Where is God in That?

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Where is God in That? Sermon Series: “The Life of Joseph: but God Intended It for Good” Genesis 37:25-36 October 8, 2017 BIG IDEA We see an example of evil that dwells in the human heart almost every day. In the midst of such darkness, a thinking person must ask this question: Where is God in that? Today we will learn through Joseph’s difficult experiences that even when life hurts, God is where he always has been. He is ruling on the throne and working out the best plan for your life! REVIEW What are some of the main ideas we discussed last week? 

The star of the Joseph narrative is Yahweh. He is working implicitly behind the scenes to bring about his purpose, which is to save and grow Israel, setting the stage for the coming of Jesus. The ultimate completion of his redemptive plan, through the sinful actions of human beings, shows that God is always working.

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Joseph’s brothers were violent men (Gen. 24) and Joseph must have known that their meeting wouldn’t end well. Still, he took steps forward, out of obedience to his father. It turned out to be a worst-case scenario. His brothers left him to die.

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The obedience of Joseph prefigures that of Jesus. Each obeyed their father. Each was confronted and harmed by killers of God’s dream (the brothers in Joseph’s life; the Pharisees in the story of Jesus). Each rose to exaltation. There is great reward when we obey even when we know it’ll hurt.

THIS WEEK’S SCRIPTURE Context: Joseph’s brothers had done the unthinkable. They’d left him to die. Their jealousy had gotten the best of them. Within this scene we see a tremendous Ridgewood Church www.myrwc.org

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amount of darkness. But in the end there is hope. Moses turns us toward Egypt where God would save his people and build them into a great nation. God was reigning even when it seemed that all was lost. Genesis 37:25-36 (ESV) 25 Then

they sat down to eat. And looking up they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing gum, balm, and myrrh, on their way to carry it down to Egypt. 26 Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? 27 Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers listened to him. 28 Then Midianite traders passed by. And they drew Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. They took Joseph to Egypt. 29 When

Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not in the pit, he tore his clothes 30 and returned to his brothers and said, “The boy is gone, and I, where shall I go?” 31 Then they took Joseph’s robe and slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood. 32 And they sent the robe of many colors and brought it to their father and said, “This we have found; please identify whether it is your son’s robe or not.” 33 And he identified it and said, “It is my son’s robe. A fierce animal has devoured him. Joseph is without doubt torn to pieces.” 34 Then Jacob tore his garments and put sackcloth on his loins and mourned for his son many days. 35 All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted and said, “No, I shall go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” Thus his father wept for him. 36 Meanwhile the Midianites had sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard. MAIN IDEAS 

The brothers callously sat down to eat after leaving Joseph for dead. Their hearts were far from God. We look at this scene and shake our heads in disbelief. God was in control, though, and appointed each brother to father a tribe Israel.

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One of the darkest portions of this section is seen in Jacob’s grief. After being lied to by his sons, he wept uncontrollably. This is the price of sin. Thankfully, God had a better plan.

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Verse 36 gives us a glimmer of hope. Suddenly, Moses turns our attention away from Jacob to Egypt. It is here that God will do an amazing work. It is here that God will grow Egypt into a great nation that would birth Messiah.

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DISCUSSION & APPLICATION This Section is a Portrait of Darkness In this section, we see the incredible darkness that rests within the human heart. This is the darkness that God is able to work through when he does his will. Here, that darkness looks like hardened hearts, the inhumanity of slavery, outright deception, and grief. 1. The Darkness of Hardened Human Hearts Genesis 37:25a: Then they sat down to eat. The brothers had stripped their brother of his robe. They’d thrown him into a cistern and walked away. They left him to die. This is their brother! Are they weeping, grieving, or even numbing their pain? No. They sit down and have a meal like nothing had happened. a. What are some other places in scripture where we see God working through hardened hearts to bring about his will?

b. Though God can and does work through hardened hearts, he also has the power to soften hearts. Have you seen examples of this happening in your own life, either in yourself or in people you know?

2. The Darkness of Slavery Genesis 37:28: Then Midianite traders passed by. And they drew Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. They took Joseph to Egypt. Joseph was sold for twenty pieces of sliver. This is a human being sold by his brothers, who are the ones he thought could trust the most. Where is God in that? Sometimes we’re hurt by the ones that we trust, and these experiences usher in almost unfathomable darkness, such as abuse, infidelity, lying, and Ridgewood Church www.myrwc.org

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abandonment. Many of you have been victims of such behavior. And no doubt you’ve cried out: “Where are you, God? How can You let me go through this?” But God is always working. Genesis 50:20: “But as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good… a. Was there a dark time in your life when you questioned why God would allow you to go through such pain? How did God show his presence to you during that time?

3. The Darkness of Deception Genesis 37:31-33: Then they took Joseph’s robe and slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood. 32 And they sent the robe of many colors and brought it to their father and said, “This we have found; please identify whether it is your son’s robe or not.” 33 And he identified it and said, “It is my son’s robe. A fierce animal has devoured him. Joseph is without doubt torn to pieces.” The famous robe entered the narrative as an act of love and it leaves as a figure of deep hate. It is a tool of deception. a. How did this act of deception reflect the state of the brothers’ hearts? What were the motives behind their deception?

4. The Darkness of a Father’s Grief Genesis 37: 34-35: Then Jacob tore his garments and put sackcloth on his loins and mourned for his son many days. 35 All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted and said, “No, I shall go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” Thus his father wept for him. What a horrible scene. A father mourning over the death of his son, and it’s all a lie. Where is God in that? Where is God in all of this darkness? Now we are about to see as the narrative points toward Egypt.

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a. How did the brothers’ deception continue to create even more pain in their family than what they had already inflicted on Joseph?

Now There is a Glimpse of Hope Genesis 37:36: Meanwhile the Midianites had sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard. Joseph is on his way to Egypt. This would be Joseph’s launching pad. This is where Joseph would learn how to rule. This is where God took his family, which is Israel, from a famine to a land of plenty. The slaves cried in sorrow, but all along God was building a nation that would bring forth Jesus Christ. God was working the whole time! PRAY Lord, we thank you that you never stop working. Not only can you overcome evil actions of human beings, but you graciously work through them. We know we can trust you. Deepen our faith and thank you for that assurance. Amen. DIG DEEPER For further study this week:   

“Evil and the Justice of God” from N.T. Wright (IVP) “God’s Sovereignty Over Evil” a Podcast from John Piper: http://bit.ly/2jRG9pM Matt. 19:26; Eph. 3:20; Rev. 19:6

NEXT WEEK’S BIG IDEA Genesis 39:1-6a: Joseph rises to power through the powerful hand of God, who is saving Israel in order to bring Messiah into the world.

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