Come Home for Christmas
Thursday, December 28, 2006
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, thank You for being the Lord of every circumstance, and for guiding us through the various joys and challenges of life. I pray that You will fill me with the Holy Spirit right now, that I may meet the challenges of my circumstances today, and that I may hear Your voice in them, and do Your will. God, please use ever conversation and every interaction I have with others as an opportunity to show and tell others of Your great salvation in and through Jesus. This I pray in His most holy name. Amen.
God’s Word Today
Matthew 1:20-25
20As he considered this, he fell asleep, and an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to go ahead with your marriage to Mary. For the child within her has been conceived by the Holy Spirit. 21And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22All of this happened 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 he will be called Immanuel
(meaning, God is with us).”
24When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord commanded. He brought Mary home to be his wife, 25but she remained a virgin until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus.
Matthew 2:13-15; 19-23
13After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up and flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to try to kill the child.” 14That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother, 15and they stayed there until Herod’s death. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “I called my Son out of Egypt.
19When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and told him, 20“Get up and take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead.” 21So Joseph returned immediately to Israel with Jesus and his mother. 22But when he learned that the new ruler was Herod’s son Archelaus, he was afraid. Then, in another dream, he was warned to go to Galilee. 23So they went and lived in a town called Nazareth. This fulfilled what was spoken by the prophets concerning the Messiah: “He will be called a Nazarene.”
Reflecting on God’s Word
How would you respond if you believed that God was calling you to move to another state or nation in order to serve Him?
A Deeper Exploration of God’s Word
What specific instructions did Joseph receive from the angel this time?
What circumstance caused the angel to modify the initial instructions?
Understanding God’s Purpose for Us
According to Matthew 2:19-23 what is God’s purpose for our lives, and how is he involved in the circumstances of our lives?
Applying God’s Word to Our Purpose
While we don’t know much about Joseph from the gospels, we do know that he was a faithful and obedient man, and we can infer that he faced a great deal of ridicule and scorn for being willing to marry Mary given that she became pregnant BEFORE their marriage was consummated. Consider any commands God is giving you right now either through His written word or in your spirit. What steps are going to be necessary to carry them out? What may be the response of others?
Thoughts—“Returning Home…”
The angel appeared to Joseph once again, while the family was in Egypt and said in effect, “It’s time to go home.” Joseph and Mary may have received the news with mixed emotions. They hadn’t been “home,” since leaving Nazareth for Bethlehem when Mary was pregnant. Everyone in Nazareth knew that Mary had become pregnant BEFORE Joseph and she had come together as husband and wife, even though she was betrothed to him. The Scripture indicates that they may not have been planning to return to Nazareth, because it was only when they found out that Herod’s son was ruling in his place, that the angel instructed them to go to Nazareth. It could not have been easy for Mary and Joseph to go home. The child Mary was carrying when she and Joseph left for Bethlehem was now a young boy. While family members would undoubtedly have been excited to welcome a new grandson, nephew or cousin into the family, they may not have been so gracious when speaking of the boy behind his back. Jesus must have grown up with the stigma of His parents’ past as He lived out his childhood and youth in Nazareth. Even so, Matthew tells us that the homecoming was necessary to fulfill an Old Testament prophecy. God’s plans often stretch and challenge us, even when they are plans for those closest to Him!