Bible Recap Week 18

Join as Pastor Julie dives into the powerful truth of what it means to be adopted into God’s family. This episode explores the beauty of spiritual adoption—how, through Christ, we are no longer defined by our past, our brokenness, or the “bloodlines” we come from, but instead are given a new identity rooted in Him.

Pastor Julie unpacks the significance of having a new, pure bloodline in Christ—one that brings freedom, redemption, and belonging. No matter your story, God invites you into His family with purpose and intention. This episode is a reminder that you are chosen, fully known, and deeply loved.

Tune in as we reflect on the transformative power of God’s grace and what it truly means to live as His sons and daughters.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Hey everyone, and welcome to the Water Take Bible Week Podcast. This is Pastor Wonder Library. This podcast is one of the tools that we're using this year as we read through the Bible together. It's a chance for us to think about the last week. What's standing up to what's confusing? What might be saying to us along the way? What do you think that we are focused on in the week? It's a workout. A workout so you can live like Jesus. Love like Jesus. I I love spending time in the word with you like this. So let's get started.

SPEAKER_01 1:14

Hey everyone. Welcome back to this week's podcast. This week we're in week 17 of the Bible recap reading, and we're moving in and out of three different books right now. There's 2 Samuel, Psalms, and 1 Chronicles. We've been in Psalms for a little bit now, and Pastor Eric actually talked about Psalms last week in the podcast. So if you missed that episode, I highly encourage you to go back and listen to it because he walks us through how to study them and he gives a really simple framework. It's read, recognize, trace, see, and respond. So definitely go check that podcast out if you haven't already. Okay. Are you loving reading through scripture so far? The story that's unfolding with David, with King David. We go from seeing him on the run, hiding from King Saul, to now reading about the thousands upon thousands who are fighting with him and for him and supporting him as King. So let's jump in and recap this week's reading. Let's start with 1 Chronicles. It feels like there has been a lot of chapters full of family trees. Right? It feels like endless genealogies. And we've been here before reading through the who's who, who's connected to who, and we're back at it right now. And this isn't gonna be the last time either. And if you're anything like me, you might hit these sections and think, okay, Lord, what am I supposed to do with all of these names? Which ones should I remember? Should I remember all of them? And then, you know, you can kind of go down that bunny trail. But side note, when I'm reading these in my head, I pronounce every single name perfectly. But when I say them out loud, not so much. I'm pretty sure I am not doing honor to a lot of these people. But we know that this isn't just a list, right? We know there's a purpose behind why they're giving us all of these names. We know that sometimes they were taken for a census, and we also know that it's how we're gonna trace that line that leads to the Messiah. But the more that I sat with this this week with all of the names, as I read through them, I realized that it's about identity, it's about belonging. Whose family do you belong to? What family are you from? And we do the same thing, right? We build family trees, we pass down generational stories, we tell our kids the stories from our past, our parents, our grandparents. We search websites trying to find long-lost ancestors. It's about knowing where we come from and what God says about where we actually belong. And I'd like to talk about that for a second because it's something that God highlighted for me as I was sitting with all of these names. He highlighted adoption. Something you may not know about me is that I was adopted. My mom had remarried, and my stepdad chose to adopt me. And he's my dad. He raised me, his family became my family. I was his child. I am his child. And he is my dad. And here's the thing about adoption: adoption changes your name, right? It changes your legal standing, it changes what you're connected to, but it doesn't erase the fact that you came from somewhere else. And spiritually, I think a lot of us live in this tension because God says that we're adopted into his family. But sometimes we're still thinking like where we originally came from. And I think this is where so many of us can struggle. So many times we feel like something is missing in our lives. Like we need to go out and find ourselves. I can't be the only one. So we start looking at, right? We look at other people, we success, we look at the success, we relationships, we look at our past, and we end up searching in all of the wrong places. But being adopted by God means something shifts. It means that it doesn't start with us anymore or our long-lost uncle. It starts with him, it starts with God, and he is perfect. No defect, no brokenness, there's no addiction in God's bloodline. A pure, holy, complete identity that we now have access to through him. This is who we are now. John 1 12 says that to all who receive him, he gives the right to become children of God. Not earn to become children of God, not we're gonna work towards it. He gives it. We don't have to go searching for identity anymore. We've already been given one. And that's where renewing our mind comes in. Because we can be adopted and still think like an orphan, right? You can belong to God yet still identify with your past. You can have that new name, but you're still answering to the old one. And this is where genealogies can actually trip us up if we're not careful. Because we'll start thinking, that's just who I am, this runs in my family, or this is just the pattern that happens. But what if your identity doesn't start with your earthly lineage? What if it starts and ends with God? When we start with God, everything shifts. Look at the tension in Psalm 73. The psalmist starts by looking at others, what they have, what they're doing, and it begins to spiral out of control. But everything changes when he refocuses on God. That's the shift. Not changing your situation, but changing your perspective. And this connects to something else that I felt strongly this week. There is a difference between righteous anger and revenge, right? It is okay to feel anger. There are things in this world and in our lives that should stir something within us. And you even see that raw emotion in Psalm 77: crying out, wrestling, remembering pain. But the turning point comes when the focus shifts back to God's works and faithfulness. Because when we take matters into our own hands, that's where it shifts. And that's where it becomes about us instead of God, right? We know this. If we're not careful, we start focusing on what was done to us, right? Focusing on people and on ourselves, and that's where bitterness can creep in. When our eyes are focused on ourselves or on other people, we lose sight of God. And Psalm 78 reminds us why remembering God matters. It's so we don't get stuck in cycles of frustration, rebellion, and forgetting who He is. I mean, look at what we've read so far within 17 weeks. How many times do the Israelites forget who God is? And this is something that keeps going. It is something that we do today, not just something that the Israelites did. And that brings us right back into the genealogies in First Chronicles, specifically like um Chronicles six through seven, because they can subtly pull us into asking, who am I connected to? Where do I come from? Maybe even what defines me, right? Have you ever asked yourself those questions? But then the gospel, the gospel flips that completely. We're not defined by our past or our family patterns or our history. We're defined by the one who has adopted us. You are defined by the one who has adopted you. So your past may explain you, or should I say, who you once were, but it no longer defines you. And even in the middle of all those names that we're reading, what we're really seeing is God's faithfulness through generations, not people's perfection. We know that they weren't perfect. Let's talk about 1 Chronicles 11 through 12 and even 2 Samuel 5. David is finally stepping into what God called him to years previous, right? And what do we see? People are coming to him, warriors, supporters, people who are skilled, they're loyal, and they are exactly what he needs in this moment. And 2 Samuel 5 tells us why. It says, because the Lord was with him. This is not random. This is God protecting and positioning what he's called, who he's called. And here is what I want you to hear. If God has adopted you, he is also positioning you. He is surrounding you, strengthening you, and aligning things that you can't even see yet. You weren't just saved, you were placed. And throughout this week, Psalm 81, 88, 92, 93, um, Psalm 102 and 104, we see the full range of what it looks like to come to God, right? Joy, pain, confusion, worship, and desperation. And I want to tie this into something Pastor Eric said last week, also, that really stayed with me. He said, you don't need better words to pray, right? It's not about performance. We can't impress God, or there's nothing that we can do. It is about connection or a relationship. And because when we're wrestling with those things, when we're wrestling with identity and anger or our past, sometimes we don't have those words. We don't know what to say. So we don't need the perfect words. You just need honesty. And he already knows all things. He knows your heart. You can't hide anything from him. So here's here's the takeaway for this week. You may know where you've come from, but that is not where your identity is anchored anymore. You have been adopted into a new family. And not only that, God is actively positioning your life right now. No matter if your ancestor is King Saul or King David, if you're from the tribe of Simeon or maybe you're from the tribe of Levi. Don't let your past define you. Don't let bitterness take root within you, and do not take matters into your own hands. Keep your eyes focused on him. Because when you start and end with God, everything shifts. You may have come from a certain line, but in Christ, your story has been rewritten. Right? Your future is being established. Let it begin with Jesus. God, thank you. Thank you that you don't just save us, that you adopt us. Thank you that you give us a new identity, a new name, and a new future. Lord, help us to renew our minds, to release what's behind us, and to trust how you are positioning our lives right now. Remind us, Lord, that we don't need perfect words, just open hearts. And Jesus, we thank you. We thank you that you have adopted us and that our bloodline now starts pure. In the name of Jesus. Amen. Thanks for listening. I can't wait to hear what you got out of this week's reading.

SPEAKER_00 16:25

Thanks so much for listening to the Water's Edge Bible recap. I look forward every week to walking in the Word with you. You can find more information about Water's Edge Church at www.watersedge.fait. And you can listen to our weekly message on any platform under the Water's Edge website or by downloading the Water's Edge app.