Do You Understand Christmas?

The Book of Matthew starts with a genealogy of Jesus Christ:

Matthew 1:1 … The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham …

… and as you read through the genealogy you come across names of people you can hardly pronounce, people you may have never heard of, and some that you have. This genealogy stems from the father of our faith Abraham, and continues – one by one – showing a lineage between Abraham and the stepfather of Jesus, a man named Joseph:

Matthew 1:16 … and Jacob begat Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

Let me read to you these familiar words:

Matthew 1:18-21 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. 19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily. 20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. 21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

Now I want you to focus on the words that the angel of the Lord (I believe, Gideon) spoke to Joseph:

Matthew 1:20-21 Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. 21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

Having read this to you, I now ask you ALL to read this with me:

Philippians 2:12-13 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

What does Philippians 2 have to do with the beloved Christmas story?

Joseph Was Afraid

Do you realize that the wonderful story of Christmas begins not with joy, but with fear? The Angel of God told Joseph:

Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife..

Joseph was fearful. Why was he afraid?

Joseph of Bethlehem, of the tribe of David, was engaged to be married to Mary of Bethlehem, of the tribe of David. Joseph and Mary loved one another. It was not uncommon among the ancient Jews to arrange marriages between families to strengthen bonds, and grow the tribe. It is very possible that Mary had been promised to Joseph from an early age. He may have been betrothed or engaged, promised to Mary since he was a baby. Joseph and Mary probably grew up together. He had known her his whole life. Mary was supposed to be a virgin. The Bible tells us that just before they formalized their marriage by coming together as one …

Matthew 1:18-21 … {before Joseph and Mary} came together {to formalize their marriage as man and wife} , she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily.

Joseph was confronted with a dilemma. Mary – a girl he has loved his entire life – Mary was “found” (the Greek εὑρίσκω heurískō, pronounced hyoo-ris’-ko) which means “to discover by examination”. I suspect this happened on their very wedding day. The honeymoon was beginning. And Joseph discovers that Mary is with Child.

You can summarize what is wrong with America today with our attitude as we read this ancient text. “Mary was with child. So what? There’s abortion, or adoption, or single parenthood. It’s no big deal!” Yes, it is a big deal. You see, Joseph was a just man, a believer in God, and God in His Word said that sexual sin was wrong. If Joseph revealed that Mary was pregnant outside of marriage at the least she would be shunned. God said of sexual sin:

Leviticus 18:29-30 For whosoever shall commit any of these abominations, even the souls that commit them shall be cut off from among their people. 30 Therefore shall ye keep mine ordinance, that ye commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God.

At the most the Law decreed:

Deuteronomy 22:23-24 If a damsel that is a virgin be betrothed unto an husband, and a man find her in the city, and lie with her; 24 Then ye shall bring them both out unto the gate of that city, and ye shall stone them with stones that they die; the damsel, because she cried not, being in the city; and the man, because he hath humbled his neighbor’s wife: so thou shalt put away evil from among you.

Joseph was a just man. He was a believing man, a follower of God, a keeper of God’s Word. But Joseph loved Mary, and the Scripture says that he was …

not willing to make her a public example,
was minded to put her away privily

Rather than reveal what looked to be a terrible breach against God and himself Joseph decided to put her away – to divorce her privately. He would not bring charges against her.

What a wonderful love Joseph had!
He loved God and loved Mary.
This is why God chose to use Joseph to bless the world.

The Angel of God comes to Joseph with a wonderful message!

Matthew 1:20 Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.

The angel of God said “FEAR NOT”, phobeō mē, “stop fearing”. Put your fears to rest, Joseph. You will not have to expose Mary to death or dis-fellowship. You will not have to hide her pregnancy from your and her family. Do not fear to take Mary as your lawfully wedded wife. The Child she carries is not illegitimate. The child Mary is carrying is conceived of the Holy Spirit.

Who is the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit is God working among us.

The Holy Spirit was present at the creation of the earth:Genesis 1:2 … and the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
The Holy Spirit moved the Prophets to write our Bible:2 Peter 1:21 … the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy {Spirit}
It is the Holy Spirit that leads people to faith in God, and makes the believer a Child of God by spiritual birth:John 3:5 {Jesus said} … Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

The Holy Spirit who makes the Christian and indwells the Christian (see 1 Corinthians 6:19) is indeed a member of the Godhead (see Acts 5:3-4). It is the Holy Spirit that empowers the Church and gives gifts unto the believer in order to glorify Jesus (see John 14:25-26; 15:26-27; 16:7-15). The Holy Spirit is a Person not a power Who can be can be grieved (Ephesians 4:30); has a will (1 Corinthians 12:4-7); and uses His mind to search the deep things of God (1 Corinthians 2:10). It is the Spirit that has fellowship with believers (2 Corinthians 13:14).

It is the Holy Spirit that caused the virgin we call Mary to be with Child of God. God bypassed man when He made the humanity of Christ. Joseph as a fallen man could have no hand in making the Savior.

Joseph – This Is Good News

God would choose to enter humanity through a little virgin called Mary. If Joseph had not listened to God but instead kept the Law of God without compromise then Mary would have been killed – and the Messiah would never come.

Joseph looked beyond himself.
Joseph lived his life by faith.
Joseph feared the Lord. Oh, that more of us feared the Lord!
and Joseph loved the Lord. Oh, that more of us loved the Lord!

The Angel gave Joseph the best news of all. Not only had Mary been faithful to him, but she was faithful to God.

Matthew 1:21 {Mary} shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

What Joseph started out hearing as bad news was actually the best news of all. What is this good news? God would send His Son into this fallen world to save us from our sins. Why would God choose this method to save humanity? We read:

Matthew 1:22-23 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

Matthew tells us that this plan that God has for Mary and Joseph has been in motion since the days of Isaiah, some 700 years before. Isaiah said:

Isaiah 7:14 … the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. {which means “God with us”. See also Matthew 1:22-23}

Isaiah 9:6 … For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

God will enter humanity through Mary. He will be born to and nursed by a virgin. Why did God have to do this? Because we are born sinners. Our first parent Adam sinned against God. God placed Adam in the perfect Garden then told him:

Genesis 2:16-17 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Adam did as he was NOT to do, and death entered creation. From the time of Adam every person born into this life was born physically alive, but spiritually dead. We are born into this life separated from God by a sin nature that plagues us from birth. The Scripture tells us:

Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

We compare ourselves to others around us to determine if we are ok or not ok. We look at ourselves in the mirror. “Man, I’m fat!” Then we go out and look at someone else. “But I’m not as fat as HE is!” Somehow we feel that by doing better than those around us we are ok.

I speak in tongues, so I’m ok.
I tithe, so I’m ok.
I go to Church, so I’m ok.
I don’t cheat on my wife, so I’m ok.
I pay my taxes, so I’m ok.

We determine our – shall I call it – ok-ness – by those around us. But whether we are ok or not is not based on others. Our ok-ness is based on God. How do we stack up to God?
How do we measure up in HIS eyes?

Romans 5:17-19 tells us … by one man’s offense death reigned by one; … 18 … by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; 19 … by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners…

God – the God Who made Heaven and earth and all that is in it – looks at us and says “death reigns among mankind. They are all condemned. They are all sinners. They are an offense to Me.” You may measure up as ok on a human scale, but on a God scale you and I are absolute zero. We are sinners in need of a Savior.

So God decided to save us. That’s what Christmas is about. Christmas is about we who are sinners – enemies of God – being reached out to BY GOD. The Lord reaches out. The Baby in the manger, the Child born of the Virgin, is Eternal God in human flesh. That Baby is the Lamb of God, sent by the Father to pay for the sins of the world. The Angel said:

Matthew 5:21 Mary … shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

The Son of God enters humanity. He does not enter to parades and the cheers of the public. He enters humanity on a rescue mission. What did the Angel say?

Jesus SHALL SAVE His people from their sins

We are told in:

Romans 5:8-11 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. 11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.

The Baby born in the manger was born to die for us. Why did He have to die? Because sin is an eternal affront to God. It is not a lark, a fantasy, a jaunt. Sin is deadly, for it separates from God.

It was sin that cast Adam and Eve from Paradise.
It was sin that brought a flood that killed all but eight souls.
It was sin that destroyed Tyre and Sidon.
It was sin that demolished Sodom and Gomorrah.
It is sin that brings death and mayhem to humanity.
It is sin that keeps people from God, and ultimately from Heaven.
Sin is the third party that destroys marriages.
Sin robs children of their parents.
Sin kills babies in the womb.

Oh Beloved, would that we would all understand that sin is no joy, but a robber of joy. It pays a deadly wage. But Christ came to separate us from sin’s slavery. Christ was born once, so that we could be born again. Jesus came to make payment for our sins, to be the Savior of HIS people. To those who receive Him as Lord and Savior, you receive with Him life, love, adoption, and power to become the sons of God. With Jesus you receive Heaven in eternity and peace with God on earth.

We Need To Examine Our Salvation
With Fear And Trembling

Which brings us to the Scripture you read earlier:

The Bible doesn’t tell us to work FOR our salvation, but to work it OUT. Jesus worked worked for our salvation. None of us can earn nor deserve our salvation. This is why God became Man. He took our place on Calvary, dying for our sins. Once more:

Romans 5:19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were MADE sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be MADE righteous.

2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath MADE him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be MADE the righteousness of God in him.

Are you one of Christ’s people? I am not your judge. God is your Judge. Examine your salvation, dear ones. I want us all in Heaven. But more than this, I want us all as Christ’s people right now, here on this earth. If you are saved then you are not save by your works – but once saved you will live for Jesus. You will live to honor the Lord Who saved you.

I wish every Christian a Merry Christmas. But if you are not one of Christ’s redeemed, I wish you a scary Christmas. I pray the conviction of God afflict you until you can say with confident peace,
“I am Christ’s and Christ is mine!”

May God touch your hearts with His Word!