Doctrine: Repentance
Attribute: Love
Big Idea: God with love leads His people to repentance.
Guess Who?
The history beneath the Vatican – Life Magazine
In the Garden
Genesis 41:56-5756 When the famine had spread over the whole country, Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe throughout Egypt. 57 And all the world came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe everywhere.
Prayer
***Adoration
You are the God of love. Your love melts our resistance to You. Your love permeates our most difficult experiences and propels Your well-timed plans. Your love leads us to face our sin and brings us to a place of repentance and reconciliation. Your love is actively good and reflects Your absolute purity.
***Confession
Forgive us, Lord, when we fail to immediately repent and ignore Your tender call to forsake our sins.
***Thanksgiving
God, thank you for revealing our sins to us, not to shackle us in hopelessness, but to set us free. “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)
***Supplication
Father, we pray You will bring healing to the broken relationships in our homes, churches and communities. Only you can restore what sin has destroyed! Soften hearts; bring repentance; orchestrate your healing, restorative work.
Interestingly, the Egyptians would not eat with Joseph either, despite his status above them. Egyptians thought of themselves as gods and above all other societies. God, in His infinite wisdom, would use this as well. Because the Egyptians despised everything as foreign, including imports, they would have nothing to do with the people of God/Jacob’s family”. (From Joseph by Charles Swindol)
How has Judah changed and matured?
From the notes:“Judah’s past failures did not prevent him from rising to usefulness to God and others. He stepped up. He dealt gently and honorably with his father. He took full responsibility for Benjamin’s life when he was required to go to Egypt. He pled passionately with Joseph for mercy when the silver cup was found in Benjamin’s sack. He offered himself as a substitute, so Benjamin could return to Canaan and spare Jacob deep grief and pain.
God can use flawed people with a record of failure because He provides what they lack. People fail, but they can grow. God loves flawed people and lovingly works to reveal sin, prompt obedience and bring growth. God never fails.”
“Lord, Make Me an Instrument of Your Peace”
Geography of the Nile
2 Peter 2:99 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.