Genesis 50:20 “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.”
The Old Testament was written for us as examples, and Joseph was an example of one who responded to severe trials in his life by patiently maintaining his faith in God. As a young man, Joseph had been shown by God that he would be used by Him in such a way that even his family would bow down to him. Everyone in Joseph’s family clearly understood the implications of his dreams, for scripture reveals to us that his brothers hated him for it. As an aside, not always will God’s promises to you go down well with others. In Joseph’s case his brothers even tried to kill him because of it and they eventually sold him as a slave in order to get rid of him. In this world Satan is our adversary and he will do everything in his power to prevent God’s promises from coming to pass in our lives. Nevertheless as we patiently maintain our faith in God and His promises, we will ultimately see those promises come to pass in our lives. In the passage of scripture quoted above when Joseph made himself known to his brothers, he made the statement that it was in fact God who had been working in his life all the time. Since he was a young man of seventeen he had been sold as a slave. He had faithfully served his master as a slave. He had then been falsely accused and thrown into prison where he remained until the day that the Lord had prepared for him. And in one day he was promoted from being a convicted criminal to becoming president of the most powerful nation in the world. All of this took place over a thirteen-year period, for Joseph was thirty years old when he finally came out of prison. And in all that time Joseph never once complained against God for that which he went through (even though he deserved none of it). He patiently maintained his faith in God through all that time and recognized that God was working all things together for his good. That is why the Holy Spirit through the apostle Paul teaches us that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). And so when we go through the trials of life our faith needs to work alongside patience to see us through those trials.
Michael E.B. Maher
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