Happy Thursday. Welcome back to the 5MC, the study of God’s Word that encourages your own personal study of God’s Word. You know, the knowledge and wisdom of God’s Word is not something you get somewhere else or from someone else, it’s something you garner on your own. I converse with so many that think it’s the responsibility of their Sunday School teacher or small group leader to bless them with the wisdom of God’s Word. Or they attend church once or twice a month and think that somehow in this one hour a month that it’s the pastors job to endow them with the deep knowledge of God’s Word. Folks, it just doesn’t work that way. If you truly desire the knowledge and wisdom of God’s Word, reach out and take it. It’s yours. God wants nothing more than for you to claim it and make it yours. So how do you do that? Well, if you want to learn about astrophysics you study astrophysics. If you want to know about antique steam trains, you study about antique steam trains. But if you want to know about God, His commands, His ways and His blessings, you study the Word of God.
But the super cool thing about studying the Word of God is you’ll have quite the Helper. If you have called upon Christ as your Savior, you’ll have the Holy Spirit as your guide and interpreter anytime you delve into the Word of God. The 5MC encourages you to do this daily. Yes, EVERY SINGLE day. I strongly recommend every morning before the craziness of the day gets firmly ahold of you. Before you go to your phone, go to the throne. Before Fox News gets turned on, before you check your 87 emails, before you check the craziness of Facebook, go to the Word of God. As we awaken every morning, our minds are like sponges, ready to be filled for a new day. What are you filling your mind with to start your day? Fill it with the wisdom of the Word of God and watch your day start out right. We’re told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, well I say that God’s Word is the proper nutrition you need to start your day. Take that Kellogg’s. Here's some verses on the power of the morning:
“I rise before dawn and cry for help; I wait for Your words.” Psalms 119:147
“In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.” Psalms 5:3
“And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.” Mark 1:35
Well, this morning I rose early to study chapter 40 of Genesis. In this chapter we see two of Potiphar’s officers are thrown into prison with Joseph. We’re not told what they did, maybe they also rejected the advances of Potiphar’s wife (or maybe they didn’t and that's why they're here) but they did something bad enough to get thrown into prison. As they do, they are put into the care of Joseph and we see that this is just another part of God’s perfect plan for Joseph.
Both men have dreams that trouble them greatly and Joseph notices their downcast countenance and asks them the matter. The dreams are told to Joseph and he interprets them correctly, both of them. One bodes well, the other not so much. But the verse that spoke to me today was not the interpretations, but Joseph’s confidence in the Lord and how he responds to this new situation of him interpreting dreams.
“They said to him, “We have had dreams, and there is no one to interpret them.” And Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Please tell them to me.” Gen 40:8
Wow. Joseph must have been quite the guy to hang out with. No wonder people could easily see that the favor of God rested upon him. But do you see what critical component Joseph’s response includes? It includes giving all the glory to God.
In fact if you were to analyze Joseph’s responses throughout his life, you will see that Joseph had a habit. A good habit. He had a habit of always giving God the glory. No matter what was going on, no matter what was happening to him or through him, he was quick to give God the glory. Check these out:
“Joseph then answered Pharaoh, saying, “It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.” Gen 41:16
“Now Joseph said to Pharaoh, “Pharaoh’s dreams are one and the same; God has told to Pharaoh what He is about to do.” Gen 41:25
“It is as I have spoken to Pharaoh: God has shown to Pharaoh what He is about to do.” Gen 41:28
“Now as for the repeating of the dream to Pharaoh twice, it means that the matter is determined by God, and God will quickly bring it about.” Gen 41:32
“Do not interpretations belong to God?” Gen 40:8b
“ Before the year of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph. Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore them to him.51 Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh. “For,” he said, “God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father's house.” 52 The name of the second he called Ephraim, “For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.” Gen 41:50-52
“Now do not be grieved or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are still five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant in the earth, and to keep you alive by a great deliverance. Now, therefore, it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh and lord of all his household and ruler over all the land of Egypt. Hurry and go up to my father, and say to him, ‘Thus says your son Joseph, “God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay.” Gen 45:5-9
Do you see the pattern in the life of Joseph? He always gave the glory to God. Even when undesirable events happened in his life, he knew that God was in control and that God’s perfect plan was at work. Folks, this is a lesson we so need today. Every single thing that is happening today is because God has caused it, allowed it or permits it.
What I’ve noticed however in the world today is quite the opposite. When good happens, we take the credit for ourselves but when bad happens, we blame God for it. This is all part of the study I did last week titled “why do bad things happen to good people.” If you missed that study, back up and find it at the 5MC.com on the home page about 4-5 studies down.
So why are we so quick to take the credit for the good that happens in our lives? The great job that we enjoy, who really got it for us? Aren’t we quick to tell people that we got the job? Where is God? What about the sweet home that you live in? Well, don’t we tell people that we bought it? But where did the money come from? The great job that God provided, provides the money that bought you the house. God gave you that house. So riddle me this, how many times in the last 90 days have you referred to it as the house that God gave you? It might seem like a simple grammatical oversight but it really stems from a major heart oversight. How do you view the constant hand of God upon your life.
Joseph knew. Joseph got it. It all comes from the Lord. The good, the bad, the abundant and the little. The favorable, the unfavorable, the pleasant and the unpleasant. It all comes from the Lord. You see, Joseph had seen it all, lived it all and throughout it all, he had seen God never leave him or forsake him. The only constant in Joseph’s life had been the loving caring hand of the Heavenly Father. And throughout these events he always gave God the glory. The humility of Joseph is quite the example and lesson for us today. I do nothing and God does everything.
This simple yet difficult principle is summed up perfectly by Paul in one of the often most misquoted verses in God’s Word. But here we can see its full meaning as it relates to our study today.
“Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. 12 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” Philipians 4:12-13
You see no matter what Paul or Joseph experienced, they saw and recognized the hand of God. Whether it be palace or prison, feast or famine, wealth or welfare, they recognized God’s purpose in their life, and they praised Him and gave Him the glory. When you find yourself riding high, with plenty of dollars, be sure and recognize where they came from. Not you and your talents, but God’s grace. Give Him the glory and be a good steward with that money and give appropriately to His work. But all the same, when you find yourself broke and the pantry is empty, praise God for your daily bread and give Him thanks for this lesson in your life. For this lesson is one that we constantly need to be reminded of. To give God the Glory in everything, all the time, every day, for all our days.
“give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thess 5:18
May you give God the glory in all that you do today.
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