Ensign: Myself, I Prefer The Strong Silent Type
All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye. Isaiah 18:3
AN ENSIGN ON THE MOUNTAINS 15 April 2016
A few weeks ago I read a devotion on Joseph from the New Testament. Now it's Joseph and not Mary who got God's approval to marry her after she was pregnant with Jesus -- and in the Jewish culture of that day being found pregnant before you were married was a stoning offense! It's Joseph and not Mary who received the angel in a dream telling him to flee from Bethlehem with Mary and Jesus to Egypt, and Joseph and not Mary whom the angel told to return with them and take a side turn to Nazareth. Then was Jesus was twelve years old and the family went to Jerusalem with Him for the passover and LOST Jesus -- I would expect Joseph as Jesus' acknowledged father to say something!
But if he did, Scripture doesn't record it.
That's right; feel free (in fact, I strongly encourage you to) check out Matthew 1:18 through the end of Matthew 2 for the approval and the dreams and Luke 2:41-52 for the Jerusalem story. (I thought there it's Joseph who "said unto" Jesus, your mother and I were worried sick about you! (My paraphrase.) But no, in the Gospel account Joseph is the father figure, the strong silent type to everyone around him. No mistake he's the head of household (which soon gets to be a much bigger household, see Matthew 12:46 for "brothers", and Mark 6:3 identifies four brothers by name and gives Jesus at least two sisters as well). But after Jesus is twelve, we're not really told about him.
So the Bible is mute -- pun intended -- on the subject.
Technically half-brothers and half-sisters to Jesus, of course, but much the same happened slash happens with my own family. I'm the only child from my parents' marriage; both were married before and each had children from those marriages, so I have twelve half-brothers and half-sisters. But I've always called them and they've always called me brother. The fact that often we haven't seen each other for years -- a few years ago on vacation I finally got to see my mom's other kids whom I hadn't seen in nineteen years! Even the occasional communication on Facebook and other social media (through physical letters and cards and phone calls, "etc. etc.") is not the same as being there.
Perhaps Joseph was dead by the time Jesus began His public ministry.
But Joseph certainly was not mute, nor was he inactive in his family's life, regardless of how much (or if) he could be there. It's easy to view our relationship with God the Father the same way -- that is, because we don't hear Him and don't see Him the way we would someone right across from us, that He's not there at best and if He's there He doesn't care what happens to you and me. There's one time in my life I can recall hearing God audibly, it was in early 1993 at a 4Him concert in the church I was attending at that time. I was just so down about something that I asked God to please use me for something -- it didn't matter what at the time, just use me.
And I heard as I prayed, "I AM."
There's a whole separate study I could do on that, from God identifying Himself as I AM to Moses at the burning bush -- but that's for another day. Go into nearly any church today and it seems that we have ten, maybe fifteen percent who you see most if not all the time, and so many seem content to let them, preaching the Word, quaking the undecided, reading the lesson, serving the communion, taking the offering ... I would say the rest are just sitting there, but now I'm not so sure. It takes prayer to keep them going, to keep us going, to keep ME going. And whether you're outspoken or out acting or not in the will of God, there you still are.
Just like Joseph, the strong silent type.
David
P.S. I write this weekly devotional to keep in touch with you, and I hope it's an encourager too! If it's not -- if I'm not -- or you just want me to get lost, please let me know. Thanks!
Thank You, Lord, that we can come to you in prayer and that we can count on You to provide for all our needs, even when we don't know what they are. We pray for the peace of Jerusalem on both sides of the fence and all over the world.
Thank You as well, Lord, for everyone in leadership and service, both here and abroad. Thank You for the opportunities we have and the promise of new life through You by Your Son Our Brother, Jesus the Christ.
And I pray that we all seek and have a blessed week! Amen.
A few weeks ago I read a devotion on Joseph from the New Testament. Now it's Joseph and not Mary who got God's approval to marry her after she was pregnant with Jesus -- and in the Jewish culture of that day being found pregnant before you were married was a stoning offense! It's Joseph and not Mary who received the angel in a dream telling him to flee from Bethlehem with Mary and Jesus to Egypt, and Joseph and not Mary whom the angel told to return with them and take a side turn to Nazareth. Then was Jesus was twelve years old and the family went to Jerusalem with Him for the passover and LOST Jesus -- I would expect Joseph as Jesus' acknowledged father to say something!
But if he did, Scripture doesn't record it.
That's right; feel free (in fact, I strongly encourage you to) check out Matthew 1:18 through the end of Matthew 2 for the approval and the dreams and Luke 2:41-52 for the Jerusalem story. (I thought there it's Joseph who "said unto" Jesus, your mother and I were worried sick about you! (My paraphrase.) But no, in the Gospel account Joseph is the father figure, the strong silent type to everyone around him. No mistake he's the head of household (which soon gets to be a much bigger household, see Matthew 12:46 for "brothers", and Mark 6:3 identifies four brothers by name and gives Jesus at least two sisters as well). But after Jesus is twelve, we're not really told about him.
So the Bible is mute -- pun intended -- on the subject.
Technically half-brothers and half-sisters to Jesus, of course, but much the same happened slash happens with my own family. I'm the only child from my parents' marriage; both were married before and each had children from those marriages, so I have twelve half-brothers and half-sisters. But I've always called them and they've always called me brother. The fact that often we haven't seen each other for years -- a few years ago on vacation I finally got to see my mom's other kids whom I hadn't seen in nineteen years! Even the occasional communication on Facebook and other social media (through physical letters and cards and phone calls, "etc. etc.") is not the same as being there.
Perhaps Joseph was dead by the time Jesus began His public ministry.
But Joseph certainly was not mute, nor was he inactive in his family's life, regardless of how much (or if) he could be there. It's easy to view our relationship with God the Father the same way -- that is, because we don't hear Him and don't see Him the way we would someone right across from us, that He's not there at best and if He's there He doesn't care what happens to you and me. There's one time in my life I can recall hearing God audibly, it was in early 1993 at a 4Him concert in the church I was attending at that time. I was just so down about something that I asked God to please use me for something -- it didn't matter what at the time, just use me.
And I heard as I prayed, "I AM."
There's a whole separate study I could do on that, from God identifying Himself as I AM to Moses at the burning bush -- but that's for another day. Go into nearly any church today and it seems that we have ten, maybe fifteen percent who you see most if not all the time, and so many seem content to let them, preaching the Word, quaking the undecided, reading the lesson, serving the communion, taking the offering ... I would say the rest are just sitting there, but now I'm not so sure. It takes prayer to keep them going, to keep us going, to keep ME going. And whether you're outspoken or out acting or not in the will of God, there you still are.
Just like Joseph, the strong silent type.
David
P.S. I write this weekly devotional to keep in touch with you, and I hope it's an encourager too! If it's not -- if I'm not -- or you just want me to get lost, please let me know. Thanks!
Thank You, Lord, that we can come to you in prayer and that we can count on You to provide for all our needs, even when we don't know what they are. We pray for the peace of Jerusalem on both sides of the fence and all over the world.
Thank You as well, Lord, for everyone in leadership and service, both here and abroad. Thank You for the opportunities we have and the promise of new life through You by Your Son Our Brother, Jesus the Christ.
And I pray that we all seek and have a blessed week! Amen.
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