There is Hope in a Horrible Story

Read Genesis 38.

What a horrible story!  There is almost more deliberate sin in this chapter than one can count.  It was a mix of a culture, a cult, and immorality.  Yet, God always has a plan for each life and will act to bring glory to Himself.

There are two main characters here.
1. Judah. 
     a. His first mistake was to marry a Canaanite woman.  He failed to maintain spiritual purity in his life and home.  Once that is gone everything else becomes vulnerable and can fall like dominoes.  His first two sons were so wicked God killed them. 
     b. His second mistake was to make a promise to a widow and not keep it.  God has always had a special protection and a commanded care for widows.  In this culture, the promise he made was to be expected and fulfilled.
     c. His third mistake came on a business trip out of town.  It seems that the first thing Judah did when he arrived at his destination was to turn to a cult prostitute.  These were prostitutes who not only sold themselves for sex but did so in worship of their false god.  Apparently, this immoral behavior meant nothing to him.
     d. His fourth mistake is seen in how he responded after he was told of Tamar's pregnancy.  There was no outrage at his own sin, but he displayed a violent reaction to hers.  The duplicity is unbelievable.  He knew better.  See verse 26.

2. Tamar.  She has buried two husbands and still she has no children.  This was a huge stigma in that culture.  As a widow, she had the right to expect the extended family to provide for her, including a husband.   But she was also guilty of sin upon sin.  She lied.  She posed as a cult prostitute.  She had sex with her father-in-law in a calculated trick to become pregnant.

But then, there is God.  He was personally involved and took action at key points.
     a. He acted in the death of Judah's sons when they proved to be wicked and deliberately disobedient to Him.
     b. He acted in the timing of Tamar's pregnancy.  She had been married twice with no children, but in one tryst with Judah she became pregnant.  Psalm 139 makes it clear that children are not biological accidents.
     c. He acted in the birth of the twins, causing Perez to be the firstborn.
     d. And to show the power of His Sovereignty and His grace, one need only to read Matthew 1:3.  The first chapter of Matthew lists the lineage of Jesus, as the promised Messiah.  Verse 3: "And Judah, the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar...." 

God is able to take our mistakes, our sin, and even our horrible life stories and weave them into a beautiful, powerful outcome.  Forgiveness, cleansing, and guiding our futures are all acts of His wonderful grace toward us.  Today, He is at work in weaving our story for His glory.