Joseph:
A Man with A Dream (120e)
Genesis 37:23-28
James R. Davis
There are various kinds of dreams. There are
dreams of the daytime and there are dreams of the night. Both can turn
into nightmares. We are told that our daydreams are important in that they
direct, focus and motivate our lives.
The poorest person is not one without a nickel
in their pocket, but it is the person without a dream. A person without
a dream believes only in what is seen, only what is immediate, only what
one can put their hands on. This person may be a student, a truck driver,
a banker, a college president, a clerk or a junk dealer - - their occupation
doesn't matter. One of life's greatest tragedies is a person with a 10-by-12
capacity and a two-by-four soul. (Dr. Kenneth Hildebrand) It is like a
prisoner in prison that has confined self to a 6-by-8 cell when he/she
could be living on earth with no bars attached.
Do you have a dream for your life? More importantly,
is that dream a God-given dream? There is great difference in man made
dream and God-given dreams. Man-made dreams will not stand the test of
time and difficulties. A person without a God-given dream lacks depth
and vision. Too many have planned all their lives to retire and failed
to live that long. Only God can give you a worthwhile vision for your life.
Through a study of God's Word you can develop a worthwhile vision for your
life. A person without a God-given dream is like a great ship made for
the mighty ocean but trying to navigate in a millpond. This person has
no far port to reach, no lifting horizon, no precious cargo to carry. Her/his
hours are absorbed in routine and petty tyrannies. It is a small wonder
if this person gets dissatisfied, quarrelsome and 'fed up.'
There is a warning we must receive about our
dreams. When you have a God-given vision, don't expect everyone to buy
into it. Especially those who have rejected God's dream for their own lives.
A God-given dream is very personal, and even those who do accept it will
only understand it when it comes to fruition. In the meantime you are left
to work out the details with little help from others.
Joseph's God-Given Dream
The amazing thing about our Patriarchal Fathers
is that each of them had a God-given dream. Their dreams were bigger than
life. We are going to study an Old Testament character this morning. His
name is Joseph. As we look at Joseph's life think how Joseph's dream given
by God gave him direction.
Genesis 37:2-11
This is the account of Jacob.
Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers,
the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives, and he brought
their father a bad report about them. Now Israel loved Joseph more than
any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age;
and he made a richly ornamented robe for him. When his brothers saw that
their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could
not speak a kind word to him. Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to
his brothers, they hated him all the more. He said to them, "Listen to
this dream I had: We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when
suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around
mine and bowed down to it." His brothers said to him, "Do you intend to
reign over us? Will you actually rule us?" And they hated him all the more
because of his dream and what he had said. Then he had another dream, and
he told it to his brothers. "Listen," he said, "I had another dream, and
this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me." When
he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and
said, "What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers
actually come and bow down to the ground before you?" His brothers were
jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind.
God comes to Joseph in this dream and reveals
his plan for Joseph's life. Joseph doesn't really know at this point exactly
what this dream entails. Initially, when we have a dream and goals for
our lives, we could never dream in a million years what we will have to
go through to see the fulfillment of those aspirations. Joseph didn't know
where this dream would lead him or how it would be developed by the circumstances
of his life, but through thick and thin Joseph trusted God's plan. We know
that God has a plan for our lives, but it is hard to tell where it will
end. Joseph started out literally in the pits. He ends up the assistant
to Pharaoh of Egypt and probably the 2nd most powerful man in the world.
Joseph was a very bold dreamer, he proclaimed
to his brothers that he had a dream. They didn't like the way he phrased
it so they sold him into slavery. I think the reason that they were jealous
was largely because they had failed to accept God's vision for their own
lives.
God-Given Dreams Keep Us Focused
I would like to think that when I accept God's
vision for my life that from that time forward life will be lived on a
plateau free from troubles. But this was hardly the case for Joseph.
Genesis 37:12-14
Now his brothers had gone to
graze their father's flocks near Shechem, and Israel said to Joseph, "As
you know, your brothers are grazing the flocks near Shechem. Come, I am
going to send you to them." "Very well," he replied. So he said to him,
"Go and see if all is well with your brothers and with the flocks, and
bring word back to me." Then he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron.
Genesis 37:18-28
But they saw him in the distance,
and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him."Here comes that dreamer!"
they said to each other. "Come now, let's kill him and throw him into one
of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we'll
see what comes of his dreams." When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue
him from their hands. "Let's not take his life," he said. "Don't shed any
blood. Throw him into this cistern here in the desert, but don't lay a
hand on him." Reuben said this to rescue him from them and take him back
to his father. So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of
his robe-- the richly ornamented robe he was wearing--and they took him
and threw him into the cistern. Now the cistern was empty; there was no
water in it. As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw
a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were loaded with
spices, balm and myrrh, and they were on their way to take them down to
Egypt. Judah said to his brothers, "What will we gain if we kill our brother
and cover up his blood? Come, let's sell him to the Ishmaelites and not
lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood."
His brothers agreed. So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers
pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of
silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.
When I look at Joseph's life, I began to realize,
here is a life driven by a God-given dream. He didn't understand the difficulties
of the moment, but he held to his God-given dream. This dream kept Joseph
going in the midst of his troubles. He had a vision of the blessings of
a life lived for God. His dream inspired and energized him. That dream
made him say yes to his responsibilities in spite of all his problems and
he had plenty of them too.
First of all he has got family problems. What
can be more depressing than family problems? His family totally turns their
backs on him and he has to relocate. Now, I don't mean that North American
Van Lines came and moved him. Slave traders pulled him out of the pit.
If you have ever been uprooted and had to start all over, you know how
depressing that can be.
But Joseph kept his eyes on God. Later, just
before the famine hit Egypt Joseph had a son and he named him Manasseh
which means "God has made me forget my sorrow and my father's house." Joseph
had another son he named Ephriam which means "God has made me fruitful
in the land of my affliction."
When the great famine came and threatened
to eliminate many of God's people in the land of his father Jacob, the
dream was kept alive and salvation came to all of Joseph's family because
he never let God's dream die. In the end, when Joseph's brothers realized
the trauma they had caused for their brother, they feared that he would
have them killed, they went to Joseph and tried to con him for their very
life. Joseph said, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good
to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis
50:20) Dream on Joseph!!!
It was his dream that kept him focused.
God-Given Dreams Make Us Responsible
His dream enabled him to see his responsibilities.
As he clung to this God given dream he received guidance for his life.
Genesis 39:1-5 Now Joseph had
been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh's
officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who
had taken him there. The LORD was with Joseph and he prospered, and he
lived in the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the
LORD was with him and that the LORD gave him success in everything he did,
Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him
in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he
owned. From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that
he owned, the LORD blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph.
The blessing of the LORD was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house
and in the field. One thing that is forcefully taught in this passage is
that Joseph never lost a sense of God's presence. The passage says that
"the Lord was with Joseph and he prospered and he lived in the house of
his Egyptian master."
We need to ask Joseph a question, "How do
you say no to despair?" Why didn't Joseph sink in despair? A dream gives
guidance. Joseph knew no matter what happened, he couldn't let his environment
overwhelm him. So Joseph's dream made him responsible and this affected
his lifestyle and set him up as a model to the Egyptians. Notice that wherever
you put Joseph, in a foreign country, Potiphar's house, in a prison . .
. wherever you put him, he walks in and says, "What needs to be done here?"
That attitude always kept Joseph from despair and it kept him from sinking.
If you are trying to pull yourself out of despair, you don't do it by getting
everything you want, but by realizing what you already have. If it is nothing
but God's plan for your life that is all you need.
Potiphar saw that the hand of the Lord was
with Joseph. God gave Joseph success in everything he did. There is nothing
in this passage that indicates that Joseph believed God had deserted him
in his difficulties. On the contrary, Joseph must have been telling these
people about his God. Joseph in the midst of his difficulties was facing
his responsibilities and giving God the credit for his success. Otherwise
how would Potiphar have known about his God? I really believe when Joseph
was sold into slavery, he knew that all that he had was God, and he knew
that God was all he needed. It is amazing how Joseph could look past the
present difficulties and continue to see the hand of God in his life. I
don't see Joseph looking around feeling sorry for himself, asking, "Where
is God when I need him the most?" I am sure that he had those moments,
like any human would. But he was a man who knew that God was with him regardless
of his difficulties. He was seeking to be responsible wherever he was led.
God-Given Dreams Help in Times of Temptation
Joseph's dream inspired him in times of temptation.
God was richly blessing Joseph's life. He had worked a few years with Potiphar's
servants. His master took notice and turned everything he owned over to
Joseph's care. And the passage says that the Lord blessed this Egyptian
for his kindness to Joseph. God blessed everything in his house and in
his fields. It was then that everyone began to take notice of Joseph. Until
now he had been a lowly servant, but now that he has gained status, eyes
begin to focus on him, especially the eyes of Potiphar's wife.
Gen 39:6b-20
Now Joseph was well-built and
handsome, and after a while his master's wife took notice of Joseph and
said, "Come to bed with me!" But he refused. "With me in charge," he told
her, "my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything
he owns he has entrusted to my care. No one is greater in this house than
I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are
his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?"
And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with
her or even be with her. One day he went into the house to attend to his
duties and none of the household servants was inside. She caught him by
his cloak and said, "Come to bed with me!" But he left his cloak in her
hand and ran out of the house. When she saw that he had left his cloak
in her hand and had run out of the house, she called her household servants.
"Look," she said to them, "this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport
of us! He came in here to sleep with me, but I screamed. When he heard
me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house."
She kept his cloak beside her until his master
came home. Then she told him this story: "That Hebrew slave you brought
us came to me to make sport of me. But as soon as I screamed for help,
he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house." When his master
heard the story his wife told him, saying, "This is how your slave treated
me," he burned with anger. Joseph's master took him and put him in
prison, the place where the king's prisoners were confined.
Joseph is in a no win position. He couldn't
tell Potiphar what his wife was doing. No doubt other servants knew, but
they dared not say anything. So Joseph relied upon God. Joseph said, "With
me in charge," he told her, "my master does not concern himself
with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care.
No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing
from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such
a wicked thing and sin against God?" It is amazing how this young man
who was sold into slavery at 17 and is now probably 23 years old kept his
eye on God. "How can I sin against God?
We must understand that there is a greater
purpose behind our difficult circumstances. Obstacles are things you see
when you take your eye off the goal. We have a heavenly Father and yet
when tragedy comes, this Father seems to be silent. Sometimes we think
that a response from God would be helpful in getting people to believe
or maybe it would comfort us in a crisis. Would our faith be stronger if
only God would do that for us? If every time we faced some difficulty that
caused us to question God's purpose or plan, if we could just ask God and
He would talk to us personally, would that strengthen our faith? Yet in
those times God doesn't speak to us audibly. He, in a very real sense,
remains very silent. You may have some decisions to make and God is silent.
You may begin to wonder if God is at work in your life. You may think that
perhaps that for some reason God is not interested in you enough to work
in your life as he has in the lives of others. Two basic questions arise
when this happens: What is God up to by not answering us when we so desperately
need Him to talk to us? What are we to do?
It is in times like these that we need a God-given
dream bigger than life. You see it is hard to lose sight of a dream that
is bigger than life. Someone said, "The person who cannot see the ultimate
becomes a slave to the immediate." Joseph never lost sight of the ultimate.
His God-given dream sustained him in the moment. He was able to say, "Whatever
comes I cannot sin against God." When you realize that God is all you have,
you dare not turn your back on him when temptation comes.
But life didn't get any better for Joseph
at least at the moment. But he continued to experience the blessings of
God. It is only when you latch onto that God-given dream that God will
bless you in spite of your circumstances. Some people are thermostats and
other's are thermometers. A thermometer reflects the temperature of the
environment. The thermostat controls the temperature of the environment.
Joseph was a thermostat.
Without A God-Given Dream We Live A Life
of Regret
When we fail to accept God's plan for our
lives we live lives of regret. Joseph's brothers lived a life of regret
for what they had selfishly done to their brother. They had spent many
sleepless nights. When Joseph tested them to see if they had changed, notice
that they believed that they were being punished for what they had done
to their brother over 20 years before.
Gen 42:21-22
They said to one another, "Surely
we are being punished because of our brother. We saw how distressed he
was when he pleaded with us for his life, but we would not listen; that's
why this distress has come upon us." Reuben replied, "Didn't I tell you
not to sin against the boy? But you wouldn't listen! Now we must give an
accounting for his blood."
Gen 45:4-8
Then Joseph said to his brothers,
"Come close to me." When they had done so, he said, "I am your brother
Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and
do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to
save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been
famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing
and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant
on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. "So then, it was
not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of
his entire household and ruler of all Egypt."
A valuable dream starts with the needs of
people. A dream for this church begins with the needs of the people that
walk through those doors.
Even later, when Jacob died, their previous
treatment of Joseph still haunted them. They were sure that they were going
to get what was coming to them. Their father is dead and now Joseph can
punish them without any repercussions.
Gen 50:15-18
When Joseph's brothers saw
that their father was dead, they said, "What if Joseph holds a grudge against
us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?" So they sent word
to Joseph, saying, "Your father left these instructions before he died:
`This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers
the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.' Now please
forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father." When their
message came to him, Joseph wept. His brothers then came and threw themselves
down before him. "We are your slaves," they said.
Joseph reminded them that God intended it
for good, even though their motives were evil. But they continued to be
haunted even after being forgiven. How many have regrets of their past
failures, and although forgiven, they are still carrying the burden of
regret.
Gen 50:20-21
You intended to harm me, but
God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving
of many lives. So then, don't be afraid. I will provide for you and your
children." And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them.
The Fulfillment of Joseph's Dream
Joseph interpreted Pharoah's dream about seven
fat cows and seven lean and his dream about seven heads of grain, full
and good, growing on a single stalk and after them seven other heads sprouted
---withered and thin scorched by the east wind. And Joseph told the Pharaoh
that there was to be seven years of plenty and seven years of famine. Then
Joseph said:
Gen 41:33-44
"And now let Pharaoh look for
a discerning and wise man and put him in charge of the land of Egypt. Let
Pharaoh appoint commissioners over the land to take a fifth of the harvest
of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. They should collect all the
food of these good years that are coming and store up the grain under the
authority of Pharaoh, to be kept in the cities for food. This food should
be held in reserve for the country, to be used during the seven years of
famine that will come upon Egypt, so that the country may not be ruined
by the famine. "The plan seemed good to Pharaoh and to all his officials.
So Pharaoh asked them, "Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is
the spirit of God?" Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Since God has made all
this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. You shall
be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders.
Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you." So Pharaoh
said to Joseph, "I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt."
Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on Joseph's
finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain around
his neck. He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in-command, and men
shouted before him, "Make way!" Thus he put him in charge of the whole
land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "I am Pharaoh, but without
your word no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt."
It was at this very moment that the sun, moon
and stars bowed to Joseph. He was thirty years old. He was sold into slavery
when he was 17 and spent the last seven years in prison. He was now thirty
years old.
Judah came to his brother Joseph later and
said, " . . . you are equal to Pharaoh himself." At the time he spoke these
words little did he know that it was Joseph to whom he was speaking. Joseph
had not yet revealed himself to his brothers. Yet we see them bowing to
Joseph according to Joseph's God-given dream.
I heard someone interview a popular pop singer
saying you seem to make a hit overnight. The pop singer said that it had
been a long ten-year-night. Joseph's dream came true but it was long and
tortuous in coming. But it was worthwhile.
Conclusion:
A valuable dream challenges and attracts people.
In the 1960s when JFK dreamed about putting a man on the moon, it was technologically
and physically impossible at the time he voiced his dream. But that dream
gave this nation direction and an energy to accomplish the dream. "Only
he who sees the invisible can do the impossible."
A sociological study in which fifty people
over the age of ninety-five were asked one question: "If you could live
your life over again, what would you do differently?" it was an open-ended
question, and a multiplicity of answers came from these eldest of senior
citizens. However, three answers constantly re-emerged and dominated the
results of the study. These three answers were:
1. If I had it to do over again, I would reflect
more.
2. If I had it to do over again, I would
risk more.
3. If I had it to do over again, I would
do more things that would live on after I am dead.
