Read Genesis 42:34-38
This morning we continue our series, “Grace that is Simply Amazing” by continuing with our mini-series entitled, “Grace Based Success (Prosperity)”, by continuing in the story of Joseph. The 9 brothers told their father Jacob that the lord of Egypt wanted to see their youngest brother and he kept Simeon as a hostage until he did. Jacob said, “You have already taken my sons Joseph and Simeon from me. And now you want to take away Benjamin! Everything is against me!” By this point Jacob was an old man and his outburst came out of frustration. He was tired of his sons’ ways. His true feelings came out. It is clear that he blamed his 10 eldest sons for what happened to Joseph 20 years earlier. He never really believed their fabricated story.
The oldest son, Reuben, must have felt guilty. He never wanted to hurt Joseph and as the oldest he could have stopped the others, but he didn’t. So now, 20 years later, he attempted to take responsibility. Reuben said, “I’ll put my two sons in your hands as hostages. If I don’t bring Benjamin back, you can kill them. Trust me with Benjamin; I’ll bring him back.” In other words he was saying, “Daddy, I know you are upset because you feel you have lost two sons. How about this? Give me Benjamin, your favorite, and I will give you two of my sons. If something happens to Benjamin, you can kill your grandsons.” How ridiculous does that sound? This was clearly a dysfunctional family!
Jacob said, “I won’t let my son Benjamin go down to Egypt with the rest of you. His brother is already dead, and he is the only son I have left.” Think about what Jacob said for a moment. I understand that Joseph and Benjamin were the only two sons born from Rachel, but Jacob had 10 other boys. Don’t you think it a bit cruel that Jacob would look 9 of his sons in the face and say that Benjamin was the only son he had left? How do you think that made them feel? Jacob had been through a great deal in his life. He started off as a trickster and conniver, he endured 20 years of being tricked himself under Laban, he switched systems and lived under God’s blessing, and he fathered the 12 boys who became the 12 tribes of Israel, but he never really got his family life in order. He favored Joseph over his brothers and with Joseph gone, he was doing the same with Benjamin.
So what does this mean to you today? A few things:
1. God is in the business of making holy garments from flawed material.
a) Abraham was not perfect and God made of him a great nation.
b) Isaac was not perfect and God used him leave a legacy that lives on to this day.
c) Jacob was far from perfect, but God made him the father of the 12 Tribes and the nation of Israel bares his name to this day.
2. God is not looking for perfection, He is looking for willingness.
a) If you simply offer yourself as a sacrifice to God (Rom 12:1,2), He will work with you and then work through you for His glory.
b) God is not looking for ability, because He has the grace to empower anyone. God is looking for availablity, because He is not going to force you to accomplish His will.
c) If you are willing, God is able.
3. God does extraordinary things through ordinary people.
a) God took a scared farmer, Gideon, and made him a successful military commander.
b) God took a prisoner, Joseph, and made him the Prime Minister of Egypt.
c) God took a barren old couple, Abraham and Sarah, and made them parents to a nation that lives on today.
d) God took 11 misfits, the disciples, and used them to change the world.
e) God can use anyone, because the power comes from God and not man. Paul said, “We have this treasure from God, but we are only like clay jars that hold the treasure. This is to show that the amazing power we have is from God, not from us” (2 Cor 4:7).
4. Don’t allow God’s grace to be an excuse for your mediocrity.
a) While it is true that you don’t have to be perfect to be used of God, don’t take God’s grace as a license to remain where you are.
b) God has never required any less than ALL of you.
c) God is looking for you to die to self to the point where His glory will be clearly seen in your life and living.
d) God is not going to compete with you. His strength will only be manifested in your weakness. When you are ready to give up yourself (faults, failures, flaws and all), God will be ready to use you to change the world!
Closing Confession: Father, I thank You for teaching me about Your grace and my requirement to live by faith. You are in the business of making holy garments out of flawed material. I acknowledge the fact that I am not perfect, but You also know that I am willing. My heart is in the right place. I have a deep desire to please You and to be used of You for Your glory. So I submit myself to You as a willing vessel in the hands of a righteous God. I know You love me just the way I am, but I also know You love me too much to leave me that way. I die to self, I release my old ways, I cast off mediocrity, and I become a vessel through which Your glory can be clearly seen in the earth. You put Your treasure down inside of me, and I now get to walk around with greatness in me. As the greatness comes out and the spotlight is placed on me, I am quick to let everyone know that the amazing power they see in me is NOT from me, but from You, from my God, who called me from my mother’s womb by His amazing grace. So Father, here I am, I am an instrument in Your hands, ready to be used of You in the earth, and I believe You will use me to make a mark that will never be erased. None of me, all of You! Use me for Your glory! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
