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Being Like Joseph

Daily Reflection / Produced by The High Calling
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When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife.

Matthew 1:24

We can only imagine how Joseph must have felt when Mary told him that she was pregnant. Given the fact that he had decided to break their engagement (1:19), it’s clear that he did not accept her story of a miraculous conception. Yet, because of his love for Mary and his personal goodness, Joseph did not want to make her endure public disgrace. So he chose to end their relationship quietly.

Before he did so, however, an angel appeared to him in a dream, revealing to him that Mary’s child “was conceived by the Holy Spirit” (1:20). Her son, whom Joseph was to name Jesus, would “save his people from their sins” (1:21). When Joseph awoke, “he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife” (1:24). We don’t know if Joseph questioned the validity of his angelic visit. Did he wonder if it “was only a dream”? We do know, however, that Joseph’s choice to take Mary as his wife was a costly one to him. Friends and neighbors would know that Mary gave birth less than nine months after the couples’ wedding. They would naturally assume that Joseph and Mary had been sexually intimate prior to marriage, something that would have brought considerable dishonor upon them and would forever tarnish Joseph’s reputation as a righteous man. If Joseph had been primarily concerned with his own honor, he would have terminated his relationship with Mary. But he chose, instead, to obey the angelic messenger.

I doubt that you and I will ever find ourselves in a position exactly like that of Joseph. But there will be times when God asks us to do something risky, something costly, something that requires trusting God in an extraordinary way. There may come a time when you need to stand up for truth in your workplace, even at the risk of losing your job. Or you may sense that God is leading you to make financial sacrifices for the sake of the kingdom. Or perhaps you are being called to reach out to someone in the hope of reconciliation, even though you expect to be rejected. In these and so many other situations, we are called to be like Joseph, trusting and obeying God when it is not comfortable or easy.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION: When has God led you to do something that was costly or scary to you? What did you do? Why? Is God calling you to something right now that feels risky? What would help you to trust God more so that you might follow his lead?

PRAYER: Gracious Lord, thank you for Joseph, for his righteousness and goodness, and for his willingness to trust and obey you when it cost him so much. Even in this short story from Matthew, I can see why you chose Joseph to be the human father of Jesus.

Lord, there have been times when you have called me to something that felt uncertain and risky. Sometimes I have responded to your call. Thanks for your grace that helped me to obey. Sometimes, however, I have let fear overrule the nudge of your Spirit. Forgive me for the times I have said “no” to you. Help me, Heavenly Father, to trust you so much that I am willing to do whatever you ask of me. Refresh my confidence in you so that I might be like Joseph, who did as you commanded him. Amen.

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