Why Did God Allow Joseph to Suffer So Much?
SHORT ANSWER
I also love the story of Joseph. He was a man who lived faithfully in a fallen world. He became a slave on the bottom of society--with no friends and no prospects. But Joseph had faith in God, God’s power and God’s love. God was with Joseph every step of the way, even during those when Joseph may have felt alone. God was with Joseph in his father's house, in the house of Potiphar; and in prison. God raised Joseph up and empowered him to rule all Egypt. Joseph never forgot that God was with him. His faith allowed him to ride out the dark days to the time when he even ruled mighty Egypt. And ultimately, God used him to preserve a remnant of God's people thru a terrible famine to keep his promise to Abraham. He is a giant of faith as an example for us thru difficult times.
LONG ANSWER
The Story of Joseph In Acts
A wonderful summary of Joseph can be found in the Book of Acts. Acts includes the story of how Stephen (the first Christian Martyr) was tried by the Sanhedrin of his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
They charged him with blasphemy against Moses and God…
Acts 6:11 (New International Version)
11Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, "We have heard Stephen speak words of blasphemy against Moses and against God."
And for speaking against the Temple and the Law…
Acts 6:13-14 (New International Version)
13They produced false witnesses, who testified, "This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. 14For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us."
And was then stoned to death (c. A.D. 34–35) by an infuriated mob encouraged by Saul of Tarsus, the future Saint Paul: "And Saul entirely approved of putting him to death" (8:1). I especially find Stephen's final speech inspiring as he recounts the History of the Jews including the story of Joseph which we are finishing in our daily readings this week.
Acts 7:8-20 (New International Version)
8Then he gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision. And Abraham became the father of Isaac and circumcised him eight days after his birth. Later Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs.
9"Because the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him 10and rescued him from all his troubles. He gave Joseph wisdom and enabled him to gain the goodwill of Pharaoh king of Egypt; so he made him ruler over Egypt and all his palace.
11"Then a famine struck all Egypt and Canaan, bringing great suffering, and our fathers could not find food. 12When Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers on their first visit. 13On their second visit, Joseph told his brothers who he was, and Pharaoh learned about Joseph's family. 14After this, Joseph sent for his father Jacob and his whole family, seventy-five in all. 15Then Jacob went down to Egypt, where he and our fathers died. 16Their bodies were brought back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought from the sons of Hamor at Shechem for a certain sum of money.
17"As the time drew near for God to fulfill his promise to Abraham, the number of our people in Egypt greatly increased. 18Then another king, who knew nothing about Joseph, became ruler of Egypt. 19He dealt treacherously with our people and oppressed our forefathers by forcing them to throw out their newborn babies so that they would die.
20"At that time Moses was born, and he was no ordinary child.
Joseph’s Faith: An Example For All
Joseph had many years of separation from his people after being sold into slavery by his brothers, anxiety of being in a foreign land, being falsely accused and imprisoned and living with the uncertainty of his future, but his faith in God never wavered. He stuck to his moral principles based on his relationship to God in spite of the cost. But even more importantly he knew that God’s hand was active throughout all of his trials knowing that God had a divine purpose.
Genesis 50:20 (New International Version)
20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.
Joseph was used as the bridge into Egypt. In the short term, they were saved from a severe famine. In the long term, God had promised Abraham that his descendants would be slaves in a foreign country for 400 years--God would use this as a crucible to melt and mold them into a nation of people with a common history and a common destiny.
And even to his last years, Joseph had held to his faith with his belief in God’s promise to Abraham and his descendants. He did not want his remains to stay behind in Egypt when his people, someday would leave.
Hebrews 11:22 (New International Version)
22By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions about his bones.
Faith in God’s Promises
We can see then that Joseph was a man of faith in times of great change both in his own life and in a changing world. He had a faith that was eventually rewarded after enduring many trials and tribulations. Joseph is an example for us that faith can sustain us even in dire extreme situations.
Faith echoes in our hearts the words of the Lord’s Prayer ‘Thy will be done’. We may be mocked by others as we hold to our obedience to what we know must be done. How do we do this? It is done by faith in what God has promised to us and we can be assured that His promises will not fail. It is between the promises and their fulfillment that we find faith.
The Faith Heroes of Hebrews
The 11th chapter of Hebrews is a celebration of those men and women of faith in the Old Testament. Joseph, along with many men and women in Bible times looked forward in confidence with their faith steadfast and undiminished.
Hebrews 11:39 (New International Version)
39These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised.
Between the testimony of the Scriptures and the coming again of Christ there is faith.
Joseph’s experiences were the means of helping his own family, of preserving their lives and assisting in the development of the nation of Israel under the control of the Almighty.
His life with all his trials and tribulations is a great example to us in these times of great change and uncertainty. Our faith in God should be unshakeable like Jospeh’s; and will be fully vindicated when the faithful of all ages stand up in the day of resurrection to receive the promise we find in Hebrews.
Hebrews 11:40 (New International Version)
40God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.
Fearful To Fearless | Fear Not - Don't Worry - Fear God brings together almost 400 passages of scripture to demonstrate or direct us to not be afraid, to not worry or be anxious, to look to Christ for strength and comfort, and be transformed to have a worshipful fear and awe of God.
