Genesis | Triggered Pt. 46 | Pastor Jackson Lahmeyer

Genesis 42:1
Genesis 42:2-4
Why not Benjamin?
Remember Jacob has 4 wives: Leah, Billah, Zilpah and Rachel
Rachel had 2 sons: Joseph & Benjamin
Jacob becomes the ultimate helicopter parent
Genesis 42:5-6
Notice what just happened: the brothers of Joseph just bowed down to Joseph
Promise made at 17; promise fulfilled at 38-39
A promise delayed is not a promise forgotten
God has veracity
Here is what is so interesting: what caused the brothers to hate Joseph
This dream from God
So in order to prevent the dream from happening they sell their brother down to Egypt
But by trying to defeat the plan of God these brothers actually set into motion the plan of God
No matter what they did to you (whoever they might be) cannot stop defeat the plan of God
Genesis 42:7-22
They are living in guilt
They’ve carried this secret for 20 years
They believe God is paying them back
Ever had that thought?
Get a flat tire and you think well this is what I get for what I did 10 years ago
We are reminded about our Dirty Hands
We all have dirty hands
There is none righteous no not one
But your dirty hands don’t scare God
God doesn’t see me through the lease of my mistake, He sees me through the lense of
His grace
Reminds me of the story of the early years of Moses in Egypt
Moses
Acts 7:20-27
Sums up first 40 yrs of the life of Moses
Called to deliver God's people out of Egypt
Trained in all the wisdom of Egypt, most sophisticated society
Temple of the Sun (Oxford of ANE)
Languages, arts, and military combat
Moses was mighty in word and deed = charisma
Being groomed for the throne in Egypt
Moses knew he was not called to be a Pharaoh but to deliver God's people from Pharaoh
He knew the will of God but not the timing of God
He tried to force the will of God through
Comes up with a plan to lead the revolution
Kills an Egyptian taskmaster and it backfires
Not God's timing
What is interesting is the way that Exodus 2:12 describes what happened: “Looking this way and that and seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.”
Gets an idea and looks left and right but never up
Premature strike = 40 year setback
Moses makes a major mistake
Blood is on his hands
He flees to the desert as a failure
Gets married and begins working for his father-in-law as a shepherd
Remember who Moses is - highly educated, great experience and a promise from God
But his hands are covered in blood and he picks up a staff
A staff to guide his father-in-laws sheep
This is lowly position
For 40 years Moses would shepherd a few sheep for his father-in-law
That staff in his hand was a continual reminder of his past mistake
There is nothing like being haunted by your past mistakes
We all have a past that we are not proud of
Sin is such a horrible thing
Hurts people and stains ourselves
Sin = feelings of guilt and shame
Some memories can trigger this feeling of guilt and shame
Sin bothers our conscience
Latin America Proverb = A heavy conscience breaks the neck of many men
German Proverb = A clear conscience is the softest pillow you can lay...
Moses is continually reminded of his greatest mistake but one day God addresses his hands
Burning bush appears
Exodus 4:1-2
Now remember what this staff meant for Moses
It was a constant reminder of the greatest mistake of his life
For forty years he’s been wasting away in the desert
Exodus 4:3-5
God tells Moses grow that stick on the ground
That mistake you made 40 years Moses, I will turn into the greatest miracle
This staff will bring about plagues, it will part seas, it will win battles
But first I need you to throw it down
I believe God is saying to someone here that mistake you made that you are still carrying it’s time to throw it to the ground
Does anybody believe that our God still has the ability to take my mistake and turn it into a miracle?
God did not pry Moses hands open
So God deals with one hand but Moses has another hand
Exodus 4:6-7
Although we see what God was doing through the hands of Moses outwardly here but I also believe God was doing something inwardly as well
Moses released his biggest mistake and God took what was dirty and made it clean
In the OT if the priest touched something unclean they became unclean
But Jesus gets touched by lepers and the woman with an issue of blood
The clean is touched by the unclean and the unclean becomes clean
There are some people today that feel unclean like the brothers of Joseph and you need to touch Jesus
I can lift my dirty hands in worship because I know when I confess my sins before him he cleanses my hands
Most of you have surrendered to Jesus
Nothing to fear! Sin is far as east is from the west
If you have guilt or condemnation that is the spirit of fear
Colossians 2:13-15
Here is the problem: we think Jesus forgives the way we forgive
When Jesus forgives He literally forgives