In this webinar, Scott Brown and Chris Law discuss sections from both the Old and New Testament as part of the series, Journey Through the Bible. In the first half, they discuss the conclusion of the Book of Genesis and how there was reconciliation between Joseph and his brothers. They conclude by discussing chapters from the book of Matthew.

Genesis 50:20 (NKJV) - "But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive."

Okay, well welcome, welcome to Journey Through the Bible. Again, we're gonna be discussing Genesis 49 through Exodus 19 and also Matthew 21 through 23. And as you can see here, I'm here with Chris Law. And we are, hey, we're in Chicago. How about that?

We're actually able to do this in the same room. That's really nice. Old school technology. It's old school, yeah. We just met with some family-grade church pastors here, right here in this room, for the last four hours, and it was a rich time.

So nice. It's a blessing to meet some guys I've not met before. Yeah. To hear the work that's going on throughout the region. Yeah, and these guys really exhorted our souls I love the Lord.

It was really it was really a neat time well, okay, so we're here to discuss a whole bunch of Scripture and now we find ourselves at the end of Genesis, Genesis 49, where Jacob has gathered his sons, he's commanded them, and of course at the end of Genesis Joseph dies. I'm told that Joseph died on December 26 1805 BC. So you know as we've gone through Genesis we've examined the first 2200 years of the history of mankind. It's not amazing. You know, you've just taken your children through this tremendous sweep of history to give them a sense of history.

Talk about a warp speed Moving through and even just what we'll be covering today. There's so many huge events that take place. Yeah Almost challenging to put it in a short Webinar. Yeah, and so I mean I think it might be really hard for us to even get past Joseph and his meeting with his brothers, and of course his death, but you have this remarkable picture at the end of Genesis of reconciliation, where the brothers that hated him, that threw him into a pit, the brothers that sold him into slavery and launched Joseph into a life of age 17 to age 30, either you know as a prisoner or slave, these brothers are back. It's a reminder as 1st Corinthians 13 says, love keeps no record of wrongs, that we're called to forgive as God forgives, and that's challenging.

That's not something that's in our own flesh that we can do, but how Joseph, most importantly, sought to see things from God's perspective and was thinking about how even in the difficulties of interpersonal relationships, those difficulties are something that God is bringing into our life to bring about a character to reveal those weaknesses. There's plenty in my life that I've needed working on. I love the way you said it, he came with God's perspective, and that's the key to reconciliation in a family. Now this is a family, right? I mean this is reconciliation in a family among brothers, and it's given to us for a really good purpose to help us to understand how reconciliation works.

And here's how reconciliation works. Somebody has to stand up and say, you meant it for evil but God meant it for good. And even in that context, in counseling situations, people will say, well I have reason for my angst against a sibling. They did this and they did this, and of all people Joseph could have had that. Even when his brothers come to him, they're lying saying, your dad told us these things, and yet he still did not hold those things against them, which is in our sinful flesh to do.

Yeah, and I think these unforgettable lines that he delivers to his brothers, I just want to read them, they're so precious. He says, you know, they've fallen down before him and Joseph says to them, do not be afraid, Or am I in the place of God?" In other words, I'm not the judge. God is. And then he says, but as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring it about as it is this day to save many people alive. Therefore do not be afraid." And he says, "'I will provide for you and your little ones.

And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them. This is how reconciliation works. And every single line in here is critical. How does a family apply this? I think about Ephesians 4 when Paul writes, let no corrupting word come out of your mouth but only that which is profitable for building others up as it fits the occasion that may give grace to those who hear.

That's a perfect example. He's giving a grace, he's giving something that they don't deserve, and he's giving a word that's fitting for that occasion. Often our words in times of strife are hasty words. They're not fitting words. And how to to be careful that we think through our words even ahead of time if we have that opportunity, but a soft answer turns away wrath, the Proverbs says, and to use our words fittingly, but out of the overflow of our heart, our mouth speaks.

So the type of words show our heart, where we need the Spirit of God to be controlling and dwelling in us to do that. Yeah, and the word says that he spoke kindly. He spoke kindly. You know, he acknowledged that God uses all things for good. He causes all things to work together for good for those who love him for the call.

And let's say Romans 8 28. But I think you also find that Joseph does to his brothers what Jesus does to sinners, to repentant sinners, and he lets them off the hook. But this language here is amazing to me. He says, don't be afraid, I will provide for you. Who else said that?

Jesus said he would provide for us. We are sinners and we're saved by grace and he promised to provide for us. And then he says, and for your little ones, in other words, I'm going to take care of everybody around you, and then his soul curses his whole terror, his kindness, but if you want reconciliation in a family, this is how it happens right here. You look at it from God's perspective that He's bringing good out of it and you forgive and you do it kindly. That's holding people accountable.

Yeah. Even in those words it's a reminder that God was fulfilling his promise to Jacob, to Israel, to be the provider for them through the hand of Joseph as he had sent Joseph down ahead of to prepare ahead yeah as we'll see you just 70 people yeah but yet God would multiply them greatly and you know I mean boy I prophesied this at the beginning that we would use way too much of our time just talking about Joseph, but there's a lot more here. I mean when we go into Exodus, we find ourselves in what becomes the premier example of deliverance from sin in the Bible. This whole story is repeated over and over again, the language, the events are repeated all throughout redemptive history. This exodus is a picture of salvation from the abusive taskmaster of the devil who in Exodus is Pharaoh.

What are your thoughts about this, about the Exodus? I was, parts of the passages this week I was listening to, and it's interesting the things that stand out to you when you're listening to some, like the Bible being read, there's great times that I find that beneficial, even in preparing a sermon that I've read a text, read a text, but I'll listen to it and you'll pick up different things. And the faith of a mother, and not really picked up on Moses' mother, and the women, the midwives. Just often we talk about the courage and tenacity of men, but yet what a beautiful picture of God's deliverance, protection of the children through the bold decisions, the faith of those women. And I'm thankful for the examples throughout Scripture, how Paul exhorted Timothy, you know, that Eunice and Lois, what a blessing they were to you, and to Moses his mom, and then the loving care of a sister, how God used that.

Many have big sisters, and God graciously used her in Moses's life to bring about his plan. Yeah, you know when I was going through this, I was getting wrapped up in the midwives like you were just mentioning. These were fearless women. What does womanhood look like? Well, you know, they look like these midwives.

They're not afraid. They're not afraid of Pharaoh, and God blesses them. Like Sarah, she wasn't frightened by any fear. Like the Proverbs 31 woman, she smiles on the future, she's not afraid. She fears God, but she doesn't fear other things.

Fearless women are so wonderful to have, and these these are great examples of just remarkable and loving women in the eyes of God. So you know the Pharaoh's afraid because the children of Israel are multiplying like crazy, and so he locks down, he wants to kill all these male children, and Moses, you know, he's growing up in the court, and he gets disturbed about what's happening, and he kills a man and he flees at age 40. He's at age 40, and he returns to Egypt at age 80. And then he dies at age 120. So you have these 40-year segments live and you know all all of this is here all the plagues of Egypt you know there's so much that we could talk about here.

Just any anything you'd like to say about Moses, the Exodus, like we end this reading right at the foot of Mount Sinai, okay? The Egyptian army's been destroyed, there's bitter water. There are all these challenges and and we and we leave them right at the foot Yeah What are we supposed to say about that? Yeah, a word that stood out to me, I think sometimes when you're seeing it in the bigger, sometimes you read smaller chunks, but it's good to read big chunks, the word distinction. That God would bring plagues upon Egypt, distinction between the livestock of the Egyptians and the livestock of the children of Israel.

The distinction of No hail was in Goshen, but it was everywhere else. That God's people, we are living as he has called us, we're a peculiar people, as first Peter says. And so there is to be a difference between us and the world, and that clear distinction. And what you see here is that God favors his people. He treats his people better.

That's the whole story here. Well, okay, so we're a little bit more than halfway through here. Let's turn to Matthew and let's get this part of the Gospels from Matthew 21 to 23. Now when we get to Matthew 21, we're in the last week of Jesus' life And we find ourselves in 21 with the triangulation. Now Matthew, don't forget Matthew, He is explaining how what's happening here is a fulfillment.

So in 21-4, all this was done that it might be fulfilled, which was spoken by the prophets saying, you know, tell the daughter of Zion, behold your king is coming to you. He's coming on a donkey. So this triumphal entry is a fulfillment of prophecy, for sure, and that God has mastery of all of history and every moment of history. And we're actually safe living in the context of God's history. It's His story, and so He's controlling it.

But so let's talk about the triumphal entry and, you know, the things that happen here in Matthew 21. You see the authority of Christ. I mean as King, they're showing the fulfillment even in their own words. Hosanna the son of David, blessed is he who comes. Really it comes from Psalm 118, a Messianic Psalm of that promised Messiah.

But then, His authority, when He goes in and cleanses the temple, shall be called a house of prayer, that you have made it a den of thieves, and that God has authority of how he is to be worshipped, where, well, it's whatever I feel like or whatever we think that works, and yet God, I believe the regulative principle is the biblical pattern that because God orders the worship of Him, and the beauty of that, that when we follow his ways in the worship of him. Interesting that we're reading this now, is we were just with a bunch of pastors up here in the Chicago area, where they founded their churches really on this whole principle. They desire God's authority in the structure of their churches. And it was really a blessing to be with them. It was neat to see how God's prospering their churches too.

But this fundamental principle is it's a reformational principle. That we do what God described and satisfied with that we humble ourselves under his authority and we do what God has said. So Jesus here drives the money changers out of the temple because they've turned his house into a house of merchandise on the Sabbath that's not what you're doing on this app. He leaves this whip and he goes and he drives them out. It's really an astonishing moment.

As Jesus was driving out the money changers and those who sold doves, verse 12, the chief priests wanted to drive out the children, and yet Jesus was saying, no, because they're crying out, Hosanna to the Son of David, continuing that same cry from the triumphal entry, and yet Jesus says, out of the mouths of babes will come praises. Just to see the importance that Jesus himself acknowledges the importance of children praising him, And it's not just for adults, not for children to wait until they're a certain age, but out of the mouths of babes, you have perfected praise from, I think it's Psalm 28. Isn't that amazing? You know, the educated, the religious, the highly trained didn't get it, but the children got it. You know, what a beautiful picture that is of children really understanding the kingdom and loving Jesus and recognizing the beauty of Jesus.

That's what they were doing. Children recognizing the superiority and glory and loving Jesus. What a beautiful picture that is. And there they were. They were right there in the temple, and the Pharisees wanted to drive them out.

The ones who actually needed or should have been there, Jesus is saying instead of the others. Yeah that is so amazing but I I'm just very I'm amazed you know often at how when you have a child Whose heart is really turned toward the Lord the sweet things that come from that child It's such a beautiful thing to see it And you don't think that they're hearing But they are actually here And and out of the mouth of babes come the praises of God. We don't know this, but I mean, they're quoting Psalm 118, so is that something that they had memorized at home? Again, that's speculation, but they were still words that they had picked up on. How much our children, I notice my children sometimes use phrases that I pray that they pick up on, and it causes me to think about, okay, how am I communicating the truths of God as I pray?

What am I singing about? What am I filling their mind with? Because that'll come out. Well okay, we've run our time. It goes fast, doesn't it?

Man, We didn't even get to chapter 22 or 23. You know, hey, chapter 23 ends with the Pharisees, woe to you. And here's the deal with the Pharisees, they're not who they say they are. And Jesus says, do what they say but don't don't act like them. And you know there's this whole authenticity that Jesus is promoting there in the worship of God and in the temple.

Well, we've got to go now, but Chris, thanks for sitting here and talking through these things. These are wonderful things. I pray for reconciliation in families, that we would all have God's perspective on things, that people might mean things for evil and that God means them for good, and that we would be like children in the marketplace, crying out and praising Jesus. Okay, thanks. Thank you.

Okay, we'll see you later. Bye-bye.