IS THERE A PURPOSE FOR PROCESS?
“…Through this PROCESS, HE MADE the
altar holy by purifying it…” (Leviticus 8:5 NLT).
*
There is a purpose for process. Joseph was
called to be a ruler one day and he discovered it in a dream. “…Now Joseph had a dream, and he told it to his
brothers; and they hated him even more. So he said to them, “Please hear this
dream which I have dreamed: There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Then
behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and indeed your sheaves stood all around and bowed
down to my sheaf.” And his brothers said to him, “Shall you indeed
reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over us?” So they hated him
even more for his dreams and for his words. Then he dreamed still another dream
and told it to his brothers, and said, “Look, I have dreamed another dream. And this time, the
sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me.” So he told it to his father and his brothers;
and his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall your mother and I and your brothers
indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?” And his brothers
envied him, but his father kept the matter in mind…” (Genesis 37: 5-11 NLT).
Joseph’s dream would come true, but in the PROCESS of time. “…And in PROCESS of time IT CAME TO PASS…” (Genesis
4:3 KJV).
In
the meanwhile, his brothers were jealous of him. “…And when they saw him afar off, even before
he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him. And they said one to
another, Behold, this dreamer cometh. Come now therefore, and let us slay him,
and cast him into some pit, and we will say, Some evil beast hath
devoured him: and we shall see what will become of his dreams. And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and
said, Let us not kill him. And Reuben said unto them,
Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no
hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his
father again. And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren,
that they stript Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colours that was on
him; And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it. And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and
looked, and, behold, a company of Ishmeelites came from Gilead with their
camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt.
And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay
our brother, and conceal his blood? Come, and let us
sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our
brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content. Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen;
and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the
Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt…” (GENESIS 37).
Joseph lived in a
foreign country as a servant, away from his family, for years. “….Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. And
Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him
from the Ishmaelites who
had taken him down there. …” (Genesis 39:1-6 NLT).
He went through many difficulties and
ended up in prison. “…Now Joseph was handsome in
form and appearance. And it came to pass after these things that his master’s
wife cast longing eyes on Joseph, and she said, “Lie with me.” But
he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Look, my master does not know what is with me in the house, and he has
committed all that he has to my hand. There
is no one greater in this house than I, nor has he kept back anything
from me but you, because you are
his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” So it
was, as she spoke to Joseph day by day, that he did not heed her, to lie with
her or to be with her. But it
happened about this time, when Joseph went into the house to do his work, and
none of the men of the house was
inside, that she caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me.” But he left
his garment in her hand, and fled and ran outside. And so it was, when she saw that he had left
his garment in her hand and fled outside, that she called to the men of her
house and spoke to them, saying, “See, he has brought in to us a Hebrew to mock
us. He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud
voice. And it happened, when he heard that I lifted my voice and cried out,
that he left his garment with me, and fled and went outside.” So she kept his
garment with her until his master came home. Then she spoke to him with words
like these, saying, “The Hebrew servant whom you brought to us came in to me to
mock me; so it happened, as I lifted my voice and cried out, that he left his
garment with me and fled outside.” So it was, when his master heard the words
which his wife spoke to him, saying, “Your servant did to me after this
manner,” that his anger was aroused. Then Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, a
place where the king’s prisoners were
confined. And he was there in the prison…”
(Genesis 39:6-21 NLT).
God was with Joseph
when he became a servant in Potiphar’s house. “…The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was
in the house of his master the Egyptian. And his master saw
that the Lord was
with him and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in
his hand. So Joseph found favor in his sight, and served him. Then he made him
overseer of his house, and all that
he had he put under his authority. So it was, from the time that he had made him overseer of his
house and all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house
for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had in the
house and in the field. Thus he left all that he had in Joseph’s hand, and he
did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate…”
(Genesis 39:2-6 NLT).
God was with him when
he went to prison. “…But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the
sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison committed to
Joseph’s hand all the prisoners who were
in the prison; whatever they did there, it was his doing. The keeper of the
prison did not look into anything that
was under Joseph’s
authority, because the Lord was with him; and whatever he
did, the Lord made it prosper…”
(Genesis 39:21-23 NLT).
Joseph was an
interpreter of dreams and when he was 30 years old he was called to interpret Pharaoh’s
dream. “…Pharaoh said to his servants,
“Can we find such a one as this,
a man in whom is the Spirit of
God?” Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Inasmuch as God has shown you all this, there is no one as discerning and
wise as you. You
shall be over my house, and all my people shall be ruled according to your
word; only in regard to the throne will I be greater than you.” And
Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have set you over all the land of Egypt.” Then
Pharaoh took his signet ring off his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand; and he
clothed him in garments of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. And
he had him ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried out before
him, “Bow the knee!” So he set him over all the land of Egypt. Pharaoh
also said to Joseph, “I am
Pharaoh, and without your consent no man may lift his hand or foot in all the
land of Egypt.”. …Joseph went out over all
the land of Egypt. Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before
Pharaoh king of Egypt…” (Genesis 41:37-46 NLT).
Joseph’s dream, as a
ruler, was fulfilled before the eyes of his brothers. “…Now Joseph was governor
over the land; and it was he who sold to all the people of the land. And
Joseph’s brothers came and bowed down before him with their faces to the earth. 7Joseph saw his brothers
and recognized them, but he acted as a stranger to them and spoke roughly to
them. Then he said to them, “Where do you come from?” And they said, “From the
land of Canaan to buy food.” So Joseph recognized his
brothers, but they did not recognize him. Then Joseph remembered the dreams
which he had dreamed about them, and said to them, “You are spies! You have come to see the nakedness of the land!” And
they said to him, “No, my lord, but your servants have come to buy food. We are all one man’s sons; we are honest men; your servants are not spies.” But he said to them, “No, but
you have come to see the nakedness of the land.” And they said, “Your servants are twelve brothers, the sons of one
man in the land of Canaan; and in fact, the youngest is with our father today, and one is no more.” But Joseph said to them, “It is as I spoke to you, saying, ‘You are spies!’ In this manner you shall be tested: By the
life of Pharaoh, you shall not leave this place unless your youngest brother
comes here. Send one of you, and let him bring your brother; and you shall be
kept in prison, that your words may be tested to see whether there is any truth in you; or else,
by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are
spies!” So he put them all together in prison three days. Then Joseph said to
them the third day, “Do this and live, for
I fear God: If you are honest men, let one of your brothers be
confined to your prison house; but you, go and carry grain for the famine of
your houses. And bring your youngest brother to me; so your
words will be verified, and you shall not die.” And they did so. 2Then
they said to one another, “We are
truly guilty concerning our brother, for we saw the anguish of his soul when he
pleaded with us, and we would not hear; therefore this distress has come upon
us.” And Reuben answered them, saying, “Did I not speak to you, saying, ‘Do not
sin against the boy’; and you would not listen? Therefore behold, his blood is
now required of us.” But they did not know that Joseph understood them, for he spoke to them through an
interpreter. And he turned himself away from them and wept. Then he returned to
them again, and talked with them. And he took Simeon from them and bound him
before their eyes…. Then he lifted his eyes and
saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, and said, “Is this your younger brother of whom you spoke to me?” And he
said, “God be gracious to you, my son.” Now his heart yearned
for his brother; so Joseph made haste and sought somewhere to weep. And he went into his chamber and wept there. Then he washed his face and came
out; and he restrained himself, and said, “Serve the bread.” …Then Joseph could
not restrain himself before all those who stood by him, and he cried out, “Make
everyone go out from me!” So no one stood with him while Joseph made himself
known to his brothers. And he wept aloud, and the Egyptians and the house of
Pharaoh heard it…Then Joseph
said to his brothers, “I am
Joseph; does my father still live?” But his brothers could not answer him, for
they were dismayed in his presence. And Joseph said to his brothers, “Please come
near to me.” So they came near. Then he said: “I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. But now, do
not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here…” (Genesis 43:13-24, 29-31, 44:3-5).
Did Joseph’s PROCESS
have a PURPOSE? “…. When Joseph’s brothers saw that their
father was dead, they said, “Perhaps Joseph will hate us, and may actually
repay us for all the evil which we did to him.” So they sent messengers to Joseph, saying, “Before
your father died he commanded, saying, ‘Thus you shall say to Joseph: “I beg
you, please forgive the trespass of your brothers and their sin; for they did
evil to you.”’ Now, please, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of
your father.” And Joseph wept when they spoke to him. Then his brothers also
went and fell down before his face, and they said, “Behold, we are your servants.” Joseph said to them, “Do
not be afraid, for am I in the
place of God? But
as for you, you meant evil against me; but
God meant it for good, in
order to bring it about as it is
this day, to save many people alive. Now therefore, do not be afraid; I
will provide for you and your little ones.” And he comforted them and spoke
kindly to them.…” (GENESIS 50:15:21).
Joseph PROCESSED
through exile from his family to be a servant and he spent many years in
prison. “…Fear not: for am I in the place
of God? But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good,
to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive…” (Genesis
50:20 KJV).
Was God with Joseph
during his exile as a servant and while in prison? “…The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was
in the house of his master the Egyptian.
…” (Genesis 39:2-6 NLT). “…But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the
sight of the keeper of the prison. …”
(Genesis 39:21-23 NLT).
After reading Joseph’s
story it was cruel what his brothers did to him. What he went through seemed
utterly unfair. Yet Joseph was clear that his PROCESS had a PURPOSE and he
could articulate what it was. Joseph’s reveals his purpose to his brothers: “…God sent me before you to preserve life. For
these two years the famine has been
in the land, and there are
still five years in which there will
be neither plowing nor harvesting. And God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in
the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you who sent me here, but God;
and He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler
throughout all the land of Egypt. “Hurry and go up to my father, and say to
him, ‘Thus says your son Joseph: “God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down
to me, do not tarry. You shall dwell in the land of Goshen, and
you shall be near to me, you and your children, your children’s children, your
flocks and your herds, and all that you have. There I will provide for you,
lest you and your household, and all that you have, come to poverty; for there are still five years of
famine.”’ “And behold, your eyes and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see that it is my mouth that speaks to you. So
you shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that you have
seen; and you shall hurry and bring my father down here.” Then he fell on his brother Benjamin’s neck and wept, and Benjamin
wept on his neck. Moreover he kissed all his brothers and wept over them, and
after that his brothers talked with him….”
(Genesis 43:5-15 NLT).
It took the PROCESS of
time (13 years) to come to pass. “…Now Joseph had a dream …There we were, binding sheaves in the
field. Then behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and indeed your sheaves
stood all around and bowed down to my sheaf.” And his brothers said
to him, “Shall you indeed reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over
us?” …” (Genesis 37: 5-11 NLT). “…And in the PROCESS of time IT CAME TO PASS…” (Genesis
4:3 KJV).
Joseph had to go through the routine and
mundane processes of a servant. He had to go through the routine and mundane
processes of a prisoner. He was a servant then a prisoner for a total of 13
years, before the end result was complete: RULERSHIP. “…All
things work (processed) together for GOOD to
them that LOVE
GOD, to them who are THE CALLED to his purpose…” (Romans 8:28
KJV).
“…Through this PROCESS, HE MADE the
altar holy by purifying it…” (Leviticus 8:5 NLT). Through the PROCESS
of time God MADE Joseph ruler over ALL of Egypt.
“…So he set him over
all the land of Egypt. ….Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before
Pharaoh king of Egypt…” (Genesis 41:37-46
NLT).
Your Food for
Thought: Did Joseph’s PROCESS have a PURPOSE? Does YOUR PROCESS have a PURPOSE?
Godspeed,
Dr. Pensacola
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