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Read Luke 3:21-38 every day this week. This is the account of the baptism of Jesus and His ‘family tree’. This is going to be a tough ask, but each day this week, if possible, choose a different translation and ask God to open your eyes to new revelation from His Word. Look at each name in the list and if you have the time, look them up in a concordance and see if there is any other biblical information about them.
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Luke 3:23
“Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry.”
There are many, many kings, queens and rulers throughout the world and they come in all shapes, sizes and ages. Queen Elizabeth II ascended the throne in 1952 at the tender age of 25. Despite being so young, many people now consider her to be the best monarch ever to rule this country.
In some countries, rulers assume responsibility at much younger ages. I understand the youngest to be a boy of just 3.5 years of age when he became king. Quite how that worked is beyond me and I can only assume that he was just a figurehead for the kingdom while advisors actually run the country on his behalf.
In the scripture there are many references to the ages of rulers and a few are quite interesting to take note of. The book of Numbers informs us that Levites began their ministry at the age of thirty. (Numbers 4:47) Joseph became Prime Minister of Egypt at the same age (Genesis 41:46) and David became king also at age 30 (2 Samuel 5:4). So, it’s not strange that Jesus also began His ministry at this age.
However, I’m certainly not saying that we are not able to minster or to function until the age of 30. There are many, many great men and women who have served God in remarkable ways who have been much younger than that. I don’t really understand why Jesus waited until this age but I know for sure Jesus would have done something sooner if God had wanted Him to do anything prior to this point. In previous studies, we’ve talked about Jesus only doing what God instructed Him to do. This is no exception. Jesus’ only desire was to do the will of the Father.
I want to highlight something quite simple today: What happened between the ages of 12 and 30? The last phrase we read in chapter 2 is “And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and men.” The key thing here is that Jesus ‘kept increasing’. Whenever we give ourselves to God in service and want Him to use us in any way, there must be evidence of what He’s doing. God is always looking for fruit. John 15:1-2 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.”
I ask you to carefully consider what God is doing in your life and then to test it by checking the fruit. For example, we cannot say that God is everything to us if we constantly crave other things to be truly satisfied. If we say that we want to serve God and yet do nothing to extend the Kingdom, then our words are meaningless. We must bear fruit or risk being cut off by God. May God grant us the time to increase in every area of our lives and to bear fruit, much fruit and fruit that will last.
- Prayerfully re-read John 15:1-2 and ask God to search you and to try you as David asks God. Make a conscious decision to do what He reveals to you during this time. Always remember that God is looking for fruit.
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