Welcome to Turning Point. He's one of the Old Testament's most iconic figures. Rising from slavery to a position of power, never faltering in his faith. Today, Dr. David Jeremiah begins a series on Joseph: God Meant It for Good: The Story of Joseph.
His story is far richer than just the multicolored coat he's famous for. to introduce this remarkable man. Here's David with today's inspiring message, The Life of Joseph. And thank you for joining us today. Here at Turning Point, we're going into this new series called God Meant It for Good: The Story of Joseph, and today is lesson number one, which happens to be kind of an overall look at the life of Joseph, not any one particular thing, but all things Joseph and how they affect us as we study the Bible, and especially as Joseph appears to be a prototype of Jesus in the New Testament.
We'll get to the study in just a moment, but since this is the first day of the new month, I need to tell you that our resource for the month of September. Is our annual calendar this year? Following in his footsteps, the 2026 calendar, full color. It's 10.5 by 13 inches, and it includes 14 months, a 14-month calendar. How about that?
Starting early in November, you can chronicle your events and be ready to hit the holidays running with everything in place. There's a Bible reading plan for the year, displays previous and next month's calendar, and it's got a writable surface to jot down your special events. And this is yours for a gift of any size to Turning Point during the month of September. Ladies and gentlemen, this is one of our most often responded to events. For some reason, there are just a whole lot of people who still like calendars to hang on their wall, and this is a beautiful addition.
You can have yours this month when you send a gift to Turning Point of any size and simply say, Send me the new calendar, and it will be on its way. Here is part one of the life of Joseph. I think one of the most Interesting people in all of the Bible is the man Joseph. I'm going to Take you through his life and show you what I've learned, and encourage you as I have been encouraged. One of my boyhood heroes was a young man by the name of Carson Fremont.
He was a member of my father's church in Dayton, Ohio, when my dad was a pastor there. And I remember as a nine or ten year old boy, Meeting this man. He was tall, good looking. He drove a really cool car. and he was both a good student and a star athlete.
He got a scholarship to Wheaton College and went off to be trained. to serve the Lord. As a young man of ten years of age, I looked up to Carson And I thought, man, that's the kind of guy I want to be. I want to be like that guy. He also had a heart for the Lord.
still remember the time when he came over to my house to talk with my father. about becoming a missionary. He had a heart for the Chinese. He felt God was calling him to Hong Kong and They spent a long time in prayer, and when he left, that young man knew in his heart. that God had called him to that mission station.
and that God would use him in some special way. At Christmas time, During his second year at Wheaton, Carson came home with somebody special. The girl he was going to marry. came home with him. He wanted her to meet his family and To get to know the people of his home church since they'd be supporting him on the mission field.
The girl was a knockout. I think it might be the first time I really ever came to grips with what a pretty girl looks like. She was a pretty girl. I think I even told my parents Carson's got a pretty girlfriend. She'd been homecoming queen, I found out later.
And everybody thought that Carson and this young lady made a perfect couple. It was wonderful that God would bring together two such attractive people, and we were so excited for them and what God was going to do with them as they served Him. But two years later, Carson came home at Christmas. by himself. He came over to our house and told my father through his tears that.
As they were beginning to plan their wedding, his girlfriend, Had come to him and said she would not go to Hong Kong as a missionary. That was not what she wanted to do with her life. And he said, I had to make a choice. Would I stay home? to be with the woman that I loved.
Or would I serve God and do what He called me to do? And he said it was the hardest thing I ever had to do, but I chose God. They broke their engagement. And Carson went off to Hong Kong all by himself. In order to use us, sometimes God Puts us through some stuff, doesn't he?
He makes us make some choices we would not normally make, and to see things from a perspective we might not normally anticipate.
Sometimes that means we experience awful pain. Giving up what we want to keep and going forward into areas we'd rather leave unexplored. But if we're going to be used by the Lord for his purposes, that process has to take place. And that's exactly what happened to Joseph. the man we are going to study.
Joseph was a favored young man, as you remember. He was his father's pet son. He was going to be the heir of the family. He wore the many-colored coat. He was unexpectedly one day dropped into a pit.
Before he knew what was happening, he was a family slave in a foreign country. serving under a hard man and after years of hard work Earning the trust of his master, Joseph was again let down. this time by the slanderous lies of another person. He was rewarded for his faithfulness by being sent to jail and forgotten by those he had helped. If ever a man had a reason to be bitter, It was Joseph.
He had done all the right things. and everything bad had happened to him. But the wonderful thing is that Joseph did not become bitter. Joseph had a dream. To recognize the fact that God was shaping him for ministry.
And he understood perhaps more than we can counter The tough times of his life were preparing him for something great. And before he could take his place as a leader and the savior of a nation, Joseph had to experience the ignominy of being a slave and a prisoner. God had him face difficulties so he could prepare him for brightness. That's exactly what happened to my friend Carson. He gave up something he loved.
But in the process the Lord was able to shape him into a better man. and a better missionary. When he came home from his first tour, he met the most spiritual woman you could imagine. I even remember her name was Darlene. And I thought she was a darling.
She was a beautiful woman with a heart for God that you could see. really on her face. And for his next term on the mission field, he went back with a life partner. They served God faithfully for many years. in that mission field.
God helped him be the sort of person that could be used because he put God first. All of us, no matter who we are, Go through trying times. Can I get a witness? We go through trying times and they don't happen by accident. God arranges those to help us grow.
And in this study of the life of Joseph, we'll discover what brought him through his darkest days. And how We can learn from his example. This study is for everyone who wants to know God and be used for His purposes. The life of Joseph really is a fascinating story if you're not even a Christian. If you're just a literary person who likes short stories.
It is commonly regarded as one of the greatest short stories in all of literature. All the elements of a great story are in the life of Joseph's story. There's youth and beauty and ambition, temptation, jealousy, suffering, forgiveness. And faith. Here's how one scholar described the life of Joseph.
He said, Joseph's story is a finely wrought, self-contained novella. Describing in vivid detail the development of his character. from charismatic youth to compassionate middle age. And Joseph is just one in a long line of people in the Bible. I remember one day taking my Bible and a yellow pad and tracing the Bible from Genesis to Revelation.
You can almost organize the Bible around the people that are in the Bible. For instance, at the beginning of the Bible, you end up with Adam and Eve and then you End up with Adam's son, Abel. And then you end up with Enoch and later Noah, who obeyed the Lord in spite of difficulty. And then comes Abraham, who trusted God, and after Abraham his son Isaac, who submitted to the Lord, and then Isaac's son, Jacob. who had to learn to follow God, and then you end up with Joseph.
Joseph occupies Genesis 37 to 50, one of the longest sections regarding a certain person in the Bible that you will find. Joseph illustrates the success of faith. and he was victorious and triumphant at every turn. capturing our attention to the strength of his character. I love Joseph, and Joseph is a great model for all of us as we read the story of his life and we think, oh, I'm going through some really bad things.
Read Joseph and you'll feel a lot better about your own life. I've yet to spend one day in a pit. I haven't been to prison yet. Yeah. And I have so much to be thankful for.
You know, God often uses the stories of people in the Bible to teach us. to inspire us.
sometimes to warn us. Think about the powerful lessons you learned from the life of David and Daniel. and Esther and Ruth and Jonah and Job. It's one thing to read about concepts, but it's a whole different thing to see those concepts lived out in the lives of real people. And when you see them, you think, well, God, if you did that for them, why can't you do that for me?
They're no different than I am. They're the same kind of flesh and blood people as I am. God, you're the God of all of us. And when you see God at work in the lives of others, it encourages you that He's also at work in your life. That's why Romans 15 says this.
Listen to these words. For whatever things were written before, were written for our learning. that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. God has given us this wonderful book we call the Bible. And this book is given to us to help us.
Know that God is on our side, that He has not forsaken us, that He's working in our life. And if we're going through a difficult time, Instead of asking why, we should ask what, What do you want me to learn through all of this? What can I figure out that will make me more effective? And that's the way we see Joseph.
So let me introduce you to this man. in this early message. First of all, I want you to notice that Joseph's life was very pivotal. Crucial to the whole story of the Old Testament. His life is the link between Genesis.
Exodus. From Israel being a family to Israel being a great nation in bondage. After being sold into slavery by his brothers, Joseph rose to power in Egypt. thanks to His wisdom and the favor of God. And meanwhile, his family remained in Canaan.
And a severe famine struck. It caused the people of the surrounding nations to come to Egypt because word got out that Egypt was the only place where there was any food. And of course, that was thanks to Joseph, who had stored up food for seven years, so there would be enough to feed the people of Egypt. Genesis 46 tells us That when Joseph's father, Jacob, moved his little family to Egypt, There were only seventy In that family. By the time we get to Exodus chapter 1, that little family has grown into a nation of 2 million people.
That chapter tells us that there arose a new king over Egypt who did not know Joseph.
So we know that things are about to change. The king of Egypt said to his people one day, Look, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we. Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and it happen in the event of war that they join our enemies and fight against us, and so go out of the land.
So they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh supply cities, Python and Ramses. But the more they afflicted the Israelites, the more they multiplied and grew. and they were in dread of the children of Israel. No matter what the Egyptians did, this little band of Israelites kept getting bigger and bigger, a nation within a nation that stayed.
in that nation for 430 years. It wasn't until Israel was under the leadership of Moses that they marched victoriously out of Egypt and back to the promised land. It is impossible. Men and women to understand the transition from Canaan to Egypt. And from prosperity to slavery, if you don't study the life of Joseph, He's the hinge between all of this.
He lived in both worlds, and he makes it possible for us to understand how this all happened. His life was pivotal, but his life was also providential. In the fall of 1912, Theodore Roosevelt was campaigning in the Midwest as the bull moose candidate for the U.S. presidency. when some madman took a shot at him, wounding him in the right side of his chest.
Fortunately, There was a metal eyeglass case that was in his pocket. And that eyeglass case deflected the bullet and saved his life. The funny thing is, President Roosevelt hated that glasses case. He said it was heavy and burdensome. And he had often complained about it.
But in the process of God's providence, the thing he hated. saved his life. Joseph is a similar story. Though at times Joseph may have hated his situation and wondered about God's purposes, eventually his life was an example of the rule of God's providence. God took the darkest events and used them as stepping stones to move Joseph into position.
Even when Joseph couldn't understand what God was doing, The Lord was still at work. God was arranging this situation. even when it seemed like he was far away. He often does that in our lives. We wonder, what is going on with me right now?
If we could only see it from God's perspective, we wouldn't worry. God's up to something. He doesn't have to tell us. He's not obligated to bring you in on the story. And Joseph If you really look at it carefully, went through more tough times than just about anybody else in the Bible, except perhaps for Job.
No matter what he did. Listen to me, bad stuff kept happening to him. He wasn't being rewarded for being good and righteous. It seemed like he was being punished. When we look back at his story, we can see that God had a plan.
It's like that saying, God's plan is like reading Hebrew. You have to read it backwards. You can't read it forwards. You have to look back and say, oh, so that's what was going on. You know something, men and women, if we knew everything God had planned for us, we'd be so scared we probably wouldn't get out of bed in the morning.
But when we look back on our lives, we often have those aha moments when we say, I didn't understand it then. But now I get it. I know what God was doing. For example, when Joseph's brother sold him into slavery, They couldn't have imagined what would have happened years later. Fast forward to the end of the story.
There's a severe famine. They come to Egypt seeking food, not realizing they would have to face Joseph. It's a wonderful story. We'll get to it. When they finally recognized him, they were terrified.
I mean, they had treated him terribly.
Now that he was in power, what would he do to them? Would he seek revenge for what they had done? But listen to Joseph. Genesis 45, verse 5. But now Do not be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here.
For God sent me Before you to preserve life. They were afraid because of what they had done, but Joseph knew what God had done. Behind the scenes, God had orchestrated this whole thing so he would be in the right place. when the famine came and be able to preserve. the whole nation of Israel.
A few verses later, he added, God sent me before you told me. to preserve a posterity for you in the earth. and to save your lives by a great deliverance. You see, Joseph was able to see past the surface events. to what God was doing.
His brother's envy was used by God to move Joseph to Egypt and there. And the process, Joseph was the salvation of the whole family. One of the most well-known verses in the Bible found in chapter 50. captures this perfectly. Joseph told his brothers, You meant evil against me.
But God meant it for good. In order to bring about as it is this day and save many people alive. Joseph had it all in perspective. He saw that God was willing even the evil things of this world to illustrate His work. in the lives of men.
In 1895, Andrew Murray was dealing with a painful ongoing back injury. One day, a troubled woman sought advice from him and Mary handed over a note hoping his words might encourage the woman Here is what the notes said. In difficult times, remember to say, God brought me here. It's his will. and I will find peace in this place.
Number two, God will keep me here with His love and help. like his child during this trial. Number three, this trial will become a blessing. teaching me lessons and granting me the grace he intends to give. And number four.
In His own time, God will lead me out of this situation. He knows how. And he knows when.
So always say, said Murray, I am here by God's appointment. I am here in His care, I am under His guidance, and I am here for His timing. God knows what He's doing. He makes no mistakes. Though we may not always understand it, we can constantly be reminded of the sovereignty of our God.
Joseph's life was pivotal and it was providential. God was at work in the life of Joseph. But Joseph's life was also prosperous. And I like this part of the story because so often over the years as a pastor, I have heard successful men and women who are Christians. apologize for their success.
as if perhaps Being a Christian, you shouldn't be successful.
Well, let me tell you about Joseph. Joseph is one of the few truly successful men mentioned in the Bible. God records His success for us so that we might study the principles of His prosperity. To really understand his prosperity, you have to examine the fact That Joseph was a dreamer. Got any dreamers here today?
People who I don't mean sleeping in church, I mean I mean having a vision for the future. The Bible records six different dreams in the story of Joseph. The first two were his own dreams about the future. which he shared with his father and his brothers, And while in prison, Joseph interpreted two more dreams, one for the butler, the other for the baker. And the last two dreams were Pharaoh's dreams, which Joseph interpreted, leading to his rise in prominence.
Now in the first dream Joseph was out in the field. harvesting and his sheaf was upright. but the sheaves of his brothers bowed down to him. In Joseph's second dream, he saw the sun, the moon, and eleven stars bowing down to him.
Now, Joseph, if I could give you a little advice, that might not be the kind of thing you want to share with your brothers and your father. But he shared it with them and they hated him for it. Joseph knew that this was a promise from God. We know from reading the whole story that it actually happened. But his brothers didn't know that, and they hated him because of his dream.
about his future success. God had a plan for Joseph's life. A plan that would ultimately put him in prominence. It was God's way of saying, you are going to be prosperous. You will one day be a successful man.
Under the hand of God. And that's why the story of Joseph is filled with phrases. describing him as a success. You know, there's not anybody in the Bible who is an example of success like Joseph. He's one of the few people about whom that term is applied.
And if you want to learn about success, you've got to learn about Joseph. We'll have part two of this first lesson tomorrow here on Turning Point. In the meantime, don't forget. Turning Point is going to New England and Canada here in just a few days, October the 4th through the 11th. You are right at the very edge of the possibility of going with us.
We've already got a great group of people coming. We're going to have a wonderful time aboard the beautiful Holland America Zeiterdam. And we'll be blessed by the music of Michael Sanchez and Uriel Vega. and we'll see so many wonderful things. I hope.
That you can come with us, but you need to make your decision right away. or it will be too late. Thank you for considering it and be sure to join us tomorrow right here on this good station. For more information on Dr. Jeremiah's series, God Meant It for Good.
Please visit our website where we also offer two free ways to help you stay connected. our monthly Turning Points magazine and our daily email devotional. Sign up today at davidjeremiah.org slash radio. That's davidjeremiah.org slash radio or call us at 800-947-1993. Ask for your copy of our beautiful new 14-month calendar, following in his footsteps and deepen your faith daily throughout 2026.
It's yours for a gift of any amount. You can also purchase the Jeremiah Study Bible in the English Standard, New International and New King James Versions. Available in your choice of durable and attractive cover options. Get all the details when you visit our website davidjeremiah.org slash radio. This is David Michael Jeremiah.
Join us tomorrow as we continue the series God Meant It for Good: The Story of Joseph on Turning Point.
