The Prosecutor Within

You know, it's interesting that when their backs are against the wall and they admit guilt, Judah doesn't say, God has done this because I committed incest as he had done. Simeon doesn't say, God has done this because I massacred those helpless men years ago.

Reuben doesn't say, God has done this to me because I have slept with my father's wife. No, the thing in their minds that brought tremendous guilt, they all agreed, God is doing this because of what we did to our brother, Joseph. When it's quiet and you have time to think, that's when your conscience is most active. Have you ever tried to ignore your conscience? When your conscience bothers you, it may not feel like it at the time, but it's God's grace in your life because he's prodding you to deal with your sin. To what extent do unbelievers have a conscience? Do people without Christ feel badly when they break God's law? In this message, Stephen reveals to us why our prosecutor within is so important. Here's Stephen Davey with today's Bible message. One lady whose husband had died realized he had cheated on his income tax the year before and she sent a check for $500 and the government back in 1811 created what they called the Federal Conscience Fund.

And it now totals more than $3 million of people's money who have made restitution. What is it that sometimes points a finger at us? What is it that sometimes robs us of sleep at night? George Washington called it the sparkle of celestial fire. Lord Byron referred to this inner struggle as the oracle of God. We're referring to it as the prosecutor within. I want to give you three things before we dive into chapter 42, three things about the gift that God has given us that is our conscience, a threefold function.

There are probably more, but let me give you three. First of all, the conscience, this gift from God, this inner oracle distinguishes between right and wrong. Now it's not always accurate. In fact, if you train it, it's like a circus dog. If you can train it to roll over, you can train it to come when you whistle, you can train it to play dead.

It's not completely accurate because it is dependent upon how we condition it. But God has given us the gift of conscience to distinguish between right and wrong so that a little four-year-old boy born in America or in Africa or in Australia knows that when he lies to mommy and daddy, he's done something wrong. We don't have to teach them how to lie. We have to discipline the liar out of them.

Why is that? Because God has given them and us this distinguishing ability between what is right and what is wrong. That is why it is so important, ladies and gentlemen, that we condition our conscience by this book. We allow it to tell us what is right and what is wrong. And so our consciences are not tuned to our culture, whose values changed.

It is tuned to the Scriptures, which never change. Secondly, let me give you another factor or facet, function of the conscience. It encourages doing what is right. And it discourages doing what is wrong. That's why you can be in class, young people, and it's mid-term examination, and you're in Spanish class. If you're like me, you barely made it, and you are in there taking that mid-term examination and for some reason you happen to sit next to the guy who's the smartest guy in the class.

He's as good as bilingual. You know that every answer he gets is going to be right, and you're facing all of a sudden this battle called conscience. The third function is that the conscience produces guilt when wrong is done. That is why it is so important that we allow our consciences to be transformed by the renewing of our minds through the Word. Now the third factor of conscience is going to be seen in Genesis chapter 42.

So would you take your Bibles, if you haven't already, and turn to Genesis chapter 42, where we will see the awakening conscience of Joseph's ten brothers. You see, for 25 years, his brothers had battled their consciences. His brothers have battled and fought to silence and to suppress the guilt that they knew they had because of what they had done to Joseph. For 25 years, they had ignored what their consciences were shouting. They had not said anything to their father Jacob.

They had perhaps never breathed it again to each other. They were living under tremendous, severe guilt. Now prophecy tells us that these brothers will come to Egypt and they will establish a great nation so that in the land or the valley of Goshen, this little bitty nomadic tribe will turn into a fantastically huge nation, the nation of Israel. Now that cannot be done in Canaan.

They need Goshen to support that kind of existence and God has planned that they do that in Egypt. But for the ten brothers and father Jacob, the eleven in all, including Benjamin, for them to come to Egypt, there must be a reconciliation with Joseph. For a reconciliation to take place, these brothers must admit guilt. And for them to admit guilt, their sleeping consciences must be awakened. Some people have suggested that Joseph was incredibly hard on his brothers. But I think I'll be able to show you how he is doing nothing more than wisely awakening their suppressed, guilty consciences. And there are some factors that will do this.

The first, or we could call them principles, is the principle of association. Let me explain what I mean by reading with you the first five verses. Now Jacob, chapter 42, saw that there was grain in Egypt. And Jacob said to his sons, why are you staring at one another? And he said, behold, I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us from that place so that we may live and not die.

This is very interesting because it proves that there has been guilt by association. They're starving. There's a famine in the land. And where is their bread? Everyone knows, in Egypt.

There's an old proverb that says, never speak of rope in a hangman's house. You never want to speak about Egypt to the 10 brothers. In fact, Egypt was something they never wanted to be confronted with. I imagine over the 25-year period, when anyone was coming through needing lodging from Egypt, these brothers probably just scuttled them right on past.

They don't want anything to slip. Perhaps by some coincidence, they knew Joseph. And so Father Jacob says, we're starving. And these brothers cast furtive looks at each other.

Suspicious looks as Reuben looks at Simeon. And I am sure that terror gripped their soul. Go to Egypt. It's the last place on earth I want to go. And all of the guilt begins to rise to the surface as they hear the dreaded name of the country where they sold their brother. Jacob says, quit staring at each other.

What are you just looking at one another for? Go to Egypt. And so verse 3, these 10 brothers of Joseph went down to buy grain from Egypt. And I can't help but allow my imagination to join that caravan as they head to Egypt. I imagine as they get closer, they will see slave gangs working in the fields and they will wonder, is Joseph there? They get closer to Egypt and they perhaps see some slaves working some menial tasks and they take a closer look, perhaps afraid to discover that it's Joseph.

They're petrified, as you'll see later in the chapter. But Jacob, verse 4, interestingly, did not send Joseph's brother Benjamin with his brothers. You notice that Benjamin, you remember, is the real blood brother of Joseph. The other brothers are half brothers. Benjamin is a true son and he evidently received all of the love of Jacob that had once been given to Joseph.

So he was obviously pampered. He was like Joseph, the partial son. Perhaps by now, Jacob has begun to mistrust his sons. Perhaps by now, he senses that there was mischief done and he won't send Benjamin with them.

He says in the last part of verse 4, I am afraid that harm may befall him, so the sons of Israel came to buy grain among those who were coming for the famine was in the land of Canaan also. You know, it's interesting, ladies and gentlemen, how God will use guilt by association in your life and in mine. There may be some holiday that brings to your mind terrible feelings of guilt because you have unconfessed sin. I'm not talking about sin that you have confessed to Jesus Christ.

It should no longer produce guilt. We are to forgive and we are to allow Christ to forgive us and then forget it. But those things that we have held back, those things that we harbor in our souls in rebellion, maybe some event, some vacation spot, some person's name, we hear it and our blood runs thick.

We're guilty. You see, ladies and gentlemen, when you and I go to the word and we read of Peter who denies Jesus Christ, what is God doing? God is perhaps confronting us with guilt by association. That is, he's bringing to our minds there yesterday in the hallway of that business, some gal asked you something about religion and you refused to say anything.

You denied him and you felt guilty. Perhaps there by the locker in school, somebody made some caustic remark about the Lord and you clammed up and so you read then of Peter and God is able to convict you by association. The second principle that Joseph I think uses wisely or he will begin to use is in the next few verses and we'll call this the principle of similar circumstances. I agree with great expositor F.B. Meyer as he talks of how Joseph literally lays down step by step everything that they had done to him and he will in a sense parrot words that they once hurled at him. He will put them in the same situation that they put him in. Why? Because he wants to sense and to see whether or not they have dealt with this guilt. Fascinating.

Let's look at it together. Now Joseph was the ruler, verse six, over the land. He was the one who sold to all the people of the land and Joseph's brothers came and bowed down to him. In chapter thirty seven verse seven his dream said they would bow down. This is the same Hebrew word.

They bowed down to him with their faces to the ground. When Joseph saw his brothers he recognized them but he disguised himself to them. Now you've got to remember that Joseph is now the prime minister. He's wearing the Egyptian headband. He is clean shaven now according to Egyptian custom where the Hebrews had full beards. He looked anything other than a Hebrew and so he continued this acting by speaking to them harshly.

Similar circumstance. You'll notice in the earlier chapter if you've been studying with us that they could not speak peace to him. The Hebrew word was shalom. They couldn't say shalom to Joseph. They hated him so much.

Every time he was around they spoke harshly to him and he now is the one speaking harshly to them. He said, where have you come from? They said from the land of Canaan to buy food. Now perhaps Joseph is in charge of all of the large purchases of food and this is why his brothers are before him. But Joseph had recognized his brothers although they did not recognize him and Joseph remembered the dreams which he had had about them and said to them, you are spies. You have come to look at the undefended or the naked parts of our land.

He will give them what they gave him. You've come to spy on us. Our father sent you along so you could spy. As you remember he brought back a poor report or a bad report of their character. They accused him of being a spy and I imagine there in the valley he would say, no guys, I'm not a spy. I'm your brother.

I love you. No, you're a spy sent by our father. And now he interestingly accuses them of this. No my Lord, verse 10, your servants have come to buy food. We are all sons of one man.

We are honest men. Your servants are not spies. But he said to them, no, you've come to look at the undefended parts of our land. They said, your servants are 12 brothers and all the sons of one man in the land of Canaan and behold, the youngest is with our father today and one is no more. Joseph said to them, it is as I said to you, you are spies.

In other words, not only does he falsely accuse them, but he refuses to listen to their plea, exactly what they had done to him. By this you will be tested, verse 15, by the life of Pharaoh, you shall not go from this place unless your youngest brother comes here. Send one of you that he may get your brother while you remain confined that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you, but if not by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are spies. He is giving them several tests.

This is one of them. It's a test of honor. He is going to discover whether or not they really care about their brother as they will soon put Simeon in prison. This is the principle of similar circumstances and God often works in our hearts the same way. George W. Truitt used to tell the story, he was an old preacher of yesteryear, a man accused of killing his employer and then to hide the facts, he burned his employer's home to the ground. This man was on trial and the prosecutor and his defense attorney were doing their best and the trial went on for several days. The judge presiding there in that courtroom scene until finally the last remarks were made and then it was the judge's turn to address the jury and the judge began to speak to the jury of this heinous crime that he had been found guilty of and then to the shock of all in that packed courtroom, that judge buried his head in his hands and he began to weep and he said, as he confessed to that whole entire courtroom, he said, I have been guilty 30 years ago of killing my employer and to hide the evidence, I burned his home to the ground. I, for the last few weeks, have been judging my own crime. Sometimes God can work in our lives to bring about an awakened conscience by similar circumstances.

There's a third, it is called the principle of isolation. Note verse 17, so he put them all together in the prison for three days. Bang, bang, bang. Similar circumstances, he speaks to them just as they spoke to him. He gives them the same treatment and then he throws them in prison just as he was thrown in there but I think he has something more in mind. By the wisdom that God had given him, he now puts them into a place where all they have to do for three days is think. Just mull over in their minds as their guilty consciences have been coming awake by returning to Egypt, the land of their brother that they had tried desperately to forget. Now they're in a prison and I imagine that they are casting furtive glances about the wall of the prison wondering as prisoners have etched their names into the wall and scribbled messages, I wonder if Joseph's name is here.

I wonder if this is where he was incarcerated. They are tormented I think for three days. They have time to think.

You know something ladies and gentlemen? One of the reasons why God cannot get to us in terms of awakening our slumbering consciences of guilt is we never allow in time. We never get alone. We get into a room and we got to flip the tube on or turn the radio on or get some noise in here because we can't stand to be by ourselves. Shakespeare wrote, to be alone with my conscience is hell enough for me. When's the last time you've been alone before God?

Are you afraid to be? Knowing that as soon as it is quiet, the Spirit of God will begin rumbling in your soul and bringing to mind things that you have never dealt with. Things are living with guilt of unconfessed sin.

Well, as he deals with them, I want to move you to the application and that is the response of the guilty conscience and this is just tremendous. Let's take time to pull this apart. Just the law of proportion would tell us that there's a lot in these few chapters. This is probably the story with the most specifics given to us in all the Bible. There's a reason for that. It isn't just to be read and forgotten.

It isn't just to be interesting. It is to be applied. And I think that there are several as we see these slumbering consciences come awake and bring with it, of course, pain. The first response of a guilty conscience, and there are three, is an admission of guilt. Let's look at verse 18. Now Joseph said to them on the third day, do this and live for I fear God. If you are honest men, let one of your brothers be confined in your prison.

In other words, here's the test. I'm not going to keep 10 of you and send one of you back, but we'll keep one confined in prison, but the rest of you go, carry grain for the famine of your households and bring your youngest brother to me so your words may be verified. All Joseph's doing is working toward a family reunion and you will not die.

And they agreed to do so. But then they said to one another, now note the scene. You have the 10 brothers lined up before him and in the middle is an interpreter. You see, Joseph has been speaking in Egyptian.

That's been part of the acting. He knows Hebrew fluently. But if he spoke Hebrew, they would perhaps wonder. So he has been conversing to them through the interpreter in Egyptian. They are beginning to speak now in Hebrew, not knowing he understands. Notice what they say, truly, we are guilty concerning our brother because we saw the distress of his soul.

Boy, that prison has certainly done the job and all these other factors. When he pleaded with us, yet we would not listen. Therefore this distress has come upon us.

Circle the word we in your text. It is very emphatic in the original. This word, it's as if they smite their breasts and they say, we, only we are guilty. We have done this terrible crime. You know, it's interesting that when their backs are against the wall and they admit guilt, Judah doesn't say God has done this because I committed incest as he had done. Simeon doesn't say God has done this because I massacred those helpless men years ago. Reuben doesn't say God has done this to me because I have slept with my father's wife. No, the thing in their minds that brought tremendous guilt, they all agreed God is doing this because of what we did to our brother, Joseph.

Can you imagine as Joseph is being chained in that chain gang along with the other slaves headed for Egypt, his hands are cuffed and he turns back to his brothers and he says, Reuben, Simeon, don't do this, don't let them take me. And he cries until his cry is no longer heard. It says we heard his distress when he pleaded with us, yet we would not listen. Therefore this distress has come upon us. You know, that's so true that whenever you do something to someone else, you bear the distress. There is something about the way God has made us that we actually become the victim when we mistreat, when we sin against others. There is a transfer of guilt and Reuben, this is the second response of a guilty conscience and this is an escape by self-defense. Reuben answered them saying, in other words, he kind of pulls away from the crowd and he says, hey, wait a second, brothers, did I not tell you don't sin against this boy?

What a lousy thing to say. He's as guilty as they are and he says, didn't I tell you so, that this would happen because I told you not to do anything against this boy and you did it. Reuben was as guilty as sin. He was right in there with the rest of them for 25 years, had never gone to his father, had never taken a trip to Egypt to try to rescue Joseph and now self-righteous, me guilty?

No way. You know what? When God brings to our mind things by way of an awakened conscience, we can admit guilt and say, Lord, it is because I have sinned. The third response of a guilty conscience, and this is beautiful, an understanding of God's involvement. Note verse 23, they did not know, however, that Joseph understood and he turned away from them and wept. Oh, Joseph, I can't imagine being him, hearing these nine brothers weep that this is being done because of what they had done to him and it brought back on him all of the emotion of that day 25 years ago when he saw his brothers desert and abandon him and he has to turn away and just weep.

Perhaps he rushes from the room. Finally returned to them and spoke to them, verse 24, and he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes. There's another similar circumstance. Then Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain and restore every man's money in a sack and to give them provision for the journey, verse 28. Then he said to his brothers as they opened their sacks and they saw the money, my money has been returned and behold, it's Stephen in my sack and their hearts sank and they turned trembling to one another saying this, underline this, what is this that God is doing to us? One of the responses that God, I think, wants to bring us to as he brings to our minds that guilty conscience that we have been suppressing is that God is involved in our lives, that he is even bringing about these events to bring us to himself for cleansing and forgiveness and they finally say, God's doing something. There's too many coincidences here. Something's happening.

It must be God. One of the responses of a guilty conscience is an understanding that we are accountable to God and ultimately they understood that it was God who was behind the scenes. Perhaps something has come to your mind that has been brought by the spirit of God and you say, I am guilty of certain things that I've been struggling with and rebelling against and I'm hanging onto.

What should I do? I don't want to go through another chapter and a half until this thing's figured out. Well, the Bible is very clear and that is specifically confessing, immediately forsaking, wholeheartedly claiming the forgiveness of Jesus Christ. Perhaps some of you may need to make restitution.

Some of you may need to request forgiveness from another. As a boy, I've mentioned to most of you that my parents have been missionaries for thirty years with the servicemen and we really grew up downtown Norfolk running the streets. We would go down there after school all summer long and back then you could and it was fairly safe.

There was a wharf down there and we would play on the rocks and go in and out of every store and the MacArthur Memorial where we used to ransack the hallways just about every week and the library and one of the missionary kids named Bobby Walker, he and I were the closest buddies until we graduated from high school. We used to hang around and my father recently got a letter from Bobby Walker, now referred to as Bob. Bobby wrote in his letter, he said, you know, God's been working in my heart.

Here's a thirty-two year old man. He now directs the largest Christian ranch in Virginia and he said, when I was a kid and we were running around missions in the military, I'd go up to that third floor and I'd take a piece of bubblegum and I'd stick it onto the end of a popsicle stick and I'd slip it down that money box and I'd pull money out. I can't remember doing that with Bobby. Maybe that's a suppressed conscience, I don't know. But God had brought that to his mind. He said, I can remember doing that on several occasions. He says, I have no idea how much I took but here's twenty dollars.

I think it'll cover it. Bobby is of course working with teenagers and young people and couples and he evidently is seeing week after week the importance, the necessity of a clean conscience. One of the greatest gifts God has given us is a conscience.

We can turn it off, we can shout it down, we can ignore it or we can by the word allow God to speak through it so that it is in fact the oracle of God. Don't go another day with a guilty conscience. Experience the joy and the cleansing of a conscience that is clear and clean before God. Your conscience is God's gift to you. If you're able, why don't you try to find some time to be alone and quiet today. And ask God to reveal areas in your life that you need to confess to him.

I think it would add to your joy to be able to celebrate this day with a clean conscience. Thanks so much for tuning in to Wisdom for the Heart. This daily broadcast features the Bible teaching ministry of Stephen Davey. In addition to being a pastor and a radio Bible teacher, Stephen is also the president of Shepherds Theological Seminary. How would your life be impacted if you set aside one year to study God's word, experience authentic community, grow in discipleship, take a trip and do some study in Israel and earn your master's degree all in one year? The school Stephen leads offers a unique program called Shepherds Institute, where you can experience all that I just described. This unique one year program offers a life changing opportunity to all believers, no matter your vocation. We've had men and women join us right out of college and before entering their career. We've also had men join us who believe they were called to be a pastor. They did this program and then jumped into a Master of Divinity program. Whatever God has called you to, investing one year with us would change your life forever.

Learn more at shepherds.edu. And of course, join us next time for more wisdom for the heart. Amen. Amen.