JOSEPH

Today we will conclude our series on Bible Husbands…

•  Qualities of Men Chosen by God for a Big Job, (Matthew 1:18-25)

A. He is Flexible Enough to Handle Life's Changes God's Way, ( v. 18 )

1. ( v. 18 ), “Now the birth of Jesus was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with Child by the Holy Spirit.”
a. Jewish Marriage: Arrangement (by parents), Engagement = 1 year, Consummation (wedding).
1) The engagement period was just as binding as our marriage (i.e., required a divorce to break).
2) Joseph and Mary were in this “engagement period” of the marriage custom.

b. Imagine Joseph's shock when Mary tells him what the angel told her, ( Lk. 1:35 ), “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; for this reason the holy offspring shall be called the Son of God.”
1) Notice that when Jesus enters a person's life, BIG CHANGES occur!
2) These changes take place internally (NOW– Eph. 2:8, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;” ; Acts 2:38, 47 “Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.'” – “praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.” ; Eph. 1:3, “Blessed be the God and and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,” ) and externally (THESE CHANGES TAKE A LITTLE TIME – Eph. 4:15, “but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,” ; Rom. 12:2, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may proves what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” ).

c. Joseph believed he was going to have a great life/marriage. Then Jesus enters the picture… changes !
1) Recognize problems don't leave when Jesus enters a life; sometimes they come in with Him!
2) How many of you have suffered problems simply because Jesus has come into your life?
3) ( Matt. 10:22 ), “You will be hated by all on account of Me, but the one who endures to the end who will be saved.”
4) The transformation caused by Jesus in our lives will not occur without its share of pain!!!

B. He Handles Marriage Problems God's Way, ( v. 19 )

1. “Mary's situation” forces Joseph to have to make a decision!
a. Joseph, being “a righteous man,” believes he has only one of two choices:
1) ( Deut. 22:23-24 ), “If there is a girl who is a virgin engaged to a man, and another man finds her in the city and lies with her, then you shall bring them both out to the gate of the city and you shall stone them to death; the girl, because she did not cry out
in the city, and the man, because he has violated his neighbor's wife.” If Joseph believed Mary's situation occurred in the city, he had only this one choice! 2) Or, ( Deut. 24:1 ), “When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her , and he
writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of the house.”

b. Joseph had committed himself to doing God's will in his life!
1) Yet, “Mary's sin is great; it violates Torah, she has sinned against me with some other man...!”
2) But because of his love for Mary, Joseph chose God's way which was better for her.
3) ( Matt. 1:19 ), “And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not wanting to disgrace her, desired to put her away [divorce] privately.”

c. Today Christian husbands will also face problems in our relationship with our wives…
1) How will we handle things when sin enters the marriage; do we seek to please God, wife, self?
2) Do we trust God enough with our marriage to let Him be in charge or do we seek control?!

C. He will Continually Learn God's Ways, ( vs. 20-23 ) Joseph learns . . .

1. God's Purpose, ( v. 20 ), “But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for that which has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.'”
a. Notice that Joseph didn't just make a “snap decision.” He “considered” it for a while.
1) How many mistakes and heartaches have we ever had because we “went off half- cocked”?!
2) ( Pro. 14:15 ), “A naive man believes anything, but a prudent man gives thought to his steps.”
3) But a decision as big as divorce must be carefully and completely thought out, ( Mal. 2:16 ), “ ‘For I hate divorce,' says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘and him who covers his garment with wrong,' says the Lord of hosts, ‘so take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously.'”

b. Notice, God provides Joseph with the answer to his dilemma through divine revelation.
1) I've often heard people say, “Well, it sure would be nice if God told me what to do!!!”
2) Good News . . . , HE HAS!!! – ( II Pt. 1:3, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,” ; II Tim. 3:16-17, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” )!!!
3) Far too often people do what THEY want and then we hope God rubber stamps our choices!
4) If we are to be a “righteous person [man], ” then we need to be sure we/God are on the same page!

2. God's Plan, ( v. 21 ), “And she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save the people from their sins.”
a. Obviously this Child would be special (birth!). But His purpose was an even greater matter!
1) The name “Jesus” ( Yeshua in Hebrew) = the name Joshua, which means “Salvation/Savior . ”
2) Indeed, all the names of God are descriptive titles more than they are “names.”

b. God has a plan for your life, your marriage, and your family.
1) ( Jer. 29:11 ), “ ‘I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, ‘plans for your welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.'”
2) Our choices are either in agreement with God, or they are taking us in the wrong direction!

3. God's Promise, ( vs. 22-23 ), “Now all this took place that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying, ‘Behold, the virgin shall be with Child, and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,' which translated means, ‘God with us.'”
a. Joseph, “a righteous man,” knew the prophecies regarding the family of David. But is God using him?
1) He had to believe the impossible that God could use him to do something never done before.
2) He would have to endure the ridicule of himself and Mary from others.
3) He would have to accept the greatest responsibility ever given to man, bringing the Savior into the world!!!

b. Yet are not all of God's promises also given to us?? Do we not also need to trust them?!
We must…
1) Believe the impossible, (i.e., use us to accomplish His will, ( Mk. 10:26-27 ), “ ‘Who can be saved?' Jesus said, ‘With men it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.'”
2) Endure the ridicule of others, ( Mark 10:29-30 ), “Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or farms, for My sake and for the gospel's sake, but that he shall receive 100 times as much now in this present age, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and farms, along with persecutions; and in the age to come, eternal life.”
3) Accept that God wants us to bring His Son to the world (beginning with our neighbors next door), Mk. 16:15 , “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to all creation!”

D. He Obediently Responds to God's Ways, ( vs. 24-25 )

1. ( vs. 24-25 ), “And Joseph arose from his sleep, and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took her as his wife, and kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called
His name Jesus.”
a. Joseph accepts the challenge of obedience to God!
1) Joseph marries Mary and keeps her a virgin until after Jesus is born.
2) We see Joseph foregoing what he desired since it was in the best interest of God/Mary. Is life always about getting our own way, or are we willing to withhold our wants for God's?!
3) Contrary to the teaching of some, they later had children of their own, ( Mk. 6:3 ), “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James, and Joses, and Judas, and Simeon? And are not His sisters here with us?”

b. A godly husband will accept God as the “true” head of his household and then follow His will always.
1) Husbands, during this month we have seen…
a) ADAM: (he violated God's will in three ways)
1) He altered God's commands by adding his own words
2) He failed to protect his wife from spiritual harm
3) He attempted to hide his sin from God

b) AHAB:
1) Was weak in the sight of God (married a foreign wife, idolatry)
2) Was weak in the sight of wife (allowed her to practice all sorts of sins)

c) JOB: (Demonstrated how a godly husband deals with…)
1) His children
2) His possessions
3) His adversities
4) His friends

d) JOSEPH:
1) A righteous man is flexible enough to handle life's changes God's way
2) A righteous man will lovingly handle problems in his marriage God's way
3) A righteous man will continue to learn God's ways
4) A righteous man obediently responds to God's way

2) The choice is ours!!! To our Guests, are you willing to obediently respond to “God's Ways,” ( Mark 16:16 ), “He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.” !