The Big Reveal.

The Big Reveal. Genesis 45:1-20.

Have you ever kept a secret so long that it burst from your lips to catch the hearers off guard? This was the case of Joseph. He had hard lined his brothers; they were broken repentant men before God, and now it was time to let them in on his secrete. Their lives were about to drastically change for the better.

Then Joseph could not restrain himself before all those who stood by him, and he cried out, "Make everyone go out from me!" So no one stood with him while Joseph made himself known to his brothers. And he wept aloud, and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard it. Then Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph; does my father still live?" But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed in his presence. Genesis 45:1-3(NKJV)

With a great burst of emotion, Joseph made a noise that caused his brothers to quake. "What was happening; what type of release was this?" "Was it a war cry? Would the great man of Egypt now take them on by himself?" Then came the answer, "I am Joseph!"

The shift in thinking had to have been a mental challenge that would make anyone dizzy. From complete terror they had to gaze past the Egyptian makeup of this man of authority.

It had been so many years, what would the young Joseph look like. What character traits did his face have? "Could this be true?" they thought.

And Joseph said to his brothers, "Please come near to me." So they came near. Then he said: "I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. 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. Genesis 45:4-7(NKJV).

The promise of God is greater than your sin. It was a terrible thing that they brothers did when selling Joseph to the slave traders. Yet God looked past the sin and remembered the promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God promised to be their God and make them into a great nation. The promise and plans of God do not end because we sin; God knows we are sinful people.

Joseph recognized this fact and watched the delivering hand of God throughout his horrible journey. He watched God deliver as he rose to prominence. Joseph looked at his life and realized that what was happening to Him was a work of God and he committed himself to it. Now standing before his brothers, he extends the hand of compassion to men who were great with sin.

"God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. " In this statement Joseph was calling the men to repentance in hopes they would see the hand of God and world forgive themselves of the tragedies they have committed.

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. "Hurry and go up to my father, and say to him, 'Thus says your son Joseph: "God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not tarry. You shall dwell in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near to me, you and your children, your children's children, your flocks and your herds, and all that you have. There I will provide for you, lest you and your household, and all that you have, come to poverty; for there are still five years of famine."' "And behold, your eyes and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see that it is my mouth that speaks to you. So you shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that you have seen; and you shall hurry and bring my father down here." Then he fell on his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck. Moreover he kissed all his brothers and wept over them, and after that his brothers talked with him. Genesis 45:8-15(NKJV).

Oh what a wonderful feeling it is to be let off the hook when you are guilty; this is the work of God. He seeks to draw people to Him and uses the trials they bring on themselves to expose His desire to forgive them.

God waits for the day that he can reveal His plan for them and for the day that people will understand. Yet people have to want forgiveness and here, in our story, these brothers of Jacob wanted all of their trouble with the Egyptian people to go away and it did. They were forgiven, they were free from their past, they had received new life.

Now the report of it was heard in Pharaoh's house, saying, "Joseph's brothers have come." So it pleased Pharaoh and his servants well. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Say to your brothers, 'Do this: Load your animals and depart; go to the land of Canaan. Bring your father and your households and come to me; I will give you the best of the land of Egypt, and you will eat the fat of the land. Now you are commanded—do this: Take carts out of the land of Egypt for your little ones and your wives; bring your father and come. Also do not be concerned about your goods, for the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.'" Genesis 45:16-20(NKJV).

When God is for you, who can be against you? It is a fact that if a person repents of their sins and seeks to live a life that is God centered, God will began to move in the hearts of those around you.

Yes, He may move you away from you present acquaintances; but God desires you to live a Christian life that is peace filled, joyous, and one that you can worship Him.

God moved on the Pharaoh's heart and filled it with compassion for the family of Joseph. From here on out they would be supported and taken care of in the land of Egypt and it was not by chance; It was by the providence of God.

God may be pulling at your heart strings for you to let go of your life and come to Him. You may have feared going to church; but God wants you to know that He sees the overall plan for your life and wants you to live in it at peace.

God can forgive all your sin and will if you are willing to be forgiven. You answer lies in the direction you head. Will you head to the place He is drawing you or will you go back to your old life?