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Wonderful. It is great to see y' all. My name is Drew again. I'm pastor here. It's fun to have all of you here, especially some guests this week. You never know. Summer's like our mystery weeks. We never know who all will be here. So we're glad there's people here. Otherwise, it'd just be like Colin and I. Colin and whatever his Colin Tones band played. I. Because it's Father's Day, I was very excited to get to share. We're in a series we're calling Cloud of Witnesses, where we're just sharing about all these different people in scripture and how they've encouraged us and ultimately pointed us to Jesus. And excited. It's Father's Day, so I get to share and brag a little bit, I think, on these ladies who I love dearly. Who our girls. They're very beautiful and ladies now, but these when they're little. How cute are these girls? This is our first time at a Highlander football game. We just were reminiscing about that. Go Highlanders. Would they painted their faces? I think they're is 21. Was that Aaron's number? Was that your number, Aaron? Were they representing you? I think so. Was that your number? You would have been the only Highlander they knew, so I'm guessing they went to cheer you on. That's why you won big that day. I bet you won real big. Good chance, right? I don't think you ever lost, did you, as a football player here? No. These are our girls. We have been a family for over 10 years and have lots of fun moments together. Lots of princess dresses and, oh, man, just so many good moments. One of my earliest moments with our girls was when they first came home and we took our first trip ever to Target. I think I've shared this story before, but our first trip ever to Target. We lived in South Minnie and went to Lake Street Target. And not that that matters, but we're at the Lake Street Target and we're walking around. And it was my first time as a dad with a kid at a Target. So I was unaware maybe, of all the situations that happened, namely that they want everything, everything that we pass. And we thought it would be so fun. We'll just walk around the Toya. We had spent a few weeks getting to know each other. Kelly and I both didn't work, and we just were at home together learning what it was like to be a family. And so we went to Target and we got to the toy aisle and very quickly they couldn't have everything. And so very quickly, they got very upset. And Zariah, our youngest, you can imagine sweet little Zariah. Sweet Zariah got very, very upset and started screaming and started yelling lots of things. And people got a little nervous, and so I didn't know what to do. So I just picked her up. I said, if we're going to keep going, we have to go to the car. I tried all the techniques I had read in books, and none of them worked. I didn't know yet as a parent like, that nothing works. And so I picked her up, and she's on my shoulder. And we're like, I'm fast walking through Target, and I've already, like, felt all the parent things. I'm feeling, like, guilty, and I'm feeling like everyone's eyes are on me, even though they probably aren't. I'm feeling judgment. And she starts screaming, this isn't my dad. And I don't look like Zariah's dad. Cause we look different. And I was very newly her dad. Kind of like, she just moved into my house. We still were even getting to know each other. She didn't even always call me dad. She just called me Drew sometimes. And so she's yelling, this isn't my dad. And I'm like, hustling out of Target with this little girl on my shoulder. Cause she's having a meltdown, and I don't know what to do. And so I'm just kind of mumbling to myself like, I'm kind of her dad. I'm kind of her dad. Because I didn't know. And how do I explain to people? No one stopped us. They just let us. They just let me take a child screaming, it's not my dad. To a car in the parking lot. And then. And then we prayed, and everything was perfect. No, but I remember the feeling of her yelling, it's not my dad. And me saying, like, don't say that. And then also going like, well, I'm not exactly your dad. And really, like, you just met me. Like, we're just getting to know. This is weird. And feeling like all the things of, like, I so want to be your dad. I love you to death already. But I'm also, like, not your biological dad. I'm also. I don't even know if you, like, see me in that role yet. There's always kind of emotions in the moment for me. And I was also just angry and frustrated. And she's yelling, and people are looking all those things, but she was just yelling you're not my dad. And I was feeling I'm kind of not your dad, but I kind of. I'm kind of her dad in that I have really felt a connection to someone in scripture who I think maybe felt some of those things and at least kind of understands in a different way, but in a similar way. We don't get a lot of stories in scripture about adoptive dads, but we do actually get one adoptive dad that in reading the early parts of the Gospels, we read the birth of Christ, we hear about his dad, we hear about Joseph, Jesus's dad. You might not think of Joseph often. He actually has no lines in Scripture, like we don't hear him speak ever. We just see actions taken by him. He's also something that we don't see later in the Gospels. We just see when Jesus was a kid. But he's a dad who did raise Jesus and did. Was around and loved Jesus. But he has this really unique place where dad, Jesus father, is this like, is our God. He has this unique place kind of in history where he got to hold Jesus and see him as a child. And then we don't see Joseph. And so today in our Cloud of Witnesses series, we are going to highlight Joseph, Jesus dad. And I'm excited. I've been really encouraged by taking some time just to think about who Joseph was and what he can show us and also even just what it would have been like to be have your son be our Savior and have this heavenly father. And so let's dive into it. We're mostly going to be just in the beginning of Matthew because that's the only place we see Joseph, Jesus dad, Joseph mentioned. Here's some just quick overview. So you kind of know a little bit about who Joseph is. Joseph, the son of Jacob, the carpenter of Nazareth. There wasn't necessarily a last name. His name wasn't Joseph Christ that you might think. But it wasn't then. At that point, most people were just named after kind of what they did and who their family was, who their dad was. We still name it. We have a bunch of Johnsons here. You guys were all parents of a John or kids of a John. So he's Jacob's son. He'd be Joseph Jacobson. And he was a carpenter or a builder or some kind of like worker in that way. And he was from the town of Nazareth. He was engaged, we know, to Mary Jesus mom and engagement kind of betrothed. So they had committed to being married. And there was this season probably about a year where they Were like committed. We're getting married, about married. But even in that period and they think in that time and place where they lived, they didn't even get time alone. It wasn't appropriate to be alone ever together. So he knew Mary, but just in kind of public settings. And their families probably knew each other. And he, he. We see the way he reacts to her. He loves her, but they weren't married yet. And so he was engaged. That's probably the word we'd use best. Engaged to her, to be married to her. They live in Nazareth, this town. And they eventually are going to go to Bethlehem. He's from Bethlehem, this other town, which we know means the city of bread or the city of David. You might know at Christmas we often talk about this because there's a prophecy that said our Savior will come out of the city of David or city of Bethlehem. It's also just cool that he comes from the city of bread, that Jesus comes from the city of bread. He calls himself the bread of life. There's kind of this cool connection there. He was a carpenter or a tradesman. The word was a tecton. So he built things, whatever that means. It probably was a little broader, less specialized maybe even than we would have it today. Words that were used for him are righteous, faithful, merciful. We're going to see that as we look at who he was and he disappears. I don't know if he disappears, but we don't see him in scripture. After Jesus childhood, they believe probably it means he just would have died before those things happened, which would have been common for a dad. And we don't see him like at Jesus crucifixion or even in any of the Gospels. They talk a lot about Jesus mom and how people interact with his mom and that she's around. And if he was around, he would have been in those stories as well. So we believe he probably was just there until Jesus was a kid. And he's in the family line of David. That's important. The beginning of Matthew shows this great line to show that Jesus, King Jesus comes and he's in the line of King David, which is also important to scripture to see that family line. So those just quick overview and we're going to look now where the few passages where we see Joseph mentioned and just real quick look at those and take a moment to unpack. Who is this Joseph? What do we know about him and what can we learn from Joseph? So if you want to open your Bibles, all this stuff will be on the screen. Otherwise you can crack your Bibles open to Matthew 1. Usually a passage we get to see at Christmas time, but today we're going to look at it and just look at Jesus. Dad, Joseph. This is how the birth of Jesus, the Messiah came about. His mother, Mary, was pledged to be married to Joseph. This is where they were kind of engaged, betrothed. But before they came together, before they had sex, she found to be pregnant. Through the Holy Spirit, they clarify this, right? They had not. She shouldn't be pregnant. Nothing has happened to make her pregnant. So before they were together, she became pregnant with the Holy Spirit. Now, we know that story as well, right? This angel comes and says, God has put the Savior in you and you are going to birth the Savior. So we know this gives us a little framework. Matthew sets us up for us. Now, because Joseph, her husband, was faithful to the law and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. So Joseph here has a right, if she has been unfaithful to him or even committed adultery, that he could leave her and say, I'm not going to marry you because you're with another man. And specifically, even just being alone with another man would be a big deal in that culture, in that place. That means that almost it probably could have been a death sentence even for Mary, if he had publicly said, this woman, who I was engaged to committed adultery and now is pregnant, that they could have stoned her, they could have killed her. And he also would have been like in his rights, kind of to do that, right? It would have been lawful. But he shows this mercy, this kind of love and compassion for her in there, that instead of exposing her to public disgrace, he's like, how do I. I don't wanna be with her if she's not faithful to me. But I also don't want her hurt. I don't want shame put on her. I don't want it to ruin her life. And maybe it would've even affected his life as well. So after he considered this, he's like trying to. It means, gotta be a hard moment. He's going, how do I deal with this? I wanna be faithful to what God has for me and what the law is. But I also wanna show this mercy, this great, like, truth and grace kinda. In this moment, we see Joseph being this kind of man. After he'd considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. And we're going to see this. This is the pattern for Joseph, that God comes to him in A dream, and tells him what's going on, tells him truth of what's going on, and then he acts out of that truth. So he appears to him in a dream. Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife. It's helpful to see verse 20, right? He was considering this, what's happening. We could even think just considering it. Some theologians said this actually could be like he was praying, asking God even what he should do in this. Do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. So God sees this happening and comes to Joseph and says, hey, here's what's actually happening. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus because he will save his people from their sins. Hey, the Messiah you've been waiting for is coming. He's going to be your son. And that's who this is. So it clears up. Who is this person? How could this have happened? Mary is pregnant. That's not false. And it wasn't because she was unfaithful. It's because God has sent his son to rescue his people to save them from their sins. Now, all this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet. The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Emmanuel, which means God. With us just clarifying. Matthew's clarifying. So he goes, hey, the thing that was told a long time ago to us, that a virgin would have a son and he would save his people, God would be with them and he'd save them is happening right now, Joseph. It's right in your family. When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife, but did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to the son and he gave him the name Jesus. So what happens here? Joseph says yes to what God says. And he says, okay, I will marry her and I will name him Jesus, just like you said. It was this great picture of Jesus, of Joseph. So we're seeing him being obedient to God. We're seeing him be merciful to her. We're seeing him be faithful to. To God and what God has for him. We still haven't heard him talk. We won't hear him talk. He just hears what God tells him, and then he acts on what God tells him. It really says a lot about Joseph. So we're learning a lot about this guy, our friend, Dr. Adeyemo. Says this Joseph was prepared to lose his honor, his reputation, and some economic benefit in order to minimize the suffering of another person. Even that person had hurt him through sexual betrayal. In his mind, justice and mercy went together. It just says a lot about this Joseph guy, right? They said if he privately would have gotten a divorce, he would have not been able to get back the dollar, some of the money involved in getting married. Like, it would have affected him financially, kind of all areas of life. So it says a lot about this Joseph guy. He's just even an honorable guy. Well, his story continues on. I actually found this really cool mosaic on it. This is a church that. A side note, right? This is a church in Istanbul. That's just a beautiful church that has the whole. The whole inside of it are covered with images, Biblical stories. And one of them is the story of Joseph. And so this Joseph, who in his dream hears about Mary, decides to marry Mary, and then they continue on their journey. Now we know maybe some of the next steps in his journey. He actually takes Mary then to Bethlehem. Remember, they go there and they. Jesus is born, like we always say, like in a stable. But in, you know, in the manger, in this lowly place with these lowly people, the King of the universe is born. We get this great, great picture. And then after he's born, in Matthew 2, we hear even more discernment from Joseph. Okay, we've had this kid. We've named him Jesus. He is the Savior. What do we do now with him? When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. Get up, he said, take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. They'd heard that King Herod was going to actually kill newborns because he had heard about this Savior. And this king, this new king was coming. I'm sure he was nervous that king might take over or he might lose his power. So in all this, the angel comes. Get up, he says, take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you. For Herod is going to search for the child to kill him. So again, Joseph has this moment. God comes to him in a dream and says, you should get Jesus out of there. I need you to protect him. It's kind of a cool thing, I think, as Joseph, the dad, adoptive dad to Jesus, is it like, couldn't you protect him? You're like God, or couldn't an angel protect him? But it's cool. God says, I want to use you to protect Jesus right now, is this beautiful picture like, him Allowing this broken, regular person to take Jesus and help protect him. And he moves them to Egypt. So they got up and took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had done through the prophet. Out of Egypt, I called my son. Again, Joseph is part of a very direct prophecy. So in Old Testament we hear, hey, out of Egypt, I will call my son. You actually are going to be a part of this story of God, this incredible thing. It's really cool. Joseph is woven into these prophecies that God knew long ago that he would be a part of. Also notice again, he had a dream. God said, I need you to do this. He gets up and he does it. There's this great obedience and faithfulness in Joseph that is quite encouraging, quite admirable. And actually something I want to be is someone who says, God, you have said this. And even maybe it's not comfortable, maybe I lose something for this. Maybe it's unacceptable, sort of to some, this is still what you've called me to, and this is what I'm going to do. And so he moves on there. So then again, after Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt. Another dream. Get up and take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel. For those who are trying to take the child's life are dead. The person who's trying to kill Jesus is dead. Now take the child back home to Israel. So he got up and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea, this is in place of time. This is the kid of Herod. He was afraid to go there. So instead of just going right back home, he doesn't want Jesus hurt. So they go somewhere else. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee and went and lived in a town named Nazareth. So it was fulfilled what was said through the prophets. They'd be called a Nazarene. So another prophecy was said. This savior who would come not only be born to a virgin, not only would be in Bethlehem, not only would be sent to Egypt, but also he would go back, but not to Bethlehem. You'd think he'd go to Bethlehem. Twist going to Nazareth because we call him a Nazarene. They're all happening and all through Joseph's obedience, as God is using him to fulfill all these things. So now he takes them, still caring for his Son and his wife, they go to Nazareth. This is where we see a lot of the stories. And right. Even in the Gospels, we hear people called Jesus like that Nazarene. Can anything good come out of Nazareth? Remember this line? Yeah, yeah. The only good thing, right? So it's a cool picture of Joseph already still faithful, obedient, merciful, great care in the midst of this, Noah as a father, a Jewish father, in this setting, he would have been teaching also his kids in the process. Here, they also have other kids teaching their kids. The Torah would have been talking about God and teaching them what it looked like to pray and what it looked like to be a faithful follower of God in the house as well. We see then in Luke, as our last story with Joseph, we see this moment. They take Jesus to get him circumcised, to do the proper things in the temple. And when they get there, they meet a person named Simeon and Anna. This is a really cool story. It's these two people who've been waiting in the temple and praying, and they're gonna wait there until they met the Messiah. And then Simeon could finally, once he meets the Messiah, he can finally die, like in peace. And they bring their child in. Joseph and Mary bring little Jesus in. And Simeon holds Jesus in his arms and he. He cries out, I've met him. I met the Savior. So think of this as a moment where Joseph gets to watch someone affirm all these dreams he's had, all these things that God has told him. Another person who has been waiting for the Savior to come and holds Jesus and says, yes. And Anna and Simeon confirm this is the one who's come to rescue us. He truly is the one who's come to save the people from their sins. Just like the angel said, it's gotta be this really cool moment for him as his dad, to go, this is true. This is really happening. And then life goes on and they continue to live, and he gets to teach Jesus. And when Jesus is a little bit older, we get this moment where they go to the temple during Passover, which is something they said they did every year to remember this moment in Jewish history where God rescues his people. Death passes over his people way back in Egypt and they escape Egypt. Kind of cool, right? That's still part of their story. This story of them leaving Egypt where death passes over them but kills the firstborn. And they're there for Passover. It's just kind of cool connection to what they lived out. And this moment happens. Jesus gets lost. Not really, but Jesus kind of gets lost. After three days, they found him in the temple court. So they couldn't find him. They started leaving town. They don't know where he is. Three days, they look for Jesus. I think that's even in first century. That's a lot of days to lose your kid. I tried to look it up. Is three days like, what's the three day equivalent to not like, if I lose my kid for 10 minutes at Target, I'm losing my mind. Three days is long. Even then it was long. They lost, weren't sure where he was, if he was with family, where he was. They're looking all over for him. They finally find him in the temple courts. He's sitting among teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Jesus is in the temple hanging out with people. He's like engaging in conversations and even, maybe even teaching them. It's a cool thing. You see your son sitting there with these people in the temple. Everyone who had heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. Maybe. There's certainly a little hint this guy is, this kid is not a normal kid. When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you. Seems like a nice translation of what maybe was said. What were you doing, son? We've been anxiously searching for you. Of course, right? Where have you been? What are you doing? Why are you searching for me? Jesus says to them, didn't you know I had to be in my father's house. But they did not understand what he was saying. Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. Cool. Jesus even just obedient to his parents there. But his mother treasured all things in her heart. And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. This is the last time Joseph is mentioned. And actually it's interesting, in this passage before this, they talk about Joseph and Mary. And as soon as Jesus says, I was in my father's house, we don't hear about Joseph anymore. It's like this moment kind of that switches in the book of Matthew or in Luke and in all the Gospels where we go, oh, now, like it indicated, Jesus is with his Father and on his mission. In fact, this word here, house could actually be more like business or mission, I think because it's set in the temple. Often it's translated as I was in my father's house. As we would say, like the temple was God's house. But it's Actually, could be. Didn't you know? I had to be with my father's business or engaging in my father's business, which I think is cool. It's like he's realizing that my father, God has a work and a mission for me, and I'm doing that. I also, just as a dad of an adoptive kid, I feel that kind of like, tension in that there's a moment where Joseph had to go, this is it. I've been caring for you and protecting you and raising you, and this is where you go on your mission to your true father in heaven. Like, I'm your dad, kind of. He's really your dad. It's a very real human thing. And then we don't hear about Joseph. We assume after this he probably was around and loved his family, but probably passed away. And all we get are those moments of obedience of God using him to fulfill all these prophecies. We get these moments where we see him witness things that are happening and God clarify them and then he follow faithfully what God has said. God revealing what's really going on in him and his son and his family and him obeying that. We get to see him kind of own his identity of what God has brought him to be his mission, even his future. That revolves a lot around his son. He said, pretty encouraging guy. I think just the idea that God would say, this is what's happening. And he'd say, he'd get up and go, okay, let's do this. That alone is encouraging. There's a lot of people who have been really encouraged by him are some of the people that I found that just enjoy this story. Fleming Rutledge says even though he disappears from the story, Joseph's legacy lives in the obedience of the one he raised. Cool to think like Jesus carries even some of what Joseph pride God used him to teach him. Esau says God chose a working class man to protect the savior of the world. That alone turns human ideas of greatness upside down. Love it. Not just that Jesus was born in a manger, but that Jesus was raised by just a carpenter. He said, I'm going to send God. God's son's going to come to rescue the world. And who's he going to? Which family am I going to put him in? Like the most wealthy, powerful, famous family. I'm going to put him in this with this little couple, this little town. He's just going to be a regular carpenter. I love it. The story of Joseph teaches us. So Russell says his yes to God was not Spoken, but lived. That kind of obedience shapes eternity. I love he doesn't ever speak. I love that just his actions show his faithfulness and his obedience and all these things that I aspire to be as well. Tim Keller says, joseph teaches us that loving God means trusting him more than we trust ourselves. Definitely think of you. That first moment with Joseph that we see him go, I should probably divorce this woman. And then God says, no, that's not what's happening. And he says, okay, it's not about me. It's about what you want. Joseph's yes to God changed history. It didn't come with fanfare, but with faith. Think how different if Joseph had said, I don't want to marry her. What would that look like? A man who. I'm really encouraged by the question here. We don't want to just leave us here, as always, to just go, okay, now go. Be good Josephs. Be obedient, be faithful, be merciful. Care well for your family and friends and people around you. How in the world does he do this? Think of practically Joseph has to, like, help his wife. How many steps they took just to get to Bethlehem. And each of those steps is he thinking, this is crazy. Like, am I really staying with this woman? Like, is she, like, saying hi to people? And when she says hi to other men, does he go like, is that a guy? Maybe. Maybe that's the actual dad. Like, there's very a lot of real humanity in this that we don't get to necessarily see in this story. Think of him saying, like, get up. We're going to move to Egypt now. Egypt, the place that historically has not been the place where people like to go to, but the place where people like to leave and they go to Egypt. And then he again says, okay, now it's time to go back. Is it really safe to go back? It seems like it's still kind of unsettled and chaotic and scary. But he goes, all of those. How do you do that? How do you become someone who could do those things and then also disappear and be okay with it? We don't hear if he's okay. I assume he is to go like, it's not about you. How do you become someone who says, it's not about me, and I can be faithful and obedient and I can be joyful in a life like that. Well, I think it starts with the first thing Joseph heard. That's where I want to really land today with us as we end our time. Here's what Joseph hears. He hears this and he believes it and he acts on it. It changes his actions. It says this, she will give birth to a son. And you're to give him the name Jesus because he will save his people from their sins. I want to encourage us today with three things. This tells us. It ultimately just tells us the gospel. And because of that, it changes him. And that is what powers him. That's what holds him. That's what motivates him. That's what moves him. That's why Joseph is Joseph. First, it reminds us that God is faithful, that she will give birth to a son. This reminds us that God fulfilled what he said he would do. Way, way back when Adam and Eve, this first parents decide to be unfaithful and turn from God and sin enters the world and it breaks us and we become broken. And now sin corrupts and changes and we go, God save us. And he says, I will. I'm going to put an end to death and sin. And you go, come on. He does. He actually does. He actually comes. He actually comes, like he said. Not probably the way we thought, but he comes, which means God is faithful. He actually does what he said. He. He holds his side of the covenant with us and says, I'm not leaving you. So when we hear that she would give birth in that moment, Joseph goes, you actually have come to rescue us. It's not a fable, it's not a myth. It's not just, like, wishful thinking. It's not just us, like, trying to will it into existence. You actually said you will come and rescue, and you did. God, you are faithful. And if God is faithful, that changes how Joseph moves. It changes how we move forward in life. It makes me think of when you have a kid holding a hand. If you've ever had this in any situation, whether your kid or just a friend or you're helping with kids, church, when it's scary, when you don't wanna move forward, when a kid's like, I don't know if I can do this, and they hold your hand, all of a sudden, it gives you superpowers. When you're a kid, if I'm here with dad or mom or friend or aunt or uncle or the neighbor who's cool or like, in our house, we have had friends who our kids think are cool, some of you. And if you're there and you hold their hand, they're willing to. To jump into the pool or into the lake, right? Or they're willing to take that step or run through the sprinkler. I Can't do it. But if you're holding their hand, you can do it right away. Joseph gets this faithfulness of God as he's reminded God has fulfilled. He's come, he's not leaving us. It's like. It's like he's holding his hand. Joseph, I haven't left you. I'm with you. I. I am sending my son, and he is going to rescue you. Beautiful picture. That for sure changes Joseph and moves him forward, and us, too. Of a God who is faithful still to us, the only person you'll ever meet who's actually always faithful to you. Secondly, we hear, as he hears this good news, we hear that we're not God, which might sound like bad news at first, but it's really, really good news. It reminds us here, it says, you will give him the name Jesus. He's told by the angel what name to give him. This would be a big deal for us. Maybe not as big a deal, because we like to just, like, look through lists of names and go, like, that's a cool name. In that time, it was a big deal to the dad. The mom named the kid. It had this meaning behind it, had this power behind it. And also as part of. As a dad, you go like, he's my son. I get to name him. And in this, they say, you. You will name him this. Which takes another. He's not. He's. He's your son, but he's not really your son. It's this. This. You're not God. Also, we hear here that he'll save his people from their sins. It reminds us that God has come to rescue us. We're the ones who really needed the rescue. This might seem obvious, maybe, or maybe not obvious, but we often want to be the ones who take control, who save the things, who make the decision, who. I've discerned it and I've thought through it. I made a pros and cons list. And I've decided that divorcing her is the right choice. And I can do it this way and. And maybe figure it out so no one will know and she won't get hurt. And this God says, this is what's true. And you don't need to worry about how this is working. You know the truth of what's happening here and who she is and who you are. You're not God. You don't need to decide these things. You get to be obedient and you get to trust and that in that you are a sinner, Joseph. And us too. We get to be reminded that God is faithful and also that we're not God, that we're broken and that we need help. I think. I just often think I'm so much stronger, so much smarter, so much better than maybe I'll ask and see what God has for me instead of understanding. It's really good that we're not God and that God is God. Made me think of this. Someone sent me this recently. This video is killing me right now. Look how cute this kid is. Dad lifted, no problem. He's going to show off his skills. Look at that face one more time. It's so cute. It's that feeling. You go, I got this. I don't need you, God. I got this. And you grab it and you go, oh, I guess I'm not that strong, right? I guess I'm. I know. I guess I'm not that strong. That's good. You're not. Because you'll keep trying and you'll never ever lift it. So to go, I can't lift it. I need help. It's good because then it puts us in this place to actually receive the last thing we hear, which is rescue. Not only with a faithful God. Joseph heard and was reminded of that he's not God, that God knows what's right and what's best. Because we're sinners and broken. That we need rescue and that God is coming to rescue. He will save his people. Tells Joseph he's come and he's the one who's come to. To save you. That has to be incredible news. And in a dream that God just lays on his heart, the Spirit says it's true, he's come, that we're drowning, we're flailing, and God has come to rescue us through Christ. It's such good news. We can't get there unless we believe God is faithful and that we need rescuing and that he has come to rescue us. But if all those things come together and we believe this good news, this gospel, it changes us. And it makes us. People who become obedient and faithful and merciful become patient. People want to pray more. All those things that we want come out of this first, believing this is true, this gospel, changing us and looking to that over and over and over again and being reminded of this good news, that God is faithful and that we're not God and that God has come to rescue us. And in that moment, Joseph heard the gospel and was changed and was the man he was. And we can be the same, but we have to do it by looking to Jesus and being changed by Him. In Ephesians, we hear explanation of the Father, God the Father. It's essentially the gospel. Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. It's essentially a longer version of what Joseph heard from the angel. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight in love. He predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ in accordance with his pleasure and will, to the praise of his glorious grace which he has freely given us in the one he loves. There's a lot of words there. Some of these are kind of feel like big church words as well. Here's what it's helping us understand. There is a Father in heaven who loved us so dearly. He wanted us to be his children so much that before even we were born, before the time before creation of even the world that we stand on so long ago, he said, I want you in my family. And there's going to be this break and this brokenness that's going to keep you from me. And I'm going to find a way and it is my pleasure and my will to do so that I'm going to send my son. And he's going to be born and he's going to be raised by this guy named Joseph and his mom Mary. And he's going to go to a cross one day and die on a cross so you don't have to go on a cross that you can be raised from the dead. We're going to call that grace, this free gift that you've been given because he loves you so dearly. We have this Father who loves us so dearly. And we got this little picture of it, the shadow of it, as we see the life of Jesus, Joseph, and reminded of this really good news that God is very faithful to us, us broken, disobedient, whiny, meltdown kids. And he holds us so dearly and rescues us. This beautiful picture, this picture I found recently, I really love. This is an artist in the Congo who made this in 1992. It says this picture depicts the risen Christ abounding, victorious over the abyss of death, using his cross like a pole vault. The flaming pit of hell has been conquered and cleared the crossing over from death to life. Christ brings us from him with Him. That's why these men and women and children lift their hands and their voices in celebration. Christ is victorious. Our God is faithful. Our God is good even as we are sinners ourselves. This is what Joseph sees in a dream. He doesn't just see a baby boy is being born to maybe an unfaithful mom, but instead he sees the death conqueror has come. He doesn't just see someone to care for or diapers to change, but he sees one. One who will heal the world. He doesn't just see a little whiny crying creature coming, but instead a roaring lion who's going to take out Satan and death. Not just one that he will hold, but one who will eventually hold all of us and carry all of us to life. That's why Joseph, I think, can be obedient and faithful and merciful. And that's why we too can be obedient and merciful and have any life in us. Because we hold and look to this one. We get to hold on to Jesus the same way because our faithful Father sent us a faithful Savior named Jesus to rescue us, a sinful Brothers and sisters, this is really good news. This means I no longer have to worry about figuring out all the things to to save myself, but instead can rest in the one who has saved me. God has not left us, my friends. He is the only faithful one we will ever encounter and he is rich in mercy and lavishes his love on us. This is why we gather to see him and look upon him and again be overjoyed by this good, good news. I'm gonna invite our worship team up so we can sing about this good news together. A couple things to consider Here at Hope Heights, we love to respond to this good news. And here's some ways we can do that together. First, just some things to consider, maybe reflect on in the next few minutes as we respond. Will you look to Jesus to save you? Step one. Look to Jesus to save us. Does your view of God and yourself keep you from Jesus? Maybe. How you think of God, maybe you think of his unfaithful or unable to rescue you, then. Then you wouldn't turn to Him. But maybe. What does your view of God or yourself do to your relationship with Jesus? And who helps you follow Jesus or who could you help? Who are the people who help remind you of this good news? We love to respond with other ways too. As communion, our service all builds this moment that Jesus commanded us to do. He said, when you gather, I want you to break bread. I want you to drink wine or grape juice and celebrate my death. Because my death was me. Conquering death, taking your death and rising from the Dead. And so we gather. We love to do this every week out in the hallways, our tables with crackers and grape juice. We'd love for you to be able to stand there by yourself or with others and remember this good, good news, that Christ has come to die so that we would have life. And so we encourage you to do that. You don't have to be a follower of Jesus or you don't. You don't have to be a member of hope. We encourage you to be a follower of Jesus, so that'd be meaningful. We also will sing together as our worship team leads us. We also have people who would love to pray for you in the back of the room right now. They're already back there. They would love to pray for you for anything. And even if you don't know what to pray for, just ask for prayer. And they would love to pray. It's a great way to be ministered to and cared for. And we always also can give. We believe all that God has given us is not ours, but God's. And what a chance to be able to give to help support the ministry here at hope. Let me pray for us as we continue. Lord, thank you that your goodness has come to us. That Christ was born to Mary and Joseph, that they cared for him well, and that it's true that she birthed Jesus, our Savior, and he has come and saved people from their sins. That that happened, that Joseph believed it and acted on it. That we too can believe it and turn to you and be changed. I pray you would do that in our hearts right now, that whether we have believed that for a long time or never before that right now, you would remind us of that and turn us to him and it would change us. And that we'd feel the great joy that comes as we follow him and that he rescues us from death and darkness. We love you, Lord. You're really good to us. Amen.