Joseph - the Healing of God's Grace

 

Before the year of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph. Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore them to him. 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.” The name of the second he called Ephraim, “For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.” (Genesis 41:50–52 ESV).

 

I encountered a wonderful young lady at my church the week after my last heart catheterization. She greeted me warmly and said, “I heard you had another brush with heaven last week.” I smiled and politely said, “It wasn’t nearly that good.” That turn of the phrase may seem a bit surprising. After all, how can we talk about death using the word “good”? Well, first, let me say, it was not nearly as serious as all that; however, death is not the end. Death is but the beginning of eternity at my home even now prepared for me. This truth has come from a life experiencing the healing of God’s grace. Paul said it this way: “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21 ESV). There have been plenty of experiences that could result in bitterness and anger; however, I have learned these are merely momentary inconveniences in the grand life He has given me.

 

Joseph was seventeen when he was sold as a slave, and he was thirty when Pharaoh made him second in command over Egypt. Thirteen years of undeserved misery could have left deep rage and bitterness in Joseph’s heart. But Joseph was also tempered by God’s constant care, and in the end, we will see that all this was for the good of Jacob’s family.

 

When Joseph eventually encounters his brothers again, he will give them a taste of discipline and speak harshly, but eventually they will reconcile. Joseph might wish for revenge after the way they treated him, but his actions show that he does not treat them as their sins deserve (cf. Psalm 103:10). In other words, we can see that God also guides Joseph to act with grace, mercy, and wisdom. Although the memories of our hurts can have a long shelf-life, their power to foster a spirit of retaliation can be disarmed by God’s healing mercies showered on our wounded spirits.

 

In addition, Joseph is richly blessed! Bumper crops pour in, just as God predicted through Pharaoh’s dreams. Joseph also enjoys the warmth of a loving wife and the birth of children. And his sons’ names suggest that he has been healed of the wounds he endured. Egypt, once a place of suffering for Joseph, is now a land of blessing. This land in which we live may seem like a land of suffering, however, God has something far greater in store for us!