Entering Into the Joseph Anointing!
Joseph was the one whom God used to save an entire tribe, nation and people. However, he had to go through a tremendous set of what might be considered "negative circumstances" (he was the one who was separated from his brothers) but he described it this way: -
Genesis 45:4-8 "And Joseph said to his brothers, ‘Please come near to me.’ So they came near. Then he said: ‘I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. ‘But now do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life. ‘For these two years the famine has been in the land, and there are still five years in which there will be neither be plowing nor harvesting. ‘And God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. ‘So now it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt."
Joseph goes on to secure a place for his people in the land of Egypt. And after his father lived seventeen years in this secure land he is about to go the way of all men, he is about to die. He calls for Joseph and all his other sons and he begins to prophesy their destiny. I want us this day to look closely at the prophetic destiny of Joseph, as I believe that the Lord is using this as an example to us today.
Genesis 49: 22-26 "Joseph is a fruitful bough, A fruitful bough by a well; His branches run over the wall. The archers have bitterly grieved him, Shot at him and hated him. But his bow remained in strength, And the arms of his hands were made strong By the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob (From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel), By the God of your father who will bless you With blessings of heaven above, Blessings of the deep that lies beneath, Blessings of the breasts and of the womb. The blessings of your father Have excelled the blessings of my ancestors, Up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills. They shall be on the head of Joseph, And the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers."
LETS REVIEW THIS:
1. His Branches run Over the Wall:
Ge 49:22-26. JOSEPH-- 22. a fruitful bough, &c.--denotes the extraordinary increase of
that tribe (compare Nu 1:33-35; Jos 17:17; De 33:17). The patriarch describes him as attacked by envy, revenge, temptation, ingratitude; yet still, by the grace of God, he triumphed over all opposition, so
that he became the sustainer of Israel; and then he proceeds to shower blessings of every kind upon the head of this favorite son. The history of the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh shows how fully these blessings were realized.
I believe that the Lord is pronouncing fruitfulness over us in what we are called to do. He declares that just like Joseph our branches will run over the wall. This represents us going beyond our set enclosure. It also represents us going to the nations. We will not be limited to one location. We will go over the wall. The Lord has ordained it. We may not all physically go to the nations but whenever anyone of us go over the wall it will be registered to everyone’s account.
2. Shot at Him and Hated Him:
The archers here represent to us demonic entities that will seek to stop our forward advance in going over the wall, and into all that God has called us to do. The bible speaks about the fiery darts of the enemy (Galatians 6:16) and we are encouraged to function in faith and that will always quench the fiery darts shot at us by the enemy. And of course the enemy will shoot at us because he hates us. As a matter of fact he hates any kingdom advance by the saints of the Most High God! We are strongly encouraged by the Lord in
1Peter 4:12-14 "Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified."
The shooting and hatred of our enemy will manifest itself in all kinds of forms but we are to stand on our faith in the Lord. We must continue to function in an unshakeable, resolute faith! God is more than able to bring to pass all that He has decreed!
3. The Arms of His Hands were Made Strong:
As we continue on, as we go over the wall, and as the enemy seeks to shoot at us, it is possible for our hands to become weary. It is our hands that we use to hold up the shield of faith. As we know "faith without works is dead", and our hands speak to us about our ability to work. The enemy’s strategy will be to attempt in causing our hands to hang down. However, the Lord has declared that He will strengthen our hands. In Hebrews 12:12-14 we are encouraged to make sure that our hands are not feeble and hung down, after being encouraged by the exploits of the heroes of faith in chapter eleven, and the provision made for us through the author and finisher of our faith Jesus.
Ge 49:24 From thence; some refer these words to Joseph, but they belong rather to God. We may render the whole passage thus: From thence [even from] the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel; from the God of thy
father, who helps thee; and from the Almighty, who blesses thee, [shall be] blessings of heaven above, etc.
4. Who Will Bless You With Blessings:
Ge 49:25 Blessings of heaven above; the sunshine, and fertilizing rain and dews. Blessings of the deep; the fertlizing springs and streams. Blessings of the breasts and of the womb; fruitfulness in his posterity, and in their flocks and herds. This has always been a pattern of the Lord to cause blessings to come upon us after we have gone through major testing or trials. Here are some scriptures that set this pattern:
Deuteronomy 8:1-10 - The Book of Job - Romans 8:17-18 - 1Peter 5:10
5. Him Who Was Separate From His Brothers:
The reason that Joseph was separated from his brothers was because of his "lofty visions." This is something that we must address and deal with if we are to establish and bring the move of God to our region. As we speak vision, there will be those from among our brethren that will not see eye to eye with us and they will separate us. However, we cannot let this get to us, we must respond like Joseph when the move of God comes and the word that we spoke come to pass. "And Joseph said to his brothers, ‘Please come near to me." (Genesis 45:4) what an awesome example! Let us become fruitful like Joseph!
