Christmas Eve

0:45But our words are empty if our lives don't back them up. Actions speak louder than words. Joseph of Nazareth is a man who embodied the truth that actions speak louder than words. You may not know this. It's an interesting bit of Bible trivia. If you were going to play a Bible trivia game with friends, this might be an interesting tidbit. Joseph doesn't say a single word in the Bible. Did you know that? Never once is Joseph recorded as speaking.

1:30And interestingly, almost every time we find Joseph in the Bible, he is asleep when God is speaking to him. Which, as an interesting aside, reminds me of some of my very favorite people here at New Life. Often asleep as God is addressing them on Sunday mornings. But they will remain nameless because it's Christmas. Joseph's life is a portrait of faithfulness. And tonight on Christmas Eve, we're going to gaze at that portrait for a few moments. And what we're going to see when we look at Joseph's portrait is a righteous man, an obedient follower, and a faithful father.

2:26A righteous man, an obedient follower, and a faithful father. But ultimately, Joseph serves to point us to his adopted son, Jesus, who alone was perfectly righteous, perfectly obedient, and perfectly faithful. So let's begin by thinking about that first characteristic of Joseph's, that he was a righteous man. Look on the screen at Matthew 1:18, the first verse in our passage tonight. Now, the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.

3:17Now, we can only imagine how excited Joseph must have been. The Bible does not tell us the details of his engagement to Mary, but almost certainly their wedding was going to take place within a year. Long engagements were simply not known in ancient Israel. So it is possible that their wedding date is just a few weeks away at this point. He is thrilled. He's going to marry a wife. But then, a bombshell. Mary is pregnant, and Joseph knows that he is not the father.

3:59What emotions do you think Joseph felt upon hearing that news? And in the days and the weeks that followed? The Bible does not tell us how Joseph felt or what he went through in those hours and days and weeks after, but Joseph is a man. Joseph is a human being. So it's not hard to guess. He probably Progressed through all of the normal stages of grief, denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and finally, acceptance. And when he got to that point that he accepted that his fiancé was pregnant and that he was not the father, Joseph had a very difficult choice to make.

5:05According to the Mosaic law, he could have Mary put to death, or he could divorce her. But no matter what Joseph chose, all of their family members, all of their friends, everyone in town was going to know what happened. And that meant that no matter what Joseph chose, he was going to come out looking weak, foolish, somewhat pathetic. His fiancé is pregnant, and he's not the father. Who can know what any of us would have done in that situation?

6:00But because we have God's word recorded for all history, we know what Joseph did. Take a look on the screen at verse 19. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. In spite of all of the emotions, in spite of whatever his family and his friends may have encouraged him to do to try to save face, Joseph resolved in his heart and mind to divorce Mary quietly. He was not going to make a scene. He was not going to drag Mary's name through the mud over this incident.

6:53And Matthew tells us in the text that that is because he was a just man. And that Greek word translated just can also be translated righteous. Joseph was a just man, a righteous man, and so he resolved to divorce her quietly. Now I have to admit that until this week, studying this text very closely, I really had never made any connection between Joseph being a just and righteous man and his decision to divorce Mary quietly. But when you think about it, those two things are certainly tied together: Joseph's justice and righteousness and his decision to divorce Mary quietly.

7:44Because you see, when you think about it, justice and righteousness, they're not about punishment, they're not about vengeance, they're not about getting even, they're not about making someone suffer. Justice and righteousness are all about setting things right. That's the goal. That's the goal with our justice system. That's what righteous people do. They seek to set things right. So, putting Mary to death or making a big stink about the whole thing wasn't going to set things right.

8:28It wouldn't change the fact that Mary was pregnant and Joseph was not the father. If Mary had made a choice or a series of choices that led to this pregnancy that were out of line with her character, and the person that Joseph knew and loved, she was already suffering. And she was going to suffer a lot more. So, would it be righteous? To add to her suffering and to her family's suffering by putting her to death and demanding her execution or initiating a noisy public divorce.

9:16No, that wouldn't be a righteous thing to do. A quiet divorce would set things right because actions have consequences. But it would not put Mary to additional unnecessary shame. And so Joseph, being a just and righteous man, resolved to divorce her quietly. But thankfully, for you and me, and for all people in human history, Joseph was not just a righteous man. Joseph was an obedient follower. And that comes out in the next section. Look on the screen at verse 20.

10:10But 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. 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 Emmanuel, 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.

11:09Now, I think it's true that we often read historical accounts with what we call hindsight bias. So we read accounts of decisions that politicians made, or decisions that generals made on the battlefield, or decisions that athletes made on the field or the court, and we say, yeah, obviously that was the right choice. They did the right thing in that moment. I would have done the same thing. But in real time, things are rarely that clear or obvious. Our minds are filled with doubts. We start to second-guess ourselves. Is this the right decision? Should I vote that way? Should I send the troops around the flank? Should I throw that pass?

12:03Our minds are filled with doubts, and we begin to second-guess ourselves. And so I think knowing how this story turns out and it being so familiar to us, we can read this passage and be like, yeah, the angel told Joseph what to do, and he did it. That was obviously the right decision, and I would have done the same thing in Joseph's sandals. But let's be honest here. Even if we were basically certain that God had spoken to us in a dream, that doesn't make obedience any easier, does it?

12:47Abraham knew for certain that God had appeared to him and told him to leave all of his family and go to the land that God would show him. That did not make obedience any easier. Moses knew for certain that God had appeared to him and said, Lead my people out of slavery in Egypt. But that did not make obedience any easier. Time and time again in Scripture, we see these examples where people are sure that God spoke to them, and yet it does not make obedience any easier. And friends, you and I know this from our daily life and trying to follow Christ.

13:30We know exactly what God has spoken to us, and yet it doesn't make obedience any easier. And so the fact that Joseph knew that God had spoken to him didn't make obedience any easier. Remember, he's already resolved in his mind to divorce Mary quietly. He has probably talked to his parents. He's probably talked to his best friend. He might have consulted a lawyer, an expert in the Mosaic law, and gotten his opinion. He has made up his mind. And whoever knew about his decision, even if they disagreed with it, they would at least say, I understand where you're coming from. I get that.

14:21So imagine how hard it would be to go to those people, your family, your friends, your lawyer, and say, actually, I've changed my mind. I'm going to marry her after all. All of those people, your family, your friends, your lawyer, are going to say, what? Why? Your reputation is already compromised. If you do this, that decision is going to follow you for the rest of your life. Don't do that. What on earth would possess you to change your mind?

15:07And so you swallow hard and you say, well, an angel of the Lord appeared to me in a dream and told me that this is what I should do, that I should marry her. The most faithful, pious people in the world are going to be skeptical of that answer. But Joseph is an obedient follower. And because he's an obedient follower, when he had this vision, he knew that God had told him to take Mary as his wife. That's what he was going to do. It did not matter what his family members said. It did not matter what his friends said. It did not matter what the people in town were going to say about him. This is what he was going to do. So when Joseph woke up, he did just what God commanded him. He married her. But he did not consummate the marriage until after Jesus was born, so that there would be no confusion as to whether he might actually be the biological father.

16:24Joseph is a righteous man. Joseph is a faithful and obedient man. Obedient follower. And now we're going to see that Joseph was also a faithful father. At the very end of the passage, there's this short phrase that almost seems like an afterthought, like an unnecessary addition, because it would become so clear and obvious later on. Take a look at it at the end of verse 25 on the screen. Matthew says, and he called his name Jesus.

17:02Now, you may remember in the previous section when the angel was speaking to Joseph, the angel never said, and you shall adopt Mary's son as your own. The angel did not say that. What did the angel say? The angel said, Do not fear to take Mary as your wife. In other words, marry her, bro. And then he said, and you shall call his name Jesus. Now, as modern Western people, we read those words and we're like, okay, the angel told Joseph what to name Mary's son. That's interesting, that's a bit unusual, but I don't see the big deal there.

17:48Here's what you must understand. In ancient Israel, the real father was the legal father. Whether or not he was the biological father of the child or had any genetic relationship with him, the real father was the legal father, and the way to establish that legal relationship was by naming him publicly on the eighth day during the circumcision ceremony. Just like we saw a few weeks ago with Zachariah and Elizabeth as they named John at his circumcision ceremony. By naming Mary's son, Joseph was saying, I am taking legal responsibility for this child.

18:40I will provide for him, I will protect him, and I will teach him. That's what Joseph was saying. And from the rest of Matthew and Luke's account, we learn that that is exactly what Joseph did as a father. Joseph was a provider. He worked hard as a carpenter until he died to provide for his wife and his son, and later on, he and Mary's other children. Joseph was a protector. In just a few verses, we're going to learn that King Herod, jealous and envious of the Savior child, set out to kill all of The children who were two years old and younger. And so Joseph, again warned in a dream by the Lord, takes his family to Egypt and stays there until Herod dies, protecting Jesus from harm.

19:48And Joseph was a teacher. In accordance with the Mosaic law, Joseph had Jesus circumcised on the eighth day. We learn in Luke that they went up to Jerusalem every year for the Passover, as is commanded in the scripture. Luke says at the end of that text, they did everything according to the law of the Lord. Remember, Joseph is not recorded as saying a single word in the Bible. And yet, his actions speak so loudly. He taught his son, I'm sure, with his words, but with his actions, he taught Jesus. We obey the law. We submit to God the Father.

20:39We do what God commands. Friends, what an example Joseph sets for us as a faithful father. At great cost, in obedience to God, Joseph made the difficult choice to become Jesus' provider. Provider, protector, and teacher. He is a remarkable person, a righteous man, an obedient follower, and a faithful father. He doesn't say a word in the Bible, and the Bible says very little about him. But Joseph is a man whose life was a portrait of faithfulness, whose actions spoke louder than words ever could. He did not talk about righteousness or obedience or faithfulness. He simply was righteous and obedient and faithful.

21:42And in that way, Joseph of Nazareth points us to his adopted son, Jesus of Nazareth, who was perfectly righteous, perfectly obedient, and perfectly faithful. Look on the screen at 1 John chapter 2. Jesus was perfectly righteous. The Apostle John says, My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins. That is. Sacrifice that removes guilt. He is the propitiation for our sins and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. Friends, Jesus was perfectly righteous in every single way. He is our advocate and he can be our advocate because his life was without sin.

22:55Second, Jesus was perfectly obedient. Look what he said in the Sermon on the Mount when he began his ministry publicly in Matthew chapter 5. He said, Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them. Jesus did not come to get rid of the Mosaic law. Jesus came to fulfill it on our behalf. The reason that we don't strive to obey the Mosaic law anymore is not because it's in the Old Testament and we're New Testament people. It's not because that was an Israel thing and we're Americans. It's because Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament law perfectly and he has become the fulfillment of the law for us. He is now our perfect lawgiver and lawkeeper. Jesus was perfectly obedient. And then third, Jesus was perfectly faithful. Look on the screen at Hebrews chapter 3.

23:59Therefore, Holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, who was faithful to him who appointed him. Jesus was perfectly faithful. We have often been faithless in our lives, but Jesus was always perfectly faithful to his Father. He always kept his word. He always did what was right. He always acted in perfect faith toward God the Father. Jesus was perfectly righteous, perfectly obedient, and perfectly faithful. That's why he and he alone is able to save us from our sins, just like the angel told Joseph. Friends, no matter how righteous we are, we all fall short of the perfect righteousness of God.

24:57No matter how obedient we are, we never obey God fully and completely from the heart every single day as we are commanded to do. And no matter how faithful we are, every one of us is like a sheep that is prone to wander from the loving care of God, our perfect shepherd, who loves us and gave himself for us. Joseph of Nazareth is a man that we should all strive to imitate. His life is a portrait of faithfulness.

25:40But in the end, the life of Joseph of Nazareth points us to the life of Jesus of Nazareth, his adopted son, who came not just to be born at what we call Christmas, but to live a perfect life, never sinning, although he was tempted in every way. He came to die in our place and for our sins as we celebrate at Easter. And he came to rise from the dead, defeating sin and death as we also celebrated Easter. This is why Jesus came. That's the good news of the gospel, that through faith in Jesus, our sins can and will be forgiven. That through faith in Jesus, you and I will be counted righteous because Jesus actually was righteous in every way. The righteousness of Christ is the greatest gift that you could ever receive.

26:40And so, friends, I urge you to receive that gift at Christmas. If you've not received that gift before, let tonight be the night that you open your heart, that you open your mind, that you open your spirit to receive the righteousness. Of Christ through faith in his perfect life, death, and resurrection that all started at Christmas. Look to Jesus of Nazareth and to nowhere else. Salvation can be found in no other name. It's what Joseph would have wanted, though he probably wouldn't have said that out loud.

27:25Merry Christmas. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for choosing Joseph to be Jesus's earthly adoptive Father. What a man. Righteous, obedient, faithful. Every one of us wants to be those things. And we pray that we would be righteous, obedient, and faithful. But Lord, we know that. In our thoughts, our words, and our actions, we are not perfectly righteous, obedient, and faithful. And so we need a Savior. You knew that before you created the world, that we would need a Savior. And so before the foundation of the world, you planned and prepared to send Jesus to come to take on flesh, to live, die, and rise again for us. Thank you for that, Lord. Thank you for Christmas, the greatest miracle of all time that the eternal, infinite God of the universe took on flesh and dwelt among us.

29:14God, we pray that we would live lives that are worthy of such a great gospel, such great news. Make us Christmas people and Easter people and faithful people all year round in response to the grace that we have received through faith in Christ. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.