Matthew 1:24

Letters to the Faithful - Matthew 1:24

Berean Standard Bible

When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and embraced Mary as his wife.

King James Bible

Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:

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To the beloved in Christ, called to obedience in every generation, kept by grace, and stirred by the Spirit toward the will of the Father,

Grace and peace be with you, from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the righteous One, who was born not merely into time but into our very nature, that He might redeem us and call us sons and daughters of the living God. I write to you with a heart burdened with joy and sober reflection, for we live in an hour where divine instructions are often met with delay, and the simplicity of obedience is often clouded by the noise of self-will, opinion, and fear. Yet there remains a verse—a quiet, powerful line in the story of our Lord’s entrance into the world—that teaches us the posture God blesses and the heart He entrusts with holy things.

The Scriptures say, “Then Joseph, being raised from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife.” These are not the words of a man seeking applause or reward. These are the words of a man who heard from God—and obeyed. Without argument. Without delay. Without needing to know the end from the beginning.

O how often we gloss over Joseph’s role in the nativity story, imagining him as a passive figure in the background. Yet here is a man whom God spoke to in the mystery of the night, in a moment when confusion and fear surely pressed heavily upon his soul. He had learned that Mary, the woman to whom he was betrothed, was found with child—before their union. In any man’s mind, that would be cause for grief, shame, and the temptation to walk away. And yet, rather than acting in haste or bitterness, he chose first to consider things quietly, to move righteously even when his heart must have been wounded. And it was then, while he slept, that heaven spoke.

Brothers and sisters, do you see the wisdom of God in how He moves in those who yield? The angel of the Lord did not give a suggestion but a command: “Fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.” What followed was not a process of evaluation, not a period of delayed obedience, not a call for a second confirmation. The very next verse reveals the character of Joseph: “Then Joseph… did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him.”

Let this truth speak clearly to our generation, a people flooded with information but often paralyzed in obedience. When God speaks, He does not look for advisors. He looks for those who will obey. Joseph didn’t demand to know how others would interpret his decision. He didn’t wait for public consensus. He didn’t weigh the cultural consequences or craft a public defense. He heard—and he did. He acted on the word that came from heaven, and by doing so, he took his place in one of the most sacred acts in history.

Oh, what trust God placed in this quiet man from Nazareth! God entrusted to Joseph the care of Mary and the protection of the Christ-child—not because he was eloquent or prominent, but because he obeyed when God spoke. Could it be that obedience is still the key that opens the doors of divine assignment? Could it be that many of us miss our moment with God not because we are unwilling to hear, but because we are slow to act?

Consider how different this story would read if Joseph had hesitated. If he had dismissed the dream. If he had leaned on his own understanding. Yet he rose from sleep and did exactly as the angel instructed. There was no delay between revelation and action. And herein lies the power and the practical call to us all: when God speaks, obedience must be our reflex, not our debate.

Dear friends, the call to obey is not one of legalism, but of love. Obedience is not the burden of the religious, but the delight of the redeemed. It is the response of a heart that trusts the One who speaks, even when the command is hard, or the consequences uncertain. Joseph obeyed even though it would cost him reputation. He obeyed even though it would invite misunderstanding. He obeyed even though the path ahead was not fully shown. But in doing so, he aligned himself with the very heartbeat of God’s redemptive plan.

And so I ask you: What has the Lord spoken to you that still awaits your obedience? What instruction have you left on pause, waiting for the moment to be more comfortable, more public, more logical? The call of God rarely comes with the comfort of certainty. It comes with the invitation to trust. And when you obey, even in the dark, you find that He goes before you. You find that your obedience becomes a vessel for heaven’s purposes.

Let us not delay in what God has already confirmed. Let us not rehearse the instructions He has already given. Let us, like Joseph, rise from the slumber of doubt, from the paralysis of overthinking, from the chains of needing approval—and do as the Lord has commanded.

Practical obedience will always look like humility in action. It may mean forgiving someone when your emotions still burn. It may mean giving when your resources feel small. It may mean stepping out when your feet still tremble. It may mean saying yes to God’s plan even when you don’t fully understand it. But know this: obedience always precedes the unfolding of God’s glory in your life. Joseph’s “yes” became the covering for Mary’s mission and the cradle for the incarnate Son of God.

And let us remember that obedience often begins in quiet places. Joseph’s turning point came not in the public square, but in a dream. Your defining moment may come in the stillness of your own home, in the secrecy of prayer, in the simple decision to say “yes” to God when no one is watching. The world may never see your surrender—but heaven will.

Let us then be a people of prompt obedience. Let us walk in trust, not hesitation. Let us rise from the sleep of distraction, and, like Joseph, do as the Lord commands. May we find joy not in understanding every detail, but in being found faithful with what He has spoken.

May the same Spirit that overshadowed Mary, the same angelic voice that stirred Joseph, and the same faithfulness that brought Christ into the world, rest upon us now. And may we, like Joseph, take our place in the unfolding story of God—not with fanfare, but with faith.

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O Sovereign and Holy God, our Father in heaven, eternal in wisdom and perfect in all Your ways, we come before You in reverence and in need—needing not only comfort, but transformation; not only instruction, but power to obey. We thank You that You have not left us to our own devices, nor allowed us to drift endlessly in the seas of our own desires. You are the God who speaks, who intervenes, who directs, and who calls ordinary men and women into the stream of Your redemptive plan.

And today, Lord, we remember Joseph, the quiet man of courage, the one chosen to walk beside Mary and protect the infant Christ. We remember that You came to him not in the noise of a crowd, but in the stillness of the night. You interrupted his rest, his thoughts, his plans, and You gave him instruction that would change the course of his life—and the world. You came not with thunder or armies, but with a word. A word in a dream. A word from heaven that required nothing less than full surrender. And we thank You that he obeyed.

Lord, we pray that we, too, would become a people like Joseph—those who do not hesitate when heaven speaks. We confess that we are often slow to move. We weigh our options. We seek validation. We try to protect our reputation. We count the cost in human terms. And yet, You are looking for hearts that will obey without delay. You are looking for men and women who will rise from the place of sleep, confusion, or fear—and do exactly what You say.

Give us, O Lord, the kind of obedience that does not require applause. Give us the faith that moves in silence. Give us the resolve to walk in Your ways even when we are misunderstood, even when others cannot see what we see or feel what we feel. Make us like Joseph, who in the face of cultural shame and personal confusion, still said yes to the will of God.

We pray for the courage to embrace what You entrust to us, even when it disrupts our expectations. Joseph had his own plans for his life, for his marriage, for his future. But You gave him something greater—a calling wrapped in responsibility and mystery. Teach us to lay down our preferences so we can carry what is holy. Teach us to trust that Your interruptions are actually invitations. Teach us to receive assignments that may not be glamorous, but that are eternally significant.

Help us, Lord, to recognize Your voice when You speak. Whether You come in the hush of prayer, in the reading of Your Word, through the leading of Your Spirit, or even in the stillness of a dream—let us be tuned to Your frequency. Silence the other voices—the voices of fear, doubt, pride, and distraction—and let Your whisper ring louder than every earthly opinion. And when we hear You, let us obey.

Give us hearts that do not delay obedience. Let there be no hesitation in us when You call. Forgive us for the times we’ve delayed, debated, or negotiated with Your Word. Forgive us for second-guessing divine instruction because it came in a form we did not expect. Forgive us for walking by sight when You’ve asked us to walk by faith. Today, we ask You to cleanse our hearts of passive disobedience and light the fire of holy urgency within us.

We pray for those who, like Joseph, are in the middle of a test of obedience right now. For those whom You have spoken to in secret, but who fear what will happen if they follow through in public. Give them courage, Lord. Give them peace. Let them know that every act of obedience—no matter how small or private—is part of a divine chain that brings forth Christ into the world again. Let them see that their “yes” is not wasted, that their sacrifice is not forgotten, that their faithfulness is shaping eternity.

We ask You, Lord, to raise up Josephs in our generation. Men and women who will guard what is holy. Who will stand by those who carry promise. Who will not walk away from responsibility just because it’s hard. Who will stay, not because it is easy, but because it is right. Raise up spiritual fathers and protectors of purpose. Raise up believers who are as faithful in the hidden place as they are in the spotlight. Raise up those who will do as You command, even in the face of misunderstanding.

And Lord, may we always remember that Joseph’s obedience was not merely for himself—it was for Christ. So too, our obedience is not only for our blessing, but for Your glory. Our yes makes room for Jesus to be seen, known, and welcomed in the world. Every time we obey, we are saying: Let Him come. Let Him live here. Let Him grow here. Let Him be born through my life.

So we say to You today, with trembling and with trust: speak, Lord—and we will obey. Disturb our comfort if You must. Redirect our steps if You will. Ruin our plans if they are not from You. But speak—and we will do as You have said.

We rise from our sleep today—spiritual, emotional, and circumstantial—and like Joseph, we take our place in Your unfolding plan. We may not understand all that You are doing. We may not see the full picture. But we know this: You are good, and Your Word is sure. We trust You, and we yield.

In the name of Jesus, the Christ whom Joseph guarded and whom we now serve, we pray.

Amen.