If ever someone had reason to be bitter about their circumstances and the hand they had been dealt in life, it was Joseph. Rejected by his brothers, sold into slavery, and then falsely accused and imprisoned when things were finally starting to go well, he’s one of those characters who can’t seem to get a break. Even once the opportunity for restoration seems to have come, Joseph spends an extra two years in prison waiting because of the chief cupbearer’s forgetfulness. And yet, Joseph’s story is overflowing with forgiveness and grace. Joseph had suffered greatly under the wrong that his brothers had done to him. In chapter 40 he tells the cupbearer and baker, “I was indeed stolen out of the land of the Hebrews, and here also I have done nothing that they should put me into the pit.” Joseph uses the same word to describe his present circumstances that his brothers used to describe their actions against him. He sees and feels the connection between his present suffering and what his bro...
Worship. Community. Mission.