When we are going through difficult trials, it is so easy to ask, “God, why is this happening to me?”
We recall how Joseph was sent by his father to find his brothers and see how they were doing. They saw him in the distance and decided they were going to kill him. Fortunately, for Joseph, some traveling merchants came by and they decided, “Let’s just sell him instead of killing him.” So that’s what they did, and the merchants took him to Egypt. Now he is in a foreign country. He didn’t know anyone, and he couldn’t speak the language. He was sold as a slave to an important man named Potiphar. Unfortunately, for Joseph, his master’ wife had the hots for him and she did her best to get him into bed, but he refused, so she yelled “Rape.” Now he winds up in prison. He had every right to ask, “Why me?”
Joseph was a man of integrity, and no matter where he was, he worked diligently and befriended others. In Genesis 40, we read how Pharaoh’s chief cupbearer and chief baker offended their master and were thrown into prison. While there, each of them had a dream. In Genesis 40:6-7, we read, 6 When Joseph saw them the next morning, he noticed that they both looked upset. 7 “Why do you look so worried today?” he asked them.” They told him about their dreams, but no one could tell them what they meant. He encouraged them to share their dreams with him. They did share, and Joseph told the chief cupbearer that he was going to be restored to his position. Joseph told the chief baker, “Three days from now, Pharaoh will lift you and impale your body on a pole. Then birds will come and pick away at your flesh.” I’m sure that was not good news for the baker. Everything happened just as Joseph said it would. Two years later, Pharaoh had a dream, and he called for all the magicians and wise men of Egypt to interpret his dream, but they were not able to. Suddenly, the chief cupbearer remembered Joseph, and he told Pharaoh about the Hebrew who could interpret dreams. Pharaoh sent for Joseph and told him the dream and said, “I had a dream last night, and no one here can tell me what it means. But I have heard that when you hear a dream, you can interpret it. In Genesis 41:16, Joseph replied, “It is beyond my power to do this. But God can tell you what it means and set you at ease.” So, God revealed the meaning to Joseph, and he told Pharaoh that Egypt was going to have seven years of great prosperity followed by seven years of famine. They were to use the seven years of prosperity to store up for when the seven years of famine took place. Pharaoh was to find someone to oversee the project, and Pharaoh appointed Joseph as a ruler in Egypt. Only Pharaoh was more powerful. So, for seven years, Joseph had the people store up grain in preparation for the coming famine. Pharaoh gave Joseph a wife. He was thirty years old when he began to serve Pharaoh’s court. They had such bumper crops that Joseph stopped counting how much they had. During this time, two sons were born to Joseph and his wife. Joseph named the older son Manasseh. He said in Genesis 41:51, “God has made me forget all my troubles and everyone in my father’s family.” He named his second son Ephraim and said, “God has made me fruitful in this land of my grief.”
Then came the seven years of famine, and it also spread to other nations besides Egypt. When the people of Egypt cried out to Pharaoh, he sent them to Joseph, who opened the storehouses and began to distribute them to the Egyptians. When Jacob heard that grain was available, he sent his sons there to buy grain. The day came when they appeared before Joseph. They didn’t recognize him, but he knew who they were. He wanted to know where they were from. In Genesis 42:9, we read, and he (Joseph) remembered the dreams he’d had about them many years before. He said to them, “You are spies! You have come to see how vulnerable our land has become.”
They tried to convince him that they were not spies but had just come to buy grain, but Joseph kept insisting they were spies. They told him that there were twelve siblings in their family and that the youngest was back in Canaan. So, Joseph said, “You will never leave Egypt unless your youngest brother comes here. One of you must go back and get him. The rest of you will remain in prison.” (42:15-16)
After three days, Joseph said, “I am a God-fearing man. If you do as I say, you will live. If you are really honest men, choose one of your brothers to remain in prison; the rest of you can go home with grain for your starving families. But you must bring your youngest brother back to me. This will prove you are telling the truth, and you will not die.”
The brothers remembered what they had done to Joseph, and they concluded they were being punished for what they had done to him. They didn’t know that Joseph understood what they were saying. When they returned to their father, they shared what had happened and what was demanded of them. Jacob was adamant that Benjamin would not go. After their grain ran out, they were still faced with the famine. Judah told his dad that he would take personal responsibility for Benjamin, so finally Jacob relented, and the brothers returned to Egypt to buy more grain. In time, Joseph revealed his identity to his brothers, and now they were really afraid. But, in Genesis 50:20, he said to them, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
Here are some lessons we can learn from this account:
1. God sees everything we are going through, and He cares. There is an important phrase that appears five times in the story of Joseph, each time after a major crisis or defeat. In Genesis 39:21, it says, “But the Lord was with Joseph.” The same is true for you and me.
2. God has given everyone freedom of choice. We are not puppets or robots. When we choose to do wrong or ignore what is right, He will not force His will on us. Often, we bring problems on ourselves and then blame God as if it were His fault. The fact of the matter is that God’s will is not always done, and when that is the case, there are consequences.
3. God is in control of the outcome. He can take our mistakes and all the sins that others commit against us and turn them around and bring good out of the bad. When he interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, he was made 2nd in command. God saw to it that Joseph was rewarded for his faithfulness. Joseph was able to say to his brothers, “You meant it for harm, but God meant it for good.” God may allow us to go through difficult times, but He always has a plan and He means it for our good.
4. Note: Joseph did not give in to self-pity. When we do this, it leads to depression. Joseph did not blame himself. He knew the crisis was not his fault. The best way to face a storm is head-on. That is what Joseph did.
5. Another thought – never make a major decision when you are depressed. It is so easy to give in to discouragement and say, “I give up,” or “I’m going to quit,” or “I’m going to move,” or “I’m going to change jobs,” or “I’m going to get a divorce.” When we are depressed and discouraged, our focus is blurry and our perspective is distorted. Face the storm head-on and see what God is up to.
6. Joseph didn’t give in to bitterness. Instead, he chose to forgive his brothers. He knew he could not afford the excess baggage of bitterness in his life. Neither can we. Instead, we should say, “Lord, you take this problem.”
When someone tries to destroy you, God can use it to develop you.
What is God’s plan for recovery?
1. In Romans 8:28, Paul wrote, “In all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” We gain strength when we approach life’s circumstances from God’s perspective.
2. We need to rely on the promise of God. There are thousands of promises in God’s word. Each one is like a blank check. Romans 15:4 says that those promises were given to encourage us and give us hope. That is why we should memorize them and let the Holy Spirit bring them to our remembrance.
3. God’s people are a third source of strength. That is one of the reasons I determined to have “Fellowship” as a part of our church name. We gain strength from our fellowship with other believers. That is why faithfully being in church most Sundays is so important. You may stay home and exist, but you will not flourish in your walk with the Lord.
One of my favorite passages is 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, where we read that “God allows us to go through intense trials and problems and he comforts us (strengthens) so that we in turn may offer comfort (strength) to others in similar situations.”
4. Recognize the presence of God in Jesus Christ. David, in Psalm 23:4, said, “Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me.” Each of us has God in the person of the Holy Spirit abiding in us at all times.
The cross is the ultimate example of people planning things for evil, but God working them out for good and the blessing of all mankind. That’s what happened when Joseph turned everything over to God — many lives were saved. He recognized he hadn’t done anything wrong, that God was with him, so he turned everything over to God. His family was reunited, and many were saved from starvation.
Can you think of a time when you were going through a very difficult time and you turned it over to God, saying, “I can’t, but you can,” and you became a better person?
Blessings,
Pastor Leonard
