Above Rubies Daily Encouragement Blogs
THE HUMBLE JOSEPH
Joseph was obviously a humble man. Matthew 1:18, 19 says: “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost . Then Joseph her husband being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily.”
If Joseph had been a proud and arrogant man he may have made a public example of Mary which could have meant her death or at least tremendous public humiliation. However, he was a humble man, he loved Mary, and was not willing to publically humiliate her. Instead, he was prepared to annul the espousement, which among the Jews, was the only legal contract in the marriage. All legal documents were signed at this time although the couple had to wait to come together to be married. The only way for these contracts to be annulled was through a bill of divorce.
The angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph and explained to him how Mary had become pregnant by the Holy Ghost and he must go ahead and marry her. Joseph was humble enough to bear with the shame and carry the suspicions of all those who knew them both. Even though they both might have tried to explain it, who would believe that they had not committed fornication before marriage? Even though he was a “just man” and would have wanted to defend his character, he was humble enough to obey the angel of the Lord who appeared to him in a dream. By getting married to Mary, friends and family would judge he was admitting his guilt.
Joseph was not only a just and upright man, but also a humble man, willing to suffer shame on the behalf of Christ. By putting Mary away and giving her a bill of divorce, he would have cleared his name, but humility tempered his justice and enabled him to bear the consequences.
The Scriptures mention that Joseph was a carpenter. After the people had listened to Jesus teach in his own town of Nazareth Matthew 13:54,55 says: “They were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works? Is not this the carpenter’s?” They questioned his credentials. In their minds the only people worth listening to had to have cultural and theological credence.
They were familiar with his mother and his brothers and sisters, but because of his lack of credentials they were offended in him (verse 57). The Greek word is “skandalizo” and means they were stumbled or scandalized by Him. They didn’t take humility into account at all when it came to theological wisdom and mighty works. They did not know how to connect the dots. A carpenter’s son could not, in their minds, be Israel’s Messiah.
But he surely was a carpenter’s son as well as the son of God.
Be encouraged.
Colin Campbell
