What Child is this? Part 4 The most wonderous miracle
When we sing the song “what Child is this? All the characters of the story have some kind of mention but one….Joseph
In Joseph we see reflected something wonderful and unique that the world had never known before
Let’s look at his story
Matthew 1:18-25
This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. 19 Joseph, to whom she was engaged, was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. 20 As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. 21 And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet: 23 “Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’” 24 When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. 25 But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus.
We don’t hear much about Joseph we see his character here…a man of integrity even though his world has been destroyed, his reputation assassinated he still loved and was willing to lay down his life for a woman who he thought had betrayed his love and trust
We see Christ reflected in this action in this heart…how often do we break the Father’s trust we sin we blow it, we choose to not trust God but he continues to love just the same
This is one of the areas the devil beats us up about often we feel we have blown it and God won’t love us or get us through it but in Joseph we see the love, care and compassion of our heavenly Father revealed
Lets Hear from Joseph himself*********
Integrity – simply believing God at his word and living it…something we need more of…he have the advantage of knowing all of the stories…we Know the way it will turn out Joseph didn’t but he trusted the Lord with all of his heart mind and soul
He had to put up with a lot. The religious leaders in n effort to tear down the authority of Jesus thought Jesus was an illegitimate baby….when Jesus had a confrontation with the Pharisee in John 8 he said You do the deeds of your father.” Their immediate response was telling of what the people believed about Jesus
Then they said to Him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father—God.”
They were still believing Jesus to have been born of illegitimate means.
Can you imagine how Joseph must have felt knowing that this is what Religious leaders actually believed?
We know Joseph came to the temple looking for Jesus
Luke 2:48
So when they saw Him, they were amazed; and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You done this to us? Look, Your father and I have sought You anxiously.”
Jesus was known as Joseph’s son to the people in the community
John 1:43-45
The following day Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, “Follow Me.” 44 Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
John 6:41,42
The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, “I am the bread which came down from heaven.” 42 And they said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”
I know you are saying… “enough already about Joseph being recognized as Jesus Father”
- we have to understand God wanted it that way, remember what the angel said to Joseph Matthew 1:21 And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”….The naming of the child was the job of the Father…God through his proxy the angel was telling Joseph you will be my sons Father
- In the tradition of the Jews, when Jesus was born, Joseph would have taken him and laid him across his lap signifying he was recognizing this boy as his son
- Everyone but the religious leaders calling him the son of Joseph
This is all very significant because it shows us through the eyes of Joseph the love and power of adoption.
God wanted a family so he sowed a seed of a son into the world…he prophetically showed us through Joseph the acceptance and love of a son of adoption
Paul explains this in Romans 8:15-17
For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ,
Then again in Galatians 4:4-7
But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” 7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
Why is this adoption thing so significant? Paul was writing to an audience under Roman rule. They understood the power and impact of adoption the power we see prophetically through Joseph of what Jesus did for us.
What child is this? The one who made it possible for our adoption Here is what that means
There were four main consequences of adoption four separate things that have real meaning for us today
- The adopted person lost all rights to his old family, and gained all the rights of a fully legitimate son in his new family. In the most literal sense, and in the most legally binding way, he got a new father.
– Because of Jesus, the rights of our old family; the world, the flesh, and the devil, have been broken….please hear this when we came to Christ and received Him fully every legitimate right the enemy had over us was broken, dissolved, destroyed…your old Father the devil has no right in your life your new Father God is legally and bindingly your Father
- It followed that he became heir to his new Father’s estate. Even if other sons were afterward born, who were real blood relations, it did not affect his rights. He was inalienably co-heir with them.
– Paul calls us Joint-heirs with Christ. A joint heir is given equal parts of the inheritance. Here is what we need to get everything that Jesus has access to we too have been given access to…we have an inheritance that is beyond measure
- In law, the old life of the adopted person was completely wiped out. For instance, legally all debts were canceled; they were wiped out as though they had never been. The adopted person was regarded as a new person entering into a new life with which the past had nothing to do.
Everything from your old life, prior to Christ, no longer exist you have been set free from the weight of sin debt…you are no longer the person you were…you were granted freedom from everything that had hold of you from your pre-Christ life…nothing of what you were prior to Christ matters you have been adopted as a new child of the King
- In the eyes of the law, the adopted person was literally and absolutely the son of the new father.
There is a legal and binding covenant between you and God…everything that is His is now yours
Do you understand all that this means? I am still learning
You may say if this is all true why do I feel the way I do? Why am I in such bondage? Why am I living so far below my own expectations let alone God’s expectations
It is a matter of application… if you were given 10 million dollars but you never received it because you simply ignored or rejected it you will still be the owner of 10 million dollars but it is useless to you because you aren’t making it part of your life
Joseph prophetically has shown us that we have been adopted into a great kingdom run by a King who is our Father…he has all the power we need but we must choose to accept it.
This child in the manager made it all possible for us!
What a most wondrous miracle that we were born slaves and have now become royalty joint heirs in the Kingdom with Jesus