Mary's story is intertwined with the Gospel accounts, from Jesus' first breath all the way to His last breath as a Man on this Earth. We are carried along with her on her journey from expectant mother to grieving mother. The Gospels not only give us narrative accounts of her life, but they give us a window into her heart and soul. In Luke 1:46-55, we get to read her "song" as she lays out her heart to God. In John 19:26-27, we feel the bond between a Mother and Son and experience the bitter grief of a mother's heart. In other words, we feel like we know Mary.
Yet when it comes to her husband, Joseph, we feel that we know very little of him. We are only given brief snapshots of Joseph and his role in the Grand Narrative of the Bible. However, one of the amazing things about Scripture is that it tells us precisely what we need to know even when it does not tell us all we want to know. The Holy Spirit directed the writers to give us all we need to know to find God, to love God and to grow in the character of God. With that in mind, let's look more closely at what we are told about Joseph and how Joseph points us to Jesus.
Chosen by God - Matthew begins his Gospel account with Joseph's genealogy in Matthew 1:1-17. Just as Mary was chosen by God to become the mother of Jesus. Joseph was chosen by God to become Mary's husband and Jesus' stepfather. Verse seventeen says "thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah." Nothing God does is by coincidence or by happenstance. It is all carefully planned and orchestrated. Even though Joseph's lineage had no bearing on Jesus' actual birthright, it was no accident that Mary's parents betrothed her to this Joseph. If you only consider Jesus' earthly parents, the prophecy spoken in Genesis 8 that the Messiah would come from the line of Judah is still fulfilled. At just the right moment in time and with just the right chosen vessels, God provided the promised Messiah to redeem His people.
Merciful - Joseph was a man who knew the correct balance between justice and compassion. Matthew 1:19 describes Joseph's reaction when confronted with the knowledge of Mary's pregnancy. "Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly." Based on the Old Testament law which he followed; he could publicly humiliate her family but having her put to death for adultery. Nevertheless, even before God intervened within his dreams, Joseph had already decided. The definition of mercy is to show compassion or forgiveness toward someone whom it is within your power to punish or harm. Surely, he was hurt and likely bitter with the sting of betrayal, but he did not allow his emotions to direct his actions. He reacted based on his character and not on his feelings.
Obedient - As Matthew continues his narrative, we see three instances where Joseph met the angel of God in a dream. After each nighttime vision, Joseph immediately obeyed.
Matthew 1:20-23 tells of the first dream and in verse 24 & 25 Joseph's reaction, "When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus."
In Matthew 2:13, the angel again appears to Joseph in a dream and verse 14 records his reaction, "So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt". Several years go by and again Joseph has a dream where the angel of the Lord directs him to leave Egypt and go back to Israel.
In Matthew 2:21 Joseph immediately obeys God, " So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel."
In each instance, he did exactly what the angel of the Lord directed him to do. Without hesitation and without alteration. He did not rationalize the directive. He didn't misconstrue the directive. He didn't weigh his choices. He just acted in faith based on what God told him to do. He obeyed fully without regard to the cost of his obedience.
"Cancel culture" is not a modern phenomenon. Joseph's choices were likely the topic of many whispered conversations and disapproving stares in his community. Being shunned and rejected by friends and neighbors is never easy. Being followers of God, we often must choose to live differently from our friends and neighbors.
It is often hard to know with certainty our place and purpose in the Grand Narrative that God is writing. As we pause to look at Joseph's life, we see an ordinary man that God used for an extraordinary purpose. Joseph simply acted out of a character which was already established by his daily faith in God. Our daily actions are also decided by our character and our character is cultivated by our daily pursuit of Jesus. As we spend time in the Word and in prayer, we grow towards maturity in our faith and our character. Our role is to seek Him and glorify Him. Thankfully, Psalm 138:8 says God will take care of our place in the Grand Narrative -
"The LORD will fulfill His purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD endures forever…"
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