“Mommy,
I don’t like Dark,” she says as she sinks down under three layers of covers.
“Me
neither, Baby,” I admit.
“Mom?”
she asks.
“Yeah?”
I say. Her next question stirs something deep inside of me.
“Will
you ask God to help me be brave?”
“Of
course,” I answer, “God loves you and watches over you and protects you every
night while you sleep.” She nods as a tired yawn escapes, and then we pray.
Every
night it’s the same conversation, the same prayer before we turn off the
lights. As her momma, my prayers sound a bit different, but deep down, I know
they’re really the same. When I’m uncertain, I find myself calling out to
the God who helps me be brave just like her. But God wraps up courage in this
unexpected package called hope, the antithesis of fear. Tucked neatly
into the Christmas story is a way we can all live with hope, even in the midst
of real fear.
As
I read Matthew chapter 1, I try real hard not to skim through the endless list
of names I can’t pronounce that make up the royal lineage of Jesus. Forty two
generations from Abraham all the way to Jesus, the promised One of God. I
picture my name listed underneath His- the One who made a way for me to enter
in. Today one name curiously stands out: “Joseph, the husband of Mary.”
The
story begins with a baby (not his) and a respectable plan to ditch the marriage
proposal and keep two reputations from getting too tarnished. This was surely
not part of Joseph’s plan when he asked for Mary’s hand in marriage.
Adultery
in Joseph’s day was considered one of the worst crimes. Marriages didn’t
just crumble, guilty parties were stoned to death. Some believe that Joseph was
a widower and this extinguishes the view of him I’ve always held- the young man
excited to begin a new life with his beautiful bride. If this is true,
Joseph had already endured tragedy and heartache. I can’t blame him for
trying to avoid the pain of betrayal.
But
God had a plan that was bigger than Joseph’s uncertainty.
But as he
considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a
dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife,
for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She
will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people
from their sins.”
All this
took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: “Behold, the
virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel”
(which means, God with us).
When
Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took
his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called
his name Jesus.
Matthew
1:20-25 (ESV)
God
spoke right into Joseph’s upheaval: “Do not fear to
take Mary.” And Joseph rose and took his wife, hinging this decision on the
hope laid out before him- a beautiful promise fulfilled by a loving God who had
a plan.
Chapter
2 tells of a time when fear dominated the land under the rule of Herod the
Great, a jealous monster of a man who took lives as he pleased. As Jesus
entered the scene, a sinister murder plot unfolded. But God spoke to Joseph
again in a dream, right into the very darkness where fears of a ruthless king
ran rampant.
Because
God had a plan that was bigger than the schemes of an evil king.
Now when
they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream
and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain
there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy
him.”
And he
rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and
remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had
spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
Matthew
2:13-15 (ESV)
Even
in this rescue maneuver, there had to be fear. The journey to Egypt alone would
have been long and extremely dangerous since this so-called place of
refuge was known for its intense hatred for the people of God. But Joseph was given only
two crucial instructions: “Rise and take the child and his mother to Egypt.” So
Joseph rose and took them and yet another promise of God, written long ago, was
fulfilled.
Eventually
the danger subsided, but not before the deaths of all the baby boys in
Bethlehem. I cannot imagine that kind of darkness. Such sorrow, such
heaviness, such fear. But once more, God spoke to Joseph in a dream. Once
more, God revealed part of His plan.
And
God’s plan was bigger than hopelessness.
But when
Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in
Egypt, saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of
Israel, for those who sought the child's life are dead.”
And he
rose and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. But when
he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod,
he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the
district of Galilee. And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that
what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a
Nazarene.
Matthew
2:19-23 (ESV)
Three
times I read this repetition of God’s love, His protection, His faithfulness.
In the face of my own uncertainty and fear, God’s words illuminate the
beautiful and bright hope that is mine in Jesus. God told Joseph again and
again and again to rise and take his family somewhere safe- to the place of His
choosing. Three times ancient prophecy was fulfilled, giving us a remarkable
picture of a loving God who has a plan and a God who keeps His promises.
God’s
plan not only involved protecting Jesus and Mary and Joseph; His plan was to
protect and perfect the story He’s been writing since the beginning of time.
And
His story involves me and you, too.
The word God used to wake Joseph to action, egeirō, is the
very same Greek word used in Matthew 28:6 by the angel at the tomb. “He is not here; he
has risen, just as he said.” Jesus got up. Jesus rose from the grave. Just
as He said He would.
The
second command God gave Joseph was ‘take.’ This Greek word, paralambanō,
is translated “to take with one’s self or to join to one’s self,” like
becoming one in marriage. There is also the notion of going
somewhere together, and I
can’t help but picture it as moving out of the place of fear. In John 14:3 Jesus
said, “And if I go
and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself,
that where I am you may be also.” Jesus will return to take us home. Just
as He said He would.
Our
hope this Christmas season and all year round is built upon the truth of Jesus’
resurrection and the promise of His return.
Joseph’s
story points to God’s bigger love story unfolding. Joseph can be traced back to
the Hebrew root word, yacaph, which
means “to be joined to.” God used an average man facing real fear and uncertainty,
stuck in a situation he never planned, to display the lasting love that
compelled Him to give His Son, Jesus, so that we could be joined together… for eternity.
Joseph
reflects the Hope woven all throughout God’s love story, this good news we celebrate
each December. You and I can reflect that same Hope every day of the year by
remembering God’s instructions to Joseph:
RISE
to new life in Jesus, and TAKE HOLD of the promise of His return.
Hope
is for the here and now. Hope is what we grasp in the waiting time. And when
we’re clinging to Hope, it’s impossible to keep our white-knuckled grip on
fear. As we celebrate the Savior’s birth, let’s remember He is alive and that changes
everything. Because of this Hope, we can view uncertainty through the lens
of eternity, trusting in the God who has a plan, the God who keeps His
promises.
May
the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the
power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Romans 15:13
