“CELEBRATE WITH JOSEPH & MARY” Matthew 1:18-25
FBCF – 12/10/23
Jon Daniels
INTRO – 2012 movie –“A Christmas Miracle.” And there certainly are many things connected to the Christmas story that are miraculous. That’s why we are spending this month in this series entitled, “Come Celebrate Jesus!”
- Last week – “Celebrate w/ the Prophets” – Ron Mumbower sent me this devotional from the Bible App. Check this miracle out related to the 108 OT prophecies about Jesus: “In 1958, renowned mathematics and astronomy professor Peter Stoner studied and calculated the chances of the fulfillment of Messianic prophecies. He concluded that the probability of even 8 of those 108 prophecies coming to pass is, conservatively, one in 100,000,000,000,000,000. That’s one in one-hundred quadrillion. Just EIGHT out of 108! This makes Christmas one of the most significant miracles in history. As we celebrate this remarkable holiday, try wrapping your mind around the odds stacked against Jesus coming to earth as predicted. It’s pretty much impossible to fathom! Our only logical response is worship—in gratitude and total awe. The Word tells us there is no limit to God’s power, and these numbers are certainly proof of that. He is worthy of our wonder.” (https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/13463/day/2?segment=0)
- Next week, we will consider the miracle of the shepherds’ miraculous encounter w/ the angels: “Celebrate with the Shepherds & Angels.”
- Christmas Eve – one service at 10 AM in the CLC – Think about the impact of the miracle of Jesus’ advent into the world on the Church – “Celebrate with the Church” – Lord’s Supper in a unique way that morning.
- New Year’s Eve – one service at 10 AM in the CLC – The miracle of not only the first coming of Jesus into the world, but His 2nd Coming – “Come, Lord Jesus!”
EXPLANATION – Matthew 1:18-25 (p. 807)
Let’s do a little Bible history here.
- Matthew’s genealogy tells us that Jesus’ human parents were Joseph & Mary – v. 16
- Mary was a virgin who was engaged to Joseph (side note to all the girls here: That’s STILL God’s plan!).
- Mary became pregnant by the power of the Holy Spirit – v. 18
- Joseph was the legal, but not the biological father of Jesus.
- Both Mary & Joseph were descendants of David, which assured that Jesus had legal access to the throne of David.
o God promised Solomon in 1 Kings 9:5 - I made this promise to your father, David: ‘One of your descendants will always sit on the throne of Israel.’
o Isaiah prophesied about Jesus, the Messiah, in Isaiah 9:7 – “His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity.”
Think of some of the ramifications of this situation:
- Mary’s pregnancy – An unwed mother – Who would ever believe this astounding story? Required her to be available to God regardless of potential embarrassment & opinions of others. Same is true for us!
- Joseph’s discovery of her pregnancy – Shock of apparent sin & broken trust & his own embarrassment. According to OT Law, he could have had her stoned to death for adultery. Required him to forget about himself completely, something we sometimes have a hard time doing when it comes to the work of God.
- Jesus’, the very Son of God, born in a tiny village in a smelly manger – Required a willingness to be humbled. Humility, the opposite of pride, is an absolute requirement in our walk w/ God.
- The family having to be uprooted & moved to a foreign nation, Egypt (Matthew 2:16ff) – Required a deep trust in God to provide for their every need.
- The slaughter of all the baby boys under age 2 in Bethlehem – Joseph & Mary surely felt the weight of that horrendous event that happened b/c of the birth of their baby boy – Required a willingness to bear anything no matter how heavy.
- The visit of the wise men that showed that Jesus’ birth affected nations everywhere – Required a willingness to bear the pressure of the notoriety that would come.
- The immense hatred the emanated from Herod toward Joseph & Mary & Jesus – Required a willingness to stand against the odds.
This whole thing is nothing but a God-thing from beginning to end!
- It’s no wonder the angels proclaimed, “Glory to God in the highest!”
- It’s no wonder the shepherds said, “Let’s go to Bethlehem & see this thing which the Lord has told us about!”
- It’s no wonder that John the Baptist jumped for joy inside Elizabeth’s womb when he came near Jesus in Mary’s womb!
o Luke 1:39-45 – “A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”
When you see God at work, you simply cannot stay quiet or stay still or stay the same! And He IS at work now just as He was then! So, let’s celebrate Jesus w/ Joseph & Mary & realize this:
APPLICATION – God accomplishes His extraordinary plans through ordinary people.
Let’s celebrate w/ Joseph & Mary today as we contemplate these 3 elements of their lives:
SUBMISSION TO THE PLANS OF GOD – Mary’s statement in Luke 1:37-38 is as strong a statement of submission as you will find in Scripture.
- Revelation of the plan –And what a plan it was! (Luke 1:26-35) – It was a wild plan, an astounding plan, a breathtaking, bewildering, extraordinary, miraculous, dumbfounding, stunning plan that defied all human reasoning or logic. But that’s GOD!
o He doesn’t have to explain His plans to us.
o He will not bend His plans to fit our plans.
o He won’t be hindered or deterred based on our weak faith or lack of faith.
- He has always blown man’s mind w/ His plans.
o Noah – Build an ark for 100 yrs before the world is destroyed by a great flood.
o Moses – Hold you staff up over the waters of the Red Sea & I will part the waters.
o Joshua – March around Jericho 7 times, then blow trumpets & shout & the walls will fall down.
o David & Goliath
o Abraham & Isaac
o Elijah & prophets of Baal
- Reaction to the plan – In order to see God work, experience His presence & power in our midst & in our lives, the reaction to the plan MUST be to respond in FAITH! There’s no other way.
o Mary had to believe that God really was who He said He was, that He really would do what He said He would do, & that she was supposed to be a part of His plans.
o Same is true for you & me – for our church.
? Do we really believe God?
? Do we really believe His Word?
? Do we really believe that we are supposed to be a part of His plans?
? If so, then we have to step forward in faith & submit to His plans.
OBEDIENCE TO THE COMMANDS OF GOD – v. 24 – God sent an angel to Joseph in a dream to reveal to him the truth of Mary’s pregnancy & the truth of His plan for sending Jesus. And very simply, JOSEPH OBEYED.
- Despite the predicament
- Despite the circumstances
- Despite the appearance of things
- Despite the gossip
- Despite the possibility of others disagreeing w/ his decision
- Despite the uncertainty of how this was all going to work out
- JOSEPH SIMPLY OBEYED. He did exactly what God told him to do.
Obedience is not easy. It’s not always popular. It may put you at odds w/ others – people in your life – people you’ve respected – people you’ve looked up to – family members – friends.
- Opposite is true: Disobedience is easy – at least, at first. But the end result is always brokenness & misery.
Obedience will always stretch your faith.
- Opposite is true: Disobedience never requires faith b/c you have to have faith to please God.
Obedience places you in a place of peace & fellowship w/ God. It is pleasing to Him. It honors Him. It glorifies Him.
- Opposite is true: Disobedience places you in a position of turmoil & moves you completely out of fellowship w/ God. It displeases Him. It dishonors Him. It diminishes Him & disgraces Him. It lowers His reputation in the eyes of the lost world that is watching us to see if we really believe this stuff that we say about Jesus.
Joseph set an awesome example for us as a MAN of God who obeyed God.
- It’s time for us to follow His example, ESPECIALLY as men!
- When MEN humble themselves & obey the Lord, families are radically changed! Marriage are radically strengthened! Sons learn how to be strong men of God! Daughters learn what to look for in a husband! Generational curses are broken off of families! Strongholds in families, communities, & churches are destroyed! Churches are radically changed & make HUGE impacts for the Gospel & the Kingdom of God!
“When Joseph woke up, HE DID AS THE ANGEL OF THE LORD COMMANDED HIM TO DO” – No hesitation. No questions asked. No compromise. No trying to work out a deal w/ God. HE OBEYED – PERIOD!
- That’s what we must do, too!
- And WHY?
CELEBRATION OF OUR SALVATION FROM GOD – v. 21, 25 – Because of JESUS! His very name – the name of JESUS – means, “Yahweh IS salvation.” Jesus doesn’t just bring us salvation or give us salvation – He IS salvation!
- John 14:6
- Acts 4:12 – “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
- IT’S ALL ABOUT JESUS!
- “Making Much of JESUS!” isn’t just a cute little phrase we came up with – It’s our whole reason for existence as a church & as individual Christ-followers!
- There’s no hope apart from Jesus!
- You need Him! I need Him!
- You need to give your life to Him today if you’ve never done that!
- You need to repent & get back in fellowship w/ Him if you are mired in sin!
- He loves you! He came into this world for you – to save you & set you free to live for Him!
- Come to Him today & be saved!
- Come back to Him today in repentance if you’re tangled up in sin!
- Yield your life completely to Him today!
- It’s worth it b/c HE’S WORTH IT!
