Introduction:
A. How many of you liked taking tests in school? Not many of us, I’m sure!
B. The story is told of a football coach who walked into the locker room before a game, looked over to his star player and said, “I'm not supposed to let you play since you failed math, but we need you in there. So, what I have to do is ask you a math question, and if you get it right, you can play.”
1. The player agreed, and the coach looked into his eyes intently and asked, “Okay, now concentrate hard and tell me the answer to this: What is two plus two?”
2. The player thought for a moment and then he answered, “4?”
3. “Did you say 4?” the coach exclaimed. “Did you say 4?”
4. At that, all the other players on the team began screaming, “Come on coach, give him another chance!”
C. A soldier was asked to report to headquarters for an assignment.
1. “We have a critical shortage of typists. I'll give you a little test. Type this,” the sergeant ordered, giving him a pamphlet to copy and a sheet of paper, and pointing to two desks across the room, one that held a typewriter and the other an adding machine.
2. The soldier, quite reluctant to become a clerk typist, sat down at the typewriter, but made a point of typing very slowly, and saw to it that his work contained as many errors as possible.
3. The sergeant gave the typed copy only a brief glance. “That's fine,”" he said. “Report for work at 8 AM tomorrow.”
4. “But aren't you going to check the test?” the soldier asked.
5. The sergeant replied, “You passed the test when you sat down at the typewriter instead of at the adding machine.”
D. Oh, if only the tests were all that easy…we would have passed them all with flying colors! Right?
1. Passing with flying colors – are you familiar with that saying?
2. To pass something with flying colors is to succeed easily at something.
3. It was originally a naval expression that was used when a ship would return victorious from battle with flags flying from all the mastheads.
4. After about the 1700s it started being used simply to refer to some kind of success.
E. We’ve been studying the life of Joseph for a couple of months now.
1. We’ve been learning that Joseph was a great man of God.
2. What was it that made him so great?
3. He certainly wasn’t perfect or superhuman.
a. He never walked on water. He had no halo. He never performed a miracle.
b. With the Lord’s help, he did interpret some dreams that foretold the future.
4. So what was it that made him so great?
a. It was his faith in God that caused him to have such a wonderful attitude.
5. One man wrote: “The final proof of greatness lies in being able to endure contemptuous treatment without resentment.” (Elbert Hubbard, and American writer of the early 20th century)
6. Joseph certainly had passed that test with flying colors.
F. Joseph had passed every test with flying colors since being sold into slavery, being falsely accused of attempted rape, and thrown in prison for more than two years.
1. Now having been elevated to second in command of all Egypt, he was still passing every test as he carried out the plan to conserve grain during the years of plenty, so that there would be grain in Egypt during the years of famine.
2. Through all of this, Joseph had had his attitude tested in high places and low, and in scenes of high drama and in the lows of mundane servitude.
3. Now he watched to see if his brothers would pass the test that he was putting them through.
a. Would his brothers show a faith in God, like Joseph had developed?
b. Would his brothers show that they had grown into men who cared about others as much as they cared about themselves?
c. Would they pass with flying colors? Or would they fail the test?
4. Let’s return to the story…
I. The Story
A. Do you remember where we suspended the story last week?
1. The brothers were dining at the table of the prime minister of Egypt, who they didn’t realize was their own brother.
2. They were wondering what in the world was going on.
3. They had returned to Egypt to buy more food, and to retrieve their brother Simeon, who was being held in jail until they returned with their youngest brother, Benjamin.
4. So back to Egypt they came with Benjamin, but before they could prove anything, they were swept away to the house of the prime minister.
5. And as they sat down to eat the feast, they noticed that they were seated in the order of their birth – all eleven of them – and the youngest, Benjamin, was given 5 times the amount of food as the rest.
6. What was going on?
B. So the story continued. The Bible says: Now Joseph gave these instructions to the steward of his house: “Fill the men's sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man's silver in the mouth of his sack. 2 Then put my cup, the silver one, in the mouth of the youngest one's sack, along with the silver for his grain.” And he did as Joseph said. As morning dawned, the men were sent on their way with their donkeys. (Gen. 44:1-3)
1. Just like their first visit to Egypt for food, Joseph had the servant fill their sacks and return their money.
2. But in addition, Joseph also had his own silver cup placed in the top of Benjamin’s sack.
3. So off his brothers went, thanking God that everything had gone so well.
4. They had more grain, they had Simeon, and Benjamin was safely returning with them.
C. The Bible says: 4 They had not gone far from the city when Joseph said to his steward, “Go after those men at once, and when you catch up with them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil? 5 Isn't this the cup my master drinks from and also uses for divination? This is a wicked thing you have done.’ ” (Gen. 44:4-5)
1. The sons of Jacob were not far from the city when they looked back and saw the prime minister’s steward overtaking them.
2. I’ll bet their was an initial, “Oh no, what now?”
3. They must have been bewildered when the steward accused them of stealing from the Egyptian leader!
4. The mention of divination only made the situation more spooky.
D. The Bible says: But they said to him, “Why does my lord say such things? Far be it from your servants to do anything like that! 8 We even brought back to you from the land of Canaan the silver we found inside the mouths of our sacks. So why would we steal silver or gold from your master's house? 9 If any of your servants is found to have it, he will die; and the rest of us will become my lord's slaves.” (Gen. 44:7-9)
1. They knew they were innocent. They knew they had nothing to hide, so they made these bold statements and promises.
2. And so they did not hesitate to let the steward examine their sacks.
E. The Bible says: Each of them quickly lowered his sack to the ground and opened it. 12 Then the steward proceeded to search, beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest. And the cup was found in Benjamin's sack. 13 At this, they tore their clothes. Then they all loaded their donkeys and returned to the city. (Gen. 44:11-13)
1. What drama. Starting with the oldest, and making his way down through the 11 brothers, everything was going just fine.
2. But then the steward reached the youngest, and Benjamin opened his sack, and there was the silver cup!
3. To say that the brothers were stunned would be an understatement.
4. As the enormity of the implications took hold of them, they moved from being stunned to being distraught, and they tore their clothes!
5. The worst possible thing that could have happened to them, was happening.
6. Benjamin would be kept in Egypt as a slave or worse, and they would have to return to their father without him, which would literally kill their father.
F. The Bible says: Joseph was still in the house when Judah and his brothers came in, and they threw themselves to the ground before him. 15 Joseph said to them, “What is this you have done? Don't you know that a man like me can find things out by divination?” “What can we say to my lord?” Judah replied. “What can we say? How can we prove our innocence? God has uncovered your servants' guilt. We are now my lord's slaves—we ourselves and the one who was found to have the cup.” (Gen. 44:14-16)
1. Notice the humility of the brothers as they threw themselves down before the prime minister.
2. And notice who became the spokesperson.
a. The confession from Judah’s mouth was amazing.
b. And this was precisely what Joseph had been waiting for; this is why he had given them this final exam.
c. The good news is that they were passing with flying colors.
3. In speaking for his brothers, Judah did not attempt to justify himself or the others, nor did he try to pass the blame off onto Benjamin.
a. Unlike before, they didn’t turn on Benjamin and reject him as they had Joseph, so many years before.
b. Judah said, in no uncertain terms, that they all were guilty.
4. Given their history, this was an amazing admission.
a. A real change had occurred in their attitude.
G. The Bible says: But Joseph said, “Far be it from me to do such a thing! Only the man who was found to have the cup will become my slave. The rest of you, go back to your father in peace.” (Gen. 44:17)
1. Joseph wasn’t quite done with them – the test was almost over – they were on the last question.
2. Which would they choose, when push came to shove, themselves or Benjamin?
3. So Joseph magnanimously declared, “I would never punish all of you for one man’s crime. The cup has been found in your youngest brother’s possession, so he is the one I will punish.”
H. Then Judah spoke up again, and gave a speech that one commentator declared “stands unexcelled in the Old Testament.
1. The Bible says: Then Judah went up to him and said: “Please, my lord, let your servant speak a word to my lord. Do not be angry with your servant, though you are equal to Pharaoh himself. 19 My lord asked his servants, ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’ 20 And we answered, ‘We have an aged father, and there is a young son born to him in his old age. His brother is dead, and he is the only one of his mother's sons left, and his father loves him.’
“Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me so I can see him for myself.’ 22 And we said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father; if he leaves him, his father will die.’ 23 But you told your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you will not see my face again.’ 24 When we went back to your servant my father, we told him what my lord had said.
“Then our father said, ‘Go back and buy a little more food.’ 26 But we said, ‘We cannot go down. Only if our youngest brother is with us will we go. We cannot see the man's face unless our youngest brother is with us.’
“Your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons. 28 One of them went away from me, and I said, “He has surely been torn to pieces.” And I have not seen him since. 29 If you take this one from me too and harm comes to him, you will bring my gray head down to the grave in misery.’
“So now, if the boy is not with us when I go back to your servant my father and if my father, whose life is closely bound up with the boy's life, 31 sees that the boy isn't there, he will die. Your servants will bring the gray head of our father down to the grave in sorrow. 32 Your servant guaranteed the boy's safety to my father. I said, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, I will bear the blame before you, my father, all my life!’
“Now then, please let your servant remain here as my lord's slave in place of the boy, and let the boy return with his brothers. 34 How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? No! Do not let me see the misery that would come upon my father.” (Gen. 44:18-34)
2. What a powerful, heartfelt presentation!
3. Do you realize who it was who said that? It was Judah.
a. The same man who 20 years earlier had said, “Here comes the dreamer. Let’s kill him and say that a ferocious animal devoured him.”
b. A few minutes later, he rationalized, “What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? Let’s sell him to the slave traders instead.”
4. Yet now, after all those years of guilt, here he was pleading for his youngest brother.
5. And here he was pleading on behalf of his father.
a. Years earlier he could not have cared less what his father thought, since his father had always shown such favoritism to Rachel’s sons.
6. But now, of all things, that same man was exhibiting a sacrificial attitude.
a. “Take me instead, but send Benjamin back home. I cannot bear to see what would happen to my father if Benjamin does not go home.”
7. Judah and his brothers had passed the test.
a. They were, indeed, changed men, so different than they had been 20 years earlier.
8. Joseph was convinced and that’s why it was time to reveal his identity at last.
I. We are about to experience one of the greatest moments in the entire Old Testament.
1. This is indeed the climax of the story that has held us in suspense for a number of weeks.
2. The Bible says: 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.
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. (Gen. 45:1-3)
3. Joseph cleared the room of all the Egyptians, all the stewards, servants.
4. Only the 11 brothers were left with him.
a. They must have noticed how emotional he was becoming and had to be wondering what was going to happen next!
5. Suddenly, this Egyptian official – second only to Pharaoh – broke into tears.
a. And not just small, silent tears running down his face.
b. His outburst was so great that even those outside the room heart it and began telling others about it.
6. Astonishing words were then uttered through those tears.
a. “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?”
b. The prime minister was no longer speaking in Egyptian through an interpreter.
c. In the Hebrew language he declared, “I am Joseph!”
7. Not surprisingly, his brothers were stunned, speechless, and terrified.
J. Joseph, noting their confusion and astonishment said: “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt!” (Gen. 45:4)
1. Joseph invited them to come closer to have a closer look, and they did so.
2. Now they could see that he was, indeed, their own flesh and blood.
a. Their mouths must have dropped open.
3. He confirmed the truth by adding details that only he and they could have known – “I am the one you sold into Egypt.”
K. In addition to astonishment, Joseph could read the guilt on their faces, and that’s why he said the following.
1. The Bible says that Joseph said: 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 not be 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. 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.” (Gen. 45:5-8)
2. Humanly speaking, the average individual, when faced with people who have done them wrong, would likely do what they could to enact revenge upon them.
3. But not Joseph, he was a changed man – He was God’s man.
4. So, with the help of the Lord, he looked in his brothers’ anxious eyes and said, “Do not be grieved or angry with yourselves. It was not you who sent me here, but God. God sent me here to save all of our lives.”
5. Those two words – “But God” – are so important.
6. Joseph had learned to see all of life through that lens – the “God” lens.
a. He trusted in God and believed that God was in control of all things.
b. His brothers, certainly, meant to harm him, but God used their evil deed for good.
7. Perhaps you have been greatly injured by someone.
a. Your memory is haunted by the wrongdoing, the unfair treatment, the trauma, the rejection.
b. Evil was done to you – and it likely was meant to be evil.
c. But God…it is not our place to punish anyone who has wronged us – that is God’s job.
d. But God…nor is it our job to bring about the healing and the benefit that can come into our lives as a result of the injury – that is also God’s job.
e. Or job is to trust God and cling to the Lord, and wait for God to do His work.
L. I’m running out of time, so I better wrap things up.
1. Joseph gave his brothers an offer they could not refuse.
2. Joseph encouraged them to go home, get their father, and all come to live with him in Egypt.
3. There were five more years of famine ahead.
II. The Application
A. Let’s quickly mention some lessons we learn from today’s episode in Joseph’s life.
1. The main lesson we learn is that our attitude makes all the difference in our lives.
2. Thomas Jefferson was right when he said: “When the heart is right, the feet are swift.”
3. Ultimately, it takes God to make the heart right, we can’t do it without God’s direction and assistance.
4. But when God helps us have the right attitude, then everything else falls in place.
B. Consider these statements: How they relate to Joseph and to us.
1. First, when I’m able by faith, to sense God’s plan in my location, then my attitude will be right.
a. Joseph could trust that God had him right where he wanted him in Egypt, even before he knew why.
2. Second, when I’m able by faith, to sense God’s hand in my situation, then my attitude will be right.
3. Third, when I’m able by faith, to believe that God can work through my location and situation, even if there’s been evil done to me in the process, then my attitude will be right.
C. Look at these words from a hymn written by John Newton.
1. We are familiar with a few of Newton’s other hymns, like “Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken,” and “Amazing Grace.”
2. But here are a few lines from Newton’s hymn named “How Tedious and Tasteless the Hours,” which is a song with which very few are familiar:
“How tedious and tasteless the hours
when Jesus no longer I see.
Sweet prospects, sweet birds, and sweet flowers,
Have all lost their sweetness to me:
The midsummer sun shines but dim,
The fields strive in vain to look gay;
But when I am happy in Him,
December’s as pleasant as May.”
3. When our attitude is right with God then “December is as pleasant as May!”
a. When our attitude is right with God, then it doesn’t matter what time of year it is.
b. When our attitude is right with God, then it doesn’t matter where we live.
c. When our attitude is right with God, then it doesn’t matter what are our circumstances.
4. It is our attitude and the faith behind it that matters most.
a. Because our heart is right, then our feet are swift, and our outlook is hopeful.
b. That’s how Joseph made it in the pit as well as when he was on the pinnicle.
c. Joseph shows us that the only way to find happiness and wellbeing in the grind of life is to do so by faith.
d. The only strength in suffering is God’s strength.
e. The only solution to bitterness is God’s grace.
5. Like the Hebrew writer said in our Scripture reading today: “We must fix our eyes on Jesus!”
6. There are many tests in life, but with God’s help, like Joseph, we can pass them with flying colors!
7. When we keep our eyes on the Lord and walk by faith, our attitude will be hope-filled, peace-filled and grace-filled.
Resources:
Joseph: A man of Integrity and Forgiveness, by Charles Swindoll, Word Publishing, 1998
