The Silver Cup - Genesis 44
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…And welcome to Immanuel Bible Church. We thank all of you for being here. Middle of the hot summer, and a lot of traveling, but we're glad you are here. We miss being with you last week. Had a good visit and vacation ourselves, so back in the saddle, as they say. …
…Thank you for singing. Please be seated. Last week, Robert began or Mike, I'm not sure who actually did it, Acts chapter one. As we had finished our reading in John, so we move now to chapter two. Acts chapter two. The only history book of the New Testament, formally. by his Spirit, through his church, History of the continuing work of Christ after he had returned to heaven for the glory of God and the proliferation of the gospel. In the regions there. And of course, we talk about the pinnacles and high points of scripture, and this is certainly one of them. The day of Pentecost. It was one of the formal three feasts of Israel. That they must had to honor. And on one of those pivotal feasts, this one being the Pentecost event, the Spirit came and indwelt as was promised in the Old Testament, particularly Joel chapter two, Peter quotes from that here, and his sermon. But in other texts, and certainly the promise of Christ himself during his ministry, of the coming of the Spirit. Here now, the word of the Lord. Acts chapter two. When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly, there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind. And it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. Now, there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews. Devout men from every nation under heaven. And at this sound, the multitude came together was hearing them speak in his own language. and they were bewildered because each one And they were amazed and astonished, saying, "Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, and Cappadocia. And how is it that we hear each of us in his own native language? Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia. Parthians and Medes and Elamites, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene. And visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes. Cretans and Arabians. We hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God. And all were amazed and perplexed, saying But others mocking said, 'They are filled with new wine.' to one another, "What does this mean? But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them, 'Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and give ear to my words.' For these people are not drunk as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel. And in the last days, it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. Even on my male servants and female servants, in those days, I will pour out my Spirit and they shall prophesy.' And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below. Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood. Before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.' with mighty works and wonders, and signs that God did through him, Men of Israel, hear these words, Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God in your midst as you yourselves know, this Jesus delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. For David says, concerning him, 'I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken. Therefore my heart was glad and my tongue rejoiced, my flesh also will dwell in hope. For you will not abandon my soul to Hades or let your holy one see corruption. You have made known to me the paths of life. You will make me full of gladness with your presence.' Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died Being therefore a prophet and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades nor did his flesh see corruption. on his throne, he foresaw and spoke This Jesus, God raised up, and of that we are all witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. For David did not ascend into the heavens but he himself says, 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool."' Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified. Now, when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, 'Brothers, what shall we do and Peter said to them, 'Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.' For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself. And with many other words, he bore witness and continued to exhort them, were baptized and there were added that day about 3,000 souls.' saying, 'Save yourselves from this crooked generation. And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching So those who receive his word and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And awe came upon every soul And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all as any had need. praising God and having favor with all the people. And day by day attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, those who were being saved. they received their food with glad and generous hearts, May the Lord bless the reading of his word. Let's pray. And the Lord added to their number day by day Our God and Father, we come to you in thanksgiving that we could be here today, that we have your word to read, that we can see your mighty works in the world, particularly in the church that you established through the finished work of Jesus our Lord. We thank you for the witness of the apostles and for the early church fathers who were discipled by them, and for the continuation of faith that you have given to mankind, those who you call to yourselves, to cause the promotion of the church, the distribution of the gospel, the preservation of the scriptures, and ultimately the work of your spirit ongoing from that time forward. We thank you, O Lord, that we also were sinners like these people, who heard this gospel message for the first time, no doubt many of them. And saw this mighty work. And we, O Lord, even today can experience a similar thing: not exactly in kind or in type, but in kind. We, O Lord, can have your presence with us full time, 24/7, 365 a year, because of your promise to us that is still true. That if we will repent, of our sin and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, we too can be saved and be indwelt by your spirit. And have your presence and power with us at all times. So we gather today to give you praise and to give you thanks. That while you as are both spirit, Son, and Father, one Trinity, one God in three persons, we can worship you and enjoy you as you have made it possible through the spirit and through Christ's work. I thank you for this church specifically. each of us because we know you have redeemed us. We know we can hear the truth here. I thank you for our weekly gatherings, for the people who continue to come here And we can fellowship as those early believers did. And like fashion. And I thank you for the opportunity to be here together and pray corporately to you, what a great privilege. and we ask your forgiveness for that sin You, the great God, the great Savior of all of us. Lord, we have sinned this week we want to repent and live holy lives because we know you have commanded that Lord, help us to see that in that light that it is for you that we live holy. in your word and it brings you eternal glory. It redounds to our good favor to do so. And the consequences of the world you have set up cause us to be more profitable in our lives. But Lord, help us to ever and always know that our holiness and our attempts at holiness are for your glory. And for the thanksgiving to our Savior. I thank you, Lord, for the privilege of prayer as we give you great thanks for our military I thank you for the safe return of Brady. We've prayed for him for many months. And for Emily's perseverance. And we thank you for success in both of those things. I do pray for Tyler and Nick as they're away. And beginning their time away, that you would keep them safe. Allow them to have good Christian brotherhood around them. To sustain them in their spirits as well. I do thank you also for the work that goes on here each week unseen and without thanks to so many who serve you. And we pray your blessings on each one of them. I do thank you for the progress with my own dad. I pray you'd heal him completely and thank you for his many years of testimony of faithfulness. I pray for Mark and Lou Allen and their family as they grieve. And comfort them as only you can do, Lord. You are the great Comforter. And I pray, Lord, for Lauren today that you would be very near her I pray the intending physicians would be careful And the privilege of learning your gospel well and sharp and give every possible care to her and this new child. We love them and thank you for them And Lord, I do thank you for Robert. Thank you for the lesson we heard earlier. and our midst. that we may do the work of ministry in spreading the gospel. I pray each one of us would be faithful to know it well and be able to give answers when we are called to do so. And for the hope that lies within us as Peter has declared. And I do thank you for those who give. Thank you for the offering that will go forth in a moment. And for those who give both online and through check. And cash. We pray your great blessings on each one who gives. Give us wisdom to use them according to your will. In Jesus' name. Amen. All right. Listen to these words and the beautiful melody as you sing. One of the newer hymns, but still a very good one. It's on the back of your bulletin. Only a holy God. Please stand and sing with me. Thank you. Please be seated. Back. And he searched beginning with the eldest, and ending with the youngest. and they returned to the city. And the cup was found in Benjamin's sack. Then they tore their clothes, and every man loaded his donkey, When Judah and his brothers came to Joseph's house, he was still there. They fell before him to the ground. Joseph said to them, "What deed is this that you have done? Do you not know that a man like me can indeed practice divination? And Judah said, "What shall we say to my Lord? What shall we speak? Or how can we clear ourselves?" God is found out the guilt of your servants. Behold, we are my Lord's servants, both we and he also in whose hand the cup has been found. But he said, "Far be it from me that I should do so, only the man in whose hand the cup was found shall be my servant, but as for you, go up in peace to your father." Then Judah went up to him and said, "Oh my Lord, please let your servants speak a word in my Lord's ear, and let not your anger burn against your servant." For you are like Pharaoh himself, my Lord asked his servant saying, "We have a father, an old man, "Have you a father or a brother? And we said to my Lord, and a young brother, the child of his old age." His brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother's children. And his father loves him. Then you said to your servants, "Bring him down to me, that I may set my eyes on him." We said to my Lord, "Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, "The boy cannot leave his father, you shall not see my face again." When we went back to your servant, for if he should leave his father, his father would die." my father, we told him the words of my Lord. Then you said to your servants, And when our father said, "Go again, buy us a little food," we said, "We cannot go down. If our youngest brother goes with us, then we will go down." unless our youngest brother is with us. For we cannot see the man's face Then your servant, my father, said to us, "You know that my wife bore me two sons. One left me, and I said, 'Surely he has been torn to pieces.' And I have never seen him since. If you take this one also, from me, and harm happens to him, you will bring down my gray hairs and evil to Sheol." Now therefore, as soon as I come to your father, your servant, my father, and the boy is not with us, then as his life is bound up in the boy's life, and as soon as he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die. And your servants will bring down the gray hairs of your servant, our father, with Sheol, with sorrow to Sheol. For your servant became a pledge of safety for the boy to my father, saying, "If I do not bring him back to you, then I shall bear the blame before my father all my life." remain instead of the boy as a servant to my Lord. Now therefore, please let your servant For how can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? I fear to see the evil that would find my father. And let the boy go back with his brothers. This is the word of the living God. We recently traveling through the airport as a family, a couple of weeks ago, and we were going to Texas. And we had a bag check experience of our own. was pulled at the security checkpoint, and there are six of us traveling, so I kind of expect this kind of thing. But we were waiting for like over 10 minutes for our bag to be pulled. Other people's bags were coming through, and some of them were being pulled, When we went through security, one of our children's bags and they were actually being looked at. But this child's bag was kind of pulled off to the side and just waiting there, in like a special area to be checked. And I was thinking, "That's interesting." So we're waiting and waiting and waiting. People in our family are going to the bathroom because we're waiting so long. And then eventually, I overhear one of the TSA agents say to another TSA agent, "Hey, someone needs to check on that high-risk bag. "There's no other bag except our bag that's there." So I asked the child to whom it belonged, It's been sitting there for a while." And I'm thinking, To which they assured me that there were no bags. That there were no knives in the bag. That they had thoroughly searched the bag. Before packing. if there happened to be any knives in the bag. So I thought a little bit more, and I said to this child, "Are there any airsoft guns, pellet guns, that you left in this bag?" "No, no, I went through the bag." So then I thought, "Could there be any spent shells, bullet shells in the bag?" "No, there's nothing in there." I went through the bag. Okay, okay. The security officer then comes, like special guy, comes over, grabs the bag. "Is this your bag?" "Yes." "Well, it's not mine, technically. It's this child." And so we go around, and they have the X-ray thing there, and pulls it up. And starts going through the bag, and it's like, got his gloves on. And the side pocket where you can put your water bottle, in your bag, it's kind of made of mesh. And this was filled with candy for the trip. So the TSA agent is pulling out just like wads of candy. From it. And then at the very bottom, he pulls out a pocket knife. And, oh, thoroughly searched. So we had to give it over, say goodbye to it. So obviously, we can't take that with us. and it was like really thoroughly checked. Okay. But it gets better. On our way back from the trip in Texas, Thankfully, no other consequences were levied against us. So we passed through, we're not quite at the airport yet. We were still headed back from the camp in the bus. And the same child informs me that I found another pocket knife in my backpack. So the TSA found one, but they didn't find the other. So we got one through. We had no intent. So we had to leave that one with a friend. The child will remain nameless to preserve the guilty. This child was ready to offer himself as a slave, even, it seemed, if something was in there. And yet we have something very similar in our passage this morning. A bag check that serves as the final test of Joseph's brothers. Joseph has been testing his brothers this is really the third test that has come. One commentator put it as the money test, the lunch test, and now the cup test. And so this is the test of the silver cup. But why is Joseph putting his brothers through these tests? They don't recognize him yet. They don't know this is their brother. They think this is Zafnath Panea, the second leader in Egypt. And they haven't seen their brother in around 20 years. They think he's dead. But Joseph recognizes them, and he wants to know this. Are you the same brothers that you were 20 years ago when you sold me into slavery? Has anything changed in your life? And so he puts them through a series of tests to see, have they repented of their sin? And this is what this final test will display. The nature of true repentance the nature of true repentance. The marks of genuine repentance. Paul defines some of these marks of true repentance in 2 Corinthians chapter 7, verses 10 and 11. He writes, that leads to salvation without regret. "For godly grief produces a repentance Foresee what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you. But also what eagerness to clear yourselves Whereas worldly grief produces death. what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what punishment. At every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter." So Paul defines some of the marks of true repentance there. Moses here describes some of the marks of true repentance in chapter 44. Bruce Walke says, "20 years of unresolved conflict between the brothers will be reconciled on this critical day of testing." Now we'll have to wait until next time in chapter 44 for that all to come to pass. But this is the lead-up to that. So as we look at this chapter, we want to see four marks of true repentance. Four marks of true repentance described by Moses in this account. And the first mark of true repentance is heartfelt change. Heartfelt change. In verses 1 to 13. Verses 1 to 13. This section is marked out by the exit from the city in verse 4, and then the re-entry back into the city in verse 13. So they begin by leaving Egypt, and they end this section by returning back to Egypt. First we see the plant. We'll call it the plant. In verses 1 to 2. Just as Abraham's faith was tested by God, to show its quality, so Joseph tests his brother's faith. Or the genuineness of the repentance, rather. To see if they've really changed. It's interesting. Each time that the brothers leave, Egypt back home, their money somehow is back in their bags. It's like magic trick that Joseph keeps pulling on them. They bring their money to buy grain. They give it. And then they turn around and head back home and voilà, the money is back in their bags. They go back. They bring the money. "Hey, we somehow this money was back in our bags. We want to return it. We brought more money to buy." And so no, we received your payment. That money's yours. And they pay. And that money ends up back in their sack. So what are they carrying all this money? They're headed back now. And it's almost like sometimes you see in a show or movie, it's like your money's no good here. Your money's no good here. Now, it doesn't mean that he's not going to let them buy anything. But hey, you can have this grain for free essentially Joseph is providing for his brothers. But not only does he have his servant, his steward, return the money into their sacks before they leave, but also Joseph instructs his steward to plant evidence on his youngest brother, Benjamin. And attention is drawn to this cup. And it's a silver cup. When they ate together or actually it was the lunch meal, actually. And there's some commentators when it says that they were merry with him This cup was likely present at the meal the night before. at the end of verse at the end of chapter 44, that maybe they got slightly inebriated. And so their memory may not be correct. That's possible. Maybe not. But some think that. And so they're not quite sure what all took place. But either way, it's likely this cup was there present at this meal. They saw it. It's Joseph's special cup. And he's going to place this in Benjamin's bag. This is a setup. Now, from the brother's perspective, everything seems to be going great. They were worried that they were going to be taken as slaves because the money appeared back in their bag. So they bring it back. They bring a little gift basket for Joseph. They return the money. It's all okay. Then they're worried about what's going to they were worried about what was going to happen at the lunch. But they're served this lavish meal. Benjamin's given five times more. That's a little strange. They're also seated in birth order. That's really strange. How is that going to how does that happen? How does this guy possibly know our birth order? For the seating arrangement. But they have Simeon returned to them out of jail. They're all returning back. They got Simeon. What could go wrong? Well, here now we have not the plant, but the pursuit. The pursuit. In verses 3 to 5. They got Benjamin. Their money is with them. They have grain. Hey, this is great. Joseph, when they leave in the morning, sends his steward to track them down. Look at verse 4. They had gone only a short distance from the city. Now, Joseph said to his steward, "Up, follow after the men. And when you overtake them, say to them, 'Why have you paid evil for good?'" That phrase, "Why have you repaid evil for good?" Evil to good or evil for good could summarize the entire story of Joseph. In chapters 37 to 50 and possibly the whole book of Genesis, that God is going to bring good out of evil. And maybe even the Bible. God's story of bringing good out of sin entering this world. And that's really what we see at the end of Genesis 50:20. When Joseph will say to his brothers, "You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good." And so there's a repetition of this idea of evil to good. In this account. And here's another one of those. Now, there are accused of being ungrateful toward Joseph's generosity and taking advantage of it. The steward raises the stakes by highlighting how special this silver cup is. He says it is by this cup that Joseph practices divination. We also see another statement like that in verse 15 where he says, "Joseph says, 'Do you not know that a man like me can indeed practice divination?'" It's like, what is that all about? Is Joseph a secret idolater here? What's going on? Well, the text has made it clear and Joseph himself has made it clear throughout the narrative that he knows Maybe you wondered. What are we going to make of this? the future only by God alone. Only by the true God. He makes that clear to the baker and the cupbearer in prison. He makes it clear to Pharaoh himself. He's not using some kind of occultic practice. He puts the emphasis upon revelation upon the revelation he receives upon God. It's not even in him. It is God. So nothing in the else in the narrative makes us think that Joseph was compromised in the Egyptian culture. He was not an idolater. Most likely, this is part of the trap for his brothers. Part of the test. It's part of the setup. They might understand a person in Joseph's position to have something like this and to do something like this. It's his ploy to test them. I would say like this. Joseph seems to be bluffing. And so it kind of furthers the test. And so what Joseph wants to do is emphasize how important this cup is or the servant wants to emphasize how important this cup is to Joseph. And he really places them in a similar situation to their sin against Joseph in order to test them. They're in a position involving silver between Egypt and home or giving up their brother would be advantageous to them. And so this is the pursuit that leads to their capture and accusation. And then the brothers give a promise that we didn't do it. In verses 6 to 13. 6 to 13 is the promise. Though they're quick to protest their innocence. It's a logical for them to do this, they argue. After all, we came back with the money. That was placed back in our sacks. We brought it back. Why would we then steal something after bringing all this money back? It doesn't make sense. And then you see how intense their insistence is that they're willing to undergo all of them Now, if you remember, back in chapter 43, death or slavery. because they were brought to Joseph's house and they said, 'It is because of the money which was replaced in our sacks the first time that we are brought in.' So that he may assault us verse 18, it says, "And the men were afraid and fall upon us to make us servants and seize our donkeys." So in that instance, they're like, "We have this money. I don't know how we got it, but we're in trouble. He might make us a slave." That's their concern. Now, they know they're innocent of this. And so they say, "Hey, if you find this cup, we'll be your slaves." So they're really afraid of being slaves. Now they're saying, "We're so confident that we are innocent of this matter. You can make us your slaves While they're suggested punishment is extreme, the steward lessens it slightly he wants to press the issue if you find it in our bags." with just Benjamin, likely Joseph is informed him of his plans. And so the steward's relaying that. Joseph wants to put the pressure on Benjamin, single Benjamin out. And so he says, "No, no, only the one whom the cup is found with will pay the consequences." And so they're more than willing to be searched. They don't think that there's anything there. It's interesting when they protest their innocence in verse 9. It says, "Whichever of your servants is found with it shall die. And we also will be my Lord's servants." So this is very similar to what happened with Jacob when he was not aware that Rachel had stolen the household idols of Laban back in chapter 31, verse 32. And Laban tracks them down. And in verse 32, it says, "Anyone with whom you find your gods shall not live in the presence of our kinsmen point out what I have that is yours and take it." Now, Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them. And so she sits on them and he can't find them. So this is a similar situation with the same family, really. Jacob's family, similar pattern happening. Well, they quickly let down their bags to prove their innocence. The search begins. And it's a suspenseful search. He doesn't begin with Benjamin. He knows where it is. He put it there. But he starts once again in the order of their birth, just like they were sat. At lunch, let's do that order. So they go and they you can just imagine, one after another. Working their way down. It's not me. It's not me. I knew it. We didn't have it. And they get to Benjamin. And out is pulled the silver cup. And they're devastated. They are devastated. They tear their clothes together. A sign of mourning and grief. for their youngest brother. These are broken men. And what we ought to notice is the change in these brothers. Before, when they fooled their father And they stand together, united in their grief after selling their brother Joseph into slavery and covering it up by putting blood on his coat and giving it to their father, they watched Jacob as he tore his clothes and wept. For Joseph, in chapter 37, verse 29, while they comforted their father, falsely, knowing what they had just done. But now, they're actually innocent of this matter but they all tear their clothing and weep for their brother Benjamin. Benjamin's in trouble. But now, they're put in a situation where they really they kind of have the perfect excuse to give Benjamin up. Our hands were tied, Dad. I mean, we don't know how it got there. We gave our word and we had no choice. But what were we supposed to do? In some ways, it would be convenient for them to abandon their brother Benjamin. Joseph was the favorite son. And so they hated him. And they sold him into slavery. Now, it becomes Benjamin the favorite son down the screws because yesterday, he gave Benjamin five times more. What is the issue in this family? And not only that, Joseph is kind of tightened Favoritism. who Jacob doesn't want to send to Egypt. But he finally acquiesces to that because it's the only way to get grain. When they get there, Joseph has them over for lunch. And they all get served this meal. And Benjamin gets five times as many. It's like he's like, "Let's see what this favoritism is like now." And now, they're able to enjoy the meal with merriment. They're not in bitter towards him at the end of 43. But here's a further test. Okay, now you can give up this brother who maybe there's some favoritism towards. And you have an excuse for it. But that's not what they do. Instead of abandoning him, they demonstrate their affection for Benjamin. They stand in solidarity with him. Then they tore their clothes, all of them. They tore their clothes. Look at verse 13. And every man every man loaded his donkey. And they returned to the city. They all went back. They all mourned. It's no longer every man for himself. In this dysfunctional family, they are crushed that this is happening to Benjamin. They are not celebrating. This is because their hearts have been changed and are being changed. They love their brother. They love their father. And one of the evidences of repentance is the fruit of change. When giving the opportunity to sin in the same way, we once sinned or any similar way, the Lord works change in us such that we don't continue in that path anymore. This is because of the change that God works in our thinking and in our affections, our loves. And God, through Joseph's agency, has placed them in a similar situation to what they did to Joseph. To test them. But now, they're broken for their favorite brother. They're not bitter that Benjamin was favored at dinner. Will you do the same that you did before? They're broken that Benjamin has been framed while departing. And so we see that placing the same situation their heart changes demonstrated. They are repenting. They are turning to the Lord. And it's evidenced in how they respond to their brother's peril. Joel chapter 2 is one of the great Old Testament passages on repentance. In Joel 2, verse 12 to 14, we read, "Yet even now declares Yahweh, 'Return to me. With all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning, and rend your hearts and not your garments. Return to Yahweh your God, for He is gracious and merciful. Slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. And He relents over disaster.'" Who knows whether He will not turn and relent and leave a blessing behind Him? Joel says, "Don't just rend your heart excuse me, don't just rend your garments, Have an inward mourning. because their hearts are torn up. the outward symbol, but rend your hearts. Because of their affection for their brother. Both are unified. Both match. Well, they have both. They are ripping their garments This isn't a foe grief. We see that because they we know that because they all go back. They all go back to Joseph. They are together in this now. The wear in your life have you seen a change as a fruit of repentance? Oh, there's many. You could think about this and praise God for working change in your life. Maybe you think back years ago and you think, "Wow, man, I was so enslaved to that sin. I really had a hard time seeing about how I could have progress and growth in this area. But wow, the Lord has been gracious to mature me, to grow me in this area. Not where I ultimately want to be, but I'm not where I once was. God works that change in you through repentance." Repentance brings a change of mind and affection, which leads to a change ultimately in our actions. It results in that. Part of repentance is putting off old ways and putting on new ways. And so here we see the first fruit of true repentance. And it is heartfelt change. Heartfelt change. They are cut to the heart. And they act differently when their brother is in peril. Before, they heard Joseph in the pit that they threw him in, saying, "Brothers, help me. Get me out of here. Please don't do this. Pleading for his life." And they ate their lunch calmly. Now, their brother's in peril and they tear their garments. They go back and they find a way to resolve this. They're willing to be slaves to their brother can be spared. Second, fruit of true repentance is honest confession. Honest confession. In verses 14 to 17, verses 14 to 17, now they're back to the city. Back to Egypt. And they're once again before Joseph. It says that Joseph hadn't left yet. And so because Joseph has made this plan and he's waiting for them, and so they fall down before him yet again. It's different word, but once again, remember how all this started. It's a different word than the other times of bowing down. But Joseph had this dream of his brothers bowing down to him. They've already fulfilled this. They fulfilled it in part with 10 of them coming. And then they bring Benjamin and they all bow down to him, fulfilling it in full. And now they're back again. And they're pleading his mercy. They're falling down before him in desperation. And now Judah acts as the spokesman. We saw how Reuben would speak up first and then Judah would come. Reuben's the firstborn. But now Judah is becoming more and more prominent. And so he is the spokesperson for the brothers. And he's at a loss of how to clear themselves. How can we justify ourselves before you, Joseph? What are we to say? And so what he does say is what is on all their hearts. What God has put his finger upon. He confesses the guilt of the brothers. He says it. God has found out the guilt of your servants. And he's not just talking about himself alone, but all of them. Now, what guilt is he referring to? Well, it doesn't say specifically, but one thing we know it's not referring to is the guilt of stealing the silver cup. Because they just protested their innocence. They were so confident they hadn't taken this. And they go back to plead their case. They know they haven't done this. And so what guilt could they possibly be bothered by, that they're confessing now? That they realize God has exposed in their hearts. Is it not the guilt of selling their brother Joseph into slavery? These circumstances are way too similar. God is putting it in their face. He's making them redeal with the issue And now God has brought it to the surface. And now they see it for the second time that they put and suppressed down, down, down, down. they confess their guilt. Ironically, before Joseph, you know, before they did it in chapter 42, in Hebrew, and they didn't realize that Joseph understands Hebrew and can speak Hebrew because he was using a translator. And they're confessing, "This is happening to us because of what we did to Joseph." And now, even more so, he says, "God has found out the guilt of your servants." They confess honestly what they have done. They've come to grips with the evil of their past sin. And yet they have no idea that it's Joseph that they're saying this to. I mean, Joseph has had to excuse himself many times twice already from his brothers to weep. I mean, he keeps his composure here. Judah then offers for them all to be Joseph's servants. As he sees them coming to grips with their guilt. In Duguid says, "The punishment fits, the guilt of their earlier crime, since they sold Joseph to slavery in Egypt, they will now become slaves in Egypt." They're guilty. They recognize their guilt over selling their brother. And so Judah says, "To Joseph, we will all be your slaves." We will all be your slaves. I mean, how interesting. And yet Joseph will not have them all as servants, but once again, only Benjamin. He wants to press this issue. What are you going to do to your brother like you did to me? And so here they're put into a dilemma. They're put in this situation again where they can desert the favored brother to save their lives. But with Joseph, they hated him and made money from him. But with Benjamin, their lives are at stake. Their futures are imperiled. And so it's even more incentive to give him up. You know, if they don't give Joseph up, they don't make some money. They have to deal with their brother. They would certainly do that if their hearts had not been changed. But now they're in danger of being enslaved. And so it's advantageous to give up Benjamin to save their skin. But once again, they're different men. They stand as one. When repentance is real, there is acknowledgment of guilt for past sin. Judah owns their sin. A repentance is more than just confession, but it is not less than confession. It really begins with confession. Acknowledgment of sin and a confession of sin. Confession is, I mean, really simply defined. It's agreeing with God about your sin. It's saying the same thing that God says about your sin. Agreeing with Him about it. And this is what happens: Proverbs 28:13, "Whoever conceals covers up his transgressions will not prosper. But he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy." 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." You know, often in our corporate prayers, Richie just prayed, we include something of a confession of our sins. Because weekly, we need to, and daily, we need to come before the Lord and confess our sins to the Lord. To enjoy that relational closeness with the Lord. But if we are outside of Christ, completely, if we have yet to do that for the first time, we need to confess our sin to the Lord in coming to Christ. And availing ourselves of His sacrifice. Listen to what the prodigal son said in Luke 15, verse 17, "But when he came to himself," in other words, he came to his senses. He was regenerated. He said, "How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread but I perish here with hunger? Father, I have sinned against heaven." It's another way to say, against God. And before you. I will arise and go to my father. And I will say to him, So against God and man. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants. You know, isn't it interesting that Joseph, Judah, excuse me, there's so many J names in this story. Judah says to Joseph, "We're guilty. We've sinned. In this matter. And God has found it out. And we'll be your servants. We'll be your servants. That's what we deserve." So are you frequent in confession of your sins to God and to others where necessary? I don't know why it is, Or are you forgetful in confession of your sin? but it seems to me like the quickest and be consistent in is confession. You know, we can adore God and worship. We can thank God for things. or the, let me rephrase that, the easiest part of prayer to fall off to bring before the Lord, we seem to be forgetful. Well, the Lord brings conviction We can ask God for lots of things. But when we come to confession, searching out our hearts or areas we need to these brothers. Judah voices it, and it is a fruit of repentance, to the acknowledgment of guilt. And how is it that we can acknowledge our guilt? When for so long we wanted to hide it and cover it up. Here's why. Because we've recognized the work of Christ, that He has paid for our sins. He's wiped them clean. He's erased them completely. And so we're free from that condemnation of that sin. And so we can be honest about it now because God has paid for it. Christ has dealt with it. We're free from that. We're no longer that person. And so we can be honest about it because we're free from it. It's harder to confess sin when it still has a grip on us. When we haven't looked to Christ as our surety. Looked to Christ as our substitute for our sin. We fear the condemnation of men or of God. But in Christ, there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. And so then we can confess our sin with honesty. That's the second evidence of true repentance. Honest confession. The third is found in verses 18 to 29 and it is humble compassion. Humble compassion. In verses 18 to 29. Another fruit of repentance in the brothers' lives and ours. Now, this begins Judah's speech here, which is the longest speech in Genesis. Interesting. The longest speech given is this speech on behalf of his brother Benjamin. by Judah to his brother Joseph. This is significant. Moses wants to focus on this speech. And Judah here appeals to his brother Joseph in verses 19 to 23, he essentially recounts the interactions between Joseph and themselves And what how this breaks down is that occurred in chapter 42. So verses 19 to 23 are a summary of chapter 42. Joseph demanding that they or asking them questions about their family history. That's when he accused them of being spies. And then saying, "If you want to come back again, you need to bring your youngest brother." And they're like, "Oh, I can't. Our dad won't let us take him." And he says, "Well, if you want to come back and get more grain, you need to bring him." Then verses 24 to 29 recount the interactions that the brothers have with Jacob at home. So it's recounting the events of chapter 43. They go home. They're hungry again. Jacob says, "Go get more grain. This is Dad. We can't. This is what Joseph said. These are the prerequisites." And so Joseph, Judah, excuse me, Judah is recounting that conversation to Joseph. But in this recounting, Judah reveals his changed heart. The way he speaks reveals that he's a different man. First, he demonstrates humble submission to Joseph in the way he speaks to him. He shows proper respect towards him and says, "For you are like Pharaoh himself." And Judah refers to himself as servant around 14 times in this section. You're servants. You're servant. You're servants. And so he's very humble in his approach to Joseph. He's been a humble man. And so have the brothers. In repentance. And second, he seeks to really elicit sympathy from Joseph for their father. By recounting the interaction with Jacob regarding Benjamin. And so this is where we see his compassion for his brother because he repeats the word father 15 times. So this is a long speech. But he recounts the word servant as a big word repeated and the word father. and his father. And we see this especially in the way he tells the story So hence we get humble compassion. He's humbly approaching Joseph and he's compassionate towards his father. And he wants to elicit compassion and mercy from Joseph for his father. He loves his brother and his father. And it's seen in the way he speaks about them. One writer said, "A formally calloused Judah is now compassionate." Now, in chapter 43, God had shown mercy and compassion to the family of Jacob through Joseph. Remember that Jacob, before when he was sending the brothers, he asked God to show mercy or show compassion. And then we saw in verse 30 of chapter 43 that God answers that prayer through Joseph showing compassion or mercy to them. His heart was warm within him. And so now Judah is asking for compassion on behalf of their father. A little does he know that it's Joseph's father as well. That he would be showing compassion to. So Judah's heart response has been made Before repentance, our hearts are often selfish and cold towards others. compassionate. But after repentance, we become selfless and warm towards others. Love for others is a mark of those who have been converted, who have repented and are repenting. 1 John 3:14 says, "We know that we have passed out of death into life." In other words, we've been regenerated. We've been born again. We know that because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. They remain in death. So he's saying, here's an evidence. there will be an increasing love for others, especially other Christians. Here's a mark. Here's a fruit. It's not the root. It's not what you do to be born again. It is the result of being born again. If you've been born again, And so we see this compassionate heart coming out of Judah, who was once cold, who was the one who suggested selling Joseph into slavery. Hey guys, let's not kill him. Let's at least make a buck or two on this guy. Let's sell him. And now he's compassionate for his youngest brother to save him. Well, Judah's long speech continues and it reveals our last mark of true repentance. Let's review them here for you. Just before we get to our last one, we have heartfelt change. Verses 1 to 13. Honest, confession. Verses 14 to 17. Humble, compassion. Verses 18 to 29. And finally, we see heroic commitment. In verses 30 to 34. Heroic commitment. In verses 30 to 34. In chapter 43, verses 8 and 9, Judah in trying to convince his father, Jacob, to let them take Benjamin, offered himself as surety in the case of Benjamin. But now he offers himself as a substitute to Joseph. He will stand in the place of his brother. This idea of Judah standing in the place of Benjamin is the same word idea as the ram being in the place of Isaac on Mount Moriah. It is the idea of substitution. Look again at verses 32, 34. That Moses wants to remind us of. This was what was needed to redeem his brother. as soon as he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die. Now therefore, as soon as I come to your servant, my father, and the boy is not with us, And your servants will bring down the gray hairs of your servant, our father, with sorrow to Sheol. then as his life is bound up in the boy's life, In other words, he's eliciting that sympathy. And compassion. For your servant became a pledge of safety for the boy to my father, saying, if I do not bring him back to you, then I shall bear the blame before my father all my life. And now he amps it up. Verse 33. Now therefore, please let your servant remain instead of the boy as a servant to my Lord. And let the boy go back with his brothers. For how can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? I fear to see the evil that will find my father. This is a totally different Judah. Completely different. Judah now says, okay, Joseph, take my life. Have me as your servant. For the rest of my life. So that my brothers can go back. So that my brothers can return. I will stand in their stead. I will be the substitute. Take my life. Let them go. This is a profound act of substitution. And early demonstration of substitution by a human being on behalf of others. That will become a pattern and a paradigm for the future Messiah. Notice who it is. That establishes the line of the Messiah. According to God's providence in chapter 49 of Genesis, verse 8. Judah, your brother shall praise you. Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies. He crouched as a lion. And as a lioness, who dares rouse him? Your father's son shall bow down before you. The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet Judah is a lion's cub. From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down. until tribute comes to him. Binding his fowl to the vine And to him shall be the obedience of the peoples. and his donkey's colt to the choice vine, he has washed his garments in wine and his vesture in the blood of grapes. His eyes are darker than wine and his teeth whiter than milk. We'll get there soon enough. But Judah is to be the royal line. Through which the Messiah will come. Abraham was told that kings would come from him. Adam was supposed to function like a king. God now is going to use a nation, Israel, to bring about the Messiah, to bring blessing to the nations and he's going to do it through Isaac, through Jacob, through Judah now. And of course, ultimately, Matthew shows us in his genealogy that Jesus is the one And through Judah will come the royal line. David will be in that line. who descends from Judah, from David, I think if we did a little pop quiz and you know before all this, and we were to ask you like, and is the royal king. Over Israel. That they've been waiting for. you know what which tribe of which tribe of Judah, that's kind of poisoning the well, I guess. Which tribe do you most think of? Are you most familiar with? And most of us would probably say Judah because we think of Jesus. And the line of descent. And that's for good reason. Because if a substitution here because his being in the royal line really Judah sets the paradigm for what a true king of Judah's line should be like. To be a substitute for his people to redeem them. Jesus would come along and say in John 15:13, greater love has no one than this. Here we see a beautiful description of the doctrine of substitution. That someone lay down his life for his friends. And Jesus says to them, you are my friends. He can't be the ultimate substitute. Now, Judah is sinful. He's guilty of the crime of selling his brother. And yet he offers himself as a substitute. But Jesus is the sinless substitute. The righteous one. Who substitutes in the place of his people. First Peter 3:18, for Christ also suffered once for sins. The righteous for the unrighteous. That word for in the place of. As a substitute. Why? So that he might bring us to God. Being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the Spirit. Mark 10:45, for even the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. Mark's lightly alluding to Isaiah 53, verses 4 to 6. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. Yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. Upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace. And with his wounds, we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned. Everyone to his own way. And Yahweh is laid on him, the iniquity of us all. Or Hebrews chapter 2. Hebrews chapter 2 describes this work of our high priest. In verse 14, since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things. That through death, he might destroy the one who has the power of death. That is the devil. And deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. Therefore, he had to be made like his brothers in every respect. So that he might become a merciful In other words, a wrath satisfying sacrifice. For the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered and faithful high priest in the service of God. when tempted, he is able to help To make propitiation for the sins of the people. those who are being tempted. In my place, condemned he stood. Hallelujah. What a savior. But look at Revelation chapter 5. Look at Revelation chapter 5. See these ideas come together. Revelation 5, verse 2. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, "Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals? And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it." I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. The scroll, likely the title deed to the earth. Though he is the royal line. One of the elders said to me, "Weep no more. Who can reign over this world successfully? Well, it's not Judah. Behold, the lion of the tribe of Judah the root of David has conquered. So that he can open the scroll and its seven seals." Verse 9, and they sang a new song saying, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals. For you were slain and by your blood you ransomed people for God out of every tribe and language and people and nation. And you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God. And they shall reign on the earth." So in his reign, in fulfillment of the promise in Genesis 49, we will reign with him. Why? Because he stood in our place. He bore the penalty of God's wrath in the place of his people. And so think about it this way. That God has a kingdom that is coming. Where Jesus rules over this world physically, bodily present. And in order to be a part of that kingdom, you need to be rightly related to the king. You need a substitute. And Christ is the only substitute that can put you right with the king. Who can reconcile you to the king. And allow you to be a citizen of this coming kingdom and a part of his rule and reign. Judah cannot make atonement. He's a sinful man. But the one in the line of Judah who is sinless is the atonement in the place of sinners. Who place their faith in him. So they may go free. Because of the lion of Judah's substitutionary atonement, you can be transformed from a life enslaved to sin. You can be transformed just like these brothers were. See how wicked they were. See how far from God they were. And how near they were brought to God through regeneration. Through the work of God. Because of what Christ would do. Look at Judah's transformation. From a lust-filled, self-serving, greedy, hateful man. To a Christ-like sacrificial love in the place of others. This is what Christ came to do for his people. To be the substitution for sinners. To be the savior of sinners. To be the one who sanctifies sinners. And having saved them, works in their lives to conform them to the image of Christ. Putting off sin. Putting on righteousness. Continuing to repent. He becomes our savior first. And then becomes our model for how to lay our lives down for others. Fathers laying down their lives for their children. For their wives. Not just like their physical lives. But daily in service. In love. In care. In compassion. In gentleness. Children doing that with their siblings. Preferring their interests over their own. Mothers and wives laying their lives down for their husbands. For their children. Caring for them. We're motivated not to earn God's favor. But because we have God's favor. Church members laying their lives down for one another. Serving one another. We see the example of our substitute. And we want to show that to others. What is one way this week, this month that you can sacrifice on behalf of others close to you? Showing the love that Christ has shown to you. Or generation leads to a repentance without regret. It is a repentance that bears the fruit of heroic commitment to sacrifice my desires and wants in the service of Christ. What a beautiful chapter. Showing God's redeeming grace. I mean, one thing you should notice through this whole series on Joseph is the the realism of the Bible. How real these characters are. How bad they can be. How sinful sinners can be. How God can bring some very twisted, messed-up sinners to himself. And yet how sweet God's redemptive grace is. of very broken families. There is hope. Yet. And bring even restoration and reconciliation God can bring such change. The pathway has been paved for their reconciliation. One writer said, "For reconciliation, there needs to be repentance and forgiveness." And in chapter 44, we've seen the repentant brothers. And in chapter 45, Joseph is broken. And he is ready to forgive his brothers. And he's going to reveal himself to them. In this emotional moment. And there's going to be reconciliation as he forgives all their sins against him. Kevin DeYoung pointed out in his exposition of this passage something I thought was funny. Because it resonated with me. What people would often write in high school yearbooks when summer was coming. And so I remember getting my high school yearbook. And you pass it around to your friends. And you have them sign it. And you know there's some common things that he pointed out. That I'm like, "Yeah. My yearbook has all those things. I haven't looked at it for a long time. But nor do I want to." But like have a good summer. But the best one he pointed out was people who would write, "Never change. Never change. You know, see you next year. What advice for a high schooler? Never change. Yikes. I mean, I'm glad most people have not taken that advice. The Christian life is one of constant change. God produces a change in us through regeneration. Leading us to repentance. He gives us a new heart. He removes our heart of stone. And then he begins the daily process of sanctification. Growing from one degree of glory to another into the image of Christ. And we're seeking to change every day. And repentance is part of that work of change. Martin Luther wrote, "In the first of his 95 theses, that he nailed or taped or glued or whatever he did, 'When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, 'Repent,' he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.'" on the door of Wittenberg, he says, According to Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation of the oldest passed away. Behold, the new has come. The gospel brings power to change. Power over that sin that had ruled your life. Paul says in Romans 12:2, 'Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind.' If you're not changing into Christ-likeness, you're being conformed to the world. And now we see the transformation of these brothers as God brought you under conviction of your sin. the conscience calling out, reminding us of sin. Through these chapters, chapter 42, he has shown you to lead you to repentance? The God's kindness leads us to repentance. Has God reminded you of the lavish grace and mercy In chapter 43, as Joseph shows lavish grace and mercy on behalf of God to warm their hearts, "Have you been transformed by that grace and mercy evidenced in repentance? Aware in your life is repentance needed. Like it was in the lives of these brothers. That's a question only you can answer. That where in your life has God brought about the sweet fruits of true repentance? Thank him this week. Thank the Lord. Lord, I'm so grateful that you cause repentance. That you gifted me repentance in this area. Brought me to a knowledge of my sin. And brought me out of that. And are continuing to work. What kind of motivation do you need for repentance? Guard me from returning to the vomit of my sin. But thank you, Lord, for doing that. who was slain like a lamb as a substitute for sinners. The best I can give you is the lion of the tribe of Judah, Look at his willingness to die for sinners who had rebelled against him and rejected him. Look at his determination to die for sinners, knowing the cost it would take to redeem a soul. And look at his love demonstrated in his death to set his that is an eternal love Look to him and live. that he had set upon you and that he demonstrates for you in the cross. Father, thank you for your Son. Thank you for his substitutionary work to free us from our sin and to bring us to yourself. Thank you for working the fruits of repentance in our lives having caused us to be born again Lord, continue to grant us more repentance, more confession of our sins so that we might enjoy the closeness of fellowship with you. And Lord, I pray for those who have yet to repent of their sin ever. They've been deluded in in in their sin. Enslaved to it. Give them a confidence in Christ the substitute that he can even forgive their sins. Press it upon their their conscience in a way that that they would despair of anything else except fleeing to Christ for mercy. And Lord, we pray that you would help us to live lives worthy of the calling with which we've been called. To demonstrate the the love that you've shown to us, to others. And so we thank you for these demonstrations of repentance. May they be true in our lives increasingly. And may we enjoy the fruits of it in Jesus' name. Amen. Let's respond in hymn. Number 187, before the throne of God above.