Bibles to Genesis chapter 45.
You'll find it on page 51 of the Church Bible.
Last week, we got to the stage in Joseph's story
where after 20 years, he revealed himself
to the brothers who had sold him as a slave
and thought they would never see him again.
And now we're going to move towards Joseph being reconciled,
being reunited to his father Jacob
and settling in the land of Egypt.
We're going to try and cover a lot of ground today,
which means there's a fair bit to read from this story.
Let's hear God's Word beginning, first of all,
in Genesis 45 and at verse 9.
It's his words of Joseph to his brothers.
Now, hurry back to my father and say to him,
this is what your son Joseph says.
God has made me Lord of all Egypt.
Come down to me, don't delay.
You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me.
You, your children and grandchildren,
your flocks and herds and all you have,
I will provide for you there
because five years of famine are still to come.
Otherwise, you and your household and all who belong to you
will become destitute.
You can see for yourselves and so can my brother Benjamin
that it is really I who am speaking to you.
Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt
and about everything you have seen
and bring my father down here quickly.
Then he threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept
and Benjamin embraced him, weeping.
And he kissed all his brothers and wept over them.
Afterwards, his brothers talked with him.
When the news reached Pharaoh's palace
that Joseph's brothers had come,
Pharaoh and all his officials were pleased.
Pharaoh said to Joseph,
tell your brothers, do this,
load your animals and return to the land of Canaan
and bring your father and your families back to me.
I will give you the best of the land of Egypt
and you can enjoy the fat of the land.
You are also directed to tell them, do this,
take some carts from Egypt for your children and your wives
and get your father and come.
Never mind about your belongings
because the best of all Egypt will be yours.
So the sons of Israel did this.
Joseph gave them carts as Pharaoh had commanded
and he also gave them provisions for their journey.
To each of them he gave new clothing,
but to Benjamin he gave 300 shekels of silver
and five sets of clothes.
And this is what he sent to his father,
ten donkeys loaded with the best things of Egypt
and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread
and other provisions for his journey.
Then he sent his brothers away
and as they were leaving he said to them,
don't quarrel on the way.
So they went up out of Egypt
and came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan.
They told him, Joseph is still alive.
In fact, he is ruler of all Egypt.
Jacob was stunned.
He did not believe them.
But when they told him everything Joseph had said to them
and when he saw the carts Joseph had sent to carry him back,
the spirit of their father Jacob revived.
And Israel said, I am convinced.
My son Joseph is still alive.
I will go and see him before I die.
So Israel set out with all that was his
and when he reached Beersheba,
he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac.
And God spoke to Israel in a vision at night
and said, Jacob, Jacob, here I am, he replied.
I am God, the God of your father, he said.
Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt
for I will make you into a great nation there.
I will go down to Egypt with you
and I will surely bring you back again.
And Joseph's own hand will close your eyes.
Then Jacob left Beersheba
and Israel's sons took their father Jacob
and their children and their wives
in the carts that Pharaoh had sent to transport him.
They also took with him their livestock
and the possessions they'd acquired in Canaan.
And Jacob and all his offspring went to Egypt.
He took with him to Egypt his sons and grandsons
and his daughters and granddaughters,
all his offspring.
And then there's the genealogy,
which we will pass over,
that is important.
And we'll come to verse 26.
All those who went to Egypt with Jacob,
those who were his direct descendants,
not counting his son's wives,
numbered 66 persons.
With the two sons who'd been born to Joseph in Egypt,
the members of Jacob's family,
which went to Egypt, were 70 in all.
Now Jacob sent Judah ahead of him to Joseph
to get directions to Goshen.
When they arrived in the region of Goshen,
Joseph had his chariot made ready
and went to Goshen to meet his father Israel.
As soon as Joseph appeared before him,
he threw his arms around his father
and wept for a long time.
Israel said to Joseph,
Now I am ready to die,
since I have seen for myself
that you are still alive.
Then Joseph said to his brothers
and to his father's household,
I will go up and speak to Pharaoh
and will say to him,
My brothers and my father's household
who are living in the land of Canaan
have come to meet.
The men are shepherds,
they tend livestock,
and they have brought along their flocks
and herds and everything they own.
When Pharaoh calls you in and asks,
What is your occupation?
You should answer,
Your servants have tended livestock
from our boyhood on,
just as our fathers did.
Then you will be allowed to settle
in the region of Goshen,
for all shepherds are detestable
to the Egyptians.
Joseph went and told Pharaoh,
My father and brothers,
with their flocks and herds
and everything they own,
have come from the land of Canaan
and are now in Goshen.
He chose five of his brothers
and presented them before Pharaoh.
Pharaoh asked the brothers,
What is your occupation?
Your servants are shepherds,
they replied to Pharaoh,
just as our fathers were.
They also said to him,
We have come to live here a while,
because the famine is severe in Canaan
and your servants' flocks
have no pasture.
So now,
please let your servants settle in Goshen.
Pharaoh said to Joseph,
Your father and your brothers
have come to you,
and the land of Egypt is before you.
Settle your father and your brothers
in the best part of the land.
Let them live in Goshen,
and if you know of any among them
with special ability,
put them in charge of my own livestock.
Then Joseph brought his father Jacob in
and presented him before Pharaoh.
After Jacob blessed Pharaoh,
Pharaoh asked him,
How old are you?
And Jacob said to Pharaoh,
The years of my pilgrimage are 130.
My years have been few and difficult,
and they do not equal the years
of the pilgrimage of my fathers.
Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh
and went out from his presence.
So Joseph settled his father
and his brothers in Egypt
and gave them property
in the best part of the land,
the district of Ramesses,
as Pharaoh directed.
Joseph also provided his father
and his brothers
and all his father's household
with food,
according to the number
of their children.
Amen.
And here we see a long period
of 45 to 47,
sort of two and a bit chapters.
But again, we're going to see God's grace
in the story of this family.
I wonder if you ever find yourself reflecting,
how did we get here as a family?
What are the major points
in our family history?
What are those defining moments
that still have an impact,
that still set the direction
for our family today?
There's a psychologist,
an author in the States
called Mary Pifer,
and she reckons that history
is inextricably linked to identity.
She asked the question,
if you don't know your history,
if you don't know your family,
who are you?
And I wonder if you agree
with that sentiment,
the significance of either
political, national,
or family history
for defining our own lives.
It's certainly interesting
to think about
and certainly interesting
to think about
how did we get here?
When you read the Bible,
you see that God's people
are a people who look back
and who reflect.
So you see them put up monuments.
God speaks or God delivers,
and you see monuments
being established.
There are people who recite,
who sing national history,
particularly thinking
about God's dealings with them,
particularly God's redemption of them.
And when you come
to the New Testament church,
what we see is frequent reminders
to look back
to the cross of Jesus,
to remember his death,
to remember his resurrection
for our ongoing walk of faith.
Why is that?
Why is it important
for us to keep reflecting?
Well, because in those reflections,
we are being reminded
both that we are great sinners
who have need,
and we have a great Savior.
It's a way for us
to connect our own personal stories,
our family stories,
to the story of a helping,
saving, delivering God.
So here is Moses again,
writing history.
He's writing some hundreds
of years later,
but as he writes this part
of the story,
he is remembering
and helping the people of God,
helping us indeed
to reflect
that God has always kept
his promise
to save and to bless.
Both in Jacob
and his family's arrival
into Egypt,
and then as Moses led
that family,
now a nation,
out of Egypt.
So we're going to look
at three big ideas
connected to God's grace.
First of all,
in chapter 45,
God's grace
in the honor
that this family receives.
It's so significant
as Joseph speaks
to his brothers,
the number of times
where he says,
five times I think,
he says,
God has raised me up.
We read it a couple of times
in our section.
Verse 9,
God has made me
Lord of Egypt.
And in verse 13,
tell my father
about all the honor
accorded me in Egypt.
God has raised Joseph
to this position
of prominence
so that God would keep
his promise
to this family
through Joseph
and through his position.
So we read verses 10 and 11,
and we see the comprehensive care
that Joseph will provide
for his family
because of his position.
They can have the best land,
they can take themselves
and their flocks
and they'll have food.
Perhaps even more striking
is that Pharaoh himself
will honor this foreign family
because Joseph,
with the help of God,
had rescued Egypt.
Verse 16 to 20,
we see that.
But especially,
verse 18,
Pharaoh says to Joseph,
I will give you
the best of the land
of Egypt
and you can enjoy
the fat of the land.
And he gives this message
to his family.
Verse 20,
never mind about your belongings
because the best of all Egypt
will be yours.
They are being honored
through Joseph
and his position.
And then as we got
to the end of the chapter,
as the brothers went back
with their carts full of goods,
they came back
with this good news,
Joseph is alive.
And we see eventually
Jacob the father's grief
turning to joy.
At first,
he's so stunned by the news
that Jacob is,
Joseph is alive.
He can't believe it.
But eventually,
he hears and believes
that his son
has been raised up.
And we see,
verse 27,
the spirit of their father,
Jacob, revived.
He's ready to go
and meet his son.
So Moses is writing
a long history.
He's writing the long history
of this family.
But he's making the point
again and again
that God always
keeps his promises.
Beyond the challenges
that were faced,
beyond the challenges
of timing,
this family will enter Egypt
with honor
and they will depart
from Egypt
with wealth
and freedom
and honor.
It seems as if Moses
wants to draw attention
to the parallels
between the story
of Joseph
and his pharaoh
and then hundreds
of years later,
Moses and his
very different pharaoh.
So when the family
were coming into Egypt,
Joseph's pharaoh
joyfully permits them
to come and enjoy
the best of the land.
But if you know
the story of Exodus
and you get to
Moses' pharaoh,
he grudgingly
is forced to allow
the family
that's become
a nation to lead.
It's significant
the position of Joseph
and Moses
within Pharaoh's house.
Joseph has been raised
up by God
to become a ruler
in Pharaoh's household
whereas Moses
was a prince
being raised
in the royal household
but he left
and then came back
to pull God's people out.
When we've seen
the actions of God
through Joseph
in this pharaoh,
as Joseph was given
the ability
to interpret
Pharaoh's dreams,
that softens
Pharaoh's heart
and he shows favor
to Joseph and his family
but when God
shows up in power
in Moses' story
to the pharaoh
through the plagues,
it serves to harden
his already hard heart.
So there is similarity
but striking contrast
but the point is
that the attitude
of a ruler
is neither here
nor there.
Nothing is going to stop
the purposes of God.
The apparent disaster
being faced
by this family
over the course
of 20 years,
family dysfunction
caused by sin,
none of it is going
to stop God's promises
from coming about.
Nothing and no one
can limit God's
promised grace
is the good news
of the Jacob
and Joseph story.
And when we think
about who Moses
is writing to,
he's writing to the
newly established
nation of Israel.
Here they are
in the wilderness
around Mount Sinai.
They still are not
in the promised land.
They're still weak
and vulnerable
as people.
But here is encouragement
to look back
to their story,
to look back
to God's faithfulness
in their story.
And that's the same
lesson for us too
when we feel weak,
vulnerable,
when we are struggling
to trust,
when circumstances
are hard,
we are encouraged
to look back
to see God's grace,
to see it primarily
at the cross of Jesus,
but to see it
in our own lives
of how God
has provided
and cared for us.
And of course,
as always,
we want to see
how this part
of the Joseph story
points us to Jesus.
So we see that God,
and Joseph is very
deliberate on this,
saying,
God raised me up.
And Jesus will see
that God was raising
him up for us,
for his people.
Jesus is raised up
in glory.
He is raised up
in glory
as he obediently
gives his life
as that perfect sacrifice
for sin
to secure
the salvation
of those
who would trust in him.
Jesus is then
raised up in glory
beyond death.
Death could not
hold him.
And then Jesus
is raised up
and returned
to the glory of heaven
where he now rules
and reigns
and prays
and intercedes
for his people.
And because Jesus
is raised up
for his church,
Jesus is the one
we look to
to provide
all that we need.
Just as Jacob
and his family,
outside of Joseph's help,
would be poor
and helpless.
So we come
to Jesus
spiritually poor
and helpless.
But in Jesus,
we become spiritually rich.
If we trust in him,
all those spiritual blessings
promised in the Bible
come to us.
Forgiveness,
being declared
just in God's sight,
adopted into God's family,
the assurance
that we belong,
the promise of heaven,
all of those
and so many more
come because Jesus
is raised up for you.
And just as Joseph
in his position
secured Jacob
and his family's welcome
before Pharaoh,
Jesus secures
our welcome
from our King,
our Father
in heaven.
Jesus is our friend
in high places.
Jesus, as it were,
says of his people,
he or she
is with me.
The access,
the privilege,
the love,
the joy that Jesus has,
he brings us
into that
as we follow him,
as we are united
to him.
And Jesus
is the one,
because he has been
raised up,
is able to turn
grief
to joy.
He can turn
the grief
of our guilt
to the joy
of forgiveness,
the grief
of a fear
of death,
to the joy
of assurance
of knowing
that Jesus
will never let us
go now
and for eternity.
The grief
of being
an enemy
of God
and loaded
down with a weight
of sin and guilt
to the joy
of becoming
a friend of God
as Jesus
forgives our sin
and secures
our peace.
Jesus is raised
up for you
and for me
and we need
to trust in him
to receive
these wonderful
blessings.
We also see
God's grace
in this
growing family.
So we're now
in chapter 46
and especially
the first
27 verses.
So in the book
of Genesis
we discover
God has made
a wonderful promise,
first of all
to Abraham
and then to
his son Isaac
then to his
grandson Jacob.
A restated
promise
from God
that says
I will make
you into
a great
nation.
And that promise
comes into view
again.
But at the beginning
of chapter 46
we find Jacob
moving towards
Egypt
and we find
him worshipping
God
offering sacrifices
and then God
speaks to him
in a vision
and in verse
3
we see
I am God
the God
of your
father
do not be
afraid to go
down to
Egypt
for I will
make you
into a
great nation
there.
So there's
that promise
again
I will make
you a
great nation
and there is
comfort for
Jacob
in verse 4
I will go
down to
Egypt
with you
and I will
surely bring
you back
again
the hope
of the
promised land
is always
there in
view
with this
promise.
But think
of this
here is
Jacob
and he told
Pharaoh how
old he was
he was 130
years old
and now here
he is at
that age
having to
move out
of
move away
from
the promised
land
and he's
moving towards
Egypt
and one of
the places
where things
had begun
to go
wrong
for
Abraham
his grandfather
where the
promise had
been under
threat
the place
where Isaac
his father
had been
told don't
go anywhere
near
Egypt
now Jacob
is going
but he's
being told
I will go
with you
and in that
context I will
make you
a great
nation
there's that
wonderful
promise as
Jacob is on
the move
that God's
love and
God's promise
goes with
him
God's love
promise is
without
borders
so verse
five to
seven we
see Jacob
and the
family
on the
move
and if
you've
ever moved
your family
you've had a
sense of
all that's
involved in
that all
the packing
all the
organization
all the
goodbyes
that need
to be
said
here is
Jacob
and 66
direct
descendants
all moving
together
from Canaan
down to
Egypt
on this
journey
of obedient
faith
in response
to God's
grace
and so we're
told in
verse 8 to
27 we
didn't read
it but
we're told
of this
growing
family tree
deliberately
in the middle
of all the
actions
stick in a
genealogy
to remind
us of the
promise
God had
said that
he's going
to make
them a
great family
and so we
begin to
see how
big that
family is
becoming to
remind us
of our
promise
keeping
God
and recognize
too that
Moses is
writing this
history and
by the time
he is
writing this
family this
growing family
has become
a nation
the nation
whom God
has chosen
and saved
from slavery
in Egypt
so even
as
Egypt
returned
from a
place
that offered
blessing to
Jacob
come and
enjoy the
fat of
the land
by Moses'
time we
know that
Egypt had
become a
place of
threat
and if we
know the
story of
Exodus
we discover
a pharaoh
there hundreds
of years
later who
is afraid
of the
strength of
these slaves
that they
have
trying to
basically
crush them
with hard
labor
then trying
to kill
the first
born
children
in each
family
to remove
their
power
but God
protects
God's
people
keep
growing
because
God's
promise
cannot
be
stopped
so again
as Moses
helps the
people to
reflect
they're
reflecting on
a national
history
dominated by
God's
mercy
by God's
love
by God's
promises
being
kept
so important
to look
back
and see
God's
faithfulness
what about
us in
light of
the coming
of Jesus
remember the
great words
of Jesus
when he
said I
will build
my church
and the
gates of
hell will
not prevail
against it
and then that
call to the
disciples
and the
great commission
you'll be my
witnesses to
Judea and
Samaria and
to the ends
of the earth
and as we
look around
2000 years
later at the
global church
we see God's
promise is
still being
kept
God is still
building this
family of
faith
and when we
trust in
Jesus we're
brought into
that great
family of
faith and
that faith in
Jesus then
connects us
with a local
church but it
also connects us
with a global
church and the
church through
all history
so today God's
people will
worship with
very different
cultures than
ours and
different languages
than ours with
very different
worship styles
than ours but
we will share
the same
saviour and
we have the
same faith and
it's so important
for us to
remember just how
big our God is
and how big his
mission is one of
the reasons why we
had our mission
Sunday a few
weeks ago to
remind ourselves
of just some of
what God is doing
through various
mission partners
that we are
connected with
but Jesus
Jesus builds his
church God
keeps his
promise to
make his
people a
great nation
of faith and
this is of
practical importance
to us today
it's important
for us if we're
here today and
we're not a
Christian to
recognize that
Jesus would have
you to be part
of his church
his kingdom
our youth group
on Friday we
were thinking
about the story
of Jesus as
he's dying on
the cross he's
speaking to the
thief beside him
that thief who
says Lord
remember me
when you come
into your
kingdom
and Jesus
turns to that
man and says
today you will
be with me
in paradise
as he
recognized Jesus
as Lord and
Savior and in
his only hope
he turned to
Jesus and Jesus
in mercy and
love saved him
and promised him
eternal glory
with him
do you see
Jesus as the
Son of God
as Lord and
Savior
then will you
believe in him
will you trust
him
will you follow
him
today
so Jesus
building his
church is
important if
we're not yet
part of the
church but it's
also important if
we are Christians
because one of our
tasks is to be
disciples who then
make disciples of
others so it's
important for us to
remember when we're
sharing our faith
it's important for us
to remember that we
don't save anyone
in fact we cannot
save anyone
it's only God who
gives new life
but God chooses
to work through
ordinary people
like us
so we tell people
about the grace of
God we share our
story of faith with
people we want to
show the love of
God in our families
in our workplace in
our community to do
mercy to love justice
for the sake of God's
glory and we pray for
the people that we
care about we pray for
our community our
country our nation our
world because we know
people that God
loves to save we
know that Jesus will
build his church and
he loves to work
through his people and
through his people's
prayers
one last thing to see
this time from the end
of chapter 46 and then
into chapter 47 God's
grace in a reunited
family
there's something
lovely about seeing
family reunions we've
been seeing family
reunions in Jacob's
story
we were looking after
two little kids this
week for a mum and a
dad
and after a few hours
we having looked after
the kids
Vicky delivered them
back
to the gathering where
the parents were along
with lots of other
people
and as soon as
the kids mum was
spotted
what would we expect
to happen
the smile came
and he started
charging
through that hall
full of people
elbows flying
plates flying
old people flying
because he wanted to
be back with his mum
even after four hours
there's that sense of
happy reunion
back
home
so how about here
in the story of
Joseph
and Jacob
verse 29
and 30
Joseph had his
chariot made ready
and went to Goshen
to meet his father
Israel
as soon as Joseph
appeared before him
he threw his arms
around his father
and wept
for a long time
for both of them
this is an
unexpected joy
this is an
unimaginable
joy
they are
restored
together
the father and son
who loved each
other
are restored
after the sin
of those brothers
had destroyed
that bond
for some
20 years
verse 30
Israel
covenant
promise
name
of Jacob
said to Joseph
now I'm ready
to die
since I abstain
for myself
that you are
still alive
he can die
happy
because he's been
reunited
to the son
he loves
and not only
will they be
reunited
they'll also
be settled
so that they
might live
together
so again
we see Joseph
preparing the way
we read that
end of 46
verse 31
to 34
we see Joseph
preparing
the way
for the brothers
to go into
the presence
of Pharaoh
so that they
will gain a
welcome from
Pharaoh
so they'll be
able to settle
in Pharaoh's
good land
again we see
another parallel
we see Joseph
and his family
they are shepherds
Moses leaves
the palace
and he becomes
a shepherd
lots of parallels
in this story
but we get
after the meeting
in the palace
we get a wonderful
little closing scene
in verses 11
and 12
of chapter 47
Joseph settled
his father
and his brothers
in Egypt
and gave them
property
in the best
part of the land
the district
of Ramesses
as Pharaoh
directed
Joseph also
provided his
father and his
brothers
and all his
father's
household
with food
according
to their
number
to the number
of their
children
God has
been preparing
the way
God has
been providing
for this
family
God is
keeping
his promise
to this
family
reuniting
them
and then
looking
after them
because this
is the God
who makes
promises
and when God
makes a promise
he always
keeps it
so we have
this wonderful
reunion
that takes
place between
Joseph
and his
father
and the
brothers
and they're
now living
together
in the best
of the land
in Egypt
beyond sin
beyond the
attempt
of destroying
the family
there is
reunion
or
reconciliation
to use
a word
that the
Bible
likes to
use
to speak
of salvation
when it
talks of
Jesus
work to
save us
it talks
about
reconciling
us
to God
there is
a breakdown
in the
relationship
between us
as people
and God
and the
break is
not on
God's
side
it's
on ours
because
of our
sin
that perfect
loving
relationship
that you
and I
were made
for
that joy
that we
were made
for
is broken
because of
sin
but then
restored
by the
work of
Jesus
is the
son
who takes
our
place
to secure
our
peace
we see
Jesus
on the
cross
being
forsaken
by his
father
as he
willingly
and lovingly
carries on
himself
the sin
of the
world
so that
we might
be
adopted
into the
family
of God
welcomed
into God's
family
because
of Jesus
it's
through the
punishment
of Jesus
that we
have peace
the cross
stands at
the very
heart
of the
good news
of the
Bible
Jesus
the night
of his
arrest
and the
night before
his death
in John
chapter 14
spoke
words of
comfort
that speak
of
reunion
he said
in my
father's
house
are many
rooms
and he
said
I'm going
there to
prepare a
place for
you
and if I
go and
prepare a
place I
will certainly
come back
and take
you to be
with me
that where
I am
you also
will be
when our
trust is
in Jesus
we have a
wonderful
reconciliation
that takes
place now
the barrier
of sin
is broken
because Jesus
has paid the
penalty for
that sin
but we also
have the
promise of
an eternal
reunion
of seeing
Jesus
face to
face
of being
made
like him
to enjoy
perfect love
and joy
and peace
forever
reconciliation
and reunion
that lasts
beyond death
and into
eternity
and we get
there
through trusting
in Jesus
the son of
God
who's become
our savior
I wonder
as we
close
what place
does God's
grace have
in your
story
when you
reflect on
your own
life up
till now
your family
life
what part
does God's
grace have
in that story
remember
our psychologist
Mary Piper
if you don't
know your
history
if you don't
know your
family
who are you
there is a
very real
danger for
us in a
church
of spiritual
amnesia
that we can
forget our
identity
that we can
forget that we
belong in
God's family
if we're trusting
in Jesus
we can forget
that we are
secure
we have a new
citizenship
we have a new
family
that we have
been brought
into
and you know
this is one of the
reasons why you
and I need
the church
because when we
gather every week
we are gathering
to remember
whose we are
that we worship
God as our
father in heaven
as our creator
as our king
as our lord
we gather to
remember how
we got here
how do we become
part of the
people of God
we remember
the loving
sacrifice of
Jesus that
unites us to
God and unites
us to each
other
and we gather
and we need
the church
because it
reminds us why
the gospel
the good news
of Jesus
matters so
much
to remind
ourselves of
forgiveness that's
only found in
him
new life that's
only found
through him
the promise
of a new
heaven and
earth in
him
so like
Moses
point yourself
and point others
back to God's
salvation
reflect back
on your story
reflect back
on the story
of Jesus
to see God's
grace
to see his
promises
kept
to see the
favor you
and I
enjoy
from him
make the
gospel
make Jesus
central
to your
story
to your story