The Inspiring Faith of A Persecuted & Abused Man: Joseph
Thinking About Joseph
When many people think of Joseph, they think of the ruler of Egypt, second only to Pharaoh. Yet Joseph's faith was not forged in the palace. If you read the last few chapters of Genesis, you will see his faith was forged long before then. Joseph was hated by his brothers because his father loved him deeply. As a matter of fact, they despised him because God had given him dreams that pointed toward God's future plans. They hated him because Joseph's dreams reveled they would bow before him. Their jealousy grew into a rage of anger, and their anger grew into cruelty. They almost murdered him. They stripped him of his special robe his loving father had given him, and they soaked it in blood to deceive Jacob into believing he had been killed by an animal. They threw him into a pit, and eventually sold him into slavery. Imagine the fear, confusion, and heartbreak Joseph must have felt. He had done nothing to deserve such treatment, yet his trials were only beginning of his faith journey.
In Egypt, Joseph remained faithful to God and was entrusted with great responsibility in Potiphar's household. Potiphar's wife tried to seduce him, but when he refused to sin, he was falsely accused of attempted rape and thrown into prison. Once again, Joseph suffered, not because he had done wrong, but because he had chosen to do what was right. How easy it would have been for Joseph to become bitter. How easy it would have been to conclude that God had abandoned him. But Joseph did neither. Through every setback, every disappointment, and every act of injustice, Joseph continued to trust the Lord. Even in each dark trial, Joseph believed in God, and God saw him through it all.
The Big Lesson Of Faith
One of the great lessons of Joseph's life is that God's gift of faith does not prevent suffering. Faith carries us through suffering. What Joseph could not see, in each dark day, was that God was working behind every painful circumstance. The pit led to Egypt. Slavery led to responsibility. Prison led to opportunity. Opportunity led to Pharaoh. Pharaoh led to leadership. Leadership led to the preservation of countless lives. Years later, Joseph summarized his entire story with these remarkable words, while speaking to his lying brothers, who feared he would harm them, for all they had done to him: "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good." Joseph discovered that God's purposes are greater than the evil plans of people.
Greatest Evidence of Joseph's Faith
Perhaps the greatest evidence of Joseph's faith is seen when he faced the very brothers who had betrayed him. Now the roles were reversed. Joseph held power while his brothers stood before him in fear. He could have chosen revenge, yet he chose forgiveness. Even after the death of Jacob, when his brothers feared retaliation and sought reassurance, Joseph responded with compassion rather than bitterness. The years of suffering had not hardened his heart. God transformed his heart. Indeed God had used those years to mold his heart to be Christ like. Genuine faith trusts God enough to release the desire for revenge, trusts God enough to receive God's grace to forgive, and trusts God enough to leave judgment in His hands.
A Better Understanding of Joseph's Faith
Now we can better understand Hebrews 11:22. Joseph's final instructions concerning his bones were not merely funeral arrangements. They were a prophetic declaration of confidence in God's promises. Joseph knew that one day God would bring His people out of Egypt and into the land He had promised. Why was Joseph so confident? Because he had spent a lifetime watching God keep His word. The God who had been faithful in the pit was faithful in prison. The God who had been faithful in prison was faithful in the palace. The God who had been faithful throughout Joseph's life would certainly be faithful after Joseph's death.
Dear friend, if you are suffering because you follow Christ, or for any other reason, Joseph's story is for you. If you are going through some really hard times, or if you have been mistreated, God sees you. If you have been falsely accused, God knows the truth. If you are enduring hardship, God has not forgotten you. If you are walking through a dark season and cannot understand what God is doing, remember Joseph. The pit was not the end of his story. The prison was not the end of his story. And your present trial is not the end of your story either.
Joseph's faith was not proven by success. It was proven by endurance. It was strengthened through suffering. It was refined through trials. And in the end, it rested securely in the faithfulness of God. The same God who walked with Joseph through betrayal, slavery, false accusations, prison, and hardship still walks with His people today. He still walks with you, no matter what, and even when it's dark. Take courage. The God of Joseph has not changed, and the promises He has made through our Lord Jesus Christ will never fail. Amen.
A Blessing For You My Fellow Christ Followers:
May the God of peace, who through the blood of the Eternal Covenant, brought back from the dead, the Lord Jesus, equip you with everything for doing His will. And may He work in us what pleases Him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever.
AMEN!
SoJourner
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