Review of Genesis 45

— by Victor Fawole

It’s Review o’ Clock. I welcome everybody to today’s bible reading. One of the key points we learnt from yesterday’s lesson is that true repentance is what births true reconciliation. Today, we will see how that is manifested. True repentance receives the true remission (forgiveness) that guarantees true reconciliation. Genesis 45 is the chapter that demonstrates some biblical lessons for us. Joseph needed to forgive his brothers. Forgiveness is key to true transformation, and it is the central component of our transformation through Christ.

Let us review…

1. THE REVELATION

Gen. 45:1-3 Then Joseph could not refrain himself before all them that stood by him; and he cried, Cause every man to go out from me. And there stood no man with him, while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren. And he wept aloud: and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard. And Joseph said unto his brethren, I am Joseph; doth my father yet live? And his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled at his presence.

I love how Joseph revealed himself to his brothers. It was really an emotional scenario for him. You will notice seven things here:

• The Private Communication:
  …cause every man to go out from me…
  Joseph sent his servants out of the room to protect his brothers. It was a family matter. It would be an intimate time, and outsiders had no role to play in that moment. Also, his emotional outburst is not something his servants needed to see. Above all, dealing with the sin of his brothers had to be in strictest privacy. We also should learn to not go about spreading the sins of others as a hot gist (Prov. 11:13).
• The Personal Commotion:
  …and he wept aloud…
  Joseph’s plan to make nobody else to witness his emotional outburst didn’t work. His emotions betrayed his plan. This internal commotion of emotions made him cry so loud that the Egyptians heard it (Gen. 45:2), and the report even reached Pharaoh’s ears (Gen. 45:2, 16).
• The Precise Confession:
  …I am Joseph…
  So far, Joseph’s brothers had known him as Zaphnath-paaneah, the Lord of Egypt. I want to believe that when he said “I am Joseph”, he spoke in their own language, using their accent, and they had no reason to doubt him. They knew for sure that he wasn’t dead, but they didn’t know for sure what his state of affairs was.
• The Passionate Concern:
  …doth my father yet live?
  Immediately, Joseph expressed his concern for the condition of his father. He longed for the opportunity to be reunited with him as well. This is evidence of the love he shared with his father.
• The Perturbed Conviction:
  …his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled at his presence…
  Fear and guilt were written on the brothers’ faces. Their silence was deafening. They could not say a word until Joseph demonstrated that he had forgiven them… It was until when he displayed that he loved them that they could speak.
• The Peaceful Conciliation:
  …come near to me, I pray you…
  The brothers must have cringed back in terror. Fear and guilt are powerful enough to cast a sinner away, but Joseph urged his brothers to draw near him, so that he might embrace them.
• The Proper Confirmation:
  I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt…
  Joseph repeated his name, called himself “your brother”, and reminded them how they sold him to Egypt. No one else knew the exact details of their sins, and for Joseph to mention these things, then there was no other confirmation needed.

2. THE RECONCILIATION

Gen. 45:5-7 Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life. For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

Joseph chose the pathway of reconciliation, rather than bombarding them with words of reproach. What are the key points here for us?

• God’s Forgiveness Does Not Keep Men in Grief
  In compassion, Joseph did not want his brothers to be grieved or angry with themselves. He himself was past his grief and anger and wanted his brothers to let go of theirs.
• God’s Purpose Defeats Man’s Plans
  Joseph did not try to throw what his brothers did under the carpet. Rather, he saw that God’s purpose was greater than the evil of the brothers. From God’s perspective, all his sorrows were purposeful. Joseph was a victim of men, but God turned it around for His glory. None of it was for a loss.
• God’s Mission Overrules Man’s Omissions
  Joseph did a short sermon on “God’s Sovereignty”. He realised that it was God who ruled his life, not good men, not evil men, not circumstances, not fate. God was in control, and because God was in control, all things worked together for good (Rom 8:28). Three times, he said that God sent him, and each time he mentions a purpose: One, “to preserve life…” Two, “to preserve you a posterity in the earth…” Three, “he hath made me a father to Pharaoh…”

If we recognize God’s purpose in all of our life’s journeyings, we will not succumb ourselves to the pangs of guilt or bitterness.

3. THE REUNIFICATION

Gen. 45:9 Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry not:

With a sense of urgency, and because he did not know how long his father had to live, Joseph requested that his father be brought to Egypt with immediate effect. The whole family needed to relocate to Egypt in order to survive for the remaining five years of famine. He instructed them to “tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that ye have seen…” This is not a “Yet I” posture. No. He wanted his father to remember his dreams and how God had revealed that He was going to promote him. Joseph wanted his father to realise that the Lord God who promised has brought the dreams to pass in the most amazing way. This is a fulfilment of the revelation of God. Only God could do this!

I could not skip past verse 22. To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of raiment. Giving a person gifts of clothing is a mark of special favour. Joseph had enjoyed it with his father and with Pharaoh, and here he gave all of his brothers new clothes… These same brothers had been jealous of him (because of his special robe) and even stripped him naked! Giving them clothes was a full confirmation of forgiveness and reconciliation. He was not only providing for their physical needs but also symbolically restoring their honour and status within the family. At salvation, we are given clothes, called the “garments of salvation” and “robe of righteousness” (Isa. 61:10). For spiritual warfare, we are given the “full armour of God” (Eph. 6:11)

Moving on…

Gen. 45:26-28 And told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive, and he is governor over all the land of Egypt. And Jacob’s heart fainted, for he believed them not. And they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said unto them: and when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father revived: And Israel said, It is enough; Joseph my son is yet alive: I will go and see him before I die.

Let’s not skip past the switch of names here… From “Jacob” to “Israel”… Let’s see what was associated with each name:

• “Jacob” is associated with unbelief and weakness.
• “Israel” is associated with faith and action.

Jacob’s heart fainted… but when faith came in, the spirit of Jacob their father revived. When he displayed unbelief, scripture referred to him as “Jacob”, but when he expressed faith, he was referred to as “Israel”. He was Jacob whenever he walked according to the flesh, and he was Israel whenever he walked in the spirit.

Before I round up the review of this chapter, permit me to highlight seven important lessons on true Spirit-led forgiveness that we should learn:

• Forgiveness releases you from your emotional pain (Gen. 45:1-3)
  Through his forgiveness, Joseph was released from his 20-year-old emotional pain. It is often said that forgiveness is the greatest gift that you can give yourself. Hatred that is bottled up robs the angry person of happiness, joy and, if not dealt with, even the person’s long-term health. (Luke 23:24, Matt. 5:7, Eph. 4:32)
• Forgiveness also releases the offender from guilt and shame (Gen. 45:4-5)
  After freeing himself from pain, Joseph freed his brothers from their grief and self-condemnation. If you claim to forgive a person but still use it against that person, that is not true forgiveness. However, note that I am not encouraging you to make yourself vulnerable to further heartbreaks from the person. (Luke 17:44-48, Gal. 6:1)
• Forgiveness is easier when you accept that God is in control (Gen. 45:6-13, Gen. 50:20)
  Without minimising his brothers’ serious sins, Joseph was able to find forgiveness because he accepted that God was sovereign and caused all things to work together for good (Rom. 8:28).
• Forgiveness can bring reconciliation and peace (Gen. 45:14-15)
  Joseph’s forgiveness led him to embrace his brother warmly. They were all finally united in the Spirit as one family. We also see this in the story of the prodigal son. (Luke 15:20, Matt. 5:23-25, Eph. 4:26-27)
• Forgiveness also brings God’s blessings (Gen. 45:16-23)
  Forgiveness not only freed the brothers of pain and unified them, it also allowed God to bless their families. Yesterday in our group discussion, I mentioned “change of affection” as one of the factors in Joseph’s life. Usually, the Egyptians hated the Hebrews, but God granted them favour through Joseph, such that Pharaoh said: “Bring your father and your households and come to me; I will give you the best of the land of Egypt, and you will eat the fat of the land.” (Gen. 45:18)
• Forgiveness must be guarded when temptation arises (Gen. 45:24)
  When they were about to go bring their father (Jacob), Joseph warned them not to give into the temptation of quarrelling with one another. Satan frequently tries to diminish the freedom that Jesus gives by making us trade blames. If we have received forgiveness, we must be vigilant not to allow Satan to use our forgiven sins against us or others. If God has forgiven a sin, it is not just forgiven. It is also forgotten. Hence, it is ungodly to use someone’s past sins against them. Also, if anyone condemns himself for a sin that Jesus has forgiven, his faith is lacking. (Isa. 43:25; Heb. 8:12, Rom. 8:1)
• Forgiveness that comes from God requires faith (Gen. 45:25-28)
  Jacob initially denied that Joseph could still be alive. But when he believed that he was still alive, he was “revived”. True forgiveness that Jesus offers is only possible when we believe in Him in faith. (Heb. 11:6, 1Pet. 3:18)

Dear Gogolights, let us live our lives in enjoyment of the forgiveness that we have received from Jesus Christ. Do not open the backdoor for Satan to strike you with guilt and condemnation. Jesus has set you free, and you are free indeed! Live freely and lightly in His grace. Live in gratitude and appreciation of His love and forgiveness. Extend the grace of forgiveness to other people too. Continue to grow in knowledge of the grace of God, and you will give no place to the devil.

Till tomorrow when we continue our reading… Grace to you, Church!