First Presbyterian Church of Salt Lake City

December 18, 2011

Introduction

   Sometimes with great surprise and blessing, and sometimes with challenges we find hard to understand, God has a way of “sticking his nose” into our business. I hope that isn’t too irreverent, but that’s what he does. Joseph and Mary were a young, betrothed, devout Jewish couple living in a large village 80 miles north of Jerusalem (kind of like living in Brigham City or Logan, Utah). I’d imagine they were looking forward to a simple life together with children and family in their familiar surroundings. That’s about all we know about them until God sent his messenger, the angel Gabriel to “stick his nose” in their business.
   Last Sunday we heard from Luke chapter 1 as Gabriel made the “annunciation” to Mary. There is some evidence that Jewish women wondered, wished or prayed that they might become the mother of the promised Messiah. Mary hears the startling message that she would become pregnant and give birth to a son who would be the Messiah/Savior.
   This week we hear from Matthew chapter 1 as Joseph discovers that his betrothed, his promised bride is with child. This reminded me and some others of an old Bill Cosby routine about Noah (see YouTube Bill Cosby – Noah)…
   I think it’s fine to imagine the conversations and interactions between Mary and Joseph, with the angel, with their respective families and how this all played out in their life in Nazareth, their trip to Bethlehem, their fleeing to Egypt and their return to Nazareth to raise their little boy Jesus.

I. Joseph – Confronted with a Problem

   Matthew writes: “This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit…” (Right!?!).
   “Mary, who did you meet when you went to visit your cousin Elizabeth in the hill country… No one! I’m telling you: God’s angel told me that I would become pregnant by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit!” (Right!?!).
   And yet it was so. Joseph needed to be convinced of this truth just as Mary already was – she was pregnant and was still a virgin. (In all the wrangling debate, the acceptance or rejection of “the virgin birth,” Mary is the only one who could verify it – and she did).
   You may be facing new circumstances in your life, some of them planned, others surprising. Changes or problems in your family life, struggles with being single or single again, dealing with health issues, facing the holidays with the loss of a loved one, or intensified financial worries. Most of us can shake our heads “yes” for ourselves or our children, for our friends or family.

II. Joseph’s Solution

Matthew then shares with us Joseph’s solution. “Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.”
After some careful thought, Joseph knew what he had to do. He wanted to do what was right. So he was prepared to take the social shame upon himself. Maybe he knew Bono and U2’s song Grace. “Grace, he takes the blame, he covers the shame, removes the stain, it could be his name.” A foreshadowing of the Messianic child to come!
“As Joseph did not want to expose Mary to disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.” Of all the options, based on his own understanding, this one seemed best to Joseph. But not to God.

III. The Plan is Emmanuel: God with Us

   “But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream (Joseph, I know you have given all of this serious thought, but so had God!) and said, “Joseph son of David (Joseph, don’t you know that the Messiah will be born into the family of David according to the prophets?), do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife (the angel told Zechariah not to fear, Mary not to fear, the shepherds not to fear – “for perfect love casts out fear – I John 4:18), because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit (Joseph, don’t you know that God is at work in your life? That these circumstances don’t “just happen?”). She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus (“God saves” – who Jesus essentially is and what Jesus existentially does; Jesus is God incarnate and Jesus saves), because he will save his people from their sins.”
   Making decisions based on our own understanding, our own wisdom, our own opinion without the framework of God’s will can lead to faulty ones. God’s word, revealed to us in the Bible serves as the basis for understanding what is going on in our lives. If you don’t read and hear the Scriptures, if you remain biblically ignorant or illiterate, you will miss out on God’s way of handling new or changing circumstances in your life.
“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means “God is with us”).
   In my channel surfing one night this past week, I came across the last half hour of Charlie Brown’s Christmas, now a classic Christmastime animation. Linus finally steps up to let Charlie Brown know the true meaning of Christmas. He gently and beautifully recites from the Gospel of Luke chapter two. “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior which is Christ the Lord.” Christ is the Messiah, Jesus is the One who saves us, Emmanuel is God with us.
   Christmas is the beginning of knowing God personally, knowing his name. When you or I just want to call out to God in praise, we say, “Jesus.” When we pray with joy or sorrow, with our faith or with our doubts, we can say, “Jesus.” The apostle Paul writes in Colossians 3, “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus.” In Romans 10 he quotes Scripture and preaches it: “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” His name is Jesus.
IV. Saying Okay to God
   Lastly, “When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.”
   Joseph had a decision to make. And so do we. He changed his mind based on the word of God, the message of the angel. All of his questions were not yet answered. Certainly problems lay ahead. Mary’s pregnancy before marriage would become humiliating to them both. Why should the Gospel begin on such a scandalous note? How embarrassing! Here in Matthew’s Gospel, he shows us at the very beginning that God’s righteousness is not our righteousness; God’s ways are not our ways.
   Joseph chose to live in God’s revealed way. So did Mary. She had said okay to God: “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.” And now Joseph says okay to God. “He did what the Lord had commanded him to do.”
   God’s plan was fulfilled. Jesus was born in the lineage of David. Emanuel has come. Jesus is born into our lives by faith in his name through the work of the Holy Spirit. God is with us.
   You and I are called to live in God’s ways as well. His purpose for your life and mine is unfolding. Are you paying attention this Christmas?

Conclusion

Matthew chapter 1 teaches us the doctrine of God by giving the account of Jesus’ birth into this world. With his name, with his names, to know God is surely the most important knowledge. John Calvin, the founder of the Presbyterian way of being a church, wrote this back in the 1500s; he could have written it today. He said, “Today, all sorts of subjects are eagerly pursued; but the knowledge of God is neglected… Yet to know God is our chief end, and justifies our existence. Even if a hundred lives were ours, this one aim would be sufficient for them all.” Christmas is God’s calling to us to know him through Jesus Christ his Son, our Lord.
Let us pray together.