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Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s word on Bibleline, here God’s truth on Bibleline. Welcome to Bibleline with Dr. Ralph Yankee Arnold, pastor of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida. Clearly declaring the gospel of Jesus Christ through the radio and the internet. Your regular prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the air. You can reach us toll-free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made by clicking on the donations link on the BibleLineMinistries.org homepage. We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ and that today’s first part of this two-part message will be a blessing to you and your family.

Turn in your Bible to the book of Genesis, the book of Genesis. We’ve been talking about Joseph, how that Joseph was hated by his brothers, loved by his daddy, caused a lot of conflict in Joseph’s life. He was sold by his brothers into slavery, and then he was put into prison, and yet to all of this, the Bible keeps telling us, the Lord was with him. God had made a promise. I will bless them that blessed thee and cursed in that cursed thee.

And God said, there’s a blessing upon Joseph. In spite of all the things that seemed like it’s going wrong, a few things were going right. So look there in Genesis chapter 39 and look down at verse 31, verse 31, but the Lord was with Joseph, showed him mercy and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the, wait, wait, wait, wait, couldn’t you have given me mercy and favor outside of the prison? The Lord allowed him to go into the very place.

It seems like it’s the darkest. It’s the worst. Can’t get any worst in this. He’s lost everything. He’s lost his family. Now he’s been lied against and a woman accused him of something. He wasn’t guilty of and all he did was he happened to be a Hebrew and he loved the Lord. But the Lord says that he sent him down into Egypt to prepare a place for the nation of Israel to grow. So God was behind all of this.

But the problem was he doesn’t tell anybody. Did you know that God doesn’t tell you everything he’s going to do in your life? If he did, you may not want to get out of bed tomorrow. So surprise, surprise. He just has, trust me. Whoa, trust me. God will not let anything happen to you that has not passed his death. He knows everything. He knows tomorrow. And He’s not going to let you have more than what you can bear. He promises that.

But we’ll make a way of escape that you can survive. Now we know one of these days, God’s got to really solve all of our problems. He’s going to let us die. Think of all your problems. One of these days God’s going to solve all of your problems. He’s going to let you die. Problem solved. You don’t have to worry about taxes anymore. You don’t have to worry about growing older anymore. You don’t have to worry about your health.

You don’t have to worry about anything. What? You’re dead. Now you’re with the Lord if you trust the Christ as your Savior. Now if you haven’t trusted the Lord, can you borrow the door? Your troubles have just begun, and they will be in hell for eternity. But anyway, he makes this statement here. God showed favor, verse 22, and the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph hand, all the prisoners. So even though where he was, he was placed in charge.

He was in charge, even in a prison, and God blessed him. And so I guess if anybody had a good in the prison, I guess he did. Look in verse 23, the keeper of the prison looked not to anything that was under his hand because the Lord was with him and that which he did, the Lord made it to prosper. I don’t know how you’re going to have much prosper in a prison, but whatever it is, whatever was done, God blessed this boy.

He was about 17 years old when he went, and now time is rolling on. And they had two officers of the court, a pharaoh. And one was a chief butler and one was a chief baker. And whatever the problem was, it doesn’t really tell us. But these were the head honchos. He put both of them in prison at the same time and both of them winded up in prison with Joseph. And Joseph was now over these two officers. So you see there in verse 1 of chapter 4 of him, came to pass after these things, that the butler of the king of Egypt and his baker had offended their lord, the king of the, they offended him.

Somehow they did something and offended him. And so in verse two Pharaoh was mad, wrought against two of his officers, against the chief of the butlers and against the chief of the bakers. So these were not just anybody, these were somebody. So he put him in the prison and in verse three the lap, part that verse says, the place where Joseph was bound. Now, you say, he’s in prison and he’s bound and yet he’s in charge of the other prisoners.

And the Bible tells us, when you read in the 105th Psalm, verse 17 through 19, it says that Joseph was in irons and he was hurt. He was hurt in prison and yet the Lord smiled on him and gave him mercy and granted and helped him to be in charge. It wasn’t a take walk. It wasn’t peaceful. He heard, he suffered. So you get a chance, you read 105th Psalm and you’ll see that in there. And look in verse 17, down to verse 19.

Don’t do it now, though. I don’t want you to stop thinking about what I’m telling you. But now he noticed something about them. They both had a dream in verse five. They both had a dream. And of course, they didn’t know what the dream was. Now isn’t it amazing that they both have a dream and Joseph is the one who knows about dreams. He knows that God can tell what a dream meant. So then he says there in verse 6, and Joseph came in unto them in the morning and looked upon them and behold they were sad.

So your countenance tells a lot about you. He tells you whenever you’re happier, when you’re sad, your countenance. It can reveal your attitude and right now they were kind of down because they had a problem. So in verse 7, and he asked Pharaoh’s officers that would with him in the Lord of his Lord’s house, wherefore are you so sad today? They said unto him, we have dreamed a dream and there is no interpreter of it. Joseph said to them, do not interpretations belong to God?

Tell me them, I pray you, because Joseph knew God. They they didn’t know God. Joseph knew God. But remember, Joseph has all these problems that he has upon him because he had a dream when he was a teenager and he told his mom and dad and his brothers, hey, I had a dream and all of y’all are going to bow down to me. That didn’t go over too good. That didn’t go over too good at all. And they hated him for it.

So that’s why they hated him so much they sold him to the Ishma likes of a going down in the caravan, down into Egypt. So they were going to kill them. They didn’t do it. So you go down through here and you see all this. And he tells them, I had a dream. And he said, well, what was this dream? He says in verse 11, Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand. And I took the grapes, pressed them into Pharaoh’s cup.

And I gave the cup unto Pharaoh’s hand. And Joseph said unto him, this is the interpretation of it. The three branches are three days. Yeah, Within three days, shall Pharaoh lift up thine head and restore thee unto thy place. And the thou shalt deliver Pharaoh’s cup into his hand after the former manner when thou was his butler.” Well, good news. He says, and Joseph’s telling this guy, he says, now when you get out of here, remember me. when it shall be well with theerike, show kindness I pray thee unto me, and make mention of me unto Pharaoh and bring me out of this house.”

Now Joseph did not like being there. He says, now you tell me, I tell him to about me. For indeed in verse 15 I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews, and here also have I done nothing that should put me into the dungeon. I haven’t done anything to to deserve what’s happening to me. So anyway, when the chief baker said, huh, good for him, I want to know what my dream meant. So he says, I had three white baskets on my head and the birds came and they were eating stuff out of a basket.

So he says in verse 18, Joseph answered and said, this is the interpretation. They’re up the three baskets for three days. Yet within three days shall Pharaoh lift up thine head from off thee, and shall hang thee on a tree. Ooh, and the bird shall eat thy flesh from off thee. How did you like that one? Now you really want to know what’s going to happen tomorrow? If it was good, you’d say yes. Well, what if it’s bad? What if tomorrow the worst thing in the world could happen to you in your life?

And it would really ruin the day, wouldn’t it? It could really spoil this day. This moment that you happen. right now to enjoy a little bit longer. So I guess as I lived my life so far I just soon not know what’s going to happen the next day. But I know that the Lord says that He’ll never leave me and never forsake me. So I just trust the Lord. Whatever comes up tomorrow the Lord is just going to walk me through it.

Because if you walk with the Lord, He’s going to walk you through it because He’s not going to leave you. So the Lord’s going to walk me through it. And that’s what I believe. So Anyway, you get out in here and you see all this. He told him and says, now remember me. So in verse 23, yet did not the chief bottler remember Joseph but forgot him. I forgot. What was he supposed to say? He was put in a good word to Pharaoh about him beingTweet.

He said, I didn’t do anything wrong. Well, looking verse one of chapter 41, It came to pass at the end of two years later. So the thing is, is the time was not right. You see, God has a timetable. God has timing. And that’s why when you read the Bible, it was in the process of time. Time has been processed. So you get a little bit here and you get a little bit more and you get a little bit more and a little bit more.

And so you’re processing time. What are you getting out of this time? So in the process of time, and usually right on schedule, Pharaoh had a dream. Now who’s causing these dreams? The Lord. So he’s the one that told them to have this dream. He’s the one that put that butler back in there under Pharaoh. Then he gives Pharaoh a dream. But why couldn’t he have done it sooner? Two years. See, when you’re serving the Lord, you can’t dictate to God what He has to do.

You just report for duty. Yes, sir. Do what you’re told. If He puts you in a little closet, keep that closet clean. And just do the best job you can’t where you are. He said, boy, if I had a bigger room, I’d do a better job. No, you’d do a good job where you are. And then when God’s ready, God’ll open that door and let you into another room. Might be the living room. Now do a good job while you’re there.

Keep the floor clean, keep the walls clean, keep the light bulbs in, keep everything straight and so forth. Do a good job where you are. And then if you do a good job there, God may let you rule the whole house. You see, everybody wants bigger opportunities, but he that is faithful in that which is little will be faithful in that which is much. If God can’t trust you with a little, He can’t trust you with a lot. I’ve had people tell me, say, Yankee, when I win the lottery, buddy am I going to support the church.

You pray I win the lottery, all right? I don’t pray for them to win the lottery. Because see, if you’re not faithful to tithe or to give what you believe you should give to the Lord’s work, when you only have a little, you won’t give if you had a lot. If you’re not faithful now, you won’t be faithful later. Faithfulness is not something I can plan on. You know, I’m living like the devil right now, but in five years, I’m gonna dedicate my life to the Lord.

You can’t plan the dedication like that. All you have is today. If I give God today, and then when the mark comes and I give God that day, and lo and behold, in about 10 years, I can say, I have given my life to the Lord, but you can’t give what you don’t have. I’ll give you that Lord. Just let me have this day for myself to do whatever I want to do. But I promise that won’t work. As my nephew says, that dog won’t hunt.

He had hunting dogs. So Pharaoh has a dream, but what was his dream? down here in verse 2. What down through here he talks about, I saw these seven fat cows. And then I saw seven skinny cows. And the seven skinny cows ate up the seven fat cows. And he says, I don’t know what this means. Verse 8 came to pass in the morning that his spirit was trouble and he sent in call for all the magicians of Egypt, all the wise men thereof, and Pharaoh told them his dream.

But there was none that could interpret them under Pharaoh. Now, who do you think gave Pharaoh the dream, the Lord? And there happens to be, remember that bottler that got sent there two years before? And he just plain for God. Can’t blame him, he forgot. He didn’t remember. I mean, isn’t that what we do? I forgot. Well, when you start getting older like me, it works. I’m having a senior moment. I’m getting senile. I didn’t say that. And did I say that?

Who said that? All right, we’ll move right along. So he says in verse nine, then spake then right on schedule. Now the time is right. See, God is working and weaving all these things together. And he says, then spake the cheap butler and de favor of sin. I do remember my faults this day. Isn’t that wonderful? finally remembers on the slap of your jaws. There’s a guy that’s been sitting in prison for two years, but God knows what would have happened if he’d have got out.

God knows the future. See, God doesn’t make some things happen. God lets them happen. And God can intervene, but it doesn’t make a person respond and do the right thing. So he says here in verse 10, Pharaoh was rough with his servants and put me in word in the captain of the guard’s house, both me and the chief baker. We dreamed the dream in one night. I and he, we dreamed each man according to the interpretation of his dream.

And there was there with us a young man, a Hebrew, serving to the captain of the guard. And we told him and he interpreted to us our dream. And to each man according to his dream, he did interpret. And he came to pass as he interpreted to us, so it was. Be he restored unto mine office and him he hanged. I know a man, I know a man, just happens to remember who had a dream Pharaoh. And Pharaoh didn’t know what that meant to have seven fat cows and then seven skinny cows and the seven skinny cows ate up the seven fat cows.

So in verse 14, then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon and he shaved himself. So that means he had a beard. He’d been in prison. I wonder what he looked like. A dirty old man, a dirty young man. And changed his, Raymond and came in to see Pharaoh. Now, when you talk about how quickly things can change, you may be sailing along and all of a sudden something happening can shake your world.

Everything be uprooted. All of a sudden, they can be so peaceful and all of a sudden everything seemed like it’s going wrong. And God was totally surprised. He didn’t know what was going to happen. God knows everything. You don’t fool God. So anyway, He brought him in and he told him what had happened. He told him what the dream was. See there in verse 25? And Joseph said unto Pharaoh the dream of Pharaoh is one. God had shown Pharaoh what he is about to do.

because then he says, I had these stocks of corn come up and boy, they were really filled, a lot of corn on them, these ears of corn. And then there was seven, you know, these skinny ones. And the other ones were eaten up by the skinny ones. Well, they were hungry. So, ate up the fat ones. You don’t think the fat was going to eat the skinny ones? No, it doesn’t work that away. So, he says, the thing is one.

So, he explained it to him. So, Verse 28, this is the thing which I have spoken unto Pharaoh. What God is about to do, he showeth unto Pharaoh. He’s gonna do something. God’s gonna do something in the future. And I’m gonna explain it to you. Looking verse 32, and for that, the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice. It is because the thing is established by God and God will shortly bring it to pass. Now therefore, let Pharaoh look out for a man, discreet and wise and let him set him over the house of the land and so forth.

So what he’s telling them, he says, this is what’s going to take place. He says, you’re gonna have seven years of plenty. You’re gonna have a lot of grain and everything’s gonna be multiplied for seven years. And then after that, you’re gonna be seven years a famine. It’s gonna be really bad. And so what you need to do is in those seven years, store up all the food you can. And then when you have the seven years of famine, you’ll have food to live off of.

So God already knew about the famine. It’s going to come. It’s gonna be bad. God knew it way in advance and He says, I am sending Joseph down into Egypt so they can save his people alive. God was working because God knows the future and He can let this happen. That happened and stop certain things. But it’s not whatever will be will be because God has to work through people. And he doesn’t make some people do things, but he is using.

Look what Joseph had to go through just to get to this place. And so he told him what was going to happen. And so Joseph told him, he said, now you need to look up yourself a man that can administer all of this for you. And so he says, well, I need a man that’s got the spirit of God in him. See there in verse 38? And Pharaoh said unto his servants, can we find such a one as this is a man in whom the Spirit of God is.

Pharaoh said unto Joseph for as much as God has showed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art. Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto my word, shall all the people be ruled only in the throne, will I be greater than thou? Now look at it, wait, wait, wait. He was sold by his brothers. The Ishmaelites came by, took him down and he became a slave. He was wronged and lied about, thrown into a prison, and there for years, and then he comes out.

And next thing you know, he’s second in command to the Pharaoh himself. Now, God didn’t tell him all that in advance. God says you humble yourself and he, in his time, he will exalt you. You know the problem today with most people is they want to exalt themselves. So they ride over the backs of everybody else trying to be a big shot. No, no, no, no, that’s not the way you’re supposed to do it. But now notice this, he’s now about 30 years old.

See that in verse 46, Joseph was about 30 years old. He was 17 years old when he was sold. That means 13 years has passed. 13 years he had to go through all of that. Now he got seven more years of plenty. So that’ll take him up to 37 years. It was 30 years then and seven more. And then you talk about how that seven more years of famine. So in that period of time at the height of the famine is when Jacob, other sons are having a hard time.

See, they’re up in the Canaan area and they’re going to come down in here. We’ve got to go find some food. Remember, these are the same brothers that sold him. And he had that dream where they had bowed to him and they laughed into scorn and mocked him, ridiculed him. Now all these years later, about 20 years later, 13 years and seven more years for the 20 more years later. So he knows Joseph’s around 37 years of age. And here they come down.

Whew, wouldn’t it be an exciting thing. Somebody ought to write a book on it. Oh, they did write a book. No, he’s right here. But you read this and you think God is sure amazing how that he can work behind the scenes and get all this done. But what I want you to also see, in verse 41 of the same chapter, and Pharaoh said unto Joseph, see I have set thee over all the land of Egypt. Pharaoh took off his ring, put it on Joseph hand, arrayed him in vessels of fine linen, put a gold chain about his neck.

But remember how he was dressed? What he did look like, where he was. And then all of a sudden, things can change pretty fast, can’t they? 20 years passed. And here He is, and God’s going to bless Him. Joseph gets married, has two kids. He from Manasseh. These two became two of the tribes of the children of Israel. And so you go down through here and He says in verse 51, Joseph called the name of the first born manasseh, for God said He had made me forget all my toil and all my Father’s house.

He didn’t really forget, but it does heal the wound. And verse 52, in the name of the second call, Ephraim, for God has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction, what He went through. You know, sometimes we do a lot of bellyache and don’t we? We bellyache about a lot of things. And we just don’t understand what God is doing. Do you realize if God did this in His life, you know God was working in a lot of other people’s lives too?

You know, even in that butler, that butler was restored, God was working in his life. God was working in Pharaoh’s life. God was also working in the lives of his brothers because God can use the rebellion, the hatred, the envying of how they felt about Joseph and still use it for his honor and glory. God can use your rebellion against him to teach a lot of people a lot of lessons. See, God may have to beat the tar out of you, but somebody else is going to learn.

I’m not going to do that. I used to watch my older sisters get whooped and say, I’m not going to do that. Because I’ve watched what happened to them. And I’m no dummy. I don’t want that to happen to me. So a lot of things I didn’t do, the reason is because I scared the death. I get caught. And my sisters, if they would run the risk, one day my dad beat the tar out of my sister. I mean, she cried and he put whelps on her, buddy.

And what was all over with, I said, Lizzy, they told you they were going to whip you if you did it. Why did you do it? She says, Yankee, I always calculate whether it’s worth it or not. And they told me that I couldn’t go out to this dance or whatever it was. She says, but the joy of going to the dance and jitterbugging and having a good time and partying. She says, I knew that when I get home, I’m going to get tore up.

So it was worth it. Because she says, Yankee, it only hurts for a little while. But the enjoyment of what I did will last in my mind and my memories for a long time. My sister could think things out. But she made a lot of dumb decisions in her life because she reasoned incorrectly because It got worse and worse and worse than in God had to deal with her. But sometimes you think, well, anybody ever learned? Look, that in chapter 42, then it says in verse one, Now when Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt, he said to his sons, hey, we got to have food.

So now they’re going to go down there. In verse three, Joseph’s 10 brethren were down to buy corn in Egypt. But Benjamin, verse 4, Joseph’s brother Jacob sent not with his brethren, for he said, less per-adventure mischief befall him. So he’s going to keep the youngest one back, Benjamin. And all these other ones were coming down. And so when they got there in verse 6, and Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that so to all the people of the land, and Joseph Brethren came, bowed down themselves before Him with their faces to the earth, dream fulfilled.

You know that dream he had 20 years ago? There they are. Well, it’s a new month and that means a new offer to those who support Bibleline. And this month we have something really special for you, the brand new book by Greg Steer, the founder of Dare to Share Ministries, called Gospelize. But a fabulous book written about the model for evangelism according to the book of Acts. Greg is a way of teaching some profound truths in simple and easy to understand ways with practical examples that you can use immediately.

I could not put the book down and when I finished it, I wanted to stop everyone on the highway and tell them of the free gift of salvation. And this life-changing book is yours for a gift to Bibleline in any amount. Our mailing address is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634, and don’t forget to include your mailing address as well. God bless you and thank you again for supporting Bibleline. Thanks for joining us on Bibleline. If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us.

The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. And now, a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. friend one day it will happen the trumpet will sound and we will be changed caught up to meet the lord in the air so live today and every day believe in that the lord is coming soon just keep in looking up