Jesus' Family Album December 19 Devotional

MATTHEW 2:13 | ¹³ Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, 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.’

The cost of marriage and parenting is always considerable measured in time, energy, and resources. But for Joesph the costs were greater than “normal.” After the dream of Jesus’ birth in a barn behind an inn in Bethlehem, 90 miles from home in Nazareth, came the arrival of the magi. These wise men had sensed the duplicity and malevolence of the local king Herod, who pretended to want to meet the young child they sought, while hoping to destroy him. Every parent must deal with sleepless nights and the ceaseless needs of an infant. Joseph had to do so while facing a homicidal sovereign who had murdered some of his own sons lest they want to replace him. The temporary trip to Bethlehem turned into an exodus to Egypt.

Herod brooked no rivals. Have you ever wrestled with the need to be king over your own life?

Gracious God,

Thank you for silent Joseph, for his remarkable courage and fearlessness in the face of evil.

Amen.