生活可能会变得一团糟，而犹大就把自己的生活弄得一团糟。或许，你现在的生活也陷入了困境。我母亲（和一些老牧师一样）经常说：“神可以用弯曲的棍子画一条直线。”创世记38章向我们展示了神的恩典如何在混乱的生活中给我们带来希望。
犹大为他的长子选择了一个妻子她玛，但这个长子死了，没有儿子。按着惯例，她玛被给了次子，为哥哥生子留后，但后来次子也死了。下一个儿子示拉按着律法应该娶她玛为妻。但犹大无限期地推迟了婚礼。或许他觉得她玛被诅咒了。
为了自己的未来，她玛假装成妓女，引诱犹大使自己怀孕，犹大自己却不知道。当他知道她玛因行淫而怀孕时，就告她奸淫，然而她玛却证明，犹大就是孩子的父亲。犹大说：“她比我更有义，因为我没有将她给我的儿子示拉。”后来她生了一对双胞胎儿子，长子名叫法勒斯。
虽然她玛“更有义”，但她也犯了罪。我们也是。圣诞节提醒我们——尽管我们的生活一团糟——神仍在掌权。耶稣，我们的救主，成了法勒斯的后裔（太1:3），好叫神的义赐给一切信祂的人（罗3:22）。何等恩典！何等盼望！
主神啊，感谢你藉着耶稣的义赐给我们的恩典。阿们。
创世记 38:24-30
24约过了三个月，有人告诉犹大说：“你的儿妇她玛做了妓女，且因行淫有了身孕。”犹大说：“拉出她来，把她烧了！”
25她玛被拉出来的时候，便打发人去见她公公，对他说：“这些东西是谁的，我就是从谁怀的孕。请你认一认这印和带子并杖都是谁的？”
26犹大承认说：“她比我更有义，因为我没有将她给我的儿子示拉。”从此犹大不再与她同寝了。
27她玛将要生产，不料她腹里是一对双生。
28到生产的时候，一个孩子伸出一只手来，收生婆拿红线拴在他手上，说：“这是头生的。”
29随后这孩子把手收回去，他哥哥生出来了。收生婆说：“你为什么抢着来呢？”因此给他起名叫法勒斯。
30后来他兄弟，那手上有红线的也生出来，就给他起名叫谢拉。
“She is more righteous than I, since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.” - Genesis 38:26
Life can get messy, and Judah made a mess of his life. Perhaps your life is in a jam right now. My mother (echoing some old preachers) often said, “God can make a straight line with a crooked stick.” Genesis 38 shows how God’s grace can give us hope in the midst of life’s messiness.
Judah chose a wife, Tamar, for his oldest son, but the oldest son died without children. According to custom, Tamar was given to the second son, to father an heir for his brother, but then the second son also died. The next brother, Shelah, was legally required to marry Tamar next. But Judah put off the marriage indefinitely. Perhaps he felt Tamar was cursed.
Desperate for her future, Tamar pretended to be a prostitute and seduced Judah to make her pregnant, without his realizing it. When he found out she was pregnant by prostitution, Judah accused her of immorality, but then Tamar proved that Judah himself was the father. Judah proclaimed, “She is more righteous than I, since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.” She later gave birth to twin boys, and the firstborn was named Perez.
Though Tamar was “more righteous,” she too was sinful. So are we. Christmas reminds us—in spite of our messiness—that God is in control. Jesus, our Savior, became a descendant of Perez (Matthew 1:3) so that the righteousness of God might be given to all who believe in him (Romans 3:22). What grace! What hope!
Lord God, thank you for the grace given to us through the righteousness of Jesus. Amen.
诵读: 骆云秀
片头: 张妙阳
