There is a sci-fi movie being filmed inside my wife’s uterus, and I’ll never get to see anything but the dramatic conclusion. It amazes me that within her are all the essential ingredients to create life, and while I don’t pretend to understand it, I can honestly say I’m jealous. No, I don’t have any desire to birth a child or even be pregnant with one, but it seems she has an unfair advantage. At the very least, in our day of gender equality, I should get the same ingredients; although I’m sure I (or one of my male cohorts) would find a more manly use for them. Alas, it is a hopeless endeavor as God has already ordained our prenatal roles, and I guess that is good enough for me.
I can’t help but feel bad though because she’s got to do all the hard work. For the next nine month, every oddity within her body will probably be due to our growing child within her. In addition to this, she must wisely consider the potential benefit or harm of every item she chooses to digest. I can do little more than watch as this miracle of life forms behind the veil of my wife’s stomach. Perhaps there’s a good lesson in there about being a good father, because right now the best thing I can do for my child is to care for my wife. At least caring for her will distract my attention until the day comes that God and the government entrust the rearing of a vulnerable infant into my care. I certainly don’t trust either myself or the government’s judgment but God’s got a fairly decent track record. After all, God chose Joseph to play a supporting role, and he too could only watch and care for Mary in those months leading up to the birth of Jesus.
Joseph provided the appropriate legal lineage for the Messiah but was not given the opportunity to supply his DNA to him (so far I’m Joseph in reverse). No, Joseph had to watch as God used Mary as the vessel carrying the Incarnate Son’s converging chromosomes and developing fetal body. To Mary was given all the essential ingredients to nurture the life within her, but to Joseph only late night trips to the local grocer for unleavened bread and pickles. Luckily, Joseph was a righteous man, and did what was right in eyes of the Lord (and probably his betrothed wife too), but it wasn’t easy. Upon hearing the results of Mary’s pregnancy test(s), he had the legal right to have her stoned, but he wouldn’t do it.
In my mind, Joseph’s hesitation to enact justice against Mary was because he loved her deeply. Being broken by the thought of her infidelity did not however dissuade his affection for her, although things were definitely different after that moment. Joseph probably had flashes of the prophet Hosea playing in his mind, “I thought I was marrying a Mary, but she’s a Gomer. How could I ever forgive her? Why should I bare the shame of her guilt?” Yet even though he thought her to be unfaithful, he did not want her harmed. Joseph chose instead to call off the engagement as it were a band-aid in need of removal; it hurts but the pangs are unbearable when you do it slowly. His plan to send her away was spoiled however by an angel of the Lord who told Joseph the eternal significance of what was transpiring. From that moment forward, everything Joseph did was enacted faith because he willfully entered into a risky relationship with both God and Mary. Joseph bared the cross looks of his friends and family because of his love for his future wife and his trust in the Lord’s providence.
Joseph therefore played both a passive and active role in the nativity, and his story is ultimately our story. He did not volunteer for the job, but having received his part from the angel, Joseph had to choose to play the role offered to him. Even though we are given little about Joseph beyond one and a half chapters in Matthew, Joseph must have received the Golden Hallow for “Best Supporting Actor” for the sci-fi movie filmed within Mary. We too are given our parts through the various life situations we find ourselves in, most of which we don’t volunteer for either. If we, like Joseph, can always consider the Writer/Producer/Director’s vision of the story, something truly beautiful will be birthed through us. Perhaps, not a Messiah. Perhaps, not even a child, but if God can create humans out of the dust and the innards of a woman, he most certainly can find other miraculous places to create life. God’s got a fairly decent track record for that too.
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