Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Please, come near me,” and they came near. “I am Joseph, your brother,” he said, “the one you sold into Egypt. And now don’t be grieved or angry with yourselves for selling me here, because God sent me ahead of you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there will be five more years without plowing or harvesting. God sent me ahead of you to establish you as a remnant within the land and to keep you alive by a great deliverance. Therefore it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household, and ruler over all the land of Egypt. —Genesis 45:4-8
“What we do now echoes in eternity.” —Marcus Aurelius
Your actions hold eternal power and significance.
“Who can separate us from the love of Christ? Can affliction or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword…No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” —Romans 8:35, 37
“Please, come near me,” and they came near. “I am Joseph, your brother,” he said, “the one you sold into Egypt.” —Genesis 45:4
“And now don’t be grieved or angry with yourselves for selling me here, because God sent me ahead of you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there will be five more years without plowing or harvesting. God sent me ahead of you to establish you as a remnant within the land and to keep you alive by a great deliverance. Therefore it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household, and ruler over all the land of Egypt.” —Genesis 45:5-8
Joseph’s actions:
Joseph revealed his
Joseph extended
Joseph acknowledged the
Joseph was harmed but his people received
“Look, the days are coming — this is the declaration of the Lord God — when I will send a famine through the land: not a famine of bread or a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. People will stagger from sea to sea and roam from north to east seeking the word of the Lord, but they will not find it. In that day the beautiful young women, the young men also, will faint from thirst.” —Amos 8:11-13
Jesus’ actions:
Jesus announced his
Jesus extended
Jesus followed the
“Fellow Israelites, listen to these words: This Jesus of Nazareth was a man attested to you by God with miracles, wonders, and signs that God did among you through him, just as you yourselves know. Though he was delivered up according to God’s determined plan and foreknowledge, you used lawless people to nail him to a cross and kill him. God raised him up, ending the pains of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by death.” —Acts 2:22-24
Jesus was harmed but provided
The church continues the actions of Jesus.
We should
We should extend
We should
We should be willing to incur
“What we do now echoes in eternity.” —Marcus Aurelius
For further study:
Scripture: Genesis 42-45; Luke 15:11-32; 1 John 4:7-21
Resources: “Echoes of Scripture in the Gospels” by Richard B. Hays
Discussion questions:
How can you proclaim the name of Jesus?
How can forgiveness display God’s glory?
How do you sense God’s guidance for your life?
What would it mean to incur harm to lead others to salvation?
To prepare for next week: Jacob Comes to Egypt; Genesis 46:1-7