Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus)

“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.” Romans 8:28

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11-13

As believers, we’ve heard it said many times that God will turn bad things around to good—ALL things—for those who love Him.  We can love God in the good times rather easily with praises that ascend to the heavens to Him.  But when we are sick and weak, in prisons of doubt and despair, crying out for healing in a hospital bed or when seeking God’s help when a loved one betrays us, we wonder how long God will take to turn things around. How patient are we in the wait for the good to come from God? How deep and unconditional is our love for God?

What we do in the wait shows the depth of our belief and faith in the God we say we believe, love, trust, and obey. 

God was truly with Joseph and Joseph was with God. This is the continuing story of God coupled with the testimony of praise for what God did in the life of Joseph. Joseph, the rejected, younger brother who was abused then sold as a slave by his brothers, the same brothers who lied about him to their father, Jacob, saying he was dead, now makes himself known to them. 

But there is much more to the story than reconciled relationships within a family who God has called and chosen to lead His people in succeeding generations.  Read on…

Genesis 45

Joseph Makes Himself Known

45 Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave my presence!” So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. ² And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh’s household heard about it.

³ Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?” But his brothers were not able to answer him, because they were terrified at his presence.

⁴ Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! ⁵ 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. ⁶ For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. ⁷ But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

⁸ “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. ⁹ Now hurry back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don’t delay. ¹⁰ You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me—you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have. ¹¹ I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.’

¹² “You can see for yourselves, and so can my brother Benjamin, that it is really I who am speaking to you. ¹³ Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt and about everything you have seen. And bring my father down here quickly.”

¹⁴ Then he threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin embraced him, weeping. ¹⁵ And he kissed all his brothers and wept over them. Afterward his brothers talked with him.

¹⁶ When the news reached Pharaoh’s palace that Joseph’s brothers had come, Pharaoh and all his officials were pleased. ¹⁷ Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Tell your brothers, ‘Do this: Load your animals and return to the land of Canaan, ¹⁸ and bring your father and your families back to me. I will give you the best of the land of Egypt and you can enjoy the fat of the land.’

¹⁹ “You are also directed to tell them, ‘Do this: Take some carts from Egypt for your children and your wives, and get your father and come. ²⁰ Never mind about your belongings, because the best of all Egypt will be yours.’”

²¹ So the sons of Israel did this. Joseph gave them carts, as Pharaoh had commanded, and he also gave them provisions for their journey. ²² To each of them he gave new clothing, but to Benjamin he gave three hundred shekels of silver and five sets of clothes. ²³ And this is what he sent to his father: ten donkeys loaded with the best things of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and other provisions for his journey. ²⁴ Then he sent his brothers away, and as they were leaving he said to them, “Don’t quarrel on the way!”

²⁵ So they went up out of Egypt and came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan. ²⁶ They told him, “Joseph is still alive! In fact, he is ruler of all Egypt.” Jacob was stunned; he did not believe them. ²⁷ But when they told him everything Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the carts Joseph had sent to carry him back, the spirit of their father Jacob revived. ²⁸ And Israel said, “I’m convinced! My son Joseph is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

The man, Joseph suffered much but God was with him, “called according to God’s purposes; with a plan to prosper him”.  The life of Joseph is often compared to the life of Jesus Christ by theologians who enjoy diving deeper into the message from God to us.  However, the main point of the comparison between Joseph, a man whom God called and the Son of God, Jesus, whom God sent was forgiveness.  Both demonstrated the love of God with complete forgiveness offered freely without conditions. 

Joseph tested his brothers’ sincerity before he revealed himself to them. He realized that they were genuinely sorry for their sinful plot to get rid of him.  Joseph exemplified God’s forgiveness without holding on to the grudge of past pain. As we study the life of Joseph in detail, we watched how God worked forgiveness into his character as a result of his circumstances.   Because of forgiveness; A family is reconciled.  Those connected to Joseph see what is happening with awe and wonder.  Pharoah, a non-believer is impressed enough to bless Joseph with riches.  God never left Joseph and his family through it all.  He blessed them with abundance in the middle of a famine.  Only God, God our Provider.  And it all began with a dream…

Jesus, Son of God, offers complete forgiveness of all our sins for all who believe. By His sacrifice on the cross He removed all sins past, present, and future, once and for all who call on His Name with a repentant heart. This was God’s Plan from the beginning!  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”—God’s Plan accomplished by Jesus, His Son—for us. (John 3:16-17) 

Max Lucado expresses the love and forgiveness of Jesus tenderly—

“Our Savior kneels down and gazes upon the darkest acts of our lives. But rather than recoil in horror, he reaches out in kindness and says, “I can clean that if you want.” And from the basin of his grace, he scoops a palm full of mercy and washes away our sin.

But that’s not all he does. Because he lives in us, you and I can do the same. Because he has forgiven us, we can forgive others. Because he has a forgiving heart, we can have a forgiving heart. We can have a heart like his.” –Lucado, Encouraging Word Bible

Seek the heart of Jesus.  “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11-13 

Hold nothing back.  Be ready to let go, and let God’s power of forgiveness change the way we think and respond.We may say, “I’ll never forgive them for what they have done to me.”  On our own steam; we are right.  We cannot forgive the pain others have inflicted upon us.  However, we can have a forgiving heart when we seek to have the heart of Jesus.  By His power, the resurrection power that raised Him from death to life, we can forgive!  We can have a heart like His when we seek Him and ask!

What does it mean to have a heart like Jesus? It means to kneel as Jesus knelt, bending down to touch the messy, grimy parts of the people, feeling their hate but responding with compassionate love.  It means responding to their unkindnesses with kindness. The Apostle Paul says it simply:

“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” Ephesians 4:32.

Lord,

I am seeking you with all my heart as I offer all of me to you.  Transform the messy in my life to your message of redemption.  Cleanse my heart, remove that is not you.  Renew my mind, transform my behaviors.  Refresh my soul with your new, tender mercies.  Restore the joy of your salvation at work within me, molding and shaping me until my heart beats in sync with your heart.  Thank you, Lord for turning things around for our good and for your glory!  I trust you with my life—because you are Life!

In Jesus Name, Amen

What God wants most from us is not offerings of money, doing good works, or obeying all the laws and traditions of the land.  What God wants most is us.  He wants us to love him back without conditions.  God wants us to stop making bargains with Him.  He wants us to come to Him, commune with Him daily, hear Him and stop trying to manipulate God with offerings only meant to pacify our almighty God for the purpose of getting what we want—or think we need. 

God wants us to know Him, really know Him with a heart that empties of self so it can be filled with the love of God.  God wants us.  God loved us before we were born.  God loves each one of us now.  We are always on God’s mind.  God is for us, not against us.  God knows us better than we know ourselves and he still loves us.  “…God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

God also knew we would need a Savior to redeem us from our sins.  He knew we could not continue our lives without Him.  We are lost without His forgiveness of our sins that weigh us down, hinder our growth, hamper our relationships with Him and with others, and keep us bound up and restrained with fear and anxiousness.  Because God so loved, He gave us His Son to save us and set us free!  Jesus, God in flesh, came to seek and to save the lost.  He came to serve, not to be served.  He represented and demonstrated who God is with how to love Him back.

God will soon reveal and demonstrate what He has done in the life of Joseph to his long-lost brothers.  Joseph wants to reveal who he is to his brothers but he waits for God.  Joseph is so moved and overcome with emotion at seeing Benjamin the youngest, born to his mother, Rachel, that he must leave the room to get himself together!  We ask ourselves, is Joseph grieving over the past hurts while rejoicing over being reunited with his brothers, especially Benjamin?  We would imagine this moment of meeting is bittersweet.  Joseph has been dreaming of this moment and now the time has come.  What will happen next?

Genesis 43

The Second Journey to Egypt

Now the famine was still severe in the land. ² So when they had eaten all the grain they had brought from Egypt, their father said to them, “Go back and buy us a little more food.”

³ But Judah said to him, “The man warned us solemnly, ‘You will not see my face again unless your brother is with you.’ ⁴ If you will send our brother along with us, we will go down and buy food for you. ⁵ But if you will not send him, we will not go down, because the man said to us, ‘You will not see my face again unless your brother is with you.’”

⁶ Israel asked, “Why did you bring this trouble on me by telling the man you had another brother?”

⁷ They replied, “The man questioned us closely about ourselves and our family. ‘Is your father still living?’ he asked us. ‘Do you have another brother?’ We simply answered his questions. How were we to know he would say, ‘Bring your brother down here’?”

⁸ Then Judah said to Israel his father, “Send the boy along with me and we will go at once, so that we and you and our children may live and not die. ⁹ I myself will guarantee his safety; you can hold me personally responsible for him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him here before you, I will bear the blame before you all my life. ¹⁰ As it is, if we had not delayed, we could have gone and returned twice.”

¹¹ Then their father Israel said to them, “If it must be, then do this: Put some of the best products of the land in your bags and take them down to the man as a gift—a little balm and a little honey, some spices and myrrh, some pistachio nuts and almonds. ¹² Take double the amount of silver with you, for you must return the silver that was put back into the mouths of your sacks. Perhaps it was a mistake. ¹³ Take your brother also and go back to the man at once. ¹⁴ And may God Almighty grant you mercy before the man so that he will let your other brother and Benjamin come back with you. As for me, if I am bereaved, I am bereaved.”

¹⁵ So the men took the gifts and double the amount of silver, and Benjamin also. They hurried down to Egypt and presented themselves to Joseph. ¹⁶ When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, “Take these men to my house, slaughter an animal and prepare a meal; they are to eat with me at noon.”

¹⁷ The man did as Joseph told him and took the men to Joseph’s house. ¹⁸ Now the men were frightened when they were taken to his house. They thought, “We were brought here because of the silver that was put back into our sacks the first time. He wants to attack us and overpower us and seize us as slaves and take our donkeys.”

¹⁹ So they went up to Joseph’s steward and spoke to him at the entrance to the house. ²⁰ “We beg your pardon, our lord,” they said, “we came down here the first time to buy food. ²¹ But at the place where we stopped for the night we opened our sacks and each of us found his silver—the exact weight—in the mouth of his sack. So we have brought it back with us. ²² We have also brought additional silver with us to buy food. We don’t know who put our silver in our sacks.”

²³ “It’s all right,” he said. “Don’t be afraid. Your God, the God of your father, has given you treasure in your sacks; I received your silver.” Then he brought Simeon out to them.

²⁴ The steward took the men into Joseph’s house, gave them water to wash their feet and provided fodder for their donkeys. ²⁵ They prepared their gifts for Joseph’s arrival at noon, because they had heard that they were to eat there.

²⁶ When Joseph came home, they presented to him the gifts they had brought into the house, and they bowed down before him to the ground. ²⁷ He asked them how they were, and then he said, “How is your aged father you told me about? Is he still living?”

²⁸ They replied, “Your servant our father is still alive and well.” And they bowed down, prostrating themselves before him.

²⁹ As he looked about and saw his brother Benjamin, his own mother’s son, he asked, “Is this your youngest brother, the one you told me about?” And he said, “God be gracious to you, my son.” ³⁰ Deeply moved at the sight of his brother, Joseph hurried out and looked for a place to weep. He went into his private room and wept there.

³¹ After he had washed his face, he came out and, controlling himself, said, “Serve the food.”

³² They served him by himself, the brothers by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because Egyptians could not eat with Hebrews, for that is detestable to Egyptians. ³³ The men had been seated before him in the order of their ages, from the firstborn to the youngest; and they looked at each other in astonishment. ³⁴ When portions were served to them from Joseph’s table, Benjamin’s portion was five times as much as anyone else’s. So they feasted and drank freely with him.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Ah, we are left with cliffhanger!  Yes, there’s much more to come!  Having a good meal together is not the ultimate goal!  But for now, let’s go over the details of how God is at work, moving in the lives of people.

God moved Jacob to let go of Benjamin for the greater good of getting through a famine.

God moved Judah’s heart.  Judah knew what they must do—obey what Joseph said they must do without knowing what Joseph really wanted.  Judah is willing to risk his life to go back, willing to take responsibility for his brother Benjamin, as well as honor his father’s command to take peace offerings to sweeten the deal for more grain. 

God moved all the brothers to go back with Judah leading them.

God moved Joseph’s heart.  Joseph, who sons were named because the memory of hurt was so great.  Manasseh, the name of his first-born son means; “remember it no more.”  And now, the source of that pain is sitting at his table!  Yes, God moved Joseph from resentment and bitterness on a path to forgiveness and reconciliation with his brothers. God healed Joseph’s wounds and moved him to love his brothers—all of them.

God moves our hearts, renews our minds, and refreshes our souls with forgiveness that is given quickly and freely because of His relentless, unending, never changing love for us.  God offers mercy and grace right in the middle of our mess.  All we must do is come to the Table with a repentant heart.  It is then that the feast of Living Water and the Bread of Life is served!  We are filled forever all because of His love, mercy, and grace demonstrated though Jesus, His Son, who sealed the deal of our salvation.  We thirst and hunger no more because we have found the Source of forgiveness—Jesus!

Pause to reflect and pray—

When people wrong us, we often turn to retaliation rather than forgiveness and restoration. But we must trust in God’s plan to set us free.  God sees a Joseph in each one of us. “Forgive as I have forgiven you,” says our Savior.  “Freely give as I have freely given to you!” (Matthew 10) 

Then as a follow-up, Jesus explains complete forgiveness in a sermon to thousands gathered on a mountainside: “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Matthew 6:14-15  Notice there is no offerings to sweeten reconciliation or a manipulative plan to coerce forgiveness—just forgive, honestly and completely forgive as God forgave us.  (Ephesians 4:32)

We have experienced the pit of despair.  We have landed in jails of discontent.  It is then that God speaks to us; “Come, sit with Me.”  What will our answer be?  But Lord, you don’t know what they have said about me and done to me!  Or will we pray what Jesus taught us to pray?  “God forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.”

Trust God. No, really trust Him. He will get us through it all. He always has and always will because he loves all of us and wants His best for us.  Will it be easy or quick? We hope so, but rarely is. Yet God will make good out of the mess we created; while molding and shaping us to be more like Him.  Because that’s HIS work..

Many in our world, including us, are broken by the “un’s”; unrighteousness, unkindness, unmerciful, undone by unholiness.  How can we be instruments of God’s peace that brings hope and love to the hurting and oppressed?  Forgive as Jesus has forgiven us.  Tell the world who He is and what He has done!   We will discover changes in us as we follow Jesus.  This transformation comes from the power of His Holy Spirit within us, guiding us to all Truth.  We find ourselves quicker to forgive, more kind, showing more mercy, demonstrating more love—all because Jesus is more than enough who lives in us!

Lord,

You have moved my thoughts to places that call me to repentance seeking to forgive as you have forgiven me.  Thank you for cleansing our hearts through your Word that removes the unclean thoughts of the world around us.  Thank you for renewing our minds with higher, greater, more holy thinking. Thank you for refreshing our souls with your daily, fresh new mercies. Thank you for restoring the joy of your salvation at work within us.  To you be the glory!  Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.

In Jesus Name, Amen

We all have things we dream of but think will never happen.  We might think there will never be a mate for us; then we meet that special someone, a relationship develops into a love that we longed for all our life.  We are giddy with delight every time we see them.  We wonder if we will have children. Then later we are blessed with not one but three at just the right time.  We are blessed, although anxious at times in the management of life, but still blessed. 

We dream of owning our own home but we are still working our way through college, so we wonder if it will ever happen.  And then it does.  You are finishing college when you are chosen for a position in the few months before graduating, another dream we were not sure if it would happen.  So, how does all these things of life happen?  In all of life, the Giver and Sustainer of Life has a plan and unique purpose for each one of us.  God is always watching over us, allowing circumstances both good and bad, to mold and shape us into all He created us to be and do.  It is awesome to think of the great, relentless, never-ending love that God has for us as He guides us in all the details or our lives!

We must remember that at the center of it all—God is.  God didn’t bring us this far to leave us.  God will never leave, betray, or forget us.  God is always at work on our behalf even when we don’t see Him doing what God does best.  Consider this thought; God makes things happen that He planned before we were born!  Trust in God leads us to His will.  Obedience to God demonstrates our love, respect, awe, and faith in Him.  God was, is, and always will be, God.

RECAP: God was with Joseph from the pit to the palace.

Genesis 42

Joseph’s Brothers Go to Egypt

When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why do you just keep looking at each other?” ² He continued, “I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us, so that we may live and not die.”

³ Then ten of Joseph’s brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt. ⁴ But Jacob did not send Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, with the others, because he was afraid that harm might come to him. ⁵ So Israel’s sons were among those who went to buy grain, for there was famine in the land of Canaan also.

⁶ Now Joseph was the governor of the land, the person who sold grain to all its people. So when Joseph’s brothers arrived, they bowed down to him with their faces to the ground. ⁷ As soon as Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he pretended to be a stranger and spoke harshly to them. “Where do you come from?” he asked.

“From the land of Canaan,” they replied, “to buy food.”

⁸ Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him. ⁹ Then he remembered his dreams about them and said to them, “You are spies! You have come to see where our land is unprotected.”

¹⁰ “No, my lord,” they answered. “Your servants have come to buy food. ¹¹ We are all the sons of one man. Your servants are honest men, not spies.”

¹² “No!” he said to them. “You have come to see where our land is unprotected.”

¹³ But they replied, “Your servants were twelve brothers, the sons of one man, who lives in the land of Canaan. The youngest is now with our father, and one is no more.”

¹⁴ Joseph said to them, “It is just as I told you: You are spies! ¹⁵ And this is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here. ¹⁶ Send one of your number to get your brother; the rest of you will be kept in prison, so that your words may be tested to see if you are telling the truth. If you are not, then as surely as Pharaoh lives, you are spies!” ¹⁷ And he put them all in custody for three days.

¹⁸ On the third day, Joseph said to them, “Do this and you will live, for I fear God: ¹⁹ If you are honest men, let one of your brothers stay here in prison, while the rest of you go and take grain back for your starving households. ²⁰ But you must bring your youngest brother to me, so that your words may be verified and that you may not die.” This they proceeded to do.

²¹ They said to one another, “Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw how distressed he was when he pleaded with us for his life, but we would not listen; that’s why this distress has come on us.”

²² Reuben replied, “Didn’t I tell you not to sin against the boy? But you wouldn’t listen! Now we must give an accounting for his blood.” ²³ They did not realize that Joseph could understand them, since he was using an interpreter.

²⁴ He turned away from them and began to weep, but then came back and spoke to them again. He had Simeon taken from them and bound before their eyes.

²⁵ Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain, to put each man’s silver back in his sack, and to give them provisions for their journey. After this was done for them, ²⁶ they loaded their grain on their donkeys and left.

²⁷ At the place where they stopped for the night one of them opened his sack to get feed for his donkey, and he saw his silver in the mouth of his sack. ²⁸ “My silver has been returned,” he said to his brothers. “Here it is in my sack.”

Their hearts sank and they turned to each other trembling and said, “What is this that God has done to us?”

²⁹ When they came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they told him all that had happened to them. They said, ³⁰ “The man who is lord over the land spoke harshly to us and treated us as though we were spying on the land. ³¹ But we said to him, ‘We are honest men; we are not spies. ³² We were twelve brothers, sons of one father. One is no more, and the youngest is now with our father in Canaan.’

³³ “Then the man who is lord over the land said to us, ‘This is how I will know whether you are honest men: Leave one of your brothers here with me, and take food for your starving households and go. ³⁴ But bring your youngest brother to me so I will know that you are not spies but honest men. Then I will give your brother back to you, and you can trade in the land.’”

³⁵ As they were emptying their sacks, there in each man’s sack was his pouch of silver! When they and their father saw the money pouches, they were frightened. ³⁶ Their father Jacob said to them, “You have deprived me of my children. Joseph is no more and Simeon is no more, and now you want to take Benjamin. Everything is against me!”

³⁷ Then Reuben said to his father, “You may put both of my sons to death if I do not bring him back to you. Entrust him to my care, and I will bring him back.”

³⁸ But Jacob said, “My son will not go down there with you; his brother is dead and he is the only one left. If harm comes to him on the journey you are taking, you will bring my gray head down to the grave in sorrow.”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Backstory:  Joseph had dreams as a teenager.  Joseph, 11^th of twelve sons to be born to Jacob, told his dreams to his brothers.  His brothers were already filled with jealousy and envy of Joseph because of the favor Jacob, their father, displayed for him; so they despised his dreams.  One dream told of 11 bound up stalks of grain all bowing down to one of the stalks.  As a teen, Joseph may have thought the dream interesting and curious because he was bullied often by his older brothers. 

The brothers were filled with anger over the dreams.  Anger led them to throwing their dreaming, favored, younger brother into a pit and left there to die. But then an even better plan presented itself. The brothers brought him up out of the pit and sold him as a slave to passing merchants on their way to Egypt. 

Always at work; God was in control. God had a plan. God was with Joseph.  God never left him on his own.  God had a greater plan for this young man who went from the pit to the palace.  Watch how God’s plan is now unfolding. Read to discover God’s ultimate plan to demonstrate the power of Godly forgiveness by Joseph to his brothers who hated and mistreated him.  This forgiveness will lead to the restoration of Godly relationships within Jacob’s family. 

God’s plan will demonstrate the forgiveness God has waiting for all who believe in Jesus and call on His Name.  All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  None of us deserve God’s mercy or grace, but because of His compassionate love and forgiveness we are set free from the punishment we do deserve—kind of like Joseph’s brothers! 

Don’t miss the main point of the story of God in Joseph as we read how God makes happen what Joseph never dreamed of happening—restored relationships with his father and his brothers!  God’s grace wins every time!  God’s mercies are new each day.  God wants us to know this truth about Him.  It is God’s desire that no one perish but have eternal life. Believe in Jesus and be saved from death. 

Lord,

We know there’s even more to the story, but for now we pause to thank you for saving our souls from death and giving us the gift of eternal life. Thank you for the power of your Holy Spirit who lives in us to remind us of our new redeemed life with guidance to become more and more like our Redeemer, YOU!

In Jesus Name, Amen

We love this story of Joseph being set free from prison at last!  We applaud God for setting things right for Joseph after being sold all those years ago by his brothers.  We cheer God on when Joseph is put in charge of Potiphar’s household as a servant held in high esteem.  But then we boo when Joseph is threatened, humiliated, and eventually falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife and thrown into prison. The kid can’t catch a break!  He’s in a foreign country with no rights or help—or so it seems. 

Genesis 41

Pharaoh’s Dreams

41 When two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing by the Nile, ² when out of the river there came up seven cows, sleek and fat, and they grazed among the reeds. ³ After them, seven other cows, ugly and gaunt, came up out of the Nile and stood beside those on the riverbank. ⁴ And the cows that were ugly and gaunt ate up the seven sleek, fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up.

⁵ He fell asleep again and had a second dream: Seven heads of grain, healthy and good, were growing on a single stalk. ⁶ After them, seven other heads of grain sprouted—thin and scorched by the east wind. ⁷ The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven healthy, full heads. Then Pharaoh woke up; it had been a dream.

⁸ In the morning his mind was troubled, so he sent for all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him.

⁹ Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “Today I am reminded of my shortcomings. ¹⁰ Pharaoh was once angry with his servants, and he imprisoned me and the chief baker in the house of the captain of the guard. ¹¹ Each of us had a dream the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own. ¹² Now a young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain of the guard. We told him our dreams, and he interpreted them for us, giving each man the interpretation of his dream. ¹³ And things turned out exactly as he interpreted them to us: I was restored to my position, and the other man was impaled.”

¹⁴ So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon. When he had shaved and changed his clothes, he came before Pharaoh.

¹⁵ Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.”

¹⁶ “I cannot do it,” Joseph replied to Pharaoh, “but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.”

¹⁷ Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “In my dream I was standing on the bank of the Nile, ¹⁸ when out of the river there came up seven cows, fat and sleek, and they grazed among the reeds. ¹⁹ After them, seven other cows came up—scrawny and very ugly and lean. I had never seen such ugly cows in all the land of Egypt. ²⁰ The lean, ugly cows ate up the seven fat cows that came up first. ²¹ But even after they ate them, no one could tell that they had done so; they looked just as ugly as before. Then I woke up.

²² “In my dream I saw seven heads of grain, full and good, growing on a single stalk. ²³ After them, seven other heads sprouted—withered and thin and scorched by the east wind. ²⁴ The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven good heads. I told this to the magicians, but none of them could explain it to me.”

²⁵ Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are one and the same. God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. ²⁶The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads of grain are seven years; it is one and the same dream. ²⁷ The seven lean, ugly cows that came up afterward are seven years, and so are the seven worthless heads of grain scorched by the east wind: They are seven years of famine.

²⁸ “It is just as I said to Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do. ²⁹ Seven years of great abundance are coming throughout the land of Egypt, ³⁰ but seven years of famine will follow them. Then all the abundance in Egypt will be forgotten, and the famine will ravage the land. ³¹ The abundance in the land will not be remembered, because the famine that follows it will be so severe. ³² The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon.

³³ “And now let Pharaoh look for a discerning and wise man and put him in charge of the land of Egypt. ³⁴ Let Pharaoh appoint commissioners over the land to take a fifth of the harvest of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. ³⁵ They should collect all the food of these good years that are coming and store up the grain under the authority of Pharaoh, to be kept in the cities for food. ³⁶ This food should be held in reserve for the country, to be used during the seven years of famine that will come upon Egypt, so that the country may not be ruined by the famine.”

³⁷ The plan seemed good to Pharaoh and to all his officials. ³⁸ So Pharaoh asked them, “Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?”

³⁹ Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. ⁴⁰ You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.”

Joseph in Charge of Egypt

⁴¹ So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.” ⁴² Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on Joseph’s finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. ⁴³ He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in-command, and people shouted before him, “Make way!” Thus he put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt.

⁴⁴ Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, but without your word no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt.” ⁴⁵ Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphenath-Paneah and gave him Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, to be his wife. And Joseph went throughout the land of Egypt.

⁴⁶ Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from Pharaoh’s presence and traveled throughout Egypt. ⁴⁷ During the seven years of abundance the land produced plentifully. ⁴⁸ Joseph collected all the food produced in those seven years of abundance in Egypt and stored it in the cities. In each city he put the food grown in the fields surrounding it. ⁴⁹ Joseph stored up huge quantities of grain, like the sand of the sea; it was so much that he stopped keeping records because it was beyond measure.

⁵⁰ Before the years of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On. ⁵¹ Joseph named his firstborn Manasseh and said, “It is because God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s household.” ⁵² The second son he named Ephraim and said, “It is because God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering.”

⁵³ The seven years of abundance in Egypt came to an end, ⁵⁴ and the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. There was famine in all the other lands, but in the whole land of Egypt there was food. ⁵⁵ When all Egypt began to feel the famine, the people cried to Pharaoh for food. Then Pharaoh told all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph and do what he tells you.”

⁵⁶ When the famine had spread over the whole country, Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe throughout Egypt. ⁵⁷ And all the world came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe everywhere.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Joseph has been given a prophet’s gift of interpreting what God says with what He will do. Joseph had previously interpreted the dreams of the king’s cupbearer and baker in detail, with complete accuracy.  What Joseph predicted would happen to them—happened!  Now, Pharoah, the king of Egypt, has dreams that trouble him.  The cupbearer, by his side, finally testifies; “I know a man who can interpret dreams!” 

It is God who put the dreams in the mind of the king. It is God who speaks through Joseph of God’s seven-year plan.  But the greatest thing about this story is not Joseph’s amazing ability to interpret with precision and wisdom; but the credit and praise Joseph gives to God!  “I cannot do this…God does this!” This young man is growing the wisdom of God through all the trials and suffering.  The life of Joseph is often compared to the life of Jesus by many theologians.  Jesus testified often about God, His Father.  He told people I only speak what the Father wants me to say and do only what I see my Father doing.  This message permeates the gospel writings.

Our human nature wants to shout, “Take that, you evil brothers of Joseph!”  We like having the tables turned on those who hurt us so deeply and profoundly.  We like it when God intervenes and provides justice to an unfair situation.  But, in thinking this we might miss the main message of the story of God—He is always with us.  God will accomplish His will.  God is always in control of every situation.  God’s timing is always the best timing. By God’s power at work within us through the trials and sufferings we learn His character which is being embedded into our being.  Seeds of integrity, wisdom, are some of the seeds planted that produce the fruits of His Holy Spirit as we grow to be more like Him. 

We are created by God for God to complete His purposes and ultimate plan.  Life will make more sense when we believe this about God.  Joseph does believe God.  Joseph’s humbled, obedient life to God is going to take some interesting turns that will lead to the ultimate forgiveness of his brothers.  Joseph’s life will come full circle back to his family. 

Ah, but we get ahead of ourselves!  Let’s take this huge story in smaller bites so we don’t miss the flavors of God’s endless work in us.  We see how God is working in Joseph when we hear what he named his first two sons;

Manasseh— “It is because God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s household.” 

Ephraim—“It is because God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering.”

Joseph and God are in close communion while growing an intimate relationship of love, mercy, and grace.  God is helping Joseph move forward with Him.

Lord,

Your goal is to know us personally and intimately. I am humbled by that truth often.  May I never forget the benefits of knowing you and growing in my relationship with you. 

In Jesus Name, For Your Glory, Amen

Joseph is a young man, still a teenager in our culture of thinking, who is caught between the love of his father and the hate of his brothers.  He was born to Jacob’s beloved Rachel, who would later die in childbirth of their youngest son, Benjamin.  Joseph and Benjamin are the last boys to be born in the Jacob’s household.  Jacob’s favor toward Joseph comes naturally to him but it causes division to the rest of the older brothers born to him from the other wives. 

God speaks to Joseph in dreams.  But the man, though fascinated by the dreams, does not fully understand them.  He also does not understand that God is speaking through him to prophesy what lies ahead for Joseph and his family.  The young prophet shares his dreams with the brothers who hate him.  Because of their father’s favor to Joseph and the jealousy that consumes them, they mock Joseph.

It doesn’t help the relationship between Joseph and his brothers when Jacob uses Joseph as a tattletale to check on the brothers as they work the fields and stock.  This is the beginning of the story of God through Joseph.  God will teach and mold His character of unfailing love, compassionate mercy, with the power to forgive within young Joseph as he is sold into slavery to live in Egypt.

Genesis 37

Joseph’s Dreams

Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan.

² This is the account of Jacob’s family line.

Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them.

³ Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate robe for him. ⁴ When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.

⁵ Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. ⁶ He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: ⁷ We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.”

⁸ His brothers said to him, “Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said.

⁹ Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brothers. “Listen,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”

¹⁰ When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, “What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?” ¹¹ His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind.

Joseph Sold by His Brothers

¹² Now his brothers had gone to graze their father’s flocks near Shechem, ¹³ and Israel said to Joseph, “As you know, your brothers are grazing the flocks near Shechem. Come, I am going to send you to them.”

“Very well,” he replied.

¹⁴ So he said to him, “Go and see if all is well with your brothers and with the flocks, and bring word back to me.” Then he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron.

When Joseph arrived at Shechem, ¹⁵ a man found him wandering around in the fields and asked him, “What are you looking for?”

¹⁶ He replied, “I’m looking for my brothers. Can you tell me where they are grazing their flocks?”

¹⁷ “They have moved on from here,” the man answered. “I heard them say, ‘Let’s go to Dothan.’”

So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. ¹⁸ But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him.

¹⁹ “Here comes that dreamer!” they said to each other. ²⁰ “Come now, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we’ll see what comes of his dreams.”

²¹ When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue him from their hands. “Let’s not take his life,” he said. ²² “Don’t shed any blood. Throw him into this cistern here in the wilderness, but don’t lay a hand on him.” Reuben said this to rescue him from them and take him back to his father.

²³ So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe—the ornate robe he was wearing— ²⁴ and they took him and threw him into the cistern. The cistern was empty; there was no water in it.

²⁵ As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were loaded with spices, balm and myrrh, and they were on their way to take them down to Egypt.

²⁶ Judah said to his brothers, “What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? ²⁷ Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood.” His brothers agreed.

²⁸ So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.

²⁹ When Reuben returned to the cistern and saw that Joseph was not there, he tore his clothes. ³⁰ He went back to his brothers and said, “The boy isn’t there! Where can I turn now?”

³¹ Then they got Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood. ³² They took the ornate robe back to their father and said, “We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son’s robe.”

³³ He recognized it and said, “It is my son’s robe! Some ferocious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces.”

³⁴ Then Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and mourned for his son many days. ³⁵ All his sons and daughters came to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. “No,” he said, “I will continue to mourn until I join my son in the grave.” So his father wept for him.

³⁶ Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

What does not make sense to us now, will make perfect sense later.  When we trust God, really trust Him and the way He works; we begin to stopping asking why.  Why did this happen now?  Why am I involved?  Why does my mom ask me to do that?  Why am I picked on by others?  Why am I caught in the middle of dysfunctional relationships at work?  And the all-time most asked, “Why me, and why is this happening to me?” 

We wonder what Joseph was thinking as he sat in the dark well.  What did he think when his brothers threw a rope to him?  Was he hoping for rescue from his brothers?  What did he think when he was brought back into the light of day only long enough to be sold for 20 pieces of silver to a passing group of salesmen on their way to a larger market place in Egypt? Joseph lost his dignity, freedom, and the beautiful coat on his back.  He was humiliated by his brothers.  With confidence and assurance from being favored stripped from him; all pride, arrogance and confidence is depleted. What’s next? Stay tuned!

We might not want to admit it, but we are by nature self-centered and self-serving. Browsing the news on social media reveals how jealousy can lead to death. We see these motives at work in the world all around us.  The story of 10 jealous brothers is not new.

The sin of jealousy breeds the side effects of envy, comparison, and greed.  Who are the unsuspecting victims?  Anyone who has more than we have. More karats, more horsepower, more office space, more church members, and the list goes on inside and outside the church. Jealousy aims the gun barrel on the one who has more. “You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God”, writes James(4:2).

Oh, but that can’t be me!  Mm, maybe not with physical violence but what about with words?  “Sticks and stones, may break my bones; But words will never harm me.”  We all know that this childish taunt is false.  Words do hurt and gossip has the power to destroy even the most loving, family relationships.  I personally have seen gossip go pro status and contaminate an entire church—more than once!

Words of hate, mocking, sarcasm, with put-downs stick like glue from childhood through adulthood.  We might cover the hurt with a smile to avoid more hurt; but it still hurts if we let the wound fester, try to get even, or hurt someone else to feel better.

James doesn’t sugar coat the truth.  He tells us our tongue is the most uncontrollable part of our body!  “Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.” James 3:5-6 Yikes, we get it James…or do we?

“A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, but envy makes the bones rot.” Proverbs 14:30

But, we need help, right? We need a Counselor to guide us to Truth and guard us in our walk from the discontentment that comes from comparing ourselves with others. We even compare and grade our sins between others!  Jesus promised a Counselor would come and God followed through by providing His Holy Spirit.  God’s Spirit, our Counselor, leads us to ALL Truth: “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.”  –Straight from God’s heart to our whole being!

The Truth is—

Believe in Jesus as our Savior and Lord.  Jesus is all we need to be saved from death and live forever with God. 

God cleanses our hearts, renews our minds, refreshes our souls, and restores the joy of Jesus’ salvation work within us that sets us free to mature in His love. 

Comparison is the chief culprit of envy and jealousy.  We need deterrents for envy, jealousy, and all related attitudes of hate to steer us from the darkness. We need a new way of thinking which accompanies our new life in Christ!

It is possible to change the way we think and behave by asking God’s Holy Spirit, who speaks Truth, to counsel, convict, console, comfort, and compel us to think more like Jesus.  God’s Spirit teaches us how to develop the mind of Christ within us.  According to Paul, believers desire, seek, and resemble the humbled attitude of Christ, (Philippians 2) while developing the mind of Christ, to be guided by His thoughts and purposes (1 Corinthians 2:16)

“Rather than bemoan what you don’t have, rejoice in the abundant cup you do. “My cup overflows with blessings” (Psalms 23:5 NLT). The last thing we need to worry about is not having enough. Our cup overflows with blessings.

The Lord is my Shepherd; I lack nothing.  Psalm 23:1

Lord,

Thank you for teaching us by your Holy Spirt through your Word. As we learn all you provided for Joseph while protecting, and teaching him; we are reminded all you did for us through Jesus and how you teach us the truth daily.  Jesus, thank you for taking my sins upon your shoulders along with all sins of the world.  Thank you for taking my place for the punishment that I deserved.  I’m humbled by the truth of You. Thank you, thank you, thank you.  To you be the glory!

In Jesus Name, Amen