An Unwed Mother

Friday December 12, 2014

Imagine this scene. Joseph leading a donkey-drawn carriage towards Bethlehem. Inside that carriage sits his pregnant wife, Mary. She was found to be pregnant before they had consummated their marriage! This would be the scandal of the town. Imagine the gossips and stares. Surely she was a promiscuous woman. And both of them are guilty of premarital sex!

A few months before, Joseph had to make a difficult decision. He could have easily cleared his own name by publicly exposing Mary´s perceived infidelity. But in doing so, it would have led to Mary´s death (Deuteronomy 22:23-27). Joseph had wanted to break off the engagement discreetly, a course that would not shame or harm her (Matthew 1:19). But that was not to be. For an angel ordered him to proceed with marrying the pregnant Mary as planned, for "the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit" (v. 20). And Joseph was to name the baby boy "Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins" (v. 21).

We´re not told how much the distraught and confounded man truly understand about his situation. But we are told that Joseph simply obeyed. He immediately " did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born" (vv. 24-25).

Today, there´s not a hint of anything scandalous about Jesus' birth, or that Jesus was an illegitimate son (John 8:41). Instead, there´s an inexplicable sacredness and indescribable awesomeness about a virgin who was with child.

The story of the unwed mother is the story of God´s power (Matthew 1:18), God´s salvation plan (v.21), and God´s presence (v.23). By God´s grace, we experience those same things today. - K.T.Sim

Read
Matthew 1:18-25
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about : His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
But after he had considered 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 home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet : "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" - which means, "God with us."
When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

Isaiah 7:14

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign : The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

Question to Ponder
If you had been Joseph, would you have believed Mary if she had told you that "she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit? (Matthew 1:18)
Why or why not?
How are you experiencing God´s power, plan and presence today?

** Article taken from ODJ (Our Daily Journey with God) Dec 2014 - Feb 2015 issue