Fourth Sunday of Advent - "What's In A Name?"

 

It’s the season of Advent - a time of expectation. 

Advent helps us prepare our hearts for the coming Christ and a new world. Jesus’ arrival is both a now and a not yet—how do we live in this tension?

We hold on to the hope that even though the world is not as it should be, God's kingdom is here, breaking through into our reality all the time, and we can not only bear witness to it but also help bring it.  

During Advent, we are reminded that God became one of us to rescue all of us.  God is not far away.  God is with us. Even during the darkest moments, we can have confidence that the story isn't over; it's just beginning again.  

Today, we are going to spend some time hearing about the announcement of Jesus’ birth from Joseph's perspective.  Joseph, who has no lines to speak of in the narrative of Jesus' birth, played a vital role in his life.  

Imagine what it must have been like for Joseph.  He's engaged to be married to Mary.  The word used in the Gospels is "betrothed," which essentially means they were married but hadn't yet sealed the deal, if you know what I mean.  

And then Mary comes to him with some news.  She's pregnant, but it's okay because it was the Holy Spirit who did it.  

You can see why Joseph might have been a little upset about this.  It sounds ridiculous.  Unbelievable. Imagine how he might have felt: ashamed, angry, betrayed, and foolish.  

And yet, somehow, he overcomes all of this and accepts it.  

THE STORY OF JOSEPH TEACHES US THE MEANING OF GRACE 

Matthew 1:18-25

8 Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah[a] took place in this way. 

• Matthew’s Gospel uses an interesting word for “birth” (genesis). Scholars believe this was intentional, as Matthew reframes the story as a new Creation.  

When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be pregnant by the Holy Spirit. 19 Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to divorce her quietly. 

• Joseph chose to spare Mary the shame of adultery. He could have had her brought to trial and stoned to death.  

20 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. 21 She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 

The concept of sin (hamartia) and what it means in this text.  It has to do with the systemic sin of Israel itself, calling back to the Old Testament moments when the Hebrew people turned away from God. 

22 All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:

23 “Look, the virgin shall become pregnant and give birth to a son,

    and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, 'God is with us.” 

• The dispute over Isaiah 7:14 and Matthew’s choice of words. The original Hebrew text uses a word meaning "young woman" and refers to the birth of a prince, the future king Hezekiah.  Matthew chooses to use the word found in the Greek translation of Isaiah.  

24 When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife 25 but had no marital relations with her until she had given birth to a son, and he named him Jesus.

• He names the child Jesus, which was a sign of his adoption. It was a common name in first-century Jewish culture.  Yeshua, or Joshua, meaning "God will save."

We often overlook Joseph in the story of the Nativity and as a presence in Jesus’ life.  But he teaches us something beautiful. 

I want to share this amazing painting by the artist Janet McKenzie: 

There's something about this painting that spoke to me when I first saw it at an exhibition.  You can see the devotion Joseph shows his adopted son. This could be a moment in the middle of the night when the baby needed to be rocked to sleep. It could be a moment when Joseph is just holding him, close to him.  

Despite all that had happened, the angst, the challenges, the confusion that he must have felt, in this moment, all you see is a man holding his son.  

Sometimes we are given opportunities to show grace and love in the most challenging circumstances.  How we respond shows how we truly feel about God’s grace, mercy, and love.  

Some Important Questions

• Where in our lives do we need to be showing grace and mercy right now?
• What would it look like if we learned to trust God’s purposes for us?
• How do we embody Joseph’s story as a community of faith?

THE STORY OF JOSEPH TEACHES US THE MEANING OF GRACE