Prepared For "Only God" Moments
Notes
Transcript
Joseph week-4
Joseph week-4
INTRO:
Continuing on with our study through the narrative of Joseph at the end of the book of Genesis. Today, we land at the beginning of chapter 41. We’re not going to go through every chapter and verse of this narrative before we hit palm sunday and easter, so I hope you will on your own time read all the way through chapters 37-50. such a great narrative!
illus. - God preparing me for other “Only God” moments
Jennie’s mom
up all night to start FaceDown
Phone call from Sid when deciding about where to serve
Phone call from Sid about starting Heritage
over the last few weeks in our study, i believe God has been showing young joseph “only God” moments so he would be ready for what happens next
- his first 2 dreams about his family bowing down to him
- the next 2 dreams of the cupbearer and baker and his successful interpretations
- his understanding of God’s presence in his life even in the midst of struggle
BODY:
1 After two whole years, Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing by the Nile, 2 and behold, there came up out of the Nile seven cows, attractive and plump, and they fed in the reed grass. 3 And behold, seven other cows, ugly and thin, came up out of the Nile after them, and stood by the other cows on the bank of the Nile. 4 And the ugly, thin cows ate up the seven attractive, plump cows. And Pharaoh awoke. 5 And he fell asleep and dreamed a second time. And behold, seven ears of grain, plump and good, were growing on one stalk. 6 And behold, after them sprouted seven ears, thin and blighted by the east wind. 7 And the thin ears swallowed up the seven plump, full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and behold, it was a dream. 8 So in the morning his spirit was troubled, and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt and all its wise men. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but there was none who could interpret them to Pharaoh.
PRAY
Last week, at the very end of chapter 40, we were brought into the palace of Egypt… remember??? It was Pharaoh’s birthday so he threw himself a party.... like all good world leaders do...... and at that party, he took the cupbearer and the baker out of prison… he restored the cupbearer to his position next to Pharaoh but the baker he had hanged. exactly what Joseph said would happen when he interpreted their dreams 3 days before in prison
well… 2 more years have passed… we’re still here in Pharaoh’s palace… but this time Pharaoh himself is the one dreaming
the dream starts out kind of normal… got some cows grazing in the nile river.... apparently normal place for the cows .... just a little weird that he’s dreaming about attractive, plump cows....but whatever
but the dream gets creepy real quick because you got these gross, sick looking cows that show up with canibalistic tendencies, and without even being instigated they scarf down the plump, attractive cows
understandably, Pharaoh wakes up.... probably has to get a new pillow case because he’s sweated through the first one after a dream like that.. and then goes back to sleep and has another dream
now… you know by now, the dreams in the Joseph narrative always come in pairs…
so here’s the second dream....
it’s a lot like the first but instead of cows we have plump ears of grain eaten by thin ears of grain
The dreams so stunned Pharaoh that the narrator uses an astonished
"behold” six times (in the Hebrew) to indicate the king's response.
So shook was Pharaoh that in the morning he assembled "all the magicians of Egypt
and all its wise men" (v. 8) - a vast company of wizards and pagan priests
with their dream books....
"But there was none who could interpret them to Pharaoh" (v. 8).
ah! somethings happening here
remember last week when Joseph interpreted the dreams for the cupbearer and baker… what did he ask them to do????
“remember me”
“mention me to Pharaoh”
“get me out of here”
but the cupbearer forgot Joseph… that was 2 years prior
but all of a sudden with these dreams of Pharaoh and no one to interpret them… the cupbearer remembers...
9 Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “I remember my offenses today. 10 When Pharaoh was angry with his servants and put me and the chief baker in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, 11 we dreamed on the same night, he and I, each having a dream with its own interpretation. 12 A young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain of the guard. When we told him, he interpreted our dreams to us, giving an interpretation to each man according to his dream. 13 And as he interpreted to us, so it came about. I was restored to my office, and the baker was hanged.”
[you don’t just raise your hand and say, “hey pharaoh”]
[Sid’s office]
So at the opportune moment the cupbearer delicately volunteered that he knew of someone who could interpret Pharaoh's dreams. The man had been a fellow prisoner (not a particularly comfortable topic to raise with Pharaoh). So the cupbearer began with appropriate humility, saying to Pharaoh, "I remember my offenses today" (v. 9).
It was a fairly accurate account, except that the cupbearer, being the
political animal that he was, did some selective editing.
He neglected to mention that the young Hebrew actually claimed to have no power to interpret dreams and said that the power to interpret came from his Hebrew God.
And, of course, the cupbearer made no mention that he had failed to carry out his promise to mention Joseph to Pharaoh.
Genesis 41:14–16 (ESV)
14 Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they quickly brought him out of the pit. And when he had shaved himself and changed his clothes, he came in before Pharaoh.
look at all those verbs! immediately there’s a bunch of activity going on to get Joseph in front of Pharoah as quick as possible...
Hebrew men. in contrast to Egyptians, wore beards. So in a flash Joseph
was shaved, sanitized, Egyptianized, and presented to Pharaoh. The young
Hebrew had gone from the pit to the palace in an instant.
There handsome, well-built Joseph stood, looking more like an Egyptian than a Hebrew.
But Joseph was not standing alone because Yahweh was with him just
as he had been with him in Potiphar's house and just as he had been with him in prison.
Though God is not mentioned here, God was at work.
- God had Orchestrated the exquisite timing, first through the forgetfulness of the cupbearer and then through the cupbearer's recollection.
- If the cupbearer had remembered Joseph earlier, it would probably would have been lost on Pharaoh.
15 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.” 16 Joseph answered Pharaoh, “It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.”
So here’s Joseph.... in front of Pharaoh… world leader of all the world leaders... in Pharaoh’s own palace.... in the throne room....
imagine being brought in to the oval office before the president of the united … before one of the past presidents of the united states and how intimidating that would be
you’d be thinking about how you’re standing
what are you doing with your hands
are my buttons buttoned?
are my zippers zipped?
can’t even imagine being spoken to and trying to respond in a way that doesn’t sound stupid
so how did Joseph do?
Would Joseph melt? Would he just give a courteous answer?
No way! "Joseph answered Pharaoh, 'It is not in me'"' (v. 16a).
And then he directed Pharaoh away from himself to God, saying, "God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer" (v. 16b).
No meltdown here! Joseph was all steel. Observe carefully that he told
Pharaoh (who himself was considered to be a god incarnate) that God (ha
Elohim, "the God') would explain his dream. To Pharaoh's face Joseph
says, “God is superior to and sovereign over the gods of Egypt.”
no different than when he was in prison and gave God credit for the ability to interepret the dreams of the cupbearer and baker.... Joseph had not changed one bit in his trip from the pit to the palace.
now… this could have ended everything right there to be honest..... but Pharaoh was so distressed about his dreams that he’s willing to try anything at this point...
what alarmed him was that there was no one who could explain the dreams
to him. This is all so very remarkable,
as one theologian, Hamilton says this....
“with immense subtlety, the documenting of Pharaoh's helplessness and fear emphasizes "the mortality and finiteness of the dreamer, the pharaoh-god' (Hamilton). +
Pharaoh was a mere man. The God of Israel, the one and only true God, was rising high in Egypt.
[So Pharoah tells Joseph the dreams]
cannibal cows
cannibal grain
plump
thin
Genesis 41:25–32 (ESV)
25 Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are one; God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. 26 The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good ears are seven years; the dreams are one. 27 The seven lean and ugly cows that came up after them are seven years, and the seven empty ears blighted by the east wind are also seven years of famine. 28 It is as I told Pharaoh; God has shown to Pharaoh what he is about to do. 29 There will come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt, 30 but after them there will arise seven years of famine, and all the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Egypt. The famine will consume the land, 31 and the plenty will be unknown in the land by reason of the famine that will follow, for it will be very severe. 32 And the doubling of Pharaoh’s dream means that the thing is fixed by God, and God will shortly bring it about.
the interpretation Was wholly God-centered. Remember that Joseph had already twice declared that God is the source of interpretations, first to the cupbearer and baker
('Do not interpretations belong to God?" in 40:8, and then to Pharaoh, with
his initial word, "God [Elohim,' "the God'] will give Pharaoh a favorable answer" (v. 16).
beginning, middle and end… Joseph makes his interpretation about God...
Joseph basically announces to Pharaoh and to
all of Egypt that the one true God controlled their existence
The future of Egypt was established without any reference to Pharaoh
As Walter Brueggemann explains,
"The future in Egypt does not depend
upon Pharaoh. He does not get to decide. In fact, Pharaoh is irrelevant and
marginal to the future of the kingdom. . . . Joseph has calmly announced
to the lord of Egypt that the future is out of his hands.
.. In Gen. 41, it is clear that Pharaoh can cause no future. Nor can he resist the future that
God will bring."
do you remember when Jesus was arrested… and he was questioned by Pilate… but Jesus didn’t answer him....???
John 19 verses 10 & 11
English Standard Version Chapter 19
10 So Pilate said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you?” 11 Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above.
ONLY GOD IS SOVEREIGN!
ONLY GOD GIVES AND TAKES AWAY ALL EARTHLY AUTHORITY
Joseph finishes the interpretation and then doesn’t even wait for Pharaoh to respond… doesn’t look at him trying to figure out if he’s happy or if he’s going to kill him.... confident Joseph goes right into a plan and tells Pharaoh what to do....
33 Now therefore let Pharaoh select a discerning and wise man, and set him over the land of Egypt. 34 Let Pharaoh proceed to appoint overseers over the land and take one-fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt during the seven plentiful years. 35 And let them gather all the food of these good years that are coming and store up grain under the authority of Pharaoh for food in the cities, and let them keep it. 36 That food shall be a reserve for the land against the seven years of famine that are to occur in the land of Egypt, so that the land may not perish through the famine.”
Fascinatingly, every aspect of Joseph's plan called
for dynamic action. And here’s why it’s fascinating:
Joseph's call to action was based on his knowledge of what God was about to do.
So we see that the knowledge of what God is going to do does not produce passive
resignation but aggressive action.
The knowledge of God's purpose is not the end of human planning and action but the beginning of it.
The fact that God has set the future is a mighty summons to action.
if we know that God is bringing this world to an end… and sending Jesus back again to assemble His family… those who have put their faith in him in order to receive forgiveness of sins and eternal salvation.... then we better be at work.... aggressive action.... the mission.... tell everyone we can about the love and hope of Jesus Christ!
if we know that God is bringing more people to the town of Fruitland Park… it’s been told to us… this is what’s coming.... this is what’s happening… we don’t sit back and say let’s see what God’s going to do..... we get to work! and we do everything we can to raise up leaders and create the space and environments so that we can minister to those who will find their way to heritage in the coming years
CONCLUSION:
I truly believe that our ability to be ready for “Only God” moments is connected to our awareness of God’s presence in our lives… our ability to hear our Father’s voice.... to feel Him directing us in some way....
Joseph clearly felt God’s presence in his life. i believe it’s because Joseph never took his eyes off of Him.
At the age of 17 he was beaten and sold into slavery by his very own brothers.
Things finally started to move positively for him in Potiphar’s home, until he was falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife and thrown into prison....
At the age of 30!!!! he’s brought before Pharoah to interpret these dreams..
13 years!!!!! of struggle… of betrayal.... of pain… of darkness in the pit.... and not once do we have a record of Joseph complaining, blaming God… or asking “why me?”.....
there’s not one indication of Joseph believing God’s presence had ever left him in all of this
i think that’s why Joseph is always so confident… it’s not that he was cocky , but that he knew God was with him…
[illus. ----- let me show you something]
“am i with him?”
what’s the problem?
he’s not aware that I’m with him
even though i’m right here.... if I don’t move or say anything, can you understand why he would think that I’m not even near????
When we don’t sense God’s presence in our lives, it’s not a lack of His nearness, it’s a lack of our awareness.
keep your eyes fixed on Him....
listen for His voice....
be ready for ONLY GOD moments that are planned to push you into action.....
Let’s pray