Monday, December 24, 2018
by Rachel Scott
Matthew 1:18-23
Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to
Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband
Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her
quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
“Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the
Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Look, the virgin shall
conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.”
In this passage we read about how Joseph came to hear about Mary’s pregnancy, and how he had to
completely trust what God was telling him to do (which just so happened to be the exact opposite of
what his natural instincts would have led him to do). As bizarre as it seems, I think that oftentimes in our
lives we find ourselves experiencing a lot of the same emotions that Joseph was experiencing during this
story. Of course we want to trust and do what God leads us to do, but sometimes it sure does seem
incredibly hard to understand, decipher and execute what exactly that is. At 19 years of age I am by no
means an expert on how to accurately live out a life that glorifies Christ in all that I do and say. Heck, I’m
just trying to pass microbiology! But what I do know is that while the Lord may not always offer us all of
the answers, or an explanation as to why we are led into certain situations in our lives, there is a grace
and a peace that only our God can give us. It is certain, and it is constant, whether or not we recognize it.
I find it fitting that this passage closes with the the words “He will be called Immanuel, which means God
with us;” because even though we may struggle to follow what God has planned for our lives, the
assurance and hope that no matter what that grace and peace always remains with us, is what speaks to
me the most.
So whenever we feel lost or confused like Joseph did, we should always remember these three things
that the Lord assures us in this passage:
1- “Do not be afraid.” (1:20)
2- “All of this happened in order to make true what the Lord had said.” (1:22)
3- “God is with us.” (1:23)