In reading about the life of Jesus, one may notice that Joseph – Jesus’ adopted father, if you will – is absent from the majority of the text. There are only a few places that he is mentioned, one of them being Matthew chapter 1 which talks about the birth of Jesus. I’d like to briefly reflect on a small comment made about Joseph in verse 19 of that chapter.
“and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly.” (ESV)
Though a small, seemingly insignificant verse, it actually tells us a lot not only about Joseph, but I think also about God himself.
Think about the situation Joseph finds himself in here. This isn’t 2015 where premarital sex is the norm and having children outside of marriage is a mundane reality. Jesus is born into a 1st century Jewish culture which at the very least shunned these behaviors, and might even put to death guilty parties. Being connected to, much less married to such a person isn’t an attractive prospect. Besides, one has to suppose that Joseph was hurt by what he thought Mary had done. It would be natural to become angry and to respond in kind.
But that’s not what Joseph does. Joseph decided to divorce Mary quietly. He didn’t want to make a fuss, and notably it was for her sake, not his. This, it seems, is what earns Joseph the enviable description of being a “just” man, a word also frequently translated as “righteous.” The point is, he is a man of God, and so he does not seek to shame this woman openly, even though as far as he knew to that point, she had earned it. In a culture that had little respect for women already and would happily cast out a woman of such character, and under a law that could see fornicators put to death, Joseph is considered righteous because he looks out for her interests, the interests of someone who he has every reason to believe has betrayed him.
That’s an impressive trait especially given the background. Even we, thousands of years later, can easily see and appreciate that. And yet I think we often miss the exponentially greater thing God is doing for us in this same story. You see, unlike Mary, we are guilty. And not just guilty – we’re guilty a thousand times over. How often we have repeated the same wretched things against God! And we absolutely should be punished. We should be cast out, ashamed before our Creator. But the good news is that, unlike Joseph, God isn’t seeking to put us away at all; not even quietly. Instead, he seeks restoration and reconciliation. So much so, in fact, that he comes as one of us, lives with us, shows us the way, dies for us, and defeats death for us. And he does all of this for our sake, because he is a God of love and a God of righteousness.
That is the God revealed in Jesus Christ, and that is why the birth of Jesus is such a beautiful event. Because in a humble little town, in the humblest of settings, in the humblest of circumstances, lies a baby who represents the perfect love and light of a God who, despite every reason to the contrary, puts us first. If that is not worth shouting joy over, I don’t know what is.
I wish you all a Merry Christmas! May your day be filled with love, laughter, joy, and all the greatest blessings given by our righteous God and Father.