Enslaved and Forgotten - Pt 1

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:1-3 ESV).

Mary and I have just returned from an extended vacation. Some of it was necessitated by the need to pick up a car in Washington DC; and, the remainder of the trip was just for fun and relaxation. We were gone ten days. Because of the length of our absence and the need for various annual vaccinations for our dog, we decided to board him at our local vetinarian. When we picked him up he was simply elated to see us! We were glad to see him as well. I wondered if he was just glad to be out of his run, or he really missed us and was glad to see us again. I prefer to think the latter! At any rate it reminded me of a series of events that prompted the beginning of a new series for our devotionals, Enslaved and Forgotten. It will revolve around the life of Joseph. Joseph had plenty of opportunity to feel enslaved and forgotten. I hope you will be inspired and encouraged through it. However, before I begin the story of Joseph and the incredible betrayal of his brothers and its global purpose in the glory of Jesus Christ, we should begin with our reading today. God has chosen Abram from all the peoples of the world by free grace and owing to nothing in him. Then, God makes him a promise: I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. This is the beginning of the people of Israel through whom Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God will come into the world to save us from our sins. Later, in Genesis 15, God makes a formal covenant with Abram. He uses a remarkable symbolic act and some astonishing words. He tells him that his offspring would be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years, predicting the years of slavery in Egypt; and, he foretells the freedom that would come through Moses with the final establishment of the people in the Land of Promise. So there is God’s plan for his pilgrim people. Our lesson is that if God plans four hundred years of affliction for his people before the promised land, we should not be surprised that he says to us “through many tribulations you must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22). The question for us today is what does God want to teach about his ways and about his Son in this strange sojourn in Egypt? The answer is that God fulfills this prophecy through this terrible betrayal. And through this sin, he preserves alive not only his covenant people of Israel, but also the line from which the Lion of Judah would come to save and rule the peoples. Joseph becomes the clearest example of Jesus in the Old Testament to encourage us in our lives. Take that to heart today. He has not forgotten you!