The Dreamer Genesis 37:1-36

"American history shall march along that skyline," announced Gutzon Borglum in 1924, gazing at the Black Hills of South Dakota. In 1927 Borglum began sculpting the images of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Theodore Roosevelt on the granite face of 6,000-foot Mount Rushmore. Most of the sculpting was done by experienced miners under Borglum's direction. Working with jackhammers and dynamite, they removed some 400,000 tons of outer rock, cutting within three inches of the final surface. When Borglum died in March 1941, his dream of the world's biggest sculpture was near completion. His son Lincoln finished the work that October, some 14 years after it was begun.

This month, we’re looking at a dreamer whose life became more than anyone could have imagined, a life that gives a picture of a greater son to come!

-Joseph’s life gives us a picture of a Son to come!

I. The Faithful Son vv. 1-4

When we pick up the story, Jacob and his family are living in Canaan and his family is coming of age

Our focus is going to shift from Jacob to Joseph, the firstborn of Rachel

This shift is going to be important, because in many ways, Joseph points us forward to a Son of promise from the New Testament, Jesus

Joseph is most notable for his faithfulness

Joseph is a man of integrity and he shows this through the honest report that he gives to his father

Joseph is not being difficult or a tattle tale, or trying to make life difficult for his brothers

Instead, he is showing faithfulness to his father

This will become the defining characteristic of Joseph’s life

Joseph’s faithfulness will be a double-edged sword throughout his life

Joseph’s obedience secures the faithful love of his father and enriches their relationship

On the other hand, the favor shown to Joseph cements a sense of envy and rivalry between him and the sons of Leah, Bilhah, and Zilpah

It’s a powerful image of obedience; it is not just the favor of the Father, but of the fierce loyalty of the Son.

1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Faithfulness

When Pompeii was destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, there were many people buried in the ruins. Some were found in cellars, as if they had gone there for security. Some were found in the upper rooms of buildings. But where was the Roman sentinel found? Standing at the city gate where he had been placed by the captain, with his hands still grasping his weapon. There, while the earth shook beneath him—there, while the floods of ashes and cinders covered him—he had stood at his post. And there, after a thousand years, was this faithful man still to be found.482

II. The Firstborn Ruler vv. 5-11

Next, we see that Joseph’s life is marked by dreams

He has two of them in succession, with the same theme, even if the scope is different

In that world, this would have indicated that the dream was a vision from God and that it was certain to be fulfilled

The dreams hit at an incongruity in his life:

He has been born as the 11th of 12 sons of Jacob, nearly the last

However, God is going to give him a position of authority over his brothers

God is going to reverse the order of things and will treat Joseph like a firstborn; Joseph may be least in the sight of men, but he is first in the sight of God

Joseph’s pronouncement seems bold, but I believe that its a genuine recognition of the work that God was doing in His life

Like everything else in this story, this does not engender sympathy or admiration from his brothers

Their jealousy and anger only grows with the telling

Meanwhile, Jacob pauses and considers what is taking place

Why does Jacob pause?

It is part of a pattern that he has experienced in his own life

It is part of a pattern that we will see repeated, where God exalts the humble and humbles the exalted

It is part of a pattern that is revealed in Christ

Isaiah 53:2–3

[2] For he grew up before him like a young plant,

and like a root out of dry ground;

he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,

and no beauty that we should desire him.

[3] He was despised and rejected by men,

a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;

and as one from whom men hide their faces

he was despised, and we esteemed him not. (ESV)

III. The Forsaken Brother vv. 12-28

Joseph will later follow his father’s instruction to go to his brothers; little does he know that he is walking into a trap

The brothers have a variety of responses, but they all come from a place of ill will towards him

Some want to kill him immediately

Reuben schemes to join in the cruelty but secretly plans a rescue to have the best of both worlds; a little fun harming his brother but the chance to save face with his father

Judah has an elegant solution: Sell him into slavery and hide the crime. They can be free of their brother and innocent of his blood

All of this ill will is a form of rejection:

They are rejecting the brother that God is making ruler over them

They are rejecting the Lord who is at work

It turns out the two go hand-in-hand, but they have no idea how foolish they are being

It turns out, they don’t understand what God is doing at all:

God is not raising up Joseph to harm them, but to rescue them

Their work is not bringing about their salvation, but is only complicating it

Their sin is an act of cruelty towards Joseph, but they are only hurting someone who will do them infinite good.

Mark 12:6-11

[6] He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ [7] But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ [8] And they took him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. [9] What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others. [10] Have you not read this Scripture:

“‘The stone that the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone;

[11] this was the Lord’s doing,

and it is marvelous in our eyes’?” (ESV)

IV. The Future Hope vv. 29-36

As our story comes to a close, Jacob is faced with a horrific loss

His beloved son has been snatched away from him

His other sons are callous in his grief and guilty of a great crime

Interestingly, they are continuing in a pattern of sin set out by their father: even as Jacob deceived his own father with a slaughtered goat, he is deceived by a slaughtered goat.

It feels like hope should be lost, but it is not true:

Joseph is not dead, he’s just distant

In fact, Joseph is under the protection of the almighty; he will not only be rescued but he will become God’s agent to redeem and restore his family

There is good news: Jacob thinks everything in his life is working against him, when in fact, everything in his life is working for him!

We can experience this kind of hope when we trust in the Son who brings us hope

From Parade magazine comes the story of self-made millionaire Eugene Land, who greatly changed the lives of a sixth-grade class in East Harlem. Mr. Lang had been asked to speak to a class of 59 sixth-graders. What could he say to inspire these students, most of whom would drop out of school? He wondered how he could get these predominantly black and Puerto Rican children even to look at him. Scrapping his notes, he decided to speak to them from his heart. "Stay in school," he admonished, "and I'll help pay the college tuition for every one of you." At that moment the lives of these students changed. For the first time they had hope. Said one student, "I had something to look forward to, something waiting for me. It was a golden feeling." Nearly 90 percent of that class went on to graduate from high school.