THE INCREDIBLE BELIEF OF JOSEPH
So far in this series, we have seen the fantastic complexity of the greatest event in History and some of the astonishing acts of belief and unbelief that were involved in it.
We saw the origins of Christmas, beginning with God’s prophecy to the evil one in the Garden of Eden and the more than four hundred prophecies throughout the Old Testament regarding Jesus. We discovered that the odds of just eight of those coming true in one man’s life was ten to the seventh power to one. That is ten, followed by seven zeros.
We learned about the appearance of Gabriel, the messenger of God, and his prophecies to Zachariah, the high priest, and Mary, the young shepherd girl. We saw the positive and negative power of their belief and unbelief. We discussed the flabbergasting, stunning miracle of the meeting of Elizabeth and Mary.
Now, let’s look at an often overlooked and vital member of the cast of people involved in entrance into the world of God in a flesh suit. Joseph!
NOTE: Jesus was God in the flesh. (John 1:1 and 14, John 14:7)
Most of us never think about Joseph. We see him as the guy standing beside Mary in the Nativity scene. We consider him a background guy, insignificant except as Mary’s travel guide.
But hold on just a second. Let’s take a deeper look at this much-ignored hero of faith. As you read this, put yourself in Joseph’s shoes and try to see the events through his eyes.
A little background: We know very little about Joseph except that he was a carpenter, probably apprenticed to his father. We can presume that at the time of the birth of Jesus, he might have been between eighteen and twenty years old. He fell in love with and became engaged to a young girl from his village of Nazareth.
Nazareth was a tiny village near the shore of the Sea of Galilee in the heart of the most impoverished part of Israel. The people were fishermen, tradesmen, shepherds, and such.
The tradition of that day was that engagements were long and approved in advance by both families. The groom would have to wait until the bride was mature physically before the marriage took place and was consummated.
We find Joseph in these circumstances when Gabriel appeared to Mary, the Holy Spirit came upon her, and she became pregnant with Jesus.
Here is Matthew’s report of what happened:
“Now the birth of Jesus took place under these circumstances: When His mother Mary had been promised in marriage to Joseph before they came together, she was found to be pregnant of the Holy Spirit.
Her promised husband Joseph, being a just and upright man and not willing to expose her publicly and to shame and disgrace her, decided to divorce her quietly and secretly.
Imagine the conversation between Mary and Joseph. “So let me get this straight Mary. You say you are pregnant with the Son of God and that you got pregnant by the Holy Spirit hovering over you? Right. And of all of the women in the world that God could have chosen, he chose you? That’s your story and you are sticking to it?”
So, Joseph’s initial response was to do as we all would: judge and condemn Mary. He believed that she had had relations with another man and that he must set her free.
He must have been terrified of what the families, friends, and neighbors would think when they found out that Mary was pregnant. Indeed, he must have known they would blame him for having relations with her before marriage. The situation would make them both outcasts.
Jesus taught us that the evil one would use four primary weapons against us: The lust for other things (pursuing anything, including sex, money, relationships, power, etc, before God and His Word). The cares of this world (item number one, the most poisonous of all fears, the fear of what other people think of us.) The pride of life (believing that this life is more important than our eternal lives and placing its importance above God.) The deceitfulness of riches (making the pursuit of money more important than the pursuit of God. God wants us to be prosperous and wealthy. He does not condemn wealth. The problem is placing money above God in our priorities.)
I have seen people die and reject the salvation of Jesus because of the fear of what other people think. People are afraid to publicly acknowledge Jesus because of the fear of what other people think. People refuse to accept, teach, and walk in the promises of Jesus because of the fear of what other people think. People hide their beliefs from those around them because they fear what other people think. People set aside and do not receive the great and precious promises of Jesus because of the fear of what other people think.
Jesus told us that if we do not acknowledge Him before men, He will not acknowledge us before His Father. Yet, many believers are ashamed to talk about Jesus, much less teach His entire unedited Gospel. The fear of others and what they think is incredibly powerful.
The evil one has taught us that we must be politically, culturally, and socially correct at all costs. The evil one, has taught us that above all, we should never offend others by publicly stating our belief in Jesus and His teachings.
Back to Joseph, who is reacting to the situation with his flesh mind and not considering it from a spiritual perspective.
“But as he was thinking this over, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
She will bear a Son, and you shall call his name Jesus (This is the Greek translation of the Hebrew Yeshua, or Joshua, which means God’s salvation.), for He will save His people from their sins.
All this took place that it might be fulfilled which the Lord had spoken through the prophet Isaiah, Pay attention, a virgin shall become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel which, which translated means, GOD WITH US. (My favorite name for Jesus)
Then Joseph, being aroused from his sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him: he took her to his side as his wife. But he had no union with her as her husband until she had borne her firstborn Son and called His name Jesus.”
(Matthew 1:18-25)
Joseph could very easily have dismissed the command of the angel. He could have considered the dream just that, a dream, and ignored it. Joseph still could have dropped Mary like a hot rock. He easily could have called nonsense on the angel, just like Zachariah. He didn’t! HE BELIEVED!
And because Joseph’s belief was so strong, he was willing to accept the consequences of marrying a pregnant girl. He was willing to face the friends, relatives, and neighbors who would certainly never believe the truth. He was willing to sacrifice the scrutiny of the people, their judgment, and condemnation of them and the child and their rejection.
In other words, Joseph was more concerned about God’s acceptance than the acceptance of people. Joseph’s behavior is a shining example of how we, as “believers,” should react to the promises of Jesus.
All of this took place because of the words that Gabriel spoke to Mary about how she and her old barren relative Elizabeth became pregnant.
“FOR WITH GOD NOTHING IS EVER IMPOSSIBLE AND NO WORD FROM GOD SHALL BE WITHOUT POWER OF IMPOSSIBLE OF FULFILLMENT.”
(LUKE 1:37)
Here are scriptures reporting the great and precious promises Jesus gave us for Christmas. As you meditate on them, ask yourself if you apply the same belief in them as Joseph believed the angel.
Jesus gave us the ability to become the “children of God.” (John 1:12)
Jesus has already given us ALL things that pertain to life and godliness, including His faith. (2Peter1:1-4)
All that is required of us to receive eternal life and all of Jesus’s promises is that we believe in Him. (John 3:16-18)
Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to live in us, lead us into all truth, and show us the things to come. (John 16:13)
Jesus forgave all our sins, past, present, and future, and put them entirely out of His memory.
(Psalms 103:1-3 and 12, Isaiah 53:4-5, Zephaniah 3:17, Matthew 1:21, Revelation 1:5, John 1:29, Hebrews 8:12, Hebrews 10:10-18)
Jesus healed every disease known and unknown by dying from them on the cross. (Psalm 103:1-3, Isaiah 53:4-5, Matthew 8:16-17)
Jesus gave us the power and ability to do the same things that He did and even greater things because He returned to His throne. (John 14: 12-14)
Jesus gave us the power to speak things in and out of existence. (Mark 11:22-24)
Jesus threw satan from heaven like a bolt of lightning and gave us dominion over him, his minions, and all his powers. (Luke 10:18)
Jesus gave us the ability to gain wealth. (Luke 6:38)
These are just a few of the “Great and Precious Promises of Jesus”. There are many more contained in His Gospel of “GOOD NEWS OF GREAT JOY, WHICH SHALL BE TO ALL PEOPLE.” Search them out.
A very Mary and Joseph Christmas to all!
END OF TEACHING
