Being Chosen
People have a preconceived notion that Christianity and following Christ is a way of missing trouble, keeping prosperous, and living a free happy life without tribulation. In reality, when you are chosen…there is a spiritual target on your back.
Don’t get me wrong, being saved is all of those things… missing trouble (hell), being prosperous (the promises of God), and living a happy life (joy and peace that passeth understanding), but the Bible clearly tells us that we will suffer for Christs name, that we will go through trials for the perfecting of our faith, and that men would hate us like they hated Christ.
Don’t worry…this is not an intimidation blog! God led me to the Life of Joseph to share his testimony to reassure you, as a chosen vessel of God, that even in the midst of everything, He is with you and has a plan that works out for your good. This is not contingent upon time, how bad a circumstance looks, or what people think and see. Let’s get into it!
I started in Genesis to read up on Joseph’s background.
Jacob (later named Israel) and Rachael were Joseph's parents.
Genesis 30 Speaks about how his mother Rachel was barren, and God opened her womb so that she could bear a son.
From the beginning, Joseph was a miracle brought forth through faith.
His parents moved from his birthplace into the land of Canaan where Joseph was raised until about 17 years old. Joseph was loved by his father more than his brothers (Gen 37:3). His brothers could tell, and they hated him for it (remember the coat of many colors). Joseph had 11 brothers! That is not easy.
SN: When God blesses your life and gives you favor, there will be people that hate you for it. They won’t understand why it’s different for you. You must continuously give God the glory for the favor in your life because that's literally the entire point.
Matthew 5:16 says Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
At this time God begins to reveal dreams unto Joseph. In these dreams Joseph was put in a place of superiority over his brothers, and even his parents. When he told his brothers, they despised him for it.
God speaks to us through dreams, prophetic word, his word…it’s important for us to use wisdom, especially when the fullness of a thing is not revealed. Joseph did not understand why he was having these dreams. Even Jacob, his father, did not agree and rebuked him. (37:10) When God has called you to something or shown you something, people are going to disagree, rebuke, or even judge you. Remember that God is wiser than men (1 Corinthians 1:25).
In the ending of chapter 37, Joseph was sent to look for his brothers and when they saw him coming they conspired to kill him. One of his brothers begged for mercy on his behalf. So instead of death, they stripped him of his coat and cast him in a ditch!
So let’s talk about this… When you are in a place of trial (somewhere in someone's ditch) you are not thinking about your purpose, or the plan that God has on your life. This feels awful! Your heart hurts and you are consumed with all types of emotions.
I want to highlight this because Joseph is here in this ditch, feeling like he is at his end, betrayed by his own family…and even still at this very moment he is chosen of God and has purpose AND has favor. Even when the enemy wanted to cut off his life, he couldn’t.
Next time you are in a place that hurts so bad, or you don’t understand why you, and you are at your end, remember God and in him all things are perfect.
When you finish out chapter 37, they end up selling their brother for 20 pieces of silver to an Ishmeelite who takes him to Egypt. His brothers dip his coat in blood and lie to their father that they found it and believe him to be dead.
Right now…it's looking like there’s been a mistake! Like Joseph has done something wrong, like this can’t happen to a child of God… But it did. He was sold into Egypt.
When Joseph arrived in Egypt, he was sold to an officer that worked for Pharaoh. Chapter 39 speaks about how God showed Joseph favor when he arrived in Egypt. He was prosperous within the captain's home. His master saw that God had blessed him, so he had grace on him, allowing him to oversee his house and all he had. The captain's house was blessed because Jacob was there.
SN: Sometimes, God will grant blessings to what's connected to you… For example: You may have a job and your particular department is doing really well or better than the others. They may not know it, but if they were to lose you, they would also lose the blessing connected to you and the department would see a difference.
(Gen 39: 7-20) The captain's wife began to desire Joseph. She asked Joseph to sleep with her and he refused. She tried several times to tempt him and when he continued to deny her, she was angry and conspired against him (This is actually really crazy…like MA’AM!). She lied to her husband, saying that Joseph tried to lay with her against her will. The captain had Joseph thrown in Jail! This was a place where Pharaohs prisoners were bound.
This seems really bad. There is no way that God would have his servant thrown in Jail…right? Why would God want Joseph to go to jail. A common question people ask is why would God let this happen, when he controls all things. Let’s keep reading…
Chapter 40
Again, the Lord was with Joseph. The prison keeper gave Joseph favor, and placed him over the other prisoners. He gave Joseph charge because the Lord would allow whatever he did to prosper. EVEN IN JAIL! God blessed.
As time went on, the pharaoh of Egypt threw his butler and baker in jail in the same place where Joseph was. The Guard put Joseph over them.
Both of the men went to sleep and dreamed a dream. When the morning came Joseph saw that they were sad and asked why. They explained they didn't understand their dream and it concerned them. Joseph, giving all glory to God, said that God was the interpreter of all dreams and asked the men to tell him, so that God could reveal. When he did reveal the interpretation, the butler would return to his job with the Pharaoh, but the baker would be killed. His interpretation was right. Joseph asked the butler to remember him when he returned to Pharaoh's house.
(Ch 42) 2 years later, Pharaoh had a dream. The dream bothered him and he wanted to understand the interpretation. He called all the soothsayers (witches, warlocks…demons) to interpret his dream but they could not. When the butler heard of this, he appeared before the King and told him of the interpreter that he met while in prison. Because of this, Joseph was brought before the king. (God of course gives him the meaning) When he gives the interpretation of Pharaoh’s dream: 7 years of prosperity, and 7 years of famine, he tells him that he should have a wise man to store up during the prosperous years to prepare for the years of famine. Pharaoh sees that God is with Joseph and tells him that he would like him to be the wise man to store up. He makes Joseph second in the kingdom of Egypt.
People will tell you that you're less than, or look at your circumstance and pass judgment on you, but when you are chosen, your worst day is still blessed of God.
During the famine, families came from all over the world to ask for food. Because of Joseph's wisdom, Egypt was the only place that had the supply. In chapter 42 Joseph’s brothers had to appear before him to ask for food for their family. They bow (not knowing that it's their brother).
At this time Joseph is 30 years old. 13 years prior, Joseph dreamed of his family bowing before him. He was rebuked, sold, lied on, imprisoned, and it would seem as though he was forgotten. But God was with him, and took care of him.
To see what happens when Joseph sees his brothers… study the remainder of chapter 42 - 45. It's pretty remarkable to read. Sometimes you have to remind yourself that this was Joseph's real life…not just a story in a book but his life! It's important for us to see how even through hardship, Gods plan is perfect. It's important to know that the Chosen of God will go through. Always remember to praise God in your valley because he is orchestrating your future and its grander than you could ever imagine.
With Love,
SOS