“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. 2 And he wept aloud, and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard it. 3 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. 4 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. 5 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. 6 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. 7 And God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. 8 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.” Genesis 45:1-8 NKJV
Father of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph,
You dig each one of your people out of trouble. But the next generation still needs to learn the same lessons. To humble themselves and follow You Lord God. They cannot save anyone fully only those who follow them and only for their lifetime. They point to the need for someone to save us, from sin, slavery and death. It could not be just a man, Joseph had to die eventually and left his family to grow and prosper in freedom but to become . . . slaves.
But many did dream about a Saviour who would come. And many prophesied that he would come. And many many generations later He came as a baby Not to live and die and leave us the same. But to live and die and live again to lead us on the path back to the presence of God and peace and reconciliation and life beyond even death..
I almost always cry when I read the emotional story leading to Josephs family reunion in Egypt Tears of joy. And I wonder at the joy that will be ours and Yours God, when we enter heaven and meet Jesus face to face. We forget that You, God joy in one sinner who repents (Luke 15:7)and Your joy remains (John 15:11). There will be a day when You God sing in joy over us, Your people. (Zephaniah 3:17) I joy to be in Your family now and to remain there forever. There will be no separation (Romans 8:39).
In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
Worship Friday 23rd January 2026
“How Great Thou Art” is a hymn based on a Swedish poem entitled “O Store Gud” written in 1885 by the Swedish poet and minister Carl Boberg . The English version it is believed is a loose translation in 1949 by the English missionary Stuart K. Hine, from a Russian translation of a German translation of the original Swedish hymn. Hine had been a missionary in Western Ukraine in the 1920s.. A miracle in itself!
O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds thy hands have made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed:
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee:
How great thou art! How great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee:
How great thou art! How great thou art!
When through the woods and forest glades I wander
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees,
When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur,
And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze:
And when I think how God, his Son not sparing,
Sent him to die, I scarce can take it in;
That on the cross, my burdens gladly bearing,
He bled and died to take away my sin:
When Christ shall come with shouts of acclamation,
To take me home, what joy will fill my heart!
Then I will bow in humble adoration,
And there proclaim, my God, how great thou art!
Lyrics: Carl Boberg 1859-1940