By: Dale Weckbacher
Matthew 1:19-20
So her husband
Joseph, being a righteous man, and not wanting to disgrace her publicly,
decided to divorce her secretly.
20 But
after he had considered these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a
dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your
wife, because what has been conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
(CSB)
When we hear the term breaking news, we stop what we are
doing and pay attention, believing something momentous or tragic has
appeared. Unfortunately, with the advent
of the 24-hour news cycle, the term is used to get the attention of viewers, so
they stay tuned to maintain high ratings.
Sadly, this means viewers, listeners, or readers of news may miss
something important, believing it is just more hype to boost ratings. Even though there was no media or 24-hour
news at the time of the birth of Christ, it would be interesting if it did and
how reporters would have reported on the events. What would the interviews of Joseph, Mary,
and the shepherds have been like if media microphones and cameras would have
been present in Bethlehem 2000 years ago.
We begin with an interview with Joseph.
This is Biff Barnes reporting for Wolf news in Bethlehem
reporting on unusual astronomical events occurring in the skies over the
city. Interestingly, the events appear
to revolve around a stable in the city. My
crew and I have traveled to the stable and were amazed to find a couple and a
newborn baby the woman just gave birth to.
I am about to enter the barn and interview the man whose name is Joseph
to find out why they are sleeping in a barn and why the astronomical events are
making this event something special.
Biff: Hello Joseph,
how are the baby and mother doing?
Joseph: Thank the
Lord, they are both doing fine.
Biff: That is good to
hear but why did you need to come to bring Mary to a barn to give birth instead
of a hotel or hospital?
Joseph: As a
reporter, you are probably aware of the census and the need for everyone to
come to their home town to be counted and pay taxes. We have family in Nazareth who were willing
to help us with the birth, but things did not work out for us to be there when
Mary gave birth. We hoped to find a
vacant room at one of the inns but with the census, all the rooms were taken so
here we are. We are just thanking God
that Mary and the baby, Jesus, are okay.
Biff: My viewers and
I are also glad everyone is well. I’m
not sure if you have looked outside but there is a star pointing down to the stable,
we are in and reports of angels singing in the sky in the shepherds’ fields
outside the city. Is there something
special about the birth of this baby that viewers must know about?
Joseph: First, I am not the biological father of the
baby.
Biff: So, are you some good Samaritan offering to
help a pregnant lady in distress?
Joseph: No, not exactly. I’m engaged to Mary, so she came with me to
Bethlehem for the census, but before accusing Mary of unfaithfulness to me as
her future husband, Mary is still a virgin and never been unfaithful to me.
Biff: Joseph, viewers are going to find that
difficult to understand, can you explain.
Joseph: Isaiah
7:14 foretold of a miraculous virgin birth of a child whose name would be
Immanuel or God with us. While I thought
of divorcing Mary when I found out she was pregnant, I received an angelic
visitation telling me the child Mary would give birth to was special (Matthew
1:20-21). I have had nine months to
think about what the angel said and now believe the child you see is the one
Isaiah foretold of and so in obedience to God did not divorce Mary. While many believe I should still distance
myself from Mary because staying with her does not appear good, I am thrilled
that God has selected Mary to give birth to the Son of God and entrusted me, a
simple carpenter from Nazareth to be His adopted father.
Biff: So, you believe the astronomical events are
some divine announcement of the birth of what you believe to be the Son of
God?
Joseph: Exactly.
Biff: Thank you Joseph, that is an incredible story
and as you might understand, I will need to do some further investigation. As you might understand folks, Mary is
exhausted at the moment and sleeping along with the baby. If it is okay with you Joseph, I would like
to interview her as soon as she is able?
Joseph: Not a problem.
I’m sure she will add some more credibility to the story.
Biff: Thank you Joseph I sure hope so. Now back to our studios for reports about a
group of magi who have seen the star and are on their way to Bethlehem to find
out what is behind these unusual astronomical events.
Next Wednesday we will interview
Mary to get her perspective on the event in Bethlehem.
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