Destiny Series--Betrayal Week 2

BETRAYAL Good morning and welcome to Lake Erie Church...it's so exciting to see people take a next step in faith and be baptized. Introduction: Last week, we looked into the family environments where Joseph grew up and discovered what we knew about homes and families-everyone has one and nobody's is a good as we think! It's not where you came from but where you are going that is the critical concern of God for you! During these weeks, we're looking for God's purpose and design for our lives. * What does God have for us? * What does He want for our lives? Today, we will see a diabolical act committed by Joseph's own brothers to rid themselves of their brother. (that's how much they hated him!) let's read... Genesis 37:18-28 When Joseph's brothers saw him coming, they recognized him in the distance. As he approached, they made plans to kill him. "Here comes the dreamer!" they said. "Come on, let's kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns. We can tell our father, 'A wild animal has eaten him.' Then we'll see what becomes of his dreams!" But when Reuben heard of their scheme, he came to Joseph's rescue. "Let's not kill him," he said. "Why should we shed any blood? Let's just throw him into this empty cistern here in the wilderness. Then he'll die without our laying a hand on him." Reuben was secretly planning to rescue Joseph and return him to his father. So when Joseph arrived, his brothers ripped off the beautiful robe he was wearing. Then they grabbed him and threw him into the cistern. Now the cistern was empty; there was no water in it. Then, just as they were sitting down to eat, they looked up and saw a caravan of camels in the distance coming toward them. It was a group of Ishmaelite traders taking a load of gum, balm, and aromatic resin from Gilead down to Egypt. Judah said to his brothers, "What will we gain by killing our brother? We'd have to cover up the crime. Instead of hurting him, let's sell him to those Ishmaelite traders. After all, he is our brother-our own flesh and blood!" And his brothers agreed. So when the Ishmaelites, who were Midianite traders, came by, Joseph's brothers pulled him out of the cistern and sold him to them for twenty pieces of silver. And the traders took him to Egypt. Have you ever been so mad at someone, hated them so much you wanted to hurt them, do them harm, sell them? Have you ever despised someone so much that you just did not want to be around them at all? As we read, there is EVIL in the air. These brothers are about to do something that will mark their life and their father for more than 22 years! The ripple effect will impact more than just the brothers-in fact an entire nation will be impacted by the actions of these brothers. There may not be a stronger emotion than betrayal. It's deep, it's painful and it does not go away quickly or easily. Perhaps you've experienced betrayal in some fashion or another? * You stood before a church full of people and they said they would love you as long as you live and now they tell you they love someone else-that's betrayal. * You worked faithfully for decades for the company growing the profits, then the company was sold the new owners downsized operations and your job was cut--now you're working two jobs to replace the income-that's betrayal. * You let down your guard and opened up to a friend about a deeply personal situation and you asked them to never share but they did and now everyone knows and your humiliation is significant-that's betrayal. The resulting hurt and frustration you feel strains you and makes life very difficult to manage. If it's never happened to you-you might be tempted to pass this off lightly- * they sold their brother to slavery (they really wanted to kill him), * they lied to their father that Joseph was killed by an animal, they put their father into grief for no reason, * they destroyed their brother's life All because they were jealous of his relationship to their father. What went through Joseph's mind as he traveled to Egypt in the caravan that evening? Did he cry? Was he broken? He must have wondered--How could they do this? What could possibly have motivated his brothers to sell him? Here are a couple of things to remember: * Betrayal is not easily forgotten. * Broken trust is difficult to overcome... o Confidence is broken, secrets were told-you are embarrassed o A vow was broken and getting past it is hard Your experience demands a choice. You have to make a decision -- You can be bitter or You can be better Your bruise has to heal or you will never be whole again! The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me . . . to set at liberty them that are bruised (Luke 4:18). The bitterness of betrayal will destroy your fruitfulness. * You can unintentionally allow the hurt, frustration to dominate your life until you cannot be free from it. * Bitterness and rottenness claim your soul. * You find yourself speaking to people and treating everyone differently because of the hurt. * They did not hurt you, but they bear the brunt of your frustration. * Sometimes you don't even realize how harsh and condescending you have become with people-you are operating out of your hurt. We've been saying this for about a year now, "at some point, you will have to make peace with the sovereignty of God." You have to decide... Either God is in control or He is not. You must decide which you believe is true-- It does not change facts, but helps the healing. The prophet Isaiah wrote (Isaiah 49:13-16): Shout for joy, O heavens! And rejoice, O earth! Break forth into joyful shouting, O mountains! For the Lord has comforted His people, And will have compassion on His afflicted. But Zion said, The Lord has forsaken me, and the Lord has forgotten me. Can a woman forget her nursing child, and have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will not forget you. Behold I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; your walls are continually before Me. Your hurts are not lost on the Lord. * He sees and understands what you feel. * He stands ready to help you resolve those feelings of disappointment by offering you a fresh glimpse of Himself-the Savior. If you have been betrayed, what should you do? * Tell God about it o That emotion must go somewhere. * To reflect it back on our critics is to play their game. * To bottle it up inside can result in depression or ulcers. * Another option is to dump it out on someone completely unrelated to the situation: spouse, friends, employees, your children. That only complicates things. * The only healthy and profitable thing to do is to pour out your heart to your heavenly Father. . . . After all, he knows what is in your heart anyway. And hey, he's been around. He can handle a little venting. He is honored when we take our deepest frustrations and hurts to him. To do so is an expression of trust. (Andy Stanley) * Talk with someone you trust o You say, that's what got me into trouble before o Try again-not everyone will be like the person who hurt you- o Take the chance and invite someone to carry the load with you. Joseph never allowed this contemplation to make him a bitter person. Don't be a slave to your hurt. * Joseph knew better than to allow one day to ruin his life. * Joseph had a dream from the Lord. * Joseph had a destiny to fulfill Conclusion: You have a future to fulfill-your life is not over and no person can decide that only God. Joseph chose to embrace the potential of his future rather than be defined by the hurt! My prayer for you is that you will choose to move forward, to heal and find purpose even in your pain...but don't do it alone. God I'm a sinner I'm sorry for my sins I believe Jesus died for my sins I believe you will forgive me of my sins I choose Jesus