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Genesis 45:1-50:26 (45:1-26; 46:26-47:27; 50:15-26) Key Verse: 50:20 JOSEPH'S FAITH AND STEWARDSHIP "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." Joseph is the fruit of Genesis. God called one man Abraham for his salvation plan. God endured birth pain raising him to be a blessing, a man of faith, and the solid foundation of eternal salvation work. God also helped Isaac to bridge God's history over to the next generation. Jacob was so strong and unique in his character that he didn't deserve to inherit God's blessing. Despite all his human weaknesses, God nurtured him with great tenderness and patience to be the third ancestor of faith. God made his great effort to establish three of them as ancestors of faith. However, Joseph was perfect before God, compared with those three ancestors. Joseph decorates the last part of Genesis. His life was so beautiful and touching that he is called "the fruit of Genesis." God sowed seeds of faith in the hearts of three ancestors, and finally he reaped what had been sown through Joseph. Joseph's life was beautiful enough to be called "the shadow of Jesus Christ." It is so touching and impressive that everyone who hears the story cannot help shedding tears. It is so amazing that Bible teachers like quoting it in their Bible studies or messages. What makes his life so beautiful? Through today's passage, let's learn what faith Joseph had and who the God of Joseph is. May God bless all of us to have faith in God's sovereignty and providence. 1. Joseph's faith (45:1-28) Joseph trained his brothers who had come to Egypt to buy food for their family because of the world-wide famine. He had an idea of charging Benjamin with a theft by putting his silver cup in Benjamin's bag secretly. Joseph held him hostage and let the others go with food to their father's home. Then Judah pleaded with Joseph for pity. He said with an earnest plea that he would replace Benjamin as a hostage. He was ready to sacrifice himself as a ransom in Benjamin's place. He had changed a lot from a wicked seller of his brother to a ransom for his youngest brother Benjamin. He had a compassionate heart for Benjamin. He had a pity for his father, Jacob. Joseph listened to Judah's plea for Benjamin and was so deeply moved that he could no longer control himself. He sent all of his attendants out of the room. Then he made himself known to his brothers. He wept so loudly that the Egyptians and Pharaoh's household heard him cry. He said to his brothers, "I am Joseph. Is my father still living?" His brothers couldn't answer, because they were terrified at his presence. Joseph soothed them not to be terrified. Now let's read verses 4-5 together. "I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you." Look up verse 7 and 8 and read it aloud together. "But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt." How amazing it is! Any person who reads these verses would be so greatly moved and touched in their heart! If you didn't shed tears, it would be strange! If you understand the story, you will easily be moved with tears in the corners of eyes! The story sounds like the story of Jesus who prayed for mankind on the cross, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Joseph has an image of Jesus. In this respect, Joseph is a shadow of our Lord Jesus Christ. How could he forgive his brothers who sold him into Egypt? Didn't he hurt when his brothers sold him into Egypt? He might have been shocked when he was sold. He had been betrayed and forsaken completely by his brothers. Perhaps he had been in complete despair and frustration. He might have decided to take his revenge on them. But he didn't do so. He believed in God. He believed God's plan and providence. He trusted in God's sovereignty. He considered his brothers' selling him into Egypt as God's sending ahead of his brothers. He said, "God sent me ahead of you to save lives." He also said, "God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance." He saw everything in the eyes of God. His suffering in Egypt was not caused by his brothers. His suffering was from God. He thought God had trained him in his love and plan. So he said, "So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God." Wow! How amazing his faith is! How could he say so? Actually, his brothers sold him into Egypt, but he didn't think so. He said God had sent him ahead of them to save their lives. Whenever we look into Joseph's saying, he used the word "God" as the subject in every sentence he mentioned. "It was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.", "But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth...", "it was not you who sent me here, but God.", "He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt." Do you use "God" as the subject in your language? Usually we use "I" as subject in our remarks when we complain. "I'm so much stressed out these days.", "I'm upset with you.", and "I don't like it." and so on. Besides, when we are happy or want to show off ourselves, we say, "I did it myself.", "I invited a Freshman student to Bible study.", sometimes adding a reflexive pronoun "myself" to put emphasis, saying "I myself have done this and I myself have done that." But Joseph was different. He put first "God" as the subject prior to anything, whatever he said from his mouth. To him, himself was "object". "God sent me ..." "God made me ...." "God changed me ...." When you try to put "God" as the subject in your speech, your life will be changed. If so, you would be a person of faith in God's providence. Your faith would be firm and unshakable in any situations. Even in times of suffering, you would overcome and win a great victory in life. There is no fatalism in God. There is no accident in Him. All things are being done by his great plan and providence. God intends unfortunate things, and even our sins for good to accomplish his will--the saving of many lives. Genesis 50:20 says, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." Joseph believed that when he was a slave and a prisoner, God intended his suffering for good to accomplish His will to save all people's lives in times of famine. God sent Joseph to Egypt in advance through his brothers' wicked plot to make his family into a great nation. God wanted Jacob's household to become a great nation to accomplish what he promised to the ancestors. Egypt was the best place for Jacob's family to increase in number greatly. There were no attacks from neighboring countries, there were no food problems, and there were no obstacles for them to increase and multiply to the level of a great nation. When we see all things in God's point of view, we can find his great plan for us. When we believe in God who guides us to the best ways, we can endure our suffering and sorrow we are facing. On the other hand, if we don't have faith in God's providence, we cannot but fall into fatalism. If Joseph hadn't had faith in God's providence, his life would have been different. Joseph was born 11th son in a very complex family. Joseph, to introduce his family, had to show a family tree on a paper, including his mother and three step-mothers and half-brothers and sisters. He was beloved by his old father because he lost his mother when he was young. But strong winds of suffering began to blow in his life. After he talked about his dream, his brothers sold him into Egypt out of envy. He was cast away onto the bottom of life as a slave. He managed to be acknowledged by his owner in the house of Potiphar. But Potiphar's wife tempted him, but he refused. Because of that, he was put into prison on a false charge of rape. What a twist of fate! He couldn't endure hardship in burning anger with his half-brothers. When he felt coldness of a prison, he might have felt sorrow to the bone, singing a sorrowful song. "Mom! Why did you die so early, leaving me behind alone?" He might have written a lot of lamentations about his fate. He might have decided to take his revenge on his brothers who sold him to Egypt and then, Potiphar's wife, who sent him into prison. Anger and vengeance might have flared up in his heart. Biting the bullet, he might have said to himself, "I must survive. I must get out of here. I must repay to those who did harm to me double what I suffered." When you watch a Hongkong movie or a Korean historical drama, you will see a protagonist repay what he suffered from his enemy. He practices martial arts. He uses kungfu to get rid of his enemy and finally he finishes his story of vengeance. That's a tragedy. If Joseph had not had faith in God, he would have taken his revenge like in a Hongkong movie. If Joseph hadn't had faith, he would have become another protagonist featuring in a Hongkong film. If his life had resulted in a vengeance drama, he would have been remembered as the cruelest and coldest person in history. Those who have faith in God's providence don't say bad things about their life. A man with faith in God's providence would say, "God sent me ...." "God made me ...." "God changed me ...." "God intended it for good to accomplish his will ..." Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." There is no fatalism to those who believe God. No fatalism rules over those who believe. The words such as fatalism or accidents are used by unbelievers. Do you find such words in the Bible? Nope! If you are still in fatalism or nihilism or despair or complaints, it proves that you don't have faith in God's providence. That proves that you are thinking of things not in the eyes of God, but from human points of view. God intended my life for good to help people in suffering. I was born oldest son in a normal family. My father was a farmer, but he didn't like farming. He wanted to get out of the countryside to live in a city with more educational opportunity for his sons. He started running his own rice store in Seoul when I was 12. But I didn't like this rice store because I had to deliver rice in the place of my mom. My father was away in the countryside most of the time for better quality of rice, so I had to help my mom with rice sale. Because of that, I couldn't focus on my studying; as a result, my school records went down sharply. I complained my bad grades were due to the rice store. When the rice store was busy, my mom made me deliver rice. Because of that, I became rebellious. I talked back in anger in a loud voice to my mom. I tried my best to get good grades, but I failed. Then, I complained about my parents. I hated delivering rice, but when I saw my mom deliver rice on her head, I could not but deny myself to help mom. When I was 18, just before I took the university entrance exam, my father suddenly passed away. The arrow of death shot me down. I became a nihilist poisoned by death. My university life was different from normal. I didn't have my hair cut. I didn't wash; I didn't change clothes. I looked like a hippie! My life was similar to a demon-possessed Gerasene man. God invited this hippie to Bible Study. I began to find hope in Bible studies. I found God created me in his own image and set his plan on my life. I found God was pleased with me. I found God had given me suffering for his salvation work. God so loved me that he trained me to become strong. God formed me to be a shepherd for campus students who suffer. God intended me for good to understand students with a father problem and help them come to the Everlasting Father. God has become my Everlasting Father to provide what I needed. Praise be to God who indented my life for good to save lives and guide them to Everlasting Father God. 2. Joseph's stewardship (47:1-50) Joseph wanted to bring his family to Egypt. The news of reunion reached Pharaoh's palace. Pharaoh was pleased to hear that. He allowed Joseph's father Jacob and his family to come to Egypt and settle down. Jacob was so pleased to hear that Joseph was alive in Egypt. He was eager to see his son. But he was afraid to go to Egypt. Then God appeared to Jacob to give a direction to go to Egypt. God promised Jacob that he would make him into a great nation in Egypt and then he would surely bring him back again to the promised land. When Jacob's household arrived in Goshen, Joseph met his father Israel. Joseph threw his arms around his father and wept with joy for a long time. It was 13 years since they parted. Their reunion was broadcast live on TV to all around Egypt. Joseph wanted his father and brothers to stay in Goshen to shepherd livestock. Joseph did not give his brothers high-paid government jobs. He wanted them to continue their tradition in Egypt. Joseph didn't change at all. He didn't melt away in the melting pot of Egypt. He didn't want his family to be mixed up with Egyptian culture. He wanted them to maintain their own identity as the descendants of Abraham. Joseph was a thorough-going steward. Chapter 47 describes how he dealt with the famine. He did not give food for nothing. Rather, he made them pay for the grain they used. First, they paid in money; then, with their livestock; finally, they sold their bodies and their land and became slaves of Pharaoh. In 47:25 the people express their thanks to Joseph: "You have saved our lives. May we find favor in the eyes of our lord; we will be in bondage to Pharaoh." The people were not rebellious or full of complaints at his policies; they were grateful! They pledged their loyalty to Pharaoh. Joseph did not take advantage of their helpless situation to exploit them. He made them recognize their debt to Pharaoh, and become loyal subjects to him. He then told them that they could keep 4/5 of the produce of their land, giving 1/5 only to Pharaoh. The taxes they paid were very low, even though they were in bondage to Pharaoh. Joseph did not seek personal gain or personal power. He never forgot that he was a servant of Pharaoh. He was full of stewardship. We believers are stewards of God. "Steward" means "manager." A steward is a person who manages the owner's large property. When a man manage a large property, he is likely to mistake the owner's property for his own. So a steward needs humbleness and faithfulness. We don't deserve to do God's holy mission. Doing his work of salvation itself is an honor. To save lives from destruction is glorious! God has raised us to stand in the mainstream of history. He has made us history-makers. We are God's stewards. We are managers of God's redemptive ministry. So we are required to have stewardship. St. Paul says in 1 Corinthians, "Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful." To a steward, faithfulness is necessary. A faithful steward is honest. A faithful steward has a sense of responsibility. He works without change. He works the same way whether somebody observes or not. He doesn't work before man, but before God. He doesn't make excuses. He is trustworthy. So the owner commits important work to him without doubt or worry. Joseph was a faithful steward of the Pharaoh. He left lots of gains by working faithfully, honestly, diligently, and wisely for his owner, Pharaoh. May God blesses us to be a faithful steward of God so that we may work for his glory and honor. 3. Joseph's hope(50:22-26) The death of Joseph is recorded in 50:22-26. Joseph served the will of God in his death as he had in his life. He said in 50:24, "I am about to die. But God will surely come to your aid and take you up out of this land to the land he promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob." Then he instructed the Israelites to carry his bones with them back to the Promised Land when God visited them to lead them out of Egypt. His faith in times of suffering didn't change at all. He lived long in Egypt, but he didn't mingle with Egyptian culture. He still believed that God would lead his people out of Egypt to the Promised land. He was full of hope in the Promised Land. Further, he held firmly on to the true hope in the New Canaan, the heavenly kingdom of God. Joseph was used as the bridge into Egypt. God had promised Abraham that his descendants would be slaves in a foreign country for 400 years--God would use their slave life as a melting pot to melt and mold them into a kingdom of priest and a holy nation. Egypt was that melting pot and God used Joseph to bring his people there. God used Joseph to bring the people of Israel to a place where they could grow into a great nation. Joseph was not the covenant son--Judah was the covenant son. But God used Joseph to change Judah into a man of faith and love. That unfaithful man became a very faithful man. Joseph is not the covenant son, but his life points to Jesus more clearly than almost any other Old Testament man. His faith in God's sovereignty is like Jesus' faith. His participation in God's redemptive love to bring men to repentance is like that of Jesus. His life of suffering reminds us of Jesus' suffering as the Son of Man and his life of victory also reminds us of Jesus' resurrection from the dead. Indeed, he bears the image of Jesus more closely than any other man of the Bible. May God bless all of you to resemble Joseph, and further our Lord Jesus. May God bless all of you to have faith in God's providence and sovereignty and have great influence and impression on others. |
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