Genesis 37: Joseph

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0:00 Okay, it's good to be back here. Demetrius was with you guys last week and you talked about NOAA and I listened to that one and, oh, bam, man, you know, just a call to trust guy when you don't know the outcome. And I like this idea of looking at the different callings people have or the things people were called to in the scriptures.

0:32 So we're going to keep doing that. There's not a particular order here. It's just the stories. And when I looked at, I'm just kind of moving through chronologically, just like looking through the story. And I was like, I mean, Abraham, we talked about Abraham's calling a lot. I mean, you could beat it up if you wanted, but come to me afterwards. I'll give you the Cliffs notes. Let's look at Joseph. We haven't thought about Joseph's story together that much. And so that's where I spent some time for us thinking about it. Joseph's story is kind of like the end of Genesis.

1:05 The story of Joseph finishes off Genesis. It kind of starts in chapter 37 of Genesis if you're looking for a place to pick up the story. Just a reminder here, what got us into this was realizing, I mean, I like the idea of Jesus on the hill of Galilee after the resurrection before the ascension.

1:39 He says, I've got all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. He says, and so therefore I send you. Which I mean, I get the logic of it and we've heard the Great Commission a lot of times. But to me, there's something counterintuitive there. If he has all authority in heaven and on earth, why is these other dudes going to announce it? Why isn't Jesus going to take care of it himself? And when you read the story of Acts and you find the way that they're all trying to figure

2:14 out the teachings of Jesus and share it throughout the known world and having to walk from one place to another, if you were to look at then going second, third, fourth century as they're trying to figure out the teachings of Jesus as they're clarifying the divinity of Jesus and the trinity and they're figuring out how to apply baptism and all these questions, man, it sure would have been smoother, it seems like, if Jesus would have not left,

2:44 all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, if you have any questions, I'll be right here. And you and I could go see him if we needed some clarity on what we were doing with our life, the great ancient of days on the throne. He doesn't do that, right? He decides, I want my kingdom to grow in the world. I'll sit on a throne forever in the way people will hear about my kingdom and be welcomed into it will be these 11 plus the people they tell and it will cascade down over the centuries.

3:17 And that's how you and I find ourselves here. It seems inefficient. It seems counterproductive. I remember early on when I had started Krito, I really backed into running a coffee shop. I had no training for it at all. I had never even worked at a coffee shop before.

3:49 Stefan was helping me set stuff up, some of you in the room know Stefan, he had worked at a coffee shop before. But the funny thing was we realized how ill-prepared we were for running a coffee shop when we had our first espresso grinder and we couldn't get a good espresso shop. I mean it seemed good enough to me because I had never worked before but Stefan was bothered. And we kept adjusting the grinder because you got to get the grind just right. And finally the machine wasn't working and so we had the repair guy come and look at the machine

4:21 and we were like and we can't figure out why this shot is pulled so bad. And you know when it's water is rushing out it's because the ground ground is too coarse. We knew that. You had to make the course finer. So we kept turning the grinder finer and finer and he said you guys have it on its most course setting and you keep trying to turn it more and more coarse. We were using the grinder the wrong way, right? We didn't know we were doing and we were ill-prepared.

4:52 And I remember when people would come and ask me about running the coffee shop and they were surprised that this people were naming their price and they were like well is it working? And I found myself saying I guess it depends on what your definition of working is.

5:23 Right? There's a way in which Jesus on the hill of Galilee could be much more efficient if he didn't deal with these guys. Just you sit here. I like you. You're great. Just sit here and watch me handle the business. You know? But he doesn't. It seems inefficient but maybe he's shooting for something else, right?

5:53 And I think that's what we might pick up as we look through these stories of Scripture is what has got up to and the story of Joseph is crazy. I mean it's just like a, you know most of the stories you get like even if you look at the Christmas story which we celebrate for like months they're about to start putting out Christmas trees if you go and find the Christmas story in the gospels like it's like a half a paragraph. It's like a half a column. Luke's is the longest but even that one's not that long.

6:26 Like if you were to try and get the whole Joseph story it starts in 37 but it just keeps going. The Joseph story is long. God is like there's a lot happening and they tell the story kind of play by play, right? And so if you were to get just at the very beginning chapter 37 verse 1, Jacob lived in the land of his father's sojournings in the land of Canaan and

6:58 these were the generations of Jacob and Joseph being 17 years old was pasturing the flock with his brothers. He was a boy with the sons of Villa and Zilpa his father's wives and Joseph brought a bad report of them to their father. He's like telling on his cousins, right? He brought a bad report of them to their father. These guys aren't doing what they're supposed to do. Maybe they were like not paying attention to the pastors. Maybe they were like giving Joseph a hard time

7:28 if you read this story. I brought a bad report of them to their father. Now Israel that's Jacob got renamed Israel by God remember. Verse 3, now Israel loved Joseph more than any of the other sons and the other of his sons because he was the son of his old age and he made him a robe of many colors. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all the other brothers they hated him and could not speak peacefully to him. Anybody hear the youngest in the family?

8:02 Probably the favorite. Young guests are always. Parents by the time you have the youngest you know what battles to pick. You probably are a little bit older and wiser. It looks like you're easier on them but you just have a better sense of what really matters. The text says that Israel actually loved Joseph more than the others. Of course like in the ancient Near East they're like herdsmen

8:37 and they're moving around and part of how he takes care of people is he's got more than one wife you know and then he's got kids by these different wives and maybe he's got a wife that he likes more than the rest of them. Maybe one lady he had to work harder to woo that means a bigger deal to him. Who knows right? This guy's not perfect Jacob. But the story says Joseph is his favorite so you can imagine not only is he perceived as the favorite but he gets this like

9:11 he gets nicer stuff. And Joseph is he's like telling on the rest of the cousins. He's coming back from the field. He's like they're like hey dad I know look me and you we're in this these guys are not in it you know what I mean they're not doing it right. And then and then Joseph has these dreams you know you've heard of me. He has two dreams back to back and it sounds like he doesn't interpret them wholly but he says like hey I'm this like stalk and these other ones are bowing down to me

9:42 I'm these stars and the sun and the moon and they all get the impression that Joseph is having these dreams that the rest of the family is coming and bowing down to him. And he tells them these dreams without any irony or humility. You do not get the feeling that Joseph is a particularly self-reflective self-aware dude right. He is the he is the greatest of the family. He is doted on

10:12 and proud of it. Everyone should come to him right. And so I mean as far as characters go he's not exactly a sympathetic character right. Especially right here. It just is like you're like get a clue man you know. And so the cousins they don't like him right. And and they are supposed to take the herds and they're off in this next village pasturing them somewhere else and and Jacob is like hey Joseph go check on them man make sure

10:47 everything is okay you know. Just like no problem get my coat on. And he doesn't have to go out there with them right. And he he's like the one sent by the dad just go check on the guys right. And he goes to one town and he finds out oh they're not there and somebody finds him meandering in in the you know everybody else is working taking care of the herds and Joseph with his coat is just like walking around looking for the guys and somebody finds him saying what are you doing just meandering in the field like a guy that has no care you know. It's like oh I'm looking for my

11:19 my brothers and any idea and oh yeah so they go and find him. And now he's two villages away and the guys have just had enough you know they're just like I mean they say they're going to kill them. They're like let's just kill them like we'll throw them in a pit we'll tell dad the animal aid him and we'll be done with this Joker who thinks we all have to worship him you know. I mean some more brutal time I don't know what the what the parallel would be

11:50 for today a group of siblings. It's hard to imagine what the parallel would be but they tell the story and and it's not like any of them revolt right. One of the brothers Rubens like dude guys let's not let's let's hey let's don't kill him right. Rubens like let's just put him in a pit and just leave him there and then we'll tell dad that we lost him or something you know. And Rubens like his plan is to come back and get him out and so they're like all right Ruben your big old softie

12:22 that's what we'll do right. And so they throw him in the pit and then they see these guys coming through that are taking a bunch of stuff to Egypt and so they sell Joseph to these guys. Then they take his coat because that coat really pisses him off and then they dip it in some blood and they take it back to dad and they're like Joseph is dead. All right now if you're Joseph I mean that's terrible right like I don't know how many there are you know that these are the guys

12:57 that end up with the 12 tribes that there's more than 12 it's not a clean situation so there's more that he can't overpower them plus he's the youngest he's just taken advantage of and sold into slavery actually right literally he's sold into slavery and tough man and actually you know we might say like and actually in the end of the story if you fast forward to the end of the story in Genesis chapter 50 I told you Joseph's story as long goes from 37 to 50 if you go to the end of the story

13:31 of chapter 50 Joseph has this famous line that he says to his brothers and he says what you meant for evil God used for good right and so but that's like in hindsight that's like standing over here looking back there going okay it all worked out when you're at the bottom of the pit and you did nothing I mean you did nothing you were kind of a jerk but it's only evil

14:02 Joseph's story is interesting because if you look through it and you try and find a moment there's no moment where God's like all right Joseph you're it like Demetrius and I were talking about Noah's story last week and I was telling him that my parents had a vinyl of Bill Cosby's stand-up that I would listen to when I was a kid and he has a I mean Bill Cosby's got his own problems but he had a funny Noah story right and because there's a moment where God calls Noah audibly

14:41 right he knows he has the call Joseph never he he just gets thrown in the pit and sold in the slavery by his brothers and so then he ends up at this dude Potiphar's house and I was going to show you it's interesting so Joseph is his dad's favorite right and then if you go to chapter 39 now Joseph had been the

15:14 beginning of chapter 39 now Joseph had been brought down to Egypt and Potiphar an officer of Pharaoh the captain of the guard and Egyptian had bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there and the Lord was with Joseph and he became a successful man and he was in the house of the Egyptian master his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands so Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him and he made him

15:49 overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had from the time that he made him overseer in the house and over all that he had the Lord blessed the Egyptians house for Joseph's sake the blessing of the Lord was on all that he did in the house in the field so that all that he had in Joseph's charge and because of him he had no concern about anything but the food he ate Joseph it says that like the Lord was on the things that he did and it went well and this is like

16:25 I mean it's cool for Joseph and maybe it's like maybe it's a way of saying like Joseph was really good and he made really good decisions but the way that the Israelites and the scripture writers want us to understand it is that Joseph was good at things because God wanted him to be good at things because God blessed the work of his hands and was involved in what he was doing we don't get the sense I don't know if it's true or not Joseph's sense of it and this is what

16:57 I want us to think about for a second uh Joseph had the he started off good because he had the favor of his dad but even when he told the dream to his dad his dad was like dude you are arrogant calm down he had the extra coat but then his brother sell him into slavery and without a hope of reprieve and now he's in the guy's house like if God is on Joseph he's also not because like he let this evil stuff happen

17:37 it's interesting that both things can be true at the same time I'm saying that Joseph can have real bad in his life his brothers faked his murder and sold him into slavery he's cut off from his family and left alone and God's on the work of his hands

18:12 really interesting thing there and I think like well let's keep going you know then and then he's in this guy's house he's taking care of the whole house and then he has this incident with the guy's wife you know where where she's like let's have an affair and Joseph like dude your husband trusts me with the whole house and the one thing like I can't do that

18:47 it's like not a good idea right and so she says that he tried something and so then he gets thrown into jail right in um um look at uh so now he's in jail in Egypt tough man and so look at uh verse

19:19 yeah verse 19 as soon as his master of chapter 39 as soon as his master heard the words that his wife spoke to him this is the way your servant treated me in angry and Joseph master took him and put him in prison the place where the king's prisoners were confined and he was there in prison verse 21 but the lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the leper uh in the sight of the keeper of the prison and the keeper of the prison

19:52 put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were there in prison whatever was done there he was the one who did it the keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph's charge because the lord was with him and whatever he did the lord made it succeed I mean here it is again only it just keeps he keeps going further and further down he Joseph is born youngest and loved by his father with the dream coat and the dreams with everyone bowing down to him

20:25 all the lord favor of the lord with him he doesn't know how to handle it he's kind of a jerk so his brother's settlement of slavery he makes it gets through in slavery gets to a master's and then the master sees all the lord is with him and he moves up and everything's going well and then uh the false accusations and now he's down in prison and it seems like evil keeps happening like Joseph is lined up for good but evil keeps coming I'm saying

20:57 and there are choices that Joseph is making that the story just runs right over you know like Joseph at several points in the story could have handled things differently already right and so like well let's finish here so he gets the thing and he's in jail right and he's good at managing things

21:31 we've learned that by now but also remember the dream thing and so in in in jail in prison the cup bearer and the baker for the pharaoh are there uh who knows they they mess up somewhere right they have direct access to the king they did something wrong they're ending up in in jail and they both have these dreams and Joseph interprets the dreams form and mince's no words one guy's like oh the cup bearer's like oh you know what your dream means three days and you're

22:04 back in your seat good job and then the the baker comes to him he's like oh you know what your dream means three days and your hand I mean I don't know what you do in jail for your last three days but Joseph is like that's what's coming right and so he tells it to them both he's like just remember me when you tell the cup bearer remember me when you're like you know next to the king and of course what happens the the cup bearer it happens exactly like Joseph interprets the dream and then the cup bearer promptly forgets Joseph completely he's like just dealing with the king

22:35 until the king has dreams then he remembers oh hey there was a dude two years ago it says two years ago so it's like seven years in the pot of first situation two years in jail were now a decade at least removed from when his brothers sold him into slavery 10 years think about 10 years ago think about that length of time in jail and then oh no two years in jail we don't know how long

23:07 with pot of first sorry and then he quotes this so he he interprets the dream for the pharaoh and then he tells the pharaoh it's going to be seven years of plenty and then seven years of famine right that's what your dreams are telling you so the pharaoh's like hey man like this is like hey Joseph like I want put you in charge of everything how does that happen I mean it's a good makes for a very good story you can see why they stretch

23:43 it out over the whole chapters but like Joseph is running things for the jailmaster and interpreting dreams of people who are about to die and then he interprets the dream of the king and the king is like you know what I want you just run it all he said the only difference between me and you will be the fact that I'm the one sitting on the throne but let me give you the signet and you run the whole kingdom everybody will listen to you and then he parades him around

24:17 next to him so that people know this guy this is my guy right gives him a wife gives him a family gives him a place to live sets him in charge of everything and Joseph manages everything well exactly according to the interpretation of the dream they have seven years of plenty but he makes everybody live meager and they store up all the extra then the famine hits right on schedule and so then he starts passing it back out and he has enough he's selling it to other nations

24:52 who did not get the dream or the provision or have Joseph on their team and so now he's like he's selling the grain on behalf of Egypt and the whole situation is working right and so he saves Egypt and the surrounding nations and famously his brothers right Jacob appears about it he's like hey guys we're out here pasturing these group we've been living forever we don't

25:24 have any food they've got food over there go back and get it they don't recognize Joseph because it's been a minute and he's very well healed right he's like living like a pharaoh literally and so they don't recognize him and then they're afraid that he's going to take retribution and he doesn't you guys there's so much in this story that i was thinking about for you um like uh anybody had the Noah moment hey Noah i have found favor with you here's what i want

26:07 you to do build a boat no we don't get those but maybe you've had a moment where you're like why is the world conspiring against me i why is why do i keep finding myself at the short end of a stick that is a problem maybe also you have found yourself in a situation where you're like

26:43 it is eerie how good i am at this one thing maybe you're like this is i am unnaturally good at this like Joseph i don't know what kind of training he had to be a manager but the dude must have been a wiz at it right like i mean because he's a slave and he ends up managing a household he's a prisoner and he ends up managing a country um so my thing is like god wants to feed the world

27:21 he wants he has you know we find in scripture that he is willing that none should perish but also find their way to eternal life he has organized the earth to work appropriately and on behalf of lots of things that are moving it doesn't often and god has intended that your life would be up into the right forever that it would be uh increasing that you would taste a little appetizer of love joy peace patience kindness goodness faithful in general self-control right now and that those

27:54 positive things would increase off into infinity right and they don't god's intent is interrupted all over the place and in in the ancient near east at the time of Joseph and Pharaoh god had in mind that all of the nations would continue and yet famine comes and god had intended that Joseph would be a guy who's in charge of things and yet his brother's settlement of slavery and

28:25 pottaver's wife accuses him of the wrong things and the cup bearer forgets him and he's knocked down and knocked down and also he remains faithful and so like god has intended for you to have a certain sort of life and also evil happens god has intended for nations to thrive and also famines arrive it's interesting this is our theme that god doesn't just send the rain and fix the drought

29:06 he finds Joseph in prison it's also interesting if you if we took the time to read the story where Joseph goes before Pharaoh he's like Pharaoh's like hey dude I heard that you're really good at interpreting dreams I got to do

29:36 Joseph is like dude I'm not good at interpreting dreams but god will tell you exactly what it means Joseph despite the evil picks faithfulness to god despite his successes he recognizes where it comes from Joseph is very good at things and also understands it's god in the world through him

30:11 he recognizes that god wants the world to eat but doesn't come down and send the rains he's like I bet I can do that because the lord has in mind that people should eat and when he when he moves into Potiphar's house he's like I bet I can take care of this because god has in mind that I should be taken care of and should you so let's just

30:43 organize this situation and when even when he's in prison he's like cup bear don't forget me because god has in mind that I should not be here forever so there's like so many things to pull out of Joseph's story but I want to run a couple by you god is working in the world and he's interested in you working with him god is interested god is working in the world and he's interested in you working with him

31:14 most of the time he's not going to supernaturally speak to you audibly and describe what you would do next most of the time he's not but but make no mistake whether you're in the pit in a foreign country in jail in the house with your family as the favorite son or daughter god sees and knows what you're good at it does not mean evil won't find you god is often working in

31:50 the world always working in the world and is interested in you coming with him he rarely calls you by name but knows what you're good at right and god sees the thing but evil will come just because god is working in the world and god knows where you are does not mean you will escape the evil of the world you will not last one so why if if we can be the favorite son with the

32:25 technical dream coat and evil can still come for us why in potterford's house pick fidelity over indulgence why in jail pick patience over expediency why when we've arrived at pharaoh's right hand do we pick forgiveness over vengeance last there's a little parable that jesus tells in the new testament where he's describing how things work in his kingdom and without taking the

33:01 time to tell you the whole parable i'm going to give you the punchline he says he who is faithful with a few things will be faithful with much to the one who has more will be given he says this is how the reign of god works so there's something in joseph that knows god wins out at the end in the end i can be in jail but it's still not below the vision of god and the same is true for you when you pick fidelity over indulgence when you pick forgiveness over vengeance when you pick

33:35 humility over pride when you allow yourself to believe that god would work through you in the world to do the things he's trying to do in the world and you pick fidelity to that work god sees it and in the end he who is faithful with a few things will be faithful with much our people have preserved the story of joseph in order that we would see this principle playing out in real life because we don't always get to see it but jesus is picking that principle up the principle of joseph that says

34:09 he was faithful in pada first house in jail when no one's watching gets elevated to the right hand of the king jesus picks up that principle and says this is how the kingdom of god works every time and whether you see it on this earth or the next you know that's what wins out so pick fidelity now and let god work through you here i'm confident that he will that you all are uniquely good at things and in those places you'll find moments to pick humility fidelity forgiveness over

34:47 indulgence pride and vengeance and as we do god continues to give us more and more of those moments and we can uh kind of cruise into eternity amongst the evil of the world let me pray hey lord thank you for this group of people give them wisdom and faith discernment and hope as they navigate the choices of their lives as they absorb the evil of the world and keep moving in fidelity uh be with us thank you for calling us give us grace to pursue you in jesus name we pray amen