For the past couple of months we have been talking about some of the things in life that set us back. We've talked about betrayal, temptation, the injustices of life, just plain hard times, and bitterness. Today I'm going to wrap all of this up as we talk about what these things can cause. When we are involved in any of these, we tend to become plagued with guilt and grudges.
Now men, you can correct me if I am wrong, but most any husband will say that he drives better than his wife. We don't need instructions or directions as we drive even if we are wrong and lost.
It's like the guy that said he had told his wife many times that he was an outstanding driver in the snow. He had grown up in Northern Illinois, so he learned to handle the slick roads. Yet as they drove one of their sons to a party on a snowy evening, his wife clearly doubted the skills that he said he had. The powder was sticking to the windshield, and she asked him to please slow down. He said I rolled my eyes at her and immediately I lost control of the vehicle. Moments later, we were in a ditch, spinning the tires, and having a marital moment in front of the kids. We were stuck because I wouldn't listen, he said.
It's one thing to be momentarily stuck in the snow, but many people live their lives stuck. It's not the snow that causes the problem, but the unforgiveness that surrounds them. Nothing prevents a person from moving forward like the holding of grudges.
For those of you that are growing tired of the life of Joseph in the last chapters of the book of Genesis, this message will end our story. In this last message in this series, Joseph had seen God's plan in his brothers’ decisions that had caused so much pain in his life. Let's take one last look at Joseph and see what he can teach us about looking at our own struggles in light of the grace of God.
PRAYER
Last time we saw Joseph's brothers make their second trip to Egypt to find food and Joseph revealed himself to them. Once the brothers found out who Joseph was and the authority and power that he had, they had good reason to be afraid and tremble. They were now in the hands of a powerful Egyptian leader, and their guilt was undeniable. They thought the brother that they had done wrong would take harsh revenge and even the score once and for all.
Instead, they found Joseph to be soft-hearted and compassionate, even willing to forget their crimes of the past. Joseph didn't want revenge. He wanted his family back. So, the brothers brought their father and families and lived in Egypt under Joseph's protection for nearly 20 years.
Genesis 50:15–18 - 15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said to one another, “If Joseph is holding a grudge against us, he will certainly repay us for all the suffering we caused him.” 16 So they sent this message to Joseph, “Before he died your father gave a command:
*****17 ‘Say this to Joseph: Please forgive your brothers’ transgression and their sin—the suffering they caused you.’ Therefore, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father.” Joseph wept when their message came to him. 18 His brothers also came to him, bowed down before him, and said, “We are your slaves!”
Everything was going well until the day Jacob died. As expected, the family went through the initial stages of mourning and arrangements were made for the burial in Canaan. But after the passing of their father, the brothers began to wonder if Joseph's love would now turn to hate.
The brothers had a good reason to feel paranoid. What they had done to Joseph all those years ago was awful. They had left him for dead and then sold him into slavery. But in Joseph's mind, their fears were unfounded. Still, they sent a message to Joseph, explaining that before he died, their father had requested, “please forgive your brothers” transgression and their sin - the suffering they caused you ( 17 ).
The thing is, we don't actually know if Jacob said that, but the brothers used it to regain their brother's good graces. They humbled themselves before him, saying, “we are your slaves.” True to his past, Joseph was full of grace toward them. He had truly buried the past.
I came across a story that goes along with this passage. It’s about a lady named Lisa. Lisa was a successful woman in the eyes of many. She had well-behaved kids, her own thriving business, and a home with her husband on 50 acres. Sadly though, Lisa felt anything but inner joy and satisfaction.
The abuse she had experienced as a little girl continued to haunt her. She hated the man who took advantage of her, and she regularly rehearsed the choice words she would like to strike him with if she ever saw him. But a fatal heart attack took him, and she now had to accept the fact that her well prepared speech was never going to happen. She had only one option now. She had to cancel her resentment. Inwardly, she wondered if she could, and how to do it.
Matthew 6:15 is a difficult verse. Jesus didn't sugarcoat the call for us to forgive.
Matthew 6:15 – ‘But if you don’t forgive others, your Father will not forgive your offenses.”
To be a Christian is to mimic Jesus's way with sinners. Just as the Lord forgives, so should we. The cross canceled, or should have canceled, all of our grudges. Following Jesus means trusting God with all our hurts and believing that, even as He loves and forgives us, He empowers us to do the same.
You see, life is not a Hallmark movie where everything gets worked out before the credits roll. Most people have to work through unresolved pain much like Lisa. But to the account of Joseph, the happy ending did take place. While Joseph's brothers thought they had reason to fear a delayed response from him, Joseph had no plans to repay them. They were forgiven.
Corey ten Boom said this, “Forgiveness is the key which unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hatred.” REPEAT
Genesis 50:19-20 - But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? 20 You planned evil against me; God planned it for good to bring about the present result—the survival of many people.”
Once again, what made Joseph an exceptional person was his view of God that affected the way he saw himself. It wasn't as simple as his brothers did him wrong. Far more was involved in the story. God intended to use the pain of Joseph's past for a much higher purpose in the future. What others meant for evil, God intended for good to bring about the present result - the survival of many people.
Verses 19 and 20 form the climax of this grand story. Joseph's story, which is the largest portion of the Book of Genesis, now comes to a big finale. Joseph asks his brothers, “Am I in the place of God?” Maybe we should ask ourselves the same question at times.
God is going to step on all of our toes for just a little bit. In our sinful nature, we make frequent attempts to sit on the throne and call the shots, even though Scripture continually reminds us of God's sovereign Lordship. In:
Proverbs 16:9, it says “a person's heart plans his way, but the Lord determines his steps.” And then James had this to say in:
James 4:13-16. “Come now, you who say, today or tomorrow we will travel in such and such a city and spend a year there and do business and make a profit. Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring - what your life will be!
*****For you are the vapor that appears for a little while, then vanishes. Instead, you should say, if the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that. But as it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.”
I know it is hard to turn loose and allow God to have control of the way things go in your life. Believe me, I know. But in my experience, I have found that God is fully trustworthy. And so are His plans. God may be telling us this right now to think about any situation that we might need to release control of and place into His hands. If there is such a situation, God is pleading with us to trust Him today.
As a mature believer, can't you look back on the pain of life and see the good that God brought from it? The apostle Paul reinforced that truth as he reflected on his former life and the pain he brought on himself. Everything he used to cherish became worthless once Jesus took control of him. Paul wrote:
Philippians 3:7-9 – “But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. 8 More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.
*****Because of him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ—the righteousness from God based on faith.”
What brought Joseph to this place of seeing God's hand at work was his hope in the ultimate planner. God planned it for good to bring about the present result - the survival of many people. Even though we live in the mystery of an unknown future, we can rest in the truth that it's not a mystery to God. God knows the end from the beginning. He has all the information.
Joseph's brothers had lived broken, messy lives, and Joseph was just trying to bring healing and clear matters up between them by demonstrating love and compassion to them. It was that undeserved affection that altered the course of their lives. So, here they are, standing infront of their brother that they betrayed, trembling in fear, and they heard Joseph say:
Genesis 50:21 – “Therefore don’t be afraid. I will take care of you and your children.” And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.”
To be treated with kindness, especially when it is undeserved, it's kind of staggering. But we have to remember that it's God's kindness that leads us to repentance. Paul wrote that in Romans 2:4. That wasn't a new idea when Paul was inspired to write it down. All through the Bible, God's great love for His people is on display. It just makes me wonder how people still turn away from God and His love for us.
From Genesis to Revelation, the most attractive quality of God is His love for the broken. The greatest need of the human heart is to feel the full pardon of the Father, to know that we are accepted no matter what crimes we have committed. When we come to Him, He responds to us even as Joseph did with his brothers, with compassion. Salvation, grace, and a new life in Christ are all wrapped up in God's love. Sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it? But I can assure that it’s true, and it’s definitely good.
Here is how all of this directly affects us. While we as Christians would all agree that the grace of God saved us, many of us still tend to gravitate toward a life driven by works. We say things like, “You don't read your Bible enough. You don't pray enough. You don't give enough. You don't serve enough. The legalism of it all causes us to feel inadequate, and we wallow in guilt and shame because we feel like we haven’t done enough to be loved by God. We need to realize that this is not the message of the Gospel at all. Jesus said:
John 8:36 – “So if the Son sets you free, you really will be free.”
Just as we are saved by God's grace, we are also sustained daily by God's grace. That's what Paul was talking about when he wrote:
Colossians 2:6 – “So then, just as you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to walk in him,”
It's Grace all the way. Joseph's words to his brothers in verse 21 reflect God's great love and concern for us. Don't be afraid. The God who saves us also will take care of us. As we get out of bed each morning, we should feel greeted by the God of Grace who gives us another day to live in His love.
So I bring all of this to a close by saying that God's love is both merciful and gracious. Jonathan Edwards was a dynamic preacher in Christian history and was well known for his famous sermon, “Sinners in the hands of an angry God.” With a title like that, it's no wonder people today assume he was cold-hearted and unfeeling. Nothing could be further from the truth. What moved Jonathan Edwards more than anything was the love of God displayed throughout the Scriptures.
Jonathan Edwards saw the need for joy. It was the joy of living inside God's love that created the greatest changes within him. There are many Christians today that don't feel like a sermon is dynamic unless the preacher is stomping his feet, beating the pulpit, and screaming at the top of his lungs. Even though preaching about the pains of hell are important, it's the preaching that points to the warm heart of a forgiving Father that will draw the hearer the most.
We see that in Jesus's parable of the prodigal son. This parable captures our attention in our hearts because the love and forgiveness of the father is awesome. After the young son took his father's money and ruined the family name, he returned fully expecting to be treated as a servant at best, but he was embraced by his father, who only wanted to rejoice that his son had come home. Our greatest need is to experience God's love and forgiveness. When we come to Him in repentance, we can count on His mercy and Grace.
If God has brought you here today to hear this message and you have never accepted Christ as your personal Savior, I can see God standing here and calling your name to simply come and accept Him.
And when that occurs, I can almost hear God saying what the father said in the prodigal son story as his son returned home, “Let's celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.”
If you have never asked Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior, you are what we call lost. Once you have accepted Christ, you have found the key to eternal life, Jesus Christ. In a moment we are going to allow that time to come. But first, let’s pause and remember all that Jesus did for us as we partake in the Lord’s Supper.
