Seventh Sunday after Epiphany: Old Testament, Genesis 45:3-15                

Genesis 45:3-15

For perhaps the last quarter century or so, there has grown in the larger American church, the idea that God “has great things in store for you.” Many authors, pastors and others have encouraged God’s people to seek out that great purpose for which Christ gave them a place in His body. But the emphasis sadly has been, or perhaps has been understood in a way that many see it as their purpose. Genesis is a book given us by Moses and from the first verse we learn the “story” which begins there is about the purpose of One: God.

That doesn’t mean that we, as His highest creation, don't figure prominently in the tale. We do. But we are there as the outworking of His plan and purpose. It is grand. Better than any movie saga or work of literature. But be clear, it is His purpose that is being unfolded at the turn of every page.

This week’s Old Testament reading gives a clear view of my premise. For all the twists and turns in the life of Joseph, we would be tempted to see the gifts, abilities and tendencies of a man, much mistreated, who overcame much to stand in the end, where he had determined. We would be wrong. From verse 5 to the close of our reading, we hear Joseph speak of the purposes of God in his life. Through what would cause lesser men to despair, Joseph learned to see design. The design, the “writing” if you will, of God’s story. God’s greater purpose.

Read this, indeed all the life of Joseph ( cf. Genesis 37-50), and behold one of the great displays of the Lord God of Israel, the King of the Universe, in full command of His purpose.