Genesis 40-41, Matthew 11:1-24

Okay, in chapter 40 we see God step up to the plate in Egypt. Most of them had ever heard of the “Living God”. Joseph hadn’t interpreted any dreams yet, in fact, if we think back, he had had many dreams of his own yet didn’t really know what they’d meant. Yet he’s willing to listen and see if God will speak to him. He was honest with the men even though it wouldn’t be popular with the baker. Of course even though he’d helped him, the butler soon forgot about that once he was back in his high position. Aren’t people like that now even? When they are down and people help them, they are thankful and think of them, but once they are back up on their feet they forget about it. We are like that with God as well I think. We cry out to him when we are in need, yet forget to be truly thankful when things are going well.
Finally though there is need of Joseph and the butler remembers him. This was Joseph’s chance to be free. All he had to do was to say he could understand the dream. Yet, he kept the credit where the credit was due. He gave the glory to God and because he did, God helped him. The dreams were very serious and they had implications for all of Egypt. Yet, they were also a plan given by God to survive the problem and ultimately protect his chosen people. Joseph is made governor and told to carry out the plan he had laid out. Basically if it doesn’t work, it is all Joseph’s fault. He is ultimately held accountable for his interpretation completely. Luckily Joseph was for real and God led him in how to organize the entire country to survive the famine and have plenty.
In Matthew chapter 11 we see the end of Jesus’ command to his disciples and some of his teaching to John’s disciples and the public. John is sitting in prison which probably was not in his plans. Most Jews at the time believed that the Messiah would come and rise up the nation and overcome the nations around them physically. They misunderstood that the Kingdom of God would first be a spiritual one. He will not reign and judge physically until his second coming. So there is John sitting in prison wondering when Jesus is going to rise up the nation and overturn their captors and release John. So he sends his disciples to basically try to push Jesus in my opinion. “Are you gonna act or are we waiting for someone else?” was what they asked him. Jesus basically points at what he has been doing and says that those who do not reject Jesus looking for another type of Messiah will be blessed. We cannot shape God to fit what we want. Many people today try to. We want all sorts of things to be permissible, they even want to twist it for political gains, or justify little things by saying that they are not really breaking the law. God is who he is and we can’t change that even if we want him to be something else.
In verse 7, John’s disciples go away and it’s not clear what their attitude was. Jesus turns to the crowd and praises John. He points out that other prophets only spoke of Jesus, John paved the way for him. He is the greatest of prophets. Jesus goes on to speak of violence against the kingdom of God and it being taken by force, until Jesus came. Now is different. I think this is a calling to see that things may not be as they expect them to be, but that John truly is the prophet to prepare the way for the Messiah, who is Jesus. They only need to keep their ears open to see the truth.
Jesus goes on to call out some Jewish cities and let them know that they will be more harshly judged than the gentile cities because they had been given the truth and should know better. Their sin of rejection is worse than any other. They know the signs of the Messiah, yet they reject it because it is not how they had hoped for. Those that hear the truth about Jesus and reject it because it's not what they would like for him to be will be far worse off than those who never heard of him at all.
Tomorrow’s reading is Psalms 9-12.