Matthew 1:18-25 "This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
But after he had considered 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 home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet. "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" - which means, "god with us."
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."
Most people overlook several interesting pieces of this story. Joseph was ready to divorce Mary. Put yourself in his place, the person you are set to marry suddenly becomes pregnant - but tells you she is a virgin. How would you react? The mere fact Joseph does not want to expose her to public disgrace says that he was better than most of us would be in the same situation. The next part is that he has a dream, a dream from God that tells him to marry her anyway. I believe God does speak to us through our dreams, though imagine having THAT dream. I know that I would question the source of the dream A LOT, not saying I would dismiss it, but I would definitely go over it a few times. Finally the scripture mentions he had "no union with her until she gave birth". He kept her pure until she gave birth to Jesus.
In a time where we seem to be lacking faith and taking our eyes off God, this story reminds us that Jesus came to the Earth through not only a miracle, but faith and obedience. Joseph was just a man, but God called upon him to be obedient and exercise a great deal of faith... He has called us to do no more or no less. God requires our faith in him and our obedience to his will. Next time you read a chapter in the Bible, try putting yourself in someone else's shoes - you might gain a greater appreciation for the lessons being taught.
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