A Reflection on the Readings for the 4th Sunday of Advent ~ M.A. Allen

Is 7:10-14
Ps 24:1-6
Rom 1:1-7
Matt 1:18-24

If God spoke to you and asked you to do something for Him, how would you respond?

We can see in the Isaiah Reading and again in Matthew's Gospel how two different people reacted to God's request and which one's response was pleasing to God.

In the first reading, the Lord speaks to King Ahaz and invites the King to ask the Lord for a sign. But Ahaz, in his pride and self-righteousness, claims he would never presume to ask for such a thing from God. King Ahaz is filled with a false humility and this attitude angers the Lord, who gives King Ahab a sign anyway. Actually, this sign is a very important one in itself because it is a prophecy of the future birth of Emmanuel.

In contrast, we find Joseph, in Matthew's Gospel, wondering what to do after discovering that his espoused wife is going to have a baby. How confused and disappointed he must have felt that his beloved fiance had betrayed him. Because he loved her, Joseph decided he would divorce Mary quietly, so that she and her family would be spared the embarrassment that this pregnancy would cause. This appeared to be the best solution for all concerned. But God steps in and everything changes.

The angel of the Lord speaks to Joseph in a dream and reassures Joseph that he needs to take Mary as his wife in spite of the pregnancy because she has not betrayed Joseph at all. The child has been conceived by the Holy Spirit and that all this is happening to fulfill the prophecies that a Messiah will be born.

Joseph could have dismissed the Lord's request as Ahaz had done centuries earlier; but with true humility and trust in the Lord, Joseph obeyed the angel of the Lord and immediately took Mary into his home as his wife.

Mary and Joseph both said "YES" to God. Little did they realize how important their "YES" had been as they both had vital parts to play in the history of salvation. It surely must have taken a lot of faith and trust to be able to step beyond what their lives would ordinarily have become, to do what the Lord wished.

We come now to Paul's letter to the Romans. Paul recognized that we also have a part in this history of salvation. Because we have received the Good News and believed, we now belong to Jesus Christ and thereby, are called to be holy as He is holy. Just as Mary and Joseph were obedient to God, we too must accept the specific roles God desires us to play for the salvation of the world.

If God spoke to you today and asked you to do something for Him, how would you respond?


~ Clipart from Hermano Leon