I mean hopefully you're discerning a little bit of a theme in the songs there this morning in both the hymns and that song as well about trials and tests and God's grace and care amidst it all and that certainly fits with the life of Joseph, doesn't it? And I usually ask to be turned up but for once I'm going to ask to be turned down just a little bit and not too much, not too much. and I want to make sure God's people are awake this morning and thank the Lord today for... I thought it was... I thought it was 37, and the most wonderful discovery about my birthday today is I'm actually 36, not 37. What a relief! I've got another four years until I get to Seth's stage. And the wonderful thing, as many privileges as a pastor, one privilege is being able to preach on my birthday, and I do count that a privilege. And the wonderful thing about preaching on my birthday is that I can preach for as long as I like, and none of you can complain. so get ready for an hour and a half this morning. No, we'll endeavor to be led of the Lord and we'll just finish when the Lord wants us to. But Genesis chapter 37 and we commenced our study of the life of Joseph last week and we are in the series through the book of Genesis at the moment and studying now these passages that relate to the life of one of the most significant characters in all of the Bible. It's amazing how much of the book of Genesis is dedicated to the life of this man Joseph. Genesis 37 and reading from verse 12 down to verse 36, the Bible reads, And his brethren went to feed their father's flock in Shechem. And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed the flock in Shechem? Come, and I will send thee unto them. And he said to him, Here am I. he said to him go I pray thee see whether it be well with thy brethren and well with the flocks and bring me word again. So he sent him out of the vale or valley of Hebron and he came to Shechem and a certain man found him and behold he was wandering in the field and the man asked him saying what seekest thou and he said I seek my brethren tell me I pray thee where they feed their flocks And the man said, They are departed hence, for I heard them say, Let us go to Dothan. And Joseph went after his brethren and found them in Dothan. And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him. And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh. Come now, therefore, and let us slay him and cast him into some pit. And we will say, Some evil beast hath devoured him. And we shall see what will become of his dreams. Reuben heard it and he delivered him out of their hands and said let us not kill him and Reuben said unto them shed no blood but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness lay no hand upon him that he might rid him out of their hands to deliver him to his father again. came to pass when Joseph was come under his brethren that they stripped Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colors that was on him. And they took him and cast him into a pit and the pit was empty there was no water in it. They sat down to eat bread and they lifted up their eyes and looked and behold a company of Ishmaelites came from Gilead with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh going to carry it down to Egypt. And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother and conceal his blood? Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother, and our flesh, and his brethren were content. And there passed by Midianites, merchantmen, and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver, and they brought Joseph into Egypt. And Reuben returned under the pit, and behold, Joseph was not in the pit, and he rent his clothes. And he returned unto his brethren and said, The child is not, and I, whither shall I go? they took Joseph's coat and killed a kid of the goats and dipped the coat in the blood and they sent the coat of many colors and they brought it to their father and said this have we found no now whether it be thy son's coat or no that's incredibly cruel. And he knew it, and said, It is my son's coat, an evil beast hath devoured him. Joseph is without rent in pieces. And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days. And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. And he said, For I will go down into the grave under my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him. And the Midianites sold him into Egypt under Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh's and captain of the guard. title of my message this morning or the message is, Joseph's Dreams Get Shattered. Joseph's Dreams Get Shattered. Let's pray. Father we thank you for your goodness to us this morning, we thank you for the eternal Word of God that is before us today and we know that every Word of God is pure, every Word of God is here for our edification and for our admonition and for our learning. So we pray now for the help of the Holy Spirit, the one who authored these words, the one who moved holy men of God of old, in this case moved the heart of Moses, to pen this account of the life of Joseph. We pray now that you would breathe your life and your blessing, Lord, into this study together, that we might learn all that you'd have us to learn, that we might know the gentle touch of your Spirit in each heart, Lord, applying the message to every need and to every burden this morning we pray, we pray especially for those going through trials, those who may feel betrayed at the hands of those closest to them as Joseph was, may they see our Lord you as their saviour and as their hope this morning and look to you to bring good out of evil, we pray in Jesus name, Amen. Really, the section before us opens up the first major chapter in Joseph's life. Up until this point, at the age of 17, Joseph has been the favourite son of his father. Joseph has enjoyed that princely status, holding the position of firstborn in the home. But what is about to unfold looks more like a nightmare than the wonderful happy dreams Joseph had been having from the human standpoint. Joseph is about to have his life catapulted into a series of events and a terrible series of trials at the hands of his embittered brothers. A trial that from the human standpoint appeared to do away with all of the dreams that God had given him and yet over all of this was the hand of God moving, the heart of God planning. And that is certainly the grand theme of the life of Joseph, ye meant it unto evil, but God meant it unto good. If there's one thing we can learn about from the life of Joseph, it is the truth of the providential ruling of God, the providence of God. What is the providence of God? Well, one author defined it this way, providence is that work of God in which he preserves all his creatures, is active in all that happens in the world and directs all things to their appointed end. we are not saying that what happened to Joseph was good, what we are saying is only God can bring good out of such an evil situation. Only God has the power to overrule the evil things that sometimes happen in your life, things that are not right, things that should not have happened. Only God has the power and only God has the ability to bring any sort of good out of that kind of situation. so this morning we're going to walk through this story together as Joseph goes from these lofty dreams down to the pit of suffering as it were and I'm going to divide the account up into five sections for our study. Firstly this morning I'd like you to consider the context of Joseph's betrayal. The context of Joseph's betrayal and we see that in verses 12 through to 17. The Bible paints the occasion and the scene for this momentous event that is about to happen in Joseph's life. And there are three points to this setting that we need to consider. Consider firstly, the family's division. And we've studied that in our last lesson, that there was tremendous friction and division in this home. You remember, Joseph was the favorite son of Jacob. And because of that, there was friction in the home. And twice the Bible tells us that his brothers hated him. They hated him because of his favoured position and then when Joseph began to share the dreams that God had given him, they hated him even more because of those dreams and not only did they hate him, but the Bible tells us that they envied him. And where you have hatred and envy in the heart, you have a deadly combination. A very deadly combination that can bring about terrible fruit, as we're going to see in this passage. So let's just remember that as we go into this story, this account, and see what these brothers did to Joseph, keep that in mind, those things we studied in the last message. But the second part of this context here is the brothers' departure and for whatever reason the brothers of Joseph travel up to Shechem and we've been to Shechem before, haven't we? Remember the Dinah disaster that took place at Shechem and I wonder why these brothers would be so happy to go back to the scene of such a terrible failure I think at this time in their lives we see brothers, these brothers are unrepentant, they're hardened men, they're really not walking with God and God is going to deal with them through the whole Joseph story, that's part of what God is doing. These men, these 12 brothers, with the exception of Joseph, were not ready to become the heads of the 12 tribes of Israel and don't miss that, God is going to do a work in each of those hardened boys as well. But at this stage, they're quite happy to go back up to Shechem. Shechem was about, I think it's 80 kilometers north of Hebron where they were, so quite a journey back up to Shechem. And the Bible says they went there to feed their flocks, so maybe they just wanted to go there to find extra pasture. Maybe they had had enough of Joseph. I just think it's an interesting idea. Here they are, they're so hateful towards Joseph and so envious towards Joseph and they just take off and go up to Shechem. Whether that was the motivation or not, the Bible doesn't tell us. But it's so characteristic of human nature, isn't it, to run from the scene of the problem rather than face the problem and deal with it as God would have you. There's a third point that we need to consider as we set the scene here, the context, the Father's directive, number three. so Jacob now sends Joseph to go and see his brethren. Look at verse 13 there, And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed the flock in Shechem? Come, and I will send thee unto them. And he said to him, Here am I. gives you a little bit of an indicator of Joseph, the kind of man Joseph was. There's a readiness to obey the Father there, here am I, he's ready, he's willing and I just thought about that as I was studying this, wouldn't that be a good attitude for us to have to the Heavenly Father? When the Heavenly Father calls upon us to serve him, would it not be a wonderful thing if our heart response was, here am I, Lord. And so Joseph was sent of his father to go and to check on his brothers. Jacob was concerned about the well-being of his sons and the well-being of his flocks and that was a valid concern considering what had happened at Shechem previously. And so Joseph departs that day upon his father's instruction And he leaves the valley of Hebron, you get a bit of a picture there, they're in a valley, they're camped in a valley. Can you see Joseph and his father that day? Jacob is going to send him to his brethren and perhaps they say their goodbyes, no doubt Jacob leaning upon his staff watched his favourite son as he walked out of the valley and disappeared into the distance. little did Jacob and Joseph know that it would be over 22 years until they saw each other again. And so Joseph, in obedience to his father, goes up to Shechem and he can't find his brothers there, he begins to look around and he can't see them and a man comes and finds Joseph wandering in the field and says what are you looking for and Joseph says I'm trying to find my brothers and he said well I heard them say that they were going on to Dothan. Dothan was a further 15 miles or 24 kilometers further north from Shechem. the name Dothan means two cisterns. So perhaps the brothers moved up to Dothan in order to access water in those cisterns. Interestingly Joseph is thrown into an empty cistern so perhaps one of those two cisterns at Dothan was empty at the time when he was thrown in by his brothers. Dothan was also on a major trade route to Egypt and this would also be part of God's providence in his workings there because they would see the Ishmaelite tradesmen passing them and Joseph would be sold into Egypt as we know this story goes. So Joseph goes on to Dothan and he sees his brothers in the distance little did he know what was in store for him as he made his way towards his brothers. He was going to find himself swept up in a chain of events that would culminate in him being sold as a slave in Egypt and ultimately becoming second ruler of Egypt and Egypt was the most powerful nation in the known world at that time. And so there's the context, there's the picture that we get, the scene is set for what is about to unfold. second heading, the conspiracy in Joseph's betrayal, verse 18 to 22. And when they, that is Joseph's brothers, saw him afar off, verse 18, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him. they said one to another behold this dreamer cometh come now therefore let us slay him and cast him into some pit and we will say some evil beast hath devoured him and we shall see what will become of his dreams. Notice the plot there to murder Joseph. Look at the hostility, just the sight of Joseph in the distance began to stir up those feelings of animosity and that hatred that was lurking in the heart of those brothers and the bitterness and the envy and they could see Joseph coming from a mile away because he had his coat of many colors on and it just annoyed them afresh about his position as the firstborn in the home and the favoritism of the father. and all the jealousy and anger in their hearts begins to boil up again. And you've got to see that, that that is what drives these brothers to mistreat their own flesh and blood, their brother Joseph, in such a terrible way. Let's just remind ourselves this morning of the danger of bitterness. of the danger of hatred, of the danger of an unforgiving spirit, of the danger of envy and jealousy in the heart. You say, I would never go as far as Joseph's brothers. Never say never. Never say you would never do something like this. You have no idea just how far the poison of hatred, the poison of bitterness, the poison of envy can take you in your life. These things happen to Christians. Christians get full of anger and full of hatred towards other people or perhaps just seething with envy and jealousy over somebody else's success or somebody else's position or somebody else's situation in life. You know a real test of Christian character is if you can see someone else succeed and genuinely rejoice for them. That's a real test of where you're at in the Christian life. You want to test whether you have a jealous heart or a heart inclined to jealousy? Just look at someone whom God is blessing. See someone succeed in some way. Someone gets a job promotion. Someone gets married. God provides for someone. How do you handle that? Can you rejoice with that or do you have a jealous heart? You see, hatred is the attitude of murder. And that is why 1 John 3 15 warns, whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer. Hatred is the attitude of murder. And I just want you to see again, the potential of what a bitter heart can do. That is what was behind these brothers' actions in relation to Joseph. You know, only God's grace can make bitter hearts sweet. The only place for a bitter heart is at the foot of a blood-stained cross. Could I encourage you this morning, if you are in that situation and you have hatred in your heart towards somebody, maybe even someone who has wronged you, maybe even someone who has done the wrong thing by you, hatred is not the answer, the answer is for you to come to the foot of a blood-stained cross where the Savior Jesus Christ took all the bitterness of your sin and my sin in his body on the tree there and let God's grace flow down into you and let God's grace heal your bitter heart. Now, what I find interesting here, and I want you to notice this, I find it interesting that it was particularly the dreams God had given Joseph that were the focus of these brothers' attack against Joseph. Now, what were these dreams? Well, they were God's revelations to Joseph. Remember, at this time in biblical history, God would at times communicate with key people in the nation of Israel, like Joseph, through dreams. That is not God's primary method today because we have the completed revelation of the Word of God. We don't look for dreams, we look into the Book of God. But understand, at that time in biblical history, that was how God would sometimes communicate his truth and his will and his word to his people. And so Joseph had received divine revelation from God, that God had a special purpose and a special plan for his life. And what did the brothers say? Oh, this dreamer cometh. See the mockery there. Here's what we're going to do. We're going to get involved and we're going to put an end to his dreams. The problem was they failed to recognize these were not Joseph's ideas, this was the divine revealed will of God for Joseph. And instead of accepting God's will for Joseph, they were determined to shatter those dreams, to destroy those dreams. Do you ever find in the Christian life that you sometimes come up against some opposition with family members? Maybe unsafe family members or carnal family members? Look at the principle here, the main issue these brothers had with Joseph was not so much with him, but with God's truth in his life. The presence of the truth, because that's what these dreams were, they were God's revelation to Joseph, they represented divine truth. The presence of God in Joseph's life, Joseph's godliness, and the fact that God had revealed the truth to Joseph, that's what really irked these brothers, and that was the focus of their bitter attack, we'll see what becomes of his dreams. And let me remind you this morning that if you have an experience like that in your life, where you come up against this kind of mockery and this kind of opposition, just remember the main opposition you're facing is because of Christ in your life. That's the reason you're getting that opposition from that family member. It's because of the truth. It's because of the presence of Christ in your life. It's not first and foremost about you, it's about the truth and what you stand for. amazing, isn't it, how you can be on the right side, by the grace of God, of the truth and get into a lot of trouble... a lot of trouble for it. Well, for Joseph it was no different. And godly family members can still get incensed, I've written here, by the presence of the truth in the lives of saved relatives in our day. Remember, their opposition is ultimately to God and His Word in your life. So they come up with this conspiracy. Initially they discuss how they could commit the murder and then cover up the murder, they were literally contemplating killing Joseph. Children, there's a little lesson here isn't there? the kind of hatred that can exist between siblings and the kind of friction and the kind of terrible poison that can exist in the heart of children, one towards another, you better make sure you keep your heart sweet towards your siblings and watch out for this. So we have the plot to murder Joseph, that was their intention. Well, then we have secondly, the proposal to manhandle Joseph, verse 21 to 22. And here we have Reuben step in, and Reuben heard it and he delivered him out of their hands and said, let us not kill him. And Reuben said unto them, shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness and lay no hand upon him, that he might rid him out of their hands to deliver him to his father again. Now I think we could observe two things about Reuben's proposal. Firstly, there was some compassion in this proposal and it does say something of Reuben as the eldest in the home that he had some tenderness towards Joseph as his younger brother and thank God he stepped in and said you're not going to kill him. Now ultimately, can you see that we're talking about the providence of God, the sovereignty of God, God was not going to allow those brothers to kill Joseph. When God has planned something, man can't stop it. God is not going to allow that plan to be stopped, though it can seem like it's going to be stopped at times. So, I think we can give a little bit of credit to Reuben there, but I think you'll also notice the compromise of this proposal. by that I mean Reuben's proposal did not represent a strong stand for what was right, it was a compromised position. So the idea of killing Joseph was terrible and he just offered a solution that was still bad but just a little... not quite as bad. What Reuben should have done is come right out strongly against his brother and said, you're not going to lay a finger on our brother, we are going to send him back to his father. Whether we agree with everything that Jacob, our father, is doing in his older age is not the point. We are not going to right a wrong by doing wrongs ourselves. And what you see in Reuben is this problem that Jacob would point out later in life, that he was unstable as water. there was an instability in Reuben, an unwillingness to take a very strong stand on the side of truth and right and that was because of compromise in Reuben's own life. Reuben had violated one of Jacob's wives, his stepmother, and because of that, Reuben did not have a clear conscience. Because of the compromise in his own life, he was unwilling to take a strong stand for truth and right. There's a warning there to you and I, if we compromise in our lives, it will lead to a lack of courage in the face of challenges like this. Did you understand that? If you are entertaining compromise in your life, when confronted with a situation where you need to take a stand for truth and right, you're not going to. Why? Because there's weakness in your life on account of the compromise and you don't have a clear conscience. You've got to have a clear conscience before God in order to be able to take a strong stand for what's right. May I encourage you, maybe like Reuben, you've had some failures in your history. If those failures have been repented of, if those failures are under the blood of Christ, then that should not stop you from taking a stand on the exact same issue in the present. You say, but I failed God back there, how could I take a stand in this situation when I failed him back there? Well, is it under the blood? If it's under the blood of Christ, then with a clear conscience, you can take a stand in that situation for what's right, and you must. But this is the instability we see in Reuben. Reuben goes on to support the lie to their father about what had happened to Joseph, so he was unstable as water. But God did use him in this instance to stop these boys from killing Joseph. Number three, observe now what I would call the cruelty of Joseph's betrayal. verse 23 to 30. Can you see the scene? Joseph set out that day, or maybe it took him several days to get there, probably it would have, but that day he sets out for Dothan with simplicity of heart, springing his step, beloved son of his elderly father, wearing proudly that coat of many colours symbolising his princely position in the home. And he sees his brothers in the distance and he's coming to fulfil his father's command Can you see the innocency of Joseph there? Having no idea what these brothers are planning for him. As he walks towards them, he's just got no idea what is about to hit his life. It's kind of like that with trials, isn't it, sometimes? You're just going along by the grace of God and then all of a sudden, out of the blue, bang, you get hit with a trial. Bang, you get hit with a terrible circumstance in your life. Can you imagine Joseph as he comes up to his brothers there? Can you see the pained expression on his face? Can you see the shock that comes over him as his brothers lay hold of him and strip him of his coat there? Can you see the tears in Joseph's eyes? Brothers, what are you doing to me? Please don't hurt me. And can you see those brothers hardening their hearts towards their brother and roughly handling him and taking him there and throwing him down into the pit? Can you imagine at that moment what it must have been like for Joseph? I think sometimes because we have the benefit of reading the full story, we lose some of the emotional impact of what it must have been like for Joseph at that time. Joseph did not know how this story was going to end at that point in time. Imagine yourself down in the pit with Joseph right now, can you see any good in this? Can you see any hope in this situation if you're Joseph? Joseph was made of flesh and blood like you and I. I don't get the idea that he was like, oh, well, this is all part of God's plan, this is going to work out for me. No, later on the brothers acknowledged that they saw the anguish of his heart and they turned a deaf ear to the pleading of his lips there. When they came into Egypt later and God begins to deal with those brothers through Joseph, using Joseph as an instrument there, they didn't know or recognize Joseph as their brother. And when Joseph has them rounded up there, they say, and he overhears them and they don't realize he understands Hebrew because he would speak to them through an interpreter, and they say, we are verily guilty concerning our brother because we saw the anguish of his soul when he besought us and we would not hear. takes us right back. The brothers remembered Joseph's response. They saw the anguish of his heart, they saw the distress. Joseph was full of anguish and agony at this time. Don't get the impression here that Joseph was just like, oh well this is all great, God's going to turn all this in out for good. Now praise God in the process of time with the grace of God, Joseph was able to see God bringing good out of evil but put yourself in Joseph's shoes at this time and you're down in the pit. Can you imagine what Joseph must have felt like? It's one thing, isn't it, to suffer hurt at the hands of someone who's distant from you, but when you suffer hurt at the hands of someone who's close to you, that's another ballgame, isn't it? These were his brothers. And I think as you read that study, The Life of Joseph, I believe he loved his brothers. With their faults, Joseph loved these brothers as any younger brother normally would. And here he is, betrayed by those closest to him. the cruelty of Joseph's betrayal. Firstly, Joseph was stripped of his coat. This action represented two things, the humiliation of Joseph, to be stripped of one's outer clothing in that day of upright modesty would have been very humiliating for Joseph. And then this stripping of his coat also represented the rejection of Joseph. Remember, Joseph's coat was not just a symbol of the fact that he was the beloved of his father, it symbolized his princely position the fact that he occupied the position of firstborn in the family and what these brothers were making very clear was that they rejected that entirely, you will not reign over us, you will not be in charge of us, they were rejecting Joseph. Joseph was stripped of his coat, Joseph was slung into the pit And these brothers hardened their hearts and ignored Joseph's heartbroken anguish. Genesis 42 and verses 21 to 22 refers to this, that we saw the anguish of his soul. The anguish of his soul. As Rome writer says, when in the utmost agony and trembling limbs and quivering lips and floods of tears as they stripped him of his coat, he most earnestly and importunately requested of them that they would not put him into the pit and leave him there. And in the same manner entreated them that they would not put him into the hands of strangers, but restore him alive to his father. But they turned a deaf ear to all his cries and entreaties and hardened themselves against him. When Joseph was in that pit, it looked like all his dreams were over. It looked like God's plan for his life would not come through after all, from the human standpoint. Do you feel that way this morning in some way? Maybe you have suffered at the hands of someone closest to you. You feel betrayed. And you think, this is the end. You're in the pit of despair. There is no going forward from here. My Christian life's over. My life is a mess. My life is ruined from this point because of the actions of someone else that I love. Could I encourage you this morning, God is not finished with you. And though they may have meant it unto you for evil, God in his power and God in his grace, if you'll respond right, can turn it around for good. They ignored Joseph's heartbroken anguish. They ignored his heartfelt pleadings. He besought them. His brothers recognized that later on. He besought them. The word means to beseech, to beg and to entreat earnestly. So it gives you a picture of what's happening here. They're getting a hold of Joseph and he's saying, please, please don't do this to me. Please, please don't treat me this way. And yet they harden their hearts against him in their hatred and in their bitterness. Throw him down into the pit. the cruelty of this betrayal. Joseph was stripped of his coat, slung into the pit, sold into slavery. I kind of imagine Joseph sitting down there in that pit. How long he was there for, I don't know, but the brothers sat down to have their lunch to eat. I don't know if it was lunch, what meal of the day, but they sat down to eat and harden their hearts while he called them out of that pit, crying, screaming, begging. It's terrible what bitterness can do and how hard it can make you. It's shocking. You say, oh that's just terrible. That's what bitterness can do to you. It can make you that hard and that cruel. But imagine Joseph sitting down there. He's probably weeping. He knew what these brothers were capable of and it may have been they were planning to just leave him there to die. Because you get a sense that they're discussing Joseph over their meal and it was still on the cards that they might just kill him. Because Judas says, listen, rather than killing him, let's just sell him to these Ishmaelites. We'll sell him to the cousins over here. The Ishmaelites were cousins of the children of Jacob. Watch out for your family members. No, seriously, sometimes the family members are the ones that inflict the most pain on you as a godly Christian. That happens. They sold him to his distant relatives, Ishmaelites, they were quite happy to make a buck out of their Joseph's misfortune. But imagine Joseph's down there in the pit, he can't, clearly he can't get out by himself. those cisterns had very, as I understand it, fairly narrow tunnel-like openings that went down into the cistern and there was no way he could get out of there. But imagine maybe there was a glimmer of hope, finally he hears some rustling at the top of that cistern. perhaps sees the faces of some of his brothers looking down because the Bible says that they drew Joseph up out of the pit there and perhaps at that point Joseph thought maybe they're going to listen to me, maybe they're going to let me go back home to my father as the rope comes down and a glimmer of hope maybe enters Joseph's heart as his brothers begin pulling him out of the pit he thinks maybe this is over, maybe they're going to let me go home now, maybe they're going to hear my cries and they're going to take notice of my tears. But imagine his shock and his horror as they pull him out of the pit and then drag him over to these Ishmaelite traders and in front of Joseph exchange him for 20 pieces of silver. That's a hurtful experience. That's a very bitter experience. And one of the greatest miracles of the life of Joseph was that he did not become the most bitter man on the earth at that time. If anyone had an excuse to be bitter, if anyone had an excuse to go down to resentment and malice and anger of heart, it would have been Joseph. Look at the bitterness of what he experienced, not at the hands of strangers he did not know, but at the hands of his own brothers and yet somehow, throughout this story, God by his grace was able to keep Joseph from being bitter to where at the end of his life he could say, ye meant it unto evil, but God meant it unto good. maybe you're here this morning and you're going through some bitter experiences at the hands of those that are supposed to be the ones to love you. Maybe you're going through some bitter pain and some hurt because people who are close to you in your life are just hurting you. If that's you, please let me encourage you, bitterness is not the answer. Hatred is not the answer to that. The grace of God is and that doesn't mean that what these brothers did was right. We're not talking about justifying the evil that's done. We're just saying God's way is to make you better, not bitter. So they sell him for 20 pieces of silver. For 10 brothers, that would allow for two pieces of silver each, that's what I would call dirty money. What low levels people will go for, for a bit of cash, hey? There's always money in it somewhere, isn't there? Seems to be, eventually. Now, for some reason, Reuben was absent as his brothers sold Joseph. He came back. Where he had gone, we don't know, but he returns on the scene probably a few minutes after it had happened or maybe just within a short time frame. It's kind of symbolic, isn't it, of history and how some of the most momentous occasions and the momentous things in history are determined by just a few minutes. Reuben was coming back to get Joseph out of the pit, his intention was to return him to his father but it was too late when he arrived and ultimately God's hand was in this, God was going to send Joseph into Egypt. Now as you study the life of Joseph you will see time and time again a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ. Joseph pictures Jesus, Jesus Christ the Lord. And as you study this account, I think you will notice some parallels here and how Joseph pictures Jesus, Jesus Christ the Lord. I want us to pause for a moment and think about how Joseph symbolizes the Saviour here. Think of it, Joseph was the beloved son of his father and Christ is the only begotten, beloved, eternal son of God the Father. Joseph was commissioned of his father to go and seek the welfare of his wayward sinful brothers and Christ was sent by the father into this wicked world to save undeserving sinners. Joseph came to his brethren and his brethren received him not. They rejected him and in like manner Jesus Christ came unto his own and his own received him not. He was despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. We have here the rejected prince. Joseph was stripped of his princely robe by wicked hands and Christ was stripped of his seamless robe, scourged, spat upon, humiliated and shamed. Joseph was sold into slavery for 20 pieces of silver at the suggestion of Judah and Christ was betrayed by his disciple named Judah. You say Judas, Judas is the Greek equivalent of Judah. It's exactly the same name. It's the equivalent of the Hebrew name for 30 pieces of silver. Both were betrayed by one named Judah and both were sold for the price of a common slave. Joseph suffered anguish and agony at the hands of his wicked brothers and think of all the agonies of the crucifixion as Christ went through and suffered for the sins of the world. Consider his agony in the garden as he stood under the shadow of the cross and was faced with the reality of being made a sin for us who knew no sin. Consider the agony of his physical sufferings, how he was bruised, beaten and nailed to the cross, as Isaiah 53 5 says, but he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we are healed. Consider our Lord's anguish of soul as he cried, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Yes, Joseph so beautifully pictures Jesus Christ. He's available to be your Saviour. He went through the agonies of the cross, the bitterness of the cross, the bitter nails in His hands, the bitter nails in His feet, the bitter whips upon His back. He went through the agonies of the cross, all the anguish and the sorrow. Isaiah 53 says that He is a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. You say, why? Because He loved you. Because He wanted to save you from your sin and give you eternal life. He bore all the bitterness of your sin and the bitterness of the cross. He took upon Himself our sins and our sorrows. He was buried and rose again that we might receive eternal life. And so the cruelty of Joseph's betrayal Fourthly, look at the cover-up of Joseph's betrayal, verse 31 to 35. And they sent the coat of many colors and they brought it to their father and he said, Look at the deceitfulness of their plan. Instead of being willing to tell their father the plain cold facts of what had happened, they plan a cover-up for what they had done. I think you'll agree with me, deception runs thick in this family. True. You know there are certain sinful traits that run in families? Not our family, guarantee you your family. And I'm not saying that my family is better than your family because we're all sinners, right? But it just seems to be a feature of human nature, some families are just expert liars, some are expert thieves, Some are expert gossips. It's just their ministry. They can't help themselves. And it just goes on. And how we need the grace of God, can't you see? How we need the grace of God that we don't just follow the bent of our human nature. We all have that sinful bent. We all have those sinful tendencies. And we need salvation firstly, so that we have then the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. And then how we need the power of God and the grace of God, lest we just follow the family bent. so they slay a baby goat, a kid, and dip Joseph's coat of many colours in the blood and bring it to the father. They were more interested in cover-up than confession and confession of sin is God's way, not covering up sin. Maybe you fall more in the category of Joseph's brothers in some way. You have been the one inflicting hurt on others. You have been a bitter individual. You have wronged others. Cover-up's not the answer, confession's the answer. Come clean with God. Come clean with those you've wronged and make it right. It's also a reminder, isn't it, the bullies are really actually, are actually cowards. These guys, these boys were bullies. And a bully doesn't have real courage. They're happy to abuse someone who's vulnerable and take advantage of someone who's vulnerable when they're out of the, out of the earshot and the eyesight of someone who could pull them into account. But they don't have the courage to face what they've done honestly. deceitfulness of their plan, then consider the heartlessness of their plan. And I think you'll agree with me, not only had their bitterness and envy made their hearts cold and hard towards their brother Joseph, it had also made their hearts hard towards their father. And I'm going to be honest with you, as I've meditated on this passage over the last couple of weeks and thought about what happened here, it has brought tears to my eyes on more than one occasion. These hardened brothers watched their aged father cry his eyes out for day after day after day after day all the while they could have just told him the truth! That is so cruel! you what, what some adult children do to their parents, there's a lot of talk today about what parents do to their kids and if there's parents that do evil things, we're not condoning that but I tell you what, there are some terrible things that adult children put their parents through today. The hardness of that sin had brought about in their hearts, that they could watch their dad cry and cry and cry, for day after day after day tells you how cruel the heart can become when it's hardened by bitterness. Jacob felt like this grief was going to kill him. And I love how some commentators and preachers get all piousy and say, Jacob didn't have a very surrendered spiritual response. Well, you try and respond right in that situation, see how you go. There wasn't a lot of faith in Joseph, Jacob's response. He's just lost the beloved son of his life! As far as Jacob was concerned, he thought Joseph was dead! Are you going to cry when you, if you had a precious son or daughter die, you think you're just going to say, I'm just a man of faith, I'm not going to cry? It's easy to talk very spiritually, isn't it, when you're not in the trial yourself? But by the way, bear that in mind, someone comes and their heart's broken over a trial and you say something pious, it's easy for you, I know how you feel. Actually, if you haven't been through it, you don't know how it feels! I stopped saying that, I learned to stop saying that, catch myself. If you haven't been through that trial, you actually don't know exactly how that person feels. You could say, I empathize with you, I can imagine it must be terrible. Sometimes when someone's brokenhearted, they just want you to listen, don't give them pious advice and maybe they don't even need you to quote 10 Bible verses at them. You say, that doesn't sound very spiritual. I'm just saying, when people are grieving and they've gone through a heartbreak, sometimes they just need someone to comfort them. And yes, you might share a word of scripture as a word of comfort, but don't be all pious and all spiritual. It's easy to do that when you're not in the trials, is what I'm saying. But then when you get into a trial, you find out you're not as spiritual as you thought you were either. No, seriously, I'm not trying to be unkind. You wait till you're in a trial and then you might find out that you're also made of clay. You're also weak. So I kind of empathize with Jacob there. But watch out for what bitterness can do to you. I'm sure if those brothers had come clean and said, Dad, Joseph is actually alive, we did the wrong things, we're sorry, made it right. That would have alleviated some of that suffering, at least knowing Joseph's alive, I can pray for him, Lord keep him. I don't know whether Jacob, knowing the character of his sons, maybe had a little bit of a question mark about this because later in life he says, me, have ye bereaved of my children? Joseph is not, and now you want to take Benjamin. I just wonder whether he was suspicious as time went on, whether he hadn't been given the full story. Just a suggestion. The cover-up of Joseph's betrayal. But fifthly, I think this is important and probably the most important part of the message in some ways, the control over Joseph's trial. I want you to focus for a moment upon what I mentioned at the start of the message and have mentioned a couple of times throughout, the providential workings of God. Because you see a hint of that in verse 36, in fact you see it in a number of ways. throughout this account. But in verse 36 it says, "...and the Midianites sold him into Egypt under Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard." You can't but see God's hand of guidance and direction here. Out of all the people Joseph could have been sold to in Egypt, he was sold to Potiphar and as we know that was going to become a huge part of the Joseph story. someone said this, I thought this was very good, Genesis 50 20 is like the Romans 8 28 statement for Joseph's life. You're familiar with Romans 8 28? Joseph didn't know that verse at that time in biblical history 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 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 and on those glorious verses go there But Genesis 50 20 is like the Romans 8 28 statement for the life of Joseph. And these were Joseph's own words. But as for you, ye thought evil against me, but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass as it is this day, to save much people alive. Bear this in mind. When God is working in your trial, yes, he's working for your benefit. but his purposes are way grander than just you. God sent Joseph to Egypt to save much people alive. Joseph was going to become the living link between the nation, really between potential extinction of the children of Abraham and their multiplication and their deliverance. Listen to Psalm 105 verse 16 to 19, "...moreover he called for a famine upon the land, he break the whole staff of bread. He," this is God, "...he sent a man before them, even Joseph." Who sent Joseph to Egypt? God sent him there. "...who was sold for a servant whose feet they hurt with fetters." It hurt him. "...he was laid in iron. Until the time that his word came, the word of the Lord tried him." Ultimately, God was using this trial to send Joseph into Egypt. And Joseph was able to discern that later in life. You didn't send me here, but God. God sent me here. You say, I didn't ask for this trial. Let God send you in the direction he wants for you in that trial. Let God's purposes be accomplished in your life through that trial. Don't let the devil's purposes get accomplished in your life through that trial. So God's providential ruling is seen in this event in at least two ways. Firstly, the protection of Joseph from murder. God overruled there and God used both Reuben and Judah and their suggestions to spare Joseph from being killed. And don't get the idea that Joseph's brothers were trying to be a part of helping fulfill God's purposes in Joseph's life here. What we'll do is we'll throw him into this pit, we'll sell him into Egypt and God's going to work all this out for good. Is that what the brothers' attitude was? No, as far as the brothers were concerned, this was going to end Joseph's dreams. It's all over for Joseph. As far as they were concerned, he would go off and disappear into the sands of Egypt, he'd probably die at the hands of cruel taskmasters knowing how slaves were treated in those days. That would be the end, they'd never see Joseph again. And that was their purpose. Don't you love how when the purposes of evil men go this way, God in his purposes can just accomplish the complete opposite? That's God! That's the power of God. Only God can do that. Only God can take an evil situation, a heartbreaking situation, a bitter experience, and bring any sort of good out of that. Only God can do that. that's why you need to know God and have Him in your life as your Saviour. The world doesn't know this or experience this. Imagine you're just faced with the pit of bitterness without the grace of God to help you. I know, these brothers thought they were ending Joseph's dreams and yet they would find out that you can't overrule the Almighty. You can't reverse God's plan. You say, but I thought God had a plan for my life and now this person's ruined it. Listen, if God has a plan for your life, no demon in hell can stop that plan from coming to fruition. It's probably just going to come about in a way you didn't think of. I'm not talking about where we go into sin maybe and we have to bear some consequences because of our own foolishness, but even if you have gone into sin, even if you have failed God, if you repent and come back to God, God can take the pieces of your life. God can take the shattered pieces of your dreams and still make something out of you. Isn't that amazing? And in all of this, please don't get the impression we're justifying sin. I'll just go out into sin and then God's grace can be abundant. No, Paul deals with that in Romans 6. Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid. Sin is never God's way. Sin is never God's option. But in a fallen world where sin does occur, God in His grace and in His power is able to take our broken lives and use us and mend us and do something with us. That's the genius of God. God is able to make even the wrath of man to praise Him. Psalm 76 verse 10. So God was going to overrule these brothers' plans and even use their evil actions as threads to weave the tapestry of Joseph's life. So God's providential ruling can be seen in so many ways here. His protection of Joseph from murder, the placement of Joseph in Egypt, God's hand ensuring that out of all the people Joseph could have been sold to, he was sold to Potiphar, a high-ranking officer of Pharaoh. Alexander McLaren says of this account, it is a miserable story of ignoble jealousy and cruel hate and yet over all this foaming torrent, God's steadfast bow of grace shines. These crimes and the affliction of Joseph were the direct path to the fulfillment of his purposes. Griffith Thomas adds the grace of God is seen in this chapter in the way in which sin is defeated and the divine purposes accomplished. He says, But good can be brought about in spite of evil. And so it came to pass that the very steps Joseph's brethren took to defeat God's purposes were used to fulfill those dreams. It's kind of like the cross, isn't it? The world and the devil thought that the Son of God was defeated the day he hung on the cross. From the human standpoint, it looked like all of God's promises were over. For the disciples, it seemed like all their dreams had vanished. And yet, in the wisdom of God, the very act of the Son of God hanging upon the cross would bring about the defeat of the devil. as he hung and bled and died. From the world's perspective Jesus Christ was finished and yet through that very crucifixion a death blow was dealt to the devil and his kingdom. Are you struggling to accept a trial that God has allowed in your life this morning? Maybe it's a trial inflicted on you by the hands of others It's really going to come down to this, whether you're going to submit to God and allow God to use that trial to make you better. Because if you don't submit to the grace of God, it's going to make you bitter. How many of you have heard the story of Corrie ten Boom? Corrie ten Boom was a Dutch lady whose family risked their lives during the Second World War to provide a hiding place in their home for persecuted Jews. Someone betrayed them and as a result her watchmaker father was sent to a concentration camp where he died ten days later. Corrie and her beloved sister Betsy were incarcerated at Ravensbrook Concentration Camp. They were starved, covered with fleas and made to suffer. Betsy did not survive the horror of the camp but Corrie, gaunt, filthy and weak, was released in October 1944. She later found out that an order had been given at the end of that very week to kill all the women her age and older and it was an error in the prison paperwork that God used to have her released. Corrie vowed if the Lord allowed her to live, she would tell as many people as possible about the love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ. She also promised to go wherever the Lord led. Although she was 59 years of age when released, she traveled all over the world for the next 30 years, speaking in more than 60 countries, captivating audiences with her inspiring faith and love for the Lord. She went to be with the Lord in 1983 on her 91st birthday. She had a very spiritual sister in Betsy. Before she died in the concentration camp in Ravensbrook, her sister Betsy said this, Corrie, your whole life has been a training for the work you are doing here in prison, and for the work you will do afterward. And Corrie used to say this, God has plans, not problems for our lives. In the course of her talk, she often showed the reverse side of an embroidered bookmark, And it looked like a meaningless mass of tangled threads. Then she would turn it around and on the other side were written, God is love. And then she would quote these words. My life is but a weaving between my God and me. I cannot choose the colors he weaveth steadily. Oft times he weaveth sorrow and I in foolish pride. Forget he sees the upper and I the underside. Not till the loom is silent and the shuttles cease to fly will God unroll the canvas and explain the reason why. The dark threads are as needful in the weaver's skillful hand as the threads of gold and silver in the pattern he has planned. He knows, he loves, he cares, nothing this truth can dim. He gives the very best to those who leave the choice to him. In a recorded interview for the film, The Hiding Place, as a woman in her 80s, Corrie ten Boom said this, Some questions remain, but they are not to be feared. Our Heavenly Father holds all things in His hand, even our questions. As for myself, in the years since Ravensbrook, the Lord has sent me to some 60 countries, and I have told to anyone who would listen, no pit is so deep that he is not deeper still. With Jesus, even in our darkest moments, the best remains and the very best is yet to be. Do you feel like Joseph this morning in a pit? There is no pit so deep that he is not deeper still. So many ways, Joseph's coat of many colours symbolised the life God had in store for him. It would be a multi-faceted, multi-coloured life filled with many experiences, trials, tears and triumphs. Pain, sadness and joy would all be woven into the fabric of his story. But over it all, God was weaving a life that would be a beautiful and powerful testament to his grace and power. Would you bow for prayer, please, this morning? There is no pit so deep that he is not deeper still. Are you going through a trial this morning? Maybe it's not one of those trials of your own making. It's a trial where it's really... it's a trial inflicted upon you by the hands of others. Maybe it is even a trial of your own making or you've had a part in it. God's grace is still the answer. God's power is still the answer. Could there be anyone this morning, and you just acknowledge by raising your hand, every head is bowed, every eye is closed, and just say, thank you. Pastor, would you pray for me as you close? Yes, amen. I'm going through a trial in my life. I'm struggling to accept certain things that God has allowed. By His grace, I'm going to yield. I'm going to surrender and allow His grace to work in this situation in my life. Would there be anyone like that? Pastor, just pray for me as you close. I am dealing with a trial in my life. Yes, amen. Anyone else? Yes, amen. Yes, praise God. Put your hand down. Thank you so much. Anyone else? Please pray for me, Pastor. I'm dealing with a trial in my life that I'm struggling to accept. Yes, amen. But God showed me this morning, amen, that His grace is the answer. Heavenly Father, we thank you for these ones who've humbled themselves just to acknowledge, Lord, that they're going through a trial in their life. And Lord, I pray, firstly, if any of these ones have not yet trusted you as their Saviour, I pray that right now, in their hearts, they would reach out to you and say, Lord, I know I'm a sinner. I've sinned against you and broken your laws, but I believe you died on the cross for me. shedding your blood for the remission of my sins. I'm asking you now to come into my life, to wash me clean from my sin, to give me new life. Would you pray something like that if you've not yet been saved, if you haven't yet received Christ as your Saviour? Here's the answer. Lord, for those who raise their hands, who already know you, I pray Lord that they might know the sweetness that comes by yielding to your grace. Oh Lord how we can see you were able to bring beauty out of the bitterness of Joseph's life and his experiences. Your word exhorts us to look diligently lest anyone fail of the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you and thereby many beatify. We thank you Lord that verse reveals the grace of God applied, the grace of God appropriated is the answer. And so Lord, I pray for my brothers and sisters, those who find themselves in some sort of pit of trouble, some sort of trial this morning and they don't see the way out, would you comfort them?