Joseph’s Dilemma (Advent, December 2016)

JOSEPH'S DILEMMA

Text: Matthew 1:18-25

JOSEPH'S DILEMMA

Text: Matthew 1:18-25

Matthew 1:18-25  Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.  (19)  Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly.  (20)  But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  (21)  She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."  (22)  All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:  (23)  "Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel," which means, "God is with us."  (24)  When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife,  (25)  but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus (NRSV).

"There is the story told of a former governor of a southern state. During his college days, he took a summer job selling magazines. Somewhere in his travels, he met a lovely girl. He decided to ask her to be his wife. One moonlit evening, he found the proper time to propose. "Will you marry me?" he asked. "No!" she replied. "Well," he said quickly, "will you subscribe to my magazine?". (Ernest A. Fitzgerald. Keeping Pace: Inspirations In The Air. Greensboro: Pace Communications Inc., 1988, p. 24). Was the moment of his popping the question not romantic enough? How many times have we seen dramatic wedding proposals?

It has been said that “men who have pierced ears are better prepared for marriage. They have experienced pain before they bought jewelry”. (Lowell. D. Streiker. A Treasury of Humor. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 2000, p. 248). That was not a problem for Joseph but he did have some concerns.

Joseph's struggle was different in that he was struggling with whether or not to keep his commitment of betrothal and take Mary for his wife. Mary was with child. How could that be if she was a virgin? It happened by the supernatural means of the Holy Spirit as she carried our Lord, Jesus Christ in her womb.

Until Joseph understood what was going on, he was trying to figure out a way to get out of the commitment. The Bible says that he did not want to expose her and publicly disgrace her. He chose to divorce her quietly (Matthew 1:19). Unless we understand the Jewish custom of marriage in that day, the issue of divorce seems puzzling. This morning we will take a look at not only the Jewish custom concerning marriage, but also Joseph's dilemma, and Joseph's message.

JOSEPH'S ENGAGEMENT TO MARY

How do you feel about pre-arranged marriages?

1) Foreign to most of us: Pre-arranged marriages could be worked out by the parents of the children or a matchmaker.

2) Matchmakers: If you have ever seen the musical, "Fiddler On The Roof", then you can recall the song "Matchmaker" and also see something of its Jewish background acted out on stage. I observed this cultural trait as an actor (the constable) in a Rock Hill Community Theatre production of Fiddler on the Roof back in 1987.

Do you remember when you got engaged?

1) Custom: Betrothal lasted a year which is synonymous with an engagement in our culture. (William Barclay). The only difference is that the time period of the engagement varies.

2) Druthers: A girl could refuse the betrothal threshold, but once that threshold was crossed it was binding. (William Barclay).

3) Totally committed: By this time, the couple was considered to be husband and wife, with the exception of the rights of marriage. (William Barclay). Betrothal equaled marriage, with the exception of living together which was not done until after the ceremony.

Marriage was made official after a year (Barclay).

1) At the end of betrothal, the actual wedding took place (Barclay).

2) Jewish wedding ceremonies were held in either the houses of the bride (Genesis 29:22) or groom (Matthew 22), (Barbara Jurgensen).

3) The wedding feast that followed lasted for days. In fact, Judges 14;12 mentions a wedding feast that lasted for seven days (Jurgensen).

4) It was only after the ceremony that the couple could consummate their marriage.

JOSEPH'S DILEMMA

Did Joseph suffer from cautionary reluctance?

1) Suspicions: When Joseph saw that Mary was with child, it appears that he suspected adultery.