Matthew 2:19-23 NASB
[19] But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and said, [20] “Get up, take the Child and His mother, and go into the land of Israel; for those who sought the Child’s life are dead.” [21] So Joseph got up, took the Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel. [22] But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Then after being warned by God in a dream, he left for the regions of Galilee, [23] and came and lived in a city called Nazareth. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets: “He shall be called a Nazarene.”
It is fascinating to me that Joseph and the holy family’s move to Nazareth from Egypt happened in two stages. When the angel appeared to Joseph in Egypt and told him it was time to take Mary and the child back to Israel, the angel did not give him a full picture concerning where they would end up living. They were simply told by the angel that Herod was dead and it was time to go back to Israel. In obedience, Joseph brought Mary and Jesus iinto the land of Israel and was planning to settle into the region of Judea, yet when he heard that Herod’s son was now reigning over Judea he was afraid to go and settle there. After being hesitant about settling into Judea God spoke to him in a dream that warned him, and so he left for the regions of Galilee and settled in the town of Nazareth. This was done in fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy that Jesus would be called a Nazarene.
When the apostle Paul was called to take the gospel to the Gentiles in acts 9 it was 11 years before his first missionary journey spoken of in Acts 13 happened. We have no record of Paul having supernatural encounters with the Lord giving him specific directions step-by-step during that 11 year period, though we know for sure the Holy Spirit was with him and was in control of his story. It is interesting to me though, when you compare the story,of Joseph and the holy family being led back to Israel from Egypt. The Angel came to him and gave him one step directions, but didn’t bother to tell him that they were going to eventually end up in Nazareth. The obvious intimation of the verses above is that Joseph was looking at settling down in Judea, until he realized who was ruling over Judea, and then the Lord warned him in a dream. It would’ve been easy for God to have just told Joseph when the angel first talked to him in Egypt that he would travel up to Galilee and settle in Nazareth, but that’s not how it happened. There’s a reason for everything in Scripture, and I believe that one of the things that the Holy Spirit is trying to say to us is that sometimes, like with Paul, God will give you the big picture of where he wants you to end up at, but doesn’t give you the steps in between to get there, because he wants us to simply trust him in between the assignment given and the assignment fulfilled without knowing all the details in between. There is an element of faith that we can learn about when God deals with us like that, as we simply daily abide Jesus, trusting him with where we are, yet still praying into the one day assignment we’ve been given. Then there are those times, like with Joseph, when God doesn’t necessarily give you the big picture at first, but he simply wants you to trust him one step at a time, not really knowing where you could end up at, but just trusting in the leadership of the Holy Spirit. If you’re one whom God is given a big picture about someday, but is not yet manifested, then God wants you to know that that is one of the ways he deals with his people. He doesn’t want us to be anxious or discontent during the process of walking it out; the process that takes place in between when He gives insight into His will and when the dream is manifested.
It’s important that if that is the way God is dealing with you in your particular situation that you understand that the greatest dream of all that we have is that we have the presence of Jesus no matter where we are in the process, and the greatest dream is for us to simply abide in Him, trusting inHhim concerning the fullness of time in terms of His will for us. Remember that dream is simply God’s future assignment that he gave you insight into, but the real dream, your real hearts desire, must be simply to abide in Christ in the moment that you living in and manifest him there. If you fit into the other story and you don’t have a clue where you going end up at, because He has only revealed to you the next thing to do, without giving you insight into the future place where you can settle into. If that’s you, then God wants you to be content in that process also, knowing that the big thing is always the present Jesus. No matter what you’re praying into concerning the future, because you believe you know what’s coming eventually or because you don’t have a clue what’s coming, God’s heart’s desire is that you simply enjoy Jesus in the now and manifest Him right where your 2 feet are.