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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?"
So they sent word to Joseph, saying, "Your father left these instructions before he died: 'This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.' Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father."
When their message came to him, Joseph wept. His brothers then came and threw themselves down before him. "We are your slaves," they said.
But Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. So then, don't be afraid. I will provide for you and your children."
And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them. Joseph stayed in Egypt, along with all his father's family. He lived a hundred and ten years and saw the third generation of Ephraim's children. Also the children of Makir son of Manasseh were placed at birth on Joseph's knees.
Then Joseph said to his brothers, "I am about to die. But God will surely come to your aid and take you up out of this land to the land he promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob."
And Joseph made the sons of Israel swear an oath and said, "God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up from this place."
So Joseph died at the age of a hundred and ten. And after they embalmed him, he was placed in a coffin in Egypt.
Genesis 50:15-26
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As the Book of Genesis closes, we find where Jacob (also named Israel by God) died and received an incredible, honorable burial in Canaan, just as he requested. You’ll recall that his passing was followed by full traditional honors, both from his Israelite family as well as the Egyptians.
After an amazing life, we know that Jacob/Israel left behind twelve sons who would form the framework of Jewish nation, each son being a head of one of the twelve tribes. Indeed, the nation of Israel would be in their hands with God as their leader and guide. As we will see through studying the remainder of the Old Testament, the future Israelites would face many challenges, many of which were of their own making but as we see in our passage today from the closing verses of chapter 50, the sons of Jacob were more focused on what they saw as a clear and present danger, one created by their father’s death.
When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?"
There were times previously when the brothers seemed to be in harm’s way when dealing with Egypt’s second in command, not knowing that he was Joseph, but that was when Jacob was living. The sons believed that their father was the big reason why Joseph held back his wrath and severe punishment before but with him now gone, they feared for the worse and so we find them sending the following appeal to Joseph:
"Your father left these instructions before he died: 'This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.' Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father."
The message was simple and succinct, containing three key points for us to consider:
1. The advice to ask for forgiveness came from their father.
Before he died, we read where Jacob had given his sons instructions regarding their relationship with Joseph. The instruction was grounded in forgiveness and reconciliation, humbly going to their brother to seek his pardon.
2. The brothers confessed to having sinned.
None of the brothers attempted to sidestep their accountability for what happened. They openly admitted that what they did to Joseph was sinful, unwarranted, and inexcusable.
3. They profess themselves to be servants of God.
Overall, this reflected great spiritual growth had happened within the hearts of Joseph’s brothers. For no true servant of God would have wronged him the way they did, selling him into slavery out of sheer jealousy.
But that was then and this was now.
Through their words, we find the brothers expressing humility and remorse. Yes, Joseph had suffered great hardship but in the end, it was all part of God’s overall plan, not only for him but for his family and the people of Egypt that he held authority over. God had used Joseph’s life circumstances to win his brothers over and they now confessed to serve the Lord themselves.
Well, the scriptures tell us that when the brothers’ message reached Joseph, his heart was touched. Overcome with emotion, "he wept" and we can see the Lord laying the foundation for forgiveness and repair of a previously fractured family relationship.
The message was followed by action as we read where Joseph’s brothers arrived and “threw themselves down before him", proclaiming:
"We are your slaves."
Note here that they don’t even wait to see if their message was received favorably but instead immediately throw themselves at Joseph’s feet professing their unworthiness, expressing that they were fit to do nothing else but be enslaved to Joseph so to repay the debt of their wrongdoing.
Friends, we should be ready to learn from these brothers of Joseph. For how many times have we wronged our Lord in the way we have lived? Shouldn’t we be throwing ourselves down at God’s feet and confess our unworthiness, understanding that we would be blessed to just be counted as His slaves?
If we’re honest as believers, we should admit the truth that none of us can stand before our Lord solely based on our own merit and righteousness for there isn’t one person living who hasn’t fallen short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23). We are all numbered with the transgressors and it’s only through placing our trust In Jesus as Savior that brings us God’s special mercy and redemption. We should all humbly come before His throne of grace with absolute thanksgiving and praise.
And this leads me to one more important point.
For since no single believer can stand before the Lord blameless, that makes no one worthy to judge another person either.
Ouch.
You see, we all too often love to assume this role as Satan loves getting us puffed up and believing we’re somehow superior to another when the truth is that we’re all the same when it comes down to it, sinners in desperate need of God’s pardon and absolution. And since He so freely forgives us through Jesus, His Son, so too are we to forgive one another.
You know, forgive others as we have been forgiven, or else risk losing God’s forgiveness altogether (Matthew 6:14-15).
Friends, this is how Joseph could so easily say this to his brothers:
"Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. So then, don't be afraid. I will provide for you and your children."
My prayer for us today is that Joseph’s words will resonate within the chambers of our hearts and minds for like him, none of us are in God’s place. He is Lord and we aren’t. Period.
Through his words, Joseph shows a realization that it wasn’t his place to judge because only his God had the authority to do that. What Joseph could do us forgive because not only was it God’s expectation to do so, it was his obligation.
Like Joseph, we aren’t a substitute for God. None of us have been put in His place and so we don’t have the right to judge and condemn. Thankfully, what we do have God’s spirit within us and this indwelling will lead us to a place of reconciliation, mercy, and love when we submit to it, just the place where our Lord wants us to be.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.
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