Summary: 7th in a series on the life of Joseph
Why was Joseph considered great? Why does the spirit of God seem to hover over his life more than any other person in the book of Genesis?
Joseph wasn’t any superhero; he was just a mere man. He never walked on water, he didn’t possess a halo, he never performed a miracle, this guy seemed to be a magnet to trouble and trying times, and he never wrote any of the Holy Scriptures, yet he was considered a great man in the Old Testament.
WHY? And what does that have to do with us who are gathered here this morning?
Joseph was such a great man, I believe, because he possessed a strong faith in God!
And this strong faith gave him a wonderful attitude toward the difficulties that he faced in his life.
I believe that one can make the assumption that one who possesses a strong faith and a good attitude can see that troubles are really nothing but challenges and not reasons to give up and quit!
Joseph was a step ahead of most of us, he got this concept!
Not only was he a step ahead of us, he was a step ahead of his brother as well…look at Genes is chapter 44 and we see him testing his brothers again
Now Joseph gave these instructions to the steward of his house: "Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man’s silver in the mouth of his sack. 2 Then put my cup, the silver one, in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the silver for his grain." And he did as Joseph said.
3 As morning dawned, the men were sent on their way with their donkeys. 4 They had not gone far from the city when Joseph said to his steward, "Go after those men at once, and when you catch up with them, say to them, ’Why have you repaid good with evil? 5 Isn’t this the cup my master drinks from and also uses for divination? This is a wicked thing you have done.’ "
6 When he caught up with them, he repeated these words to them. 7 But they said to him, "Why does my lord say such things? Far be it from your servants to do anything like that! 8 We even brought back to you from the land of Canaan the silver we found inside the mouths of our sacks. So why would we steal silver or gold from your master’s house? 9 If any of your servants is found to have it, he will die; and the rest of us will become my lord’s slaves."
10 "Very well, then," he said, "let it be as you say. Whoever is found to have it will become my slave; the rest of you will be free from blame."
11 Each of them quickly lowered his sack to the ground and opened it. 12 Then the steward proceeded to search, beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest. And the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack. 13 At this, they tore their clothes. Then they all loaded their donkeys and returned to the city.
14 Joseph was still in the house when Judah and his brothers came in, and they threw themselves to the ground before him.
Don’t you almost feel sorry for these guys? They knew that Benjamin hadn’t put the cup there, they simply lost it, did you catch verse 13, they are ripping their clothes, and now back to the prime minister s house they go...listen as Judah becomes the spokesman for the group…
16 "What can we say to my lord?" Judah replied. "What can we say? How can we prove our innocence? God has uncovered your servants’ guilt. We are now my lord’s slaves—we ourselves and the one who was found to have the cup."
Wow what a confession that Judah gives…just exactly what Joseph had been waiting to hear…YES it was happening, God is beginning to work in his brothers lives! Judah and his brothers are now realizing something that we need to understand is still true today and that is this my friend…God will not overlook an unrepented sin!
God doesn’t just sweep it under the rug and forget about it! In fact God doesn’t even have a rug! Now watch what happens next!
17 But Joseph said, "Far be it from me to do such a thing! Only the man who was found to have the cup will become my slave. The rest of you, go back to your father in peace."
Seems fair doesn’t it? After all why should everyone have to pay for one mans evil…Oh hang on…here comes what some bible scholars have labeled as the most unexcelled speeches in the old testament…