There is a little church in Galena, Kansas, where it is customary for people celebrating birthdays to come to the front of the sanctuary. There, they give a special offering while the congregation sings “Happy Birthday.”
On the other hand, if you’re a little shy, you can give your offering to an usher who takes it forward as an anonymous offering. One Sunday, an usher came forward and proclaimed, “I have here an ominous birthday offering.”
A grey-haired man spoke up, “Aren't they all?” (Anita Heistand, Galena, Kansas, “Lite Fare,” Christian Reader; www.PreachingToday.com)
These days, the future seems ominous, especially after the mass shooting in Los Vegas last Sunday night, the terrible hurricanes we’ve just experienced, and the threat of ISIS and North Korea. On the more personal level, people face things like a scary medical diagnosis, financial uncertainty, or just the uncertainty of growing older.
So what do you do in these uncertain times? What do you do when the future seems ominous? Well, there are some things we can learn from the life of Joseph in the book of Genesis. He had a bright future, when all of a sudden life took a turn for the worse and he was sold into slavery. Then he was falsely accused and thrown into prison. To say the least, he was living in uncertain times. His future seemed ominous, but his faith remained strong. What did he do, and what can you do to remain strong in uncertain times?
Well, if you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Genesis 40, Genesis 40, where Joseph has been in prison for some time.
Genesis 40:1-3 Some time after this, the cupbearer of the king of Egypt and his baker committed an offense against their lord the king of Egypt. And Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, and he put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, in the prison where Joseph was confined. (ESV)
Now, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker were two very important officials in Pharaoh’s cabinet. The chief cupbearer usually became a trusted advisor and friend to the king, because the king trusted him with his life. You see, it was the chief cupbearer’s job to make sure there was no poison in the king’s food or drink, so he would taste it first before he gave it to the king, risking his own life for the king each time he sat down to eat. As a result, the king and his chief cupbearer became close friends. And the chief baker provided most of the king’s food, so he too was an important, trusted official.
Well, it just so happens that they end up in the same prison as Joseph. Do you think so? Do you think it “just happened”? No! GOD put them there, because GOD had a plan for Joseph that involved Pharaoh. Now watch as God works His plan.
Genesis 40:4-8 The captain of the guard appointed Joseph to be with them, and he attended them. They continued for some time in custody. And one night they both dreamed—the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison—each his own dream, and each dream with its own interpretation. When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they were troubled. So he asked Pharaoh’s officers who were with him in custody in his master’s house, “Why are your faces downcast today?” They said to him, “We have had dreams, and there is no one to interpret them.” And Joseph said to them… (ESV)
“Oh, forget your dreams. They’re no good. In fact, I had a dream once and look where it got me – right here in prison with a bunch of losers like you.” Is that what Joseph told them. No! Look at verse 8 again.
Genesis 40:8 ”And Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Please tell them to me.” (ESV)
Joseph still believed that God-given dreams were important. Joseph still believed that God gives dreams and that God will work to fulfill those dreams no matter what happens in life.
Joseph never stopped believing God even in prison, and that’s what you must do in your “prison” experiences as well. When life seems uncertain…
BE CERTAIN THAT GOD IS STILL IN CONTROL.
Believe that God has a plan and He is working that plan for your good and His glory. Remember that God has not forgotten the dream he gave you and He is working to fulfill that dream in ways you can’t even imagine.
Don’t give up your faith in God. Otherwise, you can become a bitter, angry person of no use to anyone. Look at Joseph in prison. He is serving his fellow prisoners (vs.4), and he is concerned about them when they are sad (vs.7). His compassion comes from his confidence in God, and your faith will do the same for you.
Henri Dunant was a wealthy 19th century Swiss banker. He was sent to Paris by the Swiss government to work on a business deal with Napoleon. He arrived only to be informed that Napoleon was off fighting a war against the Austrians in Solferino, Italy. So Henri Dunant got back into his carriage and set his horses galloping down to the battlefront. He got there just in time to hear the bugles blast and see the thundering charge of Napoleon's troops.
Dunant had never before witnessed the ghastly carnage of war. He watched in horror as cannonballs tore through human flesh, and acres of land became heaped with maimed and dying men. Henry Dunant was so devastated that he remained at the front for weeks helping doctors tend to the wounded in churches and nearby farmhouses.
After his return to Switzerland, Dunant continued to be haunted by the images of war he had seen in Italy. He could not keep his mind on banking, becoming so distracted that he lost his wealth. Yet even with his career derailed and his plans askew, he had a sense of God's sovereignty in all that had occurred. Of this time, he later wrote: “I was aware of an intuition, vague and yet profound, that [this was] God's Will; it seemed to me that I had [something] to accomplish…as a sacred duty and that it was destined to have fruits of infinite consequence for mankind.”
And indeed it was. Out of his depression and failure—after following the wrong road to Italy—Henri Dunant founded the Red Cross, which has saved millions and millions of lives and given aid to countless victims of war and disaster over the years. For establishing this organization, he received the first Nobel Peace Prize. (Victor D. Pentz, A Hobo's Heart: How Wrong Roads Often Lead to the Right Places, www.PreachingToday.com)
When you believe that God is in control, your faith compels you to do amazing things even in the face of great trial. Otherwise, you just give up in despair.
So, whatever you do, when life seems uncertain, don’t lose your dream in the darkness. Don’t stop believing God. Don’t stop trusting God to keep His promises to you and to fulfill the dreams He has given you.
I say it again: Don’t lose your dream in the darkness. Keep on responding to God’s guidance even when life throws you a “curve ball.” Love those God wants you to love; and in His strength, keep on doing what God wants you to do until the day you see God fulfill the dreams He has given you beyond your wildest imagination.
Dear friends, when life seems uncertain, be certain that God is still in control. More than that, in the uncertainties of life…
BE CERTAIN THAT GOD STILL CARES.
When you feel forgotten, be assured that God has not forgotten you. Just know that God remembers you even when nobody else does.
That’s what happened to Joseph. People he helped forgot him, but God never did. He says to Pharaoh’s officials, “Tell me your dream.”
Genesis 40:9-15 So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph and said to him, “In my dream there was a vine before me, and on the vine there were three branches. As soon as it budded, its blossoms shot forth, and the clusters ripened into grapes. Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes and pressed them into Pharaoh’s cup and placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand.” Then Joseph said to him, “This is its interpretation: the three branches are three days. In three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your office, and you shall place Pharaoh’s cup in his hand as formerly, when you were his cupbearer. Only remember me, when it is well with you, and please do me the kindness to mention me to Pharaoh, and so get me out of this house. For I was indeed stolen out of the land of the Hebrews, and here also I have done nothing that they should put me into the pit.” (ESV)
Joseph interprets the chief cupbearer’s dream asking only one thing in return – “mention me to Pharaoh.”
Genesis 40:16-19 When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was favorable, he said to Joseph, “I also had a dream: there were three cake baskets on my head, and in the uppermost basket there were all sorts of baked food for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating it out of the basket on my head.” And Joseph answered and said, “This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days. In three days Pharaoh will lift up your head—from you!—and hang you on a tree. And the birds will eat the flesh from you.” (ESV)
I’m sure that’s not what he wanted to hear, but things happened just as Joseph said.
Genesis 40:20-22 On the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, he made a feast for all his servants and lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants. He restored the chief cupbearer to his position, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand. But he hanged the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them. (ESV)
God did exactly what He told them he would do: both of their heads were lifted up. The chief cupbearer’s head was lifted up in a figurative sense: he was elevated to his former position. And the chief baker’s head was lifted up in the literal sense: it was put in a hangman’s noose.
This reminds me of Jesus on the cross between two thieves. One found eternal life because of His faith in Christ. Jesus had promised him, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” The other thief perished in his sins, because he refused to believe.
Don’t you do the same. Trust Christ with your life, and believe that He will keep His promises to you. God always keeps His Word even when others don’t.
Genesis 40:23 Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him. (ESV)
The chief cupbearer did not keep his word. Joseph had asked him, “Do me the kindness” (vs.14). Literally, be loyal to me, but the chief cupbearer forgot all about Joseph.
And that kind of thing happens to you and me all the time. People make promises and forget them. Oh, it’s usually not out of any malicious intent. It’s just that when you’re out of sight, you’re out of mind. People forget; but dear friends, you can be certain that God never does.
Years ago, Radio Bible Class’s daily devotional, called Our Daily Bread, told the story of an elderly believer who lay dying in much distress. “Oh pastor,” he said, “for years I have relied upon the promises of God, but now in the hour of death, I cannot remember a single one to comfort me.”
The pastor replied, “My brother, do you think that God will forget any of His promises?”
A smile came over the elderly man’s face as he joyfully proclaimed, “No, no! He won’t! Praise the Lord! Now, I can fall asleep in Jesus and trust Him to remember them all and bring me safely to heaven.”
He was at peace; and soon, he was with the Lord. (Paul Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations, #2004)
Dear friends, you too can experience peace if you remember that God never forgets. Others may forget you, but He never will.
So when you face an uncertain future, be certain that God is in control and that He cares for you; be certain that He will not forget the dream He has for you, nor will He forget you.
Keith Hartsell of Wheaton, Illinois, was driving around with a friend of his in California, when he noticed that his friend’s cell phone was locked with an unusual password – pro nobis. Keith asked him what pro nobis meant and why he chose that for a password. Keith’s friend told him it was Latin and it meant “For Us,” and then he suddenly started choking up. Keith thought, “Why would those two Latin words cause so much emotion?”
Then his friend composed himself and explained that after walking through deep personal pain, true healing came when he learned that God is “for us” – or the Latin phrase pro nobis. Keith’s friend said that after his parents' divorce, he entered a season when he assumed that God didn't care or that God had given up on him. But he finally found hope through those two simple words – pro nobis (for us). You see, when he decided to believe that God was pro nobis, that God had even sent Christ to die for him, he could then decide to lay down his life for others. (Keith Hartsell, Wheaton, Illinois; www.PreachingToday.com)
Romans 8 puts it this way: If God is FOR US, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:31-32)
Dear friends, when life is uncertain, don’t ever forget it: God is pro nobis. God is for us. He demonstrated that very clearly when He sent His Son Jesus to die on a cross for our sins. All you have to do is trust Him with your life; and then, keep on believing when life becomes uncertain. It’s the only thing that will keep you afloat on a sea of uncertainty.
A little brown cork
Fell in the path of a whale,
Who lashed it down
With his angry tail;
But in spite of its blows,
It quickly arose
And floated serenely
Before his nose.
Said the cork to the whale:
“You may flap and sputter and frown,
But you never, never, can keep me down;
For I’m made of the stuff
That is buoyant enough
To float instead of to drown. –Pameli (Paul Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations, #4131)
The “stuff” that keeps you afloat is your faith in God.
