Every Jesus Has a Joseph.

Homily for December 18, 2017.


“When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the Angel of the Lord had commanded him.” Matthew 1:24.

If there is one homily I posted that attracted the highest number of negative remarks, it was that which I titled “Dreams, Visions and the Future.” No doubt, I actually “goofed” by reaching a conclusion that dreams are not to be taken too seriously and we should not be so concerned about the future.

I held this position for two reasons; one my personal experience of always seeing the opposite of my dreams and secondly, the fact that a lot of persons who are not genuine ministers of God are now taking undue advantage of people’s belief in dreams and their desire to know the future. For instance, a person comes to tell you he saw you in the dream or had a revelation about you so therefore you should pay so and so amount of money for special prayers or that he or she would have to bath you at 12midnight… bla, blab la.

Let’s face the fact; amongst Nigerian men and women of God today are many who are not only fake but through their quest for money have tactically destroyed the face of Christianity. Corruption has eaten deep into our moral fabric as a nation and even the church, the house of God which should be the last bus stop, the holy of holies; the last conscience of society is also affected.

So, my dear friends, it is true that God speaks to us through dreams. God sent an Angel to Joseph in his dreams twice, first to brief him about the nature of Mary’s pregnancy and the role he would play as a foster father to Jesus and secondly to warn him to flee with the child Jesus at night. Joseph’s dreams were direct and the messages were very straight forward. However, that God speaks through dreams does not guarantee that every single dream we have is a prophecy and it shouldn’t give us ground to start moving from church to church looking for interpretation.

Nonetheless the message we should go home with this morning is this; that for every Jesus, there is a Joseph. For every successful person in life, there are many or at least one person who had to sacrifice his or her dreams and aspirations. I can only imagine how Joseph felt knowing that his dream bride was to be the Mother of God; not only would he proceed with the marriage, he would have to just accept celibacy for the rest of his life for the sake of Jesus. Joseph had a choice to obey the Angel or not to but he was not so concerned about himself; he knew that he was just a pilgrim on earth and that no enjoyment here equals that which we would find in heaven.

Am I being called to be a Joseph to somebody? Could it be that I have failed to be Joseph to my Jesus as a result of my self-centeredness? Do I consider the interests of others? Is my life driven by pleasure such that I even disobey the voice (commands) of God regarding purity and morality?

The life of Joseph teaches us that our best choices are not only those that tend to favour us personally but those that actually put God first. Joseph teaches us the value and importance of sacrifice especially for others.

Do not be self-centred. Perhaps your true calling in life is not to be a star but to be the coach behind many stars. Our society is so individualistic (all man for himself; OYO – On Your Own) that so many persons are “finished” assuming that success in life is to become a star when in fact, God called them to raise stars.

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, help me identify my ‘Jesus’ and give me grace to be a good ‘Joseph’ to him or her. Amen.

Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. (Monday of the Third week of Advent. Bible Study: Jeremiah 23:5-8 and Matthew 1:18-24).

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