A Chosen Vessel - Joseph Part 4 The Gift of Forgiveness

Too will continue with Joseph this morning. I thought as I was going through, we started with Romans and then we'll jump to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and and reminded how how faith is such an integral part of the plan, God's plan of redemption and the message of salvation all the way through scripture, not just in the New Testament also in the Old Testament and we started a few weeks ago on the life of Joseph and as we're coming up to Christmas, I thought, well, I I should I go ahead and stop and start on Christmas messages the December 1 but I felt led just to continue on Joseph and I think some of this sort of fits in a bit with Christmas particularly the gift of forgiveness. We're going to look at this morning. So, what has happened with Joseph so far? Just to bring you up to speed.

Most of you are somewhat familiar with the story of Joseph but Joseph was a good son, a faithful son to his father but his father treated him better than his brothers, favored him, and that just made his brothers jealous with him, jealous of him, and more and more angry and eventually, their anger bubbled over and amazingly, they threw him in a pit and we're gonna leave him there to die. But instead, Judah had a bright idea. I I see some traders coming this way. Why don't we sell him into slavery instead and we'll make a little money off of it? So, they sold him to the traders who sold him as a slave in Egypt to Potiphar.

Now, Joseph is in Potiphar's house in Egypt. He's gone from being the favored son of Jacob to being a slave in the house of a man in a foreign land. But what is Joseph do? Well, he does something incredible and that is he just simply keeps doing that which is right. He just keeps trusting the Lord.

When temptation comes knocking, he resists and what does he get for resisting and following the Lord? Well, he gets falsely accused and thrown in prison. Just doesn't seem like no matter what Joseph does, things go from bad to worse. So, now, he's in prison and what kind of prisoner is he? Well, he's a model prisoner.

Rather than getting angry and bitter at the world and depressed, he decides he's going to help the other prisoners. He's going to be a faithful follower of God even in prison and so he rises to a trustee, the highest trustee in the prison. Low and behold, the butler and the baker are thrown in prison. They have dreams. God gives him the interpretation and the butler is restored as his dream said to his position where he said he would tell someone about Joseph.

Well, he forgot. For two years, he forgot until Pharaoh has a what? Until Pharaoh has a dream and all of a sudden, oh yes, I remember now. There was this guy in prison, Joseph. Yeah, that was him and and he told us the interpretation of our dreams and they both came true and I was restored to my position.

So, Pharaoh said, okay, call for him. Well, they called for him. They brought him in. God gave Joseph interpretation which Joseph made very clear to Pharaoh, this doesn't come from me, it comes from who? It comes from God.

He gave God all the glory. And Pharaoh not only believed the interpretation of the dream but based on the wise counsel of Joseph concerning what to do with the upcoming famine, he put him in charge of collecting all of the grain, all of the the taxes to bring in the food, to store it for the seven years of famine to come and Joseph went from being a slave and a prisoner to being the second highest ruler in all the land of Egypt. God indeed had a plan, did he not? All things do really work together for what? For good to them that love the Lord.

Now, it doesn't always end with you being the second highest ruler in the land, okay? But it does end for all of us who know Christ with ruling and reigning with him for a thousand years and living with him in heaven for all what? Eternity. It doesn't end that badly now, does it? God knows what he's doing.

And he knows what he's doing here. So now, we're at chapter 42 and what happens? Well, let's see. Joseph's collected all of this food and now the famine has set in. Verse one, now when Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt, Jacob said unto his sons, why do you look one upon another?

Why you standing around looking each as though you had something you could do about it. You don't except I know something. He said, behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt. Get you down thither and buy for us from thence that we may live and not die. And Joseph's 10 brethren went down to buy corn in Egypt.

But Benjamin, Joseph's brother, full brother, Jacob sent not with his brother, for he said, lest peradventure mischief befall him. See, Rachel, Jacob's most beloved wife, only had two children and she died in childbirth with Benjamin. He had already lost Joseph at least so he thought and he did not want to lose Benjamin. So, wouldn't send him. Verse five, and the sons of Israel, another name for Jacob, came to buy corn among those that came for the famine was in the land of Canaan.

And Joseph was the governor over the land and he it was that sold to all the people of the land and Joseph's brother came and bowed down themselves before him and their faces to the earth. Does that sound familiar? Wasn't there some dream that God gave Joseph ways back that his brothers hated him for? Well, there it is. They're bowing down before him.

Verse seven, Joseph saw his brethren and he knew them but he made himself strange unto them and he spake roughly unto them and he said unto them, whence come you? And they said from the land of Canaan to buy food And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew him not. And Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, and said unto them, you are spies to see the nakedness, the land, you are come. Let's go to the Lord in prayer once more. Lord, thank you for your word and for this beautiful beautiful story a true story recorded and preserved in your word for us today.

That we might see the the glory of God and of Jesus Christ that we might recognize your power and grace. And your forgiveness and our responsibility for forgive as well. Lord, may you touch our hearts today. May your holy spirit use your word to mold us into the image of Jesus Christ, our savior. To renew our mind and transform our lives and bring lost souls to you.

We pray in Jesus name. Amen. The famine of which Joseph foretold in interpreting Pharaoh's dream hit not only Egypt but it also hit the surrounding area of the world including Canaan which is where Jacob was. This caused Jacob to send his sons, 10 of them, not Benjamin as we mentioned, to Egypt to buy food, having heard there was plenty plenty to buy there in Egypt. So, why did God let all this come about with Joseph?

Why the being thrown in the pit? Why the being sold as a slave? Why the false accusation? Why being thrown in prison? Why did all this happen?

Well, God had a plan and God had a purpose. Joseph couldn't see it at the time. Joseph simply continued to do what? To trust God and do right and there's a lot of times we can't see the plan either. We don't know why God is doing what he's doing but it is our prerogative, our joy, and our privilege to trust God and continue to follow him and do right.

Why did God let this happen for the preservation of Jacob's family? Because Pharaoh had the dream because Joseph was in the prison because the butler told Pharaoh that Joseph could interpret the dream because Joseph interpreted it and he made him ruler in Egypt. All the food was brought in and stored not only to feed the Egyptians, but to also feed who? Also to feed Jacob and all of Joseph's family to preserve them. A family of great importance to God and to the plan of redemption.

Why did God let all this come about? Well, for the glory of God and the good of Joseph. When you read the story and you see what God did, it brings glory to who? Brings glory to God and you know, in the end, it was also for the benefit of who? Benefit of Joseph.

You say, but look, he went through all that hard times, yeah? That happens. We live in a sin cursed world and bad things happen to good people. Trials come into our life. God says to count them all joy because it's through the trials that we we grow and we learn.

And they are for our what? Even for our good. Thus, Paul says, in everything give what? Everything give thanks. For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Why? Did God let all this happen to Joseph's lessons for us to learn even today as our story unfolds. So, let's continue. So, his brothers came to buy food and although he recognized them, they had no clue who he was. He was probably looked a little different than he did several years previous.

All in royal type garb and all of that. He remembered the dreams God had given him as a young man as his brothers knowingly bowed before him. How the Lord through it all had made it all to come true. I think sometimes when we're in the midst of trials especially when it seems we can't seem to get out of trials. There are times in life where you go from this trial and then and then you just walk right into another one and you walk right into another one and it's Lord, why is this happening?

And I know I've spoken with some of you that some of you been going through that type of thing recently. Don't despair. Don't despair. Don't lose hope. God knows.

God knows what he's doing. And though we may not see we may not see it as Joseph didn't at first as Job didn't at first. God is working all things together for our good. Don't despair. God has made promises to us.

Those promises will come true. If you are his child, he said, I will never leave you nor forsake you and I am preparing a place for you. So, don't despair. Anyway, they went away. They they went.

His brothers went way out of their way to keep Joseph's dream from happening. Did did it did it change anything? No. Because God is in control. Because God is more powerful.

In Acts chapter five and verse 39, we have let me get to it here. A man named Gamaliel. He was a leader in Jewish council in Jerusalem in the days after the ascension of Christ back to heaven. He was a well known teacher among the Jews and they had brought some of the disciples in and they were trying to decide what to do with them because they kept telling people about Jesus and they didn't want to hear it anymore. The disciples were undermining the authority and leadership and trustworthiness of those spiritual leaders who by the way weren't very trustworthy and they didn't like it and so they told them, stop it and they said, no, we would rather serve God than than men.

And so, they're trying to figure out what to do with them. Gamaliel stands up in the midst and he says this, basically, if this is not real, it'll fade. It won't last but he goes on to say this in verse 39, but if it be of God, you cannot what? You cannot overthrow it. Lest happily you be found even to fight against God.

You can't overthrow God's plans. God has a plan for this world. You can't overthrow it. You're not going to change it. Now, you have a part in it.

You better make sure your part is on the right side of it. But God's plans will not cannot be thwarted. God had chosen Abraham and he told Abraham, your family is going to be a blessing to all the families of what? Of the earth. He promised in you and in your family.

Will I bless all the families of the earth? And he made the same promise to Isaac and he made the same promise to Jacob and he made a promise to David, a descendant of Jacob and Judah that on his throne, the Messiah would one day reign. A seed of David, a seed of Jacob, a seed of Isaac, a descendant of all these. God made promises. God keeps all of his what?

He God keeps all of his promises. And Satan and no one is going to change them. Just make sure that you're on the winning side. Make sure that you're on the Lord's side. Ask the Lord how he can use you.

To further his gospel and his plan. He used Joseph He can use us as well. So, Joseph rather than revealing himself right away, he quickly devised a test. That's where we go from here in his response. A test of repentance.

The Bible says, man looks on the outward appearance but God looks on the what? Heart. So, God sees the heart. Do I see your heart? The answer is no, I can't.

I can only judge based on what I see and praise the Lord. I am not your ultimate judge. Your judge is where? In heaven, the one who does know your heart because sometimes, I'm going to get it wrong. God sees the heart.

He he sees it all. He knows whether we're real or whether we're phony. He knows whether we're true or we're genuine but we can't we can't tell that and Joseph couldn't tell that either. Here his brother show up. What is he going to do?

Can he see their heart? Can he know if they've repented? No, he decides. Well, I'm going to give them a what? I'm going give them a test.

We're going to test and see if they have repented. If they have changed, if they're the same people that threw me in a well and we're going to leave me for dead, he gave them a test. If he revealed himself to them right away, they certainly would plead for mercy and forgiveness, wouldn't they? Out of fear, they would say, oh, we're sorry. We we should never done it.

Well, then he wouldn't know. Since he was not God, he he devises this test. A test of their pride to see if they were more humble than the men he knew before. A test to see if they were remorseful over what they did to him. A test to see if their love for Jacob, Benjamin, and particularly God had changed.

Had they changed in their why? In their heart. That's what he wanted to know before he revealed himself. God does test us all also. Not so much for his sake because he already knows your heart but he tests us for whose sake?

For our sake. So that we might grow. Count it all joy when you fall into diverse temptations knowing this, the trying of your faith works what? It produces patience and growth. In our lives.

It pushes us to learn to trust God more. But in Joseph's case, he was trying to figure out where they were. The test was somewhat excruciating for Jacob's other sons but it forced them to confront their earlier demons and deal with it. Sometimes, God has to do the same with us. We would like to just forget our failures, to gloss them over, to ignore our weaknesses, but if we are to conquer them and learn from our failures, we must sometimes be confronted with them.

And then, we must do what? Confess them. If we confess our sins, he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. So, he brings trials in our life to confront us with our weaknesses, to bring us to the place of repentance and confession, that we might own up to our failures, that we might look to him for cleansing and strength and victory so that we might move on and grow. I think of David and Nathan.

David's sin terribly against God and against others and God sent who? Nathan, the prophet to confront him. God just wasn't going to just let it get swept under the what? Rug. No, David.

You gotta deal with it. You gotta deal with it. So, here comes Nathan to remind him. Little parable. Man that had a big flocks of sheep, neighbor had one little pet.

When the rich man had a guest, he didn't take one of his sheep to kill it for his guest. He took his stole his neighbor's little pet sheep and how did David respond? You remember? He got angry. He said, I'll have that man, I think killed, if I remember, right?

And then Nathan pointed at him and said, you're the man. You're the man, David. What you did was far worse than taking somebody's sheep. You took somebody's wife. Not only did you take their wife, you had them killed.

David had to deal with his sin with God. Peter Jesus told him ahead of time, you are going to deny me what? Three times and Peter said, no, I won't. No, I'm not. I'm I am, I will stick with you through.

I will not deny you. But Jesus had to teach him a lesson. His dependence upon his own strength was a little bit too much. He needed to learn that with God, all things are possible and I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me but I cannot do all things without him and so Peter did deny the Lord three times and when God met him on the shore after his resurrection that day, he asked him three times, Peter, do you what? Do you love me?

Peter got the point. Peter denied Christ three times. Peter had to affirm three times that he loved the Lord. And God confronted him. It maybe that there's something in your life, Christian that God is trying to confront you with that you need to confess and deal with.

Don't put that off because God may have to yell a little louder to get your attention. It's best to answer him now. Now, Joseph, it would seem it already come to terms with his brother's betrayal years ago. Joseph had already forgiven them in his heart but he needed more to forgive them to their face and trust them again as brothers. God again sees our heart.

He knows if our repentance of heart is real or phony but Joseph did not know so thus the test and what did he do? Well, first, he accused them of being spies and demanded that they leave one brother with him bound until they return with Benjamin to prove their story. Simeon was the chosen brother. Look if you would in verse 18. So, chapter 42 verse 18.

Joseph said unto them the third day, this wait a second. Yeah. This do and live for I fear God. If you be true men, let one of your brethren be bound in the house of your prison. Go you carry corn for the famine of your houses.

But bring your youngest brother unto me, so shall your words be verified and you shall not die. And they did so. And they said to one another, we are very guilty concerning our brother and this that we saw the anguish of his soul when he besought us and we would not hear, therefore, is this distress come upon us? They're remembering their what they did to Joseph. They're remembering the look on his face and the pleading, asking them not to do this and they did it anyway.

Verse twenty, twenty two and Reuben answered them saying, spake I not unto you saying, do not sin against the child and you would not hear it. Therefore, behold all also his blood is required and they knew not that Joseph understood them for he spake unto them by an interpreter. So, is there saying all this? They're saying it in the present of Joseph. They don't think Joseph understands but he does and he hears every word.

And he likes what he hears. Verse 24 and he turned himself about from them and he what? And he wept and he returned to them again and commune with them and took from them Simeon and bound him before their eyes. He then placed their money back in their sacks with the grain adding to their apprehension over the matter and testing to see if they would return, if they would return it later. When they did return to Egypt later with double the money and Benjamin despite the protest of Jacob, Joseph found reason to accuse and condemn Benjamin to see how they would react.

He put a gold cup in Benjamin's sack and so when they left, he sent messengers out to them saying, somebody has stolen the king's cup, the king's goblet and they said, oh, we haven't stolen it. If you find it among us, whoever, whoever stole it, let that person suffer and then, who was it? It was Benjamin. Oh, no. It was Benjamin.

They could not return to Jacob without Benjamin. He would die of sorrow. To the satisfaction, relief of Joseph, their response was both remorse ful and demonstrated a greater love for Jacob, Benjamin, and God than they had displayed in years past. Particularly the responses of Reuben, the eldest in Judah, who had been the one to sell him. Look if you would in in verse let's see here.

44. Yeah. Chapter 44 and verse 18. Then Judah came near unto him and said, oh my Lord, let thy servant, I pray thee speak a word in my Lord's ears and let not thine anger burn against thy servant, For thou art even as pharaoh. My Lord asked his servants saying, have you a father, a brother, and we said unto my Lord, we have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one, and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother and his father loves him.

And thou saidst unto thy servants, bring him down unto me that I may set mine eyes upon him and we said unto my Lord, the lad cannot leave his father, for if he should leave his father, the father would die and thou saidst thy servants except your youngest brother come down with you, you shall see my face no more and it came to pass when we came up under thy servant, my father, we told him the words of my Lord and our father said, go again and buy us a little food and we said, we cannot go down if our youngest brother be if our youngest brother be with us, then, we will go down for we may not see the man's face except our youngest brother be with us and thy servant, my father, said unto us, you know that my wife bear to me two sons, the one went out for me and I said, surely, he is torn in pieces and I saw him not since and if you take this also from me and mischief befall him, you shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. Now, therefore, when I come to thy servant, my father, and the lad, be not with me, with us.

Seeing that this life is bound, his life is bound up in the lad's life. It shall come to pass when he see it the lad is not with us that he will die and thy servant shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant, our father, with sorrow to the grave. For thy servant became surety, speaking of myself, for the lad unto my father, saying if I bring him unto thee, then I shall bear the blame to my father forever. Now, therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant abide instead in place of the lad, a bondman, a slave to my Lord, and let the lad go up with his brethren. For how shall I go up to my father and the lad not be with me?

Lest per adventure I see the evil that came that shall come on my father. Judah said, I can't go back without him. I can't go back without him. Would you please let me take his place? I'll stay here.

I'll be your slave. But let Benjamin go. And when Joseph heard that, it says in verse one of chapter 45, he could refrain himself before them no longer. And he told them who he was. Verse one, then Joseph could not refrain himself before all them that stood by him and he cried, calls every man to go out for me and there stood no man with him while Joseph made known himself known unto his brethren and he wept aloud in the Egyptians in the house of Pharaoh heard and Joseph said under his brethren, I am Joseph.

Doth my father yet live? And his brethren could not answer him for they were troubled at his response and Joseph said unto his brethren, come near me, I pray you and they came near and he said, I am Joseph, your brother, whom he sold into Egypt. I like verse verse three, it says, they couldn't speak because they were what? Troubled. That's an understatement.

They were scared to death. They were terrified. Here it is, this man that holds their lives in his hands. Is the brother that they abandoned. Is the brother that they left for dead?

Is the brother that they sold into slavery? They are terrified. They're surprised but I believe they're also terrified. What is he going to do? Joseph finally reveals himself to them He weeps not for sadness but he weeps for joy because his father is alive because he's just realized that his brethren are not quite the same people.

They were before. And he forgives them and he welcomes them If you look in verse five, he says, now therefore, be not grieved nor angry with yourselves. I can just hear the sigh of relief. That you sold me hither. For God did send me before you to preserve life.

For these two years hath the famine been in the land and yet there are five years in the which there shall neither be earring nor harvest and God sent me before you to preserve life and a prosperity in the earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So, now, it was not you that sent me hither but God and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh and the Lord of all his house and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. Jacob demonstrates mercy and compassion for his brother. Who had sold him into slavery. He welcomes them.

Rather than condemns them. He reminds me of one named Jesus Christ. He said, he came not into the world to condemn the world but that the world to him might be what? That the world to him might be saved. He said in Matthew eleven twenty eight, come on to me all that labor and heavy laden, I will give you rest.

In James four eight, draw nigh to God and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double minded. In John six thirty five through 37, Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never hunger. He that believeth on me shall never thirst.

Isn't that so fitting for Joseph? What were they were hungry? They came to him for food. Jesus could come unto me all you that are spiritually starving and hungry and hungry and thirsty. I will give you what nobody else can.

The sustenance to eternal life, abundant life. All that the father giveth me shall come to me and him that cometh to me, I will in no wise what? Cast out. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

But God desires more than fear He desires faith and he invites us to put our faith in him. He is a god of mercy and compassion and grace As Joseph typifies here. He forgave their sins. He provided for his family. Jesus Christ came to this Earth to do that very thing for us.

To die for our sins, to make a way. He is a god of justice and holiness and righteousness and wrath but he is also a god of mercy and grace and compassion. For mercy is preferable to judgement. He is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. Is it of, it is of his mercies and compassions that we are not consumed.

And we see that in Joseph and we see the embrace that follows. Look if you would in verse fourteen and fifteen and he fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck and wept and Benjamin wept upon his neck. Moreover, he kissed all his brethren and wept upon them. And after this, his brethren talked with him. All of a sudden, they could talk again.

Isn't it wonderful when you came to Christ as savior? You realized that you were a sinner and that if you didn't do anything about it, you would spend eternity separated from God in a place called hell but you realize that that same God sent his son to die on the cross for your sins. That same God is a merciful and compassionate God. That same God offers to lost sinners forgiveness and salvation and that's you. He invited us to come.

He embraced us as we put our faith in Jesus Christ to be our Lord and savior and he said to me, I will never cast you out. And he provides for us as Joseph provided for his family. Philippians four nineteen, but my God shall supply all your need according to his riches and glory by Christ Jesus. And he protects us and he loves us despite ourselves. Praise God for his unspeakable gift.

The gift of his son, the gift of forgiveness that he has shown toward us. Maybe you're here today and have yet to receive the mercy and grace of God offered to all those who repent and come to Christ in faith. His arms are outstretched toward you this morning. He says, come. I will give you rest.

Come, I will forgive. Come. Maybe you're here today and God is calling on you to forgive someone else. To be more like Jesus, to be more like Joseph. Ephesians four thirty one and thirty two.

Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from you. With all malice and be you kind one to another, tender hearted, forgiving one another even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. As you think what gifts you might give to someone this Christmas, if there's someone you haven't forgiven. Forgive There's no material gift you can buy them. That is of great value.

As your forgiveness. If Jesus Christ forgave you, we can also forgive them. Do you need Christ's forgiveness today and salvation from sin? Will you repent before him? Will you answer his call?

That decision is yours but his arms are stretched out and child of God, will you confess your sins also? If God is confronting you with something today, maybe it's not being forgiving. Maybe it's something else. If you'll confess your sins, he's faithful and just to what? Forgive us our sins and give us, cleanse us from all unrighteousness, to give us victory.

Today, will you ask God to help you to forgive? Will you ask God to forgive you? Let's pray. Dear God, thank you Lord. For the blessings that are ours in Jesus Christ beyond what we can ever imagine or understand.

Thank you for the example of Joseph and his forgiveness of his brothers. Lord, thank you for your forgiveness of us And Lord, I pray as you have shown us such forgiveness that we would be a people of mercy and compassion and that we would be willing to forgive others who come to us. That we would be willing to confess our sins before you, that you can give us victory and cleanse us from these, that we might be better servants of Jesus Christ today. Lord, I pray that you would work in each and every heart and if there's one today that's never trusted Christ, I do beg and plead with them as you are also that they would come as we sing this hymn of invitation today. In Jesus name, we pray.

Amen.