#1206 Matthew 1 Part 3 Do Not Fear

 

18 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. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 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. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,

and they shall call his name Immanuel”

(which means, God with us). 24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus. Matthew 1: 18-25 ESV

Mary had been betrothed - She was engaged to Joseph, but in a stronger sense then people get engaged today. They wouldn't have dated, and they wouldn't have been through a string of other people before hand. Mary would have been very young, some think as young as 13-15 years old. 

Before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit - So they had not consummated the relationship, yet she was pregnant, and with some story about the Holy Spirit, as though Jesus had been placed, knit in her womb, outside of the normal process. So, the Holy Spirit, took God the Son, and somehow wove His deity to humanity, entering the blood line of David through Mary, bypassing Joseph. As we saw in the last post there is a premise for this; it fulfills prophecy.

14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. Isaiah 7: 14

In Luke we see all three members of the Trinity at this conception. 

…34“How can this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” 35The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God. 36Look, even Elizabeth your relative has conceived a son in her old age, and she who was called barren is in her sixth month.… Luke 1: 34-36

Being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame - How is that just you may wonder, if she committed adultery? Shouldn't she be punished, exposed? Well, for one, he probably cares very much for her, and honestly, the Holy Spirit and virgin conception probably made her seem a little nuts. It would have been smarter to cover something like this by just saying you were raped, that probably happened all the time in a country that was under occupation. It shows he was a man of compassion as well, but it also shows that there was no proof against her claim, nor was there another man being accused of being with her. However unlikely it may and did appear, based on his decision to put her away quietly, yet even with his reservations about the story, he did not want to shame her. Under Jewish law she would be stoned, but they were under Roman rule, which put the power of death in the charge of Rome. The Pharisees will later test Jesus on these laws, hoping to get Him to denounce God's law or pitting Him against Rome.  

…3The scribes and Pharisees, however, brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before them 4and said, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such a woman. So what do You say?”…

…6They said this to test Him, in order to have a basis for accusing Him. But Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with His finger. 7 When they continued to question Him, He straightened up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.” 8And again He bent down and wrote on the ground.…

…9When they heard this, they began to go away one by one, beginning with the older ones, until only Jesus was left, with the woman standing there. 10Then Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are your accusers? Has no one condemned you?” 11“No one, Lord,” she answered. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Now go and sin no more.”… John 8: 3-11

Resolved to divorce her quietly - You can see the strength of the engagement here, it required more than a phone call to break it off.

An angel of the Lord - This is probably Gabriel, since He seems to be God's messenger for such grand announcements. 

26In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27to a virgin pledged in marriage to a man named Joseph, who was of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. 28The angel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”… Luke 1: 26-28

Gabriel goes to Zechariah the priest as well, to tell him that he will have a son by his barren wife, and this will be the birth of the one who goes before Christ, preaching repentance. He even recognizes Christ from the womb. His name is John the Baptist.

…41When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 In a loud voice she exclaimed, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43And why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?… Luke 1: 41-43

Do not fear to take Mary as your wife - I would have been less afraid before this, but the situation does merit an angel, it is a difficult story to believe, and quite fair to be skeptical of , so enter Gabriel. Gabriel confirms that this is of the Lord, that Mary has done no wrong in this, and it fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah. He also calls him, Joseph, son of David, who will be the legal guardian, earthly father, and a sign of Christ earthly royal lineage. 

…6For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from that time and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of Hosts will accomplish this. Isaiah 9: 6-7

For He will save His people from their sins - This was the vital nature of His first coming, the atonement. Jesus name in Hebrew was Yeshua, meaning "deliverer, savior". Before the Lion comes the Lamb, before the King comes the suffering Servant, that all righteousness may be fulfilled. 

…4because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. 5Therefore, when Christ came into the world, He said: “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You prepared for Me. 6In burnt offerings and sin offerings You took no delight.… Hebrews 10: 4-6

…4Surely He took on our infirmities and carried our sorrows; yet we considered Him stricken by God, struck down and afflicted. 5But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. 6We all like sheep have gone astray, each one has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid upon Him the iniquity of us all.… Isaiah 53: 4-6

Meaning God with us - This is the meaning of Immanuel, and Jesus is none other than God, savior of His people. The infinitely just God receives the infinitely righteous sacrifice, His Son.

Knew her not until she had given birth - Totally understandable, I would be more than just a little awed by the whole thing, and it would only seem proper to wait till God's Son was no longer in residence there. But notice the word "until", and I bring this up because the Roman Catholic Church has taken it upon themselves to make Mary something that she is not. They have put their traditions above the Word of God, God Who has put His word up as equal to His name. When we say knew here it means intimately, as in: 

And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord. Genesis 4:1

So, the only sane and reasonable understanding of this, is that Joseph did not consummate the marriage, know his wife sexually, until after she gave birth. Then, they did know each other intimately and had children together. Roman Catholicism would have you believe their dogmas and goddess idolizations about Mary, contrary to what the Bible teaches. Look at this:

…2When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard Him were astonished. “Where did this man get these ideas?” they asked. “What is this wisdom He has been given? And how can He perform such miracles? 3Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? Aren’t His sisters here with us as well?” And they took offense at Him. 4Then Jesus said to them, “Only in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his own household is a prophet without honor.”… Mark 6: 2-4

…54Coming to His hometown, He taught the people in their synagogue, and they were astonished. “Where did this man get such wisdom and miraculous powers?” they asked. 55“Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother’s name Mary, and aren’t His brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas? 56Aren’t all His sisters with us as well? Where then did this man get all these things?”… Matthew 13: 54-56