Stephen continues his amazing sermon before the Sanhedrin in Acts 7:9-16. The high priest has basically asked him how he pleads to the charge of blasphemy (Acts 7:1).
Instead of answering the question, Steve begins by flipping open the Bible and proving to the council that Jesus is indeed the long-awaited Messiah that God promised throughout the Old Testament.
In other words, Steve says the entire OT is about Jesus!
We must not get sidetracked when we study the OT. These are not a series of moral stories about great men and women who are to be emulated. Not at all. They are not the heroes of the story.
This is God's story! He is the Hero! Through the OT, He shows us how He consistently does amazing things through the lives of jacked up, stiff necked, sinful people.
God is the Hero of the story!
Steve first tells the story of how God graciously interacted with Abraham, his son Isaac, grandson Jacob and his great grandchildren, "the twelve patriarchs" (Acts 7:2-8).
Again, don’t take the bait and see these men as great examples. This is messed up bunch that God graciously used.
Abraham lied about his wife to save his own skin, not once, but twice. Isaac was the head of horribly dysfunctional family. Jacob was a conniving backstabber who schemes to get his brother's birthright.
At this point, I would strongly encourage a reading of Genesis 37, 39-49. This is the story of Joseph that Steve is about to relate.
This leads us to the twelve patriarchs. Surely the dozen sons of Jacob were the pillars upon which the nation of Israel stands. These twelve men are so famous and respected that the twelve tribes take their names from them.
But there's just one problem with all of that. It's not true. Jake's boys put the funk in dysfunction. These so-called twelve patriarchs are probably better understood as the Dirty Dozen.
Stephen tells us that "the patriarchs, jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt" (v9). Not exactly the behavior you'd expect from the founding fathers of your faith.
The reason this shouldn't surprise us is that the twelve patriarchs aren't the heroes of the story. And neither is their brother Joseph.
Sure, he is less culpable but he's brought some of this on himself with all this immature talk that his brothers and parents would bow down before him (Gen 37:6-11). Talk about a cocky kid brother!
Joseph is just, well, an average Joe. There's just one thing different about the boy. "But God was with him" (v9). An average Joe accompanied by our awesome Jehovah. God's great big hand is strongly on little Joe as he rolls into Egypt.
The presence of God in someone’s life means nothing but lifestyles of the rich and famous, right? Wrong.
It’s not long before Joe is wrongly convicted of raping his boss’ wife and tossed into prison for decades. But he was able to stand strong because "God was with him” (v9).
Joe didn't use any great skill or wisdom to break out of prison. Nope. This was God at work.
Don't forget, God is the Hero of Joe's story. It's God that "rescued him out of all his afflictions" (v10).
But this amazing comeback story of our average Joe doesn't stop there. God then "gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt” (v10). From the prison cell to the throne room. Talk about a turnaround!
God eventually places Joseph as number two in authority of the Egyptian government under Pharaoh. Our sovereign Lord then brings Joe's family to town looking for food during a famine. Eventually, Jacob and the entire fam pack up and move to Egypt.
God is not only the Hero of average Joe's story, He's the Hero of the Old Testament. He's the Hero of the entire Bible. And He's the Hero of my story. Hopefully, He's the Hero of your story.
The story of Joseph reminds us that any average Joe that God chooses to use will do great things. Because He is the Hero of the story.
©2011
Jay Jennings
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