Inside Out Living

Genesis 50:24 foreshadows the events of the book of Exodus as God led Israel out of Egypt. Joseph is speaking of a future time when God will lead His people back to the Promised Land. Why is it that Joseph can make this statement with any amount of confidence? It is because Joseph believes in the sovereignty of God. He experienced the hand of God in his own life and he was taught about the great promises God made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, so he has no difficulty in knowing that God will act on His promises.

God’s sovereignty is part of the reason we can have hope for the future. God’s promises concerning the future would be meaningless if He is not sovereign. His ability to bring about His plan of redemption would be subject to failure if He wasn’t sovereign. Joseph did not worry over the future of Israel for he knew God’s sovereignty. Do you worry or fret over the future? We all do at times, but those who trust in a sovereign God are not consumed by such worry. What a blessing to know that God is in control of our future.

Joseph gives God full credit for ending up in Egypt and for his position as second only to Pharaoh. He recognizes that it was the hand of God in his life all this time. When Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery, or when he was falsely accused and jailed by Potiphar, or when he was forgotten by Pharaoh’s cupbearer for two years, he knew that God’s hand was guiding his life.

Like Joseph, are you able to give God the glory for what he has done in your life? Joseph’s life was far from easy. There were good times and bad, but in it all, Joseph recognized that God was in control. Are you in a difficult stage of life? Do not despair, for God is in control. Is life seemingly perfect for you right now? Great, but don’t be proud, for all you have is from God. So no matter what stage of life you are in, you ought to give glory to God as Joseph did.

The devotionals for this week are all about the sovereignty of God. The Evangelical Dictionary of Theology defines the Sovereignty of God as “The biblical teaching that God is king, supreme ruler, and lawgiver of the entire universe.”

It was a courageous choice full of integrity that landed Joseph in jail, but it was the sovereign hand of God that brought him out. Joseph had no ability to change his position. Through the series of events you read today, God brought about restoration for Joseph. However, it is not as though Joseph didn’t do anything. I see three key things Joseph did:

1) Joseph worked hard for the chief jailer,

2) Joseph exercised wisdom and the gift of interpreting dreams,

3) Joseph exercised patience, spending over two years in jail.

Indeed Joseph did his part and so did God. God orchestrated different meetings, gave dreams to people, and gave Joseph the wisdom and ability to interpret those dreams. Thus we see an important principle: God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility work hand in hand in our lives.