We Need a Better King

...and Jesse the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife...

Matthew 1:6

When Matthew mentions Bathsheba in Jesus' genealogy, he doesn’t refer to her by name. Instead, he goes out of his way to remind us that she "had been Uriah’s wife.” Why?

I think Matthew wants to remind us of David’s greatest failure, before he tells us the story of Christmas. Matthew wants us to remember that even King David was an adulterer and a murderer! The greatest king in Israel’s history… the man after God’s own heart… the man who defeated Goliath and conquered God’s enemies all around… couldn’t conquer the sin within his own heart.

This is a subtle, but powerful reminder that we need a better king. Matthew is helping us begin to understand that the Messiah he is about to introduce us to isn’t just another King David. No! We need a Messiah who surpasses even David. We need a king who won’t fall into sin like David did (and even like his son Solomon did). And that is exactly what God gives us in Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 4:15 says that Jesus was “tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.” Jesus passed the test that David failed! And that’s why He can save us. For Jesus to be the perfect King who could make us righteous He had to be sinless, and that’s what He was. And that’s what He is.

Thank God that Jesus passed the test that David failed! Thank God for sending us a better King. But that raises a very important question. Is Jesus your king?

I think that sometimes we have a tendency to fix our eyes and our loyalties on great men like David. Sometimes we build our faith on a pastor, a parent, a teacher, a family member or friend who appears to be a giant in the faith to us. And then, when they fail… like David did… it shakes our faith greatly.

Make sure that your faith isn’t founded on any man but Jesus. Not a pastor or parent or anyone! Only Jesus is worthy to be your king. Only He passes the test. Everyone else will disappoint you. Build your faith on Him.