I'm Dreaming of a ...

MT 1:19-25 The Most Wonderful Time of the Year: I'm Dreaming about a ... Doug Partin - The Christian Church - 12/13/2020 It's that time of year again. Time to watch a few Hallmark romantic Christmas movies to get into the spirit of things. And if you do, you'll be one of about 100 million people who do. They are sweet, moral, boy meets girl and fall in love stories, set in small towns. There are the predictable struggles that nearly break them up, but in the end, they are drawn closer together, and find true love. In looking on the internet to discover if any one posted why they like to watch these predictable movies, I found a reoccurring them. Escapism. One person wrote. "I wanted to not look at or think about anything political, sad, ugly, mean, nasty, stupid or ignorant...just for those 90 minutes." There are a lot of people who want to "suspend their belief" in our dog eat dog world that is full of disease, death, deception, anxiety, anger, heart ache and headaches; to imagine a place where people care about each other, and show up to help one another, and are willing to accept one another for who they are, and who have faith and hope for better days ahead. I have to admit, that I like stories that leave you with a good feeling as well. But you don't have to suspend belief to find it. You can discover it in the Church, in people who are following Jesus, and you can find it in the original romantic Christmas story, for it too is a sweet love story with a happy ending; not only does it reveal God's love for the world, but Joseph and Mary's love for one another. I'm sure that you noticed how Luke identified Joseph as Mary's husband. Yes, they were at this point in the story, only "betrothed," but according to ancient Judaic marriage customs, he would have been, even at that point in their relationship, considered Mary's husband in a legal sense even though they had not yet, according to Luke, "known" each other. So, Luke's use of "husband" and "wife," while sounding out of order to us, strengthens the argument that Luke presents a trustworthy, historical account of how things really were back then. Whether Joseph did not yet know or did not yet accept Mary's explanation of why she was "found to be with child," his plan, as described in verse 19, to send her away, was based on his conclusion that there was only one reasonable explanation for her situation - another man had been involved. That is how it usually works, which we explored from Mary's perspective last week. The Law of Moses contains several scenarios about how this exact same situation might have come about, and another man is always involved. It revealed what would be the right thing to do in each one of those situations. I'm not going to list them all, but you can look them up in the 22nd chapter of Deuteronomy, if you are interested. I will tell you that the only response that did not end with the death of the woman, if she were betrothed, was if another man forced himself on her, and she had cried out for help, but no one came to her rescue. If you are not too familiar with that section of the Law, it also called for the man involved in these less than ideal scenarios to be put to death as well (Deut. 22:13 ff). What the Law of Moses prescribed for Mary and Joseph's situation is not how we would handle things today. We would not encourage Joseph to pick up the first stone to cast at Mary. Nor would we encourage anyone else to do so. After all, that is not how Jesus handled the "woman caught in the very act of adultery" as described in John 8:1-11. The Scribes and Pharisees who brought her before Jesus should have brought the man too; but they were not really interested in doing the right thing, they just wanted to force Jesus to respond to her situation in a way that they could claim was the wrong way to handle it. They wanted to show that Jesus' way was not God's way. Jesus told them, "He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." And they, beginning with the older ones, left, one by one, until it was only Jesus and the accused. He asked her, "Where are they? Did not one condemn you?" And she, said "No one, Lord." Jesus, who knew that He would pay the price for her sin on the cross that she, as well as anyone else, might be forgiven of their sin, said, "I do not condemn you either, go and sin no more." Then He immediately said, "I am the light of the world." And His light, His love and mercy, His forgiveness of sin, continues to shine today. It is what creates those happy endings that we enjoy so much. Luke tells us that Joseph was a "righteous" man, that is, he was prone to do what the Law of Moses directed him to do; but he was also compassionate. He truly loved Mary very much. And that is why he did not want to expose her. But he couldn't see how their situation was going to end well. Instead of doing what the Law allowed, Joseph swallowed his pride and the feelings of betrayal that burned within him, and decided to divorce her quietly. The term translated "considered" or "decided" in verse 20 literally meant "to be full of heat." It is only used in two places in the New Testament. Here, describing how Joseph felt; and when Jesus was said to have blasphemed because He told a paralytic, "Take courage, your sins are forgiven." Jesus asked those accusing Him of doing something wrong, "why are you full of evil's heat in your hearts?" They didn't have an answer, so Jesus told the paralytic to get up and walk and he did. Which Jesus said proved that He had authority on earth to forgive sins. (Mat. 9:1-8) If there is any "Christmas magic" it is Jesus' authority to forgive sins, which is the whole reason He came in the first place. Even His name, Jesus, (which means God saves), was given to Him because "He would save His people from their sins." (Mt. 1:21) There is no question, because of the words that Luke chose to use, that Joseph's emotions burned within him. He was in turmoil. He really did believe that sending Mary away was the best thing he could possibly do for her. And, if you are wondering, the term translated "send away," was their same word for divorce. Joseph had a plan, but it is not what he really wanted to do, which is why his head was spinning with emotion. I'm not sure how, but he still managed to fall asleep later that night, perhaps from emotional exhaustion. He did not "dream of a white Christmas," of those good times he and Mary once enjoyed, which would have been fond memories; but he dreamed of something even better. He dreamed of an answer to his dilemma - a righteous way forward, that had a happy ending. There appeared in his dream that night an angel, who delivered the better plan. While angels are known for saying "don't be afraid," when they show up, because their abrupt presence and evident power was startling, Joseph was told "not to be afraid" of letting Mary continue to be his wife. Jesus once said that His disciples were not to fear those who could kill the body but were unable to kill the soul. Instead, they were to fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. (Mt. 10:28). It would be better for us to obey God out of love; but if fear is what motivates us; than we need to understand that we have more to fear in regard to what God could do to us, than what a man could do to us. Make no mistake about it, Joseph was afraid of what some men might do to Mary if they found out. And they would do it while believing that they were following God's law. However, if Joseph obeyed what the angel revealed to him in his dream, he would have to put up with what those same men would likely say about him. They would, at minimum, accuse Joseph of being the man who had been involved with Mary and was only agreeing with her "Holy Spirit overshadowed me" story to cover up their own unrighteousness. Or at worst, they might say that he was a fool for accepting Mary's outlandish tale and would, because of his love for her, be ignoring her betrayal and raising another man's child. A shameful thing in their eyes. But regardless of what these men might say, Joseph feared God more. What would God say about him if he did not accept what the angel told him? Only an unrighteous, faithless man ignores a clear message from God. Yes, following God's plan was the best. Yes, what the angel said had affirmed what Mary had surely told him. It was convenient, but she too had been visited by an angel. They ended up on the same page because there was only one author, God. Joseph would, like Mary, be raising God's Son, the promised Messiah, who would save God's people from their sins. He would raise Jesus, Emmanuel, the God who is "with us." And they did well. When Joseph awoke, he did exactly what the angel had commanded him. He and Mary continued on their journey from that point in their betrothal into full marriage, but, Luke points out, Joseph did not "know" Mary until she gave birth to a Son, and he named Him, Jesus. That doesn't mean that Joseph never knew Mary. They were in love, and it was expressed between each other. In fact, we are told that Jesus had brothers and sisters. So, they ended up with a large family; which was, back in those days, a very happy ending. Following God's Will for our lives is often a struggle. It drags us through moral dilemmas that we once felt sure we knew how to navigate. We have to let go of our "legalistic understandings" and embrace God's way. Jesus said that His way, was the way of love. If you are looking to God's word for direction, and you end up with a plan that is not one of love, then you have probably misunderstood what it is that God is commanding. If we hope to do the right thing in our own lives, we must, like Joseph, embrace the law of love, and not some legalistic, human, twisting of it. The apostle John said, "This is His command, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us." (1 John 3:23) I believe that the real difference between people in America is not between conservatives and liberals, black and white, or Republicans and Democrats. The real difference is between the aware and the unaware. When somebody is made aware of the love that God has expressed for the world, that person has their life changed. And they begin to love others, just as they have been loved. And the unaware will continue to seek a way to escape a world of hate, even if only for a few minutes in a Hallmark Christmas movie. But I hope that they escape it forever by encountering the original romantic Christmas story. It is good news that God loves us enough to send His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him might have eternal life. Prayer: Lord, like Joseph, we long to do what is right. Help us recognize Your voice, and follow Your commands. Amen.