God Told Him

04.14.12

Matthew 1.21 21 "She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

First the obvious: dreams, and guys named Joseph. In the Old Testament in the beginning was a man named Joseph who wasn’t the firstborn of the family but the eleventh born. He didn’t have the birthright that was normally given to the firstborn – but later he did. He was the most beloved of all the sons. And he had dreams of deliverance. At first it was his dreams that caused friction between him and his other brothers and even with his father but in the end, his dreams vindicated him and the whole family was saved.

So, centuries later in the land promised to them by God was another guy named Joseph who was a dreamer. His dreams were not for others but for himself – not that he dreamed for himself, but that’s the way God got the message across to him that he was part of a much, much bigger story. He wanted to divorce his betrothed because she was – surprise! – pregnant; and not by him. So, he was going to do what he felt he should do but God told him in a dream, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1.21b-22 NASB)

Now the not-so-obvious: Joseph: I know your name and know who you are. God knows us whether or not we know Him. Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. God knows our circumstances and how we feel about them. He knows how to handle the thorny details and that we should trust Him with them: “…for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit (Me).” God takes full responsibility for the difficult things in our lives because He controls them and provides for us in them. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” God uses people to help His people. God has a place for all of us in His plan. And His plan is the redemption of all mankind.

Sometimes, the tough times in life are there to help us look up and see the bigger picture. Sometimes, the circumstances in life are there to help us to cry out to God for help and deliverance. Jesus was the Focus of God’s plan which also included Joseph and Mary and the circumstances around her pregnancy and the impending marriage. What do you do at your bachelor party when you discover your fiancée is pregnant by someone else? Worth thinking about…

Joseph (the second) may also have been a dreamer who dreamed of the deliverance of Israel from Roman occupation. Maybe this baby thing helped him to see that God was concerned about that too – maybe that thought came home to Joseph when God said, “…for He will save His people from their sins.” Maybe Joseph thought about his own sins. Just saying.

God is in the deliverance business and has extended a hand of help to everyone who will accept His hand. Some do, some don’t; some will, some won’t. Joseph understood and did despite what everyone else thought – they could do the math. And Jesus saved God’s people from their sins – at least the ones who put their faith in Him. It’s the big picture that matters and God will help us through the thorny details to see it; like Joseph, we just need to trust Him.