I didn’t come to tell you a sentimental story. That’s not what Christmas is. I came to give you an account of what happened. I came to tell you that God stepped into human history through Jesus Christ. And that in doing that, he’s reaching out to you. Welcome to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith. I’m David Pick. And Colin, sometimes we get so wrapped up in the trappings of Christmas, that’s shopping, food, parties, travel, and we lose sight of Christmas being the story of God reaching out to us. Yeah, in the incarnation of the Lord Jesus Christ. And you know, I’ve been a Christian now nearly 50 years, and the more I think about this miracle, the more marvellous it is. It is unfathomable for God to become man in Jesus Christ, for the divine to assume our flesh in order that we may be taken up into participation in the divine nature, is the way that Peter puts it in the Bible. That is a miracle that just is mind-blowing. We’ll spend eternity trying to get to the end of that one. So today we’ll hear more from Joseph, from his ringside seat at the greatest event in human history. It’s from chapter one of Matthew’s Gospel. As we continue, Joseph’s story. Here’s Colin. I’m here to tell you that an angel of the Lord appeared to me in a dream. And this is what he said. Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you, he said that to me, you are to give him the name Jesus. I woke up in a cold sweat. It was unlike any other dream I had ever experienced before. I knew beyond all shadow of doubt that God had spoken to me. Well, the following morning I knew what I had to do. I headed straight south for Judea. I don’t think I had ever traveled 70 miles so fast. I could not wait to take her in my arms and to tell her what had happened. The more I thought about it over that journey, the more staggering it became to me. Our little lives had been caught up in the sweep of God’s saving purpose for the whole of the human race. Our little home was going to be the place where the child promised to the world would be born, and the calling of my life was to be the guardian of the Son of God. Mary had spent three months with Elizabeth, and by the time we returned, she was beginning to show. That was the beginning of our married life together, though we both agreed that we would not consummate our marriage until after the child was born. Well, we were beginning to settle into a new life together in Nazareth when a herald arrived in town with a proclamation from Rome that the new government had an initiative. You’re always skeptical when the government has a new initiative. It’s still the same, is it? Well, we were too, and sure enough, it was bad news for us. The entire population had been ordered to return to the town of family origin to reger for a census that they decided they wanted to take. Can you imagine? It seemed that everybody was on the move. The road’s absolute chaos, families with carts and animals moving, all that they owned in every conceivable direction. I could hardly believe it. Mary was nearly due, but when the Romans gave orders, there were no exceptions, so I saddled up the donkey, and the two of us headed south on the road to Bethlehem, my hometown, another 70 miles. Of course, you get all sentimental about the donkey. You should try riding on a donkey, and then imagine doing it for 70 miles. Then try and imagine doing it at the advanced stage of carrying a child. I don’t know how she managed it, but she did. It was on the journey that it dawned on me that even this was part of the plan of God. You know, hundreds of years before, the prophet Micah had spoken of a ruler who would come out of Bethlehem, not Nazareth where we’d been living, but Bethlehem, my town of family origin. It was years since I’d been in Bethlehem, and I would never have dreamt of going there if it had not been for the decree. Think about this. God put it into the mind of a European dictator, who neither knew him nor believed in him, to issue a decree that resulted in us going back to my hometown where a prophet 700 years before said that this child would be born. It’s amazing. Bethlehem’s a tiny place, of course. When Luke says that there was no room at the inn, that’s what he means. There was no room at the inn, and all that was left for us was the shelter of a cave, and that was where he was born. Can I describe the joy of that moment to you? Some of you have been present at the birth of a child, and you know what it is like. I was the first to hold him in my arms. My hands brought him into the world. I was the first one to touch the gift of God. It was the strangest thing being in the cave, just the three of us. The child who had been born promised to the world since the beginning of time, and just the three of us knowing about it. At least, that’s what it seemed until a group of shepherds arrived saying that they had seen that very night a company of angels in the sky praising God and telling them that a Savior was born in Bethlehem. Now that he was born, I began to see the importance of the role that God had given to me as his guardian. Of course, my first responsibility was to find some proper accommodation. We decided to stay in Bethlehem for a while, and it was there on the eighth day that I had the immense privilege of naming him. There was no discussion about this. The angel had already made it clear in that original dream he had said, you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins, and so I named him, I named him Jesus. Of course, I really had very little idea at that point as to what all this meant, he will save his people from their sins, though I see the glory of it now. But even then, it seemed to be a name full of hope and of meaning, and there was absolutely no doubt about why he had come into the world. He had come to save his people from their sins, whatever that meant and whatever that would involve. A month later, it was time for us to take him to the temple in Jerusalem. More traveling for his mother and me, though this time it was just six miles into the city from Bethlehem to Jerusalem. Moses had given us a law that we should offer a sacrifice of two pigeons, and that this was to be done just over a month after the birth of a child, so that’s what we did. We were just about through with the ceremony when an old man came rushing up to us. Never seen him before, never seen him since. But the old man asked if he could hold the child, and Mary gave the child to him, and as he held the child, words began to flow from him. My eyes have seen your salvation, he said. Would you have prepared in the sight of all peoples a light to the Gentiles and a glory to your people Israel? I looked at Mary, she looked at me, who is this old fellow? We marveled at what he was saying. The same God who had spoken to Mary through the angel and to me through an angel in the dream, and had revealed himself through angels to the shepherds, and had put it into the heart of an unbelieving dictator to call a census. The same God had answered the prayer of an old man who had evidently been praying for years that he would live to see the birth of the Savior. Well, after that great day, we settled back into our regular routine at Bethlehem. We’d been there for some time when one night there was the most extraordinary commotion outside of our house. Three very distinguished and regal-looking gentlemen arrived outside our little place, complete with their entourage, and they had come to see Jesus. God had made him known to prophets like the old man, to priests like Zechariah, a relative by marriage, and now to kings. And the strange thing was that it wasn’t the king from our country who came, these kings were from the east. I remember what the old man had said in the temple, mine eyes have now seen your salvation which will be for all people, a light to the Gentiles. These kings had come from way outside of our culture. This Savior was to be the Savior for people from every culture, as well as every generation. The kings brought gifts that reflected their wealth. It was extraordinary, really. I mean, where were we hardly able to come up with the money for two pigeons to offer in the temple? And they arrived with gold, and incense, and myrrh. Of course, I laugh with them often when we talk about it up there. They had so much, we had so little. And you know the funny thing is this, it hasn’t made a scrap of difference either to them or to us for 2,000 years. All that mattered was that they worshipped Jesus, and so did we. You’re listening to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith and today’s Christmas story, Joseph’s Story. Looking at that first Christmas through the eyes of the characters from the Bible who were there at the time. And if you’ve missed any of the series, or you want to go back and listen again, you can do that by coming online to openthebible.org.uk. Back to Joseph’s story now. Here’s Colin. Well, that night after they had gone, an angel of the Lord spoke to me again in a dream. It was the second time it happened. There were four altogether. This was the second. The words were very simple. Get up, he said. Not what you want to hear in the middle of the night, but I’m telling you what he said. Get up. Take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt, for Herod is going to search for the child and kill him. So that’s what we did. We packed up what we could, we left the house, we slipped out of Bethlehem under the cover of darkness. Now you can’t begin to imagine what this journey was like. This was more than 400 miles. We were on the road for well over a month. So those of you who have young children and complain about it when you’re doing it in a van, you just think about what it was like for us trying to do it with a few animals in a cart. Mary’s still nursing the child. Later we heard that Herod had killed all the male children under the age of two in Bethlehem. It was a terrible atrocity. And a reminder to us of the appalling evil that this world needs to be saved from. I don’t know how many children died. Probably not as many as is sometimes imagined. A very small town, perhaps 10, perhaps 20, but a terrible tragedy for every child and every family. Their lives were taken on account of him. Later his life would be given on account of them, and on account of you, on account of us all. On account of us all. So we lived in Egypt. It’s as well I was a carpenter. It was always work for a chippy, you know. And that skill was part of God’s provision for us in all of our movements. Sometime later Herod died, and that was when God spoke to me a third time through a dream. God spoke, of course, at this time in this way, because there was no other way in which we could have known. I mean, you have CNN. You have local newspapers. I mean, how do you think we would have known in Egypt if a king had died in Israel? I mean, it’s just not the kind of thing that gets reported. No, the angel came in a dream and said to me, Get up and take the child and its mother to Israel, for those who were trying to kill the child are dead. I love that line, by the way. Those who were trying to take the child’s life are dead. You see, they tried to bring death to him, but death finally overtook them. It’s worth thinking about that. You see, over 2,000 years since that time, there have been some people who’ve loved him. There have been some people who’ve hated him. There have been some people who’ve ignored him. There have been some people who’ve never heard of him. But sooner and later, they all die. And when they die, they give an account to him. Those who were trying to take the child’s life are dead. They’ve been trying to do away with him for years, but they never will. Well, it was back on the road again. Another month of travel, another 400 miles back to Israel. You know, you folks just jump in your vans and drive off to Florida. I mean, for us, we had to carry everything we owned with us. Once we got to the border, we discovered that the country had actually been divided since the death of Herod into four different regions, and that a man by the name of Achilleus was ruling in Judea, where Bethlehem was. That was bad news because he was as notorious as his father Herod. In fact, after a few years, community leaders complained about him because he was so bad. And so, the Romans removed Achilleus and replaced him with a Roman governor who was the first of a number who came in succession to that area, one of whose name you’ll know, Pontius Pilate. Pontius Pilate. This was when God spoke to me for the fourth time through a dream. And after we had crossed the border into our homeland of Israel, being warned in this dream, we diverted route and instead of going to Bethlehem, we went back to Nazareth, where it all began. Another 70 miles on top of the 400. Wow, there’s so much more. But I’ve got to stop, otherwise I’ll get in trouble with your pastor. I’ve told you my story. If you find it hard to believe in the virgin birth, I want to tell you I’m your witness. Nobody found it harder to believe than me. And I came here to tell you today, he was born of a virgin. The obvious question, of course, is that, okay, even if you believe that, as I trust you will today, you might ask this question. Well, okay, he was born of a virgin. What’s that got to do with me? Now listen, you’re all sensible people. So you think about this with me. If he was really born of a virgin, he is unlike any other person who has ever lived. And if he is unlike any other person who has ever lived, it’s at least possible that he’s able to do for you what nobody else who’s ever lived can do. And if he’s able to do for you what nobody else who has ever lived can do, then nothing in your life is more important than how you respond to him. I didn’t come to tell you a sentimental story. That’s not what Christmas is. I came to give you an account of what happened. I came to tell you that God stepped into human history through Jesus Christ. And that in doing that, he’s reaching out to you, to all people. I came to tell you today that heaven is as real, more real than your life here on earth, and much more permanent. And I came to tell you that God wants you there. And that he has opened the way through his son, Jesus Christ, for all who will believe in him and bow before him. Do you believe in him? Will you obey him? Will you trust him as your saviour? Will you crown him as your Lord? You’ve been listening to Open the Bible, with Pastor Colin Smith and a message called Joseph’s Story. And as you’ve heard, Joseph’s Story is not the sentimental story we often hear at Christmas. Rather, it’s the story of the God who created the universe, coming to meet us as a helpless baby. When we see the truth in this story, we can see that Jesus is able to do something which no one else in history has been able to do. This Christmas, if you don’t already know that Jesus is truly who he said he is, I hope you’ll take the opportunity to talk with a trusted Christian friend or family member, or maybe this Christmas, go along to a local Christian fellowship. Many churches have excellent courses available for any who want to find out more about the Christian life, such as the Alpha Course. If you’ve missed any of the current series, which is called Christmas Story, and you’d like to catch up or go back and listen again, you can do that online. You can do that online. Come to our website, openthebible.org.uk, and you can listen to any of the previously broadcast messages. You can also find them as podcasts. Go to your favourite podcast site, search for Open the Bible UK, and subscribe to receive regular updates. Open the Bible is supported entirely by our listeners. That’s people just like you. And if you’re able this month to set up a new donation, to the work of Open the Bible, in the amount of £5 per month or more, we’d love to thank you by sending you a gift. It’s a book called The Valley of Vision. It’s a book of prayers. And Colin, what makes this book so special? Well, it is a profoundly helpful book of prayers. And, you know, sometimes when we pray, we have words, and other times, you know, words don’t come so easily. And, you know, what am I going to say to God today? And I find that when you feel dry in that way, it’s useful to reach for something that will help you. Sometimes a hymn book may be helpful, and just using these words will stimulate the mind and the heart. The Valley of Vision is an absolute gem for stimulating prayer when you feel dry. And it is beautiful. These are prayers that were crafted by believers in earlier centuries, and they bear not only reading and praying, but going back to again and again and again. That’s why they have stood the test over hundreds of years. They have continued to provide value to Christian believers. Let me just read from the first prayer here, speaking about the Lord Jesus Christ. Let me find your light in my darkness, your life in my death, your joy in my sorrow, your grace in my sin, your riches in my poverty. You know, this is a book full of wisdom and a beautiful expression of prayer to God. I think it’s very rich, and I think anyone who has this book will find that they return to it and use it again and again. Well, we’d love to send you a copy of this book, and we’ll do that as a free gift if you’re able to set up a new donation to the work of Open the Bible in the amount of £5 per month or more. Full details of this offer and lots more resources on our website, that’s openthebible.org.uk. For Open the Bible and Pastor Colin Smith, I’m David Pick, and I very much hope you’ll join us again soon. Do you ever think about the legacy you’ll leave behind? Discover how one man’s legacy was turned upside down in an instant. That’s next time on Open the Bible.