Joseph the Dreamer, Part 2
By Pastor Matt Black
03
June 2007
Lord's Day morning
Genesis 37:19-20
Tonight we are continuing in our message, “Joseph the Dreamer”. We are going to bypass the actual Scripture reading because we are going to We are going to look at the places Joseph’s dreams took him, and then we are going to see the proving ground of his dreams.
You never know where God will bring you when you say yes to Him.
I once heard someone say that “sin will take you farther than you want to go”.
I. PLACES: When Joseph said YES to God—God gave him dreams, and those dreams took him to places that tested his faith. Let’s go on a journey with Joseph.
The first place we come to in this passage is the promised land, Canaan in Genesis 37, verse 1, “And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan.”
Dysfunctional Family: Joseph had a dysfunctional family to say the least! It wasn’t that he had a dad and a step mom—but he had a dad and a mom and three step moms!! Remember Joseph had two wives: Leah and Rachael, and two concubines: Bilhah and Zilpah. Rachel was his first love, but was barren all the way until the end of her child bearing years, and at the end God gave Jacob his two youngest sons: Joseph and Benjamin. These were the sons of his true love, Rachael. Remember Jacob worked for Laban for seven years to get Rachael, “they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her” (Genesis 29:20), and then Laban switched Leah instead. So Jacob worked a total of 14 years for Rachel.
All and all though, Joseph had a comfort zone in Canaan. God had to take Joseph out of his comfort zone in order to use him. Had he stayed in Canaan he probably would have lead a very small life. Not much of spiritual significance happens in the comfort zone.
Application: In the same way, God may need to take you out of your comfort zone in order to use you. In the promised land, Joseph didn’t have the perfect life for sure, but he was comfortably obeying God. He had a zeal for God that sometimes got him in trouble.
Maybe that’s where you are today. You are comfortable in life. You suffer low grade inconvenience because of your faith, but nothing that wouldn’t cost you your livelihood. You keep being faithful. There is nothing spiritual about asking for martyrdom. But God may call move you out into the battle for Him in one way or another, and many times in ways that you least expect. Maybe you’ve experienced that.
Joseph was just fine in Canaan. This is what God promised to his father Abraham. But bam! Here he finds himself in a pit.
Look at Genesis 37:23-28, “And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they stript Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colours that was on him; 24 And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it. 25 And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a company of Ishmeelites came from Gilead with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt. 26 And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood? 27 Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content. 28 Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt.”
The Pit is a Puzzle: Application: At times our lives seem like a messed up puzzle—with pieces all jumbled together. Try as we may, we can’t seem to fit the pieces together. As puzzling as life can be, I doubt that any of us have had our lives broken into as many pieces as did Joseph. We are going to see today that it is possible to live a God-honoring sold out life even when the pieces of life don’t seem to fit together.
Example: Some of you had a day in your life when you were given the news that you had a serious disease. You were told to put your affairs in order. And the bottom dropped out of your life. Some of you are trying to figure out why? Why did God have me go through that? Well, no one can understand a serious illness like people who have suffered through that. You know doctors can give you the prognosis, but God is in charge of the verdict! What everything in life comes down to is what does God want to do with my life and are you a willing participant?
During the dark days in the pit and in the prison when Joseph didn’t know what was going on, it was the dreams—the promises of God to him personally—that sustained him.
God has given you the dream (promise) of Christlikeness if you are a believer. The one goal is not your earthly success, but your spiritual success!!! It is to mirror the person of Jesus Christ in your life. Stop working on so much on this life if your heart is not in order.
In order to make it through the most difficult trials in life, you’ve got to live for something beyond this life.
The Pit is an Opportunity! Application: Sometimes God uses those things to move you to places and positions that you wouldn’t be otherwise. And while it looks like it is a terrible awful tragedy, God is in the midst of it, and He’s working in it. And He’s all about working out His glory and our good.
Do you find your life in a pit?! Look up to God’s promises. Stay faithful and don’t compromise.
You may be in a pit at work. Put God first. You may be in a pit in your marriage—you keep dreaming no matter how bad it is! You may be in a pit in your walk with God. Don’t you give up! “Draw nigh to God and He will draw nigh to you.”
Dreams can die in a pit, but only if you let them. As Joseph approached his brothers before they sold him into slavery, they said to one another, “Behold, this dreamer cometh… and we shall see what will become of his dreams” (Genesis 37:19-20). Well, his dreams were to come true because they were not his dreams—they were God’s.
Joseph’s dreams didn’t die in the pit! Joseph’s brothers were dream killers.
Dreamkillers will crop up in front of any person who decides to follow God's plan for his life. It doesn't really matter if your dreams are spectacular or not. They may be a standard for your home, a ministry at your church, a goal in your business, or a vision for your community. If that vision is from the Lord, you can count on this: The Devil will move against you to destroy it.
What do dream killers look like?
· Sometimes they can be family. I remember that my parents always told me that Spain was crazy. I would never learn another language. It just seemed too far fetched.
· One dream killer is the entertainment and media industry today. It can waste your time and keep you nice and comfortable while you waste away spiritually. Anything that leads you to give your heart to vain and empty things is a dream killer.
· Has God given you a dream in your pursuit of Christlikeness? Don't let the dream killers succeed!
So Joseph goes from the pit to Potiphar’s house by way of some maurading Midianites who sold him to some maurading Ishmaelites and finally he ends up in Potiphar’s house.
Look at Genesis 39:1-5, “And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him of the hands of the Ishmeelites, which had brought him down thither.” And then look at verse 3, “And his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand. 4 And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand. 5 And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the LORD was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field.” What made Joseph successful was not that he played the corporate ladder. He never compromised. Joseph’s strength was that the Lord was with him.
Joseph served faithfully, but Potiphar’s wife chase him around and accused him of coming after her! Joseph did right and fled from the immoral woman. And you know what that got him? Praise? Fame? A new book deal? No! Only jail time.
Chapter 40 comes around, and we find that two men are added to the prison population: the chief baker and the butler (i.e. Pharoah’s cup bearer). Both have dreams.
Genesis 40:12ff, “And Joseph said unto him, This is the interpretation of it: The three branches are three days: 13 Yet within three days shall Pharaoh lift up thine head, and restore thee unto thy place: and thou shalt deliver Pharaoh’s cup into his hand, after the former manner when thou wast his butler. 14 But think on me when it shall be well with thee, and shew kindness, I pray thee, unto me, and make mention of me unto Pharaoh, and bring me out of this house: 15 For indeed I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews: and here also have I done nothing that they should put me into the dungeon.”
Application: Wow, this is a sure thing, Joseph thinks! This is God’s will! God has worked mightily! Surely the cup bearer is going to get me out of here. Joseph may have had thoughts like this.
Remember, it is not a cup bearer that has control of Joseph’s life—it is God.
Joseph’s one request: What was Joseph’s request to the Butler (the cup bearer)? Verse 14, “think on me”… shew kindness, I pray thee, unto me, and make mention of me unto Pharaoh”. Bring me out of this prison!
Did the cup bearer remember Joseph? Verse 23, “Yet did not the chief butler remember Joseph, but forgat him.”
Blank space: I want you to look at that blank space between the end of Genesis 40 and verse 1 of chapter 41. How long is that space? Look at Genesis 41:1, “And it came to pass at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh dreamed”.
Application:
Just as Joseph said, famine hits the land, and Joseph’s brothers seek grain from Egypt. They have to deal with Joseph. They start having contact with Joseph. Jacob sends all his sons except Benjamin. Remember that Jacob’s true love is Rachael, but Rachael did not have any children until the very end—so Jacob’s two youngest children were from Rachael—the one he waited seven years for, and instead got Leah, then waited seven more years, and finally got his true love.
So everyone is in Egypt except Benjamin. Of course Joseph accuses them of being spies, hides money in their bags, has them arrested. The brothers say they are innocent, so Joseph holds Simeon hostage to check out their story. Joseph wants to see Benjamin.
Back in Canaan, Jacob is devastated. Now he thinks both Joseph and Simeon are dead. But in the end, Jacob sends them all back with Benjamin because he has no other choice. If he doesn’t send them back they will all die of starvation.
Joseph then sends them with grain, but puts his golden cup in Benjamin’s sack and hauls him off incarcerated. The brothers are shocked. When all is said and done, Judah offers himself as a substitute for his brother. At this point, Joseph is overwhelmed. Look at Genesis 45.
Genesis 45:1-5, “Then Joseph could not refrain himself before all them that stood by him; and he cried, Cause every man to go out from me. And there stood no man with him, while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren. 2 And he wept aloud: and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard. 3 And Joseph said unto his brethren, I am Joseph; doth my father yet live? And his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled at his presence. 4 And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. 5 Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.”
Joseph could have done anything with them, and he does nothing but love them and preserve their lives. There really is so much more here, but we are out of time. Let’s move to the lessons we learn from Joseph’s life. There are three tests or lessons in Joseph’s life.
Conclusion: Tonight God has put some dreams in my heart. They are nothing more than my desire to see the promises of God fulfilled in our lives. Like Joseph you and I as believers are dreamers.
You need to be inspired and overcome and motivated that if God can save and change you, he can change anyone. Keep God’s dreams ever before you. All you are called to do is love God—and let God bring to pass His dreams for you and your family. “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6).
Closing Hymn: 475 Rejoice in the Lord