This week’s reading: Genesis 45:1-28
Hi Friends,
Finally Joseph gets the proof that he has been looking for since the moment he saw his brothers that first time when they came to him for provisions for their family. To his delight, none of these brothers abandon their youngest sibling, and moreover, Judah begs to be taken in Benjamin’s place. Repentant hearts bow down again to this governor of Egypt and Joseph cannot keep his relief and joy quiet any longer. Spoiler alert: Joseph then gives his brothers the biggest surprise they never saw coming…but God saw it a very long time before. We are in Genesis 45, reading the whole chapter, that is verses 1 through 28. Listen to this amazing speech:
“Then Joseph said to his brothers, ‘Come close to me.’ When they had done so, he said, ‘I am your brother, Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt. Now hurry back to my father and say to him, “This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don’t delay. You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me – you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have. I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.”’” Gen 45:4-11 NIV
Free to Live Love
Judah has just poured his heart out as he pleads with Joseph to spare his youngest brother, as well as his aged father from the misery that enslaving Benjamin would bring. Joseph is overwhelmed at the change he sees in these brothers, who did not care a wink about him 22 years ago. Yet this is one of the many overflowing benefits of being God’s children. God will use every situation in our lives to soften our hearts and move us to desire to become more loving, compassionate and selfless. Listen to this great excerpt from MacLaren’s Expositions about the change in Judah that Joseph clearly sees: “Was it not because his brother’s speech shows that filial and fraternal affection was now strong enough in him to conquer self? He had sent Joseph to the fate which he is now ready to accept. He and the rest had thought nothing of the dagger they plunged into their father’s heart by selling Joseph; but now he is prepared to accept bondage if he may save his father’s grey head an ache.” The process of dying to our old self, or Sanctification as it is called, is a blessing from God as it leads us into a more stress free life. Because the less consumed with MMI that we are, the freer we will be to simply live love.
So what do I mean by “live love”? To be able to go about doing good, just like Jesus did while He walked this earth. (see Ac 10:38) To not be so preoccupied with seeking, and striving after, what we think will make us happy, but taking note of the needs of others around us and seeking to fill them instead. I hope we all have experienced that glorious feeling when we have just been a blessing to someone else. We sense this deep fulfilling satisfaction within our hearts. It is like a “this is what I was meant to do” kind of a thing. And why do we feel that way? Because that is exactly what we were created to do! We were created to be like God who is always seeking to love everyone. To help each of us with whatever it is we may truly need at that particular moment. So when we will act like Him and step out of our own tiny, selfish bubble and care about others enough to help them? It is then that we are fulfilled. I am sure Judah was not looking forward to a lifetime of being a slave, yet knowing his brother Benjamin would be free to return to his dearly beloved father was enough for him to accept that fate with joy in his heart. Of course, he had no idea what was about to happen!
A Safe Space
The first thing Joseph does is send all his Egyptian servants out of the room. He knew this was going to be a complete shock to his brothers and was not sure what kind of reaction they would have. He knew there was remorse and figured there would be weeping involved. So to spare them any embarrassment, he wanted them to have privacy during this special and intimate moment. He wanted to give them room to hold nothing back, but to feel free to unburden themselves with no restraint, because they might feel self-conscious that others were watching. The Egyptian attendants probably did not understand their history, so they would not have understood what the big deal was about his reunion. And so Joseph sends them all out.
This is how considerate Joseph was. He desired everyone to simply feel comfortable and have the space to let it all out. When we go through any traumatic situation, we too must be in an atmosphere where we can just be real, vulnerable and raw. If there are some around us that do not understand, or do not desire to help us do this, we can actually hinder our own healing from that trial. We all need a safe space, to be with those we truly can trust with our aching heart, in order to begin to heal after a very difficult situation. If this is you, my Friends, won’t you reach out to a support group in your area. They can lessen the time it takes to get to the other side of your grief which will add to the quality of your life. For instance, if you have lost a loved one, won’t you check with your local church to see if they have a Grief Sharing program. Being with others who had gone through, and can empathize with your own pain, can be so comforting. It can also help you connect with God and receive His peace. No one is saying that we will never grieve again. But with God and those He places around you in support, we can cry with Hope. This means we will not stay stuck in the suffering, but will be able to carry on with life as we honor those that have gone before us. Many times others may not be aware of our pain, because too many times we try to keep it inside and deal with all on our own. But we were never meant for this. We were never meant to handle the hard times by ourselves.
We need one another. Certainly, the first Person we must run to is God. In addition though, God desires for us to find comfort with one another as well. This too can be a matter of Pride. But this is what we are supposed to be dying to, remember? That MMI mentality where we think we do not need anyone because can do “it,” whatever “it” happens to be at moment, all on our own. Pride. It keeps us in a prison of loneliness, where we cannot receive love, much less give it. So when we are hurting and desperate for healing, let’s humble ourselves and seek others we can have confidence in, to help us through. This is one of the gifts God has blessed me with as I “coach” others towards walking through their personal “valley of the shadow of death.” I use the word “coach,” not because I like the term, but because it is more understood in this current culture. But what I pray I am really doing is pointing others to The Healer, and simply loving them into moving forward with life, despite the difficulties, and becoming a better person, in spite of the past problems. I say again, please seek a safe space and allow the healing to come. This is what Joseph is providing for his brothers here.
All 12 brothers, together again. Think of what is happening between these 12 brothers as a wonderful support group with Joseph as the facilitator, attempting to begin their healing. What a relief this must have been for Joseph who truly desired to be reconciled with his biological family. Yes, God had given him so much there in Egypt, yet this would be the icing on the cake that was now his life. All he had, plus his long lost brothers? What could have been better for Joseph? Ahhh, yes. To see his father! And so Joseph is quick to make plans for that lovely reunion as well.
The Way God Works
Yes, Joseph has already completely forgiven his brothers and wants them to bring their father to him, as soon as possible. But first, Joseph must make sure the brothers take his forgiveness seriously. He says, not only do I forgive you, but I want you all to come live here, with me, so I can make sure you all have plenty of provisions. He explains that this famine will continue for another five years and he wants to make sure they all will survive. Joseph, of course, also points them to God. He explains how, even though they may have sold him into slavery, and sent him away from their home to Egypt, God used it all for their good.
Romans 8:28 is probably my favorite verse in the Bible, second only to those that talk about God’s Love and Grace. (see Jn 3:16, Rom 8:38-39, Eph 2:8 & 2Co 12:9 for instance) Throughout the life of Joseph, especially here in his reconciliation with his brothers, we see an incredible example of what St Paul was talking about. And how lovely that Joseph saw it too. You see, too often we can miss what God is doing in our lives, but Joseph was seeking God with his whole heart, and when we do this, we can gain insight into what God is doing in, and around us. I am sure Joseph became aware of God’s Plan the moment his brothers had come to buy grain and bowed down before him, just like in the dream God had given him. This time though, instead of being that self-absorbed 17 year old and acting a bit full of himself, this was a humbled Joseph completely grateful to God. Yes, God had fulfilled that dream, but Joseph was more concerned with the heart of his brothers than whether they were bowing at his feet. He knew this was nothing short of the hand of God, in and over his life. He must have begun to piece together what God was doing, for the benefit of his life, the lives of his family, as well as for so many others too. Joseph says, “And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you…. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God.” (Gen 45:5, 7-8)
First, God in no way forced these brothers to make the choice to turn over Joseph to the slave traders. This was their doing because of their hard hearts, which were filled with jealousy and bitterness towards Joseph. But if we humans are going to freely and willingly make these poor choices, (see Free Will here), God is not going to let them go to waste. God wastes nothing. He is the Divine Recycler! Even though what they did is sinful, God would weave it together in the fabric of all their lives, in such a skillful way that it could be a blessing in the end. Does this mean their sin was ok? Of course not! It simply means we have the pleasure of serving a very Good God who will not let our sin be the final answer. Think The Cross here. God sent His only Son to take all of our unrighteousness upon His Righteous shoulders, so that we could have the opportunity to be His. Now all we have to do is make the godly decision to surrender our lives to Jesus, the way He surrendered His Life for us. This was always God’s Plan.
God’s Providence. Because God is Omniscient, Omnipotent, and Omnipresent…not to mention Love, Grace, Merciful, Forgiving, Sovereign, so very Good, etc, etc…He sees what is coming before we even think about sinning. In addition, He kneads it all together— all our sins, all our pain, all our suffering, and even, all our lives— in such a way that good comes rising to the surface. He instills the yeast of His Love into each receptive heart so that it may produce a lovely outcome. This should bring us such peace. What it should not do is give us an excuse to continue to sin, as if we needed an excuse! It is because God so Loves us that we should desire to grow in his Grace, so we that can stay away from sin, as much as humanly possible. Thus Saints like Joseph in the Bible, to show us it truly is humanly possible, if…if we trust God. If we devote our lives to Him, the way God devoted, and still devotes, His Life to us.
Have we ever really thought about that? God is not seeking only to be a part of OUR tiny, little lives, but He desires for us to be immersed in His Eternal Life. God does not only come down to earth so He can be with us, but He also wants raise us up so we can be with Him. This is a two way street. God more than does His part. Are we doing ours? From the moment he was sold and realized he needed to humble himself before God, Joseph lived his life for God. He not only wanted to obey God with everything he did, but he wanted to display God to those around him as well. Seeking to know Him and make Him known. This is what we were created for. And no matter his environment, Joseph worked with God, trusting Him to never let him go. To always be with him helping him to be a blessing wherever God planted him. I have said this before but it merits repeating: Joseph’s life was not amazing because he became second-in-command in Egypt, but simply because he was completely devoted to his God. Joseph was second to God and that is exactly what God is searching for in this world. Those of us who will continually work with Him to kill off that Pride and humbly desire to serve Him so others may know Him and be saved too.
God is Sovereign and Grants Free Will
It mattered little to him whether he remained in that prison or was lifted up into the palace, Joseph was going to be the best human being he could be. He gave 100% all the time, no matter where God placed him. God knew this. God saw his heart before Joseph even surrendered it to Him. And God knew he could use this humbled heart to preserve a remnant of His people. You see, in God’s Providence, He already knew Jesus would come from this lineage, and so He had to make sure they would not make such bad choices that they would become extinct. God always makes sure there are some hearts that will follow Him.
The Bible says, “So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace.” (Ro 11:5) There have been so many arguments about whether God chooses people to be His or whether people choose to belong to God. I never understand this confusion. Think of any human relationship. There is always one who initiates the friendship, yet the other person must agree to be in the relationship or not, right? If there is any coercion, if one of them does not have any choice but to be with the first, then is it a relationship? God initiates everything, of course, because we humans are not even aware that we need Him! Yet to think we have no choice whether to reciprocate the desire to be His or not? That simply does not sound like the God of Love the rest of the Bible reveals.
For example, how could God be righteously angry at those who will eventually end up in hell, if they had no choice about refusing to be His? This is not a case of whether God chooses or humans do. It is a matter of God offering Himself to each and every human and each and every human choosing whether to humble ourselves to be His or refusing pridefully to be under His rightful Reign. Because God is Omniscient, because God seeks to work it all together for the good of those who love Him and have been called to His purpose, He already knows who is who. (see Ps 139:16 & 2Ti 2:19 for instance)
Here’s another example of this misunderstanding. In Malachi 1 and Romans 9, God is speaking when He says, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” (see Mal 1:3 & Ro 9:13) God knew their hearts before He said, “Let there be light!”… and He knows ours as well. When making His Plans for Humanity, and choosing which lineage would bring about the Messiah, God knew who would remain hard hearted and who would eventually surrender to God’s Holy Will. This is not to say that God did not bless both Esau and Jacob’s families, because He did. But more like God knew Esau would remain a brute of a man, seeking to live his own life, his own way, while Jacob would, again eventually, humble himself and surrender to the God of his forefathers, Abraham and Isaac. God did not choose Jacob because he was this wonderful, sinless man. Even after he began following God, he was a mess….as we all are. Look at the trouble his favoritism brought to his family. First, the rivalry between Leah and Rachel caused all sorts of heartache. Then between his sons, of course, with Jacob’s partiality for Joseph inciting his brother’s envy and ending up selling him into slavery. God foreknew every single thing that was going to happen, as well as every single heart, and He uses it all for good…this is exactly Joseph’s point, and mine.
God knew all this was going to happen. He also knew He had to get these boys together again. In addition, He knew the famine was coming. And so He works all these events together to reunite this torn family. Not only physically, but more importantly, spiritually. We will even see in later chapters that Joseph is not perfect either. We are all flawed characters. But praise God He is not looking for perfection. As He has told me many times, “Child, I have already found Perfection in My one and only Begotten Son.” What puts a smile on God’s face are children who keep on getting up, after they have fallen. Who continue to run to Him so that we may learn and grow and be His hands and feet to the best of our ability. Not perfection, but complete commitment, deep devotion, steadfast persistence. And lest we begin to pat ourselves on our own backs, this does not come from us. God is the source of all that is good. God initiates and moves us to choose Humility. What comes from us is simply surrender. Coming to the end of ourselves where we realize who we are apart from God, nothing. But once we surrender, we must also quickly remember who we are in Christ, everything. As we live in this Humility, we can receive the desire and power to do whatever God has planned for us. (please see Php 2:13) Freely and willingly choosing Humility over Pride. This is what makes a human a child of God, and this is what God saw in the heart of Joseph. May He see it in ours as well.
Forgiveness
Forgiveness is possible because of God’s Providence. This is the other major theme in our reading this week. It is exactly because we can trust in God’s Providence, that He sees it all and is working it all together for our good, that we should be able to forgive one another. I love how Joseph immediately cautions his brothers to “…not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here” (again see Gen 45:5) Joseph is familiar with the trick of the devil who wants everyone to feel shame and condemnation. I am sure the enemy tired that strategy on Joseph many times. I can almost hear the thoughts the devil attempted to stick into Joseph’s mind, “God must be really mad at me because, look, here I am in sold into slavery”…or later, “here I am thrown into this prison dungeon”…or still later, “here I am stuck and forgotten in this prison dungeon! I guess I am worthless and just not good enough.” Have you ever heard this lie too? With God’s help, Joseph learns to ignore and delete this line of deception from his thoughts. Every time the devil tried to convince him that God just did not care about him, I am sure Joseph pointed his own attention to how God had continued to give him success wherever he was. My Friends, we must do the same. We must focus on the blessings God has poured down upon our lives, rather than majoring on the hard things of life. Like Joseph, we must learn to see how God is using even those tough situations for our good, then forgive anyone who may have played a part in those trials.
Joseph knew his brothers had changed, but were still in the process of changing fully… as we all are. And so Joseph wanted to make sure they would not beat themselves up about their past sins. And God is telling us the same thing. We have to stop beating ourselves up when we sin…because we will. I am certainly NOT advocating we have a casual attitude about sin. NO! Sin is painful. Sin is cruel. Sin is deadly. If you are not sure, read any one of the Passion of our Christ narratives in the Bible… or just behold the bloody Cross to be sure that sin is horrific and God never takes it lightly. What I am saying is that when we sin, because again we will, we must quickly run to God in repentance, receive His forgiveness then allow this failure to help us stay with God more deeply, and walk with Him more closely than ever before.
Too often we will sin, and when we realize what we did, we will spend another week or two beating ourselves up about it, allowing ourselves to become entrenched in that shame and condemnation. The only one who wins in that scenario is the devil! Oh he loves it when we refuse to run to God, accept His Grace and simply forgive ourselves. Sadly, I know this trick of the enemy all too well. There have been way too many times where I have sinned and confessed it to God, but then still felt remorse, holding on to a deep and debilitating regret over it all. On one such occasion, I clearly sensed God whispering in my heart, “Why are you feeling down, Child?” Almost in tears, I replied, “Oh Lord, it is because I sinned!” To which He responded, “Didn’t you just confess it to Me yesterday? Did you receive My forgiveness for it?” I said, “Yes, Lord, I confessed and am grateful for Your forgiveness.” Then He quickly asked, “Are you greater than I am?” I also quickly cried out, “No, Lord, of course not!” Lastly, He gently added, “Then if I have forgiven you, Child, you must forgive yourself!” You see, once we sincerely confess our sins to God, who are we not to forgive when God has already done so? (see 1Jn 1:9) We are only allowing Pride to direct our heart when we refuse to forgive ourselves for that which God has already forgiven us. These brothers need to learn this hard lesson, and so do we.
When we hang on to guilt, and allow it to become condemnation, we are placing ourselves above God who has already forgiven us. Yes, we must sense remorse over the wrong we have done. Yes, we must run to God and confess it. But also, yes, we must receive His forgiveness, or else what is the point to what Jesus did on that Cross? Was it only for our Eternal Life that He suffered so horribly, died the death of a sinner, and thankfully, rose from the dead? Praise God we GET to go to Heaven when our time here is done. Hallelujah and amen! In addition, because our God is the God of overflowing Love and Grace, God desires for us to enjoy this life here too, on our way to Eternity. What healthy parent wants his children to walk around beating themselves up over their immaturity? No! We want our children to be happy, to live fulfilling lives, to be blessed and be a blessing, don’t we? Then why would The Perfect, Holy Father want anything less for His children?
Stop implanting that sin down deeper and deeper into your heart and simply let God pluck it out, so He may take it away. This is what Jesus came to do, isn’t it? Listen to John the Baptist if you are not sure, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (see Jn 1:29) Takes away the sin. Are we getting it? The Blood of Jesus, that is His sacrifice, has paid for all the world’s sin. Like Joseph, for those of us who have humbled ourselves, Jesus covers us in His Grace so we will never have to pay the eternal penalty for all our sins- past, present and future. We will never have to know that eternal separation from God, ever. EVER! And it can start here, today, right now. Once we surrender our hearts to God, once we become born again, we can live under God’s Grace until the day Jesus comes to take us Home. We can. But do we? Joseph knew his brothers would argue and point fingers at one another and at themselves. Thus the warning to not quarrel on the way back home. (see Gen 45:24) He wanted them to receive his forgiveness and live at peace with him and each other. God wants the same for us too.
Forgiven and Healed
What a beautiful and freeing gift! Because Joseph truly had let the offense of his brothers go years before, he could be reconciled with them, with no strings attached. He has moved on with life in a new home, with a new family and a new mission. These brothers seem to still be stuck back 22 years ago when they made that horrible choice to sell their young brother. And even though God has been working it all together for everyone’s good, again I want to emphasize that no one is saying what they did was ok. It certainly was not! Yet it was in the past and they needed to confess it, receive Grace and move on, forgiven and healed.
I wonder if there is anyone reading this who needs to do the same. If you have made some terrible choices— and who hasn’t— please do not allow them to cause you to continue making terrible choices. Forgiveness is supposed to be healing. It supposed to aid in the mending of relationships, first and foremost, that of our relationship with God. It is like putting balm on a wound. We do not apply it but then immediately wipe it off, do we? No, we let the medication do its work and repair the hurt area. With the constant help of God, Joseph had already done this in his own heart. There is no desire in him to make his brothers feel guilty…any guiltier than they already felt. There is not plans in Joseph to get revenge on them. Joseph just wants reconciliation. And God wants it even more. Now these brothers had to do the same thing. They had to have Faith that God forgave them. They had to trust that Joseph forgave them. And they had to forgive themselves and one another. Joseph was offering them forgiveness so they could heal from the past, but would they take it? Do we?
The Sweet Land of Goshen
Pharaoh agrees with Joseph’s plans to bring his whole family to Egypt and settle them into the region of Goshen so that they would survive the remaining years of the famine. As I mentioned above, Joseph sends them off with a warning: “Don’t quarrel on the way!” (see Gen 45:24) Again, Joseph knows his brothers are still works in progress…as we all are. He wants them to allow his forgiveness to do its work within them. He hopes they will not regress into who they were before this great reveal. He knows this might take some time. He realizes that this was a major surprise in their lives. Something they certainly were not expecting. And Joseph cautions them to let it go and move forward, loving one another. This takes time. This takes conscious effort. And this takes a whole lot of God’s Love and Grace.
This is the process of Sanctification, right? Sometimes we are fully in Christ and we are acting like the forgiven children of God, loving Him and others with all we’ve got. But then there are times we forget this forgiving Grace and begin to act like the guilty, sinful person we used to be. Joseph wants them to stay the course. To focus on who they now are, and let go of their past fallen nature. God wants the same for us. He wants us to move away from the place we used to live and come to Him and stay with Him in the land of Goshen. One of the meanings for Goshen is “a land or place of plenty and comfort.” This is where we are to live, even in the midst of our own “Egypt.” This world is a sinful, corrupted and fallen place, filled with broken and hurting people, us included. And of course, the devil is still doing his worst to kill, steal and destroy the people of God. (see Jn 10:10) Because of these three enemies, we are desperate for God’s help to fight the good fight of Faith and continue growing into His likeness. It is exactly because of God’s Providence, because of His Love and Grace, that this world is not all bad. There are good people and good things in our midst too. And we can be one of those lights, of course. We only need to come to God and live in Goshen with Him. Just as Joseph promises his brothers, God will provide for us here, because there is still a famine in the land. (see Gen 45:11) The gift of Eternal Life will not be fully realized until we leave this planet and enter God’s Eternal Rest in Heaven with Him and His Forever Family. Until then though, even in our “Egypt,” we can increasingly live the Abundant Life as we walk deeper with, in and through our Savior. Allowing Him to be our Lord, as well. Leading us. Guiding our steps. And purposely, freely and willingly choosing to live love.
Sharing the good news of their new home. These brothers joyfully and probably still a little stunned, go back home and share the great news with their father. Jacob can barely believe it. “But when they told him everything Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the carts Joseph had sent to carry him back, the spirit of their father Jacob revived.” (Gen 45:27) Put yourself in his place for a moment. To him, his son was dead, but now he knows he is alive! Imagine the unspeakable joy! Listen to the exuberance in this aged father’s voice, “I’m convinced! My son Joseph is still alive! I will go and see him before I die.” (see Gen 45:28) What was dead is now alive. Think The Resurrection here. And because of what Jesus did for us, I can only envision my own reunion with my Baby Girl some day. She too is alive, and so much more than we who are still here in this fading world too.
Oh that day! That Glorious day! When we are reunited forever with our loved ones. Where we might meet other members in our new Forever Family for the very first time. Where there will be no more sin, suffering or separation. When we will fully realize God’s Forgiveness and experience His mighty Providence. Oh my Friends, in Christ we can live that unspeakable joy now, here, as we look forward to living in that Joy forevermore. Joseph wanted this for his family. To live together, united, in harmony in the land of Goshen. And God wants it for us, His Forever Family too. The more I see God’s Providential hand in my life, the more I am free to live love. It is because I know God works all things together for my good, because by His Grace I have chosen to love Him, that I can forgive others who may have sinned against me, and I can forgive myself for sinning too. This is a wonderful part of the Abundant Life that I am so very grateful for. It makes my life more fulfilling and gives me a deeper level of contentment. Want that too? Then won’t you join me?
Until we meet again, keep lifting your eyes to God, He’s closer than you think.
<>< Peace, Diane
