Joseph With God's Help Steps Up

Texts: Isaiah 7:10–16; Romans 1:1–7; Matthew 1:18–25

Sermon Title: “Joseph, with God’s help, steps up.”

When my kids were young, my family had one of those sit-com moments: the oven broke on the day we were expecting company - Easter Sunday— a half-baked ham, 35 plus relatives in route — This was not one of my best moments. Frantic is the best word to describe me. And my husband calmly and simply said, “Call Linda, my sister. She didn’t live too far away. We ran over with the ham, she made the green bean casserole and cooked up the pies. “ Amidst the chaos I finally realized even when things aren’t “perfect,” even when things seem totally out of my perceived control, things can work out.

You know, Advent gives us permission to tell stories like this — ordinary, messy, human stories — because the first Advent story does not exactly go towards anybody’s plan for the birth of the Messiah. I often think of Joseph as the unsung hero of Nativity. In the middle of it all, God shows up through his angel.

In our reading of Isaiah, we hear him speaking to King Ahaz at a dangerous political moment. Syria and the northern kingdom are pressuring Judah. Ahaz is terrified. God offers a sign; Ahaz refuses to test God. Isaiah says a young woman will bear a son, and his name will be Immanuel — “God with us.” Isaiah’s sign is not simply a far-off messianic prediction. Isaiah is insisting God is present right now for the frightened people of Israel.

In Matthew, we learn about Jesus’ birth through Joseph’s experience. Matthew, speaking to Jewish listeners, emphasizes the lineage of Jesus

My heart goes out to Joseph, placed between a rock and a hard place. Of course, he suspects infidelity. Likely shocked as any betrothed fiancé would be. Joseph was torn, wanting to do right by the law and be compassionate.

Joseph intended to act justly (which means divorce quietly), but God’s messenger, Gabriel invites him to choose mercy and hospitality instead. Joseph finds it within himself to obey and takes Mary as his wife. Joseph names the child as it is customary for Jewish fathers, calling him Yeshua, Jesus— “God saves” —And while not much is said about Joseph, we know that he protected Jesus and Mary while fleeing as refugees to Egypt. He provided for them as a carpenter, and raised them in faith.

So, take this seriously: Emanuel “God with us” is not a line just to make us feel better. It says God is directly and intimately involved. Our God who made the world now shares in its fragility and mess so that the world can be healed from the inside out. The king is not enthroned on a distant cloud; the king lies in an animals’ feeding trough.

That matters for us because it puts God directly in our everyday lives — in family negotiations, in difficult phone calls, in waiting rooms, and in the quiet courage of people like Joseph who choose mercy over easy judgment.

For people worried about health, bills, children, church conflict, political division — the promise is not that trouble disappears. The promise is God with you in it. We are to name the fear (don’t spiritualize it away), bring it into prayer, and let the church be a place where naming fear is met with presence, not platitudes or cliches.

Ministry is not only in the sanctuary. It happens at kitchen tables, at hospital bedsides, in neighborhoods, and in the small acts of care that we can do. And it means suspending judgment. Can’t we just be unselfish, a little bit generous, a little more loving? Is there one place in our daily lives, one ordinary place (kitchen, workplace, table) where we can be intentional and show a small act of mercy.

Let me be clear. “God with us” is incarnational — God truly becomes flesh. Why is this crucial? “God with us” points us to a living, still speaking God who moves in history and calls us to live out God’s justice and welcome within our communities and the world.

We are a new creation in Christ Jesus; we have a new identity — we are both the recipients and agents of God’s reconciling presence. We receive his grace but we are also called to follow Christ and pursue his mission.

In coming this week: let the influence of Advent inspire you to pick one ordinary place where you will practice being Emmanuel — a table where you invite someone new, a phone call to an isolated neighbor, a moment of confession and reconciliation. Let the church be the place people see what “God with us” looks like in practical ways.

Let us pray.

Holy God of surprising grace, you enter our ordinary lives with extraordinary love. Break open our fears, tend our doubts, and make room in our hearts for your child who comes as Savior. Teach us to be a people shaped by mercy, that the name Emmanuel might be lived in every household and neighborhood. Amen.