Bible
Study: 2nd Samuel 7, 4 to 16. Romans 4, 13 to 22 and Matthew 1, 16
to 24.
In God’s
plan of salvation for mankind, it was his will that his son Jesus Christ would
be born as a man, raised as a man and die as a man that humanity as a whole may
be saved. This was a plan that took thousands of years to execute, a plan that
even prophets who were lived centuries before Jesus spoke about.
In today’s
first reading, we hear the prophet Nathan being instructed by God to tell
David: “For when you die, I will raise up one of your descendants, and I will
make his kingdom strong…And I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.”
2nd Samuel 7, 12 to 13. Though, David himself must have understood this
prophecy as referring to his son Solomon, it was actually a prophecy about
Jesus Christ. This is because Solomon’s kingdom did not last forever, but the
kingdom of Jesus remains forever.
Now, when
it was time for God to fulfil the ancient prophecies, he needed to choose
earthly parents for his son. And this is where Mary and Joseph come into the
picture. Today, we celebrate Joseph who did the impossible by accepting to marry
a woman who was already pregnant when he had earlier planned to secretly
divorce her.
I was read
somewhere that there is nothing as painful as knowing that your spouse is
unfaithful. Indeed, even in the Old Testament, the only grounds for divorce was
unfaithfulness on the part of the spouse. The essence of marriage is a clear
knowledge that both parties are pledged to each other totally and no one else
is in the picture. So, it must have been really challenging for Joseph to
accept Mary in her condition.
What helped
him was FAITH. He believed the words of the Angel that Mary was not some sort
of loose woman; that no man had actually touched her, that the baby she was
carrying was divine. He believed and did not for a second. His ability to
believe even if it might not have made sense to him made him a copy of Abraham
who also believed the impossible. And as St. Paul says in the second reading, “No
distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in
his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what
he had promised. That is why his faith was “reckoned to him as righteousness.” Romans
4, 20 to 22.
As far as
Jesus is concerned, St. Joseph is important. Every child needs a father. A
father is not necessarily one who donates sperm but one who is there for a
child, one who ensures growth, moral, physical and psychological development of
the child, one who provides for the child, one who protects, instructs and
gives good example. Take away Joseph and Jesus might have just been a wayward
child. This is why fathers are powerful and in Joseph, we see a father per
excellence.
Let us
Pray:
Lord
Jesus, may I like Joseph offer myself to you completely in your plan for
salvation. Amen.
God bless
you. Good morning. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. Happy
Weekend.
No comments:
Post a Comment