(Gen 37:5 NASB) Then Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more.
This week I am sharing messages with you from previous series’. This morning’s message comes from a 2008 series entitled: “Faith and Patience Volume II – Joy and Peace In Believing.” The premise of this series was that we, as believers, need the excitement/expectation of joy, coupled with the serenity of peace, while we wait on God, because how we wait often determines how long we wait. Enjoy:
We have looked at the examples of Abraham and Caleb thus far in this series. We saw how Abraham waited 25 years for his promise and Caleb waited 45. This morning we look at another powerful example of a person that received a promise from God and waited for that promise to come to pass in their lives. This guy received the promise at the tender age of 17. He was just a teenager and I am pretty sure that he did not know what the promise fully meant and all that he was going to have to endure in the space between the promise and the performance. It took over 20 years, but the promise finally came to pass. We will look at some of the things that he did in that 20 year span. He went on a journey that took him from a pit, to Potiphar’s house, and to prison, before he finally landed in the palace that was destined for him. His name is Joseph and I pray that we all learn from his example.
We start our journey by looking at Joseph’s journey in Genesis chapter 37. In this chapter we learn that Joseph was the 11th of Jacob’s 12 children and he was his favorite. He was his favorite because he was born in Jacob’s old age. At the time he was Jacob’s last son and he was born from his first love (Rachel). Jacob made it known that Joseph was his favorite and that caused strife and jealousy between Joseph and his older brothers. To make matters worse, Jacob gave Joseph a coat of many colors; to signify his position as the favorite child of the father. The brothers hated him even more when they saw him where that coat. To add insult to injury, in the midst of all of this, God gave Joseph a dream. The Lord revealed to Joseph in the dream how he was going to be above his brothers and how his brothers would bow to him some day. The young teenager made the critical mistake of telling his brothers the dream. This would be the straw that broke the camel’s back. Our text says that they hated him even more for the dream. They hated the dream even more than they hated Joseph. They could not stomach the fact that their little brother, the one they considered a spoil brat, would some day be over them. They wanted to kill Joseph, thereby killing the dream.
The Lord gave Joseph second dream. This time it was clear that even Joseph’s father would be under him some day. So guess what Joseph did? He obviously had not learned from the hatred brewing in his brother’s hearts. Joseph went and told his father about the dream. His father was upset and rebuked him for it. The dreams that had been given to him, from God, where now alienating him within his own family. His brothers began to call him “The dreamer,” and they wanted to kill his dreams.
So what does this mean to you today? A few things:
1. God does not speak to where we are, He speaks to where He desires for us to be.
2. God will show you your destination, but you must be prepared for all that you will have to endure in the space between the promise and the performance.
3. Though the vision (dream) may tarry, wait for it, because it will surely come to pass (Hab 2:2-4).
4. Be careful who you share your dream with. There will always be haters that will attempt to become dream-killers in your life; but their poison cannot stop your purpose.
5. Don’t let anything or anyone kill your dream. Your hope in life is tied to your dream!
Closing Confession: Father, I thank You for making me a dreamer. You can give me dreams in the middle of the night when I am fast asleep or in the middle of the day when I am wide awake. Either way, I receive what You put in my heart by faith. I am a dreamer and I believe Your dreams will come to pass in my life, no matter how long they take. I may experience my share of dream-killers along the way, but their poison cannot stop my purpose. I maintain the excitement and expectation of JOY and the serenity of PEACE while I am waiting and believing You for my dreams to become reality. I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper!
