WEBVTT 00:00:00.239 --> 00:00:00.959 Good morning. 00:00:02.640 --> 00:00:08.320 So this morning's scripture is from Genesis chapter 43, verses 1 through 15. 00:00:08.720 --> 00:00:17.359 Now the famine was severe in the land, and when they had eaten the grain that they had brought from Egypt, their father said to them, Go again, buy us little food. 00:00:17.839 --> 00:00:18.800 Buy us a little food. 00:00:18.960 --> 00:00:24.559 But Judah said to him, The man solemnly warned us, saying, You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you. 00:00:24.800 --> 00:00:28.879 If you will send your our brother with us, we will go down and buy you food. 00:00:29.039 --> 00:00:31.280 But if you will not send him, we will not go down. 00:00:31.359 --> 00:00:35.679 For the man said to us, You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you. 00:00:35.920 --> 00:00:42.079 Israel said, Why did you treat me so badly as to tell the man that you had that you had another brother? 00:00:42.240 --> 00:00:48.320 They replied, The man questioned us carefully about ourselves and our kindred, saying, Is your father still alive? 00:00:48.479 --> 00:00:50.000 Do you have another brother? 00:00:50.240 --> 00:00:57.920 What we told him was in answer to these questions, could we in any way know what he would say that he would say, Bring your brother down? 00:00:58.079 --> 00:01:06.719 And Judah said to Israel, his father, Send the boy with me, and we will arise and go, that we may live and not die, both we and you, and also our little ones. 00:01:06.879 --> 00:01:08.560 I will be a pledge of his safety. 00:01:08.719 --> 00:01:10.719 From my hand you shall require him. 00:01:10.879 --> 00:01:15.519 If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame forever. 00:01:15.680 --> 00:01:18.719 If we had not delayed, he would now have returned twice. 00:01:18.959 --> 00:01:23.120 Then their father Israel said to them, If it must be so, then do this. 00:01:23.359 --> 00:01:34.480 Take some of the choice fruits of our land in your bags and carry a present down to the man, a little balm and a little honey, gum, myrrh, pistachio nuts, and almonds, take double the money with you. 00:01:34.640 --> 00:01:37.760 Carry back with you the money that was returned in the mouth of your sacks. 00:01:38.000 --> 00:01:39.599 Perhaps it was an oversight. 00:01:39.920 --> 00:01:43.120 Take also your brother and arise, go again to the man. 00:01:43.359 --> 00:01:48.239 May God Almighty grant you mercy before the man, and may he send back your other brother and Benjamin. 00:01:48.319 --> 00:01:52.239 And as for me, I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved. 00:01:52.400 --> 00:01:56.319 So the men took this present, and they took double the money with them in Benjamin. 00:01:56.480 --> 00:01:59.280 They arose and went down to Egypt and stood before Joseph. 00:01:59.439 --> 00:02:00.400 This is the word of the Lord. 00:02:00.480 --> 00:02:01.599 Please be seated. 00:02:09.919 --> 00:02:11.520 Uh my name is John Kushneroth. 00:02:11.759 --> 00:02:14.800 I'm an elder here at Redemption Church Denver. 00:02:14.960 --> 00:02:18.800 And uh yeah, James is out of town taking the weekend off. 00:02:18.879 --> 00:02:21.199 Um they're down seeing some of Megan's family. 00:02:21.280 --> 00:02:24.000 So hopefully that's a nice break for them. 00:02:24.159 --> 00:02:29.439 Um well, first of all, happy Mother's Day um to all the moms here. 00:02:29.680 --> 00:02:37.520 And uh, you know, I know I know days like this, sometimes holidays like this, can actually bring up a bunch of different emotions for people. 00:02:37.840 --> 00:02:43.599 Um maybe, maybe you actually kind of had a complicated relationship with your with your mom. 00:02:44.240 --> 00:02:50.479 Um maybe you've been trying to have kids and that that hasn't happened uh yet. 00:02:50.639 --> 00:02:57.759 Um or maybe you are a mom and turns out that job is just a lot harder than you thought it would be. 00:02:58.000 --> 00:03:11.360 Um either way, uh we live in a fallen world, and and I just wanna I just want to share that um we hope we have a hope that one day Christ will come back and set all things right. 00:03:11.520 --> 00:03:20.639 And I want you to know that if if that's you in any of these situations, that he he knows and he deeply cares about that. 00:03:20.960 --> 00:03:27.919 Um with that said, I also do want to take a moment to honor the moms in this room, the mothers uh this morning. 00:03:28.240 --> 00:03:38.960 See the faithfulness of uh that mothers can bring into this world is is something that um is just a beauty that doesn't come from anyone else. 00:03:39.039 --> 00:03:42.080 Um it can't be done by by anyone else. 00:03:42.400 --> 00:03:46.560 I know the job of uh being a mom is often thankless. 00:03:46.719 --> 00:03:50.400 Um I'm told it's oftentimes not super glamorous, too. 00:03:50.719 --> 00:04:17.439 I don't know if that's true or not, but um, but I want to encourage you uh that you know, with every with every diaper that you change, with every uh lunch that you pack, with every you know, bandaid on the skin knee, with every time you sit down on the floor and and and play with your kids and teach them something, that what you're doing is you're actually taking, taking like a little tile and placing it into a mosaic. 00:04:17.920 --> 00:04:26.000 And I know, especially at the age that a lot of the kids are in our church, that it it probably doesn't look like a lot. 00:04:26.160 --> 00:04:30.800 When we're up so close to things, they just it's hard to see clearly. 00:04:30.879 --> 00:04:46.639 It may kind of feel jumbled, may kind of feel like a mess, but I promise you that at some point, one day, you're gonna get to step back from that and see this this great piece of art that you had a large part in helping create. 00:04:47.040 --> 00:04:52.720 Um, you know, I can say this uh I can say this because this has been true in my life. 00:04:52.959 --> 00:04:59.759 And, you know, since James is gone and somebody gave me a microphone this morning, I get to get to talk about that for just a second. 00:05:00.079 --> 00:05:08.319 Um see, there's there's actually three three women uh in this room that have made that kind of impact on me. 00:05:08.800 --> 00:05:13.439 Um first off, my grandma, and uh who's sitting over here. 00:05:13.680 --> 00:05:16.319 See, if you make him cry, you get extra points too. 00:05:16.560 --> 00:05:23.040 Um but she uh she has been an incredibly faithful woman for through a lot of hard times. 00:05:23.279 --> 00:05:29.199 And through that faithfulness, she actually was a catalyst that led my whole family to Christ. 00:05:29.439 --> 00:05:35.920 Um and then my mom, who's also sitting here, uh maybe we can make her cry too. 00:05:36.240 --> 00:05:44.560 She uh after becoming a Christian, she faithfully raised us um to love the Lord and the way that she taught us, the way that she educated us. 00:05:44.879 --> 00:05:49.040 And that has changed everything for me. 00:05:49.279 --> 00:05:54.720 Um and then my wife, who's sitting right there too, she probably won't cry. 00:05:54.959 --> 00:06:09.360 But uh, but she's she's an incredibly faithful woman, and I get to see her labor and and and really embrace the role of motherhood that that God's given her in our family, and just it's just such a blessing. 00:06:09.519 --> 00:06:24.800 And so uh my point in saying that um is that we see oftentimes in scripture, and we'll we'll touch on this later in the sermon today, but faithfulness begets more faithfulness. 00:06:25.040 --> 00:06:31.519 The Lord honors faithfulness, and and the Lord is going to honor the faithfulness of you of you mothers. 00:06:31.680 --> 00:06:35.040 So um with that said, happy Mother's Day. 00:06:35.199 --> 00:06:36.319 James would be so proud. 00:06:36.399 --> 00:06:39.199 I managed to kind of shoehorn a sermon in before the sermon. 00:06:39.360 --> 00:06:42.399 So um I'm I've been taking notes. 00:06:42.560 --> 00:06:47.439 Um I'm gonna go ahead and pray, and then uh we'll jump into Genesis 43. 00:06:48.399 --> 00:06:50.160 God, uh, thank you. 00:06:50.639 --> 00:06:53.680 Thank you for uh for your word. 00:06:54.160 --> 00:07:03.120 Um thank you that we can, that we have it, that we can uh that we can pull meaning out from these stories that happened so long ago. 00:07:03.279 --> 00:07:10.560 Um God, thank you for creating them so that we might learn the patterns in which you have created and ordered this world. 00:07:10.800 --> 00:07:16.639 God, I pray that you would soften our hearts to hear what it is um you have for us this morning. 00:07:16.879 --> 00:07:26.720 God, I pray that you would um be with me as and uh as I preach this morning, that these words would be your words um this morning. 00:07:26.879 --> 00:07:31.519 Uh thank you for this opportunity and thank you for Mother's Day and for creating moms. 00:07:31.680 --> 00:07:34.480 Um after all, we wouldn't be here without them. 00:07:34.720 --> 00:07:35.680 In Jesus' name. 00:07:35.920 --> 00:07:36.560 Amen. 00:07:37.600 --> 00:07:41.600 Okay, so we're gonna do like a quick recap. 00:07:41.759 --> 00:07:49.839 So this is like uh, you know, like when you're watching whatever show you watch on netflix, you know, this is like last week in Genesis, right? 00:07:49.920 --> 00:07:52.079 So this is the quick recap. 00:07:52.160 --> 00:07:56.240 Um, but I think it's important to do because uh the story is so narrative. 00:07:56.480 --> 00:08:04.800 Um we get so much like dialogue, we get so much, it's almost kind of like reading like a novel with the story of Joseph, and we hadn't seen that before. 00:08:04.879 --> 00:08:07.680 So I think it's important to kind of understand where we are. 00:08:08.319 --> 00:08:12.879 So last week, the brothers uh they all come down to Egypt. 00:08:12.959 --> 00:08:20.000 So we got a famine in the land, they leave Canaan, come down to Egypt, but they don't bring their youngest brother Benjamin with them. 00:08:20.240 --> 00:08:26.800 Um, and he's kind of a side note, but he's also the only other full brother of Joseph. 00:08:27.680 --> 00:08:43.200 So um they come down and Joseph says, Okay, you can you can buy some food, um, but I need you to go back and I need you to bring your youngest brother to me before I'm gonna give you any more food. 00:08:43.519 --> 00:08:47.360 And I'm gonna keep Simeon with me. 00:08:47.519 --> 00:08:53.840 Um, he was one of the middle brothers, and I, you know, he probably did that as some sort of insurance policy, uh, to be honest. 00:08:54.080 --> 00:09:04.639 So keeping in mind, the the last time that Joseph saw these men, his brothers, they were on the edge of killing him and then decide to instead sell him into slavery. 00:09:04.960 --> 00:09:08.799 So I don't think he trusts them at this point. 00:09:09.279 --> 00:09:29.840 Um and so he, and probably one reason he would have wanted them to actually bring Benjamin back, knowing this is the only other brother, the only other full brother he has, um, the other son of his father's favorite wife, Rachel, is he's probably thinking, okay, um, I was the favorite. 00:09:30.159 --> 00:09:32.240 They sold me into slavery. 00:09:32.559 --> 00:09:36.399 How do I know that this guy, that my younger brother is still alive? 00:09:36.559 --> 00:09:40.399 How do I know that they didn't do something else to him? 00:09:40.559 --> 00:09:41.840 So I need to see him. 00:09:42.000 --> 00:09:43.519 I want him to come back here to me. 00:09:43.600 --> 00:09:46.320 And keep in mind, the brothers don't know this is Joseph yet. 00:09:46.639 --> 00:09:48.879 Um, so that's what he does. 00:09:49.039 --> 00:09:51.600 And uh, so so now we've got this journey back. 00:09:51.679 --> 00:09:58.799 So they go back, they talk to their father Jacob, um, and tell him, hey, we got to bring Benjamin back. 00:09:58.960 --> 00:10:01.679 And Jacob's not really having any of this. 00:10:01.840 --> 00:10:07.519 He's gripped with fear that he's gonna lose another son. 00:10:08.159 --> 00:10:13.120 Um and what we see is we see that Reuben, he's the oldest. 00:10:13.279 --> 00:10:21.200 Reuben um he tries to take control of the situation, and he's he does it in a very absurd way. 00:10:21.360 --> 00:10:24.080 I mean, totally, totally overcorrects. 00:10:24.320 --> 00:10:32.639 But what he says is he goes, Okay, dad, if uh something happens to Benjamin, then you can kill my two sons. 00:10:33.600 --> 00:10:38.639 Which uh it just it's just really absurd when you think about it. 00:10:38.720 --> 00:10:47.600 He the total overcorrection, trying to take control, and it it doesn't work, and it probably doesn't work because it makes no sense. 00:10:47.759 --> 00:10:54.000 Um hey, if you you've already lost one son, if you lose another, then you can also lose two grandsons. 00:10:54.240 --> 00:10:58.240 That's not a great, it's not a great situation to put your father in. 00:10:58.480 --> 00:11:02.000 So now we find ourselves uh in an in chapter 43. 00:11:02.159 --> 00:11:04.000 This is where we pick up today. 00:11:05.039 --> 00:11:11.279 So, and we see this dialogue between Judah and his father Jacob. 00:11:11.440 --> 00:11:17.600 Now, up until this point, Judah has not been the most upstanding character in our story. 00:11:17.759 --> 00:11:38.480 He's um he was uh one of the kind of ringleaders of wanting to uh sell, or actually wanting to kill Joseph, and then he it was his suggestion that says, actually, let's let's sell him into slavery so we can we can actually profit from this, actually make some money and kind of kill birds with two, what kill two birds with one stone. 00:11:38.559 --> 00:11:40.480 There we go, um, at this. 00:11:40.559 --> 00:11:49.039 And so, but here um he actually takes some responsibility for his younger brother Benjamin. 00:11:49.919 --> 00:12:08.080 See, um and maybe um, you know, we don't know what was in his mind or in his heart here, but maybe him taking responsibility is his way of maybe making up for what he did to his other brother so many years ago. 00:12:08.320 --> 00:12:16.879 Maybe he's uh you know trying to do something right this time when um all those years ago he this is what this is about. 00:12:17.039 --> 00:12:21.919 I mean, his father's afraid because he lost Joseph. 00:12:22.159 --> 00:12:26.320 So maybe that's kind of what is um driving him here. 00:12:26.559 --> 00:12:36.080 But either way, it works, and the faithfulness of Judah in this situation encourages his father, Joseph. 00:12:36.320 --> 00:12:38.639 Jacob, got a lot of Jays here, Jacob. 00:12:38.879 --> 00:12:44.320 Um, so like I said before, faithfulness does beget more faithfulness. 00:12:44.559 --> 00:12:53.919 He doesn't try any tricks, he doesn't try to manipulate, he doesn't try to backdoor the situation, he simply stated the truth, and then he took responsibility. 00:12:54.080 --> 00:12:56.080 So it we see that verses eight and nine. 00:12:56.320 --> 00:13:08.559 And Judah said to Israel, his father, send the boy with me, and we will arise and go, that we may live and not die, both we and you, and also our little ones. 00:13:08.799 --> 00:13:13.840 I will be a pledge of his safety, and from my hand you shall require him. 00:13:14.480 --> 00:13:21.679 If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, let me bear the blame forever. 00:13:21.919 --> 00:13:25.120 If we had not delayed, we would have now returned twice. 00:13:25.360 --> 00:13:27.440 I think that last bit's kind of funny, too. 00:13:27.519 --> 00:13:30.320 I mean, he's just kind of he is turning the knife a little bit. 00:13:30.399 --> 00:13:35.840 He's like, look, if we just could have quit arguing, could have made the trip back and forth already. 00:13:36.159 --> 00:13:42.399 Um, but so this is the first, so see, we we serve a God who he operates in patterns. 00:13:42.720 --> 00:13:48.399 Our God operates in patterns, and he's ordered this world in certain ways. 00:13:48.960 --> 00:14:02.080 And we have uh one of those ways is that we have all these small stories in the Bible that mimic and mirror the grand story of redemption that is taking place. 00:14:02.960 --> 00:14:12.320 And this pattern is one of one stepping into and taking responsibility for another. 00:14:13.360 --> 00:14:26.080 We see that shown here in this conversation where Judah is saying, I will bear the burden for him, I will take responsibility for his life. 00:14:27.120 --> 00:14:32.480 And we we see that in so many other ways in the way that God has ordered this world. 00:14:32.639 --> 00:14:34.639 We see it, we see it in marriage. 00:14:34.879 --> 00:14:40.480 We see that with a husband stepping in and taking responsibility for his wife. 00:14:40.720 --> 00:14:47.519 Ephesians 5 25, husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. 00:14:48.240 --> 00:14:53.039 We see it in the pattern in which we're supposed to live every day as Christians. 00:14:53.360 --> 00:14:55.679 John 15, 12 through 13. 00:14:55.759 --> 00:15:00.240 This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 00:15:00.480 --> 00:15:06.480 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friend. 00:15:08.000 --> 00:15:19.519 And we ultimately see this with Christ, stepping between us and the wrath of God, taking responsibility for our sin. 00:15:20.320 --> 00:15:31.600 Second Corinthians 5, 21, for our sake he made him sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 00:15:32.639 --> 00:15:35.039 See, this pattern is woven into us. 00:15:35.120 --> 00:15:37.679 It's woven into our world. 00:15:38.159 --> 00:15:48.720 And why do you think that a lot of the even a lot of the movies and a lot of the stories that we uh that we love as a culture have this element in them? 00:15:48.960 --> 00:15:49.600 Think about it. 00:15:49.679 --> 00:15:52.000 Um, think about Braveheart, right? 00:15:52.639 --> 00:15:58.000 Gladiator, um Armageddon, Titanic. 00:15:58.240 --> 00:16:05.840 Well, I'm not convinced there wasn't enough room on that door for the both of them, but um that continues to be a debate in our house. 00:16:06.080 --> 00:16:08.320 But uh, but you get the point. 00:16:08.559 --> 00:16:19.120 So um responsibility and sacrifice for another is woven into our story, and that is because it is our story. 00:16:19.440 --> 00:16:21.759 See, we need to be saved. 00:16:21.919 --> 00:16:32.799 We need Jesus to step between us and death, and he took it upon himself, and because he did that, right? 00:16:33.279 --> 00:16:38.159 The asteroid doesn't come and destroy the earth, Scotland goes free. 00:16:38.559 --> 00:16:47.360 Um I think Rose would have been fine either way, but um but um this is a joke in our house. 00:16:47.440 --> 00:16:57.039 I've never actually never seen Titanic, um, but it's my wife's favorite movie, and so at this point I've managed to not do that for 12 years, so I don't know. 00:16:57.120 --> 00:17:00.639 Maybe my day is coming, but um anyhow. 00:17:00.799 --> 00:17:10.000 Um but it's it's oh well played, yeah. 00:17:10.240 --> 00:17:11.839 Well, well played, Heidi. 00:17:12.319 --> 00:17:16.480 Um so it's uh it's really important though. 00:17:16.640 --> 00:17:18.640 It's really important for us to be able to recognize. 00:17:18.799 --> 00:17:28.160 I think James does a really good job teaching on this, by the way, but I think it's um it's very important for us to recognize the patterns in which God orders his world. 00:17:28.240 --> 00:17:35.440 And I think it's also really important for us to be able to spot Christ in the stories of the Old Testament. 00:17:36.079 --> 00:17:54.079 See, um, the Old Testament all points to him, and we see we see the grand narrative pointing to him, and we even see it in these smaller stories, everything from the promise that God makes to Abraham just to these to these small conversations between Judah and Jacob. 00:17:54.319 --> 00:17:59.519 Um, see, we serve an incredibly consistent God. 00:18:00.640 --> 00:18:06.319 He does not change, his playbook stays the same. 00:18:06.640 --> 00:18:14.240 God's not like Peyton Manning back there calling audibles, yelling Omaha behind the line of scrimmage, right? 00:18:14.720 --> 00:18:18.319 His story, his his playbook stays the same. 00:18:18.880 --> 00:18:21.759 Okay, so now let's move into the second part of our story. 00:18:21.839 --> 00:18:25.680 Um, the part of our story that I didn't make Danielle read this morning. 00:18:25.759 --> 00:18:27.519 Um, you're welcome, by the way. 00:18:27.680 --> 00:18:30.000 The text has been getting pretty long lately. 00:18:30.319 --> 00:18:34.480 So, verses 16 and uh through eighteen. 00:18:34.720 --> 00:18:46.720 When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, Bring the men into the house and slaughter an animal, and make ready, for the men are to dine with me at noon. 00:18:47.279 --> 00:18:51.839 The man did as Joseph told him, and brought the men to Joseph's house. 00:18:52.079 --> 00:19:09.359 And the men were afraid because they because they were brought to Joseph's house, and they said, It is because of the money which was replaced in our sacks the first time, that we were brought in, so that he may assault us and fall upon us and make us servants and seize our donkeys. 00:19:11.039 --> 00:19:23.599 This reaction is it's it's almost it's almost comical at this point, because so the first time they come down, they do get food, um, they don't have to pay for the food. 00:19:23.680 --> 00:19:43.680 Um, the money was put back, and now they come back again with their brother, and they're invited to a feast to sit down at the table of the second most powerful man in all of Egypt, but they don't see it that way. 00:19:44.079 --> 00:19:59.119 Um the guilt, I think that it the guilt of what they did to Joseph so many years ago has been weighing on them to the point in which it's really corrupted their hearts. 00:19:59.359 --> 00:20:05.759 Um, and this is what happens when we have secret and unrepentant sin in our lives. 00:20:06.319 --> 00:20:12.559 We become paranoid that we're gonna get found out, always kind of looking over our shoulder. 00:20:12.720 --> 00:20:14.400 Um, when's the other shoe gonna drop? 00:20:14.480 --> 00:20:17.119 When am I finally gonna get what's coming to me? 00:20:18.559 --> 00:20:22.240 See, keeping sin in the dark, it eats away at us. 00:20:22.400 --> 00:20:32.960 I mean, can you can you imagine for all these years what the brothers had to be dealing with, hearing footsteps, wondering when's the other shoe gonna drop? 00:20:33.039 --> 00:20:34.240 When are they gonna find out? 00:20:34.400 --> 00:20:41.119 When, when, when see, uh Zach read this earlier. 00:20:41.359 --> 00:20:51.279 Um, first John 1, 5 through 7, this is the message we have heard from him to proclaim to you that God is light and in him is no darkness at all. 00:20:51.440 --> 00:20:57.039 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 00:20:57.279 --> 00:21:06.079 But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his son, cleanses us from all sin. 00:21:08.720 --> 00:21:22.799 The cool the the part that I noticed about this verse, um, maybe for the first time as I was preparing this, is that he says if we walk in the light, yes, we have a fellowship with him, but it says we have fellowship with one another. 00:21:23.200 --> 00:21:33.519 See, that grace, that that righteousness that is imputed to us, that makes us right with God when we repent from our sins, that extends out. 00:21:33.759 --> 00:21:41.920 That extends out into the relationships we have, it's then it extends out into our families, extends out into the to the people sitting in this church. 00:21:42.160 --> 00:21:51.039 This is what happens when we walk in the light and we don't keep this sin secret, bottled up inside of us. 00:21:53.759 --> 00:21:59.839 Okay, so we're gonna move into the last part of our narrative today, um, verses 26 through 31. 00:22:00.319 --> 00:22:00.640 one. 00:22:02.000 --> 00:22:12.319 When Joseph came home, they brought into the house to him a present, the present that they had with them, and bowed down to him to the ground. 00:22:12.480 --> 00:22:18.960 And he inquired about their welfare and said, Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? 00:22:19.279 --> 00:22:20.880 Is he still alive? 00:22:21.200 --> 00:22:25.519 They said, Your servant our father is well, he is still alive. 00:22:25.759 --> 00:22:37.440 And they bowed their heads and prostrated themselves, and he lifted up his eyes and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother's son, and said, Is this your younger your youngest brother of whom you spoke to me? 00:22:37.759 --> 00:22:39.440 God be gracious to you, my son. 00:22:39.599 --> 00:22:47.839 Then Joseph hurried out for his compassion grew warm for his brother, and he sought a place to weep, and he entered his chamber and wept there. 00:22:48.079 --> 00:22:53.440 Then he washed his face and came out and controlling himself he said, Serve the food. 00:22:54.559 --> 00:23:02.559 So this is kind of a cool thing that we get with Joseph is we're really getting into like the real life. 00:23:03.759 --> 00:23:06.559 We get to kind of see more emotion from him. 00:23:06.640 --> 00:23:09.599 We get to see a little bit more narrative in this story. 00:23:09.920 --> 00:23:16.640 And you know I think that I think we oftentimes um we think of these men as characters. 00:23:16.880 --> 00:23:23.920 And I think that you know as I was thinking about this I'm a Christian. 00:23:24.079 --> 00:23:25.440 I believe all this is true. 00:23:25.599 --> 00:23:36.000 I believe it all really happened but for some reason we kind of look back and we they they seem to kind of exist in our minds somewhere between fiction and nonfiction. 00:23:36.240 --> 00:23:45.200 They're not quite fiction right we we believe it happened but but we don't actually think of them as like real people. 00:23:46.559 --> 00:23:51.119 But the truth is they were and they really did exist. 00:23:51.519 --> 00:24:01.519 They had real families they had real problems they had real emotions and if you think about it it's it's it's the same with us. 00:24:01.680 --> 00:24:56.640 I mean let's be honest life is actually pretty complicated when you when you really stop and think about it we have complicated relationships with real people um with our families with our with our siblings with our spouses with our uh with our parents um we experience joy and sorrow with them sometimes we experience joy and sorrow because of them and these are these are real things and these are the kind of things that Joseph actually had to deal with and some of the questions he may have been asking himself when he went back to try to deal with these emotions to to weep to um is he's probably thinking man this is so great my brother's still alive can I trust the other brothers though? 00:24:56.880 --> 00:25:22.240 Like have they changed whatever those things were that I'm sure it was a mix you know some joy maybe some confusion hope what he did was he called them to feast at his table see this is another pattern that God writes into these smaller stories that point us towards the larger story of redemption. 00:25:23.680 --> 00:25:33.039 Back in verse verse 11 that Danielle read it says then their father Israel said to them If it must be so then do this. 00:25:33.200 --> 00:25:47.440 Take some of the choice fruits of the land in your bags and carry a present down to the man a little balm, a little honey gum, myrrh, pistachio nuts, and almonds so I mean I'm sure I'm sure this is all very nice, right? 00:25:47.599 --> 00:26:06.400 I mean who doesn't love a good charcuterie board from time to time but this I I think that this attempt for them to buy favor is something that's something that I'm sure that we do at times but we cannot buy favor with the Lord. 00:26:06.640 --> 00:27:38.799 And this this contrast this picture that we see the nuts the pistachios the gum I don't know Jack loves gum he'd have liked that but the gum um the contrast between that and the feast that was set before these men talking about the feast of the second most powerful man in all of Egypt the guy who actually has access to all the food um and he sets a feast before them and here they are with their pistachios uh you know with with this this this small gift in relation to what Joseph had set before them but isn't isn't that the way that it is with God we any attempt to save ourselves to buy him it doesn't work and it is and it pales in comparison to the grace and the gift that he offers us Colossians 1 15 through 20 listen to the the the language in this the strong language in this says the Son is the image of the invisible God the firstborn over all creation for in him all things were created things in heaven and on earth visible and invisible whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities all things have been created through him and for him. 00:27:39.359 --> 00:29:02.000 He is before all things and in him all things hold together and he is the head of the body the church he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead so that everything in everything he might have supremacy for God was pleased to have full his fullness dwell in him and through him to reconcile himself to all things whether things on earth or things in heaven by making peace through his blood shed on the cross we aren't part of this conversation this is this is him this it did not say that that through him with our help through him along with us he reconciles no he reconciles all things to himself he is the one with all the power and he is the one alone who offers us this gift so just like we see in this story of Joseph he offers a meal for them to come and sit and feast what is this this this this image should kind of conjure up something and remind you of something that we do here every week communion. 00:29:02.720 --> 00:29:11.680 See it's interesting what we find out at the end of this chapter I'm not going to read it but what we find out at the end of this chapter is Joseph does not actually dine with them here. 00:29:11.920 --> 00:29:13.680 He doesn't sit with them. 00:29:14.880 --> 00:29:24.480 And in the same way Christ has not returned yet and one day he will one day we will sit and we will feast with him. 00:29:25.839 --> 00:29:36.720 But just like the brothers who sold Joseph into slavery we are the reasons why Jesus had to die. 00:29:37.519 --> 00:29:45.279 It was our sin that sent him to the cross and it was because of us that he died. 00:29:45.359 --> 00:30:01.279 And just like in this story he forgives and not only does he forgive but then he he asks us to come and sit and feast with him he treats us like royalty. 00:30:01.519 --> 00:31:18.559 We get to sit alongside of him and just like his brothers did the very men who tried to kill him who sold him into slavery even though they're skeptical of it right I think we can relate to that sometimes too even though they're skeptical of it he's treating them like royalty having them dine at his table um we are going to take communion this morning um here in just a moment and I want as we do that if you're a Christian I want you to come and and taste um it's just a taste of what is to come that's why we do this it's a hope that we have that one day um it's not just small pieces of gluten-free bread and wine at the front of a sanctuary it's going to be a feast laid out before us and at the head of that table we're going to be sitting with with Christ with our Savior because of what he did not because of what we did. 00:31:19.119 --> 00:31:57.920 If you're not a Christian then we ask that you you would abstain from taking communion this morning but please um if any of this has stirred something inside of you come talk to us talk to who brought you um this gift is open we're gonna read um oh and and as you do come down um moms these roses are are for you I didn't buy them Krista did um she thinks of everything uh we're gonna read a little bit different uh verse this morning for communion than we usually do um but I think it's very fitting and uh as we come and take this this morning. 00:31:58.079 --> 00:32:06.799 So um after we do I'll pray and then um you can also go grab your kids that are in redemption kids and we can worship together as families. 00:32:07.119 --> 00:32:37.200 Matthew 26 26 through 29 Now as they were eating Jesus took bread and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples and said Take eat this is my body and he took a cup and when he had given thanks he gave it to them saying Drink of it all of you for it is the blood of the covenant which is poured out for the many for the forgiveness of sins. 00:32:37.440 --> 00:32:46.559 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom. 00:32:48.160 --> 00:32:57.039 God what a gift you have given us in your Son and what a gift you have given us in your scripture. 00:32:57.200 --> 00:33:10.799 God thank you for for ordering this world in such a consistent way that we can see the pattern of your redemption woven into all of these stories all these stories that really happened throughout scripture. 00:33:12.000 --> 00:33:26.000 God we just ask that uh that these that we would take these things to heart understanding that they really happened and they really happened for the purpose of pointing us towards Christ. 00:33:27.200 --> 00:33:36.480 God I pray that um the moms this morning would feel honored um appreciated for the work that they do every day. 00:33:37.279 --> 00:33:39.599 And God we just pray a blessing on them as well. 00:33:40.559 --> 00:33:44.160 We thank you for this church and for everything that you've done for us. 00:33:44.640 --> 00:33:46.640 In Jesus' name Amen.