Joseph

 

Genesis 45:1-8 is the most tender passage in the whole Bible.  Just my opinion, mind you, but let me defend my claim.  Joseph’s brothers had done him evil.  How could they sell their own brother into slavery and then lie to their own father about it?!  But they did.  Joseph was only 17 years old when this terrible travesty unfolded.  But Joseph remained true to God.  Things got worse.  Joseph was faithful to his new master, but his master’s sleazy wife slandered Joseph, and Joseph was thrown into prison.  There he languished another two whole years … still faithful to God.  But when Pharoah had a dream and needed interpretation, Joseph was remembered and brought up.  God gave Joseph supernatural powers of interpretation, and Joseph was soon the second in command of the most powerful nation of the ancient world!  And when Joseph’s brothers came to Egypt to buy grain, they had no idea that it was Joseph who they were dealing with!  Joseph could have taken revenge, but he did not.  Joseph tested his repentant brothers finally revealing to them who he really was.  Joseph said in Genesis 45:5, “Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.”  And in verse 8 Joseph said, “So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God …”  Did you get that?!  It was not the brothers mistake that sent Joseph to Egypt; it was God’s divine hand!  Hey, when you come to the realization that God is behind every event in your life, you have just grown up in the Christian life!  Hey, things don’t just accidentally happen to you.  God is moving you around on His giant chess board making everything work out for His master scheme of things.  Paul said it best in Romans Rom 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”  And when you realize that, you are finally at one with the Almighty.  And what a wonderful place to be!