What's Your Lane (8)?
What’s Your Lane? • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 1 viewNotes
Transcript
Handout
Annual Meeting. Open Bibles to Genesis 45 and 50.
As we wrap up our series on the Parable of the Talents and Joseph. Remember, we are to go make disciples.
Through word and action we are to guide people to Jesus and help them become His followers.
This is not a separate discipleship effort. Making disciples is primarily accomplished by how we live everyday. We are to do what we can with what we’ve been given regardless of where our journey takes us. Sometimes our journey we are given walk a path we did not choose. Nonetheless, we can choose how we walk the path. Which was the case with Joseph. If you’re not familiar his story, read Gen. 37-50.
Joseph’s life was a rollercoaster. Lived at home for 17 years as the pampered and favorite son. At 17, he received a revelation from God – 2 dreams – one day his 11 brothers would bow down to him. Brothers sold him into slavery, and he ended up in Egypt. However, God blessed Joseph and he became the head of master’s house (served him 11 years). Falsely accused and imprisoned. Again, God blessed Joseph. During his 2 year stay and was placed in charge of the prisoners. Then Pharaoh made him the VP of Egypt at age 30. A 13-year rollercoaster journey for Joseph, but it wasn’t over.
Egypt had 7 years of abundance (food, rain) – age 37, then a famine, which lasted another 7 years. Two years into the famine, now at age 39, his brothers arrived in Egypt to purchase food – had no idea about Joseph. Last Joseph saw them was at age 17 – 22 years earlier. 22 years separated from family. 22 years that his brothers kept a secret and watched their father grieve the loss of his son. 22 years of not knowing where the story would take him. I'm sure there were seasons of doubt and depression …. 22 years of wondering about these dreams. And 22 years from when the dreams were given and their fulfillment. 22 years of trusting God with his story and doing what he could with what he had been given on a journey he did not choose.
Last week I asked the question, do you trust God. Do you trust God for salvation (eternal life)? But furthermore, do you trust God with the story.
Do we trust that as our stories unfold, individually and collectively, God is mysteriously working His purposes, His will and His goodness into our lives to form a bigger story (providence) that is beyond our comprehension?
That is precisely what happened with Joseph – there was a bigger story that he was not aware of. What’s the bigger story? Well, we need to get a little blurry and a little deep, but if you follow me, you might be amazed with this God we serve.
In Gen. 45, Joseph revealed himself to his brothers. They’re concerned about retribution.
And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life.
For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are yet five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest.
And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors.
So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
17 years later,
But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God?
As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.
So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.
Looking back, I think Joseph recognized that God used his story to preserve a remnant of the line of Abraham. Why is that important? Let’s do a short Biblical history lesson.
There are three major rebellions in Scripture that tell us why the world is so messed up.
1) The Fall
– Adam, Eve, and this divine being in the garden rebel against God
(Isaiah 14, Ezekiel 28, and Gen. 3).
In Gen. 3 we find the first reference to a promised Savior and the defeat of this adversary, the satan.
2) Corruption of humanity.
In Gen. 6 we have sons of God cohabitating with women, Nephilim, and the flood. God preserved the promise of a Savior through Noah.
3) Rejection of Yahweh at Babel.
Genesis 10-11 is the Tower of Babel incident when humanity collectively rejected Yahweh. God then disinherited the nations and gave them over to the authority of the Divine Council, i.e. the sons of God, who eventually rebel and lead the nations astray.
When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God.
What does “according to the number of the sons of God” mean? Ancient Mesopotamian culture worshipped three primary gods El, Baal, and Asherah. Their supreme god El had 70 sons or gods or divine beings. Where did these gods come from? How many nations did Yahweh disinherit at Babel? 70, which was according to the number of sons of God or Divine council members. Yahweh disinherited the nations, placed them under the authority of the Divine council, who become the gods of other nations.
Why do we need to know this? After Babel, in Gen 12, God chose one man, Abram through whom He would eventually bless the nations and make good on the promise from Gen. 3. God made a covenant with Abraham that one day He would reclaim the nations through a Savior, a Messiah. Because of that covenant, God must protect the line of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob – and eventually Israel.
We have 70 rebellious sons of God who the Apostle Paul calls the cosmic powers, authorities, rulers in Eph. 6. Toss in demons and now we have the spiritual forces of darkness - all opposing God and His people. Their goal throughout history was to prevent the birth of Messiah. Why do you think Pharaoh and King Herod wanted to kill Jewish boys? Why do the nations rage against Israel – even today? Back to Joseph, it’s possible these spiritual forces of darkness caused the famine to kill off Abraham’s offspring. Don’t know, but we do know this – that during the famine, Joseph rescued his family, which meant he played a vital role in fulfilling God’s covenant with Abraham, protecting the line of the Messiah and saving the world.
I want you to see something. We have 70 nations under the authority of 70 gods. God can be a little antagonistic toward the 70 constantly reminding them, “You’re not going to win.” Check this out -
And the sons of Joseph, who were born to him in Egypt, were two. All the persons of the house of Jacob who came into Egypt were seventy.
Not impressed. 450 years later at Mt. Sinai,
Then he said to Moses, “Come up to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and worship from afar.
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them, and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you.
After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go.
What’s the point? 70 is a significant number in Scripture. God used that number to remind His people that He alone is sovereign, He will carry out His purposes, the Messiah will arrive, and He will reclaim the nations! Which means there was a much bigger plan in Joseph’s story that went way beyond his own life. I have a suspicion our stories are similar. Our stories may not be as epic as Joseph’s, but there is more to our stories than we know, more than we can comprehend.
Regarding Joseph, I don’t believe that everything that happened to Joseph was God’s predetermined plan. However, as things happened God continued to work in ways we cannot comprehend.
Somewhere in Joseph’s story, and our stories as well, God’s sovereignty and humanity’s freewill overlap.
There are too many variables and possibilities for us to understand.
God doesn't ask us to understand. He asks us to trust Him.
with our stories that no matter what He is working in our lives and circumstances … often for a greater good than we can understand.
Now, why all the stuff about the number 70? I doubt Joseph had any idea that his life was connected to the preservation of the coming Messiah and the blessing of the nations. When his family of 70 arrived, perhaps he connected some dots – don’t know. Most likely he had 22 years of the rollercoaster of doubt and faith. But in the end, his story was connected with a future Savior (Jesus). For those of us in Christ, our stories are connected with a Savior who has come, has died, is risen, and will come again.
Joseph’s story pointed toward Christ. To whom or what does my story point?
Does your story point toward self, your past, your pain, or …, does it point toward Jesus? The more we can trust God with our stories, and what He has done and what He is doing, the more our stories point toward Jesus, even while walking a path we did not choose. Trust God with your story.
As we listen to this last song, listen to the lyrics and listen to the Spirit. God, what do you want me to do with my story, Your story?
For some, Jesus may not be a part of your story. A. B. C. then tell one of us so we can pray with you.