And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. … When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife.
Matthew 1:19, 24 ESV
awake… 1. to cease sleeping 2. to become aroused or active again 3. to become conscious or aware of something
–Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary 11th ed.
Joseph… described as just… the Greek translated meaning… righteous… observing divine laws… in a wide sense… upright… righteous… virtuous… keeping the commands of God… (Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon)
Joseph’s decision to break his engagement with Mary followed the law to a tee… it was just… righteous… surely it was what God would want…
Yet… God took supernatural steps to reverse this decision…
But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel!” (which means, God with us).
Matthew 1:20-23 ESV
An angel visited Joseph in a dream to explain the law more clearly…
Within the torah… God’s law… were the prophets…
Words given from old to explain the law… God’s heart about it… and wake us up to what it means…
This child of Mary’s was the fulfillment of the law… He came to show us the heart of the law… God’s way with His people… His will for us…
God woke Joseph to the heart of the law…
Relationship with Him… being with Him… not just following rules…
Joseph who went to bed ready to keep the law… awoke to the reality of the fulfillment of the law…
Legalism… a strict keeping of the law apart form God’s heart for the law… separates us from Him and His will…
Joseph had a heart for God… therefore He could choose what seemed outside the law… to do the godly thing… listening to the Lord instead of the law… trusting God’s heart… and lean not on his own understanding when it comes to judgment…
The law was given to help us know how to love God and others… but unless we wake to God’s heart within the law we’ll miss Him altogether…
Just as the scribes… lawyers… and Pharisees… missed Him when He came…
“…I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. And if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless…” —Jesus
Matthew 12:6-7 ESV
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