IBCD Sermon Weekly

In life, we have to make a lot of decisions. As Christians, we want to make them according to God's will. But how can we find out God's will? How can we find out His ways? That is the same prayer that David expressed in Psalm 25.

Psalm 25:4-5

4 Show me Your ways, O Lord;

Teach me Your paths.

5 Lead me in Your truth and teach me,

For You are the God of my salvation;

We shall be looking at the significance of the new covenant we have in Christ and the blessings of this covenant.

22 And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. (Ephesians 1:22-23, NASB)

The Christian faith holds the Bible very high. We believe that it is God's authoritative word breathed out by Him. Therefore, it is important to engage regularly with it. However, it is not always clear what the best way is to engage with the Bible.

Psalm 1 tells us to meditate on it day and night. If we do so we will be like a tree planted by streams of water.

Psalm 1:2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.

Unresolved issues in our life can cause a lot of long-term pain. We think something is over but it’s not. Maybe it is not over for you, maybe it is not over for someone else.

The theme of unresolved understanding when it comes to how God seeks to love, forgive, and guide people is a theme found in the Bible. When these things are unresolved, they cause a lot of pain.

Genesis 50:18-19 18 His brothers then came and threw themselves down before him. "We are your slaves," they said. 19 But Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God?

As we consider forgiveness, the goal of forgiveness is to restore a healthy relationship between estranged parties. It is not to just feel good or not feel awkward about being in the same room with a person you are at odds with. Forgiveness is not the goal; it is the necessary means to the goal of restored relationship.

1 Peter 3:18 18 For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.

Today we are looking at the story of Joseph and how it compares to the life of Jesus. The theme is repentance. There is a lot to the big reveal, which we will look at next week, but for this week it is important to understand that Judah’s genuine repentance leads to the revelation of Joseph and sets into place the actions which will be the salvation of his family.

Genesis 45:1 Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, "Have everyone leave my presence!" So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers.

I think Grace really throws people. Grace is the idea that someone, in our faith we are usually talking about God, would do something kind, often sacrificial, with no expectation of repayment or returning the action in kind. Over the years I have realized that some people can accept a graceful act from another person with a simple “thank you, that’s very kind of you” and go on with life in a better place emotionally and mentally. Others either become suspicious about motives, or feel like they are losing control, or can even get irritated by a gracious act.

This happens in the story we have been reading about Joseph. While we are not sure why Joseph does what he does but we definitely see the response of Joseph’s brothers and father – which was not positive!

In today's sermon, Joseph has made peace with his life and is even grateful for his situation and at true peace.

Then God turns his life upside down. In the process, Joseph is set upon the destiny he had thought was lost forever.

Sunday Sermon by Avi Snyder

Joseph makes it from the bottom to the top, several times. He achieves great success. But what if I tell you that his even greater success lies elsewhere? The Bible talks about success very differently than the world does. Biblical success is all about knowing God, glorifying God, and being known by God. Joseph pursued that kind of success, as did Jesus.