Tanja Dufrene

Redeemed (STUDY) Tanja Dufrene

Redeemed: First introduced to us in the Scriptures merely as the wife Judah got for his firstborn son, Tamar's name is the first woman listed in the genealogy of Jesus Christ. From the decisions of her likely conflicted and inconsolable father-in-law, Tamar's life was fraught with dysfunctional family dynamics, loss, betrayal, and risks that eventually led to regaining a name worthy of respect. Judah's many losses and checkered past appear to have led him to a state of self-imposed exile where his poorly made decisions compounded and threatened to obliterate his bloodline. Little is recorded about Tamar's thoughts, feelings or interactions along the way. Yet, she and Judah have much to teach us by the choices they made, by the actions they took, and how each responded quite differently to the many injustices endured. Many have presumed her to be deceptive, alluring and seductive. Yet I invite you to examine her life in greater detail as we ease into her circumstances in the recess of our imaginations and consider just what she might have been thinking as each new situation unfolded. Perhaps at one point she thought ... I have been with evil men, learned their ways and sadly contributed to their wickedness, at least I wonder if I did ... How long must I be required to rot away in this prison not of my own making? ... Must I die the slow bitter death of a starved soul separated from my hopes and dreams ...? Their story is filled with trials and hardships, yet ends with names forever recorded in the annals of history. Many life lessons beckon to us if we are willing to consider their journey as though it were our own. Let us walk beside Judah and Tamar, learn from them, and find the freedom for ourselves that comes to those who are compassionately Redeemed.