Pastor Allan Kircher
Shell Point Baptist Church
March 2, 2014
Genesis 43:15-34
The Sea Of Emotions
Intro: Passage opens/ten/Joseph’s brother’s leaving Canaan.
• Second trip to Egypt to buy grain.
First time:
• Came face/face/Prime Minister of the country.
• Didn’t know/Joseph/sold/slavery 20 years earlier.
• Joseph knew exactly who they were!
• Used/meeting/try get them/understand/guilt/past.
• Joseph imprisoned Simeon
• Sent home to get Benjamin/don’t return w/o him.
So, they headed back home.
• discovered/money/paid/grain/returned/sacks of grain
• caused them/even more afraid
• Long story short/used up all/grain/headed back/Egypt again.
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V. 15 took Joseph a present; double/money/Benjamin.
• They/ushered/Joseph’s presence
• when he sees Benjamin is with them,
• He invites them to his house for lunch, v. 16-17.
Verses describe scene/filled/emotions.
• Fear/relief/gratitude/joy all mingle together in this poignant reunion between Joseph and his brothers.
Take/passage and preach/subject The Sea Of Emotions
• Emotions/something/deal/every day/our lives.
• They/powerful/can control our lives if we allow them to
• Emotions/feelings/not bad in/of themselves.
• Must remember our emotions arise/minds/souls.
• Since/fallen creatures, our emotions have been affected too.
• means not everything we feel is right or proper
Learn/check our emotions against the Word of God
• We need to ensure we are not led astray by our feelings.
• This happens far too often in people’s lives
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Young girls/give up/purity because they are lost sea/emotions.
Men abandon/families because they get caught/emotions
Families/churches are ripped apart because people allow emotions like anger, bitterness and resentment control them.
• Of course, God works in our emotions too
Uses/natural responses we have/events of life to teach us about Him/His will and what He is doing in our lives.
• That/what /passage teaches us about today
• reunion scene/between brothers
• we see 12 men who are Swimming In A Sea Of Emotion.
I want you to see The Brothers and Their Fear; Joseph and His Feelings, and The Family and Their Feast.
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I. v. 18-24 THE BROTHERS AND THEIR FEARS
When these men are brought into Joseph’s house, they become “afraid”
• Word means “to be filled with dread.”
• convinced that they have been lead into a trap.
• Sure/Joseph/going/arrest them/put them into prison, v. 18.
• They express their fears/steward Joseph’s house, v. 19-22.
He comforts them the best he can, even telling them God was looking out for them in all their troubles, v. 23.
• Then he brings out Simeon to them, v. 23
• Gives them water to wash their feet/sign/great respect.
• Gives them food for their animals/sign/hospitality, v. 24.
So, with their hearts pounding in fear, they prepare themselves for the arrival of Joseph for the noon meal.
• Two emotions at work/lives of these men.
• They/afraid---they are being eaten alive with guilt.
• I want to examine both of these emotions today.
First, let’s talk about fear. Fear is a terrible emotion!
• Paralyzing in the effect it has on our lives.
• Fear renders us incapable of trusting the Lord
• Fear keeps/looking to Him/help we need in life.
• Look at this scene
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Eleven men/brought up/know Jehovah, the only true and living God.
Yet, they/so overcome by/emotion/fear they/unable to see His hand at work in their lives.
• Have to be reminded of God’s grace/sovereignty/purposes by an Egyptian pagan
• Haven’t we all been there at times?
• Life comes at us with all its problems and it tragedies.
• When it does, we become filled with fear and dread.
• Instead of faith in God, we are gripped by worry and dread.
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Someone/calculated/365 statements Bible calling us to put aside our fears and to trust in the Lord.
• One fear not/every day of the year
• More than enough to cause us to trust in Him.
• Here is His command/His people, Phil. 4:6-7 Luke 12:32.
• promised to hear us when we pray – Jer. 33:3
• promised to sustain us – Psa. 55:22
• Promised/meet our every need –Matt. 6:25-34.
With promises like that, why would anyone want to fret or fear?
• Don’t allow fear to dominate your life.
• Learn to “Trust in the Lord…. Pro. 3:5-6.
• If you live in fear, you will never have peace in your life.
• Learn/trust/Lord in all of life, you/never have anything/fear.
The real reason these men are so overcome by fear/fact they are filled with guilt.
• Know they wronged their brother
• They lied/convinced that God is out to get them.
• In a sense they are right.
Lord is using/events their lives to bring them face/face with their past sins.
• He is awakening in them a sense of guilt
• This guilt is about to eat them alive.
• They/convinced/being punished/all/evil they/done,Gen. 42:21.
• Guilt can be a healthy emotion.
• Lord uses it to awaken us to our sinful condition
• To show us our need of Jesus.
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He causes us to feel guilty for our sins
That guilt before God is used by Him to draw us to Jesus and to His salvation, John 16:7-11
That is good guilt.
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Negative side/guilt
• When we continue feel bad over sins God/already forgiven.
OT, the Jews/offering called “burnt offering” Lev. 1:1-6.
• Bring his sacrifice to the Tabernacle
• place/hand/animals head and kill the animal
• Animal was taking the place/sinner.
• Sinner’s guilt transferred/animal/sinner/cleansed of his guilt.
This/what Jesus did/us when He went to the cross to die for us.
• Literally took our sins/guilt upon Himself
• He became our sins, 2 Cor. 5:21.
• He/judged/our place/we are forgiven/trust Him by faith.
• When/Lord saves us He takes our sins away/gone forever!
• We should never allow flesh/world/devil beat us up over sins the Lord has forgiven.
• If you are saved, your past is not an issue any longer.
•
Let your faith in Jesus spell the end of your guilt over your past.
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II. v. 25-30 JOSEPH AND HIS FEELINGS
Now, Joseph enters this scene.
• Brothers bow down before him/Give him/gifts/Canaan,v 26.
• Immediately asks them about their father Jacob, v. 27
• Brothers tell Joseph their father is doing well, v. 28.
• Joseph looks at Benjamin, the only full brother he has.
• pronounces a blessing on his brother, v. 29
• Joseph/immediately overcome with emotion.
• Leaves/brother standing/makes/hasty retreat/private chamber.
There, he gives way to all/emotions raging within his heart/breaks down and he weeps.
• not sure what to call this emotion
• Times when/person becomes overwhelmed/events of life.
Sometimes, fear, anger, joy/other emotions we humans feel can pile up in our hearts
• Times when folks just come/place where they breakdown.
• Has that ever happened to you?
• If it has, you are in good company!
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Some/most choice of God’s servants went through times of deep emotional distress.
David – When his beloved Absalom was killed – 2 Sam. 18:33.
Job – When he had lost everything from his children, to his possessions to his health – Job 3:3, 11.
Elijah – When revival did not fall after the experiences on Mt. Carmel – 1 Kings 19.
Moses – When he was overwhelmed with all that he had to do – Num. 11:11-15.
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Contrary to what you have been taught, there is no shame in being overwhelmed by your circumstances.
• When a loved one is taken by death
• when disease rears its ugly head
• when your family is ripped apart
• when you heart is broken and at a thousand other times
• It is easy to be overwhelmed and overcome.
I praise the Lord He understands our times of weeping and brokenness. He had such a time of His Own, Luke 22:44.
• People who know you might not understand, but/Lord does!
• God will not rebuke you!
• He didn’t rebuke those other great men of God I mentioned!
• He will help you get through it!
He can handle it when all the pain and emotion in our hearts bursts forth and we have a breakdown.
• Others might not be able to handle/but God can!
• He can handle anything you feel.
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Take Moses for instance; when he had his little episode in Num. 11, he said some pretty hard things to God. Did God get angry with Moses? Did God zap him with a lightning bolt? No, God helped him by taking some of the pressure off Moses.
Let me just remind you today, God cares about the things you and I face in this life.
• 1 Peter 5:7….
• Psalm 34:1, “The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.”
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III. v. 31-34 THE FAMILY ANDTHEIR FEAST
• When Joseph comes back/emotions under control again
Commands the servants to serve the meal, v. 31.
• Seated/himself because he/ruler/Egyptians/another table
• their religion forbad them/eating.shepherds, Gen. 46:34
When the brothers of Joseph were seated for their meal
• They noticed/seated/birth order/oldest to the youngest.
• This amazed them, v. 33.
• Should have been a clue to Joseph’s identity.
• No one else would have known/order of their births.
• Mathematician/concluded/39,917,000 different orders in which eleven individuals could have been seated.
• Joseph sent five times as much to his full brother Benjamin.
• This should have been another clue, v. 34.
So, this chapter ends with all the brothers, Jacob’s twelve sons eating a meal together and being “merry”.
• all experiencing the emotion of Joy
• Suppose that joy/favorite emotion we humans share.
• We all like to be happy.
• We all love that feeling of contentment and joy we get when everything in life is just like it ought to be.
• That is a good feeling!
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In fact, God teaches us happiness/joy/very healthy emotions
Prov. 17:22….
Laughter is good for the face as well
Prov.15:13….
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In fact, the Bible tells us that people who have a merry heart live in a continual party atmosphere.
Life to them/blessed time of joy and happiness.
Prov. 15:15….
• Remember Paul and Silas in that prison? What did they do?
• Praised/Lord.sang in that dungeon, Acts 16:25.
• Paul was just living out what he preached, Rom. 12:12.
• Nothing wrong with being a happy person!
• If you aren’t happy and enjoying/joy/Lord as you walk through this life
• You ought/get before/Lord/ask Him/ help you have His joy.
You see, there is a school of thought/church/says to be happy you have to be miserable.
If you are smiling, laughing and having a good time, well you just aren’t serious about the things of God.
• Greek word for that attitude I want to share with you today.
• It is the word “Hogwash!”
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Here these men are with Joseph and they are sitting at his table feasting. They paint a powerful picture of the great grace of God!
• You see, these men were guilty.
• No one would/blamed Joseph/thrown them all into prison
Joseph forgives them/welcomes them into his own home.
• Invites them to eat with him at his table
• Shares with them the very best he had.
Picture of what the Lord Jesus did for us!
• We were guilty and worthy of judgment.
• We deserved far worse than prison or slavery.
• We deserved death and Hell!
• But, He loved us in spite of our condition.
• He saved us from our sins/brought us into His family
• Feeds us/best things from His table
• Even preparing a place for us in Heaven!
He has taken away our guilt and our past.
• Healed our wrecked and ruined spiritual condition.
• Replaced our guilt with His peace/given us His Spirit!
• Filled us with/capacity for genuine joy in the Lord.
• Praise His name!
• Am I happy? Do I have joy? If I don’t it’s my own fault!
I have been given every ingredient needed to true happiness, true joy and true rejoicing.
• Praise the Lord!
Conc: We humans are emotional creatures. If we are not careful, our emotions will control our lives and our actions.
• Need/bring even our emotions under/control/Lord God.
• Do you need to deal with your guilt?
If you are not saved, let Jesus take your guilt away.
• If you are saved, learn to rest in what He has done for your soul.
Do you need to bring some fear to the Lord?
• He knows how to speak peace to your heart.
Are you overwhelmed by the circumstances of life?
• Are you close to a breakdown moment?
• Come to the Lord and cast your burden onto Him. He cares!
• Do you lack joy?
• The Lord can give you the peace and happiness you seek.
