What a Difference One Day Can Make

O.T. #87  "What a Difference One Day Can Make"
July 18, 2013
Genesis 41-Part 2
And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt. 
 Genesis 41:41

LET IT GLOW

What a difference one day can make in a person's life. One day you can have parents living
and the next day not. One day you can have a job, the next day not. One day your marriage is
great and the next day not. One day your child is healthy and the next day not. Need I go on?
If we live long enough, we will all experience the ups and downs of life.

Joseph certainly did. One day he was overseer of Potiphar's house, the next day he was in
prison for something he didn't do. One day he was in prison, the next day he was the second-
in-command of all of Egypt. Shall we zoom in on the latter circumstances?

You recall that we left Joseph interpreting Pharaoh's two dreams with God's wisdom. There
was going to be 7 years of plenty of food and 7 years of famine to follow. The king of Egypt put Joseph in charge of preparing for these lean years and distributing the food to the people during
it.
What happened to Joseph on that day?

• The king put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt.
• He was given Pharaoh's signet ring.
• He was dressed in robes of fine linen.
• He was received a gold chain around his neck.
• The king had Joseph ride in a chariot as his second-in-command.
• Men shouted before him, "Make way."
• No one would lift hand nor foot without Joseph's command.
• Pharaoh gave Joseph a new name.
• All of this happened when he was 30 years of age.
• He received a wife, a daughter of one of their priests.
• He traveled throughout the land of Egypt.

In the MacArthur Bible Commentary, it explains:

Pharaoh and his officials recognized that Joseph spoke God-given revelation and insight (verse 39). Joseph's focus on his Lord had quickly taken him from prison to the palace (verse 41). The signet ring, gold chain, and linen garments were emblems of the office as prime minister. Joseph wore the royal seal on his finger, authorizing him to transact the affairs of state on behalf of Pharaoh himself. All these dreams had been revealed by God, in a rare display of manifesting truth through pagans, so that Joseph would be established in Egypt as a leader and, thus elevated, could be used for the preservation of God's people when the famine came to Canaan. Thus, God cared for     His people and fulfilled His promises (45:1-8).

Foreigners in Egypt were known to have been assigned an Egyptian name. The new name
given to Joseph was Zaphnath-Paaneah, which probably means "The Nourisher of the Two
Lands, the Living One" or "God speaks and He lives."
Only 13 years elapsed since Joseph's involuntary departure from Canaan. He had been 17 at
the time, and now was 30. What a difference one day in his life made.

You know, they put a purple robe and a crown of thorns on Jesus to mock Him. They cast lots
for His robe. Revelation 19 describes  His future robe dipped in blood with His name The
Word of  God. He will be wearing a king's robe again. This time no one will take it from Him.
How magnificent our King of kings and LORD of lords will look! Oooh! Aren't you ready?


LET IT GROW

In my readings, I found that verse 38 has the first mention of a man filled with the Holy Spirit.
Pharaoh saw that Joseph was filled with the Spirit of God.
As part of the Trinity, the Spirit of God indwells His children. (Didn't want to forget that.)

Joseph spent 7 years working, storing up grain in cities close to where it was grown. He
gathered so much corn that he couldn't keep up with the count of storage bins.

David Guzik says, "It was customary for Pharaoh to take 10% of the grain in Egypt as a tax.
Joseph doubled the taxes over taxes over the next 7 years (41:34 says 1/5 =20%)."

The seven years of plenty ended, came to pass. We will pick up there next time. Someone is
coming for dinner. Is Joseph ready?

Do I trust God to keep His Word? Do I live by faith and not by sight?


LET IT GO

Always be ready to be caught up in the clouds with Jesus.

Work 'til Jesus comes sharing the good news of salvation.

Trust Him to provide for my needs.

*I just wanted to say welcome to all the new visitors. Hope you will join our group going through the Old Testament. There is so much to learn. Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to read with us.