St. Matthew 1:18-25
Topic: How to be the J-U-S-T Man
In Matthew 1:19 it says that Joseph was a "just" man. He was a J-U-S-T Man. So the question that we need to ask ourselves is, What does it means to be a just man? What does it mean to be a J-U-S-T Man?
Now according to the dictionary definition of the word just, to be just means to be honorable and fair in your dealings with other people. To be just means to be consistent with what is morally right. Also, to be just means to have a good character and good morals.
Now the bible has many scriptures about being a just man. In Habbakuk 2:4, Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11, and Hebrews 10:38 says that the "just shall live by faith."
But the question is still being asked, What does it mean to be a J-U-S-T Man?
Now to understand what it means to be a J-U-S-T Man, a just man, we are going to look each letter in the word "just", and with each letter, we are going to learn what it means to be a J-U-S-T Man, a just man or what it means to be a "just" woman, just teenager, a just boy, and a just girl.
1. To become a J-U-S-T man, it means to become a man who has been Justified by God. To become justified by God means to be in a right relationship with God. Now, in order to be in a right relationship with God, we must have our sins forgiven and washed away because it is our sins that separates us from God. And to have our sins forgiven and washed away, we must believe and receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior because Jesus Christ himself said that I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no man can come to the Father, that is, no man can come or enter into a right relationship with God, and be justified by God except you come through Jesus Christ.
Romans 5:1 says, "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Galatians 2:16 says, "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ; and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified."
Galatians 3:11 says, "that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident, for the just shall live by faith."
So we see here that Joseph was a just man because he was a man who lived by faith. He was a man who trusted in God, and if you want to be a J-U-S-T Man, you got to put your trust in the Lord.
2. To be a J-U-S-T Man means to be a man who is Upright. To be an upright man means to be a man who has a good and a respectable reputation. It means to be a man who has good morals and a good character. It means to be a man who lives right, talk right, think right, and act right. To be a upright man means to be a man who has integrity, someone who is truthful and honest. To be upright man means to help those who are less fortunate, to help those who are in need. It means to be a man who is determined to live right for God, and to live right by others.
Psalms 37:37 says, "Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright, for the end of that man is peace.
Proverbs 14:2 says, " He that walketh in his uprightness feareth the Lord, but he that is perverse in his ways despiseth him."
Isaiah 26:7 says, "The way of the just is uprightness, thou most upright dost weigh the path of the just."
Joseph was a just man because he was an upright man who feared God, who had a good and respectable reputation, who was determined to live right for God, and to do right by his fellow man. And if you want to be a J-U-S-T Man, you have to be a man who fears God, a man who will determined to live right for God, and to do right by his fellow man.
But to be a upright man does not mean that you will be a perfect man for in Ecclesiastes 7:20 says, "For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not." Then in Proverbs 24:16 says, "For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again; but the wicked shall fall into mischief."
But an upright man, when he realizes that he has sinned against God and against his fellow man, he will repent of the sin, confess the sin, and ask God forgiveness and he will also ask for forgiveness from the person whom he has offended. (I John 1:9).
3. To be a J-U-S-T man means to be a man who is Sanctified to serve the Lord for His purpose, and for His service . To be sanctified means to be set apart by God for His purpose and for His service. Just as God had set apart or sanctified Mary to be the mother of Jesus; just as God has set apart or sanctified Joseph to be the earthly father of Jesus, God has set apart us for His purpose and for his service. You may not be sanctified by God like I have been sanctified, but you are still sanctified or set apart for God for His purpose and for His service. I may not be sanctified by God like you have been sanctified by God like you have been sanctified, but yet I too have been sanctified and set apart for God for His purpose and for His service.
I believe it says somewhere in Jeremiah 1:5 where it says, "Before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb, I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations."
Not only did God sanctified Joseph to be the earthly father of Jesus, but he also sanctified him to be a carpenter. In other words, God has blessed Joseph with a gift of building things for the glory of God. And guess what? God has blessed all of us with a gift to be used for the glory of God. You may not be able to build things like Joseph, but you still have a gift to be use for the glory of God. You may not be a father or mother of your own children like Joseph and Mary, but you still have a gift to be used for the glory of God.
4. To be a J-U-S-T man means to be a man who is Thoughtful on what pleases God. To be a man who is thoughtful on what pleases God is to be a man who thinks before he speaks.
To be a man who is thoughtful on what pleases God is to be a man who thinks before he acts.
To be a man who is thoughtful on what pleases God is to be a man who thinks before he reacts to certain things.
To be man who is thoughtful on what pleases God is to be a man who thinks things through before making any type of decisions.
Psalms 112:5 says "A good man sheweth favor and lendeth; he will guide his affairs with discretion." That is a good man will guide his affairs by using sound or wise judgment based upon what God's word says.
Proverbs 15:28 says, "The heart of the righteous studieth to answer, but the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things."
But to be a man who is thoughtful on what pleases God, you have to be man who meditates on the Word of God.
Psalms 119:9 says, "Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word."
Psalms 1:1-2 says, "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in this law doth he meditate day and night."
Joshua 1:8 says, This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein; for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous and then thou shalt have good success.
(Now), as we look at Matthew 1:18-25, we see Joseph being a thoughtful J-U-S-T Man. In Matthew 1:18-19, it says, "Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother, Mary was espoused ( or was engaged to be married) to Joseph, before they came together( before they got married, before they lived together, before they slept together), she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. (in other words, she was found pregnant out of wedlock with child of the Holy Ghost) Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example (that is, not willing to have her stoned to death for being pregnant out of wedlock according to Deuteronomy 22:23-24 because of his love for Mary), was minded to put her away."( that is, to divorce or end the engagement, cancel the wedding ceremony without public announcement or privately)"
But while he thought on these things.........
Now try to picture things for the moment. Try to picture Joseph and Mary for a moment. Joseph and Mary was engaged to be married. They both have the church sanctuary already reserved. They both have secured the preacher to performed their wedding. They both have sent out wedding invitations to all of their respective family members and friends. And throughout their engagement period, they have both refrained from having sex before marriage. And throughout their engagement period, everybody is looking forward to their wedding day. Everybody, including Joseph and Mary is exited. Everybody is talking about what a great couple they are, and how they both are going to have a great marriage and a great family together. In Joseph's mind everything is going well as planned until..............................Mary is found with child. That is, Mary is now pregnant.
And no doubt that this situation somewhat rocks Joseph's world. It makes Joseph's nervous, for Mary is now pregnant and Joseph wasn't planning on being a father this much too soon. And to make things worse............ the baby is not Joseph's. No, Joseph is not the father, but rather Joseph is told that the father of this baby is someone bigger, better, stronger, wiser, and more powerful than Joseph. That is, The father of the baby that Mary is carrying is of the Holy Ghost.
And just like any man who would have been in this situation, Joseph was conflicted. He was torn apart. Joseph was conflicted and trying to make sense in all of this because first Mary is found pregnant before out of wedlock, the baby is not his, but now she has the nerve to tell him that the baby is of the Holy Ghost???? That is, it was the Holy Ghost that made her pregnant???? And what probably blew Joseph's mind was that she says that she is still a virgin through all of this?
Now, most men would have lost their minds, went all off, and acted a fool and clowned Mary if they were in Joseph's situation. They would have went to prison for battery and assault and attempted murder if they were in Joseph's situation.
But because Joseph was a just man, A J-U-S-T Man, he did not cursed Mary out when she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.
Because Joseph was a just man, A J-U-S-T Man, he did not physically or emotionally abuse Mary when she was found with child of Ghost.
Joseph could have had Mary stoned to death for being pregnant out of wedlock and was carrying someone else's child before their wedding date, but He didn't because Joseph was a just man, A J-U-S-T Man.
Joseph could have made Mary a public example and put her on blast for this untimely pregnancy. But because he was a just man, A J-U-S-T Man, Joseph protected her from harm because even though it appears that Mary played him for a fool, Joseph still had love for her.
Now there is a lesson that Joseph teaches us about being a J-U-S-T Man in St. Matthew 1:19. And the lesson is that a J-U-S-T man does not emotionally physically or verbally abuses his girlfriend or his wife when she makes him upset or messes up his plans. A J-U-S-T Man is a forgiving man. He is a loving man. A J-U-S-T Man is one who loves his wife, he is one who loves his children and he is one who loves her children, even if the children is not his. A J-U-S-T Man tries to find ways to do good for his spouse and not evil.
Also if so by chance a J-U-S-T Man falls and get someone pregnant, he is going to be one that is going to own up to his responsibility and take care of that child because a J-U-S-T Man realizes that he is not a man just because he make a baby, but he is a man when he takes care of the baby.
But the reality of these passage of scripture, since Mary is now pregnant out of wedlock, since the baby is not his, and since he don't want to compete with another man for Mary's affection, Joseph, in these passage of scriptures, is being thoughtful. He is now thinking about ending their relationship. He is thinking about ending their engagement. He is thinking about calling off their wedding. And according to the law of Moses, Joseph had grounds to put her away privily. Deuteronomy 24:1 says, When a man hath taken a wife, and married her and it come to pass that she finds no favor in his eyes, because he hath found some uncleanness in her; then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house.
But the scriptures says in St. Matthew 1:20 that "while he thought on these things, (while he was contemplating and thinking about throwing in the towel and giving up on Mary because the situation was just too unbearable for Joseph to handle ), "Behold, the angel of the Lord of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream.........
Now notice this. Have you noticed that just when you are about to throw in the towel and give up, that is when God shows up and shows out? Or when you are about to do something crazy or foolish, God sends something or someone your way to keep you from destroying your life? Now notice something else here. Joseph was thinking so hard about what to do next about Mary that it had wore him out. It drained him out mentally, emotionally, and physically to the point that he fell asleep. And it was then the Lord had sent the angel to Joseph to talk to him about Mary. And the lesson that we can learn is this; sometimes God will allow you to wear yourself out so you can be still so the Lord can give you a word.
"Behold, the angel of the Lord of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not ( in other words, don't be nervous and scared) to take thee Mary thy wife; for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost ( and not by some other man). And she shall bring forth a son, thou shalt call his name JESUS; for he shall save his people from their sins."
Not only did the angel of Lord gave Joseph the command to take Mary to be his wife, and to be assured that was conceived in her was of the Holy Ghost, but the angel of the Lord backed up what he had said with scripture from the Old Testament in Isaiah 7:14 where the angel of God said, "Now all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, "Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us."
And because Joseph was a J-U-S-T Man,
because Joseph was a man who was Justified by God because he lived by faith
because Joseph was a Upright man
because Joseph was a Sanctified man
because Joseph was a Thoughtful man on what pleases God.....
The scriptures says, that when "Jospeh awoke from his sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord told him to do and took Mary to be his wife, and he had no sexual relations with her till she had brought forth her firstborn son and he called his name JESUS!" In other words, A J-U-S-T Man is going to obey God no matter how difficult the situation may look like. He is going to wait on God, and move when the Lord say "move".
Now notice that Joseph did not hesitate to do what the Lord told him. Notice that Joseph did not tell Mary we are going to live together six months before we get married. Notice that Joseph did not Mary after the baby is born, then we will get married. But instead right after he awakes from his sleep, he immediately marries Mary because she needed some support while she was pregnant with Jesus. He needed to be there for Mary when people would talk behind their back about her being pregnant out of wedlock. He needed to be there for Mary when their friends and their families members would turn their backs on them, especially when Joseph goes on and marries Mary when she became pregnant out of wedlock.
And that is what a J-U-S-T Man does. He stick behind his wife no matter what storm they may face. A J-U-S-T Man will forsake the whole world before he will forsake his wife and his children.
Notice that God does not tell Joseph and Mary to name Jesus Jehovah Jireh which means The Lord provides.
Notice that God does not tell Joseph and Mary to name Jesus Jehovah-Shalom, which means The Lord is our peace.
Notice that God does not tell Joseph and Mary to name Jesus Jehovah-Shammah, which means that the Lord is there.
Notice that God does not tell Joseph and Mary to name Jesus Jehovah-Tsidkenu, which means the Lord is our righteousness.
Notice that God does not tell Joseph and Mary to name Jesus Jehovah-Nissi, which means that the Lord is our banner.
Notice that God does not tell Joseph and Mary to name Jesus Jehovah-Rophe, which means the Lord heals
Notice that God does not tell Joseph and Mary to name Jesus Jehovah-Roii, which means the Lord is our Shepherd.
Notice that God does not tell Joseph and Mary to name Jesus any of those Jehovah names but Jesus.
Why you may ask? Well, I believe instead of trying to remember everyone of those Jehovah names that I just mentioned, you are better off in just remembering the name JESUS, because Jesus is able to provide for you needs!
Jesus is able to give us peace in the midst of the storm!
Jesus will always be right there; he will never leave you or forsake you!
Jesus is our righteousness!
Jesus is able to heal!
Jesus has his banner of love over us!
Jesus is our Good Shepherd!
So if you don’t remember any other Jehovah names, just remember the name Jesus. That is all you need because there salvation in the name of Jesus.
