I just finished reading the story of Joseph in the book of Genesis. Most of us know this story from Sunday School. It is one of the early Bible lessons that we learn. Joseph, the favorite of twelve sons, was sold into slavery to passing Arab merchants who, in turn, sold him to one of the prominent officials of an Egyptian pharaoh. Through his integrity and God’s blessing, he rose to prominence in the official’s household only to be thrown into jail after falsely being accused of adultery by the official’s wife.
Once again, thanks to God’s blessings, Joseph eventually became in charge of the prison. While in prison, he meets Pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker who had been thrown in jail. The two men had dreams that they couldn’t interpret, but Joseph was able to interpret them accurately, impressing the cupbearer.
Two years later, the Pharaoh had two dreams that no one could figure out what their meanings were. The cupbearer, having been long released from prison, remembered Joseph’s skill and suggested him. After accurately interpreting Pharaoh’s dream thanks to God’s help, Joseph was raised to the role of vizier and placed in extreme high prominence, second only to Pharaoh himself.
One of the amazing things about Scripture is that no matter how much you read it, you will always discover new things, things that speak to you precisely where you are.
This time through Joseph’s story, I was struck by the fact that in all of this, God had a plan, but He waited for things to arrive at the correct time in order to execute it. Knowing that there would be a famine in the land 21 years in the future, God arranged a 17-year-old boy named Joseph to be sold into slavery by his jealous brothers to a certain group of Arab merchants who did business with a certain official in the Egyptian government.
Time passed and thanks to the increased lusting of the official’s wife and Joseph’s integrity, Joseph was thrown into prison in the correct time, even though he was falsely accused. If he had not been in prison, he would not have encountered the cupbearer and the baker and given them the interpretation for their dreams.
Before his release, the cupbearer promised Joseph that he would remember him when he got out of prison, but he forgot. Two more years had to pass before Pharaoh had a dream about a famine that wouldn’t happen for seven more years. Hearing about the dreams, the cupbearer finally remembered Joseph, and because of the cupbearer Joseph got to meet Pharaoh.
Thanks to Joseph and his advance planning, when the famine finally arrived, nations were saved, but more importantly, the nation of Israel was saved and brought into Egypt where they would grow into a true country. They would later leave Egypt with riches beyond their imagination.
I think it’s so easy for us to forget that God always has a plan, a grand, overarching plan, and that sometimes it takes time to move the pieces into place before things can pay off. Imagine if Joseph had not been in prison, how else would he have met the cupbearer and the baker? If the cupbearer had remembered Joseph right away after his release, Joseph’s services would not have been needed for another two years and where could he have gone in the meantime? It took 21 years for this plan to pay off and save Israel from a dangerous famine and help it grow into a serious country and a race of people.
How impatient are we when we ask for things right away? How foolish do we seem when we think everything ought to happen immediately? There have been times in my life when something I did – and long forgot about – comes back in an unexpected way, especially when I needed it at the time.
God is faithful and true and has a plan. We need to learn to trust Him and follow what He has in mind because He has a much larger picture and a much larger canvas than we do.
See you next week!
-Matt
bakercupbearerfaithfaithfulfollowGenesisimpatientJosephpatiencePharaohtrustwaitwaiting
God Has a Plan, Just Wait
April 26, 2012
Calvary
Comments Off on God Has a Plan, Just Wait
Matt
I just finished reading the story of Joseph in the book of Genesis. Most of us know this story from Sunday School. It is one of the early Bible lessons that we learn. Joseph, the favorite of twelve sons, was sold into slavery to passing Arab merchants who, in turn, sold him to one of the prominent officials of an Egyptian pharaoh. Through his integrity and God’s blessing, he rose to prominence in the official’s household only to be thrown into jail after falsely being accused of adultery by the official’s wife.
Once again, thanks to God’s blessings, Joseph eventually became in charge of the prison. While in prison, he meets Pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker who had been thrown in jail. The two men had dreams that they couldn’t interpret, but Joseph was able to interpret them accurately, impressing the cupbearer.
Two years later, the Pharaoh had two dreams that no one could figure out what their meanings were. The cupbearer, having been long released from prison, remembered Joseph’s skill and suggested him. After accurately interpreting Pharaoh’s dream thanks to God’s help, Joseph was raised to the role of vizier and placed in extreme high prominence, second only to Pharaoh himself.
One of the amazing things about Scripture is that no matter how much you read it, you will always discover new things, things that speak to you precisely where you are.
This time through Joseph’s story, I was struck by the fact that in all of this, God had a plan, but He waited for things to arrive at the correct time in order to execute it. Knowing that there would be a famine in the land 21 years in the future, God arranged a 17-year-old boy named Joseph to be sold into slavery by his jealous brothers to a certain group of Arab merchants who did business with a certain official in the Egyptian government.
Time passed and thanks to the increased lusting of the official’s wife and Joseph’s integrity, Joseph was thrown into prison in the correct time, even though he was falsely accused. If he had not been in prison, he would not have encountered the cupbearer and the baker and given them the interpretation for their dreams.
Before his release, the cupbearer promised Joseph that he would remember him when he got out of prison, but he forgot. Two more years had to pass before Pharaoh had a dream about a famine that wouldn’t happen for seven more years. Hearing about the dreams, the cupbearer finally remembered Joseph, and because of the cupbearer Joseph got to meet Pharaoh.
Thanks to Joseph and his advance planning, when the famine finally arrived, nations were saved, but more importantly, the nation of Israel was saved and brought into Egypt where they would grow into a true country. They would later leave Egypt with riches beyond their imagination.
I think it’s so easy for us to forget that God always has a plan, a grand, overarching plan, and that sometimes it takes time to move the pieces into place before things can pay off. Imagine if Joseph had not been in prison, how else would he have met the cupbearer and the baker? If the cupbearer had remembered Joseph right away after his release, Joseph’s services would not have been needed for another two years and where could he have gone in the meantime? It took 21 years for this plan to pay off and save Israel from a dangerous famine and help it grow into a serious country and a race of people.
How impatient are we when we ask for things right away? How foolish do we seem when we think everything ought to happen immediately? There have been times in my life when something I did – and long forgot about – comes back in an unexpected way, especially when I needed it at the time.
God is faithful and true and has a plan. We need to learn to trust Him and follow what He has in mind because He has a much larger picture and a much larger canvas than we do.
See you next week!
-Matt
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bakercupbearerfaithfaithfulfollowGenesisimpatientJosephpatiencePharaohtrustwaitwaiting