Quote from Forum Archives on December 14, 1998, 2:06 am

Posted by: lifeunlimited <lifeunlimited@...>

Standing Shoulder To Shoulder in the Battle
As We Fight the Good Fight Together

December 14, 1998

TITLE: ---- "Big Joe ---- A Man To Know"

Dear Friend in Christ:

What a special time of year this is! I pray that, in the midst of all
the clamor of the world's substitutes for peace, joy, and hope, that you
will not be cheated out a genuine celebration of Christ's incarnation.
We often forget that Jesus is familiar with and probably comfortable with
the sounds and smells of the world ---- after all, He was born in a
stable in the middle of a mad house as people streamed into the city to
register for taxation. His circumstance was probably very similar to
what you and I face ---- the world clawed for His life, just as it does
ours.

Praise God that, because He has already walked that pathway, tempted at
all points such as we, we can enthusiastically anticipate not only
survival in the midst of the noise, but also victory in the midst of the
world's ignorance ---- no, ---- stupidity ---- over the real meaning and
message of this season.

So ---- in the middle of the manure ---- Rejoice! In the hub hub of the
shoppers ---- Relax! In the impatience of the travelers ---- Defer! In
the stench of the rotting smell ---- Be At Peace!

After all ---- it's Jesus, the focal point of our attention, that we
celebrate. Everything else is strictly incidental. Keep it that way.
Keep Him that way!

BIG MAN JOE:

As noted last week, I've been significantly intrigued over the years at
some of the "secondary" characters in the traditional Christmas story.
Last week I shared my thoughts about Zacharias, the father of John the
Baptist. I want to consider another man today ---- the man whose only
claim to fame, as far as we know, is that he was a carpenter, the husband
of Mary, and the man who carried the identification of being the "foster
father" to the Lord Jesus Christ ---- the adoptive father of an
illegitimate child, and the husband of a promiscuous adulterous woman.

In my book, he was a mighty big man ---- "Big Man Joe".

Why do I feel that way? In reading the scriptures and also historical
accounts from some of the earliest church writers, i have reached this
conclusion for several reasons, some of which I note below.

According to early church records written in the First Century, Joseph,
born to a family from Bethlehem and out of the Tribe of Judah, was a man
of great wisdom and learning, and a skillful carpenter. He and his wife
had six children ---- four sons (Judas, Justus, James, and Simon) and two
daughters (Assia and Lydia).

Mary, on the other hand, was dedicated to the Lord when she was six
months old and presented to the priest at the temple at age three. From
that time, she lived in the temple until she was fourteen. During those
years she astounded, as did her Son, the Lord Jesus, years later, the
citizenry and the religious leaders. It has been said that even at age
three she talked like an adult, and entered into an intense life of
prayer. From her earliest days she would pray from six in the morning
until nine, work until three, and then pray from three in the afternoon
until six in the evening.

When Joseph's first wife died, Mary was about twelve years old. At her
death, Joseph went away to work with his sons in the carpentry trade,
often gone from his home many months at a time.

At about that time the priests followed a process of selecting a guardian
for her who would later become her husband. Joseph was selected, in
spite of the fact, according to one account, that Mary was younger than
some of his own grand children.

Fearing ridicule and misunderstanding, he resisted. However, through
some intimidating pressure, he finally agreed, and took her to his home.
However, because he was a carpenter and builder, he chose to not live in
his own house, and would be gone for months at a time.

Some time later there was a need for a new veil in the temple, and Mary
was one of several virgins chosen, and was given the assignment of
spinning the purple and scarlet fabric, later to become very significant
as events developed some years later. Elizabeth's husband, Zacharias,
of whom I wrote last week, was the presiding Chief Priest at this time.

By now, Mary was apparently about sixteen years of age.

The early records show that one day while going to the well for water,
she heard the voice of an angel. Looking around and seeing no one, she
quickly ran back to the house in fear, placed the pitcher of water down
and, quite shaken, sat down to resume work on the fabric.

At that time the angel visibly appears and gave the pronouncement with
which we are familiar as recorded in the Bible. Having been extremely
spiritually perceptive most of her young life, this new revelation from
God was something she could hardly contain, and it directly affected her
work with the fabric.

After she had enthusiastically completed the weaving project, she took
the fabric to the temple where the presiding priest at the moment
prophesied over her indicating the Lord had magnified her name and she
would "be blessed in all the generations of the earth," confirming in her
own heart her suspicion that she was already pregnant.

Her temple project finished, and possibly beginning to show visible
evidences of pregnancy, she rushed off to visit her cousin, Elizabeth,
Zacharias' wife, where she remained for three months and then returned to
Joseph's home, to whom she has been betrothed, but not yet married. The
story is recorded in the Bible.

In the last stages of Mary's pregnancy Joseph returned home from one of
his long building projects on the Sea of Galilee, and discovered her
very, Very pregnant. He, of course, knew nothing of Mary's encounter
with the angel yet.

He was distraught with feelings of guilt for not having adequately
protected her, afraid of what the priests ---- and the community ----
would say, and angry with Mary for her failure to keep her vows of
purity. Early records indicate that he was so overcome that he would
leave the house before dawn and hide himself from the priests and the
rest of the citizenry in order to avoid facing the issue of her
pregnancy.

It was at this time that Joseph faced the choices of "divorcing" her
secretly or bringing accusation against her before the priests. It was
at this time that the angel appeared to Joseph, as we read in Scripture,
assuring him that Mary's claim that she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit
was indeed true. Joseph rejoiced immensely.

Apparently Annas the scribe came to Joseph's house to see why he had not
been attending the meetings of the assembly (Joseph was also apparently a
priest), and in that visit, saw Mary in her pregnant condition. He
immediately reported the situation to the Chief Priest.

Well, you can imagine the scene ---- accusations and insinuations fly.
Joseph had to be experiencing an absolute contradiction of emotions and
feelings ---- fear and anger, guilt and defensive, shame and pride . . .
.

Then Mary was brought before the council and similarly accused,
intimidated, and threatened. After both Joseph and Mary pass the
Levitical "water" test, from which they returned healthy and unaffected,
they were sent home with all accusations officially dropped ---- but
plenty of questions, small talk, and judgemental stares thrown at them
everywhere they went by both citizenry and clergy. (So what else is
new?)

At this time, Joseph took Mary and returned to his own house, both of
them very excited over the confirmation God has given them that they were
indeed right in the middle of the most astounding miracle of all history
---- a virgin made pregnant by the Holy Spirit of God, and about to give
birth to the Incarnate Christ of God.

They were home only a short while when the order from Emperor Augustus
was announced, and they journeyed to Bethlehem, where the events unfolded
as recorded in Scripture.

Now, just how much of this account is true is unsure. I researched it
primarily from the Apocrypha of the Gospels as recorded in the Nicene and
Anti-Nicene Fathers' writings, including the Gospel of James, the
half-brother of Jesus. Because oral tradition was such a detailed and
skilled art, we can assume that, while these writings are certainly not
divinely inspired as the Bible is, they are nonetheless fairly
trustworthy for their accuracy.

No matter how accurate, however, I did find that the material tended to
confirm the thoughts I have had about this extraordinary man, chosen of
God for a most amazing task ---- serving as a "foster father" to the
Lord Jesus Christ during his birth, infancy, and early childhood.

So, I see Joseph as a man standing head and shoulders above his peers
---- with qualities that any man of God called to a special ministry
would do well to desire, develop, discipline, and demonstrate.

WHAT MADE JOSEPH A "BIG MAN":

1. Joseph was a man of Character. While little is written of him in the
Bible, equally early historical records show that Joseph was a man of
impeccable character ---- honest, fair, loyal, etc. While God uses all
kinds of people, history seems to indicate and the Bible teaches that God
places His greatest treasures in and gives His most significant
assignments only to men and women of Character. That may help us
understand something of the way God uses ---- or doesn't use ---- you and
me.

2. He was a man of Maturity and Experience. His years of experience as
a husband and a father, as a spiritual leader, and as a hard worker, had
created a depth and stability that enabled him to endure things such as
the death of his first wife, the shock of a teen's pregnancy, the
whispers of the gossips, the judgementalism of his peers, the threat of
economic collapse to his business, etc.

Maybe you've experienced similar heart aches and trials.

If so, Rejoice! That's the kind of man and woman God is looking for
during these particular days of Christ's "Incarnation" in us. We, too,
must be prepared to face the "death" of things most precious, the
disappointment of failures by those nearest us, the jealousy and
resentment of peers, and the total uncertainty of our economic state.

3. He was a man who seized the moments. Being an old man already when
he married Mary, Joseph certainly recognized that, whatever other factors
were involved in this situation, his own age was not a plus. I have no
doubt that Joseph recognized that, at best, his days were numbered ----
much like any man or woman who serves God in a vocational manner.

Not only are our days numbered on this earth by the Lord, but they are
also often numbered by others in our ministry. So, my friend, make sure
you seize the moments you have. You may not have as many as you might
think.

4. He was a man who cared about Mary more than he cared about himself.
While he saw her first as a child in his custody, I believe he learned to
care for her as a father cares for a daughter, and eventually as a
husband cares for his wife.

Just as Jesus was entombed in Mary's womb, an "earthen vessel", and
needing Joseph's constant care and protection, that same treasure is also
encased in "clay pots" today ---- Christians who have been placed in our
care as pastors and church leaders. They need the same unselfish care
from their God-ordained protectors and providers.

While the temple utensils are of varying types, functions, and quality of
metal, they must all be cared for ---- for, you see, they contain, in
spite of their often beat up and tarnished appearance, the most precious
treasure in all the world ---- the Lord Jesus Christ. As keepers in the
temple, it is our responsibility to care for the vessels more than we
care for ourselves. Joseph did ---- aren't you glad?

5. He was a man willing to pay the price, whatever it was. Try as I
may, I still cannot fathom what it must have cost Joseph in sleepless
nights, sacrifice, loss of influence, disintegration of reputation,
misunderstandings, and personal inconveniences. When he chose to not
only accept but also embrace the explanation of the angel that this "holy
thing" is of God, he simultaneously chose the possibility of losing all
else that was precious to him. He didn't even have any guarantees from
his children.

In spite of the surface "blessing" and vindication from the religious
leaders, Joseph was most likely thought of as the man who "says he
didn't, but probably did" get Mary pregnant. But, like Paul, he "counted
all things as dung (manure) for the sake of knowing Christ".

God is constantly looking for like-minded "Joseph's" ---- men and women
who will bid farewell to influence, reputation, approval of man, and
personal convenience, and who will pay the price, however it comes, and
whenever it is due.

6. He was a man who had a relationship that was temporary but yet
eternal. I've often wondered what Joseph must have thought as he watched
this extraordinary baby, born to one who was little more than a mere
child herself, grow up to be a little boy playing in the road, reach the
age of "manhood" at twelve, astound the teachers in the temple, quickly
learn and master the skills required in a carpenter's shop, and then
develop a "drivenness" that separated Him above and away from everybody
else, including his own family.

There must have been such a pride ---- but a painful pride, because he
knew Jesus was really not part of his own "flesh and blood"; He was
Mary's, but not his. And ---- he knew that, as an old man, he probably
would not live to see Jesus accomplish what God had said He would. And,
if the absence of any mention of his name at the wedding in Cana is any
indicator, it is likely that Joseph was already dead by the time Jesus'
public ministry began, and perhaps as much as eighteen years earlier.

At the same time, I think there was a sense in which Joseph knew that
there was something in their relationship that thrived on another level
---- a higher plane; a---- relationship that transcended the human.
While it probably hurt to know he was not the real father, it really
didn't matter ---- because he knew his boy was also his Redeemer and
Savior ---- and if his own life was cut short, he would see Him again.

Friend, our relationships are also temporary and yet eternal. Few of us
retain relationships in ministry that last "forever", ---- and yet ----
they do! That's a good thing to remember next time you resign or get
fired from a ministry position. Your relationships are all temporary at
best ---- but they are also eternal, no matter how long you stay or how
far you go when they are terminated here on this earth.

If you can grasp that, it will encourage you now in your current
ministry, and in the future when it ends. It has not all been in vain
---- not by a long shot.

7. Finally, I believe Joseph was a man who faced and embraced his
destiny. God had called him to an amazing destiny ---- one that you and
I can never fully comprehend or appreciate.

Try putting yourself in Joseph's place. In all that I read about him in
related documents, this one thing really grabbed at my heart ---- from
the very moment the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph and made that
incomprehensible statement, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to
take Mary as your wife; for that which has been conceived in her is of
the Holy Spirit, and she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name
Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins", I believe
he knew that his destiny is sealed and certain.

The question was, would he embrace it or fight it? All the evidence I've
seen indicates that he not only embraced it, but he "owned" it ---- it
became part of his very fiber.

I believe Joseph lived and breathed the fact that God had predestined him
to be the man who would marry, love, nurture, and cherish Mary; that God
had predestined him to be the one and only man in all the world for all
of history who would be in this place at this time under such
circumstances ---- to witness the Incarnation of the Son of God through
the body of his own wife, to be charged with the responsibility of
treating him as his own, loving him, caring for him, protecting him, ----
knowing all along that He was more than just a boy, more than just a
carpenter's foster son, knowing that He had a traumatic destiny of His
own that Joseph could not prepare Him for or protect Him from.

Oh, dear friend! You and I are like Joseph! We, too, have been
delegated a destiny by the mighty hand and fore ordained purposes of God.
And, as with Joseph, ours is also beyond us.

So, we have a choice ---- run from it, ignore it, try to manipulate it,
or ---- embrace it. Too many of us in ministry have done everything
Except embrace it. And, that has created enormous problems and
consequential heart aches for us.

My friend, as Joseph apparently did, and Jesus certainly did, you and I
must also ---- Embrace The Cross! That is our destiny as well.

FINALLY:

Joseph blesses my heart! He is really a big man! What an example for
us! Oh, thank You, Father, for picking Joseph, and for letting us know a
little about him.

What a man! What a man of honor! What a man of character and integrity!

What a man of God!

Wonder what it would be like to have a church full of Joseph's?

Have a wonderful week, my friend. And, thanks again for the great honor
of writing you; I hope you have been encouraged.

In Christ's Bond,

Bop Tolliver ---- (Rom 1:11-12)
Copyright November, 1998. All rights reserved.

If this letter has blessed you and you know of someone else who needs to
be encouraged, feel free to forward it in its entirety to all such people
you know.

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{ (O) (O) }
------oOOOo--------U-------oOOOo------

Hang in there! I'm with you!

-------.oooo0--------------- Ooooo--------
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