1/11/2026 Traditional Service

All people are descendants of the first man, Adam. After the worldwide flood of God’s judgment of sin, Noah and his sons became the progenitors of all mankind. It was of the lineage of Shem (Genesis 11) that the man Abram was born. The descendants of Abram/Abraham were named Hebrews or Jews, after Judah, one of Jacob’s sons; this naming pertained to all of Israel after the Babylonian exile. To this day, they are referred to as God’s “chosen people” after the words of Moses: “For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for His treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth” (Deuteronomy 7:6). They were chosen to be the lineage of the Messiah, the deliverer, the Christ. Faithful to His promise, God took on flesh “of the house and lineage of David” (Luke 2:4) as the incarnate Son of God and Son of Mary of Nazareth.

Today we hear that divine promise in Isaiah 42, identifying Jesus as God’s chosen servant. From the beginning, however, we are told He is not only to be King of the Jews alone but a light to lighten the Gentiles also. The great news is that He is the Savior of and for all people, the descendants not only of Abraham but also of Adam and Noah! By repentance of sin and faith in Christ, worked by the same Spirit that marked Jesus as the chosen one at His Baptism, now all who are baptized into Christ—Jew or Gentile—are the chosen people of God. Praising and thanking God for calling and saving us, we echo the Gospel to all people in the words of the Psalm: “Praise the Lord, all nations! Extol Him, all peoples!” (Psalm 117:1).