2024.12.15.Sermon Notes. Genesis 50. Assurance
William Akehurst, HSWC
BIG IDEA: A Message of Honor, Comfort, Faith, Trust and Assurance.
Don’t be discouraged. Sometimes GOD’s Promises may take a long time to fulfill, so persevere by trusting HIM.
SCRIPTURES: Genesis 50:1-26, Luke 19:41-42, Romans 8:28, Hebrews 11:1, Exodus 13:18-19
Jacob is buried in Canaan.
Vs 1-3 Jacob is embalmed and mourned.
1 Then Joseph fell on his father’s face and wept over him, and kissed him. 2 And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel. 3 Forty days were required for him, for such are the days required for those who are embalmed; and the Egyptians mourned for him seventy days.
Joseph fell on his father’s face, and wept over him, and kissed him:
The passing of Jacob in the presence of his sons was a deeply moving and dramatic scene.
Joseph commanded the physicians to embalm his father.
Egyptians were skilled in embalming. They believed in the afterlife.
The Egyptians mourned him seventy days:
Jacob was obviously a greatly honored man as he was mourned for 70 days among the whole nation of Egypt.
Interesting fact: Egyptian Pharaohs were mourned for 72 days.
Vs 4-6 Joseph asks Pharaoh for permission to bury his father in Canaan.
4 Now when the days of his mourning were past, Joseph spoke to the household of Pharaoh, saying, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, please speak in the hearing of Pharaoh, saying, 5 My father made me swear, saying, “Behold, I am dying; in my grave which I dug for myself in the land of Canaan, there you shall bury me.” Now therefore, please let me go up and bury my father, and I will come back.’ ”
6 And Pharaoh said, “Go up and bury your father, as he made you swear.”
Joseph spoke to the household of Pharaoh:
My father made me swear:
Joseph explained the solemn promise his father required of him, and Pharaoh gave him the liberty to keep the promise and bury Israel in Canaan.
RESPECT: Even though Joseph was 2nd in command, he asked Pharaoh’s permission to bury his father. This shows Joseph’s respect and submission to those in authority.
Vs 7-11 Jacob’s body is brought to Canaan.
7 So Joseph went up to bury his father; and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt, 8 as well as all the house of Joseph, his brothers, and his father’s house. Only their little ones, their flocks, and their herds they left in the land of Goshen. 9 And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen, and it was a very great gathering.
10 Then they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, and they mourned there with a great and very solemn lamentation. He observed seven days of mourning for his father. 11 And when the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, “This is a deep mourning of the Egyptians.” Therefore its name was called Abel Mizraim, which is beyond the Jordan.
Joseph went up to bury his father:
And with him…a great procession for a funeral and burial.
Not only as an act of obedience, but also giving honor and love toward his father.
They mourned there with a great and very solemn lamentation:
In sorrow and lamentation, this was a day of rededication of the sons of Israel to the God of Israel.
This event didn’t go unnoticed. Egyptians, Canaanites, everybody saw something important was going on. And they gave it a name, Abel Mitraim, meaning “beyond the Jordan.”
This was a testimony of Jacob and his sons, making the statement, “this is important to us.” And something that people would talk about for centuries to come.
Vs 12-14 Jacob’s burial in the cave of the field of Machpelah.
12 So his sons did for him just as he had commanded them. 13 For his sons carried him to the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, before Mamre, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite as property for a burial place. 14 And after he had buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt, he and his brothers and all who went up with him to bury his father.
HONOR:
His sons did for him just as he had commanded them:
Jacob’s sons had disappointed him in live, but now, they were careful to honor him in his death.
Buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah:
Jacob’s sons carried the body into the cave.
This was the cave purchased by Abraham, and the only part of the land of Canaan that Abraham held deed to.
This was the burial place of Sarah, of Abraham, and of Isaac, Rebekah, and Leah.
COMFORT and ASSURANCE
Joseph comforts his brothers’ fears.
Vs 15 The fears of Joseph’s brothers.
Joseph Reassures His Brothers
15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “Perhaps Joseph will hate us, and may actually repay us for all the evil which we did to him.”
Joseph is now 59 years old. 39 years after being sold to Egypt.
Perhaps Joseph will hate us:
The brothers feared that perhaps Joseph would turn on them after Jacob’s death. Knowing human nature, this was certainly possible.
And may actually repay us for all the evil which we did to him:
Here, they acknowledged “all the evil which they did”.
Worried about justice, fearing retribution.
Knowing that Joseph, with his high status and prestige in Egypt, was able to bring retribution.
Vs16-18 The unlikely story of Joseph’s brothers.
16 So they sent messengers to Joseph, saying, “Before your father died he commanded, saying, 17 ‘Thus you shall say to Joseph: “I beg you, please forgive the trespass of your brothers and their sin; for they did evil to you.” ’ Now, please, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of your father.” And Joseph wept when they spoke to him.
18 Then his brothers also went and fell down before his face, and they said, “Behold, we are your servants.”
Before your father died he commanded:
No evidence that Jacob had said any of this.
No evidence that Joseph ever even spoke to Jacob of what his brothers did.
They didn’t feel they had the right to ask Joseph for mercy, due to their sin against him.
So they put the request for mercy in the mouth of their dead father.
Joseph wept when they spoke to him:
Joseph probably wept because it seemed that his brothers doubted his character.
Joseph’s response. He wept.
He wept because they doubted his grace.
He wept because his brothers lied.
He wept because they lacked assurance in him.
JOSEPH WEPT, BECAUSE HIS BROTHERS DIDN’T REALLY KNOW HIM.
TRUST (Issues)
POINT: DOUBT can trouble us too. It can bring TRUST issues.
“Am I really saved, or not.”
“Am I really forgiven or not.”
POINT: UNBELIEF caused JESUS to weep.
Luke 19:41-42 41 Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, 42 saying, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.
POINT: If you think your past sins are still an issue, then perhaps you don’t know who JESUS is.
Fell down before his face, and they said, “Behold, we are your servants”:
GUILT overwhelmed the brothers once again in a genuine display of humility.
ASSURANCE
Vs 19-21 Joseph comforts his brothers.
19 Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? 20 But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. 21 Now therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones.” And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.
Am I in the place of God:
Joseph understood he was not in the place of God.
It wasn’t his job to bring retribution upon his brothers.
If the LORD chose to punish them, He would have to find an instrument other than Joseph.
Joseph trusted GOD to deal with sin.
It wasn’t Jospeh’s job to get vengeance.
Joseph experienced this throughout his life. He saw GOD take care of those who came against him.
From a human perspective, Joseph had the right and the ability to bring retribution upon his brothers, but he knew God was God and he was not. Such retribution was God’s place, not Joseph’s.
As for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good: Joseph did not romanticize the wrong his brothers did. He plainly said, “You meant evil against me.”
Although this was true, it was not the greatest truth. The greatest truth was “God meant it for good.”
God used Josph’s brothers bad intentions, for good purpose.
ASSURANCE:
Every Christian should be able to see the overarching and overruling hand of God in their life; to know that no matter what evil man brings against us, God can use it for good.
Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
Joseph didn’t have Paul’s letter to the Romans, but he understood the truth of it.
Sadly, many of us who have the text do not have the truth.
Ultimately, our lives are not in the hands of men, but in the hands of God, who overrules all things for His glory.
Joseph knew that GOD had used bad things to get him to where he was, to save the people of his family, and the nations of people and Egypt.
GOD takes sin, disease, bad things and turns it around for HIS good purposes.
HE uses bad things and turns them around for good purposes.
To save many people alive:
Jacob’s family would have perished in the famine if Joseph had not gone ahead to Egypt to prepare the way for them.
Jacob’s family had to come to Egypt and live to survive the famine of that day. This was GOD’s Plan for the Preservation of Israel.
If Joseph’s brothers never sold him to the Midianites, then Joseph would never have gone to Egypt.
If Joseph never went to Egypt, he would never have been sold to Potiphar.
If Joseph was never sold to Potiphar, Potiphar’s wife would never have falsely accused him of rape.
If Potiphar’s wife never falsely accused Joseph of rape, then Joseph would never have been put in prison.
If Joseph was never put in prison, he would have never met the baker and butler of Pharaoh.
If Joseph never met the baker and butler of Pharaoh, he would have never interpreted their dreams.
If Joseph never interpreted their dreams, he would have never interpreted Pharaoh’s dream.
If Joseph never interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, he never would have become prime minister, second in Egypt only to Pharaoh.
If Joseph never became prime minister, he never would have wisely prepared for the terrible famine to come.
If Joseph never wisely prepared for the terrible famine, then his family back in Canaan would have died in the famine.
If Joseph’s family back in Canaan died in the famine, then the Messiah could not have come from a dead family.
POINT: If the Messiah did not come forth, then Jesus never came.
If Jesus never came, then we are all dead in our sins and without hope in this world.
We can be grateful to GOD for HIS PLAN and WISDOM and have Assurance in HIS PROMISES to us in HIS WORD.
And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them:
Even with the evil that came upon Joseph through his brothers, he showed them love and compassion.
I will provide for you and your little ones:
JOSEPH DID provide for his brothers and their families.
The death of Joseph.
Vs 22-24 Joseph is still in Egypt, but his heart is in Canaan.
22 So Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he and his father’s household. And Joseph lived one hundred and ten years. 23 Joseph saw Ephraim’s children to the third generation. The children of Machir, the son of Manasseh, were also brought up on Joseph’s knees.
24 And Joseph said to his brethren, “I am dying; but God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land to the land of which He swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.”
Joseph lived one hundred and ten years:
Joseph’s long life was evidence of GOD’s blessing. He saw his Great Great Grand Children.
PROMISES:
God will surely visit you and bring you out of this land to the land which He swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob:
This shows Joseph’s FAITH, TRUST and ASSURANCE of GOD’S PROMISES.
While the Family had to come to Egypt, JOSEPH KNEW that this was not their final resting place BECAUSE of GOD’s promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Eventually they would return to Canaan.
Vs 25-26 The death and embalming of Joseph.
25 Then Joseph took an oath from the children of Israel, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.” 26 So Joseph died, being one hundred and ten years old; and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.
He was put in a coffin in Egypt:
He was never buried in Egypt. His coffin laid above ground for centuries.
You shall carry up my bones from here:
Joseph’s life was a life of faith, and in his death, Joseph gave instruction for his bones to be carried to back to Canaan. And for 400 years, his coffin laid above ground as a reminder to the Israelites of GOD’s promise of the Promised Land.
FAITH and TRUST:
Joseph’s heart was in the Promised Land. It proved him to be a man of great faith, trusting in things not yet seen.*
Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
ASSURANCE:
Joseph’s bones were in a coffin in Egypt as a reminder that they were only there in Egypt temporarily, and one day he would be taken to Shechem and buried there.
THIS COFFIN CONTAINING JOSEPH’S BONES REPRESENTED ASSURANCE OF GOD’S PROMISE YET TO COME.
Its story was handed down from generation to generation.
GOD’s Promise and Joseph’s request would be fulfilled some 400 years later, when Israel left Egypt, and it was Moses who reminded the people to take Joseph’s coffin and bones with them.
Exodus 13:18-19
18 So God led the people around by way of the wilderness of the Red Sea. And the children of Israel went up in orderly ranks out of the land of Egypt.
19 And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for he had placed the children of Israel under solemn oath, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here with you.”
POINT: DON’T BE DISCOURAGED. SOME PROMISES OF GOD MAY TAKE A LONG TIME TO FULFILL, AND WE MUST PERSEVERE IN TRUSTING GOD.
Joseph died looking forward to God’s unfolding plan of redemption, and that is where the Book of Genesis – the Book of Beginnings – ends
…with a Coffin
But it also concludes looking forward to the continuation of GOD’s Eternal Plan for mankind.
GENESIS has taken us from the very Beginnings of Creation to the fall of man, to the Promise and Hope for a future.
JESUS, the Promised Blessing to all nations, gives us the Promise and Hope of a future beyond this world.
Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!
Pastor Bill
Joseph: the Portrait of CHRIST (Bible Gateway)
The Life of Joseph Genesis 30:24 – Genesis 50:26
1. A shepherd.
2. Loved by his father.
3. Sent unto his brethren
4. Hated by his brothers.
5. Prophesied his coming glory.
6. Rejected by his brothers.
7. Endured unjust punishment from his brothers.
8. Sentenced to the pit.
9. Condemned to the pit, though a leader knew he should go free.
10. Sold for pieces of silver.
11. Handed over to the Gentiles.
12. Regarded as dead but raised out of the pit.
13. Went to Egypt.
14. Made a servant.
15. Tempted severely but did not sin.
16. Falsely accused.
17. Made no defense.
18. Cast into prison and numbered with sinners and criminals.
19. Endured unjust punishment from Gentiles.
20. Associated with two other criminals; one was pardoned, and one was not.
21. Showed compassion.
22. Brought a message of deliverance in prison.
23. Wanted to be remembered.
24. Shown to have divine wisdom.
25. Recognized as having the Spirit of God.
26. Betrayed by friends.
27. Glorified after his humility.
28. Honored among Gentiles while still despised or forgotten by his brethren.
29. Given a Gentile bride.
30. Was 30 years old when he began his life’s work.
31. Blessed the world with bread.
32. Became the only source of bread for the world.
33. The world was instructed to go to him and do whatever he said to do.
34. Was given the name “God Speaks and He Lives.”
35. His brethren were driven out of their own land.
36. In his second appearing, he did not first go to his brothers; they came to him.
37. He knew his brethren even while unknown and unrecognized by them.
38. He blessed his brethren without their knowledge.
39. He wanted all of his brethren to come to him.
40. There was a significant time gap between his initial relationship with his brothers and his second relationship to his brothers.
41. He gave his brothers a way of deliverance through substitution.
42. His “second coming” to his brothers had two appearances. He made himself known to his brethren at his second appearing to them.
43. He was revealed as a man of compassion.
44. His brothers repented of rejecting him, with great amazement and tears.
45. He allowed no fellowship (as in eating together) until his brothers repented and he revealed himself.
46. His brethren went forth to proclaim his glory.
47. He made provision for his brethren.
48. He prepared a place for his brethren, and he received them into it.
49. He brought Jew and Gentile together in the land.
