I think that song really summarizes the theme of Joseph's life, doesn't it? God mended unto good, so we could say, God makes no mistakes. And sometimes it seems that from the human perspective, that he has, but as we continue to look to him in faith and trust him over time, we see that God is always right, God is always good. Man is often not good, many things in life are not good but God is always good and God does not make mistakes when it comes to the lives of his children but you've got to know him, you've got to know him as your saviour and have his hand in your life and when you have his hand in your life then you can know great blessing. Turn with me to Genesis chapter 46. We are continuing in our studies of the life of Joseph and as a part of our overall series in the book of Genesis. We are getting towards the end of the life of Joseph and the book of Genesis but we have a few messages to go and we're going to deal this morning with the theme, Reunion and Reward. this wonderful reunion that takes place between Jacob and his son Joseph. And I just find every one of these chapters so moving as we see the tears flow, as we see hearts restored and what a wonderful God we serve and we see his hand of providence at work. Let's read chapter 46 though to get our hearts and minds ready for the message this morning and then we will flow into chapter 47 a little bit later hopefully if we have time with the message. The Bible reads, "...and Israel took his journey with all that he had and came to Beersheba and offered sacrifices under the God of his father Isaac. God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I. he said, I am God, the God of thy father. Fear not to go down into Egypt, for I will there make of thee a great nation. I will go down with thee into Egypt, and I will also surely bring thee up again. And Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes. Jacob rose up from Beersheba, and the sons of Israel carried Jacob, their father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. And they took their cattle and their goods, which they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob and all his seed with him. His sons and his sons' sons with him, his daughters and his sons' daughters, and all his seed, brought he with him into Egypt. And these are the names of the children of Israel which came into Egypt, Jacob and his sons, Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, and the sons of Reuben, Hanuk, and Falu, and Hezron, and Kami, the sons of Simeon, Jemuel, and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jachin, and Zoar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman. The sons of Levi, Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, and the sons of Judah, Ur, and Onan, and Shelah, and Phares, and Zerah, but Ur and Onan died in the land of Canaan, and the sons of Phares were Hezron and Hamul. And the sons of Issachar, Tola, and Fuvah, and Job, and Shimron, and the sons of Zebulon, Sered, and Elon, and Jalil, these were the sons of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob in Paddan-aram with his daughter Dinah, all the souls of his sons, and his daughters were thirty and three. And the sons of Gad, Ziphion, and Haggai, and Shunai, and Hezbon, Eri, and Arodai, and Arilai. You say, I think I could read it better. We'll come up and have a try. And the sons of Asher, Jimnah, and Eshua, and Eshui, and Beriah, and Sarah, their sister. And the sons of Beriah, Heber, and Malachiel. These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah, his daughter. And these she bear unto Jacob, even 16 souls. sons of Rachel's Jacob's wife Joseph and Benjamin and under Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim which Asenath the daughter of Potiphar a priest of on bear unto him the sons of Benjamin were Beeler and Beecher and Ashbel, Gerar and Naaman, Ehi and Rosh, Mupim and Hupim, they're my favorites, and Ard, Mupim and Hupim depending on how you pronounce the U there, these are the sons of Rachel, must have been good good fellas, these are the sons of Rachel which were born to Jacob and all the souls were 14. sons of Dan Husham, the sons of Naphtaliah, Jazeel and Guni and Gezer and Shillam. The story is told of an old African-American preacher, he was a really godly man and he was on his deathbed and he would have members from the church come and read the Bible to him. And they're up to this part of, I think it was Chronicles, where it was a long list of genealogies and they said, do you want us to skip over this? And he said, no, please read it all. So read through this long chapter, long list of names and the young man who was reading to his older pastor said, why did you want me to read all those names? What can you possibly get out of that? And he said, well, the Lord know them all. The Lord knew them all. He was encouraged by that. These are the sons of Bilhah, back to the Bible here, which Laban, see you distracted me, which Laban gave unto Rachel his daughter. And she bare these unto Jacob, all the souls were seven. Verse 26, all the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob's sons' wives, all the souls were three score and six. The sons of Joseph, which were born him in Egypt, were two souls. All the souls of the house of Jacob, which came into Egypt, were three score and 10. That makes 70. And he sent Judah before him under Goshen, to direct his face under Goshen. And they came into the land of Goshen. And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father to Goshen, and presented himself unto him. And he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while. And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive. Joseph said unto his brethren and unto his father's house I will go up and show Pharaoh and say unto them my brethren and my father's house which were in the land of Canaan are come unto me and the men of shepherds for their trade hath been to feed cattle and they have brought their flocks and their herds and all that they have And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What is your occupation? That ye shall say, Thy servant's trade hath been about cattle from our youth even until now, both we and also our fathers, that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen, for every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians. the Lord add his blessing to the reading of his word, let's pray and commit the message into the Lord's hands. Father we thank you again for the joy of being in your house this morning and Lord we pray now that you would settle our hearts and our minds before your presence Lord and that you would speak to us through the living word, we thank you that this is a living book It's quick, it's powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword and we pray that the power of your truth would be unleashed in our hearts and in our lives today by the ministry of the Spirit of God. Help me as the preacher, Lord, I don't want to get in the way of what you would have to say today, rather I want to be your vessel, Lord, to communicate what you would have for us to hear today as a church. So bless us, minister to us, speak to us, we pray in the name of the Lord Jesus we ask these things, Amen. We're dealing with that section of Joseph's life where he is being reconciled and reunited with his family. you'll recall the last message hopefully, chapter 45 and how finally Joseph is reconciled to his estranged brothers and how they are then sent back to get Jacob, their father, and bring him back into Egypt. And so really what we have now opening before us in chapter 46 are the glory years of Joseph's life, the pain of the past being put behind him and he has the joy of being reconciled to his brothers and reunited with his beloved father Jacob. And so we want to trace this journey of Jacob and his brothers to Israel, we want to see the reunion that takes place with Joseph and how Joseph then settles them in the land of Goshen and there'll be some lessons for faith along the way as we consider this. So Joseph is going to make sure that his family is well cared for in Egypt, we'll get to that, but we want to understand what God would have for us from this section of the Joseph story. And so I'm going to divide up the account that we're looking at under four headings to help us as we study. the first one this morning, number one, is what I would call the reassurance of Jacob's faith in verse 1 to 7. The reassurance, chapter 46 verses 1 to 7, the reassurance of Jacob or Israel's faith. The Bible says, journey. So God's hand of providence has been working, hasn't it? And we saw in the last chapter how Joseph's brothers returned back to their father and tell him the earth-shattering news that Joseph was yet alive and how Jacob's heart was revived as he saw the wagons and hope began to fill his heart as he realized that he would see Joseph before he died. And now we find Jacob setting out on this journey with his family. They're going to make their way from the land of Canaan all the way down into Egypt, a long journey in those days. And we see Jacob is clearly a little unsettled about this. Jacob is a little bit troubled about this move. He's stepping out in faith, knowing that God is directing, but he comes to Beersheba and Beersheba is on the southern end of the land of Canaan and so it's kind of like passing the point of no return. Beersheba had been a very special place in the life of Jacob and in the life of the patriarchs. There Abraham had dug a well, Genesis 21-30, and Abraham had lived there, offering Isaac on Mount Moriah. We heard about that in chapter 22. Isaac had also lived at Beersheba and it was from the home in Beersheba that Jacob had left for Laban's house to find a wife. So this was a very significant and special place for Jacob and here you see him as 130 years of age coming back to Beersheba before he departs finally from the land of Canaan to seek the Lord. And we see a wonderful principle there, I call it the seeking of faith. Jacob has received some guidance from God, the providential hand of God seems to be directing in a certain direction but Jacob is concerned to seek God and to make sure that he's on the path of God's will. You know that's a very wise approach to the Christian life. You may feel that God is guiding you and you may even begin to take some steps in the direction of God's will but make sure as you take those steps you're still seeking the Lord, still asking God, still yielded to God and seeking His perfect direction. And so He's seeking God for reassurance, just a short distance into the journey. Proverbs 3, 5 and 6 encourages us, Look to the Lord to direct, seek his guidance. And so, We can understand, can't we, why Jacob would feel a little trouble. You say, how do you know that? Because God says to him, fear not. And God wouldn't say to Jacob, fear not, unless there was perhaps a little propensity there to fear. Think about it, he's 130 years of age. This is a massive step to make in the sunset years of your life. Jacob knew probably that this would be the last time he ever saw the beloved promised land of Canaan. going to a strange country in Egypt. I mean, let's put ourselves into Jacob's shoes at the moment. There was no text message in those days. It's not like Joseph and his dad were WhatsAppping back and forth saying, looking forward to seeing your dad when you arrive on the first flight into Cairo. No, not at all. I'm saying he understands this is a long and a dangerous journey. He's stepping out by faith, believing the word that he has heard that Joseph lives, trusting the providential hand of God is leading him and guiding him. So we have the seeking of faith. Then he's rewarded in verse two to four with the sure promises of faith. God rewards Jacob seeking of him and reveals himself to him in a vision. Jacob has had some of these visions of God at key points in his life and this is the eighth and the last such vision that is recorded where God appeared to Jacob in this way. What did God say to him? And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night and said, Jacob, Jacob, and he said, here am I, And he said, I am God. I love that. I am God, the God of thy father. Fear not to go down into Egypt, for I will there make of thee a great nation. I will go down with thee into Egypt, and I will also surely bring thee up again. And Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes. Do you see the promises of God here at a time in Jacob's life where he needed it? promises of God. In verse 2 we have what we could call the call of God. God calls out to Jacob, Jacob, Jacob. God speaks to him and God spake unto Israel. You see the Christian life, the walk of faith is guided by the Word of God. God is speaking into Jacob's life. And Jacob had the spoken word of God to guide him and direct him at this point in his life. We have the written word of God to guide us and to direct us. So God speaks, we see Jacob's response he says, here am I. That's the appropriate response, isn't it? When God calls us. Jacob here was willing to be guided by God in his life. And so we see the call of God, we see the character of God in this revelation. God says here, I am God. Do you know, it is the person of God that gives the promises of God their value. You think about it, the value of a promise is connected to the character of the person giving the promise. You understand that in your life. There are some people who give promises and their promise means nothing to you because you know they will break those promises. What is it that gives the promises of God such value? Well, because of who is giving them. I am God, he says. We have this declaration of who God is before God gives the promises. Brethren, that's why we can trust the promises of God. They haven't come from someone who lies, from someone who is untrustworthy. The promises of God come from God. himself. I am God. The Hebrew word for God here is the word El, which emphasizes God's strength, the mighty one. Oh, Jacob needed to be reminded of that when he's growing old and frail and he's having to step out in faith again. Think of that, seniors. This is a big step to take in the sunset years of your life, to move forward in faith, to actually change locations. That's not easy. to uproot where you are and to leave behind familiar memories, to leave behind all the attachment to an area and to go out by faith in the will of God. But God sometimes moves that way, doesn't he? Ask the Ringwaltz, they've done it a few times, get some counsel if you... But that's part of the journey of faith, isn't it? The walk of faith. Forward with God, wherever He leads. God says, don't worry Jacob, I am God, I am the Almighty One, I am the One with all strength, the God of thy father. God is reminding Jacob here that he's dealing with the same God who had been faithful to his father Isaac. And so we have the character of God, but then we have the comfort of God, verse 3, and he said, I am God, the God of thy father, fear not to go down into Egypt. I think this would have been a blessing for Jacob to hear that fear not at this critical time in his life. Did you know that transition times in the will of God are vulnerable times? Did you know transition times in the will of God can be scary times? Difficult times? Challenging times? it's at such times we need to hear from God through His Word the words, fear not, don't be afraid. How often does God tell us in His Word, don't be afraid? Why does He tell us that so often? Because we are inclined to be afraid. The comfort of God. The covenants of God, verse 4, look at the promises now. And you'll notice that there are four promises here. The first three start with the words, I will, and the last promise contains the word shall, and it all emphasizes the certainty and the reliability of God's promises, the trustworthiness of them. I will go down with thee into Egypt, verse 4. And I will also surely bring thee up again, and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes. The promises of God. You say, I'm going through a difficult time in my life where I'm seeking to step out by faith, I believe God is leading me, God is guiding me, God is doing something in my life. Let me encourage you, you have the promises of God to undergird you. You have the comfort of God within you, you have the hand of God upon you, you can move forward by faith knowing that God is with you. Four promises. Firstly, I see there the promise of God's power, I will make of thee a great nation. That took power, the power of God. And this was one of the primary reasons why God was taking the children of Israel down into Egypt. God was going to use that period to make them a great nation and God fulfilled that. By the time you come to the time of the Exodus, about 400 years on from here, we've got roughly 2 million people coming out of Egypt. So how do you know that? Because the Bible specifically tells us, I think it's in the book of Numbers or Deuteronomy, that there was, I think, around 600,000 men. So you count, it doesn't take much to work out if you've got about 600,000 men plus their wives plus a few children each, you're talking, you know, probably at least 2 million people, possibly more, coming out of Egypt. That's amazing. They go down there, just 70 people, God makes them into a great nation and takes them back into the land of Canaan. And that was what God had promised many years earlier to Abraham in Genesis 12 too, that he would maketh him a great nation. So this is part of what God is doing. We talked about that in another message. God is working in Joseph's life as an individual, but God is also working to much grander purposes. God is working in the nation of Israel. God is doing something on a very grand scale here. God had said to Abraham in Genesis 15, 13, and he said unto Abraham, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them, and they shall afflict them four hundred years. And also that nation whom they shall serve will I judge, and afterward shall they come out with great substance. So God is fulfilling a prophecy here by taking his people into Egypt. just as he told Abraham back in Genesis 15, 13. So we have the promise of God's power, I will make of thee a great nation. Then we have the promise of God's presence, I will go down with thee into Egypt. That's a comfort, isn't it? What touching words! Here's Jacob, elderly Jacob, 130 years of age, Life's taken its toll on him. He's hobbling there. Remember that? The Lord had to touch the hole of his thigh. He's got a staff. He's got 17 years yet to live. He doesn't know that, of course, but that's the final record of his life. He had 17 years in Egypt with Joseph. What a blessing that was. But what assurance here from God, I will go with you into Egypt. You know, it's the personal presence of God and the lives of His people that has been of great comfort down through the ages, hasn't it? To know, my God is with me. In the words of Psalm 139, what beautiful words, if I ascend up into heaven, behold thou art there. If I make my bed in hell, behold thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning or dwell in the outermost parts of the sea, there surely your hand will guide me, or whatever it says there. But the truth there of the presence of God, So I feel fearful about the next step in my Christian life. I feel fearful about what God is now doing in my life. Things are unsettled. I'm getting uprooted out of my comfort zone here and I'm being moved forward in a certain direction. Be encouraged. God is with you. God will not forsake you. So we have the promise of God's power. I'll make of thee a great nation. The promise of God's presence. I will be with you. will go down with thee into Egypt. The promise of God's preservation and I will also surely bring thee up again. That's preservation isn't it? God is going to take them into Egypt, he's going to preserve them in Egypt, he's going to work in the nation of Israel and he's going to bring them back again. We have a God who has the power to preserve us, preserve his people. Then we have the promise of Joseph's personal touch. Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes. What does that mean? Well, it means that Joseph would be personally present at the time of Jacob's death to do that last act of love that has been done by loved ones for generations of closing the eyelids of the person who has just passed on. Sometimes when people die their eyes remain open and it's been an old practice of just quietly closing the eyes of the person who has passed away. But what a comforting promise for Jacob to know that, that he would actually be present with Joseph at the time of his death. I don't know about you but when I die I'd like to know that there's going to be someone there who's going to respect my body and look after me, look after things. That'd be a comfort for Jacob to know that. So see how God is rewarding Jacob's faith here, Jacob is seeking God and God is speaking into Jacob's life at this critical juncture in his life. Big steps to take in your life? Are you seeking the Lord? At the altar? Maybe you even feel that God's providence is leading you in a certain direction? Better make sure as you take those initial steps you double-check. seek reassurance, keep seeking guidance, I being in the way, the Lord led me, wonderful principle there, as I move in the direction of God's will, I'm trusting God to direct, trusting God to guide, trusting God to lead. Then we have the step of faith, verse 5 to 7, so we have the seeking of faith, we have the sure promises of faith, then we see his step of faith, verse 5 to 7, and Jacob rose up from Beersheba, he's going to go forward by faith, stepping out on the promises of God, that is faith, isn't it? Faith is hearing God's Word and acting upon God's Word, acting upon the promises of God, stepping out in reliance upon what God has said. Jacob rose up from Beersheba, and the sons of Israel carried Jacob, their father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. And they took their cattle and their goods, which they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob and all his seed with him. His sons and his sons' sons, that means his grandsons, with him, his daughters and his sons' daughters, and all his seed brought he with him into Egypt. you get the picture. This is not just the relocation of Jacob as an individual, this is the relocation of the whole family clan. Sons, grandsons, daughters, granddaughters, all are going into Egypt in the will of God. brings us to the second heading. We've looked at the reassurance of Jacob's faith, God working to reassure Jacob he's on the path of his will, then we notice the records of Jacob's family in verse 8 to 27 and I just want to give you a summary of this, we'll sort of pass over but we have at this important point in the life of Israel as a nation, this record of Israel's seed and the genealogy starts with the children of Leah, and her maid Zilpah, then the children of Rachel and her maid Bilhah. So it follows that order, it starts with Leah and her maid, the first wife, then Rachel and her maid and it's given in that order. So in verse 8 to 15, just to give you the summary here, we have the sons and grandsons of Jacob by Leah. In verse 8 to 9, the sons of Reuben. Verse 10, the sons of Simeon. Verse 11, the sons of Levi. And then verse 12, the sons of Judah. And there is an important man mentioned there by the name of Hezron, the son of Phares. Hezron would be a part of the lineage of Christ. We have the sons of Issachar, verse 13, and the sons of Zebulun, verse 14, and then verse 15 gives us the summary, 33 souls there connected to the progeny of Leah. Then, in verse 16 to 18, we have the sons and grandsons of Jacob by Zilpah, the sons of Gad, summarized in verse 16, the sons of Asher, verse 17, and for whatever reason, there's an interesting little note here, Sarah, Asher's daughter, is mentioned. Mostly the girls are not mentioned in the genealogies, the men, as they were responsible for carrying on the family line, but she's the only granddaughter mentioned by name in the lineage of Jacob. So she must have been special. You say, why? I don't know, but she must have been special, she was there. then we have the summary, verse 18, 16 souls. Then in verse 19 to 22 we have the sons and grandsons of Jacob by Rachel and so the Bible's just impressing upon us, this is the group of people going down, here are their names, here are their descendants. Rachel's mentioned at the start of this section, unlike at the end with the other wives, just another little interesting feature in the way it's recorded. We have the sons of Joseph, verse 19 to 20, the sons of Benjamin, verse 21 and then a total of 14 souls, verse 22. Then in verse 23 to 25, the sons and grandsons of Jacob by Bilhar are outlined. We have the sons of Dan, verse 23, and only one son is mentioned. The sons of Naphtali, verse 24, and then again a summary, seven souls. And then in verse 26 and 27, we have the total figure outlined for us. And all the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob's sons, wives, all the souls were how much? Three score and six, a score is 20, so three score is 60, 66. Then, verse 27, and the sons of Joseph, which were born him in Egypt, were two souls. All the souls of the house of Jacob, which came into Egypt, were three score and 10. So if you have 66, you have Joseph and his two sons, that makes 69. Why does it say 70? Well, Jacob's included. Okay, so Jacob is included, you add Jacob and you have 70 and it must include Jacob because it tells us that the wives are excluded from the genealogy. So you've got 69 and then you have the figure 70, therefore it must be, I would suggest Jacob. Just to throw this in there for those of you who love to dig into things, in Acts chapter 7 with Stephen's speech it says 75. So see if you can figure that one out, okay? You say, why don't you tell us the answer? Because I haven't figured it out yet. So I'm hoping for some help there. But the number 70, just understand, what I've noticed is there's often a little bit of flexibility in Hebrew numbering. And remember, we only have certain names listed here, there are many others that were a part of this entourage. So maybe it included some of the wives, but you could easily come up with a figure of 75, the Bible's not incorrect if, you know, that should not be your conclusion, all right? the number 70 actually would become a significant figure in the nation of Israel and let me just read you a little description of this by Henry Morris, he says, the number 70 seems to have been associated in a particular way with the nation of Israel ever since the time when these 70 apparently became its official founders. There were 70 elders, Numbers 11 verse 6, 70 years of captivity, 2nd Chronicles 36 21, 70 weeks determined upon the people of Israel, Daniel 9, 70 members of the Sanhedrin in the days of Christ and 70 witnesses to Israel sent out by Christ, Luke 10.1. Interesting little thought there. So we notice the record of Jacob's family. Now look in verse 28 to 29 at the reunion with Jacob's favoured son. And here we reach another climax in the Joseph account. chapter 45 we saw that climax of the reconciliation between Joseph and his brothers, here now we finally have the reunion with Joseph's father. And he sent Judah before him, verse 28, under Joseph to direct his face under Goshen and they came into the land of Goshen. Look in verse 28 at what I would call the direction for the reunion. Do you notice there that Judah is put in charge of leading family to Joseph. Can you see that? And he sent Judah before him under Goshen. can see that as the family of Jacob is developing, Judah is rising up as a key leader because ultimately he is going to carry on the messianic line and we talked about that in our last lesson in chapter 45. We saw the emphasis on Judah's role and how Judah was instrumental there in the reconciliation of the brothers with Joseph and now Judah is going to be instrumental again in bringing Joseph's father back into contact with him which I find very significant and we've talked about this before but Judah was the one who suggested Joseph be sold into slavery in Egypt so Judah was instrumental in Joseph and Jacob being separated from each other now Judah is being instrumental in seeing Jacob and Joseph restored to one another. It's just all over the life of Judah, the grace of God and what the grace of God can do with a man who we would have probably just written off as unusable. And so they come to the land of Goshen and Joseph had already promised them the land of Goshen in Genesis 45 verse 10. Goshen was in the northern Nile Delta region of Egypt and if you look at the map of Egypt you can still see the Nile Delta region and it's called Delta because it's based on the fourth Greek letter in the alphabet, Delta, which looks like a triangle, okay, so it looks like an upside down triangle on the map, it's a fertile region, you have the River Nile flowing up there and then branching off into multiple branches there and it was a very lush and fertile region of Egypt. It was known as Lower Egypt, which confuses us because it's higher on the map. It was lower in reference to the Nile River, it was downstream from the major population centers there, so it was referred to as Lower Egypt. And so they go to Goshen, the land that Joseph had promised them, the land that will soon be negotiated for them before Pharaoh in the following chapter, and there they wait to see Joseph. So we have the direction for the reunion. Look at then the presentation of the reunion, verse 29, and Joseph made ready his chariot and went up to meet Israel, his father to Goshen, and presented himself unto him. Try and picture the scene here that the word presented there as I understand it is a word that is usually used in the Bible for an appearance of God. Now we're not saying Joseph is God but it's very interesting that this word that is normally used of the glorious appearing of God in some way is used of Joseph and it's emphasizing that Joseph came in his splendor. Joseph came and presented himself to his father in his glory there and in his power as the Egyptian ruler. Can you see Joseph? The news arrives at Joseph's royal mansion that his father has arrived in Goshen. Quick, sharp orders are given and his servants hurriedly prepare his royal chariot and horses. Imagine it for a moment. Joseph puts on his finest robes of state. It is hard to describe the emotions that are surging within him as he climbs into his chariot and gives the order to his driver to go forward. The chariot lurches forward as it quickly picks up speed. They are on their way. Joseph is about to see his beloved father for the first time in 22 long years. Jacob arrives in Goshen after the long trip. He climbs out of the wagon, his staff in hand. Judah informs him that Joseph is on the way. There he stands waiting. 130 years of age. His weather-beaten face reveals some of the hardship and sorrows he's endured and yet at the same time the sweet holiness of a man who has learnt to walk with God for many years. Perhaps his eyes are a little dim at this age. He leans on his staff as he waits. Judah nudges him gently, Father, I see a chariot coming in the distance. It's Joseph. Israel straightens, his eyes strained as seen to the distance. As Joseph nears, he hears the clatter of horses' hooves and the rattle of chariot wheels. He can feel the ground beneath his feet vibrate somewhat as it draws near. As Joseph enters his field of vision, tears begin to well up in his eyes. There can be no mistaking it, that's Joseph. Even after 22 years apart, the loving eyes of the aged father had no difficulty recognizing his beloved son, even dressed in all his Egyptian finery. He could recognize that face anywhere. It reminded him so much of Rachel. Joseph had the same handsome features and form. Flashbacks pass through the old man's mind. Joseph as a baby cradled in his mother's arms. Joseph as a young boy playing happily around his tent. The days of his youth as he drew strong and developed in looks and talent. The days of teaching the young lad how to care for sheep and livestock. Then the fateful day when he sent Joseph on an errand to check on his brothers not knowing it would be the last day he saw his beloved son for 22 years. His brothers returned with the blood-soaked coat and the heartbreaking story that Joseph was dead. The days where he felt so overcome with pain. He thought the grief might kill him. The gnawing hole in his heart that had been there all those years with such a loss. His thoughts are interrupted. The chariot comes to a halt near Jacob in a little cloud of dust. Joseph leaps to the ground. A few quick paces and he is in his father's arms. Neither can speak to begin with. The rivers of tears say it all. Tears over the pain of the past burst forth like a dam opening its floodgates and intermingle with the tears of the joy in the present reunion. Father, Joseph croaks eventually. Joseph, my son, you're alive. he fell on his neck and wept on his neck a good while. Oh, the direction of the reunion, the presentation of the reunion, the emotion of the reunion. What emotions here! God has worked. We see this all over the life of Joseph, don't we? God is at work. Jacob expresses his joy by stating his readiness to die now that he has seen Joseph's face, he says, and Israel said unto Joseph, verse 30, now let me die since I have seen thy face because thou art yet alive. It's a powerful story, isn't it? God makes no mistakes. God made no mistakes in Jacob's life either. We've been looking at Joseph, no mistakes in Joseph's life, but Jacob went through some deep waters through this time, didn't he? God didn't make a mistake there either. Ultimately it was all for their good and for his glory. As I think of Joseph coming there, arriving in splendor and glory, I can't help but think the Lord Jesus whom he often pictures and think of the day when he will come arrayed in all the glorious white garments of heaven when he will come with the armies of heaven upon his white horse clothed in glorious garments with the words King of Kings and Lord of Lords emblazoned on his robe can you imagine the day when we will see not Joseph but the Lord Jesus Don't you see it there? Joseph coming. He's been highly exalted in Egypt. He's powerful. He's coming in glory, presenting himself there to his family. Aren't you looking forward to the day when King Jesus will come in his glory and in his power and present himself to this world? What a reunion. What a reunion between Jacob and Joseph. And so we have the reunion of Jacob with his favoured son. Look now at, lastly, what I would call the relocation of Jacob to fertile land. relocation of Jacob to fertile land. Verse 31, And Joseph said unto his brethren and unto his father's house, I will go up and show Pharaoh and say unto him, My brethren and my father's house which are in the land of Canaan are come unto me and the men are shepherds. For their trade hath been to feed cattle and they have brought their flocks and their herds and all that they have and it shall come to pass when Pharaoh shall call you and shall say, What is your occupation? And so even though Joseph had all the power of being the second ruler in Egypt, still had to seek Pharaoh's official endorsement on his plan to settle his family in what was the best of the land of Egypt. And so he promised them that he would settle them in Goshen but now he goes through the formal approval process of getting Pharaoh's endorsement upon this. And I just want to think about this for a moment and what Joseph was doing here very wisely. Think about the aim of living in Goshen. Why was Joseph wanting to settle his family in Goshen? Well, I think there's two reasons here. Firstly, on a material level, Goshen would keep the children of Israel sustained. So on a material level, Goshen would help keep the children of Israel sustained. It was a lush and fertile area, ideal for flocks and for herds. Goshen was the best of the land, we see that in the next chapter, it's called the best of the land in both verse 6 and 11. So it appears to have been boarded on the west by the Nile, says Henry Morris here, because the Bible says in Numbers 11 verse 5 that the Israelites did eat fish freely in Egypt. Then according to Psalm 78 verse 12, their property must have included the field of Zohan, which was one of the outlet channels of the Nile fairly near the sea. So in general, this location was close to Egypt's northeast corner, more or less isolated from the bulk of the Egyptian population, which tended to concentrate more to the south and west. So what is Joseph doing here? He wants to get his family into Goshen on a material level. No doubt that was because he was concerned to provide for their material needs. But I believe that there was a spiritual reason for this. On a spiritual level, Goshen would keep the children of Israel separated. So what was Goshen? Goshen, on a material level, would keep them sustained. But most importantly, on a spiritual level, it would keep them separated from The Egyptians, clearly Joseph has this in mind because he makes it very clear, this is the strong emphasis, he says, when we go to Pharaoh, make it clear that we're shepherds because the Egyptians hate shepherds, they'll be happy to have us far away from them, they'll let us settle in the land of Goshen. Okay? The shepherds were an abomination to the Egyptians, they hated shepherds, despised them and apparently archaeological discoveries have unearthed art where the Egyptians portrayed shepherds in very mocking kinds of ways. They hated that, they just saw it as a very menial, lowly task and therefore they would say, well if you're shepherds we want to have you separated from us please. I believe that Joseph was aware of a danger for his people and it's this, the danger of assimilation. Joseph, I believe, was concerned that if he did not get his family put in the right kind of place, separate from the Egyptians, there would be a real danger there of the children of Israel being assimilated into mainstream Egyptian culture, absorbed into the big machinery of Egypt there and ultimately then the people of God would be lost and just intermingled with the Egyptians. Can you see that? and I see here a principle that the people of God were to be in Egypt but not of Egypt. Joseph was concerned to maintain some separation between the Egyptians and his family. I see wisdom in Joseph. Let's not forget, here we're talking about a man who knew what it was to battle the temptations of central Egypt. Here we're talking about a man who knew probably more than anyone else what it was like to try and live for God in Egyptian culture, surrounded by paganism, surrounded by immorality and sensuality, the immoralities and sensualities of just about every kind. And Joseph is concerned to make sure that his people, the people of Israel, are not destroyed by assimilation with the Egyptians. Brethren, separation is God's way to keep his people pure. We are to be in the world. Remember, Egypt is always a picture of the world in the Bible. And here you have the children of Israel. They're separate from the Egyptians. They're in Egypt, but they're not of Egypt. Brethren, separation is what God requires, what God wants for us to keep the purity maintained amongst his people. important. If there is something that Independent Baptists are giving up today, it's the doctrine of separation. Separation from the world, separation from error, by the way that used to be one of the hallmarks of the Independent Baptist movement with all of its faults, it was this, separation. separation from the world, a willingness to draw a line in the sand for the truth and to take a stand against the world and all of its error. Listen to me, we are in great danger today of assimilation, of just being absorbed into the mainstream sensual culture of the day. No, no, no, no, we need to be like the Israelites of old and have a Goshen, as it were, stay separated from all of that. You know what I find really interesting? You know what God was going to use to help keep his people separated? He was going to use the Egyptians' disdain of the humble lifestyle of his people to help keep them separate. So on the one hand they were to take the initiative and seek to be separate from Egypt but God was also going to use the fact that Egypt despised their humble and lowly and holy lifestyle and they would therefore want to keep them at arm's distance. sometimes we lament the fact that increasingly the world is hostile to us, wants nothing to do with us. Brethren, it could be a blessing. I tell you what, we are probably more in danger when the world is trying to lure us into an adulterous relationship than if the world is saying we want nothing to do with the people of God. Seriously. Better to have the world spit at the church than to have it attempt to lure it into a seductive kiss. I'm not talking about an isolationism, I'm not talking about going away and starting, you know, buying your farm somewhere and locking ourselves away, you know that's not what we're talking about. We're talking about being in the world, not of the world. The people of Israel here had to be in Egypt but clearly it worked because at the end of 400 years they came out, they still had faith in Jehovah God. They were still a separate people to the Egyptians. Wisdom here on the part of Joseph. Very wise actions, I believe, and revealing his wisdom to have his people separated. Yes, for material reasons, good place for flocks and herds but importantly, the Egyptians didn't want much to do with the shepherds. We don't like sheep. Yeah, sheep. Well, they despise the flock. The world despises biblical churches, hates biblical churches. Brethren, the world increasingly is hostile to biblical churches, just mark that down. They hate it. They hate holiness. The world hates a separated church. Listen, if you're going to be an Egyptian church and just assimilate with the culture, you'll be very well accepted. But you take a stand for God and you separate from wickedness and from sin and from error and you'll just see how much they despise you. So I think that was the aim. living in Goshen. Then we see in the next chapter, we'll round it up here, the appeal to live in Goshen. We have this appeal of Joseph before Pharaoh, chapter 47 verse 1, then Joseph came and told Pharaoh and said, my father and my brethren and their flocks and their herds and all that they have are come out of the land of Canaan and behold they are in the land of Goshen. And he took some of his brethren, and even five men, and presented them unto Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said unto his brethren, What is your occupation? And they said unto Pharaoh, Thy servants are shepherds, both we and also our fathers. They said moreover unto Pharaoh, For to sojourn in the land are we come. For thy servants have no pasture for their flocks, for the famine is sore in the land of Canaan. Now therefore we pray thee, let thy servants dwell in the land of Goshen. So here's this appeal... Joseph comes before Pharaoh, he's appealing to Pharaoh to allow his family to settle in the land and then he brings in five brothers as representatives of the family. Pharaoh asks them their occupation and they've been pre-instructed by Joseph to give an answer that they are shepherds so that the Pharaoh would be more favorable to granting their request to put them in the land of Goshen. And he says, in the best of the land. Do you see how much blessing came to Joseph's family because of Joseph's obedience? Don't underestimate the blessings that can come from one life of obedience. Just one life of obedience and surrender to God. And here you have Joseph's family coming into an abundant place. Joseph brought his family into an abundant blessed place. land of Goshen, the best of the land. Hasn't the Lord Jesus brought us into an abundant place, our heavenly Joseph? Now that we're saved we've been called to an abundant life, that doesn't necessarily mean in terms of material things but God does of course provide our needs but much more than that, the spiritual blessings, blessed with all spiritual blessings, Ephesians 1 in heavenly places, Christ. Can you see that? Joseph bringing his family to an abundant place, a place of provision, a place of care. Joseph himself would be watching over them, Joseph himself would be caring for them and nourishing them and don't we see in that a picture of us? We have been brought out of the dryness of this world and into an abundant place where Christ our Saviour watches over us in love and cares for us and tends to our needs. What a blessed people we are. Then we have the father's audience with Pharaoh. Notice here that Joseph then brings in Jacob, his father, verse 7, and said him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How old art thou? See, it's not wrong to ask someone how old they are. That wasn't in the notes, it just came to me then as a stroke of brilliance, just to help encourage some of you older folks, okay? No. How old are they? Age was revered back then. Here you have Jacob. In fact, just try and picture the scene there. Here you have Pharaoh, the most powerful man on earth at that time, ruler of the most powerful nation of Israel, and here you have Jacob. And Jacob is blessing this powerful man, probably praying over him or saying a word of prayer for him. You see how the man of faith towers spiritually over the man of the world? Not in a proud sense, I'm just saying look at the stature of Jacob, a man who's walked with God. Can you see him there, his weather-beaten face? Can you see the gleam in his eye? Can you see him there with his staff, a humble man and yet a godly man? And here he is blessing the most powerful man in the world. Yes, the less is blessed of the better. Hebrews 7, 7. The godly separated man of faith towers in spiritual stature above the man seated on the throne. So Pharaoh asked him his age because age was revered not just by the Hebrews but by the Egyptians and this is probably why Pharaoh allowed him to bless him because he respected his age. And we should respect elderly people too, by the way. Have some respect there for those who are older than us. And he says, here's Jacob's reply, and we get a bit of a window into Jacob's thinking here, don't we, in his heart. Jacob said, under Pharaoh, the days of the years of my, what? Don't miss that word, will you? Are 130 years. Few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage. Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from before Pharaoh and Joseph placed his father and his brethren and gave them possession in the land of Egypt in the best of the land in the land of Ramses as Pharaoh had commanded and Joseph nourished his father and his brethren and all his father's household with bread according to their families. So Jacob in response to Pharaoh gives his perspective on his own walk of faith. Look at Jacob's words there for a moment. He speaks about the period of his life. He had lived for 130 years at this time, he would live for a further 17 years and in Egypt bringing him to a grand total of 147 years. But isn't it interesting that Jacob viewed the years of his life as being few? Few and evil have been my days, he says. I tell you what, we look at that and go, 147 years? That sounds like a long time. But it's just a tiny drop in the ocean of eternity, isn't it? That's the right perspective on life. I think Jacob was comparing it to Abraham and Isaac. He says, I haven't attained to the years of my fathers, okay, because Abraham lived for 175 years, Isaac 180 years, so I guess his years were few in comparison to that. But he had the right view of the brevity of life. Life is just so short... it's so short. The Bible says our life is like a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. What's a hundred years? What's a hundred and fifty years? What's two hundred years? What's a thousand years compared to eternity? Make sure you're saved. Like, make sure like Jacob you know God. Because our days on this earth are few. we're going to spend eternity somewhere. You say, I'm already safe, make those few days count for Christ, won't you? So that he spoke about the period of his life. He spoke about the pain of his life, few and evil, he says. Few and evil have the days of the years of my life been. He's not being faithless, he's not saying that God hadn't been good to him. The word evil there has the idea of bad, some bad things that happened in Jacob's life, it's just a reality. You look at Jacob's life, he went through a lot and some of it was trials of his own making, sure. But as you look back over his life, there was some pain there as well. But through it all, God's goodness and God's faithfulness to him, of course. Then you see the perspective of his life, notice how Jacob refers to his life here as a pilgrimage, I love that. Jacob saw himself as a pilgrim... a pilgrim... a pilgrim a starting point, a pilgrim has a goal and everything in between is just the flyover zone, just the place where we transit through. Make sure you maintain that mindset in the Christian life, this world is not our home. Have that mindset. You are a pilgrim. You are on a journey, the journey of faith to the celestial city. If you're saved, you're on your way to heaven. And by the way, your citizenship is in heaven. Let's not get tangled up too much with down here. Let's just remember, we're on our way to the glorious city above. And let's hold the things of this life loosely and embrace like Jacob the mindset of a pilgrim. We are pilgrims on a journey. This world is not our home. That was the attitude of these ancient men of God, because Hebrews 11, 13 tells us that they confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. And the apostle Peter exhorts us in 1 Peter 2, 11, Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims abstain from fleshy lusts which war against the soul. So maybe we should stop living as if this world is the most important thing there is. Perhaps we should stop living as if money is the only thing, the reason we exist. Perhaps we should stop living as if sports the most exciting thing in life. Perhaps we should stop living as if everything down here is what life is all about. Listen to me brethren, we are just passing through And by the way, when you have a mindset like that, if God says, I want you to make a big step of faith, like Jacob has just done, you can do that, and you can feel a little bit sad about some of the sentimental memories of this location, or this house, or that house, but ultimately, you let it go, because I'm going forward with faith, in faith in God, and I know that at the end of the journey, that's where it's all, that's where I'm aiming. I'm going to the celestial city to be with the Lord, and we have mansions above. I think that means it's time to finish. So I was about to finish but thank you for that alarm. Reunion and reward, it pays to obey the Lord. It doesn't mean that there won't be some evil things that happen in your life but what we see through Joseph's life is God meant it for good. God's thoughts overrode and overruled man's plans to ensure that God's will was done and that God was glorified. Let's embrace the pilgrim mindset. Let's embrace separation from the world. Let's get a hold of the promises of God and move forward by faith as Jacob did, as the Lord leads. Father, we thank you for your word to us this morning. Just a number of lessons there through that passage, we pray that you would just seal those lessons to our hearts according to the needs, we pray. Help us to be, Lord, like the children of Israel of old, a separated people in Egypt but not of Egypt. Lord help us we pray to have the pilgrim mindset as Jacob did to not see ourselves as being really attached down here on earth but to see ourselves as just transiting through to heaven to be with the Lord and we pray as well Lord that you bless As we seek to step forward in faith, we thank you, Lord, for the promises you gave Jacob and that we can lay hold of the promises of your word to encourage us, to strengthen us in our walk with you. So bless us now, we pray, as we close this service. In Jesus' name, Amen.