Joseph Finally Gets It

Matthew 1:18-25

“18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means God with us). 24 When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the Angel of the Lord commanded: he took her as his wife. 25 But he knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.”

Deut. 22: 23-24

“If there is a betrothed virgin, and a man meets her in the city and lies with her, then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them to death with stones, the young woman because she did not cry for help though she was in the city, and the man because he violated his neighbor’s wife. So, you shall purge the evil from your midst.”

Isaiah 7:14

“14 Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign: See, the virgin will conceive, have a son, and name him Immanuel.”

“Christ’s birth fulfills the prophecy of Isa. 7:14. Read Isa. 7 very carefully. Ahaz was about to be attacked by Rezin, King of Syria, and Pekah, King of Israel. The Lord sent Isaiah to encourage Ahaz (7:1–9) and to give Ahaz a sign. Ahaz acted very pious and refused the sign. So, God gave the sign to the whole house of David, not just to Ahaz (see 7:13). The sign is the birth of Immanuel (“God with us”) to the virgin mother. This sign had nothing to do with Ahaz at that time. In Isa. 8, God gave Ahaz His sign, using the child of Isaiah to do this. (Note: the Heb. word in Isa. 7:14, and the Gk. word in Matt. 1:23, can only mean virgin.)[1]” (Wiersbe’s Expository of the New Testament)

Luke 1:26-56

“26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” 29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. 30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” 34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” 35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. 36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to you word.” And the angel departed from her. 39 In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.” And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.”

In the time that Mary was with her cousin, which was about three months, she had developed with Christ inside her. With Joseph being unaware of what had transpired with the angel Gabriel. In Jewish law he was in every right to stone her, but this is where we really see the character of Joseph. Before he went to go divorce her quietly, his eyes were opened to the amazing and perfect plan that God had for him and Mary, by raising His Son Jesus Christ.

The fulfillment of the prophecy of Christ birth was something amazing and it continues to show God’s perfect plan and how we can completely trust in His plan for our lives and that through His Son and His Holy Spirit, we have a Father in heaven who loves us and cares for us. The trust that Joseph shows in this moment that God had a plan for both him and Mary, was made clear by the how Christ was born and for the life that He lived.

By Joseph not consummating the marriage until after Christ birth, it aloud the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy to come true, that Mary would be the virgin mother of the messiah Christ Jesus. Timing is so important when it comes to understanding who God is and why things happen the way they do.

“Let us look to the circumstances under which the Son of God entered into this lower world, till we learn to despise the vain honors of this world, when compared with piety and holiness. The mystery of Christ’s becoming man is to be adored, not curiously inquired into. It was so ordered that Christ should partake of our nature, yet that he should be pure from the defilement of original sin, which has been communicated to all the race of Adam. Observe, it is the thoughtful, not the unthinking, whom God will guide. God’s time to come with instruction to his people, is when they are at a loss. Divine comforts most delight the soul when under the pressure of perplexed thoughts. Joseph is told that Mary should bring forth the Savior of the world. He was to call his name Jesus, a Savior. Jesus is the same name with Joshua. And the reason of that name is clear, for those whom Christ saves, he saves from their sins, from the guilt of sin by the merit of his death, and from the power of sin by the Spirit of his grace. In saving them from sin, he saves them from wrath and the curse, and all misery, here and hereafter. Christ came to save his people, not in their sins, but from their sins; and so, to redeem them from among men, to himself, who is separate from sinners. Joseph did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, speedily, without delay, and cheerfully, without dispute. By applying the general rules of the written word, we should in all the steps of our lives, particularly the great turns of them, take direction from God, and we shall find this safe and comfortable.” (Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Bible)

The stage was being set perfectly for what had to be done. Christ arrival gave us the perfect example of this timing, it had to be with a virgin birth, it had to be at a time when Israel was a madhouse of sorts, when there was a power over them that they begged for a savior, but one came that they did not expect and he arrived was in a manner in which they did not predict or the did not want to understand because they have removed the idea from the book of Daniel and Isaiah's of who the coming Messiah was going to be. As we see this, we understand it more Christ arrival was in God's perfect timing and in God's perfect will in all things it shows us the majesty in which he works things. As we continue on with the study of Christ, I want us to always understand this in all things God has laid out a marvelous plan that is only to better us, to draw us closer, but also to show us that He is in complete control in all things.