Forgiveness Is The Way To Joy And Peace

FORGIVENESS IS THE WAY TO JOY AND PEACE

Genesis 50:15-26

V:15. "And when Joseph's brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will
peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him."
A. There will come a time when you will have to face up to your past sins.
1. Their father Jacob was dead. So the brothers of Joseph thought their protective
shield was gone.
2. Until you make peace with the one that you did wrong, you will carry the guilt with
you.
3. Along with guilt come fear and uncertainty.
4. Guilt will blind you to the joy of forgiveness.
5. Until you take responsibility for your actions, you will always blame somebody else
for your failures.
B. As long as you feel guilty, there is a tendency to make someone else your problem.
1. It had been eighteen years (E. I. Scofield) since Joseph brought his family to Egypt.
and showed his love and forgiveness.
a. Just because you tell someone that you have forgiven them and that you
hold no grudges, doesn't mean that they believe you.
b. The brothers had a problem with their belief.
c. The brothers carried a baggage of guilt they should have gotten rid of long
time before.
d. The brothers thought that Joseph had a problem with them. But the problem
was with themselves.
e. Joseph was in harmony with his brothers, but his brothers were not in harmony
with him.

V:16. "And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before
he died, saying."
A. Their father is dead. They went with Joseph to bury their father in Canaan, his home.
1. Why are the brothers using their father as their shield?
2. Why did it take so long to come to this point?
3. Why did they need to send a messenger, when they could have gone themselves?
4. Why didn't they talk to Joseph at burial in Canaan? .
B. Joseph's brothers were fearful because they fail take responsibility years earlier.
1. They had no peace with themselves because they didn't seek forgiveness.

V:17. "So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren,
and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of
the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him."
A. Asking to be forgiven is the first step to reconciliation and peace.
1. Humbling yourself before those who you have wronged should be done quickly.
2. The longer you wait, the easier it is to suppress the need to do what is right.
B. They asked in the name of their father.
1. The most effective intercessor in prayer is Jesus.
2. Jesus can change the hearts and minds of those you pray for.
C. Joseph wept with tears of joy.
1.The Lord rejoices when one sinner repents.
2. Repentance restores us to right fellowship with Lord.
3. Lack of repentance puts a distance between you God.
4. Joseph did the right thing, the right way.
5. The right thing done the wrong way can be hurtful and can be destructive.
6. There was between Joseph and his brothers.
a. The distance was lack of repentance .
b. The distance was not with Joseph, but with his brothers,
c. The brothers had not been convicted by what was right to correct what was
wrong.
d. The brothers up to this point had not express remorse for what they did
to Joseph.
f. Joseph didn't fully embrace his brothers until they "man up" and asked
forgiveness.

V:18. "And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold,
we be thy servants."
A. We are at our best when we become servants of others.
a. We can best love our brothers when we see ourselves low and see them high.
b. Believers only have one position before Jesus and that is servant.
B. The brothers gave Joseph reverence and respect for his position and authority.
1. The best place for a believer is at the feet of Jesus.
2. The right spirit of a believer is the spirit of humility.
a. Joseph's brothers showed their humility by falling on their faces before him.
b. You can't get lower than on your face before Jesus.
c. When we humble ourselves before Jesus we, can learn of him and find rest
for our souls. Matt 11:29
C. With their repentance, Joseph's brothers closed the gap between themselves and
Joseph.
1. They could now be reconciled with Joseph.
2. Reconciliation begins with forgiveness.
a. We have to ask for forgiveness.
b. The one wronged must forgive.
c. God has given us the ministry of reconciliation. 2 Cor 5:18
d. Reconciliation should begin with the Church.

V:19. "And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God?"
A. Joseph, in his high position, expressed his humility before God.
1. Joseph had forgiven his brothers years before. He was at peace with God.
2. Joseph comforted his brother by putting aside their fears.
a. One key job of a Christian is to comfort others.
3. The attitude of a Christian before his enemies is forgiveness.
B. The problem of Joseph's brothers was not with him, but with God.
1. Any time we sin, the sin is against God.
2. Joseph recognized that only God can forgive sins.
a. We bring ourselves to peace by forgiving others, but the sin is
against God.
b. We are reconciled to God when we ask forgiveness and repent.
C. We should fear God and not man.
1. We should fear the one who can kill the body and the soul.
a. Man may kill the body, but he has no power over the soul.
2. We should fear God and give him reverence.
3. We can trust God but not man.

V:20. " But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring
to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive."
A. God has a purpose for our lives.
1. God's purpose includes adversity.
2. Adversity is the training ground for faith.
3. It is through adversity that God gives us the experience we need to fulfill his
purposes.
B. God uses what we gain through our troubles to bless others.
1. Our life is not all about us.
2. We are the vessels that God uses to serve him.
C. God designed our lives to be a testimony for others.
1. Others are brought to salvation because of the Word of God they hear from us.
2. Others are brought to Jesus, because of the Jesus they see in us.

V:21 " Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he
comforted them, and spake kindly unto them."
A. Sometimes we need to be reminded of God's promises.
1. When we give ourselves to God, He looks after all our needs.
2. There is no comfort like comfort we get from God's Word.
B. The promises of God do not change with time.
1. Fashions, changes, technology changes, we may change, but God's Word does
not change.
2. An unchangeable God should be a comfort to us.
3. What God has done for us in the past, He will continue to do in the future.
C. There are different ways speak to someone.
1. A. harsh word stirs up strife.
2. A soft word wins souls.
3. Words of comfort are always in seasons.

V:22. " And Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he, and his father's house: and Joseph lived an
hundred and ten years."
A. When our purpose in life has been served , God will call us home.
1.Some die at a young age and others die in their old age.
2. We all have an appointed time with death.
3. Only God knows the time and the place of our death.
B. God can make a way through the storms of life.
1. Joseph had some storms in his life.
2. God guided him through the storms.
3. It was the storms that trained him to be successful in life.

V:23 "And Joseph saw Ephraim's children of the third generation: the children also of
Machir the son of Manasseh were brought up upon Joseph's knees."
A. God worked through many generations to bring us Jesus in the flesh.
1. Joseph's family was the foundation of the Nation of Israel that Moses delivered
out Egypt. Joshua brought Israel into the Promise Land.
2. Our Lord and Savior was born out of the Nation of Israel.
3. God's Plan of Redemption included the adversity of Joseph.
B. All believers are building blocks in God's plan of redemption for his Church.
1. We have no idea of how many people our lives affect.
2. What we do know is that it is by the Grace of God that we are included in
God's plan.
3. God placed us in the Body of Christ to make a difference.

V:24. " And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring
you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob."
A. No matter where we are in life, we must remember that our lives are included in
God's promise.
1. The promise was past down from one generation to the next.
2. The Word of God was taught by their fathers to their sons.
3. Joseph believed the promises of God and he taught his sons to respect the Word
of God.
4. Joseph acted upon the Word of God.
a. When his father Jacob died, he buried him in the promised land.
b. All believers have a promise land; heaven.
B. We must teach our families the Word of God.
1. We must show by our example that Word of God works in our lives.
2. When we speak, we must express confidence in the promises of God.

V:25. "And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit
you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence."
A. God keeps His promises.
1. Joseph looked forward to the fulfillment of God's promise.
a. God would take Israel from Egypt and back to the promise land.
b. Joseph would not live to see the fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham,
yet he believed.
c. Faith is the key to successful living.
2. Joseph commanded his descendants to take his bones into the promise land.
B. Joseph expressed to his sons his beliefs about God.
1. My bones will remind you of why you are going through what you are going
through.
2. My bones will remind you that adversity is a prerequisite to the fulfillment of the
promise.
3. My bones will remind you that God fulfills His promises in His time.
C. Joseph bones reminded his descendents that his adversity made it possible for them
to be saved from the famine.
D. Jesus reminds us that death is a prerequisite to heaven.
1. Jesus reminds us that His death made heaven possible for us.
2. Jesus reminds us that our life, like His life will not be free from adversity.
3. Adversity is a prerequisite for spiritual growth and development.
4. Jesus reminds us that if we abide in His Word, He will abide in us.
a. Through our ups and downs, Jesus will be there to carry us through.