'Joseph
gave orders to fill their bags with grain, to put each man's silver back into
his sack, and to give them provisions for their journey.' Genesis 42:25
Not only did Joseph give his brothers
all the corn they wanted but he also secretly gave them back the silver with
which they had paid him for it, plus provisions for the journey. His kindness
towards them was totally undeserved. Similarly, our Father's kindness and
abundant blessings to us are totally undeserved.
Now we know that the brothers' guilty
consciences had been stirred, (v21). Those with guilty consciences will often
think the worst of those whose generosity stems from the purest of motives.
What should have brought joy filled the brothers with fear. They were
suspicious and thought it was trickery on the part of this 'lord over all the
land,' (which was what they called Joseph, vs 30,33). What should have been
seen as a blessing was looked upon as a curse from God, (v28).
When they got back home and told Jacob
all about what had happened, he was distressed. He had lost Joseph, and now
Simeon too, (left behind in prison in Egypt by the brothers), he thought. Now
his remaining sons want to put Benjamin in jeopardy too! 'Everything is against
me,' Jacob cries. Sometimes that is how everything seems when one disaster
follows another. But things were not as they appeared to be for Jacob. In fact
everything would prove to be the reverse; everything was working together
towards both Jacob's good and the good of his family.
Through our limited human eyes and the
weakness of our faith, we can so easily see that which is for us as
being against us. Even tragedies and those things that seem to be
leading to disaster are not necessarily what they appear to be from our very
limited perspective. We must never forget God's word in Romans 8:28, '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.' God bless you all.
No comments:
Post a Comment