Daily Devotion – February 17, 2022 – Dr. Pat Taylor Ellison
Genesis 45:3-11, 15
45:3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, so dismayed were they at his presence.
45:4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come closer to me.” And they came closer. He said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt.
45:5 And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life.
45:6 For the famine has been in the land these two years; and there are five more years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest.
45:7 God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors.
45:8 So it was not you who sent me here, but God; he has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
45:9 Hurry and go up to my father and say to him, ‘Thus says your son Joseph, God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay.
45:10 You shall settle in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children’s children, as well as your flocks, your herds, and all that you have.
45:11 I will provide for you there–since there are five more years of famine to come–so that you and your household, and all that you have, will not come to poverty.’
45:15 And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them; and after that his brothers talked with him.
We could call this “the big reveal†in the Joseph story. The boy who had made his brothers jealous enough to get rid of him discover him years later as the savior of their family and the preserver of the nation of Israel.
This story is a very big one. A miracle of God across time and space. It has a happy ending and it even has intrigue from start to finish.
This portion of the story is certainly Gospel, even though it is located in the Old Testament, where some people never expect to find Gospel. The brothers have been wicked, but Joseph is generous. The father has been bereft, but the supposed dead son is alive again. The family is starving, but they have found a land of plenty.
In your own story, where is “the big reveal,†when everything that came before suddenly makes sense?
In the story of your faith journey, where has God revealed God’s self to you in important ways?
Joseph’s big story teaches us about what it takes to live faithfully, in spite of or because of your circumstances. How will your and my life’s story teach our children about how we lived out the generous love of God to others, even those who would have done us harm?
Lord God, Thank you for loving us. Thank you for giving us the story of Joseph and his brothers. Help us to think of our own story, our journey of faith and growth in you. Help our story to teach others more about your story. Amen.
