Feb 4, 2019
In Genesis 37, Joseph had two dreams that spoke of the future. One had his brothers bowing down to him and the other had his brothers plus his father and mother bowing down to him. When he shared his dreams he was rebuked for them. His brothers said, “‘Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?’ And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said (Genesis 37:8).” “When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, “‘What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?’ His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind (10-11).”
Jacob, Joseph’s father, loved him more than all his brothers. His brothers hated him for that. These two dreams were the last straw. His brothers were out grazing their fathers flock and Joseph was sent to find his brothers to see how they were and bring the report back to his father. When Joseph arrived his brothers wanted to kill him. Being business minded they realized there was not profit in murder. So they sold him as a slave.
This is quite a hostile environment to have a dream. In the middle of the circumstance it seems like the dreams don’t even exist. But Isaiah 46:9-10 goes like this:
“Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.”
The current circumstances don’t dictate the potential of the future. That means that the current circumstances are only temporary. In the moment it looks really bad for Joseph. But what no one could foresee, was that the path Joseph was on, was the road to the fulfillment of his dreams.
Never use your current circumstances to gauge the fulfillment of the promises of God. Use the promises of God to fulfill the dreams you dream in him.