He Didn't Expose Me

Matthew 1:19 Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly.

So many great men and women of God have been exposed to an open shame in years past. Even politicians, actors, rappers and the like have not been immune from the shame of exposure to some mistake, indiscretion, or bad decision. The higher up you are or the wider your sphere of influence the greater the risk of exposure.

The world is more forgiving than the church when it comes to exposure. Worldly people are entertained by exposure until it is no longer sensational but religious people use exposure as a death sentence for someone’s calling or career. One of the most embarrassing ways to be exposed when I was growing up was to get pregnant before you got married. It was a young person’s worst nightmare. Especially if you grew up in a small town and went to a small church. In my mother’s generation, the shame was even more intense. Folks had “shot gun” weddings. If you got a girl pregnant her daddy had a shot gun and you were going to marry her to take away the shame.

If you are in Korea in the army you can go to Prison for getting a girl pregnant without marrying her. Maybe we should make that a law in the United States that would help a lot of young men think about abstinence until marriage.

Joseph was engaged to Mary but he found out she was pregnant before the wedding and they hadn’t had sex yet. The law said she should have been stoned to death, but because Joseph loved Mary and was Righteous he was unwilling to put her on blast and expose her to a public disgrace.

Joseph was a lot like God is to us, how many times has God covered your mess and not exposed you even though the law said you should have been exposed?

The only difference between us and Mary is that she was pregnant by God and the mess we were in should not have been conceived in the first place. James 1:14-15 Each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. But God!

Thank God for not exposing our mess. Some may think I’m taking liberty to say God covers or blesses our mess but if you look at the lineage of Jesus you will see where God covered unholy pregnancies by his grace:

David and Bathsheba gave birth to Solomon. David killed Bathsheba’s husband to marry her because he got her pregnant.

Judah and Tamar gave birth to Perez and Zirah after she dressed up like a prostitute to get pregnant by her Father-in-law.

Salmon and Rahab gave birth to Boaz; she was the prostitute that hid Joshua and Caleb in Jericho.

Don’t forget you and me and the mess we have conceived that should have led to death, but God!

It is because of his mercies that we are not exposed to an open shame but instead God turns our mess into a miracle by declaring that which is in Mary is born of the Holy Spirit. God transforms us through repentance to give birth to Jesus. Matthew 3:8 says bear fruit worthy of Repentance. Now is the time to get yourself together before you are exposed. Warning comes before destruction.

Dear God, thank you for covering my mess and not exposing my foolishness. Help them to give birth to Righteousness and move forward to obedience. Thank you for your grace!

In Jesus Name,
Amen.