When you're treated wrongly, do you seek revenge? Or do you seek God's strength to forgive? Today, on Turning Point, Dr. David Jeremiah takes a closer look at Joseph. who had every right to be angry and take revenge.
but instead obeyed God and showed forgiveness. Listen now as David introduces the message that lends its title to the series. that will soon be drawing to a close. God meant it for good. You know, this is a wonderful, a wonderful lesson that we're about to study today.
How many times have you noticed that sometimes the things people try to do to hurt you end up being ways that God helps you. And we often resist the negative things that happen in our lives only to discover later that because of the negative, there's a positive that's so much better than anything we could have ever imagined. Such was the case With this man of God. Joseph. He's going to Put forward in language the whole story of Joseph in just a few words, and we'll get to that today.
In this message, we've called God Meant It for Good. Hey, I'm so happy that you have been with us throughout this series on Joseph's life. We only get to do things like this once or twice in a teaching ministry and The probability of us coming back to Joseph again sometime soon is very remote.
So, this has been a lifetime thing for many of us. And I'm so glad you've been along because there's nothing like Joseph. There's no series that I could ever give you in the Bible quite like Joseph. There are many great series, but none quite like this one. And it is so filled with lessons for life.
And I I've been blessed and benefited by studying it again with you this time. We'll come up with part two of God Meant It for Good tomorrow, but right now we're going to begin this discussion that brings us to the point of emphasis of this whole series. This is God Meant It for Good, part one. One of my favorite books of all time is a book I recommend to many people, written by a guy who is now in heaven. His name is Lewis Smeads.
And he wrote a book called Forgive and Forget, one of the best books on forgiveness you will ever read. Very, very helpful. He's a former seminary professor, a prolific author, and in this book he talks about. being honest when you forgive. He talks about revenge and why you should not get caught up in that.
And in one chapter he tells of his struggle with the temptation to take revenge and of a dramatic episode in the life of his mother. When she took revenge. On someone. Here's the story. He said, The hardest person I ever had to forgive was Mrs.
Brautmeyer. Who lived across the street in a yellow house? She was unbelievably cruel to my mother. And her memory haunted me for years. My parents had come to America from Friesland, Holland, and my father died when I was just a baby.
Leaving my mother to raise five children alone, she worked so hard cleaning houses, washing clothes to make ends meet. Our house built by my father stood Across the street from the Broutmeyers, who were better off than us, Mainly because Mr. Brautmeyer had a steady job and they spoke real American English. Mrs. Brautmeyer, with her sense of superiority, became a monster in my eyes.
She teamed up with her neighbor and together they created a neighborhood CIA to monitor the activities at our house. One evening, they drew straws to decide who would report my grubby siblings' offenses to my mother. Once they suggested my mother should give away my brother and me because we were too much for her to handle. Mrs. Brautmeyer even banned me from playing with her children because she said I had a runny nose.
The shame they imposed on my mother wore her down. And one Saturday night, Overwhelmed by the relentless judgment, she marched across the street to confront misses Brautmeyer. And she stormed into the house and began pounding the dining-room table with her fist. defending her children, shocked. Mrs.
Brautmeyer retreated and tried to call the police. My mother returned home. Broken. When she walked in the door, she vomited and she wept. We were sure Mrs.
Brautmeyer had done this all in. Our cup of shame was full. We would never have a friend in the neighborhood again. When I read that story, I recalled a couple experiences in my own life where I could identify a little bit with Mrs. Smeads.
And I imagine you did the same as you listened. There's probably somebody in your life that treated you like that. You'd like to give them a piece of your mind.
Sometimes it seems impossible to keep from letting our feelings explode. We've taken it as long as we can take it and we have had it. And somebody's going to hear about it. Although I can appreciate the difficult circumstances his mother was in and can fully identify with the temptation. There is a deception involved in letting our feelings get the upper hand.
We think We are going to feel better after we retaliate against another person, and we might for a short period of time. But we ultimately never feel better when we do wrong. and vengeance and retaliation are wrong. If there ever was someone who should have known that and felt that, it was Joseph, the one we've been studying. The way he was mistreated by his brothers would From a purely human perspective, qualify him to seek revenge.
And sometimes, when we read this story, we wonder why it just doesn't break out. He doesn't let his brothers have it for what they did. But he didn't do it. And as we close the book on his life and today's message, we find that his father Jacob has died. His eleven brothers, whom Joseph moved to Egypt and provided for generously, so they could survive the famine.
Now wonder what Joseph is going to do. As long as their father Jacob was alive, they were confident that Joseph wouldn't do anything to hurt them because, in doing so, he would hurt their father. But now that he was gone, they suddenly realize they're vulnerable again. After Jacob's funeral in Canaan, the brothers had returned to Egypt in fear of what Joseph might do. And a quaint little thing happened that I always have wondered about when I've read this story.
They sent a messenger to Joseph. To tell him that before Jacob died, He had expressed a desire that Joseph forgive his brothers for what they had done to him. Here is the scripture. You can't believe it.
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. And the question, of course, is Did Jacob really say that? Or did his brothers concoct that as a way of protecting themselves from the wrath of Joseph?
There's no record in Genesis of Jacob making that statement except the report we've just read. But he could have. And he might not have. After the message was delivered, the brothers followed up by appearing to Joseph themselves. In Genesis 50, verse 18, we read: Then his brothers also went and fell down before Joseph's face, and they said, Behold, we are your servants.
And when Joseph saw them prostrated on the floor before him, he wept. There might be more than one reason Joseph wept. But I believe the main reason is that he suddenly realized that his brothers though he had forgiven them, had not accepted his forgiveness. and had already extended their feeling of guilt into the future. They had failed to enjoy the release of forgiveness, still afraid that Joseph was bitter toward them.
When Joseph responded to his brothers, He presented for us a theology of forgiveness. that I think is second to none in the Bible. And I'm so excited to be able to share that with you in these moments before the end of this message. For when we understand what Joseph understood, We will be able to forgive the Brautmeyers who plague us. as we journey through this life.
First thing I want you to remember is that Forgiveness involves a realistic appraisal of sin. Imagine standing face to face with people who once plotted your murder.
Sold you into slavery. This was Joseph's reality when he confronted his brothers. His words in verses 19 and 20 of the 50th chapter. indicate that he did not take his brother's sin against him lightly. Listen again to what he said.
Joseph said to them, Do not be afraid. For am I in the place of God? But as for you, you You meant evil against me. But God meant it. For good.
How many times have we heard or said When someone apologizes for what they've done and seeks forgiveness, oh, don't worry about it, it's no big deal. Isn't that what we do? And we toss these words around casually. But true forgiveness isn't about minimizing the harm that's been done. It's about facing it head on.
Joseph didn't sugarcoat what his brothers did. He said plainly, you did evil against me. No diplomatic language, no softening the blow. He called evil what it was. It was evil.
What they did to him was evil. And this teaches us our first lesson about forgiveness. Forgiveness always begins with truth. Think about it, when someone wrongs us, why do we rush to say it's okay? Because facing the reality of hurt is very uncomfortable for us.
It's easier to sweep it under the rug, but here's the problem: when we minimize sin, we cheapen forgiveness. It's like trying to heal a wound without cleaning it. If we leave it unaddressed, it just gets worse. But when we confront the hurt, we make space for true forgiveness to work, and this is not about. Holding on to bitterness or grudges, but about letting the truth set us free.
Remember, Forgiveness that costs nothing doesn't bring freedom. Our salvation, after all, was not just a free pass. It required the ultimate sacrifice, Jesus' death on the cross, for us to be reconciled with God. In the same way, When we forgive others, it often requires a sacrifice of our own. We must acknowledge the pain, the wrong done to us.
and yet still make the choice to forgive. This kind of forgiveness doesn't ignore the hurt. but it chooses to release the offender. Just as God chose to forgive us at great cost to Himself. Joseph's story pushes us to go beyond shallow forgiveness.
and embrace something deeper. He shows us that acknowledging the reality of sin makes room for of real reconciliation. Maybe you've done something. Really? Hurtful.
someone you love. If you seek forgiveness from that person, Acknowledge what you've done as being hurtful and wrong. Don't sugarcoat it. Don't sweep it under the rug. Don't make it...
minimal, make it what it is. You know, confession. According to the scripture, it is saying the same thing about sin that God says about it. When you confess something, you ask for forgiveness. You have to acknowledge the hurt.
I know I've hurt you deeply. And I was so wrong to do that. Would you please forgive me? That's more like the statement than I know this is no big deal, but I need to be forgiven. How about that?
That's the way sometimes we go after it, and it never works, and it leaves the problem open. and ready to be readdressed at some other time in the future.
So forgiveness involves a realistic appraisal of sin. But forgiveness also involves a realistic appreciation of God's sovereignty. Watch what happens in verse 20. It is often called the Romans 8:28 of the Old Testament, and for good reason. Genesis 50, 20 says, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.
Now, how do we reconcile those two things? That they meant it for evil, but God meant it for good. How does that work? On one hand, Joseph's brothers intended harm, selling him into slavery. causing years of suffering and separation.
On the other hand, God used those same events to fulfill his plan of preservation and blessing for the family of Joseph and for the entire nation of Israel. In this context, it's important to remember something. I want to just insert here before you get the wrong impression. James 1.13 says, Let no one say when he is tempted, I am being tempted by God. For God cannot be tempted by evil.
And God does not himself tempt anyone. God is never involved in the temptation of evil. Although he may be involved in what happens because evil takes place. God is not the author of evil, nor does He have any part in the commission of sin. But neither is he totally outside of or removed from sin.
Sin is not beyond God's control to affect. God can take the evil that is done in this world and conform it to His purposes. He can use it to accomplish something different than what it was intended for when it was committed. And the realistic appreciation for the sovereignty of God is so important. When life seems totally out of control, When circumstances seem to be manipulated by ill-intentioned people, when only bad things seem to be happening to good people, God is still in control.
God is able to take everything and use it for good according to His purposes. One of my favorite Christian writers is a man by the name of Randy Alcorn. He has written some signature books. of the faith. In one of his books he says that when he was young, His mom would lay out the ingredients for a chocolate cake before baking.
And he said one day he decided to taste each ingredient. Baking powder. Baking soda. raw eggs, flour, and even semi-sweet chocolate. They were awful.
But when his mother mixed them together in the right proportions and baked them, The result was a delicious cake. The individual ingredients were terrible, but the final product was amazing. And I think you see the analogy. The individual ingredients of trials and apparent tragedies that come into our lives are neither delicious nor desirable. In fact, At first taste, they often are very bland and even very bitter.
But God is capable of carefully measuring out and mixing up those ingredients in order to produce a final product that is for our very best. We have noted this before in our study. Joseph is always about this particular fact. Remember, he's a vertical man. God is everywhere in Joseph's life.
He was as near to Joseph as the air that Joseph breathed. And Joseph had this amazing ability to see God in every situation. He continually made reference to God's presence. When he introduced his sons to Jacob, he said, They are my sons whom God has given me in this place. And when Joseph was about to die, he told his brothers, I am dying, but God will surely visit you and take you to the new land.
There was nothing that happened in Joseph's life that he didn't think was part of God's plan. And that included the evil that his brothers had committed against him.
Now notice. That in his appreciation of God's sovereignty, Joseph refuses to do one thing. and he determines to do something else. First of all, He refuses. to replace God in the lives of his brothers.
Joseph could have put himself in God's place and executed judgment upon his brothers. But he said, Verse 19. Am I in the place of God? Joseph knew that vengeance belonged to God alone, not to him. Romans 12:19 says, Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath, for it is written, vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.
When we decide to take revenge on somebody, we're usurping God's role in their life. We're saying we can be God to that person because vengeance belongs to God and not to us.
Some of you may know exactly what I mean. I mean, there's that person in your life. that one who's driven you crazy at work every day. Maybe it's something like this. For years your boss has been a thorn in your life, giving you endless unreasonable demands.
and driving you crazy. And then one day the company undergoes this leadership change. A new manager comes in and to your surprise, you're promoted above him.
Now that person who used to control you is working for you. In that moment you might be tempted to get even. to take your revenge. But that's when you discover something important about yourself. You'll find out if you're made of the same stuff as Joseph.
He had every right to do that from the human perspective, but he never did. A refusal to replace God in their lives and then a recognition of God's role in their lives. Joseph had his brothers right where he could have wanted them. He had the power to seek revenge, to take control. To have them at his mercy.
He was the second most powerful man in all of Egypt, yet in all of this he refused to replace God in their lives. And in doing so, he recognized the role God had played. He said, God meant it for good. Notice he didn't stop there. He continued saying, God did this.
In order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. Earlier back in Genesis 45, Verses five through eight, Joseph said, but now Do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here. For 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. When that person who hurt you comes to mind. It's natural to focus on the pain they caused, but What if like Joseph you could take a step back. and look for God's fingerprints in the story.
Maybe that betrayal led you to develop inner strength you didn't know you had. Perhaps that disappointment opened an unexpected door. A new relationship, compassion for others who suffer. Trusting God's bigger plan doesn't mean the hurt isn't real. But it gives us a way to make peace with our past and walk forward with hope.
So forgiveness involves a realistic appraisal of sin. It involves a realistic appreciation of God's sovereignty. And thirdly, it involves a realistic application of sensitivity. I want you to notice how Joseph Forgave. Joseph didn't forgive as a holier than thou, superior to his brothers.
He forgave as one who was compassionate for their situation. He remained kind and tenderhearted throughout his dealings with his brothers, even up to this climactic point in their relationship. Genesis 50, 21 says, Now therefore do not be afraid. for I will provide for you and your little ones. There's a spirit that's evident in the forgiver.
That's seen in the tenderness of Joseph's heart. It's easy to forgive with our words. But in our spirit, we can still be condemning. Do you know what I mean by that? Here's a little way to express it.
Yeah, I'll forgive you, but I'll never forget what you did. That isn't true forgiveness. Hey, by the way, aren't you glad that isn't the way God forgives us? No, the Bible tells us that when God forgives, he forgets. He puts our sin as far as the east is from the west.
He puts it behind his back. He tells us we are totally forgiven. We are justified just as if we had not sinned. in the face of God. And that's the way Joseph forgave his brothers.
It's full of love, it's full of sensitivity and tenderness. It's expressed through words of kindness and comfort. I can't help but wonder if his forgiving spirit came from a heart that had been broken over time. He'd had a lot of bad things happen to him. Joseph had.
A broken, melted, compassionate heart. And it's interesting to me as I say all of this that in the New Testament, Paul, on two occasions, captures this for us in two verses of Scripture. I want you to listen to this very carefully. Ephesians 4.32, be kind to one another. tenderhearted Forgiving one another even as God in Christ forgave you.
And Colossians 3, 12 and 13. Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, Put on tender mercies. Kindness, humility, meekness, long-suffering, bearing with one another, and forgiving one another. If anyone has a complaint against another, even as Christ forgave you, so you must also do. Forgiveness home.
My goodness, what an important lesson we've learned here. How important it is for us to forgive. As Christ has forgiven us, I tell people that out of the reservoir of God's forgiveness for us, We are able to forgive others. If God could forgive us for all that we have done, We can forgive others, and that's what the Bible teaches. We're to do it as Christ.
forgave us were to forgive others. And we learned that from Joseph. way back in the first book of the Bible. We'll have more of God Meant It for Good tomorrow as we come to the end of the month of September. Be sure and be with us.
And don't forget, we're running out of time for you to get your copy of this year's calendar. It's put together to help you navigate the next year with purpose and joy and we want you to have your copy and it's yours for the asking when you send a gift of any size during this month. Thanks for listening and thanks for your gift. 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 conclude the series, God Meant It for Good, The Story of Joseph on Turning Point.
