Mid

Message Transcription

Well, we're going to pick back up in our series called Let Them Cook. I want to give a shout out to Brandon Freedberg. I never in a million years imagined that he would stand here and say he has mad respect for me. That's pretty cool from Doctor Fred. So, uh, Brandon, thank you. Thank you for standing. If you didn't get a chance to hear his message, I want to challenge you to go back and listen to that this week. It will bless you. It will challenge you, and I hope it will encourage you, as it did me. Uh, today we're going to find Joseph once again. So if you have your Bible, I invite you to turn over to Genesis chapter 40. We've been thinking together about this phrase. Let them cook this idea of God, allowing us to learn and to grow and to mature over time, to become the man or the woman that he has created us to be. We began looking at the start of his story, and we used a couple of terms from our culture. The first one called drip, right, Joseph's drip, that that special coat that he was given that signified not only to him, but to everyone else around him that he was favored, that he was special. Right. And we talked some about that blessing that came to him. He received it as most 17 year olds would. Right as I am special, and I'm maybe even a little more special than you, right? And his brothers knew that not only did he receive that coat, he also received a couple of dreams, some dreams that also hinted at this specialness.

And and he interpreted them in the way that that a 17 year old often would write. I certainly would have that that he is special. He shares these dreams. Now, what's interesting is we don't know all the context of his family life. All we know is how they received the word of of those dreams to to Joseph's family, it was not seen as a good thing. Right? When he announces, hey, one day you guys are going to bow down to me. They don't go, oh, that's awesome. I'm so glad we'll know the most important person in the world. They go, yeah, that's not good news. That's bad news. Which led us to week two in the that phrase clapback, right. This idea of responding to a negative swipe at you. And certainly we see some clapping back in Joseph's stories. Right. It begins with his brothers who find a convenient way to get rid of him. And they take advantage of it. And he goes off into slavery. And we find out that once he arrives in Egypt, he's bought by Potiphar, and he quickly rises through the ranks in Potiphar's house, becomes the the most second most important person there besides Potiphar. In fact, we're told he makes every decision in the house except for what Potiphar eats.

That's the only thing that Potiphar said. Ah, I'm going to hold on to that one. Well. Potiphar's wife takes notice of Joseph and the man that he is and the person he's becoming, and she tries to entice him, seduce him and he won't have it. Right. And so as the story unfolds, we find she takes his garment that he left behind the last time she tried to seduce him, and she shows it to Potiphar, who becomes enraged, we're told, and he throws him into prison. So as as chapter 39 and 40, kind of as 39 ends and 40 begins, we find Joseph is back in prison. He's back there. But we we learned this interesting tidbit. In fact, we chased this word around that in the midst of Joseph's time in prison, that God was with him, that God showed him this steadfast loyalty, this hesed. I thank God didn't forget. In fact, he showed him steadfast loyalty and we wrestled some with this idea of God's hesed. His blessing, his loyalty to us doesn't always get expressed the way that we want it to. You know, if you're like me, I want God's loyalty to express itself, to manifest itself in my life as as good, right? Not not hard times. I don't have to face challenges or overwhelming circumstances. Right. I want it all to come up roses. Let's see. Genesis 39 definition of God's hesed is this mixture of blessing and suffering. Right. We know that Joseph's dreams are one day going to come true, but if they're going to come true in the way that God wants them to, Joseph's going to have to be a different person, right? He's going to have to become something that he's not right now.

And so God allows him to go through some things. And we we talk some about what it's like to be God's people who we know the end of the story. We know that Jesus has been raised from the dead, that the kingdom is breaking through a little more today than it was yesterday. Every moment, every opportunity that we have a chance to express the kingdom life, that that God's kingdom is coming and one day it will be here fully. But until that day, he's asked us to partner with him. But we recognize how do we receive that blessing? How do we live in light of that? Do we use it to power up on people, or do we use it to lift up people? But today we're going to jump into this story. And in Genesis chapter 40, as we think about this idea of hesed, of of blessing, of becoming who God wants us to be, right? Because suffering is a part of that story. In fact, the Hebrew writer said it. It was fitting that God for whom, through for whom, and through whom all things exist in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation Jesus perfect through suffering.

I thought, if we're going to become like Jesus, if we're going to grow into him, the kind of man, the woman that he wants us to be, then then they're going to be weeks in our life, maybe seasons in our life that look like the last week of Jesus life. And that doesn't mean God isn't there. And that doesn't mean God has caused all of this to happen. Instead, it means he he's allowed it to happen because he knows that we're trying to become more like his son. What does that look like? Today I chose the word mid. Some of you may be familiar with this term, but. But in the midst of life mid is is means well I put the wrong definition up there does not mean trendy fashion, cool sense of style or swag, right? I faked you eyes. How many of you caught it? Yeah, whatever. That's so mid Carl. That was so mid of you to to mis define mid right. It just it means kind of ups and downs. Things just aren't that great. You know it's a phrase I wonder if someone had asked Joseph as that young 1718, 19, 20, 20 year old young man in prison, how's life going? Maybe he one word he might use to describe his mid man mid life. There's been some good, there's been some bad but it's just kind of mid. It's it's not the way that I expected it to go. It's not the way that I hoped it would work out.

But this week has actually read for us. Just a minute ago, we find out that God's story is continuing on in Joseph's life. In fact, it's not long. Or maybe after some time we're told that that Joseph finds himself in in prison, but he's been elevated in that position to to take over and take charge of every decision that happens in the prison. One day he gets a couple of visitors, a couple of cellmates. These two, this baker and cupbearer. Now, we don't know what happened. We don't know how things went, but obviously the party did not go as planned or wanted. And it offended Pharaoh. And so he throws him in jail. And they've been there a little while, and Joseph's been tending to them, taking care of them. He shows up one day and sees their faces are down and downcast, and he says, what's going on? They said we had a dream. We each had a dream and neither of us know what it means. Can you help us? And so they tell him their dreams as as only a gen-zer could. Yo, am I dream there's this vine, right? And on this vine there's three branches. They bud bloom and bam! Grapes everywhere. So I'm holding Pharaoh's cup, squeezing these grapes into it. And then I give it back to him. Listen up. Coz the three branches mean three days. That's when Pharaoh is going to lift you up out of here.

Give you your old job back. Just like old times. For real though, when he does, don't leave me on. Read. Show me some love. Help me get up out of here. Tell Pharaoh what's up. I will snatch out a Hebrew land. And I've been stuck in this dungeon for no reason. You feel me? The baker likes what he hears. He likes this interpretation and so he tells Joseph his dream. Yo J, check out my dream. I had three baskets of bread stacked up on my head. The top one was filled with some dope pastries, but these birds kept swooping in and feasting on them. Here's what's up, bro. Joseph said those three baskets mean three days. That's when Pharaoh is going to lift you up too. Only he'll be lifting your head off your shoulders. The rest will be impaled and the birds will be feasting on you. I don't know how this conversation ended. What do you say after that? Uh. Thank you. Uh, good luck with all that. I don't know how it ends. All we know, all we know is that it must have been really awkward in that moment. But again, the Gen Z version leaves a little something to be desired in Joseph's conversations here, because it leaves out a phrase that I think is really important. Let's look again at verse 14. Perhaps in your translation it says this. But when all goes well with you, he says to the cupbearer, remember me and show me kindness.

Show me steadfast loyalty. Show me steadfast love. Show me. Hazard. Mention me to Pharaoh to get me out of prison. You see, the same word is used here when Joseph is talking to the cupbearer that the author tells us was the word that described how God was present with Joseph in prison, not getting him out of prison, but but present with him in prison. It says, And God loved him with this hesed love. So Joseph says, would you show me the same loyalty, the same steadfastness that God has been showing me? Would you remember me? Don't forget me. Show me that same hassid now, just like the baker. We don't know how that conversation went either. I mean, I would imagine that after getting such good news, he probably would have said, hey, no problem bro. No worries. Chill, I got you, I got you. As soon as he restores me, I'll help you out, I won't forget. Here's what we're told happens. Now. The third day was Pharaoh's birthday, and he gave a feast for all his officials. He lifted up the heads of the chief cupbearer and the chief baker. In the presence of his officials, he restored the chief cupbearer to his position, so that he once again put the cup into Pharaoh's hand. But he impaled the chief baker, just as Joseph had said to them in his interpretation. The chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph.

He forgot him.

He forgot. When the time came, right when the moment came, when that dream was fulfilled and that interpretation was shown to be true in that moment, he had a chance and he forgot. I mean, how do you forget? How do you forget something like that? Well it's easy. Just don't care. And I just don't care. Your life is just not as important as mine, man. Look, you do you. I'll do me. Whatever. He just forgets. And when the text says he forgets, he doesn't just kind of mean. Oh, he left the room, and it just went out of his mind. Notice how chapter 41 opens? Verse one, when two full years had passed. Right. Not not two parts of a couple of years, but when two full years had passed. Another sequence of dreams is going to show up. But. But, Joseph. Joseph still in prison. Now just imagine. Try to put yourself in that position. What would you be thinking? How would you be feeling for two years? Wondering day after day? Will he remember? Will he remember? Will he remember? He's forgotten. He's forgotten. Anger, frustration, betrayal. Abandoned. That's certainly were words that I thought of this week as I tried to imagine myself in his position, my friend Jared asked this question. He says, do you think that mixed in with all of his thinking, if this guy could forget him, maybe God had forgotten him too. You see, that's the danger of becoming selfish with God's hesed, his his steadfast, loving, loyal kindness to us when we forget others.

We forget that God is trying to help us become a conduit, not a container of his hesed. See the point, the goal of God's hesed in our life. It's not just for us. His desire is that that hesed, that that loyalty, that love would move us and would change us so that as it flows into our life, it would naturally begin to flow out to those around. Jesus would tell his disciples in Matthew chapter ten, when he was sending them out to do some mission work, he says, as you go proclaim this message, the kingdom of heaven has come near. Heal the sick. Raise the dead. Cleanse those who have leprosy. Drive out demons. Freely you have received. So freely give. See, God's great desire is for us to become like Jesus. Who though he had everything. He gave it up freely. To us that we might become sons and daughters of the King. He says, I want you to live that way too. You see the danger if we forget that not only do we hurt our relationship with the other, but we can also hurt their relationship with God. Now, I know that sounds like a real guilty thing for a preacher to say, isn't it? But it's true, isn't it? I mean, have you ever been forgotten? Have you ever been going through something? Nobody remembered. How did that feel? I was thinking this last weekend was Father's Day. My best friend lives in Tennessee and his father passed away in September of 2017.

And so on. On Sunday, Father's Day, we were walking around down to lunch and I was thinking about my friend Jason. I thought, I need to call him. I need to give him a ring and just kind of check in on him. Just ask him how he's doing, because I've been thinking about my mom and on Mother's Day it was a tough day. It was a hard day, and I had some people come up to me and say, hey, we're thinking about you, we love you, we care about you. And just it helped. And I thought, I need to call Jason and got to the end of the day and guess what? I forgot. I didn't mean to forget. But I forgot. And so this week I was in my office and and I was studying for this passage. And I was listening to a morning devotional that I have and and the speaker was talking about going through grief and the different stages of grief. And so I'm kind of tuned in as I'm navigating this myself. And, and one of the things he talks about was, it's okay to be where you are. It's a it's okay to feel how you're feeling and just help really helpful stuff. But in that moment, there was this line kind of he he threw out, but it just hit me. And I remembered. I forgot. And so I start typing up this text.

In my heart just breaks. He's. I'm thinking he's probably misses his dad. Like I miss my mom. Right. And so I'm just I'm typing out this text and I can't see because I'm weeping. I mean, I'm literally just weeping, right? And then I hear, hey, Carl. And I'm like, oh yeah. Um hum. Yes. What's up? Right. This moment I forgot. I remember when Gabe was born, our son, who's now a junior in college, but he was sent into the NICU for 11 days. And and somehow there was this miscommunication in the church office, and nobody came to visit. And my parents had just arrived in Cloudcroft, New Mexico, when we were in Austin, Texas, in the hospital. And we're like, hey, uh, yeah. So Gabe's here a month early. Ta da! But within 30 minutes, they noticed he wasn't breathing very well. I told this story before, and so they rushed him into the NICU, and Kaylee and I are all alone. Nobody came and nobody called. We felt forgotten, right? And we didn't realize how dire the situation was until the next day. The doctor sits down with us and he's very serious. And he says, look, these next 24 hours are critical. Nobody called. Right. My parents are rushing back. Kelly's parents are rushing down. Right. But none of our friends called. No one in the church called. Why? There's this mix up. We didn't know about the mix up. We just felt alone. And we felt forgotten. Right? And we cried that night.

We cried out to God. Have you forgotten us? I we know, we know what it's like to be forgotten. So God says, would you would you be the kind of person who allows the blessed? To flow through you, not just into you. That Joseph is wrestling with this when another round of dreams starts up right? And we find out at the beginning of 41 that Pharaoh now has a couple of dreams and he he doesn't know what to do. He doesn't know how to interpret them. Now he has this weird dream about these seven healthy fat cows who just come up out of the Nile and they stand on the banks. And then this weird seven gaunt, unhealthy, sick looking cows come up out of the water and they eat the seven healthy cows. The next day he has another dream. There are these seven heads of grain. They're full, they're lush, they're thick, they're healthy, and they grow on the stalk. And then there's another stalk where the heads are weak and sickly. No one would want to eat it. And yet these seven unhealthy heads of grain eat the seven healthy. And Pharaoh doesn't know what to do with it. I don't know how to interpret this. So he calls all of his magicians and his wise men in to tell him, what does this mean? And none of them know. None of them can figure it out. Until. The cupbearer remembers. Oh, yeah, I know a guy.

Today, I'm reminded of my shortcomings, he says. Pharaoh was once angry with his servants, and he imprisoned me and the chief baker in the house of the captain of the guard. Each of us had a dream that same night or the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own. Now a young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain of the guard. We told him our dreams, and he interpreted them for us, giving each man the interpretation of his dream. And things turned out exactly as he interpreted them to us. I was restored to my position and the other man was impaled. I know. I remember now, I remember there's a guy and Pharaoh says, send me the guy. So they go to get the guy and they dress him up and they put him in proper clothing, and they bring him before the guy, and the guy says. Rather, Farrow asked the guy. Can you interpret my dreams? And Joseph says, I can't. But I know someone who can. And so Pharaoh tells him his dreams. And Joseph explains, he says, actually, they're they're the same dream that that number seven, those seven healthy cows, those seven healthy heads of grain, those are seven years of abundance that Egypt is going to going to enjoy. But the seven unhealthy, those sickly cows that ate the healthy cows and the sickly heads of grain that ate the healthy heads of grain, well, that's seven years of famine.

So, Pharaoh, what you need to do. As you need to find a wise man, someone who can come along and take 20% of of the seven years of abundance and store it away, because that famine is coming and you don't want the people to starve. Find someone who can do this for you. Scene is at this moment, things start to change in Joseph's life. But here's the cool thing. One of the cool things, at least about this story, is we saw how when the cupbearer forgets, not only does it damage their relationship, but it can also damage his relationship with God. The opposite is also true that not only when he remembers. That it can not only change Joseph's situation, it has the potential to bless his relationship with God. God hasn't forgotten. He remembers. I just had to wait. Now, like it or not, sometimes we have to wait for me to become the man I need to be. The woman that you need to be. We have to wait. Because Pharaoh is about to do something pretty amazing. Listen to how he responds to Joseph's interpretation. He says, verse 39, Since God has shown you all this, there is no one discerning and wise as you. You shall be over my house, and with all my people shall under order themselves, as you command only with regard to the throne will I be greater than you. See, I have set you over all the land of Egypt. Removing his signet ring from his hand, Pharaoh put it on Joseph's hand, and he arrayed him in garments of fine linen, and he put a gold chain around his neck.

He had him ride in the chariot of his second in command. Just think about that. There was somebody whose job was second in command, and Pharaoh said, hey, pal, bring me your keys. All right. This is now your ride, Jay. What do you think was going on there? He had him ride in the chariot of the second in command, and they cried out in front of him, bow the knee! I'll sudden this dream thing starts to come full circle. Thus he set him over all the land of Egypt. Moreover, Pharaoh said to Joseph, I am Pharaoh. And without your consent, no one shall lift up a hand or foot in all the land of Egypt. And Joseph were told, was 30 years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Now think about that for a minute. How old was Joseph when we met him in this story? When things took a radical turn south. Right 17. And now he's 30. Carry the one. Drop the for over 13 years. 13 years he spent mostly in prison, waiting, wondering. God, have you forgotten? I mean, I see you're with me. I can see the ways that you're blessing me. But, God, there are also times where I wonder, couldn't one of those blessings be to get me out of here to save me from this situation? Imagine what would have happened if if God had just said, yeah, no problem.

Some of you may have seen the movie Evan Almighty, right? Where where Evan finds out he can be like God. And so he just answers everybody's prayers and it's all chaos. It's all craziness. Imagine a 17 year old being brought before Pharaoh and him saying, you are now king of all of Egypt. The only person that's higher than you is me. Here are the keys to the car. What do you think that 17 year old would have done with that car? Right? And it'd be in the middle of the Nile River. He wasn't ready. It wasn't time. See the story here hinges some on this cupbearer remembering. And man when he remembers it changes everything. You see, when we remember people who are at their darkest moment that we not only help them feel seen and heard by us, right, we help them feel seen and heard by God. Right. Then when the messages finally got through and our friends began showing up at the hospital, we felt seen and heard. Not just by them, but by God. He does listen. He does answer prayers, right? He didn't wave a magic wand and it's all fixed, right? We had to navigate and negotiate a couple of weeks that were that were incredibly painful, but we didn't have to go alone, right? We remembered. And so this week I texted my friend Jason and I said, man, I'm sorry, I didn't remember, but I want you to know I love you and I'm with you and I care about you.

Right. You're not alone. I imagine you feel the loss that I feel. And I just want you to know we're together. And I remembered. Well, God, please help me to keep remembering. See, I'm not saying that just remembering is somehow the magic fix. It's not right. We've got to continue to grow. It took 12, 13 years for Joseph to run through the life that he had to run through to become the man that God needed him to be. See. Our part is to keep remembering. See, one of the challenges of. For those of us, any of us who've ever been through something hard, it's this fear that that what if it goes on for a long time, right? People are just going to forget they're going to move on. Life doesn't stop just because I'm feeling lost or pain or going through something, right? Life just keeps on going. And are we just going to be forgotten and passed by? See the gift that God gives to us of hesed, of his presence with us and through us. He says, so let's be together. And so one of our core values at Broadway is build community. It's not just so that stuff always goes well. It's so when it doesn't, you know, you're not alone. And there are people who will walk with you, who will be with you, who will stand or cry or pray or beg or just sit in the quiet with you.

Right. So you know. That God is hesed. He's present. And he's real. Right in. The beautiful thing about God's presence, even in our suffering, is he doesn't cause our suffering, but he doesn't waste it either. It's not like we get out of it and go, what was that all about? Instead, God finds a way to weave it into our story. So? So when our hearts are broken, ours begin to break for people who are hurting. Right. If you've ever been through pain and loss and had someone who's been there done that come alongside you, they they get it. And it's not. I talked with a friend this week who's whose mother passed away just a few months after mine. I was like, yeah, we're kind of in this club, aren't we? And any of you who've ever lost someone, you're in the club with us, and it's not a club we would ever wish on anybody, but it's a club that we find great hope and support in knowing we're not alone. That God is present. As we finish this morning. Here. Time is up. Let me just invite you to think about who are the people in your life who are struggling, who need to be remembered. Who's been struggling so long that they maybe even think not only have they been forgotten by their friends, but maybe God has forgotten them. Will you remember? Would you remind them this week? You're not alone.

You're not alone. You see them and you love them. And it doesn't compare to to the depth of which God sees and loves us. But it's something, and it's something we can hold on to. You see, because we could remind someone of this truth. Maybe it could change their life. God. May it be so for us this week. Would you give us eyes to see and ears to hear those who are hurting around us? God, would you help us to remember that we might give that gift of grace to one another this week, and to those you brought into our life? Lord, each one of us know what it's like to feel forgotten. But to have that that friend who remembers that family person who remembers a coworker or a classmate who remembers. That reminds us that you are a God of hesed. You're not afraid to enter into hard things. You don't bring us along just to leave us all alone. God, would you help us to be your people, your hands, your feet this week? And to those who feel like their life is just mid, it just is. Yeah. Would you help us to be that calm, assuring presence that you love us and that you are there? Thank you father. Thank you for the gift of Jesus. Thank you for the gift of the story. The reminder that even when we forget God, you can still use us. So, God, would you help us to remember? In Jesus name, Amen.