In my fascination with the angels in the Christmas story, I turned to the last mention of the angels in the events surrounding Jesus’ birth, and pondered how their appearance affected the life of Joseph.
An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. Matthew 2:13, 19
The appearance of Gabriel earlier in the story brought announcements intended to prepare the listeners for the events God was about to perform. Babies were on the way to Zechariah’s and Mary’s households. Believe and get ready. The Lord is coming.
The host of angels appearing to the shepherds was the height of the Christmas story. They bring the news Zechariah and Mary had prepared for. The baby has come. The Messiah is born. Glorify God.
These appearances of the angel to Joseph carry a different tone. Danger lurks. Act now and act quickly. The angel that appeared to Joseph is unnamed. Unlike the use of Gabriel’s name in Mary’s and Zechariah’s stories, the Bible mentions this angel only as the angel of the Lord. This may imply that the vision Joseph saw was the Lord appearing in angelic form. The message Joseph receives carries urgency. “Get up . . .escape . . .stay there, hidden, until I tell you.” Jesus’ life is at risk. If he is found, the ruthless and tyrannical Herod will murder him.
Joseph seems to me an ordinary, quiet man who would not stand out in a crowd. He was a small town boy, a carpenter, someone who worked with his hands. Drawing attention to himself didn’t find a place in his character. But deep faith did. Descended from the line of King David himself, Joseph was royalty. He knew it. Growing up in his family, he’d heard the stories from Israel’s glory days. Patriarchal lineage would’ve been rehearsed in his hearing enough for him not to just memorize it, but to embrace it to his core as part of his identity. His ancestors were kings, and now his Son, conceived by God, was to be a king too.
Joseph needed no education on the high stakes associated with the angel’s message. Along with the rest of the nation, he’d been reading the prophets, watching, and waiting for the Messiah.
Now he’d come. He’d come into Joseph’s tribe, into his life, and into his very home. And the responsibility to protect him belonged to Joseph. The time had come to let go of all of his expectations for a quiet little life raising his family, to let go of his ties and association to his ancestral land, and maybe even to let go of some of his pride, so that he might fulfill the command to leave for the foreign country of Egypt.
The angel’s directions to escape asked much of Joseph. Beginning with Mary’s pregnancy occurring out of wedlock, he hadn’t gone looking for any of the adventures that had entered his life because of this newborn child.
But God knew what kind of person Joseph was. He trusted God’s word to him. He took risks for the sake of that word. He surrendered every area of his life to follow through on the angel’s instructions.
Because of Joseph’s daring obedience, the prophecies about Jesus were fulfilled. This earthly father to the King of Kings became a beacon to the rest of the world. “Look at this,” Joseph’s life seems to say. “Jesus has come. We know this because of the prophecies spoken about him and the ways events are playing out. The Savior is here.”
The angel of the Lord and Joseph had a beautiful partnership. The angel spoke. Joseph acted. The angel gave direction. Joseph put himself and the Christ child in places that proved the word of God true.
