Joseph and His 4 Dreams | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Christmas Service)

As you and I know, this Christmas story is centered on

the prophetically predicted, highly anticipated, unmatched

birth miracle of humanity's saviour.

The entrance of Jesus Christ into the world is the pinnacle.

It's the point. It's the reason.

And although that is in fact unmatched moment in human

history, there are many supernatural events that

surround it. And I think about it, think

about all the other miracles before and after that moment.

As our brother said, that split time into two.

They think about the angelic visitation with the shepherds on

the field. They think about even Simeon at

the temple, who was led by the Holy Spirit to see the Savior as

a babe. What about Mary visiting

Elizabeth and her womb, leaping as a result of the Holy Spirit

moving in that womb? And there's so many other

instances, I'm sure, that you can recall and testify of in the

word of God. But I want to bring to our

attention today a particular miracle that occurred with an

interesting man. This man was from the house and

lineage of David. This man would be chosen by God

to be the legal guardian and father of the Lord Jesus Christ,

Joseph. There isn't very much mention

about Joseph in the word of God. But with the very little that is

given to us in the record of the Bible, it's interesting how

Matthew specifically highlights his experience with the

miraculous by way of dreams. I mean, he he, he just appears

there in Matthew and in Luke, and shortly after he's withdrawn

from these accounts. But with what we have, we

noticed that God not only chosen but directed him in a very

profound way. Joseph did not just have one

dream. Does anybody know the total

amount of dreams that Joseph had?

You can say it out loud if you know the answer.

Not 3-4. Matthew tells us a total of four

dreams that Joseph had, and though these are unique

instances, though they are separate occurrences, they do

share 2 main things. All these dreams have these

commonalities. First, all these dreams were

purposed to redirect Joseph in a way so that ancient prophecy

would be fulfilled. And so with every section where

these dreams are mentioned, you will read something along the

lines of at the end. This was to fulfill what the

Lord had spoken by the prophet, or what was spoken by the

prophets, followed by a reference, a direct quotation to

that prophecy or general paraphrase.

But it's not just to redirect Joseph in order to be positioned

for prophecy to be known. The second thing that all of

these dreams have in common is that they were calls to

obedience. They were not merely

revelations. They were practical calls to

trust God, submit to his wishes, and to comply merely because he

is God and Joseph and also we are his servants.

And what's so fascinating about looking at these moments is it's

not just seeing God fulfill His word, words that he has spoken

hundreds of years before. This time, what's also so

exhilarating is seeing Joseph's unreserved and immediate

obedience to the Word of God. You know, you look at this man

again and you see, as I mentioned earlier, that there is

not much written about him. But based on what you and I will

hear today, you will recognize this person.

Whenever he learned what God desired of him, did not fail to

fulfill it. In fact, what's so interesting

about Joseph is that you don't have one recorded word that came

from in the Bible. Joseph never said one thing, not

that he couldn't speak, but that the Holy Spirit has never kept

for us any utterance that Joseph has made.

He's the silent servant. And what's so great about that

is his actions spoke more than anything else.

And so whenever an Angel did visit him in a dream and gave

him instructions, Joseph never debated, he never challenged, he

never questioned, he never doubted whatever was told to

him. He responded with obedience,

with absolute and total trust. That moves me, That moves me to

see a man who says so much about his character, not with what he

says, but what what he does. And so there are two main

approaches that you can take with these passages.

You and I today can examine further the prophecies that are

connected to these four dreams. Or we can look at 4 insights

about obedience for insights about obedience from a man who

Matthew says in chapter one verse 19 was just or in another

translation righteous. And we will consider the latter

today. I'm speaking today to born again

believers. I'm speaking today to those who

have already responded to the Christmas message, the gospel of

Jesus Christ. I'm speaking to those who know

that everything we hear in terms of instructions or commands is

from the foundation of grace. I have been made righteous.

I have been saved by His mercy. I don't do anything to earn my

eternal life. I don't do anything to earn and

secure a right standing with God.

But from there, not only do we have that guarantee, but we have

a new set of desires. And one of those desires is I

long to please my master. I long to serve him.

I long to play any part in advancing his purposes on the

earth, and I want to encourage you today, even as we prepare to

enter into a new year, to consider 4 insights into God

pleasing obedience that will in fact advance His purpose for you

in your life and through your life.

And they are found in each of these dreams.

And so let's consider the first dream together and see what we

can learn about obedience from there.

Turn with me to Matthew chapter one and verse 20.

Matthew one verse 20. But as he considered these

things, behold, an Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream.

Pause. This is not the Angel of the

Lord who's the Angel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

This is an Angel of the Lord. Behold, an Angel of the Lord

appeared to him in a dream, saying, Joseph, son of David, Do

not fear to take Mary as your wife for that which is

conceived, and hers from the Holy Spirit.

She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for

he will save his people from their sins.

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the

prophet. Behold, the virgin shall

conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name

Emmanuel. The first lesson that you and I

can gather from this initial dream is about overcoming fear

and obedience. Sometimes obeying God is scary.

It is intimidating. You can sense the cost and the

price of it before you even move in that act of obedience.

And we see that truth based on what the Angel says to Joseph as

he is asleep, he was told do not fear, don't fear what?

Do not fear to take Mary as your wife.

Now, why would Joseph be afraid to do that?

As you remember, Mary has already conceived.

There's already evidence that she's with child.

And from a human standpoint, to interpret that is a mystery.

And the most logical explanation, again from a human

standpoint is, well, if this didn't happen with your husband

and this, this is infidelity, this is unfaithfulness, this is

immoral. And so there's a questionable

thing concerning Mary's character here, and even Joseph

himself, as Justin, as righteous as he was, came to an

unfavorable conclusion. Because before this, we read

that he had resolved to divorce her quietly.

He didn't want to create a scandal.

But he also said, I can't make sense of this.

How can I marry somebody with this going on?

I'm going to go my separate ways.

And as he pondered these things, an Angel came.

The Lord sent a messenger to halt him and to encourage him.

Joseph, don't fear. As you're thinking back and

forth about this, I want you to have confidence that you can

indeed have Mary as your wife. And then He gives a very brief

explanation why. But can you put yourself in his

shoes for a moment leading up to this?

How? How?

How can I explain the birth of this child?

How can we explain this to people and have them even

believe it? What will happen to Mary down

the road as more and more people understand and learn of the

background of this child? What will become of my

reputation as I marry somebody who will be deemed by many as a

potential adulteress? Will people think that I don't

value character? Will people think that I was

somehow coerced? What's going to happen to my

business? Oh man, I might lose customers

because of this. And though we do not know the

essence of Joseph's fears, we know that God challenged him to

not allow any worry or speculation to stand in the way

of obedience. And you and I also, as we walk

in this life, we'll learn of God's will in a matter.

And when you do, you might have your heart be flooded with

theories and ideas. And speculations that might

cripple you to move forward. And like Joseph, do not expect

to have an elaborate forecast of what your step of faith will

bring about. Joseph didn't receive it.

We should not expect it ourselves, and that shouldn't be

your preoccupation or mine anyway.

The one thing that you and I should be concerned about above

all else, concerning whether we should obey God in a matter or

not, is this. Lord, Is this what you want,

Lord? Is this what you're asking of

me, Lord? Is this your will, Lord?

Is this what you will be pleased with?

And that is enough motivation for you and I to leap over any

hindrance that would try to keep us from doing what God's called

us to do. I may not have all the answers,

but this one thing is clear. In this situation, in this

circumstance, in this predicament, God's Word has an

answer. So I will trust in Him.

I will believe Him. I will rely on Him, come what

may, come what may. This is so important to

understand. There are people, perhaps in

this room right now, who are hesitant to follow Jesus Christ

because you're afraid. You're afraid of what your

spouse will say. You're afraid of what your

friends will say. You're afraid of the cost of

walking and holiness and obedience and submission to the

Word of God in this crazy culture that more and more wants

to dismiss this concept of God and objective truth.

And so you're hesitant and maybe you're a believer in this place,

and you're also hesitant to obey God and trust God.

I've met some young people also who are in a relationship that

they know they should not be in, and they are hesitant to obey

God's will. And So what did they do?

Well, again, like Joseph, perhaps they have crashing

thoughts. Will I ever get married?

What will happen to this person if with this history of emotion

and investment, we we we split ways and a compromising job,

compromising relationships, compromising anything.

So many, Even believers can feel the crippling effects of fear

when God's light shines on a matter that demands faith and

obedience. And when you and I are faced

with those moments, what do we do?

Oh, this is a treasure chest filled with encouragement for us

to face any fear, even fears, as we are on the crossroads,

wondering if we should move forward or not.

Listen to these words. I just want you to listen to

them from Isaiah 4110, and I want you to hear them in light

of potential fear and walking in obedience to God's call in a

particular area in your life. Here's what the Lord says, not

just to His people, Israel, but to us today.

Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your

God. I will strengthen you.

I will help you. I will uphold you with my

righteous right hand. How many more eyes can you get?

How many more promises from God's personal presence and

power do you need? As you are standing at the

threshold of wondering, should I do this?

I know God says I need to. But all these fears.

Here's what the Lord says to you.

I'll be with you. I will strengthen you.

I will help you. I will uphold you.

You have no reason to fear as long as you know that this is my

will. So Joseph teaches us that you

and I must learn to overcome fear and obedience, because fear

is often a foe to faith. But let's come to the second

dream together, shall we? This is not the only one.

We come now here to Matthew, Chapter 2, verse 13.

Matthew 2:13

Matthew, chapter 2, verse 13. Now when they had departed,

Matthew 2:13

behold, an Angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream.

And said, rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to

Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, For Herod is about to

search for the child to destroy him.

And he rose and took the child and his mother by night, and

departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod.

This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet

out of Egypt. I called my son.

So the wise men from the East have arrived.

They were supernaturally guided, another supernatural occurrence

connected to the story of Christmas to the child Jesus.

And when they came to him we were told that they worshipped

him, and when they worshipped him they went beyond.

They gave gifts to him, and then they departed back to their

land, and they were warned in the dream to avoid a certain

route. And once this took place,

another dream visits Joseph, and an Angel of the Lord speaks to

him with urgency. There is a warning now that it

could not afford any delay. Why?

Because now there is a campaign. A campaign to search for the

child Jesus and to destroy him. And so Joseph did not hesitate

again, a man with no words, but a man who spoke.

Through his actions he got up, and by night he made his way to

the South, many, many miles away from where he is now.

And the second lesson of obedience that we can draw from

this dream is this. We must learn to wait in

obedience. We must learn to be awaiting

people as we obey our God. And where do I get that from?

Notice the specific instruction here in the middle of verse 13.

He says, flee to Egypt and remain there until I tell you.

Remain there until I tell you. If I was Joseph, I would have

probably asked for a little bit more details.

Some general timeline would have been helpful.

How long, Lord? Like 3 months, six months?

Nine months? A year and a half?

How long am I to go to this foreign land?

No answer is given, no insight is provided.

A simple Trust me and wait for me until I tell you what to do

next. It is quite interesting if you

study the word of God from cover to cover.

How much is mentioned concerning the discipline of waiting on

God? There are clear, direct

exhortations to wait on the Lord, and there are

illustrations and examples like what we have before us today.

Waiting is not a foreign experience for the faithful.

For those who pursue obedience, you can expect delay when you

desire something for the now. And this is true for this man

and his family. What does it mean to wait on the

Lord? You'll read it in Psalms again.

You'll see it through narratives.

What does it mean, though? Here's what it means to wait on

the Lord. To wait on the Lord is to

refrain from acting in the flesh to meet your need to remain.

Not just refrain, but to remain in obedience to God in the

moment that you're in, while trustingly expecting God to come

through with your need to refrain from acting in the flesh

to accomplish what you want to see accomplish, to remain

obedient where you are in that circumstance, the capacity to

which you've been given. All the while, your heart is

trusting and waiting on God to intervene for that need that you

have to wait on. The Lord is no excuse to be

unresponsive or inactive before you receive some kind of

supernatural confirmation for absolutely everything in life.

You don't have to be like that. There are some things that God

has already made plain and obvious that doesn't require you

to wait for an answer. And so we're not to be frozen,

and we're not to be stoic, and we're not to, in the name of

spirituality, seek audible voices for every single step you

make in life. But to wait on the Lord,

generally speaking, is the necessity to act in faith when

you have run out of all other natural options and the only

solution you have now is for God's intervention.

I've prayed, I've talked about it, I've knocked, I've searched,

I've inquired, I've visited. I've done everything that I can

to try to move forward in this and nothing's coming through.

And when you find yourself there, what is demanded of you

according to the word of God? Wait on the Lord.

That's what it means to wait on God.

You've done all you can as a duty.

You've done all as you can with the clarity of God's Word.

And still no results and still no clarity and still no

direction. What do I do now?

Well, God's put you in a place to act in faith.

And that act of faith is called waiting on him to wait on the

Lord. But why?

Because you know that delay is agonizing, right?

If I were to ask you here today, who here enjoys waiting, I would

be shocked if even one of you were to answer.

Yeah, I think I like waiting, actually.

We don't. It annoys us.

And we understand here that God sometimes allows it.

Why? Why?

Why can't he do everything? Am I not a servant of his?

Isn't time short? Why would God permit pause in my

life? Do you know why?

Because it is one of the most profound, powerful.

Listen to this faith revealing and faith developing exercises

you can endure. Faith Revealing, faith

Developing exercises that you can endure.

It exposes us, doesn't it? Does it not?

It's not. Waiting reveals so much about

us. Where's your worship now As you

wait. Where is it?

It's high and mighty. When everything is going smooth,

no turbulence. Hallelujah.

OK, now what? No answer.

Darkness, No clarity. Where's your worship?

Now? What is testified of your trust

when there seems to be no light? Where will you go?

What will you be? There's so many examples of what

I'm saying to you about how waiting is a faith revealing,

faith developing exercise. And one that comes to mind is

when the nation of Israel at some point was threatened to be

surrounded by the Assyrians and these rumors of conspiracies and

nations coming together to bring about a siege.

Has caused them to wonder how they can prepare for this.

And one of the most tempting thoughts to them was let's make

an alliance with Egypt. Let's go to Egypt.

Now, Biblically speaking, there's nothing wrong with

Egypt. There's nothing wrong with

Egyptians. I have Egyptian friends.

I loved Egypt. OK, but it's it's a symbol in

the Bible. And the symbol of Egypt in the

Bible is of the world. And Israel was never to make an

alliance with a foreign nation, because their trust must

ultimately be in God. But they were entertaining this,

and they were ready to jump on this, and they were ready to do

something that God had said not to do.

Why? Because God was not providing

immediate answers to this potential threat.

They had to wait. And guess what?

Just like you and me, we don't like to wait, and they didn't

like to wait. So notice this.

This isn't a chapter and Isaiah chapter 30, verse 15.

Isaiah 30:15

You can turn there if you'd like.

If you want an example how waiting is a faith revealing,

faith developing exercise, Isaiah 30 verse 15 reads for

Isaiah 30:15

thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel.

This is so powerful. In returning, and rest you shall

be saved in quietness, and in trust shall be your strength,

and that profound. This is where he gets

heartbreaking. But you were unwilling.

Unwilling to do what? Unwilling to rest, unwilling to

remain quiet, unwilling to trust you were unwilling.

And you said, no, No, we will flee upon horses, he says.

Therefore you shall flee away, and we will ride upon swift

steeds. Therefore your pursuers shall be

swift. What's going on here?

Horses was a symbol of military strength, And Israel the special

people of God that had a covenant with God, God had told

Israel in the infancy of their nation.

You shall not acquire many horses because again, I don't

even want your faith and trust to be in your military might and

your resources. I want it to be in me.

And so in some sense, this is a symbol of them trusting in that

which God says, you don't have to put your trust there, put it

in me. But there's another meaning

according to the context. To say we will flee upon horses

is to imply we're running to Egypt, we're getting on the

fastest track, and we're making our way to make an alliance with

this people. You know what waiting does?

It will show you where you ultimately run to and your need.

Where will you run to as you wait, as you've been seeking and

you have been waiting? But where will you go?

Will you turn to human wisdom now?

Will you turn your back from worship, worship when it really

counts and put your hand in the hand of the world?

Will you rely on the flesh? Will you be like Abraham and

birth and Ishmael, when God is prepared to give an Isaac?

Waiting reveals the quality of our faith.

Waiting is what produces the fragrance of faith that truly

blesses God and bears witness to a watching world.

And in this case, with this generation of Israelites, they

said no, we're not doing this. This faith thing is not

practical. This is not relevant to real

life. This is nice stories for my

children to have some moral framework.

But this can't be real. No, it is real.

So I'm going to go my own way. I tried this God thing.

It didn't really work out the way I thought.

Thank you very much. We'll go to Egypt.

And the Lord says, OK, flee, You're going to be pursued.

All right, Ride. Swiftly upon steeds.

Your pursuers are going to be faster than you.

Ultimate deliverance comes from God anyway, so why are you going

to run from Him? What are you going to run to?

Everything else has failed, and everything else will fail unless

it's done in the name and by the wisdom of our God.

What do I do then, when I have again exhausted every option?

I've done all that it can, practically, and yet nothing is

coming through. Psalm 37, verse 7.

Psalms 37:7

Be still. Before the Lord and wait

patiently for him. Be stilled before the Lord and

wait patiently for him. Perhaps even now, today you are

waiting on God for something, and that could be anything.

It could even include deliverance from enemies where

you are so tempted to act in the flesh to respond carnally.

And the Word of the Lord says, wait for me, Vengeance is mine,

whatever the case may be. Can I can Ioffer some

encouragement to you to strengthen you in your waiting

as you obey God? It's very simple, very simple

thing that you can do. Reflect on what He's done before

and where you are today, and if you're honest, to see his

faithfulness, you can trust them for tomorrow.

Where are you today? I know you're concerned about

tomorrow. I know you're not certain for

what's to come, but look at where you're at today.

Has he not been faithful to you? Has he not been perfect in his

provision for you? Do you realize what's on your

back? Do you realize what's before

you? Do you realize what's around

you? Do you realize his goodness even

now? And if you can sober up and see

it, then you will have a little bit more strength to wait on the

Lord a little bit longer. Consider in Joseph's case.

You know, sometimes we read these stories and we kind of see

it like a movie. We just see these random cut

scenes and we don't consider the transition.

We don't consider the implications of some of these

things. Joseph, get up and go to Egypt.

You know what that requires? That requires time.

That requires effort. You have a wife with a newborn.

That requires expenses. That requires a shift in life

altogether, moving to another country.

OK, what's going to happen to my business?

I'm a Carpenter. What's going to happen here?

What's going to happen to the livelihood of my family?

How am I going to provide for them?

What are we going to do for lodging?

How am I going to be able to adapt to this new culture, this

new place? We got to think about this when

we read things like, oh, that's nice, Joseph obeyed God.

No, think about the cost. Think about the reality of the

implications of it. And yet, in this very same

story, you realize that God has already prepared everything that

Joseph needed. God was faithful to him up to

this point from the first dream, and God is preparing him for the

next set of commands that he is ready to give.

You're saying? What do I mean?

Yeah. Consider again the expenses, the

grueling travel, the unknown of how you're going to live in a

place where you don't know how long you're going to stay.

What happened right before this? The wise men came.

And when the wise men came, they not only worship, but they gave

what gifts. What were one of those gifts?

Gold. Coincidence.

No, no, no, no. No Sweet Providence.

So even through that, Joseph would have exactly what he

needed to have in order to take flight in the night and be taken

care of perfectly. Consider how God has taken care

of you up to this point. Consider how day by day, He's

meeting your needs. Maybe not your wants, but your

needs. And this is what we see with

Joseph. If you're concerned about God's

leading for tomorrow, remember how He has LED you until today.

We have to learn how to wait as we obey and we come to the third

dream. And Matthew 2 verse 19.

Matthew 2:19

But when Herod died, behold, an Angel of the Lord appeared in a

dream to Joseph in Egypt. Saying, Rise, take the child and

his mother and go to the land of Israel, For those who sought the

child's life are dead. And he rose and took the child

and his mother and went to the land of Israel.

When coupling the third dream as we just read with the second

dream together, the impression that you and I should have is

that God's commands, no matter how challenging.

No matter how demanding or inconvenient they may be, are

always for our good. Here's the third truth about

obedience. Not only must we overcome fear

and obedience, not only must we learn to wait in obedience, but

thirdly, we must believe that God designed His commands for

our good. What's so interesting about this

here is that the Angel in the second dream, when he told him

to leave Israel to go to Egypt, did not tell him you're going to

go. And then once Herod dies and his

goons, then I'll bring you back. Go, remain there until I tell

you. And it is here in the third

dream where Joseph is told they're long gone.

Now you can head back. It's safe for you now.

What if? What if Joseph had not been

patient? What if Joseph in his own mind,

maybe in his discomfort, maybe in his calculation of the

environment, of reports that he has heard about Herod, You know,

things have maybe subsided. It's been quite a while, and I

think it's safe to go back. That would have been a fatal

mistake. A fatal mistake.

Complete obedience to the Lord is not only necessary, it always

pays off. It always You can never go wrong

trusting Jesus. You can never go wrong trusting

on the Lord. This is a universal promise.

From this practical illustration and the instructions that Joseph

received here, at this point, we're no doubt challenging.

But everything that the Lord had given him was profitable.

He didn't fail with the first two dreams.

He's not going to fail with the third instruction.

It is always profitable to go with God's way.

Always, no matter what it asks of you in the natural, you can

guarantee this. My God is good.

His intentions are good. Yes, ultimately for His glory do

I obey. But I also know that for my good

he is leading me this way. Compare the command here with

the second command, because if you put them side by side, they

almost are identical except for the location, right?

But there is one other slight difference.

So let's read again the 2nd instruction from the second

dream in chapter 2, verse 13. Now when they had departed,

behold an Angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream

and said pay attention, rise, take the child and his mother

and flee to Egypt. Keep that in mind.

Now you come down to verse 20 and you see the third dream with

the third instruction. But when Herod died, behold an

Angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt saying

rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of

Israel. What's the difference?

The first time he said flee, flee to Egypt and after

remaining in Egypt and he was ready to head back to his

hometown. The Angel says go, go to the

land of Israel. The word flee in the second

dream is the same word that Jesus uses in Matthew 1023, what

he instructs his disciples. When you experience persecution

in one city, flee to another. It denotes the escape of danger

and threats. It denotes seeking and fleeing

for refuge from potential problems and powers that be

against you. But the word go here doesn't

have that urgency. It's not that he could delay,

but it is a different pace. And this may seem like a simple

observation, but it shows me something about God's

instructions for us, the ones that we even find in His word

primarily, You know, His commands are not arbitrary.

His commands are not void of purpose.

You have to hear this very carefully.

They are intentional. They are calculated.

Behind every decree is a perfect perception, is a richness of

wisdom and a understanding that is worth trusting.

When God tells us things, they're not just random

instructions that have no heartbeat behind it, that have

no wisdom behind it. He knows exactly what he is

asking of us, and though you may not know the depth of the reward

behind that obedience, you can trust that God has good in mind.

How much more is this needed in a time where the commands of

this book are being challenged by our culture and Christians

are caving in feeling like we need to, we need to adapt.

Because these things don't seem to be relevant, these things to

be, this seems to be ancient and barbaric and far off, we've

developed, developed into what, may I add, developed into what.

So in those moments where we look at God's commands, we say,

I know it's true. You can go beyond it just being

true. It's good.

Totally. It's perfect.

He loves us and when he commands us, it's for us to know his love

and his perfect. Plan.

And this is what Joseph experienced.

And we see that you and I also can look at every command it

gives us and believe that they are designed for our pleasure.

Yes, holy pleasure and His glory.

Let's come to the last dream together.

The last dream provides our last insight among many insights that

you can pull from these things. Look at Matthew 2, verse 22 and

Matthew 2:22

23. But when he heard that Archelaus

was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was

afraid to go there. And being warned in a dream he

withdrew to the district of Galilee.

And he went, and he lived and lived in a city called Nazareth,

so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled,

that he would be called a Nazarene.

I make this point here as a concluding observation to

Joseph's overall experience. Here it is.

The 4th insight concerning obedience is that we must never

forget that a life of obedience is intensely practical,

intensely realistic. You know, you might look at

Joseph's experience here with these dreams and think to

yourself, what a privileged man. I mean, not only did he have

dreams, but there was no need for interpretation.

It wasn't ambiguous. It was as clear as day.

This is what you do. And go do it.

All right, great. There is no denying that it was

of God. It was there.

This is not a debate of whether or not this is what you ate last

night or if this is really from God.

It was from God. And there was no question about

it, Clear and direct. And some people would say, oh, I

would like that kind of guidance in life.

Who wouldn't? Imagine God being able to tell

you. Marry her.

OK, Thank you. Move here.

Thank you. OK, time to move on.

Thank you. People dream about this stuff.

And you have genuine Christians who are wondering, how can I

have that kind of direction in my life?

We would all want that every step of the way to get God's

perfect leadership on it and for it.

So why does Joseph get to have it and not me?

Well, there's a difference between you and Joseph.

Joseph was called to supervise the Son of God.

I know Jesus is in your heart. It's not the same thing.

I know you're a child of God, but it's not the same thing.

To take care of and watch over the Incarnate Son of God, you

would think, requires a little bit more special attention,

right? That is true.

And without dismissing the unique things that Joseph

experienced, I would actually look at it in a different way.

You're saying In what way? Well, if we are dealing with

God's compass and God's GPS for Joseph and primarily his son,

you would think that there would be more miracles.

You would think that there would be more divine interventions.

You think that there would be more demonstrations of

supernatural power, Wouldn't you?

Wouldn't you? What are you?

Saying. What do you mean, Preacher?

Here's what I mean. So Herod wants to kill the Son

of God, the savior of the world, right?

Kill him? Why call this family with

limited resources, with looming danger to get up and and go to a

different country? Can you just deal with the

problem right there? Right then?

Yes, he could have. OK, never mind dealing with

Herod. Why the travel?

Even we read in Acts chapter 8 that Philip, after baptizing the

Acts 8 · chapter mention

eunuch, was what he was taken up by the Spirit of Lord and

brought to a completely different location.

Couldn't he have done the same for this family?

All right, you need to get to Egypt.

There you are. OK, You need to go back.

There you are. Why the packing?

Why the uncertainty? Why not the preparation to that?

Family and friends know we're not going to be here.

We don't know how long. None of that.

Why? Well, it says something about

God and how he leads the faithful and how he guides the

obedient. If Joseph's journey in many ways

included ordinary means to fulfill God's will, why should

we doubt God's leadership in our lives as he uses similar

procedures? There can be no doubt that there

are moments where God can do a miracle.

But consider the miraculous in Joseph's life.

Here's a miracle, Here's another miracle, Here's another miracle.

But what's going on in between practical, real life, day-to-day

decisions and you and I have to understand that's how God often,

moreover, more often, leads us in our day-to-day.

And I think about all the hopes and dreams that we even have as

a church, as we are seeking His provision, as we are looking to

transition. We should not limit God in

guiding us in the way we think He should, in the miraculous, in

the fascinating and the story gripping ways that we would like

him. He can do that.

He's able to. We have no doubt that he can.

But what if he does it through natural means?

What if he does it through obvious ways?

Is it any less God? It's not.

You see it here? He treats.

Even one of the most obedient servants in the word of God, So

we should expect the same for ourselves.

Don't be discouraged. I want to see God's fingerprints

of my life. Praise God.

I want to see it too, but just look a little closer.

Remove the filter of the miraculous and and see it

through the word of God and understand how God works with

His people. We must overcome fear and

obedience. We must learn to await in

obedience. We must believe that God's

commands are designed for our good.

And we must understand that the life of obedience is intensely

practical, intensely practical. I hope that encourages the

believer in this place as you seek to obey God.

But I want to speak to the person here today who is hearing

about Jesus for the first time or the 100th time.

But you don't know him. I'm afraid that you can leave a

place like this and think that Christianity is all about

obeying. Christianity is about obeying,

but with a different motivation that you might think We're not

about a bunch of righteous people who have gathered here

today to figure out how we can be more righteous so that we can

have better rewards. Now every single person here who

truly follows Jesus Christ and believes in him understands that

they are far from righteous. And they've come to the place

where they realize that no obedience, no matter how

extravagant or consistent or pure it might be, can ever,

ever, ever satisfy God's holy, righteous demands.

And So what? What are we about then?

Well, we're about understanding that in our failure to be holy

and to be righteous before God, God in His love sends his Son

Jesus Christ to live a life of perfection and then to die a

death that he did not deserve but that we deserve.

So that by understanding that we would also see that he did this

for us. You saying what do you mean for

us? Well think about it.

In your lack of perfection, he has supplied your perfection so

that through his life of perfect obedience, if you believe in him

and trust that his life is in fact a perfect life, then the

righteousness he has now becomes yours.

Think of it as a transfer of funds.

You are bankrupt. He is rich in righteousness and

mercy. And when you just claim that you

indeed are bankrupt and you need to pay off this debt called sin,

he's willing to give you the funds necessary.

And more than that, he dies of death that you and I deserve.

He takes the punishment right 'cause he's a righteous judge.

He doesn't just sweep crime underneath the carpet.

He doesn't just let things go. He has to deal with it as a as a

just judge would. And he takes that punishment

even upon himself so that now your death and the crimes that

you've committed, the the breaking of all the laws of God

have been satisfied, have been taken care of in the person of

Jesus Christ. So let me simplify it.

What is Christianity all about? It's about humbling yourself and

realizing that you need a savior and believing that this savior

will give you his perfection. He will take your debt.

He paid for it on the cross. And you now, upon confessing

your sin, repenting of it and saying yes to the Lord Jesus

Christ will indeed be guaranteed righteousness, eternal life and

life even now. That's the truth.

So everything you just heard in the past 50 minutes, Yeah, I

know it's been 50 minutes. Everything that you just heard

about obedience and what it means to obey is from the place

of being accepted by God in Christ Jesus.

That's what it's from, and that's what it's about.

So we're not here trying to grope our way and seek for God's

approval. We've been approved by Christ

and in Christ now we are clothing his righteousness.

So God the Father looks upon you and he sees the perfection of

his Son. This is the gospel.

So I'm afraid. I don't want there to be any

mistranslation or misunderstanding from this

sermon. I may never see you again.

I hope so. I can see you.

I'd love to see you again. More important, like to see you

in heaven. Time is running short.

Look, even the unbelieving or thing.

Judgment day is coming, man. It's getting really bad out

here. They believe that more than some

Christians do. Some Christians are in La La

land. So destructed, distracted by the

world and sin. Praise God, not in this place.

I hope we understand the seriousness of the hour.

We understand that this is about life and death.

We understand this is about heaven and hell.

We understand that this life, this world is temporal.

And there's something more real after this.

Your heart knows it. Your soul knows it.

Eternity has been written on our hearts.

You know it in your heart. You didn't just come out of goo

coming together in a collision. You're not just the result of

some accident. There's purpose behind your

existence. There's reason for who you are

in that instinct, instinct, that you realize there's something

more than this. That is God's code on your soul.

That's in your DNA. It's because you were created to

know him and be with him. But there's something that's

separating you from him. That's sin.

And praise God, 2000 years ago he dealt with it and you can

deal with it once and for all today if you just humble

yourself before the cross and say I've been arrogant.

I've been willing to deny you and suppress this truth because

I want my way. I want to be the God of my life.

I don't want somebody in the sky to tell me what to do.

Well, how's that working out for you?

Jesus says I've come that they might have life and have it more

abundantly. And you can know that life.

You can know the peace of forgiveness.

You can know the joy of wholeness, because you will find

your purpose in him alone. And you will have not just

eternal life. You have a relationship with

this God who has indeed saved us.

I want that for you. I want that for you.

Silver and gold. I have not.

I don't. And whether I see you in this

place again, that's between you and God.

But what I want you to have more than anything else is the

assurance that you have Christ. That's it.

So you might be wondering today, this is a little bit more

intense of a Christmas service that I'm used to.

So be it. 1 Preacher said I preach as a dying man, unto

dying men. And so I believe this truth.

This church believes this truth. And we want you to know this

truth. That's all this is.

Would you say yes to him? Lord, we thank you.

We thank you. We thank you that in the word of

God we have wisdom for salvation, but you also have

wisdom for those who have received salvation.

Thank you then the story of Joseph.

You've given us a wonderful example of the kind of obedience

that you look for from a just and righteous man.

According to Matthew, help us as believers with the greatest

motivation and grace to be able to excel and a life that's

consecrated unto you. And when we feel the cost of

conformity, may we not be afraid.

And when we feel the drudgery of waiting, may we trust in you and

Lord. When we doubt your goodness and

your leading and commands over our lives, may we see the good

in it, and Lord. And when we think that perhaps

you're not really writing the story of our lives, may we know

that you are intensely practical.

You can do miracles, and we want to see it.

But Lord, you are intensely practical.

Lord, help us this week to no rest.

Rest in you. Prepare us for a new year.

And if it's your will for us to have a new year that we would

live that near With a greater delight and zeal for your name,

we worship you. Now in closing with Thanksgiving

in Jesus name, Amen. Amen.

Hey church, can we stand? Let's worship.

This is the reason for the season.

It's about Christ. It's about his love for us.

It's about him being our gift for all eternity.