LIVING AS FAITHFUL PEOPLE
God's Covenant
God Watches Over Joseph
Acts 7:9-16
The Message
9-10"But
then those 'fathers,' burning up with jealousy, sent Joseph off to
Egypt as a slave. God was right there with him, though—he not only
rescued him from all his troubles but brought him to the attention of
Pharaoh, king of Egypt. He was so impressed with Joseph that he put him
in charge of the whole country, including his own personal affairs.
11-15"Later a famine descended on that entire region, stretching from Egypt to Canaan, bringing terrific hardship. Our hungry fathers looked high and low for food, but the cupboard was bare. Jacob heard there was food in Egypt and sent our fathers to scout it out. Having confirmed the report, they went back to Egypt a second time to get food. On that visit, Joseph revealed his true identity to his brothers and introduced the Jacob family to Pharaoh. Then Joseph sent for his father, Jacob, and everyone else in the family, seventy-five in all. That's how the Jacob family got to Egypt.
15-16"Jacob died, and our fathers after him. They were taken to Shechem and buried in the tomb for which Abraham paid a good price to the sons of Hamor.
11-15"Later a famine descended on that entire region, stretching from Egypt to Canaan, bringing terrific hardship. Our hungry fathers looked high and low for food, but the cupboard was bare. Jacob heard there was food in Egypt and sent our fathers to scout it out. Having confirmed the report, they went back to Egypt a second time to get food. On that visit, Joseph revealed his true identity to his brothers and introduced the Jacob family to Pharaoh. Then Joseph sent for his father, Jacob, and everyone else in the family, seventy-five in all. That's how the Jacob family got to Egypt.
15-16"Jacob died, and our fathers after him. They were taken to Shechem and buried in the tomb for which Abraham paid a good price to the sons of Hamor.
For Reflection
See what they did to Joseph?
Oh, that's bad!
Well, Joseph caught the eye of the Pharaoh who put him in charge of the whole country.
Oh, that's good!
Then his brothers came before him and did not recognize that their fate was within Joseph's power.
Oh that's bad!
Well, Joseph told them who he was and managed to convince the Pharaoh to accept all of the family into Egypt to escape the famine.
Oh, that's good!
Perhaps.
Only the nearsighted eyes of human kind see single events as good or bad. God sees beyond single events. He has His eye on the big picture. Faith and hope helps us focus on the big picture
Pray
for the patience to follow your faith and hope in the promise of God. Pray that you continually look beyond the present struggles and keep your eye on the realization of the Kingdom of God.
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