Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20000507.htm

GENESIS: THE SOURCES OF GOOD AND CALAMITY IN OUR ORIGINS
Part III: God's Ongoing Program Of Countering Man's Apostasy At Babel
GG. Round Thirty-Two - Testing Associates For True Repentance Prior To Fellowship With Them
(Genesis 42:1-45:3)
  1. Introduction
    1. The popular Christian belief on forgiveness calls the victim always to forgive his abuser. This view grows from much use of the Lord's Prayer in rituals: the prayer calls God to forgive us as we forgive others, so many think we must forgive oppressors indiscriminately to be forgiven at all by God.
    2. However, the godly John the Baptizer refused to baptize the Pharisees who came to him for the baptism unto repentance, Matt. 3:5-6, 7. He rather required fruits, or changed lives, Matthew 3:8.
    3. Joseph's interaction with his brothers who had badly wronged him in hating him and selling him into Egypt reveals our need to put wrongdoers to the test before opening up fellowship with them as follows:
  2. Testing Associates For True Repentance Prior To Fellowship With Them, Genesis 42:1-45:3.
    1. When the famine led Joseph's brother's into Egypt for grain, and to bow before him in fulfillment of God's initial prophetic dream to him, Joseph recognized God was at work in his family, Genesis 42:1-9a.
      1. Jacob urged his sons to go to Egypt to buy grain to survive, Genesis 42:1-2.
      2. Fearing something bad might happen to Benjamin, Joseph's full brother as it had to Joseph, Jacob kept Benjamin with him and sent the other tens sons with him into Egypt, Genesis 42:3-5.
      3. The brothers ended up bowing before Joseph who had dominion over the lands by way of the famine, a matter that Joseph realized fulfilled God's first prophetic dream, Genesis 42:6-7a, 9a.
    2. Nevertheless, Joseph did not immediately let bygones be bygones with his brothers, but TESTED them to elicit a truly repentant spirit before revealing his identity to them, Genesis 42:7b-8, 9b; 42:10-45:3:
      1. Test One - Joseph tried to find out whether the brothers had killed his full brother, Benjamin out of a spill-over hatred for him by testing them with frightening questions, Genesis 42:7b-8, 9b; 42:10-13:
        1. Taking advantage of his Egyptian "disguise" (clean-shaven appearance, linen clothing, etc., cf. Gen. 41:14) and his physical maturity since they had last seen him 13 years before (cf. Gen. 41:46; 37:2), Joseph did not reveal his identity to his brothers, Genesis 42:7a, 8.
        2. Rather, he spoke roughly to them, charging them with being spies so that their fear would lead them to talk a lot and expose what was really in their hearts, Genesis 42:9b.
        3. In so doing, they revealed that the youngest son of Jacob, Joseph's full brother, Benjamin, was still alive safely remaining behind with their father, Genesis 42:10-13.
      2. Test Two - Joseph next repeatedly tried to see if his brothers' attitude had changed so that they were truly grieved at their having sold him into Egypt before revealing himself to them, Genesis 42:14-45:3:
        1. First, by putting them all in prison for a few days, and then by keeping Simeon in prison as they had sold Joseph into slavery long ago, Joseph found his fearful brothers admitting that God was thus recompensing them for their mistreatment of him so long ago, Genesis 42:14-24.
        2. Second, by putting their money in their sacks after giving them grain, Joseph kept the fear of the men about him strong so as to keep them opening up about their attitudes toward what they had done unto him so long ago, Genesis 42:25-38.
        3. Third, Joseph set his brothers up when Benjamine came with them to threaten to hold Benjamin in prison as they had held him, Genesis 43:1-44:12. This last test caused them to open up, freely speaking of their concern about Benjamin's safety, of its effect on Jacob, their father, and of their willingness to sacrifice themselves for Benjamin's and Jacob's happiness, Genesis 44:13-34.
        4. This self-sacrificing attitude revealed repentance, so Joseph revealed his identity, Genesis 45:1-3.
Lesson: Joseph was WILLING to forgive his brothers when he first MET them as seen in his REPEATED struggles to compose himself from weeping before them (Gen. 42:24; 43:29-30; 45:1-2). Yet, he waited until he SAW EVIDENCE of a repentant attitude before communing in depth with them.

Application: Though we must always be WILLING to forgive, forgiveness should granted only to those who give TRUE EVIDENCE they are REPENTANT. That way our fellowship with them is VALID!