Morning by Morning, December 11, 2025 — Joseph Discerned His Dream to be the Word of God Good morning, Lord Jesus. Be at the center of my heart and every moment of my day. ... “An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the Child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son and you are to name Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.’ … When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her for his wife, but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a Son; and he named Him Jesus” (Matthew 1:20-25). You speak to us in many ways. To Joseph, You spoke by an angel in a dream. He heard and obeyed, because he discerned it was You and it was true. Sometimes You speak through Your written Word. Sometimes You speak through the words of our friends, our family, and those we trust to speak into our lives. Sometimes You speak through our circumstances. Sometimes You speak through the moving of Your Holy Spirit in the thoughts of our minds and the desires of our hearts. Sometimes You speak through dreams or visions or prophetic signs. Sometimes You speak through angels and other messengers of God You send at critical moments in our lives in the progressive journey of Your plan for our world. But whenever You speak and however You speak, You expect us to discern Your word to be truth. Because not every word we hear, every dream we have, every thought and desire formed in our mind and heart, or every spiritual experience is from You. You command us, “Test everything; hold fast to what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). We are to “weigh what is said” (1 Corinthians 14:29). But when we test it and weigh it and discern it as from You, we are to trust You and obey You and the word You have spoken to us through whatever means You have chosen to speak. That’s just as true even if it’s spiritual, supernatural, intangible, unmeasurable, unverifiable unrepeatable; even if it comes through an angel in a dream, rather than through black and white words on a paper. That’s why You call it faith—“the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Through the angel in the dream, You “commanded” Joseph to name his Son “Jesus.” Joseph had the faith and will to obey. “And Joseph did as the angel of the Lord commanded him … he named Him Jesus” (Matthew 1:24-25). We don’t hear a lot about Joseph in the Bible. But we do hear this: A very young man was chosen by God to be the one who named the Savior of the world. Though he didn’t receive a decree from Caesar, get a word from a prophet, or even a prayer from his pastor, he knew he heard God speaking to him. He was convicted in his heart of what he hadn’t yet seen with his eyes, and he chose to act in faith in obedience to the word he believed he heard. A father’s words are a father’s blessing. And a father’s name for his son speaks of the purpose and calling and destiny for his life. On the one hand, we can say this was a father naming his son. But on the other hand, through this young man named Joseph, God the Father as naming God the Son. And His name was “Jesus”—meaning “the salvation of God”—“for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). What an honor You gave to Joseph, this young man of such strong faith, who discerned what he was hearing was the word of God, willing to believe and willing to obey, as best as he could and all by Your grace. Lord, let it be so in me, in response to however You choose to speak to me. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Be encouraged today. In the love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My friend, may you hear and discern how the Lord is speaking to you, then trusting and obeying in faith, in Jesus' name. God bless you, my friend! And you have a great day!
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Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries 502 North Milam Street Fredericksburg, Texas 78624
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