Nazareth C.S.I.
A crime has been committed in the little town of Nazareth. Who are the
guilty parties? What price should be paid for this heinous act?
“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.”(Matthew 1:18)
ü Joseph
and Mary are pledged to be married. They have been legally and spiritually set
apart for each other.
ü Mary
is still living with her parents.
ü The
final component of the engagement process, the marriage ceremony, has not
occurred yet. Thus the marriage has not been consummated by sexual union.
ü Mary
claims to still be a virgin.
Joseph agonizes over the situation. There
is only one conclusion possible. The woman he loves, the woman he had planned
to spend the rest of his life with, has been unfaithful. She has broken her
pledge. Divorce on the grounds of adultery is not merely an option for Joseph.
The marriage vow has been broken. As a man wholly devoted to God, he must
fulfill the requirements of the law. A holy man, one seeking to be obedient to
God's commandments, couldn't even think of consummating his marriage vow.
In contrast to most of modern Western
culture, Joseph lived in a society where he had no option of giving Mary a
second chance, even if he wanted to…Jewish, Greek, and Roman law all demanded
that a man divorce his wife if she were guilty of adultery. Jewish law demanded
that a man charge his wife immediately on discovery that she had not been a
virgin. Roman law actually treated a husband who failed to divorce an
unfaithful wife as a panderer exploiting his wife as a prostitute.
Mediterranean society viewed with contempt the weakness of a man who let his
love for his wife outweigh his appropriate honor in repudiating her.[1]
The
scales of justice weigh heavily upon Joseph’s heart. On the one side, the woman
he loves and is betrothed to. On the other side, the God he loves and is
committed to. The scales tip. Joseph places his Father’s honor above his own
heartfelt desires toward Mary.
“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.” (v. 19)
Does your heart resonate with
Joseph’s…seeking the honor of God’s name…or seeking retribution for your name?
Two methods of divorce are open to him.
First, he can institute a lawsuit against Mary and expose her to public
disgrace where everyone will find out the reason behind the divorce. This
offense carries with it the possibility of Mary being stoned to death.
“If, however, the charge is true and no
proof of the girl’s virginity can be found, she shall be brought to the door of
her father’s house and there the men of her town shall stone her to death. She
has done a disgraceful thing in Israel by being promiscuous while still in her
father’s house. You must purge the evil from among you” (Dt. 22:20-21).
Or, second, Joseph can divorce her quietly
in the company of two witnesses without giving any specific reason. The
compassionate man chooses the latter alternative. There’s no reason to sound an
alarm to awaken the whole village to the crime that has been committed. Joseph
will divorce her without specifying the reason. His love for God and his love
for Mary remain intact – yet his spirit sighs at what he must do.
Exhausted
from deliberating, Joseph sits silently with his face buried in his hands. His
shattered dreams replay in an endless loop. Suddenly, in a brilliant flash, new
evidence is brought to light. A ruling comes from the Highest Source – the
Supreme Court passes judgment on the case.
“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.’” (Vss. 20-21)
Joseph was obviously troubled with the
possibility of bringing guilt upon himself if he brought Mary home to be his
wife. He would have been partnering with an adulteress and would not be able to
stand as righteous before God. The angel relieves all such fears with the truth
regarding Mary’s pregnancy – Joseph need not be afraid of dishonoring his God
by marrying the woman he has covenanted to love.
“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.” (Vs. 24-25)
Joseph's plans to divorce Mary are
radically restructured after the angel appears to him in a dream. The baby is
conceived by the Holy Spirit! There is no need for a divorce!
Case dismissed.
May we all prayerfully ponder the Lord’s
will on how to proceed with our own crime scene investigations (real or
imagined)…remembering that there are no qualifications for receiving grace.
“Freely you have received, freely give” (Matthew 10:8). Pass it on. “Love your
neighbor as yourself” (Galatians 5:14)…“cause we all make mistakes sometimes,
and we’ve all stepped across that line.” [2]
Put
on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts,
kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a
complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you,
so you also must forgive. (Colossians 3:12-13)
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