25th March 2024
A great deliverance
This is the eighth study in a series of studies about shadows in scripture
‘…“What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?”… And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed down before him to the earth.’ Genesis 37:10; 43:26 (NKJV)
The story that the Old Testament scriptures tell, of salvation through the Messiah, never goes away. The wider picture is always there and, in every story, it is peppered with little, personal details which make it relatable on every level. In Genesis 45:24 (NIV) Joseph tells his brothers not to quarrel when he sends them back to Jacob – an admonition that would not be misplaced with most groups, including Christ’s disciples (Luke 9:46). The apostle Paul writes to Timothy with the same command: ‘…avoid foolish and ignorant disputes…a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all…’ (2 Timothy 2:23,24 NKJV). And then, on the other hand, the Genesis account talks about the ‘whole world’ coming to Egypt for food aid handouts at the direction of Joseph, in the same way that salvation through Christ is offered to all – the ‘whole world’. The relevance is in the detail, as well as in the bigger picture.
Joseph suffered at the hands of his own people – a prophet not accepted by his own. We might say he didn’t ‘read the room’ when he chose to relate his dreams of wheat sheaves and ‘sun, moon and stars’ to his family. Christ was even more direct. As a Jew, speaking to some of his own people, he called them snakes to their face and accused them of blocking the way to salvation for others (Matthew 12:34; 23:13). The religious leaders’ solution was to kill him – to get rid of the problem that was threatening their authority.
The brothers had wanted to kill Joseph, maybe the only thing they were united on. But a change of plan meant they sold him as a slave. We are told throughout the narrative that ‘God was with him’. It didn’t matter what was done to him, he survived, and rose to pre-eminence. And in that final pre-eminence, basically running the all-powerful nation of Egypt, he dispensed forgiveness and compassion to those he loved, as well as physical salvation through food – along with some very human elements of revenge. But even in those examples – the placing of a silver cup in Benjamin’s sack and accusing him of theft, the accusation that the brothers were spies – even here, there are shadows that Christ is casting. We are sometimes slow to see the author of our salvation; slow to believe that he is who he says he is. He reveals himself to us in often unusual ways that will grab our attention; ways that will be different from others. Paul, on the road to Damascus, saw everything in a literal flash. Joseph’s brothers were slower to comprehend who it was who stood before them, although Joseph, their potential saviour, knew them immediately.
Jesus assures us that we are known and loved by God – more than tiny birds – he knew us before we knew him (Matthew 10:24). He has provided salvation through Christ and planned it right from the beginning. In Genesis 45:7-8 Joseph acknowledges that element of foresight when he tells his brothers, “And God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you who sent me here, but God…”
Prayer
Father, thank you that you provide us with the spiritual food that leads to salvation. Thank you that we have come to know Jesus, our Saviour, and that even in a world that so often does not recognise you, we can find comfort and safety in your presence. In the name of that Saviour, thank you. Amen.
Study by Maggie Mitchell
About the writer:
Maggie Mitchell attends the Market Harborough congregation of Grace Communion International
Local congregation:
GCI Market Harborough
9 The Point
Rockingham Road
Market Harborough
LE16 7QU
Meeting time:
Sunday 4.00 pm
Local congregational contact:
Sinead Henderson
Email: sinead.henderson@gracecom.church
Word of Life contact:
wordoflife@gracecom.church