Wednesday, December 15
Luke 2:4

So Joseph also went up… I’m impressed by how Joseph’s life unfolds step by step as he humbly bows in submission to God’s plan for his wife. Although he had no choice but to obey Caesar’s decree, was there ever the thought, “Oh no, this on top of everything else? Will it never end?”

Just five words begin the description of Joseph’s action, and the first is a word too easily overlooked: SO. One language expert writes, “To begin with ‘so’…is to signal that the coming words are chosen for their relevance to the listener.”

I’m also impressed by how many times we find SO–and the subsequent relevant words–in the Bible. Here in Joseph’s case we find another step of obedience, a step God uses in the fulfillment of his plan. In Micah’s prophecy of the destruction and eventual restoration of Israel is hidden the message that small Bethlehem will be the birthplace of the Messiah. SO Joseph went up… Did Joseph know the prophecy? Or was he just walking in the dailiness of life, leaving the unknown future to God? That two-letter word (in English) is also used in Genesis when God calls Abraham to a future unbelievably grand. SO Abram went as the Lord told him… (Genesis 12:1-3).

When you first obediently bowed to God’s will, whether as a child quite simply loving Jesus with all your heart, or later in life when you made a studied decision to be his follower, it’s unlikely God showed you the entire path that lay ahead. But he still has a plan that begins with that small word. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, SO that we should walk in them (Ephesian 2:10). How and where are you walking this Advent? How do you feel about taking the next step when the way is clouded with indecision? Let SO be your word for today.