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By: Tim Wolff You may listen to this devotion in audio form via podcast here.
Because the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him and rescued him from all his troubles. He gave Joseph wisdom and enabled him to gain the goodwill of Pharaoh king of Egypt. So Pharaoh made him ruler over Egypt and all his palace.
- Acts 7:9-10
As I sat down to write this, and I picked my passage, I was excited about the straight forward message. Life can be really hard. You can be put in situations that had nothing to do with your own actions (though to be fair, Joseph definitely provoked his brothers) and there’s just no way around it. But, we know that we serve a powerful God, the same God that turned Joseph’s slavery sale-turned-imprisonment into the second best job opportunity in the world, the right hand man to Pharaoh. God used Joseph’s hardship to not only save his family but also the future of the entire Israelite nation! Wow, what a great lesson.
But, that dang living Word seems to teach you something every time you read and reread it. And, that’s not to say this first lesson isn’t true, because it is. God truly does use hard times in our life to serve his greater purpose. Things don’t always make sense or seem to be working out, but we see time and time again in scripture how God makes the unthinkable connect for his glory in the end. We just need to be patient enough to watch his plan unfold. We need to trust that when God is with us, everything will work out.
But that’s not the only lesson God taught me as I read today’s passage. He reminded me that context is key, so I went back a paragraph and then another until I ended up reading Acts 6-7. As I’m reminded of the life of Stephen I see how quickly the religious folk he interacted with rose as an opposition. He wasn’t two verses into his ministry before people began questioning the power or the source of his miracles (Acts 6:9). I would love to think so highly of myself to ask the question, how are people preparing to stone me like they did Stephen? But, if I’m being honest my deeper question is who am I shutting up because I don’t like the way they preach? Who am I shutting down because I don’t agree with their methods? Who am I seeking to silence because they seem to be building a following? I have the tendency to want to be the main character, and my sinful nature too often has me in the role as the protagonist.
These aren’t easy questions to answer either. I can’t say for certain but my guess is that these men who stoned Stephen truly believed they were doing the right thing in the name of their God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I’d put money on the fact that the Pharisees actually believed it when they said that Jesus was a lunatic simply stirring up trouble. So, how do I then figure out where I’m really pushing away God while I think I’m honoring Him? How am I supposed to know when I’m not being the Stephen but actually the one throwing stones? If I had those answers I probably would have started this devotion with them. The one surefire way I have right now is prayer. Maybe a prayer that goes something like this:
Holy Father,
You are a magnificent and powerful God and I am a weak man that continues to try to elevate himself in the name of worshiping you. Even in my own attempts to bring you glory, I seek my own. Allow me eyes to see you, a heart to know your love, hands to serve as you have served. Lord give me your feet that I may walk in your way and bring you alone the glory forever and ever.
Amen.