Your family background doesn’t matter - All The Word for Today Daily Devotionals for 2026

‘Jesus is not ashamed to call [us] brothers and sisters.' Hebrews 2:11 NIV

Every family has its secrets. A cousin with a prison record, or a dad who abandoned the family, or a grandparent who ran off with a co-worker. It may surprise you to know Jesus didn't come from a perfect family either. The Bible records the details of Jesus' ancestral lineage—and it includes some flawed characters! There's Tamar, who tricked her father-in-law and seduced him, and there's Jacob who pressured his brother and took advantage of his father-in-law in order to get rich. And how about King David? One day he was writing psalms, and the next he was taking the wife of one of his army officers to bed.

The list goes on, and Scripture records it to let you know two important truths:

(1) You are not unique. If your family tree has damaged fruit, Jesus wants you to know He's been there! In the absence of any mention of Joseph's involvement in Jesus' adult life, some scholars believe Mary may have raised Him and his siblings alone. And Jesus wasn't reluctant to call His ancestors ‘family'—which means He's not ashamed of you either.

(2) Jesus doesn't look at your past in order to decide your future. In His eyes, spiritual DNA trumps natural DNA! The Bible says: ‘If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: the old has gone, the new is here! So don't be afraid to tell others that what Jesus did for you, He will do for them when they put their trust in Him.

SoulFood: Num 32:25-33:56, Mark 8:1-13, Ps 44:17-26, Pr 11:12-13