Keep Listening to God | By Pastor Jamie, SOAP Study for 6/24/24

 

 

Read Matthew 2:13-18- After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother, and they stayed there until Herod’s death. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “I called my Son out of Egypt.” Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him. He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, based on the wise men’s report of the star’s first appearance. Herod’s brutal action fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: “A cry was heard in Ramah- weeping and great mourning. Rachel weeps for her children, refusing to be comforted, for they are dead.”

Once again Joseph hears from an angel of the Lord and responds immediately with faithful and obedient action, which confirms God's decision to call him to be Jesus' earthly father. Because of the Wise Men's gifts, they had resources to flee quickly to Egypt. Herod, filled with rage, at the ingenuity of the Wise Men to slide out of town decided to kill every young male near Bethlehem since it was impossible to target Jesus alone. Herod chose the way of evil, murder, and violence, even though he had the good example of the Wise Men he could have followed.

Jeremiah 17:9 reminds us, “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?" This is especially true for people like Herod who refuse to listen for the still, small voice of God to speak into their lives. Surely Joseph was well acquainted with this verse, and he understood his desperate need to listen for the voice of the Lord speaking into his life in the midst of so many other voices vying for attention. Jesus promised His disciples that the day was soon coming (Pentecost) when the Holy Spirit would make a home in them (and us!), so that would be open and available to hearing God's voice speak to us: "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me." (John 16:13-14) Between Herod's inability and unwillingness and Joseph's ability and deep desire to listen to God the choice for us is obvious. How can we be more like Joseph?

(St. Francis de Sales- 1567-1622) Do not look forward in fear to the changes in life; rather, look to them with full hope that as they arise, God, whose very own you are, will lead you safely through all things; and when you cannot stand it, God will carry you in His arms. Do not fear what may happen tomorrow; the same understanding Father who cares for you today will take care of you then and every day. He will either shield you from suffering or will give you unfailing strength to bear it. Be at peace and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations. Amen.

 

"Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long." (Psalm 25:4-5),

 

Pastor Jamie