God made a very special promise. He promised to send a Savior - Jesus. 

We've been following Jesus' family from the beginning, and so far we've learned about Adam and Eve, Seth, Noah and Shem, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 

Jacob had 12 sons, but Joseph was his favorite. Jacob gave him a fancy coat with lots of colors, and his brothers were jealous. They became angry with Joseph and one day decided to throw him in a hole In the ground. Joseph was hurt and afraid. Then, they decided to sell Joseph, and he was taken to Egypt. A lot of bad things happened to Joseph, but God was always with him. 

It might seem like Joseph would be the next person to add to Jesus' family tree, but that didn't happen! God used Joseph to protext the family that would one day lead to Jesus. The person in Jesus' family was one of Joseph's brothers. His name was Judah. Judah helped their other brother, Benjamin, and said that he would take his punishment, which was a very brave and loving thing to do. 

God chose Judah to be part of Jesus' family tree, and that was part of God's promise to send a Savior. God keeps His promises!

Joseph forgave his brothers and Judah may have shown courage and love, but Jesus loves and forgives us even more. Jesus came to save us from our sin. Jesus came to save all people who put their trust In him!

The following verse reminds us of God's faithfulness and that He keeps His promises.

Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love, with those who love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations... - Deuteronomy 7:9