As the hurriedness of the last couple of days had passed, and the new week began, Caleb and the family found themselves gathered together again as the evening meal had been finished. As Caleb sat down in his favorite chair, he soon heard his daughter, Abigail approaching him. “Abba(Hebrew for father), we have heard so much about Mary, if you have the time this night, could you also tell us about Joseph? What all did Luke tell you about him? I cannot imagine what it must have been like when he realized Mary was pregnant, and how hard it must have been for him to accept what she was telling him.”
On hearing the words, Caleb smiled, as he realized that looking into his daughter's eyes, he sensed how strongly this had been on her mind. Jokingly Caleb looked at her husband Lemuel. “My son, I must apologize to you now, as I know my daughter, and know she will remember each detail I speak about Joseph. And she will use each in future discussions she has with you in order to make her point!” As the family heard this and laughed, they also soon began to gather closer, so they could hear all of what Caleb had to say.
“In hearing about Joseph, little I learned actually came for Luke. Most of what I was told came from brother Matthew. Matthew told me that Joseph was an honorable and righteous man, and on hearing that Mary was pregnant with a child that was not his, he was torn apart(Matthew 1:18-19).” Caleb looked intently at his daughter Abigail. “My child, you have to remember, as much as this was a trial on Mary, so was it also on Joseph. The woman he was betrothed to, ready to spend the rest of his life with, is suddenly pregnant with a child that he did not father. During the ministry of our Lord, there were those who spoke poorly of this(John 8), and even today, we hear those who say that the father of Jesus was actually a Roman soldier who had his way with Mary. With all we hear today, you can only imagine the rumors that were going around in Joseph’s day.”
Caleb looked into the eyes of all as he continued to tell them about Joseph. “As her husband, even though they were just betrothed, he would have to formally seek a divorce in order for this marriage to not continue. If Mary had been unfaithful to him, it would be impossible for him to go through with the marriage. But being a just man, he did not want to disgrace Mary by going through with the divorce publicly. So Joseph decided to send her away secretly, which was a popular term I am sure many of you have never heard, but was well known in Israel as I was being raised. This means that Joseph sought to break the marriage arrangements secretly, to do so in a way that would bring as little attention to her as possible. Joseph knew that Mary would always be looked on by the Jewish community in disgrace, a mark seen on her that would always be the first thing people would say of her. And if Joseph had done this publicly, all would have sympathized with him, and no disgrace from this would have fallen on him. But Joseph chose a path of compassion that would not cause hurt to come on Mary any more than necessary. Even in that moment, he thought of Mary more than himself.”
Caleb leaned forward, moving to the edge of his chair as he again looked to speak. “But as Joseph was thinking through all of this, laying in his bed troubled by all he had learned and by what he was looking to do, the Lord sent an angel to him in a dream. And the angel let Joseph know that the son Mary was carrying had been placed in her by the Holy Spirit. That Mary was carrying the Messiah, who would be named Jesus, and would save the people from their sin(Matthew 1:20-21). I remember as Matthew described this to me, helping me to understand. As Joseph heard the angel speak to him these words, he realized that Mary had not conceived because she was unfaithful, Mary conceived because she was a woman of faith. The Lord had bestowed favor on Mary because the woman that Joseph was betrothed to, had been found faithful by the Lord(Jeremiah 31:22). From this, Joseph also was shown how the Lord’s favor would fall upon him, as he would be given the privilege of giving the Savior of this world, the Name above all names(Philippians 2:9-11). And as the angel gave Joseph the name of the Messiah, he also showed Joseph all the Messiah would accomplish, as He would take away the sin of this world(John 3:16-18).”
On hearing these words, Asher spoke up. “Abba, was all the Messiah sent to accomplish being spoken to Joseph by the angel for the first time, or had he grown up knowing these things?” Caleb paused for a second before he spoke. “My son, salvation had always been the hope of the Jewish people, even if they had forgotten how that hope would come, and the cost that hope would bring. The words Joseph heard in his dream, would have been words that would have echoed in his mind the words he grew up having heard from Isaiah. Pull out my papers the first chance you get, and read the words of Isaiah, as I can still remember by heart as the Lord proclaimed, “As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; by His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, as He will bear their iniquities.(Isaiah 53:11).’ You can imagine the impact Joseph felt as he heard the angel speak those words, and realized he was being chosen by the Lord to raise our Savior.”
As Asher nodded that he now understood, Caleb began to speak again. “The angel then told Joseph, all of this had to be done in order to fulfill the promise the Lord had given, in the words the prophet had spoken. Words that foretold of the virgin birth of the Savior(Matthew 1:22-23). Word the Lord spoke to Isaiah that I still remember from my studies well. “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.(Isaiah 7:14)”.
On hearing this, Asher spoke up once again. “Abba, this leaves me with another question, if you do not mind. Why did God call the promised Messiah, Immanuel?” Caleb then smiled at his son as he answered. “I never mind your questions, my son! It brings me joy to hear you ask about our Lord with such passion! In the name, you will find your answer, Asher. As the name Immanuel means ‘God with us’. I remember that brother John once told me, ‘And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.(John 1:14)’. In Christ, God dwelt with us, lived among us, and everywhere He went, we saw His glory. There was a presence when you were near Christ that was unlike any man. Because even as a child, I can remember what it felt like to stand in the glory of God each time He was near me. And even as I was so young, I remember feeling that if God could come to us, then it was possible for me to come to Him.”
Fighting back the tears, as Caleb remembered the few times he had been in the presence of Christ when he was very young, he gathered himself so he could tell the rest of the story of Joseph. “I have told you all how faithful and obedient a man Joseph was, and as he awoke, those qualities could greatly be seen. Joseph did not waver and he did not doubt, Joseph understood the message the Lord had sent him. And he followed closely the plan the Lord had laid out for him. Joseph acted in the righteous way the Lord had called him to, and he took Mary as his wife(Matthew 1:24-25). Joseph continued to honor the Lord, as he did not have any sexual relations with Mary until after Christ was born. And Joseph named him exactly as the Lord had called him to do, as he gave Him the name of Jesus.”
On hearing all of this, Caleb’s daughter, Abigail, began to speak. “Abba, may I ask you a couple of more questions about Joseph and Mary?” Caleb quickly answered, “Of course, my child!” On hearing this Abigail spoke again. “Did Joseph and Mary have a normal marriage? With them having the Messiah in their life, was their marriage like all of our marriages? And Abba, how did all the people in Nazareth treat Joseph and Mary?”
As Caleb heard her words, he smiled at his daughter. “My precious Abigail, they would have had a marriage much like I was blessed to have with your mother, and all of you are blessed to have today. God came to this earth to experience it as we all do, and to best do this, He would have had to be present in a normal, but loving family. I have no doubt, Mary and Joseph greatly loved each other, and the strength of their faith would have only drawn them closer. They went on to have other children, other sons and daughters, some of which I once knew(Matthew 13:55-56). And I can guarantee you they picked on Jesus the way all of these have picked on you! And I can also guarantee you there were days they were upset at Jesus, the way you have at some point been upset with all of these around you tonight. They were family, and the Lord came to experience all that comes with family. And as far as all Joseph and Mary faced, I never heard Luke or Matthew speak of that much. But I feel confident in telling you, that those in Nazareth were probably not much different from all we see around us today. They would have talked and they would have gossiped. And in a small town, I am sure they would have done that even more. But above all the whispers, Joseph and Mary heard His voice, and His voice influenced them and drove them more than all the whispers ever could have!”
As Caleb finished, he again noticed how long he had been speaking, as darkness filled the room. “We have discussed much tonight, but I still have so much more I want to tell you about our Lord, and how He came into this world. I promise, we will get together again tomorrow evening, so we can talk about all this again!”
As Caleb and his family come together again tomorrow, I pray you and your family will also join in!
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