“. . . Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night and departed into Egypt” (Matthew 2:13b-14).
Sometimes, as we journey down the road of life, we may be asked to make detours that may not be convenient for us. Joseph and Mary had already traveled a long way to Bethlehem to pay their taxes. While they were there Jesus was born. It would have been easier on them if they could have traveled back to their home at Nazareth, but God appeared to Joseph in a dream and warned him to flee with his family immediately to Egypt so Herod would not be able to destroy Jesus. Though this was going to be far from convenient, Joseph never questioned God. He was willing to trust God as he and his little family headed for Egypt.
Though we do not find much recorded about Jesus’ very early childhood, we do know enough about His earthly father. Joseph loved the Lord and took his responsibility of not only raising Jesus but his other children seriously. He raised them in the “nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). All parents should raise their children in this manner.
It is not easy to imagine Jesus between the ages of birth to twelve years old, but He was fully human as well as fully God. He experienced every stage of life while in earthly form. Think about your own children and all you encountered with them; diapers, scraped knees, and everything that made them happy or sad. Jesus had a normal early childhood with loving Godly parents.
It did not matter where God would lead Joseph. His faith and service to God did not change. May we purpose in our hearts to be like Joseph and bloom wherever God plants us.
Sue Winchester MissouriPRAY TOGETHER: Pray for faculty and students at our Free Will Baptist colleges as they end another semester.
