This week, Pastor Adam continues the sermon series on Joseph. For the past few weeks, as the story of Joseph has unraveled, we have seen Joseph favored by his Father, going around his jealous brothers in his beautiful coat of many colors. Joseph was a dreamer and later was able to interpret dreams. Joseph’s brothers hated him so much that they sold him into slavery. Later, Joseph was falsely imprisoned. During this time, it is very important to remember that God remained with him. As his story continued, Joseph interpreted Pharoah’s dreams and was put in charge of the whole land of Egypt.
As Joseph once had dreamed, the land of Egypt went through seven years of abundance and was now facing seven years of famine. “All the world came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe everywhere” (Gen. 41:57). This is when Joseph’s past comes back into his life, but Joseph is in a different place now. Over 20 years have passed since his brothers sold him. Joseph had two boys now, Manasseh and Ephraim. Manasseh meant, “It is because God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s household,” and Ephraim meant, “because God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering.” (See Gen. 41: 50-52). Being named after “forget and fruitful,” Joseph desired to forget the past and move into a fruitful future. The names were symbolic of his forgiveness.
As the famine spread, Joseph “opened all the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe throughout Egypt. And all the world came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe everywhere” (Gen. 41:56-57). Here is where the story takes another turn. Joseph’s brothers come to Egypt “so that they may live and not die.” As ten of his brothers approached Joseph, Joseph recognized them and had his guard up. He immediately accused them of being spies, and then decided to test them. Joseph told them, “Send one of your number to get your brother; the rest of you will be kept in prison, so that your words may be tested to see if you are telling the truth. If you are not, then as surely as Pharaoh lives, you are spies!” (Gen. 42:16).
On the third day, Joseph loosened up a bit and told them, “Do this and you will live, for I fear God: If you are honest men, let one of your brothers stay here in prison, while the rest of you go and take grain back for your starving households. But you must bring your youngest brother to me, so that your words may be verified and that you may not die.” This they proceeded to do. (Gen. 42:18-20). Joseph’s brothers felt the guilt and weight of what they had done to Joseph so many years ago. They said to one another, “Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw how distressed he was when he pleaded with us for his life, but we would not listen; that’s why this distress has come on us.” Reuben replied, “Didn’t I tell you not to sin against the boy? But you wouldn’t listen! Now we must give an accounting for his blood” (Gen. 42: 21-22).
Joseph wept after he heard his brothers arguing. We are reminded that Joseph loves his brothers, but simply could not trust them. Joseph gave them the grain they needed and returned their silver to them in their bags. They went home and shared this with their Father, Jacob. Once all the grain they were given was gone, Jacob sent his sons back to Egypt, this time with Benjamin (the youngest brother), as Joseph had requested. Jacob sent his sons on their way and told them, “And may God Almighty grant you mercy before the man so that he will let your other brother and Benjamin come back with you” (Gen. 43:14).
The brothers hurried back to Egypt and presented their gifts and silver to Joseph. Immediately, Joseph ordered his steward to, “take these men to my house, slaughter an animal and prepare a meal; they are to eat with me at noon” (Gen. 43:16). The brothers were frightened, thinking that Joseph wanted to attack them, seize them as slaves, and take their donkeys. In guilt mode, the brothers quickly disclosed that they were returning the silver they were originally given in their sacks, along with more. After calming them down, they took the brothers to Joseph’s house, where they prepared their gifts for him. As they presented Joseph with their gifts, the brothers bowed down before him (just as they had in Joseph’s dream). They sat to eat, and Benjamin, showing great favor, was given five times more to eat than the other brothers.
When they were ready to leave, they were sent on their way with as much food as they could carry and their silver; but in Benjamin’s bag, Joseph’s stewards hid his silver cup. Once they were on their way, Joseph sent for them and threatened the culprit with slavery. After the cup was found in Benjamin’s bag, Judah pleaded with Joseph, knowing that this would kill their Father, Jacob.
“Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave my presence!” So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh’s household heard about it” (Gen. 45:1-2). This week, the story pauses here.
Pastor Adam shared these important aspects of Joseph’s forgiveness:
A good start to forgiveness: Release & Refocus
Forgiveness is a command, Trust is a choice
Forgiveness is always wise, Trust requires discernment
Forgiveness is a gift, Trust must be earned
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Monday: Release and Refocus
Joseph was once sold into slavery by his brothers and now was ruling in Egypt. This ultimate act of betrayal hurt Joseph so badly, and it was done to him by his own family. How would anyone get over that?
Let us recall Joseph’s life when his brothers re-entered his life. He had two sons now, named Manasseh (to forget) and Ephraim (to be fruitful). Joseph's desire was to forget his troubles because God wanted him to focus on fruitfulness and blessings. The names were symbolic of his forgiveness.
As his brothers come back into the picture, Joseph searched his heart to forgive them. It was easier for him to forgive them than to trust them again, so he had to test them first.
Reflection/ Action: Read Ephesians 4:32 - Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Take time in prayer today. Pray about those in your life that have wronged you. Ask yourself these questions:
Have you forgiven them?
If you have not forgiven them, ask your Father in prayer to lead you to a place where you can find forgiveness. What is in the way of you forgiving this person?
If you have forgiven them, thank your Father for this.
Ask your Father God to remind you of your fruitfulness and blessings as you pray to forgive others who have hurt you.
Tuesday: How can I forgive? How can I ever trust them again?
I have to share that I am not a fan of the statement, “Forgive and Forget.” I feel that these words are just too short to describe everything that goes into the phrase. I have been told by friends to just “forgive and forget,” but it’s just not that easy for me. I need time to stew a little, think of reasons why the person did what they did, and then start thinking about forgiveness and dealing with any pain left behind.
As Donna Shaw shared about the betrayal she experienced, she said, “When you are wronged, you are handed an internal wound. Though unseen, we never forget the pain caused by that wound. The larger the pain, the larger the wound.” “While we may be able to forget small slights, we remember life-altering wounds.” She shared three options on how to deal with these wounds. 1. Handing it back, otherwise known as revenge, which is not God’s plan. 2. Internalizing or hiding the pain, which is a result of shame, which is also not part of His plan. 3. Handing it up to Jesus. “When we hand our wounds up to Jesus Christ, we take them out of circulation. That is how Jesus patterned forgiveness. He felt the wounds, absorbed the pains, and forgave them from the cross. He took them out of circulation for eternity.”
“When you and I hand up our wounds to Jesus, He renews our strength from the inside out. Right where that wound is hiding. And He faithfully begins to work true forgiveness in us.” (Source: Artesianministries.org).
Reflection/ Action: Read Hebrews 8:12 - And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.
Spend the next few minutes in prayer. If you are struggling with forgiving someone in your life, think about how Jesus patterned forgiveness. Ask your heavenly Father to give you the strength to heal any wounds left behind so that you can forgive, as he has forgiven us.
Wednesday: Lack of Resolution
Do recall three years ago when COVID was on the rise, and we had food and supply shortages? This was just a few years ago, and everyone was stuck at home, and groceries and cleaning products were in short supply. People had websites just to find Lysol, Clorox wipes, toilet paper, and paper towels. All stores were limiting purchases only to 1-2 per household. If you were prepared or a warehouse shopper, you may have had cases of paper towels and toilet paper stored up in your garage. Who are you going to share with? Sure, you want to share with your fellow church community or your loving and caring family, but are you going to share with your enemy, the neighbor down the street who complains about your grass being too high, or the grouchy family member who complains about everyone?
Reflection/ Action: Read Ephesians 4:32 - Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.
Think of Joseph and his storehouse of grains that fed Egypt during the famine. If you were in his shoes, would you share with everyone, even your family that wronged you? Pray today and ask our Father to reveal areas in your life where you lack resolution. Pray for a tender heart towards all, even those who wronged you. Continue to pray about unresolved forgiveness.
Thursday: Forgiveness is a command; Trust is a choice. Forgiveness is a gift, and Trust must be earned.
We learned from Joseph’s story that forgiveness doesn’t equal trust. Pastor Adam shared that, “Forgiveness is a gift, and trust must be earned.” Joseph’s brothers had to earn his trust again and demonstrate their trustworthiness.
Reflection/ Action: Read: John 2:23-25 - Because of the miraculous signs Jesus did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many began to trust in him. But Jesus didn’t trust them because he knew all about people. No one needed to tell him about human nature, for he knew what was in each person’s heart.
Read: Psalm 41:9 - Even my close friend in whom I trusted, Who ate my bread, Has lifted up his heel against me.
Spend time in prayer today with the word “Trust” in mind. Think about what you have done for others to trust you, and think about the trust others have lost by wronging you. Ask God to reveal to you how you could trust this person again. Ask God if you are guarding your heart with this person due to a lack of trust. Have you already forgiven this person with whom you lack trust?
Friday: Forgiveness is always wise; Trust requires discernment
We forgive others as we have been forgiven; but do we continue to guard our hearts, or simply have our guard up? Why do we set ourselves up to be hurt again? As Pastor Adam shared on Sunday, “Love forgives them; it doesn’t mean you need to be connected with them.”
I personally have been hurt and can say that it is hard to be around the people who hurt me. I have forgiven them, but I just can’t find myself to be best buds again with those people again. Pastor Adam taught us that ‘trust requires discernment,’ but how can we achieve discernment? Charles Spurgeon believed that “discernment is not a matter of simply telling the difference between right and wrong; rather, it is telling the difference between right and almost right.”
Reflection/ Action: Read: Proverbs 22:24-25 - Don’t befriend angry people or associate with hot-tempered people, or you will learn to be like them and endanger your soul.
Spend time in prayer today, continuing to pray on the word “trust.” Pray to our Father about those you have forgiven or need to forgive, and ask God to give you wisdom about this person. Ask your Father if you will be able to trust this person again in the future. Think about the qualities this person has and pray about how this person fits into your life as you continue to walk with the Lord.
Saturday: Mercy
In prison, the Lord showed Joseph mercy (Gen. 29:21-23), and later in life, Joseph showed mercy to his brothers. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines mercy as “compassion or forbearance shown especially to an offender or to one subject to one's power;” or as “a blessing that is an act of divine favor or compassion.”
Reflection/ Action - Read: Matthew 5:7 - Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Before continuing with Joseph’s story on Sunday, take a few minutes to listen to: His Mercy is More .
As you listen to the song, pray on the chorus, which repeats, “Our sins they are many, His mercy is more.” Thank the Lord for His forgiveness. Thank Him for His mercy and loving kindness.