. It happened in 70 AD, when Rome destroyed Jerusalem.
Why did it happen then and not when they were exiled to Babylon? The answer is Jesus. There was no longer a need for the priest to offer sacrifices. Jesus was the final sacrifice. Therefore, there was no need to track the priest. There was no longer a need to look for the Messiah for He had already come. Therefore, there was no need to track the line of David.
They didn't realize this when it happened but we have the privilege of looking back and seeing how everything changed with Jesus.
He not only changed time and record-keeping, but he also changed my life.
My prayer today is that someone will read this (maybe you) and have Jesus change their life.
No one can change the world like the one who created it. History proves this, my testimony proves this. What about your testimony? Let people know how Jesus changes everything for the better.
Love Bro. Scott