Matthew chapter one presents Jesus Christ as the long awaited Messiah -- the Savior of Israel. The first half of chapter one lists the genealogy of Jesus back to David and Abraham. The second half records the birth of Jesus from Joseph's point of view. Joseph was a righteous man who listened to God's instruction -- given through an angel in a dream -- and took the pregnant, virgin Mary home as his wife. The King Arrives!
Scripture Passage: The Real Christmas Story
Main Thought: God is a personal God who gets involved with our lives to bring about His perfect will. He became the personal Savior we need to make a lasting difference in our lives.
- Joseph's plans were shattered by the intrusion of God's Son. (1:18-19)
- God provided the revelation Joseph needed to obey Him. (1:20-23)
- In spite of the certain criticism, Joseph took Mary as his wife immediately. (1:24-25a)
- Because of Joseph and Mary's courageous stand, God became our Savior. (1:25b)
(18) Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. (19) Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. (Mat 1:18-19, NKJV)1. Joseph's plans were shattered by the intrusion of God's Son. (1:18-19)
Joseph had great plans to get married, settle down, and have a family. Like many young men today, he planned for a quiet life -- nice house with a white picket fence, a steady job as a carpenter, membership in the Galilee Country Club, and -- in due time -- loving, obedient children. When Mary announced herself pregnant, imagine the shock and horror Joseph must have experienced. His life plans were ruined! He would be humiliated by his friends and family because Mary had been unfaithful. He would have to work that much harder just to get by with a pregnant wife; he could forget the "good life."What did Joseph say when Mary told him about the angel and God's special message? He must have walked away in utter amazement at her betrayal and deception to cover it up. "How could she do this to me? I loved her, and she loved me. At least, I thought she did. We had such wonderful times together. We had big plans for our home, our family. Now it's all ruined."
Mary's sincerity about the angel's message must have had some effect on Joseph -- for he was a righteous man (v19). God often speaks to us through the wise counsel of godly friends. Keep in mind, though, Joseph was expected to believe the two greatest whoppers ever told -- that a virgin was going to have a baby. And this was not just any baby either but the Son of God, the Savior long-promised and desparately awaited by his generation.
The solution to Joseph's problem -- as Joseph saw it -- was to eliminate the problem. His betrothed (more than engaged but slightly less than married) was supposed to be a virgin but was now pregnant. If went ahead with the wedding, he would be mocked and his own reputation would be ruined. If he announced it with great furor, he ran the risk of the elders in the town stoning her to death as the Law provided. Since he still loved Mary, he decided to divorce her quietly. What kind of solution to this problem would we have today? He could have demanded she get an abortion. There would be no risk of her being stoned to death today. It would almost be a non-issue in today's culture.
What is lacking in this picture so far? What is lacking is the purpose and perspective to be gained by seeking the LORD's help. Being a righteous man (v19), Joseph was a believer, a child of God, and his whole life was in God's hands. Yet his first throught was to eliminate the consequences of this problem. All too often, we find ourselves trying to eliminate a problem we have in order to avoid the consequences. We are afraid of being embarrassed by others, ridiculed, mocked, scorned. Even worse, as parents we can intervene on behalf of our children to keep them from suffering the consequences of their wrong-doing. If you deal with a problem by eliminating the consequences, you really don't deal with the problem at all. It will likely come back.
This where both divorce and abortion lead -- they keep one from dealing with the root problem by obstensibly eliminating the consequences of it. It seems like it will solve everything. But relationships, especially between spouses, need to be nurtured daily or they will wither away. Sexual desires must be tempered or they will cause you to lose control. All too many people can testify that neither of these actions is without dire consequences. If you have made an unfortunate choice like this in the past, I am truly sorry that you had to go through it. My hope and my prayer is that having gone through the pain, you have repented and acknowleged the wisdom of God's plan for marriage and children. Keep in mind, though, that a problem which surfaces for one of God's children always creates an opportunity to grow in faith, in wisdom, and in endurance.
(20) But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. (21) "And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins. (Mat 1:20-21, NKJV)2. God provided the revelation Joseph needed to obey Him. (1:20-23)
God was not content to allow Joseph to ruin His plans! Mercifully, He sent an angel to affirm what Mary had already told him -- the child is the Son of God. Note that the angel told Joseph, "do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife." Joseph was afraid of what would happen to him, to Mary, and the to child. But God insisted that what He planned was for something truly great in Joseph's life. The problem he longed to avoid had difficult consequences -- no doubt about that. But the child to be born was the Holy One of Israel. "He will save His people from their sins." God entrusted to Joseph the awesome responsibility of raising the Messiah. There was a divine purpose in the problem Joseph encountered. Child of God, there is divine purpose in the problems you encounter.God also revealed eternal implications of what he must endure.
(22) So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: (23) 'Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,' which is translated, 'God with us'" (Mat 1:22-23, NKJV).God's purpose in this child was to identify with us through a fully human nature. As the Apostle John wrote, "and the Word [Jesus Christ] became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:14, NKJV). In becoming a real human being, God identifies personally with each of us as "Immanuel." Yet He was born of a virgin, without the sin nature of Adam, and lived a sinless life on this earth. Jesus Christ offered His life on a cross for your sins -- He died that you might have eternal life. He rose from the grave that you might know for certain His forgiveness and His power and authority over all things -- including your life.And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness:
God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit,
Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles,
Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.
(1 Timothy 3:16, NKJV)God's eternal purpose in this dilemma went far beyond Joseph and Mary. Through this precious gift of His Son, Jesus Christ, God was reconciling the whole world to Himself. (2 Corinthians 5:19)
(24) Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, (25) and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS. (Mat 1:24-25, NKJV)3. In spite of the certain criticism, Joseph took Mary as his wife immediately.
Joseph, upon receiving the revelation from God about Mary, took her as his wife immediately. This means he forsook the "betrothal" time of one year. At this point, Joseph was not concerned about what his friends and family thought -- only about loving God and loving his wife. Moreover, Joseph took her home to protect her against potential verbal and physical abuse because of the apparent fornication. Though Joseph had unjustly accused Mary of great sin -- either verbally or non-verbally -- he was forgiven by Mary. Though marriage to Mary suddenly came at a much greater cost, Joseph accepted Mary as his wife anyway. This kind of mutual acceptance breeds security, a sense of belonging, confidence, and openness between people.Acceptance is a key part of any relationship. By saying, "I will only allow you to be a part of my life if you do this or that..." you put boundaries around your own life that neither you nor the other person can cross. A love relationship is not possible when there are preexisting conditions or expectations. For love to be genuine and complete, each person must be accepted as they are. This is not easy for each of us could easily name four or five things that another person needs to change -- for some of you maybe ten or twelve. Except your mate, of course! The point is that for a relationship to function correctly, two people need to accept one another as they are without reservation.
Today, our families are rocked by out-of-wedlock pregnancy along with drugs, alcohol, suicide, and many other sinful activities. Families can be divided or shipwrecked by these issues when they arrive. What will hold your marriage or family together when rocked by such things? It takes commitment, courage and compassion to face up to major problems. Joseph could have walked away. But he had committed himself to God first -- no matter what. When God revealed His plans for Joseph, Joseph responded courageously to the difficult circumstances. He showed compassion for Mary -- who herself was a righteous woman. In our own families, we must first commit ourselves to God lest we have no Rock on which to stand when the storms rock our loved ones.
And he called His name JESUS. (Mat 1:24-25, NKJV)4. Because of Joseph and Mary's courageous stand, God became our Savior.
Joseph and Mary obediently responded to God's plan for their lives. Though it cost them greatly, they knew that pleasing God was a far greater reward than pleasing friends or family. Because they obeyed God, God became our Savior. Joseph named the boy "JESUS" -- this is the Latin version of the Greek word Iesous which translates the Hebrew Y'shua -- "Yahweh saves!" Jesus is the Lord Almighty in flesh and blood who came to save human beings from their sins. As the Apostle Paul wrote of Jesus Christ:(8) And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. (9) Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, (10) that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, (11) and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Phil 2:8-11 NKJV)God's promised Savior is God who became our Savior. By faith, both Joseph and Mary said "yes" to God's plan, even though it cost both of them all pride in themselves and any position in society. Joseph and Mary are now recorded in the annals of human history and the halls of eternity along with the many others who were faithful to the God who loved them and gave Himself for them.
Reflect on YOUR life: God became our Savior to save us from our sins. He is a personal God who made a personal visit to this Earth for a very personal reason -- to change your heart. No, you are not far from God -- you can be His child even now. Moses was a murderer and King David an adulterer yet both experienced the grace of God through faith in Him and His promised Savior, Jesus Christ. You can experience His forgiveness, His cleansing, and new life for Jesus has come "...and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:14, NKJV). You could not ascend to heaven so He came to you.
Our Savior has paid in full the penalty of your sin. If you will turn from your sins and accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior from sin, He will:
Yes, God gets personally involved in our lives. Thank God, He personally became your Savior to make the ultimate difference in your life by providing you with complete forgiveness of sins and new life -- eternal life -- in Christ.
- Forgive you of all your sins.
- Give you a new spirit, a new nature inside.
- Through His Spirit dwell with you forever.
- Bring the peace and fulfillment you need.
- Enable you to love and receive love.
- Turn your heart from an inner focus on self to an outer focus on others.
Our Creator God loves you and wants you to know Him! If you would like to contact this ministry for further information or questions, please send your e-mail to:
Email: ministryrequest1@WordTruth.Com
Web Site: WordTruth.ComCopyright 1999, Randy Lariscy.
