Matthew 1:18-25: Do you believe?

Presented to each Nipawin and Tisdale Corps, 24 December 2007
Presented to CFOT chapel in Winnipeg, December 2006
By Captain Michael Ramsay
  
Click here to read the 2012 version: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2012/12/matthew-118-25-do-you-believe-in-dreams.html
  
Today, on this Christmas Eve, as we look forward to the joy of tomorrow: Christmas Day, the celebration of the incarnation and the advent and of Christ, let us for a moment focus on from our passage today, Joseph, the man, the husband of Mary.

Oh how it must have been for him. Oh how it must have been for him.

Pretend with me for a moment that you are he, pretend.

He was engaged to be married to Mary. They were one unit in everyone’s eyes.

The problem is that they have not become one yet ‘in the Biblical sense’

And Mary – and Mary is now pregnant.

Really – two questions arise.

One, what to do? Joseph is just and merciful. He does not want to expose her to public disgrace. He does not want her to die – because that is what will happen if she is exposed in this way – he does not want her to die.

He also does not have it in mind to fully marry her. He has done nothing wrong and this would be a tacit admission of guilt. What should he do? What would you do?

He comes up with the idea to put her away quietly – sparing her life and his reputation BUT there is another question:

Whose is it? Should He believe the divine conception story? That God overshadowed her; would you?

Well he does and he has a lot of help in doing this…He has vivid dreams and Angels coming to visit him. So he does. He believes it.

So the first question arises again…what to do? Really! His betrothed is impregnated by God what should he do?

Does he deign to be the step-father to God’s own Son, the child-King? Does he hold himself so high? What can he do? He can’t be father to God’s son, can he? Could you?

Again, in Joseph’s dream, the angel tells him to marry Mary. The angel then tells him that he must name the boy Jesus for Jesus will save the people from there sins…

Now this all comes in a dream…in a dream…do you believe your dreams? Do you?
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Well Joseph does… it says that 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 faith and was faithful. As we offer our songs to the Lord today and as we read through the Holy Scriptures together please bear in mind the faith of Joseph.