SOMETIMES DREAMS COME TRUE

Proclamation:

“So Israel’s sons were among those who went to buy grain, for there was famine in the land of Canaan also.  Now Joseph was governor of the land, the person who sold grain to all its’ people.  So when Joseph’s brothers arrived, they bowed down to him with their faces to the ground.”  Genesis 42:5-6 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  As a seventeen year old young man, Joseph had a dream that his brothers would bow down to him and they hated him for it. (Genesis 37:2-11)  After his brothers sold him into slavery, The Lord God was with him and Joseph rose up to become the governor of Egypt. (Genesis 41:39-41)  Because of the famine in Canaan, his ten older brothers had come to him to buy grain.  Joseph recognized them but they did not recognize him. (Genesis 42:8)  Then Joseph remembered his dreams. (Genesis 42:9)

Application:

Some dreams are visions, given to us by The Lord God, of things yet to come.  Just because prosperity is in our future does not mean that we are ready for it when He shows it to us.  The Lord God has to take us through some things in order to prepare us for what He has in store for us.  We may have to go through trials and tribulations for us to trust Him so that He can move us to where He wants us to be.  We may not get all that we want, and not all dreams are visions, but whatever God has in store for us we will receive.

FROM DOWN AND OUT TO LARGE AND IN CHARGE

Proclamation:

“You shall be in charge of my palace, and all people are to submit to your orders.  Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.  So Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.’”  Genesis 41:40-41 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Joseph’s brothers sold him to the Midianites who took him to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard. (Genesis 37:36)  The Lord God was with Joseph and he did well and became the overseer of his master’s house. (Genesis 39:2-4)  Soon his master’s wife approached him and asked him to sleep with her and Joseph refused her several times. (Genesis 39:7-10)  Then it came to pass that she caught him by his coat and asked him again, and he left his garment in her hand and he fled.  However, she lied and said that he tried to force himself upon her but fled when she screamed. (Genesis 39:11-15)  When she told the story to her husband, he had Joseph put in prison, (Genesis 39:16-20) but The Lord God was with him and he found favor with the keeper of the prison. (Genesis 39:20-23)  The chief of the butlers and the chief of the bakers were also imprisoned with Joseph.  Both men had dreams which Joseph interpreted for them and things came to pass as he said. (Genesis 40:1-23)  Two years later Pharaoh had a dream which none of his wise men or magicians could interpret. (Genesis 41:1-8)  Then the chief butler remembered that Joseph had interpreted his dream correctly and he told this to Pharaoh. (Genesis 41:9-13)  Hearing this, Pharaoh sent for Joseph, told him the dream, and he said that God had showed him that there would be seven good years followed by seven years of famine. (Genesis 41:14-32)  Pharaoh then placed Joseph in charge of his house, people, and land, and made him second in command in all of Egypt. (Genesis 41:39-41)  Joseph had them gather up and store corn for seven years (Genesis 41:48-49) and he sold it to the people when the famine came. (Genesis 41:55-57)

Application:

Joseph went from the bottom of a pit, to being a slave, and to prison but rose up to be in charge of the country because The Lord God was with him. (Genesis 39:2 and 39:21) We need to learn to praise God in good times and bad times. (Philippians 4:12)  It is God who gives us the strength to make it through the storms of life. (Philippians 4:13)  It is His strength which manifests itself during our periods of weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9)  We should really count all of our trials and tribulations as joy because they are opportunities for God to show up in our life. (James 1:2)  Remember to give God the credit.  “In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths.” (Proverbs 3:6)  Joseph made it clear that the dream interpretation was from God and not his own doing. (Genesis 41:16) 

EVERYONE WILL NOT SHARE THE JOY OF YOUR DREAMS

Proclamation:

“Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more…Then he had a second dream and he told it to his brothers…When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him…”  Genesis 37:9-11 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  As Israel and his family moved on from Bethel, Rachel gave birth to a second son, Benjamin, but she died right after giving birth. (Genesis 35:16-20)  Shortly after Israel arrived in Hebron, the land of his father, Isaac died at the age of 180 years old. (Genesis 35:27-29)  Israel had twelve sons (Genesis 35:23-26) but he loved one, Joseph, his first son by Rachel, more than the others and they hated him because of that. (Genesis 37:3-4)  Joseph had dreams in which his brothers bowed down to him.  When he told them of his brothers of his dreams they hated him even more. (Genesis 37:5-11)  They had plotted to kill him but his brother Reuben prevailed upon them to cast him into a pit. (Genesis 37:17-24)  Afterwards they saw a caravan approaching and agreed to sell him to them.  But first they took his coat of many colors that his father had given him and smeared it with goat’s blood, to give it to their father. (Genesis 37:25-33)  Joseph’s brothers were moved by envy when they sold him into slavery but God was with him. (Acts 7:9)

Application:

Not all of our family and friends will rejoice with us and share in the joy of our dreams.  In fact, not all of them really want to see us do well and succeed, especially if we will be better off than they are.  Unfortunately, some people act like crabs in a barrel, pulling one another down before they can reach the top.  We should rejoice when our family and friends rejoice, and be sad when they are sad. (Romans 12:15)  We are not to desire or covet anything which belongs to others. (Exodus 20:17)  We should also be aware of the fact that dreams may show us a successful end point but may not reveal the grievous predicaments which must be endured before the prosperity.  We must keep the faith and endure to the end, with or without the support of family and friends.

GOD'S COVENANT AND PROMISE

Proclamation:

“And God said to him, ‘I am God Almighty, be fruitful and increase in number.  A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants.  The land I gave to Abraham and Isaac I also give to you, and I will give this land to your descendants after you.’”  Genesis 35:11-12 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  After Jacob sent his servants and his flocks ahead of him to serve as gifts to his brother Esau, (Genesis 32:19-21) he sent his two wives and their servants along with his children ahead of him. (Genesis 32:22)  That night while he was alone, Jacob wrestled with an angel of The Lord and would not let him go until he blessed him. (Genesis 32:23-26)  The Lord God then changed his name from Jacob to Israel. (Genesis 32:28 and 35:10)  When Esau and his four hundred men got to Jacob, now called Israel, Esau hugged him instead of killing him. (Genesis 33:4)  While Jacob was living in his brother’s land, his only daughter, Dinah, was raped by Shechem, the son of the ruler of the land, who claimed that he loved her and had to have her. (Genesis 34:1-4)  Jacob’s sons killed Shechem and all of his men, and took their wives and property. (Genesis 34:13-29)  Then The Lord God spoke to him and Jacob left the area and went to Bethel. (Genesis 35:1-5)  There The Lord God Almighty made a promise to him.

Application:

When we are obedient to The Word of God, He will bless us.  When He makes us a promise, He keeps His word.  He will keep us and protect us no matter what storms in life we go through.  He will also provide for us.  We can stand on the promises of God knowing that His word will never fail. (Deuteronomy 31:8 and Matthew 24:35)  All we have to do is be obedient to His Holy Word.

A GUILTY CONSCIENCE WILL WHIP YOU

Proclamation:

“I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness You have shown Your servant.  I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps.  Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children.”  Genesis 32:10-11 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  When Jacob and Laban parted company, Jacob returned to his homeland and prepared to face his brother Esau.  It had been more than twenty years since Jacob had left home after tricking his father, Isaac, into giving him the blessing which was meant for Esau and caused his brother to despise him and plan to kill him. (Genesis 27:1-45)  Since that time he had acquired much wealth, flocks, and herds, in addition to having a large family.  Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to Esau with a peace offering and his reply was that he was coming to meet him with four hundred men. (Genesis 32:3-6)  When he heard this, Jacob became afraid and distressed, and prayed that The Lord God would save him from his brother. (Genesis 32:7-11) 

Application:

The Lord God may have forgiven us of our sins but the devil will not let us forget them and frequently reminds us of them.  Our sinful memories can rob us of our peace of mind and cause us much distress.  We need to pray that God will forgive us and restore unto us the joy of our salvation (Psalm 51:12) and grant us His peace. (Psalm 29:11)  Each of us is a sinner, but some of us have been saved by the grace of God and forgiven of our sins.  The Bible teaches us that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all of our unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU ASK THE LORD GOD TO DO

Proclamation:

“Laban said, ‘This heap is a witness between you and me today.’  That is why it was called Galeed.  It was also called Mizpah, because he said, ‘May The Lord keep watch between you and me when we are away from each other.’”  Genesis 31:48-49 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Jacob worked for his father-in law, Laban for twenty years, seven years before he was tricked into marrying Leah, seven more years in order to have Rachel as his wife, then six years as his dowry for Rachel.  During that time Jacob fathered twelve children, four with his wife, Leah, two with Rachel’s servant Bilhah, two with Leah’s servant, Zilpah, then three more with Leah, and one with his wife Rachel. (Genesis 29:31 to Genesis 30:24)  When Jacob wanted to leave, he and Laban did not part company on good terms.  They divided the herds of sheep, goats, and cattle between them, with the spotted and streaked animals going to Jacob and the solid color ones remained with Laban. (Genesis 30:32-35)  However God caused Jacob’s animals to be healthier and more productive than Laban’s animals. (Genesis 32:11-12)  Jacob left with all that he had while Laban was away and when he found out he pursued Jacob and caught him in the hills of Gilead.  After a lengthy discussion they ended with the agreement above.  The heap was a pillar of stones and basically a line in the sand which they both agreed not to cross.

Application:

This text has often been used as a benediction at the end of worship services.  However, this is not a blessing, this was more of a curse between two men who did not trust each other and they wanted The Lord God to punish the other if they broke their agreement.  These words are more appropriately spoken to someone that you don’t trust when they will be out of your sight.  This is more of a request for God to punish someone who breaks a promise to you.  However, we should be careful when we ask The Lord God to punish someone for doing wrong.  We are to forgive people of their trespasses and wrong doings as we are forgiven for ours by our Heavenly Father. (Matthew 6:14-15)  We should remember that Jesus, The Christ, told Peter that we ought to forgive our brother who sins against us not seven times but “seventy times seven” times. (Matthew 18:21-22)

PEOPLE WHO PLAY TRICKS ON OTHERS WILL GET TRICKED

Proclamation:

“When morning came, there was Leah!  So Jacob said to Laban, ‘What is this you have done to me?  I served you for Rachel, didn’t I?  Why did you deceive me?’”  Genesis 29:25  (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Jacob left the land of Canaan to flee from his brother, Esau, and to honor his father, Isaac’s request not to marry a woman from Canaan. (Genesis 28:1)  He went to the land of his mother, Rebekah’s brother Laban.  There he met Laban’s beautiful daughter Rachel, fell in love with her, and agreed to work for Laban for seven years in order to have her because he did not have a dowry to offer him for her. (Genesis 29:18)  Jacob thought that he had married Rachel but was given Leah instead.  Jacob had been drinking at the wedding feast and Leah was heavily veiled when she was brought to him.  Laban tricked him because it was their custom that the eldest daughter, Leah, must be married before the younger daughter. (Genesis 29:26)  So Jacob worked a second period of seven years, after he married Leah, so that he could have Rachel. (Genesis 29:30)  Jacob, who had tricked his father, Isaac, in order to get the blessing of his older brother, Esau, (Genesis 27:19-25) was himself tricked, by Laban, into marrying Leah.

Application:

There are a lot of appropriate old sayings which fit this situation, “Players will soon get played.”  “Those who play tricks, will eventually get tricked.”  “As you sow, so shall you also reap.” (Galatians 6:7)  The Lord God is not to be played with, and He does not like liars and deceivers.  People who deceive others will pay for it sooner or later.  Be true to yourself and present the real you to others.  All of the blessings which The Good Lord has in store for you are yours and yours alone, no one else can get them.  However, you can mess up and lose out on your conditional blessings.  So, do not pretend to be someone that you are not, in order to impress others or to get that which you do not deserve.  God is always watching.