Matthew 1:18-20, 24 (NRSV) 18 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. 19Her husband Joseph, being a
righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to
dismiss her quietly. 20But 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. 24When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the
angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife ...
How? When? The questions raced through his mind,
but in the end it did not make any difference. Answers would not change the
fact: Mary is pregnant. Joseph had two options. One was to write a public
statement of divorce. It would serve as a reminder to the whole village that
God demanded faithfulness. But public divorce also meant punishment for Mary,
possibly being stoned to death, or at least banishment from her home and
village. Or, Joseph could fill out the divorce papers privately in the presence
of only two witnesses and that would be the end of it, and this is what Joseph
decided to do. The decision brought a certain measure of relief, and Joseph
drifted off to sleep. And in his sleep Joseph saw a light, and in the light he
saw a figure dressed in white, and the one in the light spoke to him, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife.
In Mary’s response to the angelic message brought
to her we are offered the gift of acceptance. In Joseph’s response to the
angelic message brought to him we are offered the gift of obedience. It will
help us see and receive this gift if we remember that there are several kinds
of obedience. One is forced obedience.
We obey because we have to. Forced obedience often gives obedience a “bad name”
in our minds. Another kind of obedience is free
obedience where “have to” and “want to” combine. But there is another kind
of obedience. It could be called faithful
obedience. We obey because we are told to by God. In this kind of obedience
there is no fear of punishment from God, nor is there any hope of reward. There
is only the Word and the command, and we remain free to accept or reject.
Faithful obedience rests solely and squarely on the Word of God to our life. It
is what we do despite the pressures on our life to do differently.
The pressure may be our pride, ridiculing us inwardly,
or fear that we will lose everything, or the pressure may be pride and fear
combining to cause confusion. We begin to reel with worry. On this side of
obedience, before the decision is made, all we can see is the risk and the
reasons for NOT doing as commanded. The only thing that can resolve our dilemma
is the decision to obey God as best we presently understand His Word and His
Will for our life. Every act of obedience leads to more light. Faithful
obedience is the gift Joseph offers. It is not a glamorous gift but it is the
way Christmas comes into our world. Christmas comes into the world through our
obedience, and through our obedience, Christmas comes to us.
From a sermon preached by Henry Dobbs Pope
© Rhonda Hinkle Mitchell Broyles
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