This is definitely a plot twist in the lives of the children
of Jacob. This man who stands before
them, a man who is in charge of the economy of the greatest nation on earth,
before whom they have bowed, is their very brother, the one even they presumed
dead. Their first reaction is that they
were dismayed at his presence. What was
going to happen now? To their surprise
Joseph's intentions for them were for their good and their preservation not
revenge. In fact, he has come to believe
completely in the sovereignty of God, that He has a plan for all things, all
his suffering has led to promotions. He makes
an interesting statement, that God has made him "father to
Pharoah." Remember a few days ago
we saw Pharaoh acting as father to Joseph?
What does he mean here? He then
asks that his father be brought up also.
Forgiveness is the order of the day.
They may bow before him as he dreamed but that isn't the goal any
longer.
Joseph has the benefit of not being in his hometown. He has the power and the brothers have to
recognize it. They can't ask the
questions Jesus gets in His hometown. In
Capernaum He may be a big shot but at home He is just the son of Mary and
Joseph, a carpenter. Yes, He may teach powerfully
and do great signs, but where did it all come from? He had lived among these people for perhaps
thirty years and they hadn't seen Him do anything particularly great so what
had happened in the few months since? It
would absolutely have been confusing to them but they admitted there was
something amazing going on. They had the
signs that pointed to something more but refused to let go of what they thought
they knew to see those signs and interpret their meaning. It always amazes me that in a few short
months or weeks of being together Jesus sends out the disciples to do the
things He had been doing. They knew
nothing of the Holy Spirit and the power to do the work, they had seen Jesus do
these things, He commissioned them to do likewise, and believed it was
possible.
Paul continues to opine on marriage. He believes it best to remain free and single
so that all can be devoted to the Lord, that all may be single minded in their
attention to the kingdom of heaven. Roman
Catholics believe the same about those called to the priesthood. Paul says even if you're engaged you do well
not to get married but continue to be betrothed to one another in love. The caveat is that desire is under
control. If you can't control the desire
for more than is permissible for unmarried people, get married. He has to assert that he too has the Spirit
in this matter as he isn't in complete agreement with other teachers who he
will refer to as super-apostles. Among these
who know him best, Paul continues to need to defend his apostleship.
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