Today, we continue our series entitled “Laser Focus,” emphasizing living with a Laser Focus on the Fixed Purpose God established for us before the world began.
(Proverbs 4:25 TPT)
Set your gaze on the path before you. With fixed purpose, looking straight ahead, ignore life’s distractions.
Scriptures for today:
(James 1:2-4 TPT)
2 My fellow believers, when it seems as though you are facing nothing but difficulties, see it as an invaluable opportunity to experience the greatest joy that you can!
3 For you know that when your faith is tested, it stirs up power within you to endure all things.
4 And then as your endurance grows even stronger it will release perfection into every part of your being until there is nothing missing and nothing lacking.
(Ecc 3:1 ERV)
There is a right time for everything, and everything on earth will happen at the right time.
(Gen 42:14-22 ERV)
14 But Joseph said to them, “No! I can see that I am right. You are spies.
15 But I will let you prove that you are telling the truth. In the name of Pharaoh, I swear that I will not let you go until your youngest brother comes here.
16 One of you must go back to get your youngest brother while the rest of you stay here in prison. Then we can prove whether you are telling the truth or not. If you are not telling the truth, then by Pharaoh, I swear that you are spies!”
17 Then Joseph put them all in prison for three days.
18 After three days Joseph said to them, “I am a God-fearing man. Do this, and I will let you live.
19 If you are honest men, one of your brothers can stay here in prison, and the others can go and carry grain back to your people.
20 But then you must bring your youngest brother back here to me. Then I will know that you are telling the truth, and you will not have to die.”
The brothers agreed to this.
21 They said to each other, “We are being punished for the bad thing we did to our younger brother Joseph. We saw the trouble he was in. He begged us to save him, but we refused to listen. So now we are in trouble.”
22 Then Reuben said to them, “I told you not to do anything bad to that boy, but you refused to listen to me. Now we are being punished for his death.”
Setting the stage.
Yesterday, we left off with Joseph realizing that his second dream was still alive and his brothers claiming not to be spies. Joseph insisted they were spies and said, “This is how I’ll test you. As Pharaoh lives, you’re not going to leave this place until your younger brother comes here.” The younger brother he spoke of was Benjamin. Benjamin was the only brother Joseph had from his mother. The brothers standing before him were brothers from other mothers. Benjamin held a special place in his heart, and he knew that Benjamin would also hold a special place in his father’s heart. Joseph and Benjamin were born to Rachel, and Rachel was Jacob’s first love.
This was a test to see if the ten brothers hated Benjamin as much as they had hated Joseph some 22 years earlier. This test was to check their character and their progress. In yesterday’s message, I talked about Joseph’s character being tested. Actually, for this entire series, I have focused on Joseph. In today’s message, we will focus on the ten brothers.
Joseph had them thrown in jail for three days to think about it. After three days, he came to them and said, “I am a God-fearing man. Do this, and I will let you live.” The fact that Joseph was letting them know that he served the same God they did (the only true God) should have served as motivation. I will come back to this point in a minute.
Joseph then made it clear that they would have to bring Benjamin to him. If they did, not one of them would die. They agreed. They really did not have many options.
Then they said to each other, “We are being punished for the bad thing we did to our younger brother Joseph. We saw the trouble he was in. He begged us to save him, but we refused to listen. So now we are in trouble.” Then Reuben said to them, “I told you not to do anything bad to that boy, but you refused to listen to me. Now we are being punished for his death.”
So, what does this mean for you today? A few things.
1. You will reap what you sow.
a) God will see to it that you reap (good or bad) what you sow. Several scriptures attest to this fact. I won’t list them today. It suffices to say that you are reaping a harvest today from the seeds you sown in the past. If you look around and you do not like your harvest, you must check your seed.
b) Harvesting on seed takes time. It may not happen immediately, but you can rest assured that it will happen. This is good news for those of us who have been sowing godly seeds/deeds for years. But this is also bad news for those who sow wicked seeds/deeds. It took 20+ years for Joseph’s brothers, but what they did finally came back to haunt them. No matter how long it takes, you will reap a harvest on every seed sown.
c) Your life is a grand-sum-total of your decisions. On a daily basis, your decisions are either taking you incrementally closer TO or away FROM God’s best. One of the major points I am bringing up in this series is the fact that God requires us to develop patience. Be patient. Trust God. Keep making good decisions. Keep sowing good seeds. In the fullness of time, your harvest will come. There is a “due season;” this is a season when your harvest will come due. You will get to this point if you do not give up.
How this applies to you:
— Your current situation is a direct result of seeds you’ve sown in the past.
— Good or bad, you will reap a harvest on every seed sown, so if you want to progress and not regress, make sure you are sowing good seeds; seeds that align with God’s will.
— Make decisions today that will bring you closer to God’s best for your life.
— Make time regularly to reflect on your actions and decisions, adjusting them to ensure you are sowing seeds that will yield a godly harvest.
— Our God is a God of progression and not regression. One of my mantras is: “Forward-ever, backward-never, the best is yet to come.” If you want that to be a reality for you, you must sow the right seeds. If you are sowing good seeds, then you can expect a good harvest, and harvests on good seeds will always take you forward!
— The reason Joseph’s ten brothers were facing a situation that was seemingly taking them backward and not forward is because they had sown bad seed, and it eventually caught up with them. Remember, the Bible teaches us that God will not be mocked. Whatever you sow, THAT shall you also reap! (Galatians 6:7).
2. The seeds you sow (good or bad) matter, and you will eventually have to pay for poor decisions and actions.
This point goes in line with “reaping what you sow.” The point I want to make here is that Joseph allowed the brothers to reap a negative harvest on their negative seed. While he did not have them killed, he also did not let them go scot-free either.
Proverbs 19:19 says, “A hot-tempered man has to pay the price for his anger. If you rescue him, you will only have to do it again” (TPT). The point Solomon is making here is one we must all learn, especially as parents. Here is the lesson: If you always bail people out when they make a poor decision, they won’t learn the importance of their decisions, and you will have to repeat your assistance over and over.
Decisions matter. Joseph’s brothers had to learn that lesson. We must all learn it. This is a point that I believe is getting lost within the sea of God’s grace. God’s grace is not a “get out of jail free” card for your bad decisions. A bad decision or sin may not unravel your righteousness (you are still saved), but it can ruin your life! So choose wisely. Make decisions that line up with God’s will, and don’t take you from it!
Joseph was testing his brothers. He wanted to know if they have matured over the 20+ years. He wanted to know if their hearts had developed into the heart of God. He basically wanted to see if they were going to be willing to throw Benjamin under the bus like that had done to him over two decades earlier.
Today’s message is about the fact that God is looking for PROGRESS from us. He expects us to grow, mature, develop, and make Godly decisions.
How this applies to you:
— Understand that every decision has consequences; make choices that align with God’s will.
— Recognize that God’s grace does not exempt you from the natural consequences of your actions.
— Allow your past mistakes to teach you so you don’t repeat them.
— Seek wisdom in your decisions, knowing they impact your future and those around you.
— Embrace responsibility for your actions and strive to make choices that honor God.
3. God is looking for growth and maturity from you.
The brothers were being tested to see if they still had the same flawed character they possessed 20+ years earlier. The only way to know if you are growing is to be tested. If you are growing in Christ, you should expect to be tested. The tests God allows you to endure expose your progress or your lack thereof. Pause for a moment and think about yourself. Ask yourself these two questions:
What tests have I had to endure lately?
What did those tests expose about me (my growth or your lack thereof)?
Remember, God will test you. He wants to see if you are growing. Are you ready to pass His tests?
How this applies to you:
— Reflect on recent experiences that were actually tests from God designed to evaluate your growth and maturity in Christ. What did those tests (experiences) expose to you about you?
— Not only do tests expose the quality and content of your heart at the moment, but the tests themselves give you an opportunity to grow. So, embrace tests as experiences that will help you grow, mature, and develop. Without tests, you may not realize how much you are actually improving in your walk with God.
— Understand that God tests you to strengthen your character and faith. In yesterday’s message, I explained how these are not the same thing. I said, “Testing your faith reveals the level of confidence you have in God and His Word. Testing your character reveals the level of maturity and inner strength you have to reflect God in your actions. God will test both.”
— Be open to learning from every test God allows you to experience, recognizing it as a tool for spiritual development.
— Strive to pass each test, demonstrating your growth and commitment to God’s ways.
— Every day with Jesus is a day that should take you to another level of development. If you are committed to life-long learning and growth, you will enjoy every experience with God, even those that test your progress. Looking back, you will be thankful for the tests because they exposed you (and those around you) to how far you have come!
Declaration of Faith:
Father, You are the Lord of the Harvest. You will see to it that I reap whatever I sow.
I sow seeds of love, peace, and righteousness daily.
I embrace every test as an opportunity for growth.
My character reflects my level of maturity in Christ in every situation.
I trust that my tests reveal my true spiritual progress.
I welcome tests that strengthen my faith and character.
I learn from every test, using it as a tool for spiritual development.
I strive to pass each test, demonstrating my commitment to Your ways.
Living this way, I continually sow good seeds, I reap a harvest that is abundant and fruitful, and I know GREATER IS COMING FOR ME!
I declare this by faith! In Jesus’ name, Amen
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
