1 Maccabees 2:1-5: a reflection

1In those days Mattathias the son of John, the son of Simeon, a priest of the sons of Joarib, from Jerusalem rose up; and he lived at Modin. 2And he had five sons: John, who was surnamed Gaddis; 3Simon, who was called Thassi; 4Judas, who was called Maccabaeus; 5Eleazar, who was called Avaran; and Jonathan, who was called Apphus.

As the account of the Maccabean stand for the faith begins, it introduces the family at its heart: Mattathias, a faithful priest, and his five sons, John, Simon, Judas, Eleazar, and Jonathan. From this one faithful family would come the leaders who would defend the faith and their people in a time of great pressure. The account begins not with a great army or a famous king, but with a faithful father and his sons, a family through whom God would raise up those who would stand for him. The faithful family, and the faithful father at its head, was the seedbed from which faithful leaders arose.

Notice where the story begins: with a faithful family, a father and his sons. The great stand for the faith that follows did not spring from nowhere; it arose from a family, a faithful father and the sons he had raised. Through this one family God would raise up leaders who would defend the faith and their people. The influence of a faithful family, of a father who raised faithful sons, was the beginning of it all. God works through faithful families, raising up through them those who will stand for him. The faithful father and his sons were the human seedbed of the deliverance that followed; the family was where the faithfulness that would defend a people took root. God's work began in a faithful home.

That is worth taking to heart, for God works through faithful families, and the influence of a faithful home can raise up those who stand for him. We can underestimate the influence of a faithful family, a faithful father or mother raising children in the faith; but from one faithful family God raised up the leaders who would defend the faith and their people. God works through faithful homes, raising up through them those who will stand for him. Do not underestimate the influence of a faithful family; God can raise up through a faithful home those who will stand for him, as he raised up Mattathias and his sons. Value and cultivate faithfulness in your family, for God works through faithful homes to raise up those who will stand for him, as the stand for the faith began with the faithful Mattathias and his five sons; for the influence of a faithful family is not small in God's hands, and he can raise up through a faithful home those who will defend his cause and his people.

Lord, as the account of the Maccabean stand for the faith begins, it introduces the family at its heart: Mattathias, a faithful priest, and his five sons. From this one faithful family would come the leaders who would defend the faith and their people in a time of great pressure. The account begins not with a great army or a famous king, but with a faithful father and his sons, a family through whom you would raise up those who would stand for you. Show me where the story begins: with a faithful family, a father and his sons. The great stand for the faith that follows did not spring from nowhere; it arose from a family, a faithful father and the sons he had raised. Through this one family you would raise up leaders who would defend the faith. The influence of a faithful family, of a father who raised faithful sons, was the beginning of it all. You work through faithful families, raising up through them those who will stand for you. The family was where the faithfulness that would defend a people took root. Take that to my heart, for you work through faithful families, and the influence of a faithful home can raise up those who stand for you. I can underestimate the influence of a faithful family, a faithful father or mother raising children in the faith; but from one faithful family you raised up the leaders who would defend the faith. Keep me from underestimating the influence of a faithful family; you can raise up through a faithful home those who will stand for you, Lord. Help me value and cultivate faithfulness in my family, for you work through faithful homes to raise up those who will stand for you, as the stand for the faith began with the faithful Mattathias and his sons.