Genesis Ch41v1-57 - Blessing The Nations

So, Genesis 41, it's a long chapter, and I'm going to read sections of it, but I'll tell

you where we're going as we move along.

So, Genesis 41, we'll start with the first 16 verses, and then we'll move to others, but

let's hear God's word to us this morning.

Follow along as I read, starting in verse 1.

When two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream.

He was standing by the Nile, when out of the river there came up seven cows, sleek and

fat, and they grazed among the reeds.

After them, seven other cows, ugly and gaunt, came up out of the Nile and stood beside those

on the riverbank.

And the cows that were ugly and gaunt ate up the seven sleek, fat cows.

Then Pharaoh woke up.

He fell asleep again and had a second dream.

Seven ears of corn, healthy and good, were growing on a single stalk.

After them, seven other ears of corn sprouted, thin and scorched by the east wind.

The thin ears of corn swallowed up the seven healthy, full ears.

Then Pharaoh woke up.

It had been a dream.

In the morning, his mind was troubled, so he sent for all the magicians and the wise men

of Egypt.

And Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him.

Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, today I'm reminded of my shortcomings.

Pharaoh was once angry with me, his servant, and he imprisoned me and the chief baker in the

house of the captain of the guard.

Each of us had a dream the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own.

Now a young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain of the guard.

We told him our dreams, and he interpreted them for us, giving each man the interpretation

of his dream.

And things turned out exactly as he had interpreted them to us.

I was restored to my position, and the other man was impaled.

So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon.

When he had shaved and changed his clothes, he came before Pharaoh.

And Pharaoh said to Joseph, I had a dream, and no one can interpret it.

But I've heard it said of you that when you hear a dream, you can interpret it.

I cannot do it, Joseph replied to Pharaoh.

But God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.

Now let's move down to verse 25.

Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, the dreams of Pharaoh are one of the same.

God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do.

The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good ears of corn are also seven years.

It is one and the same dream.

The seven lean, ugly cows that came up afterwards are seven years.

And so are the seven worthless ears of corn scorched by the east wind.

They are seven years of famine.

It is just as I said to Pharaoh, God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do.

Seven years of great abundance are coming throughout the land of Egypt.

But seven years of famine will follow them.

Then all the abundance in Egypt will be forgotten, and the famine will ravage the land.

The abundance in the land will not be remembered, because the famine that follows it will be so severe.

The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God,

and God will do it soon.

And now, let Pharaoh look for a discerning and wise man and put him in charge of the land of Egypt.

Down to verse 39.

Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, since God has made all of this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you.

You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are submit to your orders.

Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.

Verse 48.

Joseph collected all the food produced in those seven years of abundance in Egypt and stored it in the cities.

In each city he put the food grown in the fields surrounding it.

Joseph stored up huge quantities of grain, like the sand of the sea.

It was so much that he stopped keeping records because it was beyond measure.

Verse 53.

The seven years of abundance in Egypt came to an end, and the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said.

There was famine in all the other lands, but in the whole land of Egypt there was food.

Well, let's pray and ask for God's help to us.

Let's pray.

Father, thank you again for your word.

We thank you that it is true.

And more than that, it is life-giving.

And so we pray that as we hear your words to us today,

you would show us the life you have given to us,

the life that you have given to the whole world.

Father, may your word bless us today as we listen.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, it's quite the story, isn't it?

From the pit of a prison to power in the palace.

And if that doesn't impress you, all happened within 24 hours.

We could imagine Joseph at his first book launch down at his local Egyptian Eason's.

The secret of my success.

The true story of one man's journey from slave to master.

Get your signed copies here.

What a transformation.

So, Joseph, tell me, how did you do it?

What was your secret?

Well, it's the kind of story we would all dream of for ourselves.

We would long for these sorts of things to happen to us.

We would long, too, that our struggles would come to an end.

That things would dramatically change.

That we would have a better life than the one we have right now.

So, Joseph, how did you do it?

How did you manage to turn things around?

To go from prison to palace?

Well, as we'll discover in this account, it's not about Joseph at all.

It's about God.

And it's not Joseph's secret to success.

But God's story of salvation.

In fact, this account is all about how God works through his servants to bless the nations.

Three things we're going to look at that will show how this is true.

That first, God ordains the events of his servants.

Second, God establishes the purposes for his servants.

And then third, God blesses the nations by his servants.

So, let's look at these together.

First, God ordains the events of his servants.

Everything in this account is God's fingerprints all over it.

God decides what happens and when it happens.

Look at verse 1.

When two full years had passed.

So, Joseph has now actually been in prison for 13 years for a crime he had never committed.

But just as God had overseen Joseph in prison, so God was going to take him out of prison.

You see, everything happens according to God's timing.

Verse 1.

So, when the two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream.

But the problem is, verse 8, nobody in all the land of Egypt could interpret Pharaoh's dream.

But, all of a sudden, verse 9, the chief cupbearer who had forgotten Joseph had suddenly remembered Joseph.

Pharaoh, Pharaoh, I know someone who can interpret dreams.

And it's exactly as the dreams say.

Now, there's Joseph.

Stuck in his dirty, grubby cell.

Chalking off the days in his prison wall.

Oblivious to the upset in the palace.

When all of a sudden, Joseph, get up here.

Now.

Well, Joseph, verse 14, is ushered along by the guards.

Thrown into the shower room for a hose down.

Given a shave and some decent clothes.

But what's happening?

Where am I going?

To see Pharaoh.

He's got a problem.

And you can help.

Do you see how God is ordaining the events of his servants?

He's bringing all things together.

And all the people together according to his timing.

God is at work in Pharaoh's life.

In the cupbearer's life.

In Joseph's life.

God is the one who is over all these things.

In fact, if we look a little closer to the dreams.

We learn a little bit more.

The way in which God ordains everything.

Three quick things here.

First, God discloses what's going to happen.

Look at verse 15.

Pharaoh said to Joseph, I had a dream and no one can interpret it.

But I have heard it said that you can interpret it.

I cannot do it, Joseph replied to Pharaoh.

But God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.

I can't.

But God can.

Only God reveals what will happen.

Only God knows the future.

Now of course we have all kinds of people.

Who will promise to predict the future for a few euro.

Especially religious people that we can see on God channel.

They promise you all kinds of things about telling your future and what's going to happen next year.

It's all wild speculation.

It's just imaginations and thoughts and ideas.

God alone knows what will happen.

But more than that, God directs what will happen.

As Pharaoh retells his dream.

Verse 25.

Then Joseph said to Pharaoh.

The dreams of Pharaoh are one of the same.

God has revealed to Pharaoh what God is about to do.

You see, only God knows the future.

But he is the one who's going to bring it about.

You see, the dream isn't just information about the future.

But God's action to bring it to pass.

Verse 28.

It is just as I said to Pharaoh.

God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do.

God is not only saying what will happen.

God is saying, I will direct the very events themselves.

Now you and I can't do that.

We can't change any event or make any event happen tomorrow, next year.

Never mind the events of the world.

But God discloses and directs everything.

In fact, God determines what will happen.

The dreams are clear in the interpretation.

There will be seven years of good harvest and seven years of no harvest.

A time of abundance and a time of famine.

But why were there two dreams saying the same thing?

Well, we're given the answer, aren't we, in verse 32.

The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms

is that the matter has been firmly decided by God.

And God will do it soon.

I want you to be crystal clear in your understanding, Pharaoh.

You may claim to be king of Egypt,

but God determines the times and the events of this world.

God has fixed the future.

Every second and every century is known by God

and is acted out by God.

Well, if God is in control of world events,

how much more is he in control of my life and your life?

Psalm 139 verse 16 reminds us,

Psalms 139:16

All the days ordained for me

were written in your book

before one of them came to be.

Isn't that amazing?

That our life is ordained from beginning to end?

God is in charge of the bad times

when we're in the pit of life.

God is in control of the good times

when we're enjoying the pleasures of life.

We don't live in a world of random events

and chance circumstances.

No, God ordains everything.

You see, this is not about finding the secret to success.

This is all about God

who ordains the events of his servants.

So, God ordains the events of his servants.

Second, God establishes the purposes of his servants.

Well, God is clearly in control of all that's going on

including the choices and decisions of Pharaoh.

In fact, God uses the king of Egypt

to establish his own servant in his place.

Verse 33.

Joseph says,

And now let Pharaoh look for a discerning and wise man

and put him in charge of the land of Egypt.

Now, I don't think Joseph is seeking power here

or an upgrade.

I think Joseph is just stating the obvious implication of the dreams.

Look, Pharaoh, if there's going to be a famine,

you're going to need to store up grain in the good years.

You need a plan.

You need somebody who's going to look after that.

Positions and power were far from Joseph's mind.

But yet it seems God is at work through Pharaoh

to establish his servant.

In fact, as we look more closely at the story,

we see how God does this.

First, look at Joseph's rise to power.

To say that Joseph had suffered was an understatement.

He had 13 years in the pit of a prison,

but all of that was to change.

Verse 39.

Then Pharaoh said to Joseph,

Since God has made all this known to you,

there is no one so discerning and wise as you.

You shall be in charge of my palace,

and all my people are to submit to your orders.

Only with respect to the throne

will I be greater than you.

From the pit to power,

from being a slave to a master,

Joseph's life was radically changed in a matter of hours.

Once in grubby clothes and in irons of chain.

Now look at the end of verse 42.

We find him dressed in a robe of fine linen,

and not with chains of iron,

but a gold chain around his neck.

In fact, Joseph went from a position

of bowing down to others,

to where the whole nation were bowing down to him.

Look at verse 43.

Pharaoh made Joseph ride in a chariot.

Today it would be a fine, long-stretched limousine.

As his second in command.

And people shouted before him,

Make way, or bow down!

Thus, he put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt.

What an incredible transformation!

But why are we surprised?

I mean, doesn't God ordain the events of all things?

What God has firmly decided will come to pass?

Now all of this was not for Joseph's sake,

so that he could write bestsellers

down at the local bookstore.

No, this was all for God's saving purposes.

You see, as Joseph came to power,

God was putting his ruler in place.

You see, the author wants us to see

that God's purpose is central.

This is not a story about how God is going to give me

power and riches.

No, this is a true story of God

putting his ruler in the right place.

Verse 42.

Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger

and put it on Joseph's finger.

The signet ring was the king's official stamp.

In other words, Joseph was acting on behalf of the king.

What Joseph said, the king said.

Verse 44.

Then Pharaoh said to Joseph,

I am Pharaoh, but without your word,

no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt.

Joseph is given absolute power

and complete authority.

Don't you marvel at how the king of Egypt

places God's servant

into a position of being ruler of all Egypt?

You see, kings don't rule.

God does.

The leaders and governments of our world

are not in charge.

God is in charge.

In fact, God will use the leaders and the kings

and he will use their choices and decisions

to bring about God's ultimate and greater purposes.

Now, if that is true for the world,

how is that true for us?

You see, if you are a Christian here today,

then you are God's servant

in God's place.

Where you live and where you are

is not a mistake.

It's not a chance.

God has you where he has you

for his purpose.

For Joseph, that would be the experience

of being in a pit and a palace.

God has you in his place.

But wherever we are and whatever we do,

God has you in his place.

You see, this is not about finding the secret to success.

This is about God who establishes the purposes

for his servants.

So, God ordains, God establishes.

And third, God blesses the nations by his servants.

You see, as we follow in this story,

like a master chess player,

God is manoeuvring all the pieces and the people

for his victorious move.

All the events and all the people

served the great purposes of God.

Look at verse 46.

Joseph was 30 years old

when he entered the service of Pharaoh,

king of Egypt.

And Joseph went out from Pharaoh's presence

and travelled throughout Egypt.

You see, God was going to bring blessing

to and through his servant.

First, God's servant is blessed.

Joseph is in charge of all Egypt.

He's gone from the depths of the dungeon

to the heights of the palace.

What would Joseph be thinking

as he saw his life unfold before him?

Well, we're told.

He's very clear about how it all happened.

Look down at verse 51.

In between the years of abundance and famine,

we're told that Joseph had two children.

Verse 51.

Joseph named his firstborn Manasseh and said,

It is because God has made me forget

all my trouble and all my father's household.

The second son he named Ephraim and said,

It is because God has made me fruitful

in the land of my suffering.

You see, if Joseph was learning anything,

it was learning that God made everything happen.

God was in control.

All that Joseph received was by God's grace

and God's goodness.

Verse 51.

God made me forget.

God made me fruitful.

We could imagine that every time Joseph went out

to call his two boys in for dinner.

Forgetful.

Fruitful.

Every time he heard their names,

he was reminding himself of God's intervention

and God's blessing to him.

It was all of God's goodness and grace.

How he took the troubles of Joseph's life

and weaved them together for something beautiful and good.

How God had taken the hard times

to bring about blessing for Joseph.

But there was a purpose in blessing Joseph.

The purpose was

that God's servant would bring blessing to others.

You see, Joseph is blessed.

But God has a much greater blessing in mind.

Look how God provided.

Verse 49.

Joseph stored up huge quantities of grain.

Like the sand of the sea,

it was so much that he had to stop keeping records

because it was beyond measure.

Verse 55.

When all Egypt began to feel the famine,

the people cried out to Pharaoh for food.

Then Pharaoh told all the Egyptians,

go to Joseph and do what he tells you.

When the famine had spread over the whole country,

Joseph opened all the storehouses

and sold grain to the Egyptians

for the famine was severe throughout Egypt.

What a means of blessing

Joseph became not just to his family,

but to all the families of Egypt.

If Joseph hadn't stored up that grain,

the loss of life would have been countless.

Thousands upon thousands would have died.

But God was thinking bigger and greater

than just Egypt.

The blessing extended beyond Egypt.

Look at verse 57.

And all the world,

the surrounding nations,

came to Egypt

to buy grain from Joseph

because the famine was severe everywhere.

The surrounding nations

came to God's servant

who blessed them.

Instead of death,

there was life.

God's blessing to Joseph

was overflowing

to the whole world.

Now, as great as Joseph was,

the blessings that he brought

were both temporary

and costly.

People had to come with their money

to buy their food,

but hunger would soon return,

wouldn't it?

However, we're told

of one who invites us

to buy and to eat

without any cost.

Look with me to Isaiah chapter 55.

Isaiah 55 · chapter mention

Isaiah chapter 55.

Isaiah 55 · chapter mention

Isaiah chapter 55.

Isaiah 55 · chapter mention

You see, what Joseph offered

was temporary and costly.

But there is one who invites us

to buy and eat without cost.

We're offered food

that will fill us

and satisfy us forever.

Isaiah 55 verse 1.

Isaiah 55:1

God says through his servant,

Come, all you who are thirsty.

Come to the waters.

And you who have no money,

come, buy and eat.

Come, buy wine and milk

without money and without cost.

Why spend money

on what is not bread

and your labor

on what does not satisfy?

Listen, listen to me

and eat what is good

and you will delight

in the richest affair.

The promise of food.

Where do we get this bread?

Well, listen to what Jesus said.

I am the bread of life.

I am the living bread

that came down from heaven.

Whoever eats this bread

will live forever.

This bread is my flesh

which I will give

for the life of the world.

You see, the true and eternal food

that God offers

and that God gives

is Christ.

He gives life

that is free

and eternal.

You see, this account in Genesis

is not about Joseph

and the secret of his success.

this is about God

and the story

of his greater servant

Jesus Christ.

The one who comes

to give food

that will truly satisfy

and will truly fill us

not just for us

but for the nations

of the world.

for Jesus came

into this world

and went into the pit

not of a prison

but into the judgment

of hell itself

for you and for me.

He suffered death

on the cross

for my sin

and for your sin.

But more than that

Jesus was raised

from the dead

defeating death for us

and now he reigns

with absolute power

and supreme authority

not just over a palace

but over the world

and the universe.

And as ruler

over all

he comes to us

in Christ

and offers us

the bread of life

without cost.

He invites us

to come to him today

needy

and hungry

to come empty

seeking him

who will fill you.

and as we turn

to Jesus

in faith

so we receive

his blessings

forgiveness

of all of our sin

peace with God

life eternal

what a feast

we have been

invited to

but this isn't

a feast

that we keep

to ourselves

is it?

As we receive

so we give

as God's servants

are blessed

in Christ

so we go

to be a blessing

to the world

and to the nations

the blessings

that we have received

overflow

from us

as we show

people

and offer people

Jesus

the true bread

of life

isn't that

what the church

is called to do?

just like

Patrick

who came

to the shores

of this island

1500 years ago

to preach

the good news

of the gospel

so that the people

of Ireland

might receive

and have

the bread

of life

that would

satisfy

well so too

for us

today

our country

is needy

there will be

Patrick

parades

all around

the country

but how many

of them

will be offering

the bread

of life

that is found

in Christ

so we go

knowing that

God has

ordained

every detail

of our life

we go

confident

that we are

his servants

in his place

and we go

as a blessed

people

to bless

others

as we show

them Jesus

who satisfies

who fulfills

us

and gives us

the life

of Christ

himself

let's pray

together

Father God

we are

sorry

for so

often

making

your word

out to be

all about

us

about me

help us

to see

afresh

that it

is all

about

God's

great

story

his plan

of salvation

through his

servant

Jesus

Christ

who takes

us from

the pit

of our

sin

and mess

and brokenness

and lifts

us up

to a greater

palace

of the

kingdom

of God

itself

where we

are satisfied

and fulfilled

forever

and forever

thank you

for Jesus

the bread

of life

thank you

that in him

we have all

that we need

help us

to go

into our

communities

to our

families

to our

workplaces

help us

to bring

the blessing

of Christ

may it

overflow

from our

life

and may

people

taste

and see

that Jesus

is good

amen

well we're

going to

sing

this

do

he

and

he

will