The Christmas Father and Son

(Originally written for The Baldwin Bulletin: Pastor's Column December 20, 2023)

Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus. (Matthew 1:18-25)

Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.” (Matthew 2:13-15)

I’ve heard from plenty of older fathers how back in the day they were not in the delivery room when their wives gave birth. They were in a waiting room somewhere else in the hospital, and some were even prepared to go back to work whenever the news of a healthy mother and child came. Times and expectations have changed—for the better, I think. It’s normal and expected for husbands to be by their wife’s side while she’s in labor now. YouTubers have made videos about packing the “dad-bag”—what men should bring to the hospital while we wait with our spouse and enjoy those first hours or days with our newborn.

As a dad who’s been around through five births, the reality is that time can feel like you’re just another piece of furniture in the hospital room. Sure, you’re there providing some level of moral support, but (appropriately) the mother is the focus! She’s the one who has been carrying this child or children for months. She’s the one who may be experiencing medical complications and whose life can be intertwined with the child and the delivery. She’s the one who’s hooked up to all the monitors. She’s the one who’s actually experiencing the pain of the delivery. God has created women with this beautiful but intense way of bringing new life into the world. As a man, I’m not complaining that I don’t have to possibly go through that pain. I simply want to point out how childbirth is largely mother-focused.

I think that’s true and even more appropriate when we think about the birth of Jesus. Traditional and contemporary carols focus on Mary. She’s the one who …treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. This was her child from the Holy Spirit; Joseph had no part in the conception. All he did according to Matthew 1 and 2 was not divorce her from their betrothal (think break off their committed engagement), took her as his wife, named the son Jesus, and later obediently took his family to Egypt. I don’t mean or want to minimize his role as the earthly father of Jesus, but he’s significantly in the background of the Christmas birth.

Joseph was an initially reluctant father, who trusted and obeyed God and his plan enough, to stick around. In that way, he’s a model for all of us. As Christians, our faith, our witness, our joy in this world is not simply reminding people that Jesus was born. It’s not simply making sure people know where it took place and who was all involved. The hope of Christmas is in pointing people to the need to believe in God and his Messiah—it’s not about Joseph or even Mary. Many people have some reluctance to God and his plan, yet our hope comes in cherishing his gift of Jesus.

The Christmas story is a story of faith. It’s the true story of the arrival of our salvation. The name and pronunciation Jesus come from a Greek name for the more traditional Hebrew name Yeshua, or Joshua. Bibles tend to have a little note at the bottom of the page telling us that Jesus means “The Lord saves.” These were common names in the ancient world. It wasn’t, “I can’t name my kid that. There can only be one of those.” No, it was a familiar testimony of faith in the Lord.

But this Jesus, this baby coming into the lives of Joseph and Mary, this baby whose name was probably shared with and treasured by the shepherds and later the Magi and others—it was so much more literal. Not only would it hold that traditional hopeful meaning, but as verse 21 tells us, “…You are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” No other Jesus could have that said about him. No other parents were given this son to raise.