Read: Genesis 50:1-Exodus 2:10; Matthew 16:13-17:9; Psalm 21:1-13; Proverbs 5:1-6
When Jacob died, the Egyptians who loved Joseph, mourned with him. They even traveled with his family to Canaan to bury Jacob in the cave at Machpelah. Once, Jacob had been buried, Joseph’s brothers were afraid that Joseph would seek revenge on them because of all the things they had done to them. They sent word to Joseph that their father wanted Joseph to forgive them and that they would be Joseph’s slave.
I can’t help thinking this is how we are with God. We can’t comprehend the goodness of God and the power of forgiveness and the cross. We still live in condemnation, fear and like a slave when God wants us to be his sons and friends and live in power and freedom.
Joseph understood that what they meant for harm, was all part of God’s plan to preserve their heritage making it all worthwhile.
Joseph lived to be 110 and like his father, he made his sons swear that when they went back to Canaan, they would take his bones with them and bury them with his fathers.
Years after Joseph had died a new king came to office in Egypt that didn’t know the story of Joseph or care. All he could see was that the Israelites were multiplying more rapidly than the Egyptians and was threatened by their numbers. First, he tried to get the midwives to kill the sons that were born to the Jewish mothers but the midwives feared God more than the Pharaoh and let them live.
Next, the Pharaoh gave the decree that all the baby boys should be thrown into the Nile River. A mother named Jochebed had a son during that time and when she conceived him she felt there was something very special about this boy so she wanted to hide him. She made a floating basket and she put it in the Nile River and told her daughter, Miriam to watch it to see what would happen.
The Pharoah’s daughter just happened to be coming to the River to bathe and saw the basket and had it brought to her. When she saw the baby, she was moved with compassion also. Miriam popped out of her hiding place and offered her mom to nurse the baby for her. So Miriam, who gave her son up, got him returned to her for two years and was able to nurse and love on him. When he was weaned, he went to live in the palace to await his destiny.
The story of Joseph and Moses help us to see that God’s plans do not always look so good at first. There is always a process we have to go through that molds us into the person we are to become so we can humbly hold the position and not have it destroy us through pride. It usually has more to do with God’s kingdom than our own personal gain but to follow the Lord is the greatest gain.
In Matthew, Jesus asked his disciples who everyone thought he was. Then he asked them who they thought he was. It was Peter who said, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Since he had given such a rock of understanding, God said I will also give you the keys to the kingdom to bind and loose. During their times, the terms “binding and loosing” were used to describe religious decisions. Since Peter had made such a powerful decision about who Jesus was, Jesus was giving him the power to make other religious decisions. To bind was to prohibit certain activities as given in the law. The scribes had used this privilege to decide what “work” meant on the Sabbath. So they had all kinds of laws concerning this. Jesus was giving Peter the license to decide for the church what to prohibit and what to “loose” or allow. Later, he would use this to decide that the Gentiles did not need to be circumcised to be saved.
We are given that same priviledge. We decide what we allow in our lives and what we prohibit. We are responsible for guarding our soul.
From that time, Jesus started explaining to his disciples what awaited him in Jerusalem. They could not see that as a part of God’s plan because it wasn’t a part of their plan.
Lord, help us to submit to your plan in our lives especially when it goes against ours. Help us to choose you.
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