God Opens the Door

Genesis 41:1–57 CSB

At the end of two years Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing beside the Nile, when seven healthy-looking, well-fed cows came up from the Nile and began to graze among the reeds. After them, seven other cows, sickly and thin, came up from the Nile and stood beside those cows along the bank of the Nile. The sickly, thin cows ate the healthy, well-fed cows. Then Pharaoh woke up. He fell asleep and dreamed a second time: Seven heads of grain, plump and good, came up on one stalk. After them, seven heads of grain, thin and scorched by the east wind, sprouted up. The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven plump, full ones. Then Pharaoh woke up, and it was only a dream. When morning came, he was troubled, so he summoned all the magicians of Egypt and all its wise men. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him. Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “Today I remember my faults. Pharaoh was angry with his servants, and he put me and the chief baker in the custody of the captain of the guards. He and I had dreams on the same night; each dream had its own meaning. Now a young Hebrew, a slave of the captain of the guards, was with us there. We told him our dreams, he interpreted our dreams for us, and each had its own interpretation. It turned out just the way he interpreted them to us: I was restored to my position, and the other man was hanged.” Then Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and they quickly brought him from the dungeon. He shaved, changed his clothes, and went to Pharaoh. Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said about you that you can hear a dream and interpret it.” “I am not able to,” Joseph answered Pharaoh. “It is God who will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.” So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “In my dream I was standing on the bank of the Nile, when seven well-fed, healthy-looking cows came up from the Nile and grazed among the reeds. After them, seven other cows—weak, very sickly, and thin—came up. I’ve never seen such sickly ones as these in all the land of Egypt. Then the thin, sickly cows ate the first seven well-fed cows. When they had devoured them, you could not tell that they had devoured them; their appearance was as bad as it had been before. Then I woke up. In my dream I also saw seven heads of grain, full and good, coming up on one stalk. After them, seven heads of grain—withered, thin, and scorched by the east wind—sprouted up. The thin heads of grain swallowed the seven good ones. I told this to the magicians, but no one can tell me what it means.” Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “Pharaoh’s dreams mean the same thing. God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads are seven years. The dreams mean the same thing. The seven thin, sickly cows that came up after them are seven years, and the seven worthless heads of grain scorched by the east wind are seven years of famine. “It is just as I told Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do. Seven years of great abundance are coming throughout the land of Egypt. After them, seven years of famine will take place, and all the abundance in the land of Egypt will be forgotten. The famine will devastate the land. The abundance in the land will not be remembered because of the famine that follows it, for the famine will be very severe. Since the dream was given twice to Pharaoh, it means that the matter has been determined by God, and he will carry it out soon. “So now, let Pharaoh look for a discerning and wise man and set him over the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh do this: Let him appoint overseers over the land and take a fifth of the harvest of the land of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. Let them gather all the excess food during these good years that are coming. Under Pharaoh’s authority, store the grain in the cities, so they may preserve it as food. The food will be a reserve for the land during the seven years of famine that will take place in the land of Egypt. Then the country will not be wiped out by the famine.” The proposal pleased Pharaoh and all his servants, and he said to them, “Can we find anyone like this, a man who has God’s spirit in him?” So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one as discerning and wise as you are. You will be over my house, and all my people will obey your commands. Only I, as king, will be greater than you.” Pharaoh also said to Joseph, “See, I am placing you over all the land of Egypt.” Pharaoh removed his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, clothed him with fine linen garments, and placed a gold chain around his neck. He had Joseph ride in his second chariot, and servants called out before him, “Make way!” So he placed him over all the land of Egypt. Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh and no one will be able to raise his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt without your permission.” Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphenath-paneah and gave him a wife, Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest at On.E And Joseph went throughout the land of Egypt. Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Joseph left Pharaoh’s presence and traveled throughout the land of Egypt. During the seven years of abundance the land produced outstanding harvests. Joseph gathered all the excess food in the land of Egypt during the seven years and put it in the cities. He put the food in every city from the fields around it. So Joseph stored up grain in such abundance—like the sand of the sea—that he stopped measuring it because it was beyond measure. Two sons were born to Joseph before the years of famine arrived. Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest at On, bore them to him. Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh and said, “God has made me forget all my hardship and my whole family.” And the second son he named Ephraim and said, “God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.” Then the seven years of abundance in the land of Egypt came to an end, and the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. There was famine in every land, but in the whole land of Egypt there was food. When the whole land of Egypt was stricken with famine, the people cried out to Pharaoh for food. Pharaoh told all Egypt, “Go to Joseph and do whatever he tells you.” Now the famine had spread across the whole region, so Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe in the land of Egypt. Every land came to Joseph in Egypt to buy grain, for the famine was severe in every land.

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God Point: God Opens Doors.

Supporting Content:

In this passage, Jospeh makes clear that the only one who could give the interpretation for Pharaoh’s dream is the one who gave him the dream, God who is the one orchestrating the events in order to bless/care for his people and bless the whole world.

Jospeh waited for two years, ready to be remembered, and yet he was forgotten. But while the servant forgot him, God did not. God opened the door at the right time, and used this dream of a coming famine to elevate Joseph.

The interpretation made clear that God had determined to do this thing, favor/famine. God was not taken by surprise because he was in control. His power stood in contrast to power of Pharaoh and his wise men, and it was displayed in the coming events. God determined means that this was all apart of His plan. This was his door that opened, no one else's. The door that God opens, no man could open and no man could shut.

God raised up Joseph and used him to interpret the dream. God had placed Joseph in a world which lived contrary to God, which relied on their own wisdom and understanding. Even in this Land God proved to be in control. No matter how void our world becomes of God, God is still working. In this land God opens the door for his glory to be known and for Joseph and his family and all of Egypt to experience blessing.

Supporting Scripture:

Revelation 3:8 “I know your works. Look, I have placed before you an open door that no one can close because you have but little power; yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.”

Supporting Quotes:

Grow Point: Walk With God.

Supporting Content:

Joseph didn’t grow bitter in the two years, he remained faithful and vigilant. He proved to be mature in his faith, ready to tackle the task God had ordained for him to fulfill. He was discerning, wise, and full of God’s Spirit. Believers also must be ready for God’s call, ready to be used in God’s timing. To be ready means we must walk with God.

How to Walk With God:

Stay Close to God

→ Abide daily in His Word, Spirit, and presence.

Joseph didn’t grow distant in his waiting—he stayed connected to God. His wisdom, peace, and power flowed from an active relationship with the Lord.

Walking with God is being able to divide right and wrong, being able to see and comprehend the movement of God in one’s life and in the world. Discernment comes from God, through His Spirit. The more time we spend in God’s Word and walking with Him, the more we are able to see His hand in even the smallest of things.

How are we to be wise? We spend time with the source of truth and wisdom. How are we to be discerning? We spend time with the source of power. How are we to appear as though we have the Spirit of God within us? We spend time with the source of that very Spirit.

“Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.” — James 4:8

Reflect God

→ Live in a way that reveals God’s character to others.

Walking with God comes opposite of fear, because when we walk with Him, we learn to fear only God. This allows us to trust and understand God’s sovereignty. When we understand that He is in control, we can rightly interpret global, national, and even everyday events. This is not to say we understand everything—but the more time we spend with God, the less we live in fear, and the more we are able to live fruitfully.

Joseph’s life pointed to God—so much so that Pharaoh said, “Can we find anyone like this man, in whom is the Spirit of God?” (Gen. 41:38) Even in suffering, his integrity and faith were on full display. there was no doubt that Joseph walked with God.

As believers, we are filled with God’s Spirit. As we walk with God, we become like Christ—wise and discerning. Walking with God requires trust, humility, and faithfulness. It requires our lives to reflect the character of God—living each day seeking justice, showing mercy and grace, and loving others well. In our obedience to His Word, we daily display our devotion to Him.

Our lives become a sacrificial offering, an act of worship that makes much of God and displays Him as LORD of all. This display of glory draws others to recognize His surpassing worth and greatness—leading many to follow and glorify Him.

“Walk in a manner worthy of the calling you have received.” — Ephesians 4:1

“act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God.”

— Micah 6:8

Be Ready to Move With God

→ Live alert and faithful, ready to step through the doors He opens.

Joseph wasn’t scrambling to prepare when Pharaoh called—he had been walking faithfully all along. Walking with God means living every day ready for His call, His timing, and His mission.

To walk with God means that wherever He goes, we go—so when He opens the door, we follow.

Walking with God is being in agreement with His Word, His Will, and His Timing. In our waiting on God to move, we also remain ready to go where He leads. We walk not by sight, or by our own understanding, but by faith—trusting that God will call and exalt us at the right time to do His will in this world.

Walking with God means laying down seeds and trusting that God will provide the growth. We plant our lives wherever God places us so that His fruit might bless many. Joseph got to see immediate result of God’s open door (Egypt & his family blessed) but he never got to see the ultimate impact God made through his readiness to move with God.

“So shall I plant sequoias and revel in the soil Of a crop I know I'll never live to reap? Then sow my body to my Maker, and my heart unto my savior And spread me on the road, the rocks, and the weeds”

- John Mark Mcmillan

“Make the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” — Ephesians 5:16 “Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning.” — Luke 12:35

Benefit of Walk With God:

Manasseh: Forgetting Our Hardships Walking with God allows us to reframe our pain. Joseph didn’t erase his past—he saw it differently because God gave him a new purpose.

Ephraim: Fruitfulness in Affliction Joseph’s greatest impact came in the land of his suffering. Walking with God means trusting that He can bring blessing—even from brokenness.

Supporting Scripture:

Micah 6:8 “Mankind, he has told each of you what is good and what it is the Lord requires of you: to act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God.”

Ephesians 5:15–17 “Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk—not as unwise people but as wise— making the most of the time, because the days are evil. So don’t be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.”

Supporting Quotes:

Gauge Questions

For Believers & Unbelievers :

Who Are You Walking with?

Your life is a reflection of who you are walking with, you are who you walk with.