One of the most Christ-like passages in the Old Testament comes to us from the mouth of Joseph, the son of Jacob, when his brothers came to him after the death of their father, and begged Joseph to forgive them for the way they had treated him years earlier. He had eventually been sold as a slave to Potiphar, an Egyptian official. Joseph said to his brothers, Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. ( Genesis 50:19-21)

It took a great deal of re-assurance from Joseph to convince his brothers not to fear him, for they, like most of us, couldn’t see the connection between God’s will and a person’s acceptance of God’s will. After all, Joseph had been betrayed by his brothers, betrayed by Potiphar’s wife, spent two years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit, and, hardest of all, he had been separated from his much loved father. Joseph was sure that Jacob believed that he, Joseph, was dead.

The words “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good” could have been spoken by Jesus about the cross. I have asked myself, “Where did Joseph find the heart to forgive the evil done him?” The answer can be found only in his savior God: The Lord Was with him so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. Afterward, while in prison through the wife’s false accusations, againJosephfound favor: But when Joseph was there in the prison, the Lord was with him; He showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the warden. (Genesis 39:20-21)

Joseph had experienced dreams that he knew had prophetic significance. Now in his suffering he experienced grace of a kind not commonly found in prison. Joseph knew about his father’s and grandfather’s God, and now in exile he experienced the grace that his father had known.

When Joseph’s brothers could barely believe that they were forgiven, Joseph said, “Am I in the Place of God?” His humility opened the door to God’s grace in his life, and each of his brothers witnessed it in him. Joseph makes a break-through for the family chosen by God to walk more closely with Him, and an example that would help hold this family together, and be a light for their path for generations. To this day the story of Joseph casts a light thousands of years old on the paths of every believer. God was indeed with Joseph, and wanted everyone to know it.

Love in Him,

Prue