We continue to study the Gospel of Luke. Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem because His earth parents Joseph and Mary had to go there to register for the Roman Empire. In our passage today we will read that the family went to Jerusalem. Here’s a question: As Mary and Joseph dealt with Baby Jesus or even while Jesus was a boy growing up, Did parents Mary and Joseph know for sure that Jesus was going to be the Savior and die for all the sins of the world??
Of course they didn’t know for sure; it didn’t happen yet!
What did parents Mary and Joseph know about Jesus Christ?
What Joseph and Mary knew about Jesus Christ was what was told to them by God!
Look back briefly with me to Luke 1:31-33……
Jesus was to be the child’s name.
He will be great and called the Son of God.
He will be the Messiah, Lord of all.
Luke 1:35 – Jesus Christ is the Holy One!
And Matthew 1:20-21 states…..
Mary’s child was conceived by God the Holy Spirit.
Jesus will save people of their sins!
Joseph and Mary raised Jesus Christ with the words from God, both directly from God and of course they believed in the Old Testament. So just like us today, Mary and Joseph lived by faith in God based on what was told to them. How did Mary and Joseph do? We get a glimpse of their lives as faithful people and as parents in Luke 2:21-24. Please open your Bibles there. Before reading, let us pray with sincere hearts our commitment to God’s Word……… Luke 2:21-24…..
Although Mary and Joseph were told by God that their child is Jesus Christ the Son of God, the Savior of the world, how were they to live their lives and raise the child? Unless told directly by God, Mary and Joseph were to live based on what God has said in the Old Testament!
What does the Old Testament say about newborns?
We read in Exodus 13:1-2, “The LORD said to Moses, "Consecrate to me every firstborn male. The first offspring of every womb among the Israelites belongs to me, whether man or animal."
Leviticus 12:1-3, “The LORD said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites: ’A woman who becomes pregnant and gives birth to a son will be ceremonially unclean for seven days, just as she is unclean during her monthly period. On the eighth day the boy is to be circumcised.”
Leviticus 12:6-8, “When the days of her purification for a son or daughter are over, she is to bring to the priest at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting a year-old lamb for a burnt offering and a young pigeon or a dove for a sin offering. He shall offer them before the LORD to make atonement for her, and then she will be ceremonially clean from her flow of blood. These are the regulations for the woman who gives birth to a boy or a girl. If she cannot afford a lamb, she is to bring two doves or two young pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for her, and she will be clean.”
Let us not forget that Joseph and Mary were bound to the 10 Commandments; and the command to parents in Deutoronomy 6:4-7, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”
As I noted earlier, Joseph and Mary were told that their son was going to be the Messiah! But at this point in time in Luke 2:21-24, Joseph and Mary were dealing with just an ordinary baby, who was promised to be the Messiah! Now pretend you were either Mary or Joseph, how would you live your life with a new baby??
As we read, Mary and Joseph trusted and obeyed God’s instructions, both from the Old Testament and the new revelation!
The new revelation of course is God’s Word after the Old Testament. How do we know that Mary and Joseph trusted and obeyed the new revelation??
Mary and Joseph named Him Jesus as was told by God! As parents, Mary and Joseph trusted and obeyed God!
Was it easy for them to be faithful to God? Why do you think it was it hard for Mary and Joseph to be faithful to God??
- Mary was just a teenager!
- Mary knew that her son was miraculously conceived by God, not by a man!
- They were still not home and they were under Roman rule.
- They didn’t have much money!
- Joseph had to deal with a child that really wasn’t his own!
- They were newlyweds, still growing in their relationship!
In spite of the hardships Mary and Joseph had to deal with, they were faithful to God! How about us today? Are there hardships in your Christian life? Yes, we are to believe in Jesus Christ but keep in mind how faithful His earth parents were!
What specific Biblical principles can we apply to our lives today?
We Christians today are just like Mary and Joseph in many ways:
- called by God to believe in Him
- given a promise, a Savior
- like Mary, we have God the Holy Spirit within us!
- given instructions on how to live
1. Let us live faithful lives to God like Mary and Joseph did.
As our Scripture of the week states from Habakkuk 2:4, “the righteous will live by faith!”
But some of you are smart and will say, “that doesn’t apply to me, that’s in the Old Testament! I’m a Christian! I have freedom in Christ!”
Much of that is true of course. But this is such an important truth for life God repeats the command in the New Testament! Romans 1:17 calls Christians to live by faith and God tells us how.
And Romans 10:17 states, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. How can we live faithful lives? Read and listen to God’s Word daily and do what it says no matter how difficult! Also note James 1:22….
2. If you’re a parent, follow God’s instructions in raising your child!
As parents today, do we have to do the same thing as Mary and Joseph did? Unless you can find New Testament support for not doing what God told parents to do in the Old Testament, we should do them!
Elsa and I are not perfect parents, but we want to be of help; plus we have the Word of God to guide us. We will have a Christian Parenting Seminar soon. All parents should attend. Please let me know whether a Saturday morning or Sunday afternoon will work best for you so we can schedule this as soon as possible. We will hire a babysitter if you will need one!
And lets us not forget the faithfulness of the man Joseph! Joseph knew he was the man of the family. Joseph led his family by listening to God and obeying. And so men,
3. If you’re the man of the house, be the spiritual leader!
