Buying Food and Bowing Down

 Read Genesis 42

Where do Hollywood writers go to learn plot twists and where to break the story so the reader or viewer can’t wait for the next episode?  The last few chapters of Genesis would be one place to learn this.

The chapter ends with Jacob—Israel—refusing to let his sons return to Egypt for food.  The lord of the land required that they bring their youngest brother with them.

That would mean that Jacob might lose both of his sons that came by his wife—the wife he so loved—Rachel. She was gone now too.  Might he lose everything?

I’m thinking this was sweeps week when they wrote this chapter.

How did we get to this point?

Israel’s family was out of food.  His sons had wives and children and they needed food.  So 10 brothers loaded up their donkeys with silver and headed to Egypt to buy food.  Word was out that Egypt had food.

Once they arrived, they appeared before the lord of the land.  That person was Joseph and his brothers bowed before him.

Joseph recognized them but they did not recognize him. Joseph declared that these men were spies. Joseph need not prove they were spies.  He was the top dog and if he said they were spies, then spies they were.

The burden of proof was on the brothers to prove otherwise.  Joseph questioned them about their family, including their father and youngest brother.  The whole time the brothers are oblivious to the fact that this was Joseph talking to them.

Joseph kept Simeon in prison while the 9 other brothers departed with their grain, and unbeknownst to them, the silver that they brought to pay for the grain.

Simeon would only be released when the brothers returned with their youngest brother. On the trip home, they discovered that silver had been placed in one of their grain bags.

When they arrived home, they discovered that the silver had been returned with all of the bags.  This couldn’t bode well for their relationship with the governor of Egypt.  Might he send soldiers to capture them?  Might they never see Simeon again?

They had food for the moment, but could they return for more?

In the midst of all of these things, the brothers had an epiphany.  This is all because of how we treated our brother, Joseph.  They did not recognize Joseph when they saw him in Egypt, but his memory and what they had done to him were gripping their minds now.

Reuben threw in an I told you so. As usual, that didn’t do anything to help the situation.

We end the chapter with Israel’s family out of food again.  He was unwilling to send Benjamin back with them.  So at this point, he has lost Joseph and Simeon will be lost to him as well.  For things to be otherwise, he must put Benjamin at risk.

He would not do that.  The Hollywood writers end the chapter here.

We know there is more to come.  You can’t have another episode if all the characters die of starvation. We know there is more to come, but what did we learn here?

Joseph was overwhelmed to see his family again.  He broke down in tears.  The brother didn’t see it, but there was joy in his heart at this reunion.

Joseph still remembered what his brothers did to him and he treated them harshly.  Do you remember us talking about the names of Joseph’s children and how that indicated that Joseph had put his past suffering behind him? Now that past stood before him.

The word karma comes to mind, but it is simply the plan of God to save the known world and bring Israel’s children into Egypt unfolding.

Joseph saw one of his visions manifested before him.  The brothers—at least 10 of them bowed before him.  That had to register at multiple levels.

Joseph experienced joy, anger, and fulfillment of what God had shown him in a dream all at once. Joseph wanted to see his entire family, especially his father and younger brother.  Joseph manipulated the situation.  He was the top dog and could do what he wanted and he wanted to see Benjamin.

He also wanted to feed his father’s family and make his brothers sweat.

What a fine place to end the chapter.  Now the previews of the next episode include a return to Egypt and a trip to Joseph’s own home for a meal.  But will this be a good thing or their last supper?

The brothers still must be wrestling with the thought that this somehow had something to do with how they treated—mistreated—Joseph.  What could it all mean?

Stayed tuned.

Amen.

Embracing the past and suffering for the mission God has given you now

 Read Genesis 41

You know the story.  God has revealed to the Pharoah of Egypt through Joseph, Son of Jacob, that there will be 7 years of plenty and 7 years of famine. The only guy around who could handle getting the country ready to endure this was Joseph.

Yes, dreamer boy Joseph who earned the scorn of his brothers was the one.

Yes, Joseph the slave was the man for the job.

Yes, Joseph who was doing time in the Pharoah’s prison was the perfect pick.

You da man, Joseph!

Joseph could have been bitter.  He could have said, “Let’s all just die.  I’m going back to my cell.”  He could have thrown a pity party but he did not.

He went to work. People moved out of his way when he was going somewhere.  Joseph was the man in all of Egypt.

If you have ever been on a U.S. naval vessel, you had better understand one phrase for sure:  Gangway!

Gangway can be a raised walkway or passage, but most of the time it means get out of the way.

If the CO or XO shouts gangway, then you had better melt into the bulkhead.  The CO needs to be where he is headed yesterday.

Any senior officer can shout gangway and people should move, but generally, it’s the commanding officer or his second in command who needs to be somewhere immediately.

There is another group of people who can use the command.  They are the security Marines aboard aircraft carriers.  If security is called to any point on the vessel, the Marines need to be there immediately.

Sailors and Marines don’t always get along that well, especially when they are couped up for several months sharing the same spaces at sea.  Sailors significantly outnumber Marines on carriers.  So when security is called to any area, Marines yell gangway and start moving.

If you are not part of the bulkhead, you will be. Imagine being a 19-year-old hard charger couped up in this metal contraption at sea.  You need to let out your frustration.  A sailor who doesn’t get out of the way works just fine.  That dude is getting run over.

When Joseph was headed anywhere, people got out of the way of his chariot.  This wasn’t just any rich guy with his Mercedes.  This was Joseph and he was on a mission to save the country.

Joseph was on a mission from God.

He was on a mission from God!

And Joseph was about the Lord’s business.  He was charged by God through the Pharoah to save the country.  Pharoah was surely not a man who knew the one true God, but he must have known of him and he must have realized that the Spirit of this God lived within Joseph.

So, Joseph was about his business, but do you think he was happy?  Do you think he was waiting for the other shoe to drop?

Why would he think this?

Coat of many colors—the scorn of his brothers.

Siblings bowing down to him—thrown in a hole and sold into slavery.

In charge of Potiphar’s household—thrown into prison for something he didn’t do.

Was Joseph just waiting for the inevitable negative event that would send him to rock bottom again?

I say not.  I think he embraced what God had given him and didn’t look back.  How do I know?

Joseph had 2 kids.  OK, and…

Before the years of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On. 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.”

Joseph named his kids what he did because God made him forget the troubles of the past and embrace the prosperity that followed his hard times.

Do you remember me telling you that one of our lessons from the story of Joseph was to be faithful to God and do your best? Joseph knew that he had been through some stuff but now he was able to put the trials of his past behind him and embrace his situation.

His situation was not necessarily easy.  I’m sure he had all the comforts of wealth but he was on a mission from God.

Joseph was in the right place at the right time to do the things God had planned for him in advance and Joseph was good with that.  He could have carried a chip on his shoulder.  He could have thrown a pity party.  He could have just saved the part of the country where the Pharoah lived and kicked back and enjoyed life.

But he embraced his assignment and he was good with the path that got him where he was.

I like to watch some science fiction now and again.  The time machine shows and movies usually interest me.  What would happen if someone went back in time and changed even the smallest thing?

I’ll watch a movie about time travel if it appears interesting.  Sometimes after watching a time travel movie that didn’t live up to its billing, I wish I could go back in time and unwatch it.

Who cares about going back in time?  Have you ever wanted to undo something in your past?  Were there one or two things that you would have not done if you got a do-over?  Was there an opportunity that passed by that you would have liked another shot at?

You think that Joseph might have skipped the trip to visit his brothers tending the flocks and not been thrown in a hole.

You think that Joseph might have just gone along with a roll in the hay a few times with Potiphar’s wife, just to not have to deal with her scorn.

But Joseph embraced his past and his suffering and now embraced where it landed him.  He was the second most powerful man in Egypt, probably in the whole region and he was on a mission from God.

We know that Joseph embraced his role in God’s plan by the names he gave his kids.

Do we embrace our part in God’s plan?  How do we know?

Do we long to change things in our past or do we move forward in faith?

Do we trust in the Lord or is our doubt a stumbling block to others?

Do we wait patiently upon the Lord or are we constantly asking God, why, when, how?

Are we ready to respond to the Spirit that lives within us or do we put in our earplugs because God’s Spirit might lead us out of our comfort zone?

I don’t expect anyone to rename their kids, but I challenge you to accept the life path, struggles, victories, lessons learned, your ups and downs, arguments and agreements, and other factors that might seem to confound in the moment as part of the preparation that you have been given to do God’s will.

Once you have accepted that, I challenge you to embrace all of these experiences and be ready to do what God has in store for you.

Amen.

Patient while you wait. Ready when called!

 Read Genesis 41

I give you the following with apologies to Solomon.

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

A time to get a coat of many colors,

A time to have your coat taken from you.

A time to walk the countryside seeking your brothers,

A time to have your brother throw you in a hole.

A time to see visions of your brothers bowing before you,

A time to be sold as a slave.

A time to be Dad’s favorite,

A time to be lost to your Dad.

A time to work as a slave,

A time to be a slave in charge of the entire household.

A time to bring blessing to your master,

A time for your master’s wife to falsely accuse you.

A time to be thrown into prison,

A time to be in charge of the prison.

A time to understand dreams and anticipate your release,

A time to wait for your release,

A time to wait for your release,

A time to wait for your release.

Just how long is it going to take that cupbearer to talk to Pharoah?

The answer is—until the Pharoah had dreams that he didn’t understand.  Fat cows being eaten by skinny cows and scrawny heads of grain-eating full heads.  What did it mean?

The cupbearer realized that he had been remiss in not mentioning Joseph earlier, but with the onset of the Pharoah’s dreams, Joseph came to mind.

I mentioned previously that if Joseph had been released shortly after the cupbearer was restored, he would have likely gone home and not left a forwarding address.  Not even the extended warranty people would have found him.

He surely had a thing or two to say to his brothers and his dad.  He wasn’t going to hang around Egypt, get a flat in the city, and a job as a management consultant.  He would be long gone.

He wouldn’t give Pharoah his business card and say, if you ever get a weird dream, give me a call.  I’ll give you a rate.

He would be gone, but as it was, Joseph was still in the palace prison and the cupbearer remembered him. It had been 2 years since his release and restoration, but the cupbearer finally remembered Joseph.

Pharoah’s court of advisors and magicians and other charlatans didn’t have a clue what the dreams meant.  Giving a false interpretation might cost you your head, so Pharoah’s top people produced no results.

I think they used the advisor’s maxim.  When in doubt, mumble.  They were no help.

Pharoah summoned Joseph.  Joseph threw on a shave and some new clothes appropriate to appearing before Egypt’s sovereign and the story unfolds.

Joseph made it clear to Pharoah that the meaning of the dreams came from God and then went on to explain that Egypt would have 7 years of abundance and 7 years of famine.

The message came in 2 dreams to affirm that the matter was not up for discussion.  God had decided and this would happen soon.

The message from God continued with a job posting.

Senior level executive needed to run country and administer taxation program of one-fifth of the crops for collection annually for 7 years.   Must supervise commissioners in the administration of food collection and storage.  Distribution and sales skills a must. 

Advanced degrees in business and management desired along with 10 years experience in government administration. 

Education and experience requirements may be waived if the Spirit of God dwells within the applicant.

Serious inquiries only.

When God writes the job description, it will only fit the person he has in mind.  Pharoah realized that and appointed Joseph over everything except his own personal decisions.  He was the second in command of all of Egypt.

He had a really good benefit package. Joseph got a chariot.  He got some bling. Pharoah even threw in a new name and a wife.

Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphenath-Paneah and gave him Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, to be his wife. And Joseph went throughout the land of Egypt.

Joseph did what he said needed to be done.  So much grain was collected that the collections folks stopped keeping records. Everything was on track.

Joseph didn’t spend all of his time on the road.  He had enough time at home to have 2 sons.

Before the years of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On. 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.”

Joseph was able to put behind him all of his sorrows and had eyes to see the abundance that God had provided him.

He had gone from trusting God and doing his best in the worst of circumstances to acknowledging God when he was moved from the mailroom to the board room.

Let’s do some math.  There were 7 years of abundance and 7 years of famine.  It seems like one-seventh of each year’s harvest would have done the trick.  Instead, Joseph required one-fifth of the harvest.

Some people don’t like fractions, but one-fifth is more than one-seventh.  That burger with a one-third-of-a-pound patty is larger than that quarter-pounder.

Some of you don’t believe me and others are just upset that I brought fractions into the sermon. Why collect more than you need?  Might the famine last more than 7 years?

God said 7 so I’m sure that Joseph believed 7 years would be the extent of the famine. 

Realize that the drought and famine were not confined within the borders of Egypt.  People from all over would come to Egypt because they had food.  Egypt had food and it was for sale.

Had the Pharoah’s name been Ramses, Dave Ramses, he might have advised the people to set aside one-fifth of their 7 years of abundance into an emergency fund. We will discover later, that the common people didn’t have a financial advisor and they didn’t have an emergency fund.

But for the 7 years of famine, they had access to food.  This made Egypt unique and powerful and Joseph was at the helm.

There is more to come in the story of Joseph and Egypt, Joseph and his brothers, and Joseph with his father and his sons, but for now, consider that God’s time and timing are not our time and timing.

We made that reference when Joseph was stuck in a bad spot but we consider it again as Joseph was elevated to his top-level position.

Had everything happened in accordance with Joseph’s timeline, he would not have been around to do this mighty work.  Egypt would have suffered.  The surrounding countries that were drought-stricken would have suffered beyond what they could manage.

Even Joseph’s own family would have found no place to turn when they had no food. Joseph was in the exact place and time where God would use him for the good of many.

It’s all good to know stuff, but how do we apply it to our lives?

That’s a good question.  By good, I mean it’s a difficult question.  I don’t really expect to do any time in prison.  I might do a bit or two in Facebook Jail, but that’s probably it.

Most of the time if I have a dream and think that was a good one.  I need to write it down, but when I look at my notes in the morning, I can’t read the hieroglyphics.  Of course, most of the time I can’t read my own notes during the day.

So what do I take from this part of Genesis?

How about, if God’s Spirit is within you, all the knowledge, skills, and abilities that you acquire from your life experience are ready to be put to use for God.

How about the character that you develop in both adversity and victory is available to produce great things because God lives within you.

How about we accept that regardless of what’s happening in this moment, God has good plans for us.

How about, there will come a time when your trust in the Lord, your faithfulness, and your acknowledgment of him in everything you do will be rewarded.  It may happen in this lifetime or it may come in that place that eye has not seen and ear has not heard what the Lord God has in store for us, but it will come.

If it comes in this time, do not be stunned.  Get to work.  If God manifests great things for you to accomplish in this time, get to work.

Those great things might encompass saving a nation or saving a child.

It might involve feeding multitudes or feeding a single family.

It might involve a career change, not always as drastic as going from managing a prison to managing a country, but you might be called to something else than what you are doing right now that will bring glory to God.

It might involve no job change at all.  It might just be working at whatever you do as if you were working for the Lord and not for men.

But make no mistake, your lessons learned, your waiting upon the Lord, your readiness to take what the Lord has given you and put it to work at once, and many other life experiences and strengthened character traits will have a place in God’s time to produce good fruit.

Be patient while you wait.  Be ready when you are called. Your time is coming in God’s time.

Be patient while you wait.  Be ready when you are called.

Amen.

 

 

Prison Time

 Read Genesis 40

The chapter begins with the words some time later.

We don’t know exactly how long this was, but Joseph did some time.  It wasn’t just get kicked out of Potiphar’s household, thrown into prison, and then on to interpreting dreams as the warden’s number one man.

Joseph did some time.

When counseling inmate clients, they would often use the term bit.  I did this bit here and this bit there and so on.

I would ask how long was your first bit?  It was 8 years.  And your second?  It was 12.  And the one you are doing now?  It’s 15-20.

So you are talking about at least 35 years behind prison walls.  That’s time.  That’s not a bit.  That’s time away from your family.  It’s time away from the kids you keep telling me that you would do anything for and want to spend time with.

That’s real time.

The term bit is a defense mechanism that inmates use to avoid coming to grips with the truth.  Make no mistake, time in prison is time away from the things that you love.

Some have made the best of the situation.  Some grow where they are planted.  Some come to Christ in prison, but all have the heart to be somewhere else.

And Joseph had been in prison for a while when the pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker were imprisoned. We get no explanation as to why, though the cupbearer’s lot was predictable.

These two officials of the royal court had been in prison long enough for Joseph to get to know them and one day he noticed their countenance was off.  He inquired as to why.

Both had dreams and they didn’t know what to make of them.  Joseph told them that the meaning of the dreams comes from God.  Joseph revealed the meaning of the cupbearer’s dream.

So the chief cupbearer told Joseph his dream. He said to him, “In my dream I saw a vine in front of me, and on the vine were three branches. As soon as it budded, it blossomed, and its clusters ripened into grapes. Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup and put the cup in his hand.”

“This is what it means,” Joseph said to him. “The three branches are three days. Within three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your position, and you will put Pharaoh’s cup in his hand, just as you used to do when you were his cupbearer.”

That was the interpretation but not the end of the conversation.  Joseph had a request of the cupbearer.

But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. I was forcibly carried off from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing to deserve being put in a dungeon.

Previously, I had mentioned that despite everything that happened to Joseph, he didn’t throw a pity party.  He was not a constant complainer.  He was faithful to God and did his best, but he wanted to get out of prison.  Every human soul wants to get out of prison. 

Sure, some people have become institutionalized and can’t survive outside of custody, but every human soul longs for freedom.  Joseph wanted out of prison.

He couldn’t pass up this opportunity knowing what was to come for the cupbearer.

The baker wanted Joseph to tell him his fortune.  I don’t know that he understood the part about the meaning coming from God, but he was hoping for good news as well.

When the chief baker saw that Joseph had given a favorable interpretation, he said to Joseph, “I too had a dream: On my head were three baskets of bread. In the top basket were all kinds of baked goods for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.”

“This is what it means,” Joseph said. “The three baskets are three days. Within three days Pharaoh will lift off your head and impale your body on a pole. And the birds will eat away your flesh.”

I’m sure that the baker wanted a second opinion. 

My doctor told me that I was crazy.  I said that I wanted a second opinion.  He said, you’re ugly too. Thank you Henny Youngman.

The baker didn’t get a second opinion.  He got 3 days to agonize and hope that Joseph was wrong.

Joseph was right.  The cupbearer was restored to his position and the baker was impaled on a pole. I’m sure that you Game of Thrones people would have liked that part.

Imagine being impaled on a pole with the birds pecking away at your flesh.  I should have saved this message for right before lunch.

The cupbearer was so overjoyed at Joseph’s interpretation coming true that he forgot Joseph. He did not remember Joseph.  That’s a phrase that will have great meaning for the Hebrew people if you begin the book of Exodus.

So we begin and end the chapter with Joseph in prison.  His roller coaster ride continued.  Surely, he had high hopes when the cupbearer was restored but there were no immediate results.

Sometimes this everything in God’s time just seems to stink.  Surely, Joseph had punched his ticket out of prison, but prison is exactly where we find Joseph as we conclude this part of the story.

You know what is to come, but Joseph must have hit another low.  He was back in the pit into which his brothers threw him.  He was a slave once again. He was in prison and his hopes of getting out soon just slammed on the breaks.

All Joseph could do was remain faithful to God and do his best.  That should sound familiar. It was more grist for the mill.

God was not on Joseph’s schedule.  Joseph could organize and manage many things, but God’s timing was not one of them.

Other than knowing this part of the story, is there a takeaway for us?

Remain faithful to God and do your best is still valid.

God’s time is not always our time.

We are blessed to wait upon the Lord.

Our own understanding will not always make sense of God’s timing in the moment so we must rely exclusively on trusting in the Lord.

We know that Joseph gets out of prison and that God has great plans for him, but for the moment, all he could do is trust in God and do his best.  Be faithful and do his best.

Have you ever wondered what would happen if Joseph had gotten out of prison at that time?  He might have gone home.  He would have loved to have seen the look in his brothers’ eyes when he appeared.

But what would have happened later when there was no one to tell the Pharoah what his dreams meant?  Who would there have been to reveal what was to come and to have the unique skills to prepare for it.

I doubt that Joseph would have left a forwarding address in case Pharoah needed to get in touch with him.

But Joseph was on God’s schedule and all he could do was do his best and trust God as he remained in prison for a while longer.

Many of us have similar situations.  We are not in a physical prison but our own understanding is giving us a different timeline than the Lord has in store for us.

We have a timeline for getting ourselves where we need to be or we are content to run in circles, but God’s plan and his time will prevail.

So, what can we do? Have faith and do your best.  Trust in God and do your best.

Yes, we still take those opportunities to get out of prison, but when it doesn’t happen on our schedule, we trust in the Lord and do our best.

Amen.

 

 

Game Changer

 Read John 3

For those of you who are here every Sunday and wonder what happened to Chapter 40 of Genesis, I preached it at the first service.

On most Sundays, I preach about our discipleship—our response to God’s grace that we know in Christ Jesus.  That’s what we need on most Sundays.  How will I respond to this wonderful gift of life, life abundant, and life eternal?

This morning, following a week of our Vacation Bible School, I will talk to you about salvation. I am also going to use a theological term.

If I tell you that I am going to use a church term or theological term, you usually know that I am a little tongue-in-cheek and will say something like cool beans or that dog don’t hunt.

This morning I will give you a real term.  It’s regeneration.  Regeneration is preceded by repentance.  It includes reconciliation. It brings us to redemption.

We were dead in our sins but we are not only revived, we are reborn.

This morning, I am talking about being born again.  If you read the part that precedes this morning’s scripture selection, you find Jesus and Nicodemus—a Pharisee who is curious about Jesus—in a discussion about being born again.  Jesus does most of the talking.

Nicodemus cannot get his mind wrapped around being born again.  What do I do?  Do I try to crawl back into my mother’s womb?  You ask the impossible.

Jesus is a little terse.  And you call yourself Israel’s teacher?

We have all been born in the flesh.  Jesus tells us that there is more.  There is a lot more!

We are to be born of God’s Spirit.  Do you remember the story of God making Adam out of the earth—the humus and then breathing life into him making him a living being? We are of this earth and we are of God.

We have all been born of the flesh.  We must also be born of the Spirit if we are to fully live this life and have life eternal.  We must be born again.

We must be made new!  How do we do this? The is no complicated formula or ritual.

We must believe in the One whom God sent—Jesus Christ.  We must believe that God raised him from the dead.  In that belief, we declare, Jesus is Lord!

Jesus is Lord!

In this single profession, we have passed from death to life.  We will live.  Even though these bodies will wear out, stop working because of an automobile accident, or explode if we get hit by a meteor or a trampoline doing 90 mph through town; we will live.

And from that moment forward, we will never make another mistake or have any more problems.  Not exactly.

Having trouble is part of living in this world.  Making mistakes is just being human.  But once we have declared JESUS IS LORD, we take on his yoke and learn from him.

There will still be trouble in the world.  We will still make mistakes, but they fall under this umbrella that we know as grace.

We get to grow and learn and serve in God’s grace. Grace is this umbrella of unmerited mercy and forgiveness and blessing that comes from God not because of what we have or have not done, but because of who God is.  He is love.

What’s that mean?  God will never kick us to the curb.  His grace goes beyond all of our sins.  We are not the sum of our past mistakes.  We have been born again.

Paul would say that we are a new creature—a new creation. The old is gone. The new is here. We are made new.  You don’t have to get a new driver’s license photo but you are made anew.

We want to do the best that we can.  We want to bring glory to God.  We want to be thankful people.  We want to be known by our love.

We understand that we will miss the mark time and again, but God is faithful to forgive every time that we confess.  He has promised his forgiveness.

The God who is holy and righteous and sovereign is most of all love.  God is love and God loves you.

Most of you know this.  Most of you have professed JESUS IS LORD!  If you have not, I challenge you to remain under the death curse of sin no longer.  Come to know the one true God by professing belief in his Son, Christ Jesus.

Do not profess Jesus out of the fear of an eternity in hell.  Those who do that often think they have reached the finish line. Game over. I win.  I’ll just sit out the rest of my life until Jesus comes to get me.

Profess Jesus as your Lord and Savior because you believe in a God of love. When you do this, you will have eyes to see that you are only in the starting blocks of life. 

Life is all ahead of you.  Live to the full now and live in the loving presence of God forever. Respond to the grace of God in everything you do.

This response to the grace of God is our discipleship. As I mentioned when we began, that is the substance of most of my messages as I preach mostly to the saved.  But what about those who are not?

Your human mind—your human understanding—will try to convince you not to do this.  This can’t be true.  This is just church nonsense.  I just refuse to believe it. It just seems too easy.

Receiving the gift is easy.  Living in response to the gift of salvation might take some work, but that work is not debilitating.

But for those who will take the faith that God has granted each of us and take a single step in faith, life awaits you.  We are saved by grace through faith.

We all come out of disobedience to receive this gift of life by faith. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.  All come out of disobedience to receive this gift of life by faith

Will you still have trouble?  Sure.  That’s part of life. Life involves struggle.

Will you still make mistakes? Only if you are human.

So, what will I gain?  Life, life abundant, and life eternal.  Sin and death will have no more power over you. Sin will try to mess with your abundant life but it will have no power over your eternal destination.

But, but, but, I’m doing ok now doing things my own way.  I like my Frank Sinatra theology.  I did it my way.

What good is it to gain the whole world yet lose your soul? You might think that life is good doing things your way—the world’s way.  If that’s true, how much better is it to do things God’s way—to follow the instructions of the Designer himself.

You will still have trials and temptations but you will never face them alone.  Everything that happens to those who believe in God through Christ Jesus will one day see how God used everything that happened to you for the good.

This is our VBS Sunday.  I hope we made a difference in the lives of many young people, but I am also speaking to those who may have gone through life and never professed Jesus as Lord. 

Many have read the Bible and have verses that they like, but have never professed Jesus as Lord.  Lord is a tough word to say in our time.  We are independent.  We can make it on our own.  I’m not surrendering to anyone. And we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us for we have all fallen short of the glory of God.

Do not remain a prisoner of sin and death.  For all who have not professed Jesus as Lord, death is your preexisting condition.  That condition does not disqualify you from what the Lord has in store for you.

The kids this week might just call that a GAME CHANGER.

If you have never professed Jesus as Lord, turn away from the sinful ways of the world—the church word here is repent—and receive the life that God promises in Christ Jesus.  Make a wholesale exchange of your mind, body, soul, and spirit for the ways of God. Receive the Spirit of God to live within you. 

Come and be saved.

Amen.

Falsely Accused

 Read Genesis 39

The Proverbs are full of crafty women and the consequences of falling into their snares.  God told us to watch out!

There is danger in this world and some of it comes with makeup, perfume, and curves in just the right places. Look out, guys.

Joseph was a chick magnet but his mind was on the affairs of his master.  His heart was in fulfilling the trust his master had placed in him.  His desire was to please God, not offend him.

Chances are, only God would know if Joseph indulged himself.  Joseph had a free run of the place.  Nobody would suspect his motives regardless of where he was.  He was a trusted servant. He was in charge and could do what he wanted.

Joseph could have probably gotten away with a few rolls in the hay with Potiphar’s wife.  Only God would know, well at least until that good-looking baby that eventually would come didn’t look anything like Potiphar.

How did Joseph respond to the repetitive requests to hook up?

No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?

Consider the response:  No one is greater in this house than I am.

The sinful human heart would say, this is one of my perks.  I am the man.

Consider the response: My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife.

The sinful human heart would beckon us to take the wife as well.  Why should she not be part of the employee benefits package?  It’s her idea after all.

Consider the response: How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?

This adds a perspective that Potiphar’s wife surely did not comprehend.  There is a real God.  Right and wrong are real things. Even if people don’t know what you did nor did not do, God knows.

God knows not only what you do but what your heart desires. 

Now consider the entire response.

No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?

Who do we see doing stupid, sinful things because they think they can get away with it?  It’s often those in power.  It’s those who think that by their position or rank, they will suffer no consequence for stepping over the line.

No one is greater in this house than I am, I will take advantage of the situation and do things that might otherwise be off-limits.  I have power.

It could be sex.  It could be a bribe.  It could be disposing of an inconvenient pregnancy.  I have just scratched the surface of American politics, but these things are not exclusive to the land of the free and the home of the brave.

You know the modern proverb:  Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. 

Those with power over the ages seldom heeded this warning.  We have a nation that constitutionally divided power among 3 federal branches, then between federal and state levels, and then reserved some power—rights—exclusively to the people.

Some very wise men sought to institutionalize safeguards against the threats that might come from this axiom. Today, many are willing to sacrifice those safeguards for a variety of reasons.

But Joseph set an example contrary to our sinful human nature, even though he probably could have gotten away with it.

I have been entrusted with great power.  The key word here is trust. My power and authority are the result of the trust placed in me.  I will not give into my sinful human nature and betray that trust.

Joseph was a servant, but he was master over his sinful human nature.  He would not offend God.  He would not offend his earthly master.  He was more than a conqueror.

Joseph was a suffering servant. He was sold into slavery.  He was unjustly accused. He was thrown into prison.

Joseph would save much of the known world.  He would be something of a savior to much of the world of that age.

Now consider that Joseph may have foreshadowed the Christ who set aside his place in heaven and came as a servant.  While Christ was truly Master, he faithfully did the will of his Father in heaven. 

Now consider that Joseph may have foreshadowed the Christ who was also the suffering servant. Christ gave his life freely for our salvation.

This story is a necessary step that gets Joseph closer to being the greatest in Egypt.

This story is about a man who could have cried, unfair, again and again.

This story is about a man who would suffer in order to save many.  He probably did not know how the story would play out moment-to-moment, but he knew enough not to offend God.

This story also gives us a taste of what is to come in the person of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world.

Know the history but don’t overlook the suffering servant.

Amen.

Grist for the Mill

 Read Genesis 39

It’s not fair!  It’s not fair!

Did you hear me? IT’S NOT FAIR!

Had the story of Joseph taken place in this century,  Joseph might have been shouting, IT’S NOT FAIR! Millions would have been posting, IT’S NOT FAIR!

Surely, the treatment of Joseph by his brothers wasn’t fair. Yes, he was a tattle tale.  Yes, he shared some dreams with his parents and siblings about everyone bowing down to him, but surely that warranted a roughing up not being sold into slavery.

We begin the second leg of Joseph’s journey.  It takes place in Potiphar’s household. Potiphar was the captain of the Royal Guard.  It was surely a top posting.  It came with perks.  Potiphar surely had a good parking spot for his chariot at the Pharoah’s palace.

Potiphar was in a powerful position and he had a good income.  He had enough to purchase a Hebrew slave named Joseph.  We don’t know what he paid, but it was surely a bargain.

Potiphar saw that whatever it was that Joseph was working on or in charge of produced good fruit.  This Joseph character had the touch.  Everything he did produced great results.

One of the wisest decisions that Potiphar made was to put Joseph in charge of everything he had.  Somehow, Potiphar discerned that everything that Joseph did or supervised or influenced in any way was blessed by God.

Potiphar must have thought that he made the deal of the century when he acquired Joseph.  The only drawback was that Joseph was a looker.  He was a chick magnet and Potiphar’s wife noticed him and she wanted him in her bed.

Joseph resisted her invitations repeatedly until one day when there was nobody else around, she invited and he declined but she grabbed his robe.

Joseph ran right out of his robe and Potiphar’s wife cried rape.  When her husband came home, she told her version of the story.  Joseph was a slave and there would be no arraignment, no not guilty plea, no day in court to confront his accuser, and no dream team of lawyers to get him off the hook.  He was a slave.

Joseph was a slave.

Potiphar put Joseph in the Pharoah’s prison.  He surely could have killed Joseph without any consequence but surely Joseph had found favor in Potiphar’s eyes and there was surely some mystery about his success.  He must have some connection with some god.  I doubt that the Potiphar knew the one true God, but he could tell that the force was with Joseph in any case.

So, off to prison it was.

It’s not fair!  It’s not fair!

Did you hear me? IT’S NOT FAIR!

We don’t see Joseph complain. We see the same story retold but this time it is in the Pharoah’s prison.  The Lord was with Joseph in everything that he did and he was successful in all that he did.

The warden saw this and put Joseph in charge of everything in the prison.  The only thing that Joseph couldn’t do was go home.  He was in charge of everything within the prison and he was good at it.

The warden hit paydirt.  What a gift Joseph was to him. Do we understand how much of a blessing Joseph was to his seniors?

In the mid to late 1980’s I was stationed with the First Battalion, Sixth Marines.  I was the company commander for the Headquarters and Service Company, affectionately referred to as the Cats and Dogs.  I had Marines who took care of personnel records—the HR department in the civilian world.   I had cooks, truck drivers and mechanics, scouts, snipers, the intelligence section, the operations section, the supply section, the communication section, and more.

When we deployed for Europe and the Mediterranean, a platoon of tanks, a platoon of engineers reinforced by an AVLB, and some other Marines of assorted specialties were assigned to me. In all, I had 351 Marines and their toys assigned to me.

These Marines had about three dozen different primary missions and all of those collateral missions that are unavoidable.  While I loved commanding this company and loved my Marines, there was never a day without a dozen specialized headaches.

When you are in charge of the cooks, bakers, and candlestick makers as well as the tankers and engineers, the confounding factors increased exponentially. OBTW—these were Marines with loaded weapons who in addition to their specialized job were trained to kill the enemy.

Before I took this assignment, the colonel told me that I could stay as the assistant operations officer or I could command H&S Company. I took the command. It was a no-brainer, but there were days in the middle of the insanity that comes with so many confounding factors that I had to remind myself, I asked for this.

When we returned to the States, I was assigned as the Company Commander of Weapons Company.  Before I left the Headquarters and Service Company, my first sergeant was talking to me and said, “You won’t know what to do with yourself.”

I said, “What?”

He said, “It will all be done for you.”

He was right.  In my new company, I had a first sergeant and a master sergeant—these are senior enlisted.  I had the battalion’s most senior lieutenants and they were assisted by senior noncommissioned officers.

If I wanted something, it was done and done well, but I didn’t really have any day-to-day work. I didn’t need to give any orders.  Everyone knew their job and the job of their seniors and everything was done for me.

I felt as Potiphar must have felt.  I felt as the warden must have felt.  Everything was in good hands.

Just so you know, the battalion did deploy to Central America and I did have a few things to do.  The weapons company had developed an airfield seizure package and it was going to kick off the joint operation.

My company would seize the airfield. Our seaborne and heliborne forces would secure a perimeter around the airfield, and then the Air Force C-5s would start coming in with Army troops and equipment every 90 seconds. That was sort of fun.

It was the usual operation where the intel guys tell you there is no intel only a couple of 20-year-old photos of the airfield to be seized.  “We don’t know anything about this airfield” was the party line.  I think intelligence officers are lazy by nature.

I gave my officers the photos and told them to figure out what they could.  They came back to me within the hour and showed me a place on the runway that I had to look at with a magnifying glass. 

There in bold letters were the words, “See Bees Can Do.”

We had intel on this airstrip.  We had built it.  Somewhere we had all the specs on this facility and now the Intel Officer would have to get out of his do-nothing comfort zone and go find it.

All I had to do was hand the assignment to my officers and they were all over it.

You don’t get those situations too often in life.  Most command assignments have some tougher challenges.  You are short people or they are undertrained.  That creates frustration and more challenges, but when you get a command where everyone is the best of the best, you know just how blessed you are when you get these premier postings.

God had blessed Joseph with success in everything he did and his seniors noticed.  God was with this young man. The Egyptians likely did not know the one true God, but they knew Joseph had some extra help. The force was strong in this one.

Joseph was in prison but it would be a launching pad for his greatest promotion ever.  That story is ahead of us, but for the moment let us consider these thoughts.

At any point along the way, Joseph could have thrown a pity party. He could have cried out, “It’s not fair!” Joseph might have thought that things were not fair, but he didn’t give in and throw a pity party.

He could have thrown in the towel and have just given up.

He had these two dreams but they didn’t come with instructions.  All they had brought him so far was the scorn of his brothers and maybe a little of his parents. They got him sold into slavery and now he was in prison.

Had God sent him a vision of Joseph going to Nashville to write and sing Country and Western music, he had the life experience for a couple of albums already. He might have seen the logic in all of this.

But being sold into slavery didn’t seem to fit his vision.

Rising to the top of Potiphar’s household might have given him some hope, but it only took one woman scorned to see that status taken away.

And now prison, really?

We have the advantage of knowing the whole story but in the moment, it must have been a roller coaster ride of great falls and great successes, one after another. Joseph surely had no idea what was next, but he never lost hope.

He never gave up.  He didn’t cry, “it’s not fair.”  He did his best and the Lord blessed him with success.

Moment-to-moment the best that Joseph could do was stay faithful to God and do his best.  God had big plans for Joseph but Joseph lived moment-to-moment.

Sometimes as we have ups and downs, goals help us get through the day.  I’m going to be an engineer, a football player, own my own business, or be the new drummer for Limp Biscuit.

Sometimes it helps to press on toward the goal.

Whatever it is, sometimes goals are enough to get you through the tough times, but the tough times continue even after you reach your goals.

Sometimes focus helps block out the negative.  We can’t stop the negative stuff in our lives, but we can purposely become myopic and accomplish what we set out to do.

We can hone in on one thing and get it done and done right, but the craziness in the world continues once we have hit our target. The world stands ready to come at us from all angles once again.

You have heard the old saying live one day at a time.  If you ever saw the movie 28 Days, the is one line by Sandra Bullock that hits the target.  Confronting her counselor, she says, “Like 2 or 3 days at a time is an option.”

It’s funny, but it hits home.  How many of us try to live in the past or the future or in something other than the moment.

We all live moment-to-moment. Living 2 or 3 days at a time is not really an option and when we try to live other than in the moment, it’s frustrating.

So, what can we do?  Are we condemned to suffer the emotional ups and downs of the rollercoaster ride that makes up our lives? Must we endure the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune?  The year is half over and I have to catch up on my Shakespearean analogies.

So, what can we do?  We remain faithful to God.  We trust in the Lord.  We acknowledge that he does have good plans for us, and we live moment-to-moment doing the best that we can.

We should expect the Lord to bless us with success.

We don’t hold a pity party when things bottom out.  We don’t discard our faith when we are riding high. We don’t dwell on the tough times and we don’t lose touch with God in the good times.

As we grow in God’s grace, we learn to accept that:

God is sovereign.

God is good.

God loves us.

God is love.

God has good plans for us.

God has chosen us for his purpose.

God has commissioned us to share the good news of life in Christ Jesus with the world.

We are God’s trusted servants.  Don’t worry, I will preach the Parable of the Talents twice this year. I think that will make it 15 years in a row, maybe 16.  We are God’s trusted servants.

The best thing that we ever did was become a servant—a slave—for the Lord. It’s all about him and because we belong to him, love him, and have been called by him, he takes everything that happens to us and makes it work for the good.

There is a term that many authors use that applies to our Christian faith as well.  That term is Grist for the mill. Everything that happens to an author ends up somewhere in his or her writing.  It may just be an experience that becomes one-tenth of one percent of a character's makeup, but it’s still grist for the mill.

Likewise, for the man or woman who has professed Jesus as Lord and has taken on his yoke, everything that happens to us is just grist for the mill.  It all goes into our story of how we live out God’s plan.

In our lowest moments when things seem hopeless, think, “It’s just grist for the mill.”  Somehow, God will use this experience for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose.

Don’t forget to praise the Lord when we are riding high.  Live the moment to the full, high or low, and give praise to the Lord and bring glory to his name.

The old catechism question was, “What is the purpose of humankind?” The answer was to bring glory to God and enjoy him very much.

We live moment-to-moment.  Living 2 or 3 days at a time is not an option. We should live in the moment, bring glory to God in every moment, and enjoy God very much in all of our moments regardless of where we are on the rollercoaster ride.

And just so I give the young folks something to Google later on, this ride of life that we are on is a EE ticket.

Live fully in the moment.

Bring glory to God in all of our moments.

Know that God will take all of those moments and use them for good in our lives.

Enjoy the ride.  Enjoy your relationship with God in every moment.

Amen.