Genesis Ch43v1-34 - A Compassionate Welcome

So, the last time that we met, I think Sam was bringing us through chapter 42.

So, to bring us up to speed, before we head into chapter 43, there's a famine over the whole land.

And Jacob sends his sons down to Egypt to buy food.

And what the brothers don't know is that when they arrive, Joseph has been made governor of Egypt.

He's in charge of distributing food to all the surrounding nations.

But the thing is, Joseph recognizes the brothers, but the brothers don't recognize Joseph.

They get their food and return home.

And on their way home, they stop and open up their sacks and discover that the silver they had used to buy the grain had been returned to them.

But also, the food that they had got came at a price.

Joseph keeps one brother in prison, Simeon, and demands that if they come again, have a look in chapter 42, verse 34.

Joseph had said to them, you're to bring your youngest brother, that's Benjamin, to me, so that I will know that you are not spies, but honest men.

Then I will give your brother back to you, and you can trade in the land.

You can buy food.

So it was crystal clear that if you come back again to Egypt, you're not going to get any food unless you bring Benjamin.

And that brings us to chapter 43.

Well, let's pray before we look at that together.

Father, your word is living.

It is like a surgeon's scalpel that cuts right to the heart and exposes what our hearts are truly like.

And so we come and ask that you would show us our need of you so that we may come to your throne of grace and mercy

and receive all that we need for our lives today.

We ask this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Thank you, Avian.

Just what I needed.

Well done.

Thank you.

Well, there's a crisis in Jacob's clan.

The boys are getting hungry and their bellies are beginning to rumble.

Have a look at verse 1.

Now, the famine was still severe in the land.

So when they had eaten all the grain they had bought from Egypt, their father said to them,

Go back and buy us some more food.

Well, that's easier said than done.

Look at verse 3.

Judah said to his father,

Come on, Dad.

You know the answer to that.

The man, speaking of Joseph, warmed us solemnly.

You will not see my face again unless your brother Benjamin is with you.

If you will send our brother along with us, we will go down and buy food for you.

But if you will not send Benjamin, we will not go down because the man said to us,

You will not see my face again unless your brother is with you.

Well, Jacob didn't trust his sons.

In fact, he had made his feelings known after the last trip.

Look at the last verse of chapter 42.

Jacob said,

My son, Benjamin, will not go down there.

Your brother, speaking of Joseph, is dead and he's the only one left.

If harm comes to him on the journey you are taking,

you will bring my grey head down to the grave in sorrow.

There was no way he was going to part with his younger son.

Well, once again, all these hidden hurts and these deep divisions that existed within the family

bubbled to the surface.

Look at chapter 43 and verse 6.

Israel, that's Jacob, asked,

Why did you bring this trouble on me by telling the man you had another brother?

They replied,

The man questioned us closely about ourselves and our family.

Is your father still living?

Do you have another brother?

We just simply answered his questions.

How were we to know he would say,

Bring your brother down here.

It's not our fault.

So Jacob's in a dilemma, isn't he?

If he doesn't send Benjamin,

they're not going to get food and they're all going to die.

But if he does send Benjamin to Egypt,

he fears that Benjamin could die.

Well, the brothers are worried about supplies.

So Judah, one of the brothers, offers his father a deal.

It's not really the sort of thing you do when you're in good relationship with one another.

It just shows the breakdown that existed.

Verse 8.

Then Judah said to his father,

Send the boy along with me and we will go at once so that we and you and our children may live and not die.

I myself will guarantee his safety.

You can hold me personally responsible for him.

If I do not bring him back to you and set him here before you,

I will bear the blame before you all my life.

As it is, if we had not delayed, we could have gone and returned twice.

Just hurry up, Dad, and make your decision before we all starve to death.

Now, while the brothers are prioritizing food for their bellies,

it seems that God is actually more concerned about the sin in their hearts.

You see, 22 years have passed since the brothers had sold their brother, Joseph, into slavery.

Remember, Joseph had been the special one, the favorite one.

And his father, Jacob, had bought him that designer jacket, the lovely bright colored one.

So in envy and jealousy, they sold their brother as a slave.

And to make matters worse, they covered it up.

They killed a goat.

They put blood on the coat and bought it to their father, Jacob.

We found this father when we were out.

Check and see if it's your son's coat.

We don't know who it belongs to.

Well, Jacob fell for it.

It is my son's coat.

Some ferocious animal has devoured him.

Joseph has surely been torn to pieces, he said.

Well, the brothers may have deceived their father all these years,

but nothing is hidden from God.

You see, they may be prioritizing food for their bellies,

but God is more concerned about the sin in their hearts.

You see, the most important need for us is not physical, but spiritual.

It's not about a good career, finding the right partner,

owning a house, retiring on a big pension.

It's not about having a great ministry program in your church,

the best music and wonderful sermons,

all of which we have here, of course.

All these things are good, but they're not God's priority.

What God desires is that we face our sin

and deal with our sin.

In this account of chapter 43,

we're going to see that God confronts sin,

revealing our desperate need for mercy,

and displays the grace and welcome

he gives to sinners like us.

God confronts sin,

revealing our desperate need for mercy,

and displays the grace and welcome

he gives to sinners like us.

So first, the mercy we desperately need.

Look at verse 11.

Then their father said to them,

If it must be, then do this.

Put some of the best products of the land in your bags

and take them down to the man as a gift.

Now remember what they bring, okay?

A little balm and a little honey,

some spices and myrrh,

some pistachio nuts and almonds.

Take double the amount of silver for you,

for you must return the silver that was put back into the mouths of your sacks.

Perhaps it was a mistake.

Take your brother also

and go back to the man at once.

Well, Jacob's request must have hit them like a ton of bricks.

Take spices and silver

and your brother

and go to Egypt.

Well, it's like their sin of the past is being replayed before their very eyes.

Do you remember what happened to Joseph?

Go back to chapter 37

and see if you can spot some similarities.

Chapter 37.

The scene here is the brothers have thrown Joseph down into an empty well

and they're thinking of a way to get rid of him.

We'll pick it up in verse 25.

As they, the brothers, sat down to eat their meal,

they looked up and saw a caravan or a convoy

of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead.

Their camels were loaded with spices

and balm

and myrrh

and they were on their way down to

Egypt.

Judah said to his brothers,

What will we gain if we kill our brother

and cover his blood?

Come, let's sell him to the Ishmaelites

and not lay hands on him.

After all, he is our brother,

our own flesh and blood.

His brothers agreed.

So when the merchants came by,

his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the well

and sold him for 20 shekels of silver

to the Ishmaelites who took him to Egypt.

Let's go back to chapter 43.

You see, the scene is almost identical, isn't it?

Their hidden past sins

are now playing out before their very eyes.

The brothers are packed up with spices

and silver

and their brother

and they're heading for Egypt.

Coincidence?

I don't think so.

God is taking them back to that terrible day

when they sold Joseph.

God is confronting

their unconfessed sin.

Well, of course, all of this is unknown to Jacob.

But he does

the only right thing.

He gathers his sons together

before they head off

and they have a quick prayer meeting.

Verse 14.

We're back in chapter 43.

Let's pray, brothers.

May God Almighty grant you mercy before the man

so that he will let your other brother

and Benjamin come back with you.

As for me, if I am bereaved,

I am bereaved.

Now, this is no superstitious tradition,

a kind of quick prayer,

a lucky charm.

No, Jacob is crying out to

God Almighty.

This is how God

had introduced himself

to Jacob

years before.

I am the Almighty God.

I'm the Creator God,

the Sovereign God,

the God who has mercy

on his people.

So what Jacob is praying

is that God would deal

with the sons

in mercy.

He wouldn't treat them

as their sins deserve,

but that he would be kind

to them.

Now, isn't that

what the brothers

really need?

As they head off

to Egypt

with their spices

and silver

and their brother

remembering

their past sins?

Well, they've also got

their father's prayer

ringing in their ears.

God

have mercy.

You see, that's where

we all need to start.

You see, maybe there's

something in your past

or my past

that is undealt with.

It's been brushed

under the carpet

all these years,

hoping that with the

passing of time

it will just go away

and everybody

will forget.

perhaps God

is confronting us,

reminding you

of a relationship

that is broken

and not sorted

within the family,

convicting us

of some habit

that has never

really been addressed.

How do we deal

with it?

Well, we start

with prayer

just as Jacob

did in verse 14.

We recognize

our desperate need

and we cry out

to God

for mercy.

Now, the big question

is

will God

answer that prayer?

Will God

be merciful?

Can you press

the space bar

there, Alex?

Sorry.

Thank you.

Thanks.

Second,

the grace

we generously

receive.

No?

Never mind.

Don't worry.

Leave it.

I'll, um...

It's the grace

we generally

generously receive

is the next heading.

Verse 15.

So the men

took the gifts

and doubled

the amount

of silver

and Benjamin

also.

They hurried

down to Egypt

and presented

themselves

to Joseph.

Now, remember

they don't

recognize

Joseph.

Verse 16.

When Joseph

saw Benjamin

with them,

he said to

the steward

of his house,

Take these men

to prepare

my...

Take these men

to my house.

Slaughter

an animal

prepare a meal.

They are to

eat with me

at noon.

The men

did as

Joseph told

him,

and he took

the men

to Joseph's

house.

Now, the men

were frightened

when they were

taken to his

house.

They thought,

we were bought

here because

of the silver

that was put

back in our

sacks the

first time.

Remember...

Don't worry,

Sam.

Leave it.

It's fine.

Remember,

Joseph had

kindly put

back in

their bags

the silver

they had

paid for

the grain.

But the

brothers thought

it was all

a trick.

But it

wasn't a

trick.

It was

Joseph's

kindness.

Verse 18.

He wants

us...

He wants

to attack

us and

overpower

us and

seize us

as slaves

and take

our donkeys.

The brothers

are terrified.

We can

imagine them

thinking and

talking amongst

themselves.

If he's

anything like

how we

treated our

brother,

we don't

stand a

chance.

We're going

to end up

as his

slaves too.

Verse 19.

So they

went up to

Joseph's

steward and

spoke to him

at the

entrance to

the house.

We beg

your pardon,

our Lord,

they said.

We came

down here

the first

time to

buy food.

But at

the place

where we

stopped for

the night,

we opened

our sacks

and each

of us

found his

silver,

the exact

weight,

in the

mouth of

his sack.

So we've

brought it

back with

us.

We have

also brought

additional

silver with

us to

buy the

food.

We don't

know who

put our

silver in

our sacks.

Well,

we can hear

their knees

knocking.

What's

going to

happen to

them?

Will their

father's

prayer for

mercy be

answered?

Well,

amazingly,

God acts

with generous

grace.

Look at the

response of

the steward,

verse 23.

It's all

right,

he said.

Be at

peace.

Don't be

afraid.

Your

God,

the God

of your

father,

has given

you treasure

treasure in

your

sacks.

I

received

your

silver.

What?

Not only

was their

silver

returned,

this act

of kindness

was none

other than

the work

of God.

Look what he

says,

your God,

the God

of your

father,

has given

you treasure

in his

sack.

this is

covenant

talk.

This is

the God

who had

made

promises

to his

people,

the God

who promises

to be

loyal and

faithful

despite

their

sin.

You

see,

the silver

turning up

in their

bags was

not some

kind of

miraculous

act.

No,

Joseph had

given orders

to the

steward to

put the

silver

back.

However,

the steward,

verse 23,

is making

it abundantly

clear that

it was

God

working

through

Joseph.

God was

responding

in generous

grace to

a bunch

of broken

sinners.

And to

show the

extent of

his

generosity,

look at

the end

of verse

23,

he also

brought

Simeon

out to

them.

He freed

his brother.

What

generosity,

what

kindness.

You see,

we too

can be

terrified

like the

brothers,

afraid that

if we

face our

sin,

that if

God would

somehow find

out or

somebody else

would find

out,

God will

give us

what we

deserve.

So rather

than confessing

our sin,

we hide

our sin.

Instead of

running to

God freely,

we hide

in shame

and we

bury our

guilt and

we live

in fear.

If this

encounter

with the

steward

teaches us

anything,

it teaches

us that

God is

patient

and God

is kind.

He responds

not as we

expect,

but with

generous

grace.

You see,

mercy is

not being

treated as

our sins

deserve,

but grace

is receiving

what we

do not

deserve and

that's what

the brothers

get,

not just

mercy,

but grace.

God is

more than

merciful,

he is

generously

gracious.

In fact,

it only gets

better for

the brothers.

Third,

if you're

taking notes,

the welcome

we compassionately

gain,

the welcome

we compassionately

gain.

Let's follow

the story,

verse 24.

The steward

took the men

into Joseph's

house,

gave them

water to

wash their

feet,

provided

fodder for

their donkeys.

They prepared

their gifts

for Joseph's

arrival at

noon because

they had

heard they

were going

to eat

there.

When Joseph

came home,

they presented

to him the

gifts they

had bought

into the

house,

and they

bowed down

before him

to the

ground.

He asked

them how

they were,

and then

he said,

how is

your aged

father you

told me

about?

Is he

still living?

They replied,

your servant,

our father,

is still alive

and well,

and they

bowed down,

prostrating

themselves before

him.

All this

bowing down

before someone

they don't

know.

At last,

there's a

sign of

humility

from these

hardened

brothers.

It seems

that their

encounter

with God's

grace is

beginning to

change their

hardened

hearts.

Verse 29,

as he

looked about

and saw

his brother

Benjamin,

his own

mother's

son,

he asked,

is this

your youngest

brother,

the one

you told

me about?

And he

said,

God,

be gracious

to you,

my son.

Deeply

moved.

Now,

that's an

important

phrase for

us to

understand.

Deeply

moved means

his heart

was filled

with compassion.

Not just

a feeling

inside,

but a

desperate

need to

act to

help those

who were

in desperate

need.

So,

verse 30,

deeply

moved with

compassion

at the

sight of

his brother.

Joseph

hurried

out and

looked for

a place

to weep.

He went

into his

private room

and wept

there.

He didn't

want them

to know

who he

was.

After he

had washed

his face,

he came

out and

controlling

himself said,

serve

the food.

I mean,

what a

transformation

is taking

place.

Not only

have they

received

generous

grace,

but now

they also

gain a

compassionate

welcome,

eating in

the home

of the

governor

of all

of Egypt.

Verse 32,

they served

Joseph by

himself,

the brothers

by themselves,

and the

Egyptians who

ate with

them by

themselves.

So,

three different

seating areas,

but all within

the same

vicinity,

because the

Egyptians could

not eat with

Hebrews,

for that is

detestable to

the Egyptians.

They obviously

saw themselves

as superior.

Verse 33,

the men had

been seated

before Joseph

in order of

their ages,

from the

firstborn to

the youngest,

and they

looked at

each other

in astonishment.

How does

he know our

ages?

Who told

him?

Did you

tell him?

No, I

didn't tell him.

Did you?

No, I

didn't say

anything.

Well, all

of this will

be revealed

next week,

but there's

something else

that we need

to be

astonished

about.

Not just

the brothers

as they

try to

figure out

how he

knows so

much about

them,

but remember

back to

when the

brothers were

plotting to

get rid of

Joseph.

Do you

remember how

that account

all started?

Chapter

37,

verse 25,

it tells us,

they took

him and

threw him

into an

empty

well,

and then

they sat

down to

eat their

meal.

Well, here

they are

again, all

the brothers

together.

The first

time they're

all sitting

down again

eating a

meal, but

this time

they're being

served by

their brother

who they

had sold

as a

slave.

They had

hated him,

they had

got rid

of him,

and now

they've

been welcomed

by him

and served

by him.

We, the

reader,

should be

astonished

at what

is taking

place.

What

compassion,

what

kindness.

But what

is even

more astonishing

about this

event is

the picture

it paints

for us.

You see,

we have

been welcomed

to the

feast of

King

Jesus.

You see,

like the

brothers

treated

Joseph,

so as we

read the

story,

so we

have treated

Jesus.

We have

turned against

him.

We have

hated Jesus

and sought

to get rid

of him.

We've

plotted and

planned to

remove his

rule over

our lives.

We don't

want anything

to do with

him.

We've

killed

him.

But

Jesus in

his goodness

doesn't

give up.

He

confronts

us with

our sin.

He

reveals to

us the

mercy that

we desperately

need.

He calls

us not

to hide

our sin,

but to

run to

him and

confess our

sin,

to receive

his generous

grace and

his compassionate

welcome.

You see,

the one that

we have

disowned,

has become

our true

brother,

who has

served us

by giving

his life

for us.

Although we

have sinned

against him,

he has

taken our

sin on

himself and

died in

our place.

And now

Jesus, our

brother,

reaches out

his hand

of friendship

and he

invites us

to feast

at his

table.

The

brothers here

in this

account,

are

separated.

It's not

a true

union.

But isn't

that what

we do

receive when

we are

welcomed by

Jesus?

We become

his children.

He is

our brother.

We feast

at his

table,

forgiven

and

welcomed.

God's

loved.

So as we

reflect on

this story

together,

let's not

hide our

sins of

the past.

Let's not

brush them

under the

carpet and

hope that

they'll all

go away and

everybody else

will forget.

Don't live

under the

crushing weight

of guilt

and shame.

rather let

us come

to Jesus

with open

hearts and

we will

find mercy

and grace

and a

compassionate

welcome.

Let's pray

together.

Father, as

we reflect

together,

we know

that nothing

is hidden

from your

sight.

You know

all our

thoughts

and all

our

deeds.

Father,

help us

that we

wouldn't

carry the

weight of

guilt and

shame,

but that

we would

cry out

to you

for mercy

and know

that you

respond with

generous

grace,

taking our

sin upon

yourself.

and giving

us that

compassionate

welcome

that we

might feast

at your

table

with our

brother,

Jesus

Christ.

How amazing

is your

gift to

us.

Please help

us to run

to him

every day.

We ask

this in

Jesus'

name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.