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Show WHAT ABOUT OUR SONS? Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publik example, was minded to put her away privily. (Matthew 1: 19) "Then " Our young men are in trouble today. given a chance at all and are aborted before they come into this world. Many of them are killing each other. Many are being takened out at the Many are not hands of the authorities who determined to take us seem out. Others are dying a premature death from stress, negativism, high blood pressure, bad attitudes, and the like. The question that keeps coming to me is where can we find any hope to go on or any way to go forward? 1 At the comer fulfillment, God of promise and sent His only begotten Son robed in flesh to dwell here among us as a voice of hope and great expectations. When the time was right, in that little hilly town of Bethlehem, Mary brought forth her first born son and named Him Jesus-the promise of the Savior, the hope of the world, the good from above. But news Mary was not alone, Joseph was with her. They were not yet married as you and I know marriage but they were engage more than you and I know. As I read The Bible, Joseph was some kind of a man, who really cared about both Son. Listen to the text "Then man, Mary and her one more time. Joseph her husband, being a just and not willing to make her a 2 publik example away privily. minded to put her was " Notice first that man. He knew she they knew Joseph was a just was each other pregnant before intimately. Even Mary had become before he knew how pregnant, Joseph determined that he would not embarrass or ridicule or punish her for what seemed like an act of infidelity. He believed in doing not just the right thing but the righteous thing. Instead of doing what he was entitled by the law in Deuteronomy 24: 1 to do publicly, Joseph would just act in private. He would put her away. On the one hand, that could have rneant he would get rid of her from now on, give her "a bill divorcement." But you and I know that what it really meant was that Joseph 3 of would protect her while she carried this child she had conceived, The Bible calls Holy One Second, Joseph obeyed the voice of God and took Mary unto himself. "Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife. (Matthew 1: 24) He did not take her to take advantage of Him the .. " her or to humiliate her or to abuse and mistreat her. He took her to be his helpmeet, his lifetime partner, and we know later the mother of his children. He did not tush in for physical intimacy. fact, he waited for nine months until after Jesus was born. In verse 25, we read, "And knew her not till she had In brought forth her firstborn son .) Joseph was patient and loving. Rather than err .. 4 on the side of harm and danger, he leaned in the direction of right. More of us ought to learn to learn in the direction of right and good. .For we set examples for our boys. Third, Joseph protected Jesus when the order went out from the Governor to angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph saying, Arise, have Him killed. " ... The ... and take the young child and his mother, andflee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for 'Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. (Matthew 2: 13) Joseph did what he told and stayed until Herod in was " was Egypt with the child dead. He did what he could and what he knew was best to protect the young child. You see, God entrusted His 5 own Son into the care of Joseph. What must have been to child that example rear was care so much for not his own! What of manhood, that wear this a an Joseph would and train this child that own. a man was not his God did not put her here just to the pants and brag about bring home the bacon. He put us here to be men of God, to obey His word, and to protect the young children. We can protect them by teaching them the Word of God. We can protect them by living good examples. We can protect them by righteousness. We can protect them by making our neighborhoods safe from gangs and violence. We can protect them by being faithful to our own calling. W e were standing up for called to be children of God to follow the 6 plans of God, to walk in the light of life and brighten the comer where we are, to faithful stewards, to live unspotted from this world. bloom as That's what Jesus did. He this world but was came into not of this world. He dwelt among us but was greater than He was and is the Son of God. 7 us. |
