When my husband and I introduce ourselves to new people at church and they invariably say, as most of us do, “I’m so bad at remembering names,” I like to say, “Well, this ought to help – we’re Mary and Joseph. But don’t let that intimidate you.”
It’s technically true—those are our first names. But after taking some time this Christmas season to think about the more famous Mary and Joseph, I wish I also had more of the character traits I see in them.
Have you ever wondered why this couple was chosen to “parent” God’s son? Are there any clues given in Scripture? I think so.
Let’s start with Mary, since let’s face it, women do the heavy lifting when it comes to birthing babies. (Don’t even get me started on that.) Mary’s intro to motherhood could certainly be described as uniquely challenging.
Awaiting the results of a pregnancy test is always stressful, but I’d sure rather wait for that little stick to change colors than to have an angel show up in my house to deliver the big news. There’s a reason why biblical conversations between angels and humans nearly always begin with the angel saying, “Fear not.”
As near as I can tell from the account in Luke 1, Mary had only two questions for the angel who visited her to tell her she was going to be the mother of the Savior: (I’m paraphrasing) 1.) “Why are you calling me favored one?”; and 2.) “How’s this gonna work since, you know, we’re skipping the usual first step in the baby-making process?”
Let me just say, I would’ve had way more questions for Gabriel the angel. WAY more. Gabriel explained God’s mind-blowing birthing plan to Mary in about 20 words, and that was apparently enough for her. I want more than 20 words when my husband just asks me to pick up something at the store.
After Gabriel’s brief explanation, Mary replied, “… Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to Your word (Luke 1:38a).”
She trusted God enough not to ask all the questions I surely would have asked. No “but God” or “what if” or “I can’t.” Just faith in the One who’d chosen her for this assignment. I think that says all we need to know about this young lady’s qualifications.
And Joseph? It’s not like his role was unimportant, even if he wasn’t the baby daddy. He had a tough assignment, too, as he had to toss his five-year plan out the window and wrestle with Mary’s bizarre explanation for her pregnancy and the ramifications of being engaged to someone who would likely be viewed by their contemporaries as an immoral woman.
But the Bible describes Joseph as “a righteous man” who didn’t want to disgrace his fiancé (Matthew 1), which says a lot about his love for both God and Mary. And even though God gave Joseph a dream to confirm His plan and Mary’s story, cooperating with it still required a whole lot of faith.
The God who sees our hearts knew He’d picked the right man and sure enough, Joseph “awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him … (Matthew 1:24).”
Demonstrating compassion, faith and obedience, it seems Joseph understood and practiced the “two greatest commandments”—loving God and loving others—before Jesus taught them 30 years later.
The Bible tells us that “the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His … (2 Chronicles 16:9).”
I think He found that kind of heart in Mary and Joseph. May He also find it in us.