Sermon Tone Analysis
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Chad Bockius - an author and coach shared this story:
It was the summer before my freshman year of high school.
My brother, Derrick, was a few years ahead of me and picked up this crazy sport, called pole vaulting.
Before school began, he got me out on the track and taught me.
From that day on, I couldn’t get enough.
In high school, I was a goalie, a wrestler and a pole vaulter.
By the end of my sophomore year I knew I had to give up wrestling.
I had a goal to break the school record of 14′ 6″.
To do it, I would need to train during the winter so I could perform in the spring.
📷📷
And train I did.
I hired a strength coach to make sure I was strong enough.
I ate a strict diet to make sure my body was ready.
I did vaulting exercises every day after school to make movements a habit.
I attended a pole vaulters camp at the University of Kansas, home to some of the best vaulters.
I loved everything about the sport, and I gave everything I had to reach my goals.
Fast forward to my senior year.
I was making good progress, but the season was coming to an end.
At this point everyone knew what I was trying to do, even the local newspapers.
📷📷
I was fortunate enough to win the last meet going into the State finals.
This was going the be the last track meet of my career.
It was the last chance I would have to break the record.
I was confident going into the meet.
I cleared 14′ 6″ in practice, but never in an official meet.
It came time for me to jump.
The weather was gloomy and wet.
There was a wind blowing right into us as we ran down the track.
I made the decision to start jumping around 13′ so I could conserve my energy and clear 14′ 6″.
I started down the track, slid the pole into the box, lifted off and knocked the cross bar down.
Fault #1.
On my second attempt, everything felt good.
I repeated the same process, had good form and got the same result.
Fault #2.
On my third attempt, I knew I had to clear it or I was out of the competition.
I put my head down, sprinted towards my target, flew through the air and landed with a thud.
Fault #3.
Game over.
I was out of the competition, without clearing my opening vault.
No state medal.
No school record.
The look of disappointment
I remember walking to the car with everyone looking at me, wondering what to say.
I spoke first.
The one thing I remember saying was, “If this is the worst thing that ever happens to me in life, I will be OK.”
Disappointments happen to all of us as some point in time.
Sometime it’s a longed for goal that simply never happens.
Disappointment can also come when our expectations are not met - whether it’s a meal, an event, a sermon, a text message....
How we respond to disappointment can make a huge difference.
Today, as we continue looking at various characters that are part of the Christmas story, we get to Joseph - a man of few words and great disappointments.
If you have your Bible, please open it to as we look at Joseph and how he dealt with disappointment.
Before we really dissect Joseph’s response to the disappointments that he faced, I think it would be good to begin by...
Understanding Marriage in the Middle East
For years I’ve read the story of Joseph and Mary as being one of love - teenagers who were rapt in love.
But I think I read and thought about this wrong.
There may have been some love and some passion, but there was also business.
In the Middle East during this time, many marriages would have been arranged.
Parents of the groom and the bride would have had an agreement.
The groom would pay a price for the bride, commencing the betrothal period.
Often, he would go off to prepare the home for them.
During this time, they were considered husband and wife, but were not allowed to sleep together.
This was a time of testing to ensure that she did not get pregnant.
It was a time for them to prove their fidelity to each other.
Unlike our modern engagements which are quite easy legally to break apart - a betrothal could only be severed by a divorce (ESVSB, 1821).
After the home was prepared, a multiple day marriage celebration would take place to complete the betrothal and start the marriage officially.
So as we look at this scenario, we see Joseph - likely preparing a home for his bride-to-be when he learns that she is pregnant.
What a disappointment!
At this point, he has several options before him.
There are a few things that Joseph does in this little scene that we can learn from.
He did not always to what was in his power to do, but consistently chose another way.
There are a few things that Joseph does in this little scene that we can learn from.
He did not always to what was in his power to do, but chose another way.
First of all, we see that Joseph chose...
Mercy over Justice
In verse 19, Matthew refers to Joseph as a just man.
What does this mean?
According to OT law - Joseph would have had every right to have Mary put to death - that would be just.
The law dictated a sure punishment for this kind of supposed infidelity, and yet Joseph did not choose that.
The Bible says that he resolved to divorce her quietly.
But is that just?
Kenneth Bailey suggests that there could be a couple of ways to consider justice.
Justice could be thought of as “retributive justice” - which is essentially getting back at someone for harming you.
This kind of justice would likely have cost Mary her life.
Another way of thinking about justice could be an “equal application of law” - in this case there is an expectation that the law would apply equally to everyone.
“I pay my taxes, you must pay yours.”
Joseph seems to end up with a different solution.
For Joseph, justice seems to mean “compassion for the weak and exhausted.”
(Bailey, 44).
Instead of choosing to put her to death, or even to put her to shame, Joseph’s mercifully just choice is to put her out quietly.
I think he knows that life would be hard for her, but in their honor/shame culture, he did not want to make the departure worse than it needed to be.
For Joseph, this solution was the merciful solution.
The ESV Study Bible notes:
Joseph intended to maintain his personal righteousness, yet he desired to show compassion even though Mary appeared to be an adulteress.
Joseph intended to maintain his personal righteousness, yet he desired to show compassion even though Mary appeared to be an adulteress.
So Joseph was just, but he did so by showing mercy.
In addition to choosing mercy over justice, Joseph chose...
Obedience over Expedience
So the Bible says that when Joseph heard that Mary was pregnant, that he decided to divorce her quietly.
Then it says
Fuming - (look at the greek for considered)
Kenneth Bailey, author of the book Jesus through Middle Eastern Eyes, does a great job helping his readers understand middle eastern cultural elements that may get passed western readers.
In commenting on the life of Joseph - Bailey focused on the word that is translated “considered.”
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