The End of the Beginning (Genesis 50 Summary)

Today, Ally brought our incredible journey through the book of Genesis to a close with a powerful sermon titled “The End of the Beginning.” As we conclude this foundational book of the Bible, we see that even in endings, there are new beginnings and enduring truths that resonate with our lives today, even here on the estate.

Ally began by expressing her privilege in studying and sharing God’s Word, especially as we reached the final chapter of Genesis. Reflecting on the “beginning” that the book’s name signifies, she highlighted three key beginnings we’ve encountered:

1. The Beginning of Creation (Genesis 1:1): Ally reminded us of the profound truth that “in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” This foundational statement establishes God as the eternal Creator, a concept that can stretch our understanding. She shared a childhood wonder about who created God, acknowledging that some truths are simply beyond our full comprehension. God is, always has been, and always will be. This perfect creation was designed for humanity, made in God’s image, to live in partnership with Him.

2. The Beginning of Sin (Genesis 3:1): This perfect beginning was tragically marred by the introduction of sin. Ally recounted the familiar story of the serpent tempting Eve, but emphasized that the core issue wasn’t just eating a forbidden fruit. It was an act of rebellion, of placing their own will above God’s. Using the simple analogy of spelling “sin” with “I” in the middle, Ally explained that sin is fundamentally about putting ourselves in God’s rightful place. The consequences of this act were devastating: a spoiled perfect world, the pain of hard work, banishment from the Garden, a shattered relationship with a holy God, and ultimately, death – a final separation from Him. Ally stressed the gravity of sin, explaining that it fundamentally breaks our relationship with God.

3. The Beginning of the Covenant (Genesis 12): Despite the bleakness of sin’s entry, Ally illuminated God’s loving rescue plan, hinted at even in Genesis 3. This plan truly begins to unfold with God’s covenant with Abraham. Defining a covenant as a formal, binding agreement, Ally read from Genesis 12:1-3, where God promises Abraham land, a great nation, and blessing, stating, “All peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” She further referenced the symbolic covenant ceremony in Genesis 15 and the reiteration of these promises in Genesis 17:1-8, where God declares, “I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you, for the generations to come to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.” This covenant with Abraham marks the beginning of God’s plan to restore humanity and His creation.

Following this reflection, Ally’s son, Caleb, bravely read Genesis 50, our passage for today. This chapter details the end of Jacob’s life and its aftermath, providing us with three significant “ends” to consider:

1. The End of Jacob: Ally noted the extensive detail given to Jacob’s death and burial (Genesis 50:1-14), far exceeding the accounts of other patriarchs like Abraham. Joseph’s profound grief, the 40-day embalming process, and the 70 days of mourning by the Egyptians highlight the significance of Jacob’s life. His burial in Canaan, fulfilling Joseph’s oath, underscores his deep connection to the Promised Land and God’s promises. Ally drew parallels to the New Testament description of Christians as “aliens” or “foreigners” in this world (1 Peter 2:11). Just as Jacob’s true home was in the Promised Land, our ultimate citizenship is in God’s kingdom (Philippians 3:20). She encouraged us to hold onto this identity, especially during the challenges of daily life, and emphasized the importance of gathering as a church to remind and encourage one another in this truth. Furthermore, Ally acknowledged Jacob’s flaws, echoing Andy’s previous sermon, yet highlighted that he “finished well” and was honored. This serves as an encouragement that God uses flawed individuals for His purposes, and He can restore us despite our shortcomings. Finally, Ally pointed out that Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel, is arguably the true father of the nation of Israel, as his twelve sons became the twelve tribes. His death, holding onto God’s promises, and the mourning by the Egyptians, a foreign people, speaks volumes.

2. The End of Hostility: Shifting the focus to Genesis 50:15-21, Ally addressed the end of hostility between Joseph and his brothers. Following Jacob’s death, the brothers, burdened by their past mistreatment of Joseph, feared his retribution. They fabricated a message from Jacob asking for forgiveness. While Ally expressed skepticism about the truthfulness of this message, she acknowledged their likely genuine remorse. Joseph’s emotional response and subsequent reassurance revealed that he had already forgiven them. His powerful statement, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives” (Genesis 50:20), illustrates God’s ability to work through even the most evil intentions for a greater purpose. Ally drew a parallel to our relationship with God, highlighting the burden of unresolved sin and the power of God’s unrestricted forgiveness, prepaid by Jesus’ death on the cross. She encouraged listeners to “claim” this forgiveness through a simple ABC: Admit you’re wrong, Believe in Jesus’ death, and Commit to following Jesus as Lord. She urged anyone carrying the weight of sin to address it and encouraged those who have been wronged to consider Joseph’s example of forgiving even before being asked. This counter-cultural act of forgiveness mirrors God’s own initiative in sending His Son for us.

3. The End of Joseph: In the final verses (Genesis 50:22-26), we see the end of Joseph’s life. Unlike Jacob, his death is marked by less ceremony, and the blessing of the next generation had already occurred. However, Joseph’s unwavering faith in God’s covenant shines through. Even though the promises of a great nation in their own land seemed distant after over 250 years, Joseph declared to his brothers, “God will surely come to your aid and take you up out of this land to the land he promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob” (Genesis 50:24). He even made the Israelites swear an oath to carry his bones back to Canaan when that time came, a testament to his enduring faith, which was fulfilled 400 years later. Ally emphasized the theme of patience in waiting for God’s promises. Joseph’s faith was rooted in his understanding that God was for him, working out His purposes even through difficult circumstances. His statement in Genesis 50:20 – “God intended it for good, to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives” – reveals his understanding that God’s plans extend beyond his own personal well-being. Ally concluded by reminding us that God is for us, even when our circumstances are challenging or His timing differs from our own. Drawing on Romans 8:28, she affirmed that God works all things for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Jacob and Joseph died trusting in God’s promises, and we are called to do the same.

Ally concluded with a call to reflection, urging listeners to consider any unresolved sin, broken relationships, or struggles with feeling like a foreigner in this world or doubting God’s care. The answer to all these challenges, she affirmed, is to come to the cross, to re-center on God’s saving work, where His love and forgiveness are most powerfully displayed.

Bible References Used:

• Genesis 1:1
• Genesis 3:1
• Genesis 12:1-3
• Genesis 15
• Genesis 17:1-8
• Genesis 25
• Genesis 37
• Genesis 49
• Genesis 50:1-14
• Genesis 50:15-21
• Genesis 50:20
• Genesis 50:22-26
• Genesis 50:24
• 1 Peter 2:11
• Philippians 3:20
• Romans 8:28

Thank you for joining us for this final reflection on Genesis. We pray that Ally’s words have encouraged and challenged you. May we all live in the light of God’s promises and the forgiveness found in Jesus Christ.

Transcription

Yes, so I’m Ali. I know some of you, not everyone. A bit about me, I’m Matt Richard, who unfortunately
isn’t here. He’s gone out with the youth. And we have two boys, Jacob, who’s also gone
with youth, but Caleb, who has chosen to stay in and listen to mum. And he’s going to have
more later on. I think I was born just before Voyager 1 left, but there we go. Right now,
I’m feeling extraordinarily privileged. Firstly, it’s a privilege to study and delve into God’s
Word and help other people understand it. It’s one of the favourite things that I like
to do. And secondly, what a privilege to bring this incredible series in Genesis to a close.
And as I’ve been preparing this, the realisation that this really is the last chapter has weighed
a little heavy. And the fact that this is the last of our one service Sundays just adds
a little bit of extra pressure. Let’s go. I’ve called the talk the end of the beginning.
And we’re going to get into the passage in a bit. Now, most of you won’t have heard me
preach before, but I’m one for going in and out of the text. So now is your chance to
get your Bible or switch your phone on and find Genesis 50 because we’re going to be
needing it later, all right? But to start with, I wanted to reflect a bit on what’s
gone on before. So for those of you who haven’t checked out the masterpiece in the entrance,
well, you are missing out. It is an absolutely incredible collage of what we’ve been looking
at over the last three months, and I highly recommend it. And I think it’s just an absolutely
fantastic job. So well done, Sheila, for that. Genesis means beginning, and there have been
plenty of those over the past 49 chapters. And I’m just going to pick out three. Chapter
1, verse 1, in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, the beginning of
everything. And it’s hard to get your head round, isn’t it? Once there was nothing, and
then there was, well, everything. And those opening verses take us back to the very beginning
of everything. They remind us that God is truly eternal. Now, I remember as a kid wanting
to know who made God. And in fact, I’m not sure I’ve ever had a satisfactory answer to
it. Some things are maybe just too big to understand. God just is. He always has been,
and He always will be. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. God made
a perfect world, and He put two human beings on it to enjoy and take care of it, to live
in partnership with Him. We are the pinnacle of creation made in His image. But that didn’t
last. By chapter 3, the perfect world is spoiled forever. You see, we see the beginning of
sin. Chapter 3, verse 1, now the snake was more crafty than any of the wild animals the
Lord God had made. He said to the woman, did God really say you must not eat from any tree
in the garden? And we know the story, or at least we think we do, don’t we? But what really
went on that day in the Garden of Eden? Was it simply that Eve stole a forbidden fruit?
Well, of course, that was the action, but it’s what was behind it that’s the issue,
isn’t it? You see, in disobeying God’s command, Adam and Eve effectively rejected His rule.
Now, as a kid, I was taught to remember sin by spelling it out, F-I-N, and seeing that
I is in the middle. And that essentially is what sin is about. All sin is, is when
we put ourselves, that I, in the place of God, when we reject that rightful rule that
He should have over us. And that is what Adam and Eve did in that day in the garden, spurred
on by the devil. And far more important are the consequences of this event. You see, that
perfect world was spoiled. No longer would life be pain-free for men or women. Life would
be hard work. Adam and Eve, and with them the whole human race, were banished from the
Garden of Eden, never to return. And worse than that, their perfect relationship with
God was spoiled, shattered, broken. That’s what I’m trying to get at with that picture
there. No longer could Adam and Eve walk side by side with Him. You see, God is so holy,
we’ve just sung it, He’s so holy, so absolutely perfect, that He cannot be in the presence
of people that are not. And ultimately the consequence was of death, and with it that
final separation from God. Now sin spoils, and I don’t know how well you’ve grasped
this, but it is really important, so I am going to go on about it just for a little
bit longer. Maybe you’re here just dipping your toe in things. Maybe you’ve heard this
all before but never quite understood it. Or maybe you’ve been in church all your life
and you think you already know this. Wherever you’re at, grasp this, that sin spoils. It
means that we cannot be in relationship with God. That is gone, that is smashed to smithereens.
It means we die, and that is bad news, depressing news, maybe even shocking news. But it’s
not the only news, and you see God is not only a holy God, He’s one of perfect love,
and He had a plan to put things right. Now when I was doing Bible training, one of our
lecturers said that you can divide the Bible into two halves. The first three chapters
of Genesis is one half, and the rest is the other. And the second half is basically God’s
rescue plan. It’s not a plan B brought into force when Adam and Eve screwed the first
one up. No, the Bible is clear that this was always the plan, and there is a hint of it
in chapter 3, but let’s skip forward to our last beginning, the beginning of the covenant.
Now Google AI tells me that a covenant is a formal binding agreement or promise between
two or more parties. And in chapter 12, we see Abraham, later to become Abraham, encounter
God. And God states His promise to him as a threefold promise that involves a land,
a people, and great blessing. So I’m just going to read a little section from Genesis
12. The Lord said to Abraham, go from your country, your people, and your father’s household,
to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless
you. I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who
curse you, and whoever, bless you, sorry, and whoever curses you, I will curse. And
all peoples on earth will be blessed through you. And God repeats this twice more. Do you
remember chapter 15, that weird ceremony with the blazing fire and the animals cut in half?
I’ll look it up later. And in it, Abraham looking at the stars in the sky, God using
them as an illustration of His promise to make Him the father of a great nation. And
God repeats these promises, makes it clear that it’s Him that is doing it all. And finally,
He repeats them a third time in Genesis 17. Abraham fell face down, and God said to him,
as for me, this is my covenant with you. You will be the father of many nations. No longer
will you be called Abram. Your name will be Abraham. For I have made you a father of
many nations. I will make you very fruitful. I will make nations of you, and kings will
come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and
you and your descendants after you, for the generations to come to be your God and the
God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a
foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and to your descendants after you.
And I will be their God. So we’ve had three beginnings. We’ve had a perfect creation.
We’ve had a spoiled creation. And we’ve got God’s rescue plan, which starts with a covenant
with one man. So can we just hold those beginnings in mind whilst you get a little break from
me? And Caleb is going to read our passage for today, which is Genesis 50.
And the Egyptians mourned for him seventy days. When the days of mourning had passed,
Joseph said to Pharaoh’s court, If I have found favour in your eyes, speak to Pharaoh
for me. Tell him, My father made me swear on oath and said, I am about to die. Bury
me in the tomb I dug for myself in the land of Canaan. Now let me go up and bury my father.
Then I will return. Pharaoh said, Go up and bury your father as he made you swear to do.
So Joseph went up to bury his father. All Pharaoh’s officials accompanied him, the dignitaries
of his court and all the dignitaries of Egypt. Besides all the members of Joseph’s household
and his brothers and those belonging to his father’s household, only their children and
flocks of hurt were less than gotten. Chariots and horsemen also went up with him. It was
a very large company. When they reached the fresh floor of Etad near the Jordan, they
lamented loudly and bitterly, where Joseph observed a seven-day period of mourning for
his father. When the Canaanites who lived there saw the mourning at the fresh floor
of Etad, they said, The Egyptians are holding a solemn ceremony of mourning. That is why
the place near the Jordan is called Abel-Musraim. So Joseph’s sons did as he commanded them.
They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the field of Machpelah near
Mamre, which Abraham had bought along with the field as a burial place from Ephraim the
Hittite. After burying his father, Joseph returned to Egypt together with his brothers
and all the others who had gone with him to bury his father. When Joseph’s brothers saw
that their father was dead, they said, What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays
us back for all the wrongs we did to him? So they sent word to Joseph, saying, Your
father left these instructions before he died. This is what you were to say to Joseph,
I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating
you so badly. Now please forgive the sins of the servants of God your father. When their
message came to him, Joseph wept. His brothers then came and threw themselves down before
him. We are your slaves, they said. But Joseph said to them, Don’t be afraid. Am I in the
place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what
is now being done, the saving of many lives. So then, don’t be afraid. I will provide
for you and your children. And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them. Joseph stayed
in Egypt along with all his father’s family. He lived 110 years and saw the third generation
of Ephraim’s children. Also, the children of Micaiah, son of Manasseh, were placed at
birth on Joseph’s knees. Then Joseph said to his brothers, I am about to die, but God
will surely come to your aid and take you up out of this land to the land he promised
an oath to Abraham, Isaac and Joko. And Joseph made the Israelites wear an oath and said,
God will surely come to your aid and then you must carry my bones up from this place.
So Joseph died at the age of 110 and after they embalmed him, he was placed in a coffin
in Egypt.
Well done little man. He was a bit upset that he wasn’t getting one of these roving mics,
so I’ve told him he’s got to wait a little bit for that. So to the end of the beginning,
our final chapter, and in it we see three ends. Firstly, the end of Jacob. So Andy talked
last week about Jacob’s final words to his gathered sons and grandsons. So technically
his end was in chapter 49 when he, what did you say Andy, hooked up his feet on the bed
and went to his father’s, something like that. But the first half of this chapter is devoted
to his end. Now I don’t know about you, but as I’ve studied it and as I’ve heard it read
just now, my overriding thought was, wow, they made a massive deal out of that. And
there is a lot of detail for us, far more than other significant deaths in Genesis.
I look back, in Genesis 25, there’s just four verses devoted to the end of Abraham
and we have 14. And I wonder why. So let’s look at them in a bit more detail. Verse 1,
Jacob has just died and Joseph is physically distraught. He throws himself on his father’s
body. He weeps over him and kisses him. And then there’s the first ritual. Jacob’s body
is embalmed. This takes 40 days. Verse 3, the Egyptians mourned him for 70 days. And
see who’s mourning there? The Egyptians. Not Joseph and his brothers, although clearly
they will have been too, but the Egyptians. Jacob is a foreigner in their land and yet
they mourned him for 70 days. Jacob’s end was a big deal and not just for his family.
And the story goes on and preparations are made for his burial, which happens not in
Egypt but back in Canaan, fulfilling an oath that Joseph had sworn to his father. And Jacob
is eventually buried back at the family burial cave with his grandparents, Abraham and Sarah
and his father Isaac, but not without more pomp and ceremony. Verse 7 to 9, we see all
of Egypt’s dignitaries, well done Caleb, accompanying the family. It was a very large company, such
a large company that the locals living there remark in verse 11, the Egyptians are holding
a solemn ceremony of mourning. See it again? The Egyptians are holding a solemn ceremony
of mourning. So what can we learn about all this fuss about the end of Jacob? Well, firstly,
it seems like he’s a foreigner in two places. You see, he dies in Egypt away from the Promised
Land, yet when he’s taken back to Canaan to be buried, he’s a foreigner there too. And
this should maybe resonate a little bit with us. You see, in several places in the New
Testament, Christians are described as being aliens or foreigners in the world. But if
it sometimes feels like you don’t belong in this world anymore, well, that’s true, we
don’t. We’re citizens of a new kingdom. But for now, we still live in this one. And that
can feel hard, especially on a Monday morning, can’t it, when you’re at work or college or
you’re with friends or family that don’t know Jesus. Jacob knew his identity. He’d
encountered God in a very personal way, illustrated in that picture there. And he trusted in his
promises, the very same ones that were given back to Abraham. So for him, his choice of
burial site back in the Promised Land, well, that was a given. And for us, well, we need
to hold on to that identity. We are children of God and citizens of heaven, and that is
why showing up here on a Sunday is so important, because we can remind and spur each other
on when we go back into that week when we’re having to live as aliens in another country.
As well as being encouraged by Jacob as a foreigner, we can also take heart that he
was in many ways a flawed man. And Andy covered this last week when he reminded us of Jacob’s
many failures along the way. So when we announced the birth of our son Jacob to our families,
my dad commented on the name. His words were, well, you could have gone for a better character.
Possibly a bit harsh for his first grandson. When Caleb arrived, I made a point of asking
if that was a better choice. Make your mind up. Dad was right on one hand, but Jacob the
Bible did make a lot of mistakes. But looking at the way his end is outlined for us, we
see he finished well, and he was esteemed and honored by many. And I’d echo what Andy
said last week, that this encourages me. See, throughout Genesis, throughout the whole Bible,
God uses flawed individuals to work his purposes out. And so he can and does use us too. With
all our flaws, all our disappointments, we let him down, and he gently restores us.
And finally, the end of Jacob signals the real star of the nation of Israel. You see,
indeed, his name was even changed to Israel. It’s easy when there’s an Israel on the map
to forget that the first Israel was a person. And whilst Abraham is always referred to as
the father of the nation, in many ways, I’d suggest that title really belongs to Jacob.
You see, from his 12 sons came the 12 tribes, which grew into the great people. As Jacob
blessed his sons individually before he died, I think he’d have reflected on that promise
of becoming a people and seen a glimpse of what was to come. The end of Jacob, a man
who died holding onto the promises of God, who finished well and who was mourned by a
people from a foreign land. Let’s move on. In the next verses, we see another very different
end. We see the end of hostility. Check out verse 15, and you see an obvious change in
the narrative. Jacob has died, and Joseph’s brothers start to panic. When Joseph’s brothers
saw that their father was dead, they said, what if Joseph holds a grudge against us and
pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him? You see, the brothers foresee a problem.
Many years before, they had treated Joseph abysmally, and they know it. They might try
to claim mitigating circumstances. After all, Joseph was, by all accounts, a pretty jumped
up obnoxious teenager, but what they did was pretty unforgivable. You can read it in Genesis
37. They plotted to kill him. Reuben the Elbdis steps in and suggests throwing him an assistant
instead. He plans to go back and rescue him, but the others then sell him on into slavery,
and they take his bloodied robe, that technicolor dream coat, back to Jacob and make it look
like Joseph was dead. And then they carry on with life, unaware of what happened to
their father, living a lie at home with their father grieving his blooded son. But now they
have a problem. Jacob is gone, and what’s going to happen to them? Without the protection
of their father, just how is Joseph going to react? So they preempt it. They get in
first. See verse 16, so they sent word to Joseph saying, your father left these instructions
before he died. This is what you are to say to Joseph. I ask you to forgive your brothers
the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly. Now please forgive
the sins of your servant, the God of your father. Now we have no way or not of knowing
what the brothers are saying here is true. The Bible does not document this conversation
between Jacob and his sons. And as a mother of children who can be pretty convincing in
their stories to explain away misdemeanors, sorry to call you out Caleb, but you know
what is true? I have to say, personally, I don’t believe them. But neither do I blame
them. You see, in all honesty, I’d have probably tried something similar. You see,
our sinful nature, that eye in the middle, it’s always going to try and protect me,
isn’t it? And Joseph is moved to tears. And then the brothers come together in person.
And whilst I’m skeptical about their story, I do believe they’re sorry. Their repentance
is genuine. They will have carried that guilt for years. And they literally throw themselves
at their brother’s mercy, aware that he has every right to punish them. And yet Joseph
does respond with mercy. He has no intention of punishing them. You see, it becomes clear
that he’s forgiven them long ago. There is no hostility on his side. He has seen the
bigger picture. You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good. And this section
of the story illustrates a couple of things, and I think in many ways mirrors our relationship
with God. Firstly, it illustrates the power of unresolved sin. Joseph’s brothers know
they have done wrong, and they’ve lived for years in the knowledge that they sold
him as a slave and lied to their father. Secondly, we see the power of unrestricted forgiveness.
Joseph’s response is gentle and loving. Twice, he says, don’t be afraid. He promises
to take care of his brothers and their households. And this is the same as us with God. Are you
sitting here feeling the weight of unresolved sin? Is this something you’ve never dealt
with, never taken that step of acknowledging to yourself that you’ve been living your
life with I in charge and that that needs to change? Or maybe you’re already a Christian,
but there’s something specific that you’re struggling with, a habit you know you need
to break, a recurrent thought or behavior that you can’t seem to stop. Can I encourage
you to come to God who is waiting there with unrestricted forgiveness? Our loving God who
longs to say don’t be afraid, I forgive you. And we don’t earn that forgiveness. It’s
prepaid. When Jesus died on that cross 2,000 years ago, he was paying the price for every
one of my sins and yours. Humanity’s rebellion paid for by one perfect sinless man.
So we don’t earn it, but we do have to claim it. Last weekend was my birthday, and
I got a message on my Costa app to say that I would receive a free birthday treat within
the next seven days. So when I looked at it, there it was for me on the app. But I had
to claim it. I had to click on it and show it to the nice lady in Costa, which I did
on Friday, and I got a nice piece of free tip. God’s forgiveness is kind of the same.
It’s there. It’s prepaid. And unlike my treat, there is no time limit. All we need
to do is claim it. And how do we do this? Well, can I suggest a simple ABC? A, admit
I’m wrong. B, believe in Jesus’ death that has taken the punishment I deserve. C, commit
to following Jesus as Lord with him in charge instead of me. And whether you need to do
that today for the first time or the thousandth time, I encourage people to do it. There will
be space later to reflect. Use it. Think through the ABC. Grab someone to pray with afterwards.
Don’t leave this morning unresolved.
Before we move to our final end, just a word about the power of unrestricted forgiveness.
You see, maybe you’re sitting here and you’ve been wronged by someone, whether deliberately
or not. And that is hard to take. But we know in our hearts, don’t we, that holding on to
bitterness doesn’t do us any good? Now, look at Joseph’s reaction in the passage and
in the earlier ones when his brothers first arrived in Egypt and were oblivious to his
identity. He’s forgiven them somewhere along the line. And crucially, before they have
come and said sorry to him, he has forgiven them. And we can learn a lot from this, can’t
we? It’s very countercultural. We live in a world where it’s considered weak to make
that first move, to forgive without being asked to, to not make people pay for what
they deserve. But we have a countercultural God who did make that first move, who sent
his own son to take the punishment we deserve. So maybe we should rethink. And maybe there
are relationships that need fixing. Can we be a people who aren’t afraid to make that
move, either to apologize for where we know we’re wrong or to forgive when we’ve been
Time for our final end, the end of Joseph. And there is a lot less fuss and ceremony
than the end of Jacob. And unlike the other patriarchs, we don’t see a formal blessing
of the next generation. That seems to have been covered by Jacob. But what we do see
is Joseph’s unwavering faith in God’s covenant. Verse 24, then Joseph said to his brothers,
I’m about to die, but God will surely come to your aid and take you up out of this land
to the land he promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And Joseph made the Israelites
swear an oath and said, God will surely come to your aid and then you must carry my bones
up into this place. There have been many repeated themes in Genesis, but the one that’s really
lodged with me is the need for patience when it comes to God’s promises. And Joseph has
got it, hasn’t he? He knows the covenant promises given to his ancestors. Remember that they
would be a great people in their own land and greatly blessed. But as Genesis closes,
we see that more than 250 years on, there isn’t much sign of any of this. The family
is pretty small and they aren’t even in the promised land. And Joseph has seen some blessing
in his time in Egypt, but we know that by the time the next book Exodus starts, they’re
going to be enslaved in terrible condition. Not many people, no land, limited blessing.
Yet Joseph’s faith doesn’t wobble. Twice he says, God will surely come to your aid. Joseph
is convinced that this will work out, just as God has said. He’s just not going to see
it. And so his faith is demonstrated in his instructions for his body to be buried back
in Canaan, something that isn’t actually fulfilled for another 400 years. And how does Joseph
have such great faith? Well, I think the answer comes for us a little earlier in our chapter
in the section on the end of hostility. Remember Joseph’s reply to his brothers in verse 20.
You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good, to accomplish what is now being
done, the saving of many lives. You see, somewhere along the line, Joseph has grasped the great
truth that God is for him, despite circumstances and events along the way. Throughout the ups
and many downs of Joseph’s life, God was right there. Move the slide, Michelle, thank
you. Joseph has got this. God was right there with him, working out his purposes. Joseph
has got this, and this fuels his faith. And he’s also got that it’s about God and not
about Joseph. God intended it for good, to accomplish what is now being done, the saving
of many lives. He doesn’t say, God intended it for good, so everything would work out
fine for me. Look, in the end, I got myself a family, decent job, some land for us to
settle in. No, God intended it for good, to accomplish what is now being done, the saving
of many lives. So as I finish, hear this, God is for you. I don’t know how life is for
you right now. Maybe things are going well. Maybe you feel at rock bottom, God is for
you. But also hear this, God is for you in the context of his plans and his purposes.
And they’re not always the same as we maybe think they should be. And God’s time scale
may be very different to how we think it ought to be. And that means we may not see answers
to situations. Things may not work out how we expect. It may feel that God isn’t for
us. But learn from the story of Genesis, he is. We have a God who is faithful to his promises,
who remains in charge, however things might look or feel. As Paul famously wrote in Romans
8 verse 28, and we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love him,
who have been called according to his purpose. And Jacob and Joseph knew this, and they died
trusting in their God’s promises. So as we finish today, there is plenty to reflect on.
Is there unresolved sin that needs dealing with? Maybe you’ve never acknowledged that
till now, and do you need to claim that forgiveness? Maybe for the first time, maybe for the thousands.
Is there a relationship that needs fixing? Do you need to make the first move? Be that
one to say sorry or to forgive. Are you struggling with being a foreigner in this world? Are
you a different person on a Sunday to how you are the rest of the week? Or are you finding
it difficult to believe that God is really for you, especially with things how they are
now? The answer to all of these is the same as ever. Come to the cross. Re-center on God
at saving work for you. He is for you. He is for us. Nowhere do we see this more powerfully
than at the cross. Shall we pray? Heavenly Father, I thank you for your word. I thank
you for the book of Genesis. I thank you for all that we have learnt and can take away
from it and keep learning and keep taking away. And Lord God, for wherever we’re at
this time, thank you for the cross. Thank you that in there we receive your unrestricted
forgiveness. Lord, we know we have done wrong. We know we have messed up. We know we have
spoiled things. But Lord, we come to you in repentance and in faith that your work on
the cross is enough. Amen.