Jesus Across the Gospels Written by Pastor Daryl Cox From All Nations Leadership Institute 4501 West 127th Street Alsip, IL 60803 http://allnationsleadershipinstitute.org

1. The Genealogy of Jesus According to the Gospel of Luke
Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized,
and praying, the heaven was opened, And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape
like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved
Son; in thee I am well pleased. And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age,
being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli…” (Luke 3:21-23,
KJV).
“…Which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam,
which was the son of God” (Luke 3:38).
The Gospel according to St. Luke is called the Gospel of Salvation. It focuses upon Jesus
as the only Savior of humanity. Many of the accounts, teachings and sayings that are unique to
this Gospel reflect and proclaim the theme of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Salvation in Christ. The
unique stories and teachings of this Gospel account underscore its central theme. One of the
themes, the genealogy of Christ, is a powerful testimony of God’s love and willingness to save
all.
The genealogy of Christ presented in Luke 3 is distinct from the genealogy found in
Matt1. Matthew identifies Jesus with two great figures from the Old Testament, Abraham and
David. The genealogy is kingly given that it mentions Judah Abraham’s grandson through Jacob
to whom was promised a royal lineage from which the Messiah (Christ) would come and the
kings that ruled in the history of Israel starting with David. Matthew calls Jesus the son of both
Abraham and David, who by descent will fulfill the two great covenants God made with them.
The Gospel of Luke presents Christ’s genealogy not at the beginning of his account, but
interestingly, following the baptism of Christ and His introduction into ministry. The genealogy
appears to belong to that of his mother Mary, although her name is not given. The absence of a
woman’s name from a genealogy was a standard Hebrew custom in those days since the
emphasis was strictly male oriented. To identify a genealogy with the mother the Jews would use
the woman’s father. In Luke, we have Joseph presented as “the son of Heli” (Luke 3:38) whereas
Matthew says “Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary” (Matt 1:16). The expression “son of”
found in Luke is not limited to begetting. It can have a more remote relationship. Joseph is the
actual son of Jacob in Matthew and the son in law of Heli in Luke. Luke traces Christ’s lineage
back to David through Nathan and not Solomon. This identifies Mary as belonging to the tribe of
Judah and the house of David. Jesus, by descent, is from the house of David and the tribe of
Judah through His mother, Mary, but by the oath of the Davidic Covenant He is the heir to the
throne of David ( Ps 132:11).
Luke continues his presentation of Christ’s lineage from David back to Abraham through
Judah, the son of Jacob, just as Matthew does. The lineage continues back to Noah through
Shem, his oldest son. In Genesis 9:26, God is prophetically glorified through the lineage of

2. Noah’s son, Shem. It is in the person of Christ who is descended from the ancestral line of Shem
after the flesh that God will be glorified for our deliverance from sin and death. The ancestry is
concluded with Adam, the first human. He is called the son of God. Jesus is identified with the
human race as the Son of God. By descent from Adam, all men were made sinners. Through the
new birth in Christ, all are made righteous and given a new identity in Christ through the Spirit
of God. Earlier, Luke places Christ’s genealogy following His baptism. At the event of Christ’s
baptism, God confirms Jesus of Nazareth as His Son in whom He is pleased to dwell. The Son of
God is identified with God through the incarnation, the Word made flesh, and God is identified
with man through incarnation. Following this, Luke identifies the Son of God with Adam and by
consequence the human race. Only by coming as one of us, could God bring about our great
deliverance from sin and death through death as a man and resurrection from the dead. Through
the incarnation, Jesus is identified with both God and man that mankind can become identified
with Him as sons of God.
In conclusion, the recorded accounts of the Raising of the Widow of Nain’s Son from the
dead; the Conversion of Zacchaeus; the Parable of the Lost Coin; the Prodigal Son; the Thief on
the Cross and many other accounts and sayings that are all unique to Luke’s Gospel highlight the
central theme that Jesus came into our world as one of us and has the power to deliver us from all
bondage. He paid a great price for all of mankind’s transgressions and rose triumphantly from
the dead. He is alive today and can save to the uttermost all that come to Him in faith.
Pastor Daryl Cox