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Genesis
47:1-26 Jacob and sons settle in Egypt
1 Corinthians 9:16-27 Paul’s self-denial
Mark 6:47-56 Jesus walks on water
Joseph told Pharaoh that his family had arrived in Goshen, and he brought five of his
brothers before Pharaoh and introduced them. Pharaoh asked their
occupation, and they told him they were shepherds and asked permission
to dwell in Goshen.
Pharaoh granted them permission, and he offered to employ some to
oversee Pharaoh’s flocks. Joseph also introduced his father to Pharaoh.
Pharaoh asked Jacob how old he was, and Jacob replied that he was one
hundred thirty year old, but that his forefathers had lived longer.
Joseph supplied all his father’s clan with
food. As the famine continued, the Egyptians ran out of money to buy
food from Joseph, so he began to take their land in trade, so that all
the land
of Egypt became
Pharaoh’s. Only the priests of the land were exempt, because they had a
fixed allowance from Pharaoh, and so they were able to keep their land.
When the Egyptians had nothing left, they sold themselves for food, and
became sharecroppers on Pharaoh’s land. Joseph collected a fifth of the
produce of the land, and the people kept the rest for themselves.
Paul’s own desire was to preach the Gospel, and it was his pleasure to
make the Gospel freely available to others, but he also recognized that
he also had an obligation to the Lord to preach the Gospel. Although a
free man in both the worldly and spiritual senses, Paul became the
servant of others in order to win them to Christ. Paul emphasized his “Jewishness” to other Jews in order to win them;
to those outside the Jewish Law (i.e. Gentiles) Paul became like the
Gentiles, in order to win them to Christ, although he himself was not
lawless, but under the law of Christ. He empathized with the weak and
humbled himself, in order to win the weak to Christ. He did all this
because he personally valued the Gospel himself and wanted to share in
its blessings. He compared life to an athletic race. A runner must try
his best to win the prize, which is eternal life. In order to win, the
athlete must train his body, and control it purposefully in the right
direction and according to the rules. Paul didn’t just tell others how
to do it; he practiced what he preached, because he wanted to obtain
the goal himself.
After Jesus had fed the five thousand, he went into the hills to pray.
When evening came the disciples set out in the boat without him, but
they weren’t making much progress because they were rowing against the
wind. About the fourth watch (i.e. just before dawn) Jesus came to
them, walking on the sea, intending to pass by. The disciples were
frightened and cried out, because they thought they were seeing a
ghost. Immediately Jesus spoke, identifying himself and reassuring
them.
Jesus got into the boat and the wind ceased. The disciples were utterly
amazed, because they had not understood the significance of the feeding
of the five thousand. The boat landed at Gennesaret;
when they got out of the boat, the people recognized Jesus and as the
news quickly spread, people from the surrounding area began to bring
the sick to him to be healed. Wherever Jesus went, those who were sick
were brought to him; and they begged him that they might just touch the
fringe of his garment, for all who did so were healed.
God had a plan, which he revealed to Joseph before Joseph was sold into
Egypt,
to save many people from famine (Genesis 37; 45:5-8). Joseph trusted
and obeyed the Lord through years of slavery, false accusation and
imprisonment, and the Lord prospered him in spite of Joseph’s
circumstances (Genesis 39-40). Pharaoh acknowledged that Joseph was led
by the Spirit of God and saw that it was in his best interest to
entrust his affairs to Joseph’s administration (Genesis 41:38), and as
a result, Pharaoh’s interests were blessed beyond any expectation
(Genesis 47:20-26).
The story of Joseph is, in one sense, by God’s deliberate intention, a
parable of God’s plan of salvation. Jesus is the “Joseph” who was sent
by God to save all people from spiritual famine. All those who trust in
Jesus and come to him will receive the bread of eternal life. All who
entrust their lives and their worldly interests to Jesus will be
blessed beyond imagining. It was in fulfillment of God’s promise to
save God's people, but the blessing was extended to the Gentiles as
well. God’s people are to be “shepherds” to the “gentiles.”
Paul had trusted and obeyed Jesus; he had personally experienced the
risen Jesus, beginning with his encounter on the road to Damascus (Acts
9:5). He knew that the Gospel was truth; he wanted to obtain its
promises for himself, he wanted to share it with others, and he
recognized that he was obligated as a disciple to share it with others.
He preached it and he practiced what he preached.
Jesus’ disciples had seen Jesus feed the five thousand, but they had
not understood the significance. Then they had set out on their own,
without taking Jesus with them. Sometimes it’s like that in the Church
today. They were followers of Jesus; they were learning from him and
growing spiritually, but they had not yet been filled with the Holy
Spirit (Acts Ch. 2).
After Jesus had risen from the dead, before he ascended into heaven, he
told his disciples to “stay in the city (Jerusalem) until you are clothed with
the power (of the Holy Spirit) from on high” (Luke 24:49; also Acts
1:4). Without the Spirit of Jesus with us, the winds are against us,
and only Jesus can comfort us and give us the courage we need to be his
disciples. We can’t accomplish God’s will and our commission from him
in our own strength. Is Jesus in the boat with you? Are you trusting
and obeying him?
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