A semi-regular conversation in our home involves the parents ruefully observing how different their childhoods were compared to their kids’ experience. It’s remarkable how much has changed in a couple of decades.

The story leading to Jesus is filled with example after example of losers: lastborn sons, widows, criminals, and an unwed mother. It’s the same reason King Herod wanted Jesus killed, religious authorities eventually succeeded, and thirty years later, Emperor Nero persecuted followers of Christ.

In one of Aesop’s Fables, a farmer finds an injured snake and nurses it back to health. The snake, revived, turns and bites the farmer because the snake won’t stray from its natural inclination. The farmer was foolish to believe the serpent could be anything other than what it was.

There were all kinds of people on the path from Abraham, forming the covenant with God, all the way to Jesus, who was the fulfilment of that agreement. God didn’t prop up a series of powerful rulers or wise teachers to fortify the lineage of the Messiah; every one of these names was associated with a story of flaws, struggle, and heartbreak.

I heard a sermon years ago from a local retired preacher who spoke about a little book he carries with him everywhere he goes that is a synopsis of the Bible. He hands the book to anyone he meets and asks them, “Say, do you know Jesus? Would you like to know Jesus? I would be happy to talk with you about Him.” Wow. Talk about evangelism!