In this week’s video lesson series by Ray Vander Laan, he spoke about how important Jesus’s humanity is for us to understand and how it plays a crucial role in helping God and His people to relate to Him.

Jesus is Messiah, the Anointed King, and He’s taking charge. He reigns. But beyond that, Jesus the Messiah had to be made like His brothers: fully human.

We took a look at how Jesus fits into the human race. What does it mean that Jesus was human like you and me? Fully human, not just sort of or mostly. Not just on Thursdays or every other weekend, not merely possessing human qualities—but entirely and authentically human, just like us.

We start with genealogy. Practically, genealogy gives you roots. In the Jewish mind, having a genealogy is a way to declare that the story is real. But it's not only about people who came before, linked ethnically or culturally. There are also stories that give insight into what happens next.

You're the product of your ancestors, or you should be. Or perhaps you went your own way somewhere, and that makes genealogy significant. Deviations seen in the Bible should alert the reader to pause and ask, “Why is this being done differently?” It means God is working in the situation and we should pay attention.

There is a passage in the Gospels where a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years came from behind and touched the fringe of Jesus’ garment, believing, “If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed.” Jesus turned and asked, “Who touched me?” Though most say He knew who had touched him, ask yourself if you would have known had it happened to you. Jesus’s humanity is as central to the story as His divinity. At times, Jesus set aside His divine prerogatives and lived as fully human, so much so that He wondered and said aloud, “Who touched me?” (Matthew 9:20–22).

If you remove His humanity, then what is the purpose of His birth by Mary? Why go through the entire process? What difference does it make?

A disciple imitates the rabbi. If the rabbi always acts as God Himself, we can never be like Him. So, without denying His deity, we must not overlook Jesus’s humanity.

Jesus said to His disciples, “…for everything that I learned from My Father, I have made known to you” (John 15:15). Where did He gain that profound knowledge? He learned it. Don’t miss that the Bible says Jesus is fully human in every way—and some of those moments of His humanity are just as important to recognize as those revealing His deity.

Turn now to Luke 3:23–38 and Matthew 1:1–17:

• Luke’s genealogy traces Jesus’s lineage from Joseph back to Adam and ultimately to God, emphasizing His full humanity (Luke 3:23–38).
• Matthew’s genealogy begins with Abraham and moves forward to Joseph, providing a structured account of Jesus as the Son of David and the Son of Abraham—establishing His Messianic credentials (Matthew 1:1–17).

The genealogies differ post-David yet converge in theological meaning:

• Matthew emphasizes Jesus as “Son of David” and “Son of Abraham,” marking Him as Israel’s Messiah (Matthew 1:1).
• Luke presents a broader lineage reaching to Adam, stressing Jesus’s solidarity with all humanity (Luke 3:38).

Matthew organizes his genealogy into three sets of fourteen generations—from Abraham to David, from David to the exile, and from the exile to Christ—symbolizing divine completeness (Matthew 1:17).

The inclusion of certain women in Biblical geneology—Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba (wife of Uriah), and Mary—should make you wonder, especially given ancient Near Eastern norms where genealogies focused almost exclusively on men. Each of these women represents moments of redemption, inclusivity, and God’s redemptive intervention into marginalized lives.

Genealogy in Scripture isn’t just about ancestry—it’s about rooting identity in God’s unfolding redemption plan. It shows that God chose to enter human storylines, become fully human, and model a life of faithful humanity. Jesus is the evidence both of God’s promised Messiah and of what God is like in His humanity.