And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence.
So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.” And they came near.
– Genesis 45:3-4
Many of us are familiar with the story of Joseph. A boy loved and exalted by his father, but despised and rejected by his brothers. Sold into slavery and wrongly imprisoned, he spent many years in unfair circumstances. But God was with him, and he rose to power in the foreign land of Egypt after predicting Pharaoh’s dream about a future famine.
When we pick up the story in Genesis 45, the famine is active. Egypt is prepared because of Joseph, but his family back home is running out of food. His brothers have come to the land for grain, and Joseph is revealing his identity. Upon admitting who he is, we learn that the brothers are “dismayed”. Terrified. Trembling inwardly.
The reaction makes sense–the last time the brothers saw Joseph, they had left him for dead, selling him for profit. Now they need food to sustain their lives, and Joseph is the only one who can provide. But it’s also his opportunity for revenge, and the brothers know it.
Our relationship with God can look like this sometimes. We disobey him, ignore him, maybe “leave him for dead” and write him off entirely. But then we need something that only he can provide. And we, too, are dismayed at the presence of God. Terrified. Trembling inwardly.
However, if we run away too quickly, we won’t hear the invitation: Joseph tells his brothers to please come near. This is our invitation from God.
But what are we getting into?
Reading further, we watch the brothers receive the reconciliation that Joseph was eager to give. He tells them not to be stressed or angry, for “God sent me before you to preserve life,” (Genesis 45:5). Joseph welcomes his brothers in and gives them first class status in his kingdom. He gives them a place to live, clothing, and food. He takes wagons from Egypt to carry the rest of his family into the new land, and he offers, “Have no concern for your goods, for the best of all the land of Egypt is yours,” (Genesis 45:20).
Don’t we see? When we come near to Christ, we receive the reconciliation that our ultimate brother is eager to give. [1] Jesus is the greater Joseph who was sent ahead to preserve our lives by taking our death at the cross. He paid our debt and made a way for us to live. Then, he welcomes us in and gives us first class status in the eternal kingdom of God.
“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs–heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ,” (Romans 8:16-17).
Originally, Joseph’s brothers came to him because they needed food to survive, and they had heard that he could help. But in coming to their brother, they received the bread and also status in a new kingdom. This is what Christ offers. We receive him, the bread of life, and permanent status in his kingdom. “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins,” (Colossians 1:13-14).
Maybe we’re new to the faith, maybe we’ve been walking with the Lord for a long time. Maybe we’re still figuring out what we believe. Wherever we’re at, we all have reasons why we’re hesitant to come to the Lord, hesitant to reach out and ask for whatever it is that we need. But sometimes stories have a way of convincing us that what we know to be true really is. Perhaps that is why the Bible is full of them. God bends down to speak our language of relationship, the very language and communion that he designed. And He beckons to us through the legacy of Joseph, please come near.
We already know what will happen next.
[1] Hebrews 2:11
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst… If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” – John 6:35, 51
And (Jesus) said to him, “Follow me.” – Luke 5:27b
Read: Genesis 45, John 6:31-59
Notice, what connections can you make between Joseph and Jesus? What is God showing us through the story of Joseph?
Reading further: Hebrews 4:16, 7:25, 10:22
What does Hebrews teach us about “drawing near” to God?
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