July
8th, 2018 “Dreams 2” Rev.
Heather Jepsen
Summer
Sermon Series: Dreaming with Joseph
Genesis
41
This is a full Sunday here in the life
of the church. We are celebrating
communion, welcoming new members, and I’m playing the harp. My hands are already full and to add on top
of things this is the longest chapter yet in our reading of the Joseph
narrative in Genesis. Though we have a
lot to read thankfully it is an exciting story as today Joseph’s fortunes finally
change. Let’s dive right in.
(Read Genesis 41:1-13)
Two years have passed since our reading
from last Sunday and now Pharaoh is the one who dreams. None of his spiritual authorities can offer a
satisfactory interpretation to these visions and finally the cupbearer whom we
met last Sunday remembers Joseph.
The cupbearer remembers that he was
supposed to mention Joseph to Pharaoh and he acknowledges this wrongdoing. “I remember my faults today.” Now finally, he brings Joseph’s name before Pharaoh
as one who could possibly interpret these dreams.
Although he has languished in prison
for another two years, perhaps this delay was a blessing. For now that Pharaoh has need of an
interpreter of dreams, perhaps he will be more willing to hear Joseph plead his
case and to respond with leniency.
(Read Genesis 41:14-36)
Finally Joseph is brought up out of the
dungeon and the word used is connected with the word for the pit, into which Joseph
was thrown by his brothers at the beginning of the story. Joseph is brought up out of the pit and he is
cleaned up and made presentable. Clean
clothes and a fresh shave and he is a new man and ready to be seen by the king
of Egypt.
Before Pharaoh can even tell Joseph his
dreams, Joseph offers up credit to God.
It is God who will give an interpretation. Joseph promises that the interpretation will
be favorable which seems like a risky promise to make before he even hears the
details of the dream. But Joseph isn’t
really promising that the interpretation will benefit Pharaoh or be good news,
he simply means that the interpretation will satisfy Pharaoh as to the dream’s meaning. Something Pharaoh’s own advisors could not
offer.
The dream is told and now Joseph’s
people skills are on full display.
Before interpreting the dream Joseph declares that “God has revealed to Pharaoh
what he is about to do.” For Joseph to
connect God and Pharaoh in this way is a signal that Joseph recognizes Pharaoh’s
position and authority. Joseph is
implying that God is communicating directly with Pharaoh, and it is an
excellent way to stoke the ego of the ruler of Egypt.
The meaning of the dreams is pretty self-explanatory,
seven years of abundance followed by seven years of famine. And now, Joseph takes a big risk. Instead of just interpreting the dream, Joseph
boldly offers a proposed plan to deal with the problem the dream
represents. Joseph suggests that Pharaoh
locate “a man who is discerning and wise, and set him over the land of
Egypt.” Joseph is clearly hoping that he
himself might rise to such a position as he lays out the details of a plan for
the nation’s survival. Joseph proposes
that the entire nation save 20% of their harvest through the seven years of
abundance, and then these grain stores will allow the nation to survive the
seven years of famine.
Joseph clearly is confident in his
dream interpretation and he has a lot riding on his proposed plan. At this point it’s entirely up to Pharaoh
what happens. Joseph could be sent back
to the pit of prison, or he could be kept in the court as a dream interpreter,
or maybe he will actually be able to see this plan to fulfillment.
(Read Genesis 41:37-45)
Well, for Joseph the dreamer it is
finally a dream come true. Pharaoh
accepts the interpretation of the dream, and the plan Joseph offers. More than that, Pharaoh puts Joseph in a high
position of authority within the kingdom of Egypt to carry out this plan. Joseph is basically the Prime Minister to Pharaoh’s
kingly role.
Joseph is given an Egyptian name
“Zaphenath-paneah” which means “God speaks and lives” as well as an Egyptian
wife who is of a royal line. Like others
before him in this story, Pharaoh acknowledges that Joseph is especially
blessed by God and that the presence of the Lord is with Joseph.
(Read Genesis 41:46-57)
Joseph is now 30; it has been 13
years since his brothers threw him in a pit and declared him dead. Now Joseph travels the land and organizes the
storehouses of Egypt. Pharaoh’s dream is
as Joseph declared and for seven years the harvest is as abundant as the grains
of sand. Joseph too is fruitful in this
time as he and his wife have two sons.
The overwhelming abundance of grain is stored in warehouses and as time
passes the famine years begin to show themselves. Joseph opens the store houses and sells the
grain to the people of Egypt as well as the surrounding nations for the famine
covers the whole world.
We find this week that God again
appears to be a major part of this story.
Joseph credits God with the gift of the dreams to Pharaoh and Joseph
declares that God is the one who will bring the abundance as well as the famine
to the land. Pharaoh renames Joseph as
one who shows the nature of a God who “speaks and lives” and Joseph credits God
in the naming of his sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.
Joseph’s upright character and
morality have played a major role in this story and they are again outstanding
in this chapter. Joseph uses the dream
interpretation, and his God given people skills to secure a future for the
whole nation of Egypt and beyond. It
didn’t have to be that way. Joseph could
have suggested that Pharaoh horde the grain and sell it for exorbitant prices,
therefore becoming rich beyond his wildest dreams. Joseph could have used his rise to power as a
way to get back at those who had held him unjustly imprisoned and captive for
13 years. But he doesn’t do those
things. Joseph uses his knowledge, his
gifts, and his authority to benefit the most people possible as he sets out a
plan for the famine and follows though in a fair and just fashion. What a world this would be if more leaders
followed Joseph’s path. He is clearly an
exceptional character and about as far away from his father Jacob as could be
imagined.
We know that Joseph’s path up to this
point has not been easy. The names he
gives his sons offer us some insight into his own personal struggles of
faith. The firstborn is named “Manasseh”
which means “to forget” and as Joseph declares, “God has made me forget all my
hardship and all my father’s house.” Joseph
considers it a gift from God that he has been able to move past his personal
suffering. He has been able to let go of
the past, of his family that left him for dead, and of the wrongdoing that was
caused to him in Egypt. This gift of
forgetfulness is a gift of forgiveness and grace. Joseph can let go of his memories and pain,
and make a new life for himself in Egypt.
That new life is celebrated in the
name of his second son “Ephraim” which means “to be fruitful”. As Joseph says, “God has made me fruitful in
the land of my misfortune.” Even though
he was brought to Egypt in negative circumstances, and even though he
languished in prison for 13 years, still God has blessed him and enabled him to
thrive. Joseph would not have chosen
this life, and he certainly didn’t plan on it.
It is not where he wanted to be.
And yet, it is where he finds himself, and Joseph finds the blessing of
God within these negative circumstances.
All of these are profound lessons on Joseph’s
character and are good examples for us to follow. Joseph models letting go of past pain and
hardship, Joseph models the “bloom where you are planted mentality” as he makes
the best out of every bad situation, and Joseph works for the up-building and
success of others. Joseph is truly an
upright and godly man, unlike many of our other Old Testament patriarchs.
Now that all is well with Joseph, we
can expect that our Genesis story tellers will throw him a curveball. Come back next week to see what happens as we
continue “Dreaming with Joseph”. Amen.
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