RAP SHEET Luke 3:24-27

SERIES: The Chosen King

SERMON: In Exile

SCRIPTURE: Luke 3:23–31; Jeremiah 29:10–14; Ezra 1:1–4

REVIEW

This week, we stepped into the heart of Luke’s genealogy of Jesus. At first glance, it appears to be a list of forgotten names—77 people, most of whom are completely lost to history. And yet, every one of them played a vital role in bringing about the arrival of Jesus, the last and final Chosen King.

Luke draws attention to names from Israel’s exile, especially Neri, Shealtiel, and Zerubbabel. Neri knew Judah as home, Shealtiel lived through deportation, and Zerubbabel was born in Babylon. He was a second-generation exile, leading a people who longed for a home they had never truly seen.

This is where Jeremiah’s famous promise comes in:

“For I know the plans I have for you… plans for your well-being, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11).

The real context is God’s promise to His people in exile—that after 70 years, He would bring them home. And God fulfilled this promise! In 539 BC, King Cyrus of Persia defeated Babylon and released the exiles. Zerubbabel led the return, rebuilding the altar, restoring the temple, and preparing the way for worship again.

Zerubbabel points us to Jesus, the new and greater Zerubbabel. Just as Zerubbabel was born in exile to lead Israel home, Jesus entered our exile—born into our broken world—to lead us back to God. Zerubbabel rebuilt a temporary altar and temple, but Jesus became the once-for-all sacrifice and made us, His people, the living temple of God’s Spirit.

We are all living in exile from Eden, longing for a home we cannot find in sex, money, possessions, or empty religion. The good news is that Jesus entered our exile and now leads us out—to forgiveness, to freedom, and ultimately to Paradise.

APPLY

What is ONE WAY you are going to live with hope in exile this week?

• Do you need to name a false hope you’ve been chasing (career, wealth, relationships, rituals) and replace it with confidence in God’s promises?

• Do you need to take a step of obedience like generosity, forgiveness, or faithfulness—trusting that God is writing a bigger story than you can see right now?

• Do you need to anchor your heart in the fact that God keeps His promises, even if they take longer than you expect?

PRAY

• Thank God that He uses forgotten names and stories to bring about His eternal plan.

• Praise Him for being faithful to His promises—both in Jeremiah’s time and in Christ.

• Ask Him to help you trust His timing in seasons of exile or waiting.

• Invite Him to reorient your hope toward Jesus, the greater Zerubbabel, who leads us home.