Book of Genesis - Ch. 45, Vs. 1-28 (05/13/2001)

I really thought that I was through with my elementary teaching, but it's apparent

I'm not. Did anybody hear the preacher on the last statement that he made?

He is lucky, isn't he? Luckiest man in the world.

My, my, I'm going to have to start all over. Well, I know he doesn't.

That's the first time he's used it in my presence. He just slipped up a little bit. That's his lucky day, right?

He was concluding, he was concluding here, and was trying to fit that situation.

Well, brother there, I think he did what? Well, it all depends on how

I feel. I'll be up here at the school first.

No, no, not repenting. I'll be bringing an opening exercise.

All right, that's all out of the way now. I hope it's taken care of.

We're lucky if it is. Genesis 45.

Now, we should be looking for parallels of Jesus' life.

And we open this chapter with something very striking. Does anybody see it?

I don't know why you should, but... That's what

I mean, but how does he do it? I see it.

Well, share it with us. Just like today, Jesus only reveals himself.

That's right. You halfway have redeemed yourself.

Thank you. Jesus shows himself to those he chooses out of sight of the world.

And he wept aloud, and the Egyptians in the house of Pharaoh heard it. And Joseph said to his brethren,

I am Joseph. Now, their conscience has been bothering them all of the time.

And they thought that God was punishing them because of what they did to Joseph. And on and on.

And their imagination run away with them. Now, the very man himself turns up.

And he says, I'm Joseph. What do they think, Russell? Can they comprehend it?

What do you mean you're Joseph? He doesn't look like him.

He doesn't talk like him. Nothing. Doth my father yet live?

And his brethren could not answer him, for they were troubled at his presence. You mean all of this time it's been

Joseph? Yes. And Joseph said unto his brethren, come near to me.

And they came near. I pray you. And he said,

I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. And there comes a rush of memories.

Each man thinking his own. Now, therefore, be not grieved nor angry with yourselves.

But you sold me hither, for God did send me before you to preserve life.

God has a way of doing the unexpected. They didn't expect

Joseph. The furthest thing from their mind was that this is Joseph.

But we see God's hand in everything, don't we? How would that we could see everything in God's hand?

To forgive and forget. This is a beautiful picture of Christ. For these two years hath the famine been in the land, and yet there are five, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest.

There's going to not be any production for five more years. God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth.

And to save your lives by great deliverance. Isn't it wonderful that Joseph could see this?

God sent me before you. Do you see how in his providence he is caring for us?

So now, it was not you that sent me hither, even though you tried, but God.

And he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and the Lord of all of his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

I would say God is in control, wouldn't you? No exceptions.

Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith my son

Joseph, God hath made me

Lord of all Egypt. Come down unto me, tarry not. And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children's children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast.

For there will I nourish thee, and yet there are five years of famine, lest thou and thy household, and all thou hast, come to poverty.

So truly, Joseph is their inheritance. He has saved the family.

And behold your eyes and the ears, my brother, Benjamin, that it is my mouth that is speaking unto you.

Now, what did he mean by that, David? It is my mouth and my ears.

My mouth is speaking unto you. Tell him,

Virg. Greg, you tell both of them.

Right. He had used an interpreter, interpretation, until this time.

And he says, look, it's my mouth. My very lips that are speaking to you.

Did they have any excuse for not hearing him, understanding him? They couldn't believe it, though.

And you shall tell my father of all of my glory in Egypt, and of all that you have seen, and you shall hasten, bring down my father hither.

And it fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck, wept, and Benjamin wept upon his neck.

Moreover, he kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them, and after that his brother talked with him.

Now, we must remember that it's hard to conjure up this feeling.

We know that it was a very emotional time. How many of you have ever been around the

Middle East people when they're excited, when they're just carrying on a normal conversation, to,

I can't understand what they say, but I would swear they're going to fight each other. The emotion that is shown is tremendous to our way of thinking.

And I'm sure that's what was going on here. This is why Pharaoh, it was heard in Pharaoh's house, which is another house away.

Yes. Right, exactly right. Moreover, he kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them, and after that his brethren talked with him.

And the fame thereof was heard in Pharaoh's house, saying, Joseph's brethren are come.

And it pleased Pharaoh well and his servants. And Pharaoh said unto

Joseph, say unto thy brethren, This do ye, lay your beasts, and go, get you up to the land of Canaan, and take your father and his household, and come unto me, and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and you shall eat the fat of the land.

What part of the land was this? What? Goshen, the land of Goshen.

Where is that? Have you got the map in view?

In the northeast part, does it include the delta of the Nile? Yes, it does.

Very, very fertile. Now thou art commanded, This do you, take you wagons out of the land of Egypt for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring your father, and come.

This is the first time wagons have been mentioned, and it's mentioned as coming from Egypt.

Why didn't the Israelites have wagons? They didn't have horses.

And regard not your stuff. I like that word, stuff. For the good of all the land of Egypt is yours.

I'll give you all of it. And the children of Israel did so, and Joseph gave them wagons according to the commandment of Pharaoh, and gave them provisions for the way.

To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment, but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, five changes of raiment, and to his father he sent after this manner ten asses laden with good things of Egypt, ten she -asses laden with corn and bread and meat for his father by the way, or to eat as they came down.

So he sent his brethren away, and they departed. And he said unto them, See that you fall not out by the way.

Now, Greg, why was that statement made? Right.

He knew these boys, these men. He said, when you're out of my sight, don't try to lay it on the other one.

Don't say, I told you so. And they went out of Egypt, and came into the land of Canaan, unto

Jacob their father. And they told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive.

Now, what's Jacob think, Bill? Well, he thought they were dead.

And they had attributed to a wild beast, I think. Yes. So I guess they thought, mistakenly,

I don't think he still recognizes them as sons. And he is governor over all the land of Egypt.

And Jacob's heart fainted, for he believed them not. Well, that's natural.

Too good to be true, or just that's not true. You all have lied to me all your life, and you're doing another one now.

And they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said unto them.

And when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father revived, and Israel said, it's enough.

Joseph, my son, is alive. Why? Charlotte, why did the wagons convince him?

Aside. That's right.

They couldn't have come from any place else. They wouldn't have manufactured this.

Wouldn't have gone this far. I will go and see him before I die.

Then Joseph could not refrain himself. I've repeated.

That's the end of it. I guess I wrote it twice. Let me see if I have the next one.

And I don't. So, we'll have to end with that.

Is there any questions? I've got one.

All right. Joseph told me,

I'd rather told them not to worry about their stuff. And eventually they would come back and recall.

Is there any significance to that, or is that just incidental?

Well, my stuff, I rather think he meant personal stuff.

You'll have all you need here. I don't know if that would include their livestock or not. They were different than the

Egyptians. So, that they had been used to caring for,

I think they could bring. The reason I was thinking of Abraham, when he had gone and rescued

John, and he was a sovereign, they offered him a lot of worldly things to do.

And he wouldn't take them. And so,

I thought, what I want to do is, I am here with them all the way today on the well of such and such.

Well, I don't see any connection. That doesn't say there isn't. But I didn't see any.

Well, the Pharaohs changed shortly after this.

So, but that doesn't mean anything. They could have been killed, whatever.

I did not look up Pharaoh to see how old he was. I didn't realize you were going to be in class.

Now, you're all going to have to quit using that word. Nothing else?

Russell, dismiss this. Right.

Keep it practical.