Why’d God Choose Joseph?

At some point, Mary’s parents would have observed Joseph working in Sepphoris, and it seems that Joseph noticed their young daughter.

Perhaps Joachim and Anna saw Joseph participating in synagogue life, and they may have thought, What a remarkable and successful young man. He is faithful, full of integrity, and up and coming in his career. He is the kind of young man we would like to marry our daughter.

Joseph likely was “up and coming” and was attaining a solid reputation in his profession as a tekton. Although the Scriptures never say that Joseph was rich (or poor) before he and Mary became espoused, to be sure he was well compensated for his expertise, knowledge, and abilities. This indeed shatters the false idea that Joseph was nothing more than a poor carpenter.

Please think about this reasonably. If God was going to give someone the greatest assignment that had ever been given to any man in the human race — the responsibility of raising the Son of God — would He give it to someone who had never proven himself in managing the affairs of life, including his money? Or would He entrust such a task to a reliable, successful individual who had proven himself to be trustworthy again and again?

In Luke 16:11, Jesus clearly taught the important principle that God never gives big assignments to people who have not already proven themselves. That verse says, “If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?”

In this verse, Jesus taught us that God entrusts greater riches and greater assignments to people He has found to be faithful with past assignments. In this way, God is very predictable. Based on how God works and the principles taught throughout Scripture, we know that God had found Joseph faithful in his profession as well as in how he handled money — or God would never have tapped him on the shoulder for the most amazing assignment ever entrusted to a man.

In the same way God was watching Joseph, it is important for you to know that God is also watching you. What has He observed from your actions? Do you stick with projects even when things become difficult? Have you proven yourself to be a person of integrity that is trustworthy? Has God discovered that He can trust you with a bigger assignment?

For Joseph, the answer to these questions was a resounding yes. Think about it. Joseph was from the small village of Nazareth that historical scholars say had no more than a few hundred residents at a maximum. Yet there was something inside this young man that drove him to such excellence that he excelled above all the other young men in Nazareth.

Joseph never allowed being in a small town to hold him down, for at his core, he longed to do something significant with his life. Joseph refused to be bound by the limitations of Nazareth and soon found a place in the business community of Sepphoris where, as a highly skilled tekton, he began to make a reputation for himself and to earn a respectable income. Joseph was so faithful in his service to God and showed such promise that it attracted the attention of Joachim and Anna, Mary’s parents.

But most importantly, God Himself was searching for an earthly father to help raise His Son. It seems that God saw qualities in Joseph that qualified him to be that man. So what other qualities did God see that caused Him to choose Joseph from among all the young men in Israel at that time?

Joseph Proved To Be Merciful

Matthew 1:18 says, “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.”

We saw in the last chapter that the word “espoused” describes the Hebrew legal process that leads to marriage. Joseph and Mary had announced their engagement and they were legally espoused to each other. According to Jewish custom, espoused couples were engaged for one year, and during that year they gave themselves in preparation for marriage. And, importantly, sexual purity was required during that preparatory period.

During that year of preparation, Mary relocated from Sephorris to Nazareth where she lived with Joseph’s family, as was the tradition at that time. But the fact that Joseph never attempted to violate Mary and desired to remain sexually pure during that period showed him to be a man of seriousness and integrity. Remaining sexually pure was viewed as a way of showing God that a couple was serious about having His blessing on their lives.

At the end of the year Joseph and Mary were to be joined officially and sexually; however, it was during that year of preparation and sexual purity that Mary was found to be pregnant with Jesus. That Mary had been supernaturally impregnated by the power of the Holy Spirit was undisclosed to Joseph at this time, yet the way he handled this unexpected situation revealed what kind of man he was.

Matthew 1:19 says, “Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.” When Joseph discovered that Mary was pregnant before they had come together sexually, it could have proven to be a great embarrassment and hurtful to his honor. But the Bible says Joseph was “…not willing to make her a publick example, [but] was minded to put her away privily [privately].” In other words, Joseph was so kind and merciful that he did not want Mary to suffer humiliation and public embarrassment. He truly loved Mary and cared more about her than his own reputation. This revealed how kind and merciful Joseph was.

Because Joseph was legally “espoused” to Mary — and now she was pregnant — he legally had the “right” to put her away publicly and to officially divorce her, and if he had wished to do so, the Jewish law even permitted him to require Mary to be stoned for becoming pregnant before marriage. But Joseph decided to take a merciful approach to the situation instead of a legalistic approach. This means Jesus’ earthly father — although he was very committed to Scripture and to doing what was right — was not religiously mean or legalistic. He was exactly the kind of merciful and compassionate man that God desired to raise His Son.

Joseph Was Spiritually Attuned and Obedient to God

Matthew 1:20 reveals another important facet of Joseph’s character. The Bible says that after discovering Mary was pregnant out of wedlock, “…While he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife; for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.”

Even though Joseph was in the midst of an extremely difficult and highly emotional situation, his heart was so spiritually attuned that he could hear God speak, even in a tumultuous moment. God needed an earthly father for Jesus just like that — one who was spiritually attuned and who would respond to His leading in multiple precarious events that would occur in the lives of the holy family in the future.

But not only was Joseph able to hear God’s voice, he was also

obedient to God’s voice. Matthew 1:24 and 25 (NLT) says, “When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took Mary as his wife. But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born….”

Once Joseph heard from the Lord, this scripture makes it clear that he did not hesitate, but quickly obeyed what God had told him to do. This tells us that obeying God was not new in Joseph’s life, because the first time God asks someone to do something hard, it is usually a struggle to obey. But Joseph had obviously been tested before being chosen for this assignment, and his past obedience qualified him for the task. Over time he had developed a pattern of obedience, and because of this, God knew that Joseph would obey His directives — providing us with another reason God knew that He could entrust Joseph with the responsibility of helping to raise Jesus.

Joseph’s Actions Displayed Deep Trust in God

Shortly after Jesus’ birth, Matthew 2:13 and 14 says, “…The angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word; for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt.”

It is truly remarkable that Joseph so quickly obeyed this word of instruction because it must have been a difficult word to obey. By this time, Joseph had been working very hard in his profession and had proven himself to be an outstanding man of integrity. He had built a reputation in the city of Sepphoris as a highly skilled professional, he was earning a good income, and he was truly up and coming in society. Egypt was very different from Israel, and Joseph had no contacts and no work permit to work in Egypt. To leave and go to Egypt was a drastic, life-changing move into a pagan environment that meant leaving all the comforts and security of what he and Mary had known. It also meant that they would have to start over from scratch. As difficult and undesirable as this move may have been, Joseph didn’t argue with God. Instead, He promptly obeyed and showed that his obedience to God was far more important than his hard-earned status.

Joseph knew that he was to obey God regardless of the cost and that God would be faithful to provide for their needs. In fact, God did provide for their needs by bringing the Magi with their unexpected treasures and gifts of gold, frankincense, myrrh, and more to Jesus and His family — before their trip to Egypt commenced (see Matthew 2:11-15). God already knew from His prior observations of Joseph that he would obey His directives, and God miraculously provided financially for the time that Joseph and his family would be in Egypt.

What about you? What does your level of obedience reveal about you? Does God know you will do whatever He asks you to do? Or does He know you will drag your heels and argue with what He asks of you? The honest answer to these questions will reveal whether or not you are ready for God’s next assignment for you.

Joseph Was a Solid Spiritual Leader for His Family

As parents, consistency is very important. Joseph was well aware of this and it showed. Luke 2:41 and 42 says, “Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover. And when he was 12 years old, they went to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast.”

Notice these verses say that Joseph took his family every year to celebrate the Passover. This demonstrates that he was very consistent in leading his family spiritually, which is a father’s responsibility. Joseph didn’t send his kids to church while he stayed home. In addition to his synagogue life, he took them to these important spiritual events every year. Joseph led them spiritually, and he did so by example.

Without question, God’s selection of Joseph to be Jesus’ earthly father was not an accident, nor was it the result of a random choice. He watched Joseph for quite a long time, and He knew all these things about his character. God had seen that Joseph was trustworthy with his talents, his business, and his money. He had watched him behave mercifully toward Mary instead of being judgmental. He knew that Joseph would be a spiritual leader in his family and that he was spiritually tuned to the voice of His Spirit. Joseph had a track record of prompt obedience and showed that he was even willing to sacrifice everything to do whatever God asked of him.

Just as God had His eyes on Joseph, He also has His eyes on you. He is studying you to see if you are being faithful to do what He has already asked you to do. Are you walking in integrity — doing what is right even when no one is around? Are you merciful, or are you legalistic and judgmental? If you are a husband or father, are you leading your family spiritually and by example? Do you take them to church regularly and go yourself, or do you simply drop them off? Do you show that serving God is an option or that it is serious business?

The bottom line is this: What good things can God say about you? Does God know that you’re a person He can trust with a bigger assignment based on what He has seen in your handling of past assignments?