Are We There Yet? Love

December 21, 2025 homily on Isaiah 7:10-16 and Matthew 1:18-25 by Pastor Galen for the Fourth Sunday of Advent

“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son and shall name him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14).

Around in Circles

Have you ever felt like you were going around and around in circles? Like you were stuck in a loop?

The other day, I got in my car to go somewhere and realized I had left my laptop computer in the house. I knew I was going to need it, so I got out of the car and went back inside to retrieve it. I got back into my car and was all ready to go when I remembered that I had used the gas stove that morning to make breakfast, but I wasn’t 100% sure that I had turned it off. So I went back into the house to check it. I got back into the car again, only to turn around once more to make sure I had locked the door.

Has anything like that ever happened to you? We sometimes get stuck in these loops, circling around and around, and it can be hard to break free.

Stuck in a Loop

I think this must have been what it felt like for the Israelite people prior to the coming of Christ. God would send a prophet who would call the people to repentance. A new king would come to power and institute reforms. But then another king would come to power and set the clock back fifty or a hundred years, undoing the reforms of the previous administration and bringing back unjust policies and oppressive practices. The people would turn away from God and begin worshiping false idols.

Those who remained faithful to God wondered whether, as a people, they would ever stop going around in circles, whether they would ever get out of the constant loop they found themselves in.

But scattered throughout the writings of the Israelite prophets were promises that one day a Messiah would come who would break them free from this never-ending cycle.

The prophet Isaiah foretold of a virgin who would give birth to a son and name him Immanuel, which means “God with us” (see Isaiah 7:14). This prophecy had a kind of mini-fulfillment during Isaiah’s own lifetime, when a boy was born and named Immanuel. But the people still longed and looked forward to the day when God would truly come to dwell among them, when God would finally break them free from the cycles of sin and despair in which they were trapped.

And sure enough, in the Gospel of Matthew we are told how God did just that. God came to us in the flesh, in the form of a baby, to break us free from the cycles of sin and despair, from the constant loop, from driving around in circles.

Joseph’s Story

The Gospel of Matthew tells us that a young woman named Mary was expecting a child conceived by the Holy Spirit. Luke’s Gospel tells us that an angel visited Mary and explained what was about to happen. But Matthew’s account focuses our attention on Mary’s fiancé, Joseph.

Joseph is described as a righteous man who did not want to subject Mary to public humiliation. His plan was to quietly break off the engagement. But then the Lord appeared to him in a dream and told him not to be afraid to take Mary as his wife, explaining that the child she was carrying had been conceived by the Holy Spirit and that, through her, Isaiah’s prophecy was being fulfilled.

What Was Life Like for Joseph?

I have to wonder if Joseph’s life up to this point had felt like being stuck in a loop, like driving around in circles.

We don’t know very much about Joseph, other than that he was a carpenter by trade. Some scholars suggest that the word translated “carpenter” might be better understood as “builder,” possibly referring to a day laborer rather than a skilled craftsman.

Most people in those days lived day to day. There wasn’t much of a middle class as we think of it today. If you weren’t extremely wealthy, you were just barely getting by. That was probably the case for Joseph.

Still, even though life wasn’t easy, I imagine Joseph was looking forward to building a life with Mary once they were married. I imagine him working hard, trying to save a little money, perhaps even spending his free time thinking about plans for their home and their future together.

But then rumors start circulating that they may have to travel to Bethlehem for a census (see Luke 2:1). He probably wondered how he could afford to take so much time off work, let alone pay for the trip and the taxes themselves. Every time it seemed like he was getting ahead, something came along that set him back.

And then comes the biggest news of all: his fiancée Mary is expecting a child, and Joseph knows the child is not his. Talk about a major setback. I can only imagine the flood of emotions Joseph must have experienced. Once again, that feeling of being stuck in a loop. Not only does he have to figure out how to separate from Mary without shaming her publicly, but he also has to start all over again, finding a new spouse and trying to imagine a different future.

Joseph’s Obedience

Then Joseph has the dream in which the Lord appears to him and explains everything. He is told not to be afraid, to take Mary as his wife, and to name the child Jesus, because he will save the people from their sins.

Joseph is faced with a decision.

He can go forward with ending the engagement, leaving Mary to carry this enormous responsibility on her own. That option would keep him stuck in the loop, but it would be familiar. It would involve less risk of public scorn and humiliation. It would mean less responsibility, especially if this child truly was the Messiah.

Or he could say yes to God.

Like Mary, who said yes to the will of God (see Luke 1), Joseph also said yes. He took Mary as his wife, and when she gave birth to a son, they named him Jesus, just as the Lord had instructed.

Joseph’s life was never the same again.

He most likely continued to be a carpenter. But saying yes to the Holy Spirit marked the beginning of an entirely new adventure for Joseph, Mary, and Jesus. Somehow they made their way to Bethlehem. Though there was no room for them in the inn, Mary gave birth to Jesus. Though there was no cradle, they found a way, laying baby Jesus in a feeding trough.

Shepherds came to visit. Later, magi from the East followed a star to worship the child, bringing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. When King Herod sought to kill Jesus, Joseph was warned in another dream, and the family fled to Egypt, likely using the gold from the magi to fund their escape.

By saying yes to the Holy Spirit, Joseph was freed from his own loop, from endlessly going in circles. And on a much larger scale, he was given a role in God’s redemptive story, in the coming of the Messiah who would break the people free from the cycles of sin and despair.

Love

Today, on this Fourth Sunday of Advent, we lit the Love candle on our Advent wreath. Although the word “love” does not appear explicitly in either of our Scripture readings, love is clearly the driving force behind everything that happens.

Love is why God chose to enter the world as a vulnerable child. Love is what motivated Mary to say yes to God’s will. Love, for God and for Mary, is what enabled Joseph to move forward in obedience.

It is God’s love that breaks us free from the cycles of sin and death. It is God’s love that empowers us to step out of the loops we find ourselves in. It is God’s love that breaks the power of addiction and despair. It is God’s love flowing through us that enables us to love people who are difficult to love. It is love that breaks cycles of violence, unforgiveness, shame, and humiliation.

Application

So where might you feel stuck today?

What loop do you find yourself caught in, patterns of fear, resentment, anxiety, guilt, or hopelessness that seem to repeat themselves no matter how hard you try to break free?

Joseph’s story reminds us that faithfulness does not always mean having all the answers or knowing exactly how things will work out. Often, faithfulness looks like taking the next step God places in front of us, even when it feels risky, inconvenient, or costly.

Like Joseph, we are invited to trust that God’s love is already at work, even when our lives feel unsettled or uncertain. And when we say yes to that love, when we choose obedience, compassion, forgiveness, and trust, we may find that God is leading us out of the loop and into something new.

Conclusion

As we approach Christmas, we remember that the ultimate sign God gives us is not certainty, comfort, or control, but presence. Immanuel, God with us.

God’s love meets us right where we are, even when we feel stuck, even when we feel like we’re going nowhere. And that love does not leave us there. It leads us forward, out of the loop, out of the darkness, and into the light of new life.

Thanks be to God!

Amen!

Questions for Personal Reflection in Response to Today’s Sermon

1. Where in your life do you feel like you are “going around in circles” right now? What patterns, habits, or fears keep pulling you back into the same loop?
2. In what ways has God’s love helped you break free from a cycle of sin, fear, or despair in the past?
3. How do you imagine Joseph felt when his carefully imagined future suddenly unraveled? What risks did Joseph take when he chose obedience over the safer, more familiar path?
4. Where might God be inviting you to say yes, even when you do not have all the answers?
5. How does understanding Jesus as Immanuel, God with us change how you view your current struggles?