Shocking Revelations- Genesis 45:1-28

[0:00] Well, good morning, everybody. Turn to Genesis 45, if you would. Studying this week. Man, there's a lot in this chapter.

[0:10] There's a lot in every chapter. There's a lot in this chapter. I'm like, we're not going to get through the whole thing. We've been doing pretty good going like right along. We've been hitting chapter by chapter. I thought, oh, all right, there's no way.

[0:21] But then I came, when I got through my notes, I was like in no man's land. I had, I didn't have, I had too much for like one week, but not enough for two, so I've been praying. I'm like, Lord, and so I've been paring it down. And we're going to make a run at the whole chapter.

[0:33] But, you know, if you're here to 1230, don't blame me. No, we won't be. We won't, but it's good. It's good. Good stuff. So if you remember, Joseph, he's been in Egypt now for 20 years.

[0:48] And last week, Judah has offered himself in placement instead of as surety for his youngest brother, Benjamin. And he's, because Joseph has set up all of these different trials and testings for his brothers to see where they're at, where's their heart at.

[1:05] And the last one was, he says, all right, Benjamin stole my favorite cup, because he put the cup in his sack and then chased him down and it was all set up. So he's going to stay here, the rest of you go home.

[1:17] And Judah steps up and he says, no, no, no, no. You don't know what that'll do to my father. You don't understand. My life is now joined with his. Let him go. I'll stay here. And essentially, Benjamin, Judah's saying, I'll take Benjamin's death.

[1:30] Benjamin can take my life and go home. Well, poor Judah. We've left him for a week now, not knowing how this is going to turn out. And so in his mind, all he sees in front of him is just a life of servitude to this, like, bipolar ruler of Egypt.

[1:44] One minute, he's, like, throwing us in prison. The next, we're having a meal. The next, he's loading us up with stuff to take home. And the next, he's accusing us of theft. And all he sees in front of him is now a lifetime of servitude, a lifetime where he's going to be stuck there.

[1:59] But knowing, hey, that my service has freed my brother. He doesn't know what's coming next. But today, the title for today's message is Shocking Revelations, the most shocking of revelation.

[2:13] You know, you picture if you were the news reporter for the Egyptian echo. And man, you got the scoop on the fact that the Grand Vizier wasn't all that he seemed to be. And some shocking revelations in Pharaoh's court today.

[2:27] The outline, verses 1 through 8, identity revealed, that Joseph's identity is going to be revealed to his brothers and to the rest of Egypt. Verses 9 through 15 is realized implications.

[2:40] That understanding who this man is, the implications that is going to have in the lives of Joseph's brothers and family. Verses 16 through 20, royally regarded.

[2:52] This is where Pharaoh now takes an interest in Joseph's family. 21 through 24 is newly returned. That's where the family, the boys, they all go back to their dad.

[3:03] And boy, are things different. And then lastly, as we finish up the chapter, 25 through 28, revived and alive. Jacob's response to finding out that his son, Joseph, is alive.

[3:15] You know, as we've gone through this, we've had different theme verses. And this is kind of our one right now. John 5, 39, Jesus said, Search the scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life.

[3:26] And these are they which testify of me. You know, as we've been going through this, you can't help but see that Jesus is everywhere in here, that he's in these pages.

[3:37] We just finished Acts on Wednesday night. And Paul, at the end of his ministry here, in Acts 28, it says that he calls all the Jews from Rome. He calls them to him, and he begins to teach them and to show them that Jesus is Christ using the law and the prophets.

[3:54] He's in the Old Testament. When Jesus was on the road to Emmaus with those two disciples, it says he showed them how that Christ must suffer using the law and the prophets, using the Old Testament.

[4:05] Well, that means Jesus has to be in the Old Testament, doesn't he? Jesus has to be there. So we're not trying to over-spiritualize the text. We don't want to come to the Bible and be like, well, I'm going to try and make this super over-spiritualized.

[4:18] And, you know, we don't want to do that. But we do want to recognize that Jesus is on every page. And if you see him, know that God has put that there for a reason, that we don't have to work that hard to find these pictures.

[4:32] And so when God takes us through these narratives of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, we're going to be in Leviticus, Lord willing, someday, if the Lord tarries. And we're in Leviticus, and we're going to be reading about don't eat this type of animal.

[4:44] And it's like, what is all that? Why is that in there? It's to reveal Jesus. And only God could reveal himself through something like this, right? The world's ideas of what God is and how he should reveal himself, very different than the scripture.

[4:58] So we're going to see a lot of Joseph being that type, that foreshadowing of Jesus again today. But picking up in verse one, then Joseph, he could not refrain himself.

[5:09] That means he couldn't hold back. He could no longer be strong. He just couldn't hold in his emotions. He could not refrain himself before all of them that stood by. So this is Joseph's, you know, office, his administration.

[5:22] They're all there, as he is the one administrating Egypt, dishing out all of the food and all the grain. And he cried, cause every man to go out from me.

[5:33] So he said, everybody get out of here. And there stood no man with him while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren. The idea there to make himself known, he's now fully revealed. No uncertainty anymore.

[5:44] Who is this guy? I mean, he now leaves no uncertainty. And here his brothers, after all of this time, wondering what's going on. What do they find out?

[5:55] At the end of all these trials, all of this testing, it revealed the son. It revealed Joseph. It revealed the son that they thought was lost, that they thought dead. Joseph was revealed to his brothers in a moment of great sorrow and great agony, wasn't he?

[6:12] Experiencing this sorrow and this agony. Hebrews 12, 2 says that we are to look unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

[6:27] In a moment of extreme sorrow and agony, we saw who the son really was. Jesus displayed himself for who he really was, for his love for us. There was no uncertainty anymore.

[6:39] Who is this man? He's the son of God, that he was giving his life for me. We've talked a few times about emotion. There's been a lot of emotion, emotional rollercoaster with Joseph and his brothers.

[6:52] And again, we see this great emotion here. Joseph is just, he can't contain it. He can't be strong. You know, he tells someone, be strong in the face of emotion. Well, emotion is simply the overflow of the heart.

[7:04] You know, Luke, in the Gospel of Luke, Jesus says that out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. That a good man brings forth good things out of the good treasure of his heart, when an evil man brings forth evil treasure.

[7:17] And that speech, that the abundance of the heart, the overflow of the heart, well, that's what we speak out. Well, that's all emotion is. Emotion is simply the overflow of what's in our heart.

[7:28] There's nothing wrong with that. It's not to be denied. We don't walk about denying our emotions. I'm fine. Everything's fine. It's fine, right? But it is to be dealt with appropriately. There's a time and a place for unrestrained and uncontained emotion.

[7:43] It's okay. Think of Jesus when he wept in the garden. Unrestrained, uncontained emotion. Joseph here. But Joseph only let himself go in the presence of those who have been tried, tested, and proven.

[7:54] Those are like, those are precious moments to him. That emotion that he had. It was very precious. And it was let go in front of those tried, tested, and proven. It makes me think of Jesus in John 15, where he says, henceforth, I call you now servants.

[8:09] For the servant does not know what his Lord does. But I've called you friends. For all things that I've heard of my father, I've been, I've made known unto you. Who are the ones who Jesus revealed all that to?

[8:20] That he let himself go with? Those tried, tested, and proven. Those who are his friends, the disciples. He doesn't hold back. And Joseph in verse 2, he wept aloud, and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard it.

[8:33] Only Joseph's brothers could enter into his sorrow. The Egyptians, they heard it, but they weren't there to take part in it. They couldn't enter into it. We enter into the sorrow of the Son of God.

[8:44] First Peter tells us, Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial, which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you. But rejoice, inasmuch as you are partakers of Christ's suffering.

[8:58] Christ suffered. Why do I think it's strange if I suffer, if he did? But what a comfort, that my suffering isn't just about me, but it's entering into his sufferings. That when his glory shall be revealed, you may be glad also with exceeding joy.

[9:12] If we suffer with him, what does that prove? Man, it proves that we're one with him. It proves our identity. Well, that means when his glory is revealed, I get to partake in that as well. We see here that intimacy with the Son is reserved only for his family.

[9:27] It wasn't for others. Only those who he called his own. As Joseph says unto his brethren in verse 3, I'm Joseph. Does my father yet live? And they all just go, what? They're like, what?

[9:39] Joseph? No. And his brethren could not answer him for they were troubled, literally terrified, quaking, shaking in his presence. Despite their separation, despite 20 years of separation, Joseph's heart remained with his father.

[9:55] That's what he wanted to know. Is dad alive? Is my father alive? 1 John 2.23 says, whoever denies the son, the same as not the father, but he that acknowledges the son has the father also.

[10:10] The son's heart remains with the father. And if our hearts are with the son, our hearts are also with the father. not only is their dead brother alive again, right?

[10:22] They thought he's dead. Now they find out that all of these trials and all of these things that have befallen them, it was all at his instigation.

[10:33] But that means it also was all under his control. It was all within his hands. It was all for a purpose. To realize that everything that happened to them, every trial, everything they didn't understand, was completely under the control of the son.

[10:46] He had it. He knew what was going on. Romans 8.29 says, for whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate, to be conformed to the image of his son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

[11:04] He foreknew. They didn't know it at this time. They had no idea what's going on. Joseph knew. Joseph knew as he sent them home with their bags full of all of the grain.

[11:15] He foreknew that there was going to be a trial because he was going to have his man chase him down and find that cup in there. And so what did he do? He predestinated. All that is a predetermined destiny.

[11:27] He predetermined the outcome. All right, you're going to get there. You're going to say this. You're going to find the cup. Here's what I want you to do. Man, we have the same hope and the same comfort that Jesus foreknows. And it's all in his hands. All the things that happen to us, God already knows.

[11:39] He's already in his hand and he's already predestinated. He's already given a predetermined destiny and outcome for us. And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you.

[11:52] Because you know they're all standing back like, What is going on with this guy? He's like bowling his eyes out and in the midst of his crying and blubbering, he's like, I'm Joseph.

[12:02] Is dad alive? They're like, I told you he was crazy. He's crazy. He said, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I'm Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into Egypt.

[12:14] You picture them drawing closer, kind of looking past it. The Egyptians had makeup. They shaved their entire bodies. And then they wore wigs and drew on hair. They didn't have hair.

[12:24] That's what they did. So you can picture him looking past the makeup, looking in his eyes, seeing maybe like an inflection, like, You know, I thought you were familiar. There's something about you. And seeing past that.

[12:37] As they drew near to the sun, they came closer to the truth, didn't they? Because he says, I'm Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. It's sometimes hard to draw near to the Lord.

[12:48] Because we draw near to God, all of a sudden, the light shines in areas I didn't want it to shine. And God exposes something in my heart. And it's like, Oh man, you're right, Lord.

[12:59] That's pretty bad. I realize who I am. We see ourselves for who we really are, but we also see the sun for who he really is. Because now they're understanding who Joseph really is.

[13:09] And they couldn't do that from a distance. They're drawing near. 1 Corinthians 13 tells us there'll be a day when we will draw near and we will see him face to face. And we will see every inflection in his face.

[13:21] And we'll be like, I know that guy. But when that which is perfect has come, Christ, when he has come, then that which is in part shall be done away. For now we see through glass darkly, but then face to face.

[13:33] Now I know in part, but then shall I know, even also as I am known. As we see him face to face. We are going to fully know who we are, but that's going to be completely obliterated in fully knowing who he is.

[13:48] And Joseph now seeing, no doubt, their reaction, their surprise, their terror. Now therefore, be not grieved, in verse 5, nor angry with yourself. To be grieved is, do not feel pain.

[14:00] It's the pain. Do not be pained, nor angry with yourselves, that you sold me hither. Angry with themselves? Who do you think they should be angry with?

[14:11] If you just find out that the past six months of all your troubles and trials, because this guy's been setting you up, falsely accusing you, putting you in prison, putting you through all this, shouldn't they be angry at Joseph?

[14:24] Shouldn't they be resentful towards Joseph? I don't think so, because they understood now who they were. When we understand who we really are, we're not resentful at the other person.

[14:36] We're not resentful at what God's doing in our lives, because I know, man, I know who I really am now. Now therefore, do not be angry with yourselves that you sold me hither, for God did send me before you to preserve life, or literally to sustain.

[14:50] God sent you, or God sent me, to sustain. Romans 12, 3 says, For I say through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to.

[15:06] Understand who you really are, but to think soberly, according as God has dealt to every man the measure of faith. Man, when I understand who I really am, I'm not going to be able to look at you and judge you in a resentful or harsh way, because I'm going to know who I am.

[15:22] And here we see that God's foreknowledge again. God's foreknowledge encompasses every trial. Joseph says to them, God did this. Imagine finding out the thing that you are most ashamed of in your life, one of your greatest sins, the thing you don't want to tell anybody about.

[15:37] You find out that God has used that specifically to bring life and to bring preservation. God's foreknowledge can encompass every trial.

[15:49] And here we see that only the Son understands the big picture of God's providence and provision. They didn't understand. They had no idea. But the Son did. He could describe to them what was truly going on.

[16:01] And lastly, we see here that we should never hold on to guilt that the Son has released us from. Never hold on to guilt the Son has released us from. He says here, do not be angry with yourself.

[16:14] Do not be in pain. Romans 8.1 says, there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus. That's the current thing. Now. There is therefore now no condemnation.

[16:27] God's released us from our guilt. Why hold on to it? Think, yeah, but you don't know what I did. Yeah, but you don't know what God wants to do with what you did. God can work redemption into any failure and any sin.

[16:42] Joseph now says, for these two years has the famine been in the land and there's five and yet there are five more years in the which there shall neither be earring nor harvest.

[16:54] Guys, it's been two years. It's been hard, but there's five more to come. The only source of provision is here with the Son. And God sent me before you to preserve you of posterity in the earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

[17:08] God sent the Son to prepare a way for his brethren specifically. It's interesting, the wording here. Again, this is one of those pictures that to me was mind-blowing. Where he says, God sent me to preserve a posterity.

[17:22] It means to preserve or appoint a remnant. That God has sent Joseph. God sent the Son to preserve and appoint a remnant and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

[17:33] That word, great deliverance, means large escape. That God will preserve his remnant through a very large escape. I lost my scripture.

[17:47] There it is. 1 Thessalonians, beginning in chapter 1 and then in verse 10 and then jumping over to chapter 4, Paul says that we are to wait for his Son from heaven from whom he raised from the dead even Jesus which delivered us from the wrath to come that God sent his Son for the purpose of delivering his brethren.

[18:07] For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout with the voice of the archangel and with the trump of God and the dead in Christ shall rise first and then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.

[18:21] So shall we ever be with the Lord that God has sent his Son to preserve his remnant through a great deliverance, through a large escape. that God will deliver us.

[18:32] Our deliverance? Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law being made a curse for us. Only God can take our greatest sins and redeem them for our greatest good.

[18:46] And here are these men standing there unbelievably realizing that their greatest sin, God has redeemed it to use for their own good. He said, the fact that you sold me into slavery, God will use that to preserve your life.

[19:00] Not even to preserve someone else's life. He says, your wrong and your sin, God is specifically using to bring redemption. My sin, through Christ, has allowed me to enter into redemption.

[19:14] You can't be redeemed unless you're a sinner. You can't be saved unless you need to be saved from something. My sin specifically allows me to enter into that. And Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law being made a curse for us.

[19:26] Something so horrible as a curse became something so wonderful. It became Jesus. Jesus stood in that place. In the face of our greatest sin, the Son reveals the full extent of God's grace.

[19:40] And so here are these one, two, three, four, five, eleven brothers standing there in front of him. The Son has been revealed to them. And what is the Son revealing to them?

[19:52] As Joseph is revealed, what are they seeing? Man, they're seeing their sin. They're seeing themselves for who they really are. But then they're seeing God's grace and God's preservation. They had no idea any of this existed until they understood who the Son was.

[20:08] So now, Joseph says, it was not you that sent me hither. Neither was it Joseph who sent his brothers to him, but God.

[20:22] Joseph didn't determine that timing either, did he? But now it was not you that sent me here, but God. And he has made me a father to Pharaoh and a lord of all his house and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

[20:37] You didn't send me here. For 20 years, they've had this on their conscience, never understanding what God was doing and what God had done. When we don't let go of things and we don't take them to the Lord, we hold on to something that God's already dealt with, God's already using, worked redemption in, and it's going to be provision in the future.

[20:57] And we're holding on to it so tight. We won't go to the Lord with it because like, Lord, I know what I did. It's so bad. He's like, I already got it taken care of. Not only is it forgiven, but it's forgotten, it's redeemed, and it's going to work provision and life and someone else.

[21:09] Let it go. We've got to take those things to the Lord. But the wording here says, Joseph says, God has done this. He's made me a father to Pharaoh. At one time, I was in Pharaoh's prison.

[21:21] I was in his dungeon. And now, now he's coming to me for wisdom and direction. Where it says there, he's made me lord of his house that is master.

[21:31] That's Adonai. He's made me master. And he's made me a ruler. He's given me dominion. Joseph says to Pharaoh, I mean, he says to his brothers, I have become a father, I have become a lord, and I've become a ruler.

[21:45] The son becoming the father. Isaiah 9, 6, we're told about Jesus, that he shall be all of those things. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulders, just as Joseph has the government upon his shoulders.

[22:01] And his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. And here the son is equating himself with the father, saying, I have become a father to Pharaoh.

[22:14] I have become a lord to Pharaoh, and I have become the ruler. And the government was upon his shoulders. Beautiful picture of Jesus. Joseph's position in government was by God's design, and it was for God's purpose.

[22:29] Did Joseph set about to reform the Egyptians? Did he set about to change the political culture in Egypt?

[22:40] Not that we can see. Daniel put in government position by the Lord. What did he do with his position? Did he try to get the right laws elected? All power and position is given by God, but it's given for a purpose, and that purpose is always the same.

[23:00] It's for deliverance. Whenever God sets up a ruler or a government official, it's always for deliverance. Go to Romans, where Paul talks about that. He says, what is the point of civil government?

[23:12] Well, it's to deliver the poor. It's to deliver the righteous, and it's to enact judgment upon the lawbreakers.

[23:23] Jesus says in Matthew 28, as he's about to ascend back into heaven, he says to his disciples in verse 18, he spake unto them, saying, all power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

[23:35] All power currently is given unto Jesus in heaven and earth. What is he doing with that power? The disciples, in the beginning of Acts, they would say to him, Lord, are you now going to bring about the kingdom of Israel?

[23:47] Is it time? And he said to them, it's not for you to know the times and seasons that the Father has put into his own hands, but you shall receive power after the Holy Spirit has come upon you.

[23:58] He's like, guys, that's not the focus. The focus is not when is God's kingdom physically coming to this world? The focus is that God has equipped you with the Holy Spirit so that you can be about his kingdom, which is not part of this world.

[24:11] God sets up positions and power. He puts people in that, but it's always for the deliverance of God's people. And in verse 9, Joseph says, guys, this has been a great reunion, but do something for me.

[24:27] Go back to Dad. Haste you and go up to my father and say unto him, thus says thy son Joseph, God has made me Lord of Egypt. Come down unto me, tarry not. Do not resist the invitation of the son.

[24:41] And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen. I've got a place for you. 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 you have.

[24:52] Come and dwell. The word is to abide. Come and abide. Joseph is saying, I want you to come and abide in the land. Do you know what that land is? This was another one of those moments my mind went, I looked up the meaning of Goshen.

[25:04] It means drawing near. Joseph told his brethren to come and abide in the land of drawing near. Come. Come and draw near. Come and live there. Come stay there. Come with your children, your children's children.

[25:16] And there I will nourish you. For yet there are five years of famine. Lest thou and my household and all that thou has come to poverty. Come and be nourished.

[25:28] So that word means to contain. Joseph's like, man, I'm going to contain you. I can take care of you. Those who dwell near the sun never need to fear loss. There's only gain.

[25:39] You will not come to poverty. Ultimately, those who draw near, abide near, and dwell near the sun, they have the promise of being kept by the sun.

[25:51] Where Joseph says, I will nourish you. John 10, 28, Jesus says, I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish. Now there shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

[26:01] Talking about the sheep that are his, that God has given him. Man, as we draw near, as we abide near, as we dwell near, as we live in the land of drawing near, we have the assurance that God can keep us and contain us.

[26:13] And behold, your eyes see and the eyes of my brother Benjamin that it is my mouth that speaks with you. Joseph is saying, look guys, I need you to be my witness.

[26:25] I need you to go back and tell what you've seen and what you've heard. Your eyes have seen, your mouth has heard. Go and be a witness. Jesus said in Matthew 13, he said, blessed are your eyes for they see and your ears for they hear.

[26:43] For truly I say unto you that many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which you see and have not seen them and to hear those things which you hear and have not heard them.

[26:54] But what do we do when we've seen and heard? We go and tell. We go and we be a witness to the things that we've seen and heard. Blessed are our eyes for they see and our ears for they hear.

[27:05] And you shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt and of all that you have seen and you shall hasten and bring down my father.

[27:17] They are to go and bring the good news back to Joseph's family, aren't they? And what are they to tell? What are they to tell the father? What are they to tell Joseph's family about his glory?

[27:29] About his testimony? A testimony of what he's doing? And that he's alive. That the son lives. Isaiah 43 10 says, You are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he.

[27:48] Before me there is no God formed, neither shall thou be after me. You are my witnesses. What are we witnesses of? Man, we're witnesses of God's glory. We're witnesses of the testimony of the work that he's done in our lives and in this world.

[28:00] And we are witnesses ultimately that he's alive as they go back and tell their father. And now Joseph, again in a moment of not being able to contain himself, he falls upon his brother's neck in verse 15.

[28:14] Joseph fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck and wept. And Benjamin wept upon his neck. This is a lot of information that's just been unloaded on these men that are shell-shocked. Joseph weeping, describing to them what God has done through their failures, through their sin, over these years, describing to them God's grace of how not only has God forgiven them, but he has used their sin to make provision for them for new life, giving them a new place to come if they would come and dwell with him and choose to live with him.

[28:46] And he falls upon his brother Benjamin's neck and he wept. And Benjamin wept upon his neck. And moreover, he kissed all his brethren and wept upon them. And after that, his brethren talked with him.

[28:59] You know, I think of when we're going to see Jesus face to face. I think I'm going to weep. I think it's going to be the most wonderful moment. But we have a promise in Revelation 21, verse 4.

[29:11] It says, And God shall wipe away all tears from your eyes. There's going to be tears, but man, he's going to then wipe them away. And there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for those are former things.

[29:27] And they've passed away. I don't need them anymore. They're former things. There's a lot of former things in my life today. I don't need anymore. Guys, I don't use a sippy cup. I don't need it anymore. It's a former thing.

[29:38] I don't use training reels on my bike. It's a former thing. They've passed away. It would be very inappropriate to use that now. There are former things that we experience in this life that man, they're going to be passed away.

[29:50] But we will weep with him. And what a moment. What a moment of release to see him face to face. 1 Peter 4, 8 says, And above all things, have fervent love among yourselves, for love shall cover the multitude of sins.

[30:06] And here in this moment, as these men are experiencing that love and that fellowship, there's a lot of sin that's taken place between them. And it's all in the past.

[30:16] It's all covered because of love. Because God was greater than that. And lastly, this interesting phrase at the end of verse 15. And after this, his brethren talked with him. What does that mean?

[30:27] I like finding phrases that could have been left out of the narrative. It doesn't change anything if you leave that out and you move on to the next verse. So why does God tuck that in there? What does that mean? Well, I think one thing is they're probably very interested in everything that's happened and they're discussing with him like, okay, tell us how this all happened.

[30:45] I mean, we know we sold you. And then what happened? How did you become ruler of Egypt? But I think there's a principle here that in a relationship, open communication reveals an open heart.

[30:57] And when there's open communication, well, it reveals that there's open hearts between each other. Well, how can we prove that? Well, we can prove that by the opposite. In Genesis chapter 3, Eve has eaten of the fruit, being deceived by the serpent.

[31:12] Adam comes along and willingly takes it, knowing what's going to happen. But there's something else that's going to happen in the future that he knows is going to happen. And in verse 8, it says, they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day.

[31:24] The Lord had come down and walked with them and meet with them in the cool of the day. That wasn't going to change just because they ate this fruit. It says, the voice of the Lord. Well, we know Jesus is the word made flesh that dwelt among us.

[31:35] So here's a pre-incarnate picture of Jesus coming and meeting with them. What does the voice do? What do our voices do? That's for the purpose of communication, isn't it? So that we can communicate.

[31:47] And what do they do? And Adam and his wife hid themselves from that communication, from the presence of the Lord among the trees of the garden. So open communication reveals an open heart because the opposite is proven true.

[32:00] Here, the communication, the opportunity is there and they hide themselves. I don't want to talk. You see that with your kids when they're little, right? You know they've done something and they just kind of avoid you.

[32:11] And you ask them, did you do that? Nope. Will they want to talk about it? Nope. But in a relationship, you can see that when they have open communication, their hearts are open.

[32:23] And I think that just shows what's going on between Joseph and his brothers. But truly their hearts have been changed. And the fame thereof was heard in Pharaoh's house saying, Joseph's brethren are come and it pleased Pharaoh well and his servants.

[32:41] Proverbs 16, 7 says, when a man's ways please the Lord, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with them. At one time, he was in Pharaoh's prison. Remember who was the chief of Pharaoh's personal guard too?

[32:53] Potiphar. I'm sure Joseph is working closely with him now. These men at one time, Joseph was in their prison. And now, the fame thereof is heard in Pharaoh's house and it pleased Pharaoh and his servants.

[33:08] It was well in their eyes. They looked upon that as something good. I bet whenever there was like a court dinner, you know, like, oh, hey, you know, we're having a business meeting of all the heads of state at Pharaoh's house.

[33:22] I bet Mrs. Potiphar hated those. But Joseph's family is accepted. Has Pharaoh ever met his family? No.

[33:33] He doesn't even know. He's not met them yet. But he's so pleased. He's pleased to see them. Why? Because of who Joseph is. He knows who they are and their standing before him is only because of the son.

[33:47] And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Well, say unto your brethren, this do you. Load up your beasts and go and get you into the land of Canaan and take your father and your households and come unto me and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt and you shall eat of the fat of the land.

[34:03] Through our relationship with the son we have access to limitless resources. Everything at God's disposal is at our disposal because of our relationship with the son. Jesus says in Luke 12, he says, But rather seek you the kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you.

[34:20] Don't seek all those things. Seek God. Fear not, little flock, for it is your father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. God doesn't want to withhold anything. If we seek him, he'll add everything we need.

[34:34] Now, thou art commanded, this do you. Take you wagons out of the land of Egypt for your little ones, for your wives, and bring your father and come.

[34:45] Also regard not your stuff for the good of all the land of Egypt is yours. And you see here the heart, Joseph's heart and Pharaoh's heart. I think Joseph's had quite an effect on Pharaoh over these years they've been together.

[34:59] I mean, just the care he has. He's like, hey, take some wagons. You know, the journey could be hard. I don't want it to be hard for the little ones, for your wives. You see that same heart in our Lord.

[35:10] In Isaiah 40, verse 11, the Lord describes himself, describing the Messiah to come, and he said, he shall feed his flock like a shepherd. He shall gather the lambs with his arms.

[35:21] He won't drive them. He won't use a sheepdog. He'll gather them with his arms. Carry them in his bosom and shall gently lead those that are with young. I think the other thing here is, man, we need to keep a light touch.

[35:36] Pharaoh says, don't regard your stuff. The word regard literally means don't pity. Don't have compassion on it. Don't look with such compassion and such pity on the things that are just temporary.

[35:48] Keep a light touch. You know, God uses the things of this world for our provision and our blessing. I'm very blessed by the things of this world. I'm blessed by the provision he's given us that we can be here. But he's never given us those things for our possessing.

[36:02] They are not to possess us and we aren't to possess them. They're not something for us to hold on to. They're just something that God uses in our lives. 1 Corinthians 7, 29, Paul speaks of this.

[36:14] He says, What does he mean there?

[36:29] You know, I mean, newlyweds, like, oh, act like you don't have a wife now. Well, that's not going to do too well for your marriage. No, it just means you can't hold, you can't live for it and hold on to these things like these are the end all be all.

[36:41] Why? Because the time is short. There's other priorities. And they that use this world as not abusing it for the fashion of this world passes away. All of these things, even marriage, is going to be one of those former things when we're in heaven.

[36:55] Right now, you have, you who are married, you have a relationship with someone else that nobody else has, that you can't have with anybody else. You have an openness and a oneness. That is just a foretaste of heaven.

[37:07] When we're in heaven, we will have a oneness and openness with everybody in the way that we do with our spouses. That oneness, that communication, that complete freedom and openness. We get a foretaste of that with marriage.

[37:20] And the children of Israel did so. And Joseph gave them wagons according to the commandment of Pharaoh and he gave them provision for the way. So Joseph now, he doesn't go with them.

[37:30] He stays behind. But it's his responsibility to see that they have provision for the way. It's his responsibility to see that they have what they need to make it back. Everything was provided to ensure that God's people had what they needed and could be brought to the Son.

[37:48] And even though Joseph did not go with them, he was nevertheless completely responsible for the success of their journey. Philippians 1.6 says, that we can be confident of this very thing, that he which has begun a good work in us will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.

[38:05] Whose responsibility is it to see that we have what we need for the journey? Whose responsibility is it to see that we will be brought to the Son? Man, we have that promise that if Jesus began the work, he will finish the work.

[38:17] It's not all on me. Verse 22. To all them, and his brothers now, he gave each man changes of raiment. Remember with Joseph, we said he had four raiments, four specific garments, as Abraham had his four altars and Isaac had his four wells and Jacob had his four pillars.

[38:36] Joseph had four garments. He had the garments of favor, and position with his father when he gave him the coat of many colors. He had the garment that was put on him of servitude when he was in Potiphar's house. He had the garment of being a slave, being in prison when he was in the prison.

[38:51] And then he's given the fourth garment as he's cleaned up and brought before Pharaoh. Now he has this garment of authority and of favor and of honor and of leadership. And now what do we see him doing?

[39:03] What is the son doing to his brethren? He's clothing them so they may stand newly clothed before their father. These men are going to go home and they're going to stand before their father newly clothed by the son.

[39:17] To all of them, he gave each man changes of raiment. But to Benjamin, he gave 300 pieces of silver and five changes of raiment. We have the same promise that we will stand before the father clothed in new garments from the son.

[39:32] In Zechariah, there's tucked away this verse in one of the minor prophets in Zechariah chapter 3. We have this scene in heaven, kind of like how we do with Job.

[39:43] It says, Zechariah says, And he showed me Joshua, the high priest, standing before the angel of the Lord. So the high priest at that time, Joshua. He was standing before the angel of the Lord and Satan was standing at his right hand to resist him.

[39:56] And the Lord said unto Satan, The Lord rebuke you, O Satan, even the Lord that has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you. Is not this a brand plucked out of the fire? Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments as he stood there before the angel of the Lord.

[40:14] And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, the Lord saying this, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused your iniquity to pass from you, and I will clothe you with a change of raiment.

[40:29] We too will be changed, clothed. We have been. If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things are passed away. That's like old garment taken off, new one put on. And as they go to stand before their father, they go newly clothed by the son.

[40:45] And to his father, he sent after this manner. Ten donkeys laden with the good things of Egypt and ten she-donkeys laden with corn and bread and meat for the father by the way.

[40:57] What was the purpose of all this provision? What was to ensure a successful journey? The purpose of God's provision in our life is to ensure a successful journey. You know, he says to his brethren now, he said to his brethren as they departed, he said unto them, See that you fall not out by the way.

[41:14] That means don't be moved. The purpose of this provision is not to have a good time on the way. It's not to go back home and just hang out there. There's a reason for it.

[41:25] He's saying to them, Be single-minded and be single-purposed. Don't be distracted. And they went up out of Egypt and they came into the land of Canaan unto Jacob their father and told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive.

[41:40] And Jacob fell over dead. I don't know if they ran up to him like, Dad! You know, they're clothed and all these new clothes and Benjamin's carrying his four other changes of clothes and it's like, Joseph's alive.

[41:53] I'm sure they talked about this on the way back. I mean, we got to break this to him pretty easy. You know, he's like, where'd you get all that stuff? Well, the ruler of Egypt. He likes us now. We're kind of like friends, almost like brothers.

[42:07] And they came up out of Egypt and came into the land of Canaan unto Jacob their father and they told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive and he is governor over all the land of Egypt and Jacob's heart fainted.

[42:21] It means to grow cold. Died within him. And look what it says here. For he believed them not. I don't think this is he's so surprised, like, I just can't believe it. I really think he thinks they're tricking him.

[42:33] I think his heart just crashed. I think he's like, no, I gave up on him a long time ago and I don't trust you guys. I mean, you brought back Benjamin. You know, unbelief can keep a heart cold in the presence of the hottest of fires.

[42:48] Unbelief can keep our hearts so cold. Matthew 3, 11, John the Baptist is describing the one to come, Jesus. And he says, I indeed, I baptize you with water unto repentance, but he that comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I'm not worthy to bear.

[43:03] He shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. You know what can keep us from that? Man, unbelief. Unbelief can keep us from all that God wants to give us.

[43:14] 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.

[43:28] Jacob's unbelief was overcome by hearing the words. Faith comes by hearing. And by seeing the testimony of the son. He didn't believe, but he says, oh, now he hears the words.

[43:40] He sees what God has done. In Joel chapter 2, another verse pulled out of the minor prophets. Joel is writing of God's grace and faithfulness.

[43:50] And he says this, I will restore to you the years that the locusts have eaten, the canker worm and the caterpillar and the palmer worm, my great army which I sent among you. And you shall eat in plenty and be satisfied and praise the name of the Lord your God that has dealt wondrously with you and my people shall never be ashamed.

[44:08] And you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel and that I am the Lord your God and none else. My people shall never be ashamed. That God is able to restore. As Israel hears this news, God is in the midst of Israel and God is restoring what has been taken away, what he thought for good.

[44:26] No matter how good or how true the news may be, our hearts must still choose to receive it. This is very good news. This is a good gospel of the son being alive spoken to Jacob, but he still had to believe it and receive it.

[44:40] And they told him all the words of Joseph. I'm sorry, we read that already. And Israel said, It is enough. Joseph, my son, is yet alive.

[44:53] I will go and see him before I die. I realize we didn't finish verse 27. They told him all the words, they showed him the wagon, and Joseph was sent to carry him and the spirit of Jacob, his father, revived, was brought back to life, was rewarmed.

[45:06] Romans 8, 11 says, But if the spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his spirit that dwells in you.

[45:18] We have the same promise that as we, through belief, receive the fire that God wants to warm our cold hearts with, we have the promise that the Holy Spirit brings life to us.

[45:29] And Israel says, It is enough. Joseph, my son, is yet alive. I will go and see him before I die. Hebrews 11, 1 says, Now faith is a substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

[45:46] Jacob's not seen his son. He's not heard from him in 20 years. He only has the word and the testimony of these other men to go on. But by faith, he speaks out the reality of the son.

[45:57] He says, I will go and see him. My son is yet alive. I will go and see him. Proverbs 18, 14 says, The spirit of man will sustain him, will sustain his infirmity, but a wounded spirit who can bear?

[46:10] Jacob's spirit is sustaining him. But who is sustaining Jacob's spirit? Man, it's the word and testimony of the son that sustains his spirit as he believes that. Jacob, seeing all of these gifts and all of these things, and then as his brother, his sons tell him everything that's happening, I mean, think how exciting that must be.

[46:28] But you know what he didn't do? He didn't go, you know, that's a lot of food. We could probably live off of that a few months. That's a lot of clothes and money you have there.

[46:38] That's really nice. Why don't we just stay here? Why don't we just use what's been provided for us for the journey to go to the son? Why don't we use that and just get comfortable right here and settle down?

[46:51] He doesn't do that. He doesn't use that to go somewhere else. I'm going to use what God has provided and go somewhere else instead. What was Jacob wanting to see?

[47:02] The proof, the prosperity, and the provision? Man, that was nothing. He wanted the person. He wanted his son. That's all that mattered. As we just finished Acts, Paul's left in Rome as the book of Acts closed in Acts 28.

[47:17] Paul will write other things after that fact from Rome. The book of Philippians is written from Rome. He'll write Timothy and then later he'll write 2 Timothy from after he's brought back to Rome some three, four, five years later.

[47:30] But as he writes the book of Philippians, he's this 20 plus years in ministry, over 10,000 miles traveled, over 60 cities. He's evangelized. And he's this old man sitting there chained to a Roman.

[47:43] He can't go out. He's under house arrest. People are coming and he's writing this book to the Philippians. And at the end of his whole ministry, he's like, man, I've seen a lot.

[47:54] I've had a lot of proof of what God has done. I've experienced the prosperity, his provision. But you know what I want? Man, I just want him. Philippians 3.10, he says, that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings being made conformable unto his death.

[48:14] I don't want to be left out of any part. Why? Because if I'm joined with him in all of that, then I get to be joined in his resurrection. If by any means I may attain unto the resurrection of the dead.

[48:27] I want to know the power of his resurrection, the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable to his death. I can't wait for the resurrection, the rapture. But it's because of a person. It's not because the pain is gone.

[48:38] You know, my lower back's been hurting again. It's not because I want that to go away. Right? It's not because of the troubles. It's because of him. It's because of the person. And as Jacob now begins to load all of his stuff up and head down to Egypt, I don't think he cares one iota for the land of Goshen or all he's going to get.

[48:59] He just wants to see his son. You know, the son is revealed to his brethren many things. The revelation of the son, as the son has been revealed through these trials, well, it's revealed a lot to these brothers.

[49:17] They have seen the revelation of the sons. They've seen sorrow has been revealed to them, God's grace, his presence, his provision, his protection, communion, communion as they speak with him.

[49:29] They hear his word and lastly, his life, the life of the son has been revealed. Those are all wonderful things. But it's a person that we're after. Man, I want to know God's grace and his presence.

[49:44] I'm so thankful for his provision, his protection. I'm so glad I have God's word. I don't know what I do without God's word. I'm so thankful for the life he's given me. But it's a person that we're after.

[49:57] You know, I think, I know most of you, I would say most, I think that you know the Lord. I think you've been born again. That you have that person, that relationship. But when was the last time you thought about it?

[50:08] When was the last time you hung out with the Lord as a person? I pray and seek the Lord. I mean, you better hope I do. Right? I'm seeking the Lord and praying and desiring of God to reveal his word to me, to spend time with me, to help me.

[50:24] But sometimes I lose the person in the midst of all of that. Jesus says in John 14, 19, he said, because I live, you shall live also.

[50:38] Because the son is alive, man, Jacob and his family are now going to live. Because the son is alive, Pharaoh looks on him with favor. Because the son is alive, he has all the provision and the protection that comes along with that.

[50:51] And because he lives, I'm going to live. But to what purpose? For him. I want to live for eternity, to be with him. It's a person. So I think as we close and as we stand and close and worship the Lord, man, just revisit that in your heart.

[51:08] It's a person. I've been a believer now for 40 years this year. I was three years old when I accepted the Lord.

[51:20] 17, when the Lord really grabbed my life and said, hey, let's go this direction. Stop living for yourself. Right? 40 years ago, okay, I was saved.

[51:33] But man, it's still a person. It's still about that person. It's easy in the midst of all God's doing in our lives the provision, the protection, his presence.

[51:45] It's easy to forget that we have a relationship with him. And you see here as Joseph is revealed to his brothers and his dad and there's all this stuff swirling around and happening and the moving and all of that.

[51:57] What do they care about? Joseph is alive and they're going to get to go. And they're going to get to go and they're going to get to go and live in, abide in the land of drawing near.

[52:14] So I just encourage you to just draw near to him now as we close. Father, thank you. Thank you that you chose to send your son into this world to receive a remnant, to rescue a remnant.

[52:32] Lord, soon and very soon you are going to call us home. You're going to rescue us through a great gathering, a great rescue. Lord, we're going to see you face to face.

[52:45] And I am so excited about the eternal party, the eternal fellowship of this. What I love about this so much, being with my brothers and sisters, I'm so excited about that.

[52:56] So excited to no longer have the weight of my sin, the embarrassment and humiliation of just being a fallen man. I'm so happy when that will be gone.

[53:10] I'm so blessed, Lord, to know that I'll never again have the pride and presence of sin pressing upon my life. But, Lord, all of that loses any value apart from your presence, apart from who you are.

[53:27] And even then, Lord, sometime I can bask in the glow of your presence and delight in all of that and forget who you are. You're a person. You're our friend and you have chosen to open your heart, to fully reveal yourself to us, to communicate with us.

[53:46] Oh, God, let us not close our hearts, but let us come fully into that relationship with you as we read your word, as we fellowship, as we serve, that everything we do would be like Paul, that we could write that before everything we do.

[54:05] Man, you know, I'm doing this today that I might know him. I just want to know him. How can I know him more through this? This trial, I just want to know him. This job, I just want to know him.

[54:18] So, Lord, come and meet with us now as we worship you. Remind us again of who you are, that because you live, we will live also.

[54:31] In Jesus' name, amen.