Matthew 1: The Birth of Jesus Christ
18This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. 19Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
20But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,[c] because he will save his people from their sins."

22All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23"The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"[d]—which means, "God with us."

24When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

What a wonderful beginning to our LORD and Savior's birth, scandoulous!! 2000 years later, it is still a beautiful display of God's Power, Love and Wisdom!! I love how Joseph needed clarification and verification from God's angel before he did the "right" thing. Granted, in that time, I am sure that Joseph thought he was doing the "right" thing for himself.

As a human, I seek the beginning, middle, and end. Jesus' birth is the beginning of His ministry on earth, but He had to grow like a human child first. He was completely dependant on Mary and Joseph for His basic needs. Can you imagine being Jesus' mom having to teach Him or discipline Him? Jesus - HOT - HOT - Dont touch!! I wonder if He just naturally stayed away from that stuff? Mary had a Perfect 1st born child, I wonder if Jesus ruined it for His younger siblings? Can you see Mary saying, "Why can't you be more like your brother?" Mary was human! She might have had a moment of weakness.

Interesting...