Dream Again - 3

Dream Again - 3

Subject: Joseph’s Tests

By Rick Welborne

Proverbs 13:12 (NLT)
¹²  Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life. 

Psalm 105:17-21 (NLT)
¹⁷  Then he sent someone to Egypt ahead of them— Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
¹⁸  They bruised his feet with fetters and placed his neck in an iron collar.
¹⁹  Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the LORD tested Joseph’s character.
²⁰  Then Pharaoh sent for him and set him free; the ruler of the nation opened his prison door.
²¹  Joseph was put in charge of all the king’s household; he became ruler over all the king’s possessions. 

--We really do not know why in God’s economy or in His providence that He has chosen for things to be, let’s say, extremely difficult or just outright impossible.

--I believe Psalms 105 explains to a great degree the answer to this question and this a sermon within the sermon which I am sure I will refer back to at some point.

--Verse 17 God sent someone (Joseph) ahead of them (Israel)…ok, Pastor, that is profound but what are you saying. Thanks for asking…My first point is this…

1. It is not so much about us as it is about “them”.

--Have you ever considered that the dream God has given you is not really all about you…it is about “them”. “Them” in your life may be family, friends, co-workers, classmates…God always thinks bigger.

--Their deliverance is more important to God than your comfort…their deliverance is more important to God than your plans…their deliverance is more important than your own personal dreams.

--God is so consumed with “them” that He did something that most of us would think to be unconceivable:

John 3:16-17 (NKJV)
¹⁶  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
¹⁷  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

--I hope you can see the parallel between Jesus and Joseph…God so loved “them” that He sent Jesus and He so loved “them” that He sent Joseph. God is consumed with reaching “them”. What about us?

--So many times we miss God’s dream for us because we think it is all about us, we think it is for us, and we think God’s goal is to elevate us. That is not how God thinks!

--One of the reasons (my personal opinion) that churches have lost their power and effectiveness is that people have been led to believe it is all about self instead of “them”. Super Wal-Mart mentality!

--God has tried to help your pastor keep before you the “them” who desperately need Jesus…The “them” around the world we reach thru missions or the “them” we reach thru local ministries.

--The “them” we can reach thru La Vida, thru Hallowed King, thru House of Hope, thru our bus ministry, thru each of us sharing Christ with “them”. It is about reasonable service to others.

Romans 12:1 (NKJV)
¹  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 

--Poor Joseph thought he was going to become a living sacrifice for his dreams…Jesus did become a sacrifice for His dreams of saving “them” for saving us. 

--Joseph, once he arrived in his land of bondage, chose to serve whomever he was placed under their authority and, every time, God’s hand was upon him with favor and blessings…he served “them”.

--He served those whom he would eventually rule over and the “them” God would use him to save through his wisdom and compassion. His willingness to serve would be his family’s salvation. My dad and mom.

--As you pursue the God given dreams in your life, recognize God is always thinking about “them” so He will require you present your body as a living sacrifice which is your reasonable service.

--You see, your ministry to “them” can be derailed by your selfishness to take care of “you”. The devil will always provide opportunities for you to abandon your dreams. It may even feel right.

--Do you think he just kept believing God has given me great dreams and I do not want to do anything to derail His plan…One mistake and we can spend 40 years in the desert…ask Moses. Killed the Egyptian.

2. It is about the timing of God.

Psalm 105:17-21 (NLT) ¹⁷ Then he sent someone to Egypt ahead of them— Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
¹⁸  They bruised his feet with fetters and placed his neck in an iron collar.
¹⁹  Until the time came to fulfill his dreams…

--It is almost inconceivable for us to think (with our American Christian mentality) that God would be willing to allow His children to suffer just so He can reach other people.

--Maybe we should ask Jesus what He thinks about that. Waiting on the timing of God can be, actually it is, one of the most difficult things we believers can go thru.

--Joseph was given dreams as a young teenager about his family and the world coming and bowing down before him.  Just imagine with me Joseph being in a pit looking up into the heavens. “Trust Me!”

--Imagine being sold as a slave, feet bruised with fetters, his neck in an iron collar…I have dreams and God is saying trust me!

--Imagine in Potiphar’s house being in charge of everything and suddenly you are falsely accused of rape…the whole time God is simply saying to trust Me with your dreams…it is not the right time.

--Imagine being put in prison for something you did not do…the years are passing quickly and it seems the dreams are getting more and more dim…did I really hear from God? Was it just me?

--Imagine helping someone in prison who was restored to his position (the butler) with the king and God used you to interpret his dream…the irony…his dream comes true but what about your dreams. 

--He is restored and is so happy to be living his dream…note here…while you are living God’s dreams for you don’t forget those who are still waiting for their dreams to come to pass. Joseph was forgotten in prison.

Genesis 41:1 (NKJV)
¹  Then it came to pass, at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh had a dream; and behold, he stood by the river. 

--Two full years go by and the Pharaoh has a dream that he cannot interpret…the butler remembers Joseph’s words to him before he left the prison:

Genesis 40:14 (NIV) ¹⁴ But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. 

--Don’t forget the people God has placed in your lives to help you get to your destiny and who have helped you to fulfill God’s dreams. Being forgotten hurts and it opens up other doors.

--Joseph had the potential of getting angry with God and bitter with people…I was forced to leave my family and I did nothing worthy of prison…this is where trusting God must trump difficult circumstances. 

Ephesians 4:26-27 (NKJV) ²⁶  "Be angry, and do not sin": do not let the sun go down on your wrath,
²⁷  nor give place to the devil.

--Five years goes by, ten years goes by, fifteen years goes by, twenty years goes by…one trial after another…I must be faithful…I must not quit…I have to keep dreaming…I have to keep trusting.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV)
⁵  Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;
⁶  In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. 

Psalm 105:19 (NLT) ¹⁹ Until the time came to fulfill his dreams…

--Whether we believe it or accept it or even like it…God has a timing in what He does and that includes the dreams He has for us.

--Ecclesiastes 1 tells us there is a time and a season for everything under the sun and that God has made everything beautiful in its time. Not sure we believe that the way we act and react.

--When the time is right, God will fulfill His dreams for us and it will be a beautiful thing. Our job (like Joseph) is to remain faithful no matter the length of time or the difficulty until He does it.

3. It is about the test.

Psalm 105:17-21 (NLT) ¹⁷ Then he sent someone to Egypt ahead of them— Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
¹⁸  They bruised his feet with fetters and placed his neck in an iron collar.
¹⁹  Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the LORD tested Joseph’s character.
²⁰  Then Pharaoh sent for him and set him free; the ruler of the nation opened his prison door.
²¹  Joseph was put in charge of all the king’s household; he became ruler over all the king’s possessions. 

--How are you doing with the test you are in? How are you doing as you wait for your God given dreams? What about your character? Is it in tact with God and His will for your life? Passing or failing? 

--Most of us, if we were honest, if we had been Joseph would have failed the test at some point. We would have been angry at God and bitter toward our siblings…just not fair.

--So why should we dream, why should we be concerned about “them”, why should we trust God’s timing, and why should we pass the test we encounter:

Genesis 45:7-8 (NIV)
⁷  But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.
⁸  "So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God.