So far in our Survey of these lenten saints, we have looked at St. Matthias, the apostle chosen to replace Judas, who shows us that our calling in Christ is more important than whatever we bring to the table.
We've remembered Perpetua and Felicitas, early Christian martyrs, whose example of firm confession even unto death encourages us to be all the more steadfast in our faith.
And we commemorated St. Patrick, perhaps the most famous of these, a man who suffered bitter slavery as a youth, but whom God used later as a missionary to bring the Gospel to many of the pagans in Ireland.
March 19th, a few days ago, was the official day to commemorate St. Joseph, the Guardian of Jesus. Joseph of Mary and Joseph. Another man of faith whose example we cherish, and who also played a part in God's plan of salvation through Jesus Christ. (credit to http://aardvarkalley.blogspot.com/ for much of the following background information)
Most of what we know of Joseph we learn from the nativity accounts in Matthew and Luke's Gospels. Otherwise he is mentioned only in passing as the supposed father of Jesus of Nazareth.
Matthew's Gospel shows Joseph as just and fair man, but a man of compassion – especially for his betrothed wife: When the Virgin Mary revealed her pregnancy to him he sought to avoid a public rebuke, which may have resulted in her being stoned to death. Then after the Lord sent His angel and revealed Himself as the cause of this extraordinary circumstance, Joseph submitted to God's will, just as Mary also submitted to God's plans for her.
The Heavenly Father thus graciously allowed this unassuming man to bear the responsibility of protecting and providing for the Incarnate Word and his mother. How could Joseph possibly have imagined the extraordinary events that awaited them, including the visits of shepherds and wise men, as well as Herod's wrath and their subsequent flight to Egypt?
St. Joseph was a pious Jew, as we see hinted in Mary and Joseph's observances of Jewish holy days, and of pilgrimage to Jerusalem. We also know he was a descendant of David, which doubly fulfills the scriptural promises that the Messiah would be the “Son of David”. Both Joseph and Mary, it seems, were descended from David – and so Jesus' bodily lineage (through Mary) and his legal lineage (through Joseph) are covered.
Joseph was – at least as it is normally translated — a carpenter by trade. Actually, the the Greek word τέκτων (tekton) that is used in the Gospels can mean "builder" or "architect." Scholars suggest that Joseph may have been a repairman, a general craftsman, or a building contractor. And while other words are used in classical Greek, it's possible that tekton had a broader meaning in the Greek of the Scriptures and that Joseph may have been a metalworker, a stoneworker, or a mason.
Some archaeologists speculate that Joseph may have been a craftsman employed in the recently excavated Roman city of Sepphoras, not too far from Nazereth. Whatever his specific trade, Jesus likely learned it from Joseph, and we assume that he too would have earned a living from it until his days of public ministry. This further shows Jesus' fulfilling his active righteousness in redeeming all of life for his people – including that part of life we know as “daily work”.
Because of the silence of the Gospels — and because Jesus entrusted Mary to the care of John — it is generally believed that Joseph died a natural death after the visit to Jerusalem when Jesus was twelve (Luke 2:41-51) but likely before His baptism in the Jordan (Matthew 3:13-17), probably around His thirtieth year.
We can only wonder what influence Jesus' earthly father had on Him during His early years on earth.
But what can we learn from St. Joseph and his faithful example? I suggest several key points.
1. Joseph was a model of obedience to God.
Consider the many points along the way in which Joseph showed his obedience. First, he was told that Mary had not been unfaithful, that this Child was of God, and he should not fear to take her as his wife. And so he obeyed. The angel also told Joseph that he should name the child “Jesus”, and he obeyed. He obeyed the decree of Caesar, thus honoring the 4th commandment, and brought Mary to Bethlehem for the census. He obeyed the Jewish law and had the child circumcised on the 8th day. When Herod sought to kill the child, Joseph again obeyed the voice of the angel and brought the family to Egypt. Later, he obeyed when told to return. But because Herod's son Archelaus was ruling in Judea, Joseph was told, again in a dream, to return not to Bethlehem but to Nazareth, and again he obeyed.
Wouldn't it be nice if at when someone looked back on your life or mine, they could say, “what an example of faithful obedience!” Surely Joseph was a sinner like the rest of us. But this humble and pious man showed great faith in God by obeying at every turn, even against his first inclinations, and certainly with no small amount of sacrifice. He obeyed the earthly authorities when and where he could, but he obeyed the word of God first and foremost. And so should we.
2. The children in our charge are also, not, ultimately ours. We too raise them on behalf of their Heavenly Father.
One rightly points out that Joseph wasn't really Jesus' father. This would deny that Jesus was born of a virgin, conceived by the Holy Spirit, and through no act or will of man. Rightly so. But in another sense, in a day-to-day, earthly sense, Joseph was Jesus' earthly father. He raised him. He taught him. He provided for his daily needs. He protected him. All this Joseph did, not because Jesus was truly his own, but because of the charge he had been given.
Some parents today have children that are also adopted in one sense or another. But even if your own children are your own, born the natural way, they are still in a sense not your own. Just as the earthly gifts of money and possessions we enjoy are not our own, neither do our children really belong to us. We are charged with their care and nurture, and most importantly to raise them in the fear and knowledge of the Lord. Ultimately, they belong to the Lord, as do we all. Ultimately, they will return to him.
We can also give thanks to God for the Josephs in our own lives, those who have cared for us, and served as a father figure – whether we are related by blood or not. God places those people in our lives to protect us and provide for us, and to teach us his word. And these vocations are some of the highest and most important of all. For in them, through them, the Holy Spirit brings us to faith in Christ.
3. God chose humble, everyday people, even to have care of Jesus. So does he charge us, today, who have the message of Christ, to both guard it and set it before the world.
One of Joseph's chief roles was to protect Jesus, especially as a vulnerable young child. Likewise, it is in some sense, the role of every Christian to guard what has been given to us as a charge – and for all of us, that includes primarily the Gospel! Guarding the holy Word of God from false teaching, from abuse and neglect, and from those who would twist and cherrypick it for their own ends – certainly this complies with a Christian view of Scripture. Paul says anyone who preaches a false gospel is anathema, even an angel from heaven (Galatians 1)! He tells us to “Guard the good deposit” (2 Tim. 1:14). John warns us about anyone who would add to or take away from God's word (Rev. 22:19).
But we can't bury this treasure in the ground for safekeeping, or hide the light under a bushel. The Gospel of Jesus Christ, which we have heard and believed, by which our sins are forgiven, and by which we are saved... it must be proclaimed. The Christian church is not only to be guardian but missionary. We are not only to keep it straight, but to get it out. We are to believe it, but also to confess it with boldness, according to our vocation and the opportunities God gives us.
Finally, concerning Joseph, we should say this: To the extent that Joseph showed obedience, that he faithfully cared for his charge, that he protected Christ from harm, we must confess that this flowed from his faith. He didn't do it because he was good, but because he believed.
And we should also note that in turn, Christ does all of these far more, far more fully, and for the entirety of our race. That is to say that Christ is fully obedient, even unto death, even death on the cross for us all. Christ cares for all of us who are placed in his charge – not one of us will be snatched from his hand. Christ protects us from harm, delivers us from evil, and even from death itself. And Christ also sends us out with the message of salvation, ambassadors of his Gospel to all the world. Christ did the work that was given to him – both the mundane, everyday work of the carpenter, but also the extraordinary, once and for all work of building his church, by a cross, by a resurrection and by a precious gospel full of everlasting promises.
Whatever good example Joseph shows, Jesus shows all the more. And whatever Jesus does it is never only example, but also a good work done where we fall short, a righteousness completed on our behalf, or a sacrifice made in our place. Thanks be to God for Joseph, a faithful example, the guardian of our Lord. And thanks be to God for Jesus, our faithful savior.
We've remembered Perpetua and Felicitas, early Christian martyrs, whose example of firm confession even unto death encourages us to be all the more steadfast in our faith.
And we commemorated St. Patrick, perhaps the most famous of these, a man who suffered bitter slavery as a youth, but whom God used later as a missionary to bring the Gospel to many of the pagans in Ireland.
March 19th, a few days ago, was the official day to commemorate St. Joseph, the Guardian of Jesus. Joseph of Mary and Joseph. Another man of faith whose example we cherish, and who also played a part in God's plan of salvation through Jesus Christ. (credit to http://aardvarkalley.blogspot.com/ for much of the following background information)
Most of what we know of Joseph we learn from the nativity accounts in Matthew and Luke's Gospels. Otherwise he is mentioned only in passing as the supposed father of Jesus of Nazareth.
Matthew's Gospel shows Joseph as just and fair man, but a man of compassion – especially for his betrothed wife: When the Virgin Mary revealed her pregnancy to him he sought to avoid a public rebuke, which may have resulted in her being stoned to death. Then after the Lord sent His angel and revealed Himself as the cause of this extraordinary circumstance, Joseph submitted to God's will, just as Mary also submitted to God's plans for her.
The Heavenly Father thus graciously allowed this unassuming man to bear the responsibility of protecting and providing for the Incarnate Word and his mother. How could Joseph possibly have imagined the extraordinary events that awaited them, including the visits of shepherds and wise men, as well as Herod's wrath and their subsequent flight to Egypt?
St. Joseph was a pious Jew, as we see hinted in Mary and Joseph's observances of Jewish holy days, and of pilgrimage to Jerusalem. We also know he was a descendant of David, which doubly fulfills the scriptural promises that the Messiah would be the “Son of David”. Both Joseph and Mary, it seems, were descended from David – and so Jesus' bodily lineage (through Mary) and his legal lineage (through Joseph) are covered.
Joseph was – at least as it is normally translated — a carpenter by trade. Actually, the the Greek word τέκτων (tekton) that is used in the Gospels can mean "builder" or "architect." Scholars suggest that Joseph may have been a repairman, a general craftsman, or a building contractor. And while other words are used in classical Greek, it's possible that tekton had a broader meaning in the Greek of the Scriptures and that Joseph may have been a metalworker, a stoneworker, or a mason.
Some archaeologists speculate that Joseph may have been a craftsman employed in the recently excavated Roman city of Sepphoras, not too far from Nazereth. Whatever his specific trade, Jesus likely learned it from Joseph, and we assume that he too would have earned a living from it until his days of public ministry. This further shows Jesus' fulfilling his active righteousness in redeeming all of life for his people – including that part of life we know as “daily work”.
Because of the silence of the Gospels — and because Jesus entrusted Mary to the care of John — it is generally believed that Joseph died a natural death after the visit to Jerusalem when Jesus was twelve (Luke 2:41-51) but likely before His baptism in the Jordan (Matthew 3:13-17), probably around His thirtieth year.
We can only wonder what influence Jesus' earthly father had on Him during His early years on earth.
But what can we learn from St. Joseph and his faithful example? I suggest several key points.
1. Joseph was a model of obedience to God.
Consider the many points along the way in which Joseph showed his obedience. First, he was told that Mary had not been unfaithful, that this Child was of God, and he should not fear to take her as his wife. And so he obeyed. The angel also told Joseph that he should name the child “Jesus”, and he obeyed. He obeyed the decree of Caesar, thus honoring the 4th commandment, and brought Mary to Bethlehem for the census. He obeyed the Jewish law and had the child circumcised on the 8th day. When Herod sought to kill the child, Joseph again obeyed the voice of the angel and brought the family to Egypt. Later, he obeyed when told to return. But because Herod's son Archelaus was ruling in Judea, Joseph was told, again in a dream, to return not to Bethlehem but to Nazareth, and again he obeyed.
Wouldn't it be nice if at when someone looked back on your life or mine, they could say, “what an example of faithful obedience!” Surely Joseph was a sinner like the rest of us. But this humble and pious man showed great faith in God by obeying at every turn, even against his first inclinations, and certainly with no small amount of sacrifice. He obeyed the earthly authorities when and where he could, but he obeyed the word of God first and foremost. And so should we.
2. The children in our charge are also, not, ultimately ours. We too raise them on behalf of their Heavenly Father.
One rightly points out that Joseph wasn't really Jesus' father. This would deny that Jesus was born of a virgin, conceived by the Holy Spirit, and through no act or will of man. Rightly so. But in another sense, in a day-to-day, earthly sense, Joseph was Jesus' earthly father. He raised him. He taught him. He provided for his daily needs. He protected him. All this Joseph did, not because Jesus was truly his own, but because of the charge he had been given.
Some parents today have children that are also adopted in one sense or another. But even if your own children are your own, born the natural way, they are still in a sense not your own. Just as the earthly gifts of money and possessions we enjoy are not our own, neither do our children really belong to us. We are charged with their care and nurture, and most importantly to raise them in the fear and knowledge of the Lord. Ultimately, they belong to the Lord, as do we all. Ultimately, they will return to him.
We can also give thanks to God for the Josephs in our own lives, those who have cared for us, and served as a father figure – whether we are related by blood or not. God places those people in our lives to protect us and provide for us, and to teach us his word. And these vocations are some of the highest and most important of all. For in them, through them, the Holy Spirit brings us to faith in Christ.
3. God chose humble, everyday people, even to have care of Jesus. So does he charge us, today, who have the message of Christ, to both guard it and set it before the world.
One of Joseph's chief roles was to protect Jesus, especially as a vulnerable young child. Likewise, it is in some sense, the role of every Christian to guard what has been given to us as a charge – and for all of us, that includes primarily the Gospel! Guarding the holy Word of God from false teaching, from abuse and neglect, and from those who would twist and cherrypick it for their own ends – certainly this complies with a Christian view of Scripture. Paul says anyone who preaches a false gospel is anathema, even an angel from heaven (Galatians 1)! He tells us to “Guard the good deposit” (2 Tim. 1:14). John warns us about anyone who would add to or take away from God's word (Rev. 22:19).
But we can't bury this treasure in the ground for safekeeping, or hide the light under a bushel. The Gospel of Jesus Christ, which we have heard and believed, by which our sins are forgiven, and by which we are saved... it must be proclaimed. The Christian church is not only to be guardian but missionary. We are not only to keep it straight, but to get it out. We are to believe it, but also to confess it with boldness, according to our vocation and the opportunities God gives us.
Finally, concerning Joseph, we should say this: To the extent that Joseph showed obedience, that he faithfully cared for his charge, that he protected Christ from harm, we must confess that this flowed from his faith. He didn't do it because he was good, but because he believed.
And we should also note that in turn, Christ does all of these far more, far more fully, and for the entirety of our race. That is to say that Christ is fully obedient, even unto death, even death on the cross for us all. Christ cares for all of us who are placed in his charge – not one of us will be snatched from his hand. Christ protects us from harm, delivers us from evil, and even from death itself. And Christ also sends us out with the message of salvation, ambassadors of his Gospel to all the world. Christ did the work that was given to him – both the mundane, everyday work of the carpenter, but also the extraordinary, once and for all work of building his church, by a cross, by a resurrection and by a precious gospel full of everlasting promises.
Whatever good example Joseph shows, Jesus shows all the more. And whatever Jesus does it is never only example, but also a good work done where we fall short, a righteousness completed on our behalf, or a sacrifice made in our place. Thanks be to God for Joseph, a faithful example, the guardian of our Lord. And thanks be to God for Jesus, our faithful savior.
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