How Did Joseph's Dreams Really Get Fulfilled in Genesis 41?

   What was going on with Joseph’s dreams?  First off, would you have told your brothers that you had just dreamed that they were all going to bow down to you someday?  Didn’t he know that saying that would make them all hate him? 

On a sky train at River Front Park

     Fast forward to the scene in Genesis  37:18-28 where the brothers all see Joseph coming to check up on them and then conspire to get rid of him.  But when someone spies a caravan of traders in the distance, they change their minds and decide  to sell Joseph instead because after all he is their brother.  I’m totally thinking who are these people? You can almost see them clapping saying something like Let's see what happens to his dreams now!   It’s hard to believe they were actually the sons of a biblical patriarch.

      And as far as the dreams went, things didn’t look very good at all.  Especially when Joseph's working at Potiphar’s and his wife tells a big fat lie that throws him into prison.  And not just for one or two years either.  I did the math one time and it looks like he was there over 10 years!  I wonder if Joseph ever wondered how does working in this prison have anything to do with my dreams?

     When Joseph had been in prison about ten years, the Bible says the chief cupbearer and baker got imprisoned.  They had some really strange dreams, but Joseph explained them, and they come out exactly as he said. His parting words were like hey let Pharaoh know I was thrown in here unjustly.  But we know from Scripture that the cupbearer forgot.

     Have you ever thought about how Joseph’s dreams were actually fulfilled?  I learned in chapter 114 of the Life-Study of Genesis that it came from interpreting the dreams of others when his own hadn’t even been fulfilled.  Here’s some inspiring excerpts from pages 1471-1475 of that chapter:

.Joseph dreamed that he was a sheaf rising up and that his brothers were bowing down to him.  Ten years went by, and still this dream had not been fulfilled.  If this had happened to us, we would have been disappointed to the uttermost and said, ‘Forget about this dream. I’m through with being a dreamer and with hearing about dreams.’  If Joseph had done this, he probably

With my grandkids on the sky train.

would never have been released from prison. He was released from the dungeon by his speaking….Concerning the dream, the vision, it matters a great deal whether we say yes or no; for either our yes or our no will come true. Joseph’s speaking not only released him from prison, but also ushered him to the throne.  Joseph spoke himself to the throne. He was given authority directly through his interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams (41:25-44)….Do not say that you are not qualified to speak, for the more you say that you are not qualified, and that you are in a dungeon, the longer you will remain in the dungeon….Learn to speak yourself out of your dungeon….A victorious and overcoming Christian will always be a dreamer….Day by day, let us all speak according to our vision, according to our dreams (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Genesis.  Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry 1978, Print).

      At the end of this chapter Witness Lee says that if Joseph would have gone into Pharaoh with an uncertain attitude about his ability to interpret his dreams, he would have been sent back to prison. In spite of Joseph’s own dreams not being fulfilled, he spoke boldly to Pharaoh. This is the point that touches my heart the most in this chapter--Joseph actually spoke his dreams into being!!

You can  also listen to live excerpts from these messages on  Genesis on Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee.  

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Genesis:

From the Life-Study of Genesis - What is the Focus of the Bible?
What Happened Between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2?
Why Did God Create Man in Genesis 1:26?
Why Did God Create Man With 3 Parts in Genesis 2:7?
Why Did God Put Man in Front of the Two Trees in Genesis 2?
Seeing God's Purpose of Life & Building in the Book of Genesis
What is the Story Behind the Story of Cain & Abel?
What Did Enosh Learn to Do in Genesis 4:26?
How Did Enoch Escape Death in Genesis 5:24?
Why Did Noah Need to Find Grace in Genesis 6:8?
What Does the Rainbow Symbolize in Genesis 9:13?
How Did God Call Abraham in Genesis 12:1?
How Did God Fulfill the Birth of Isaac in Genesis 12:7?
What Does the Marriage of Isaac & Rebekah Show in Genesis 24?
How Does the Story of Jacob Show God's Selection in Genesis 25?
Why Did Jacob Dream About a Ladder in Genesis 28:12?
Seeing Our Spiritual Journey in the Lives of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, & Joseph
Why Did Jacob Call the Two Altars in Genesis 33 & 35 By Different Names?
How Do the Stories of Jacob & Joseph Mirror God's Purpose in Genesis 1:26?

Savory Roasted Root Vegetables

    In December my husband and I went out to dinner with some of his family.  It was a beautiful buffet, and along with the prime rib they served mashed potatoes and some roasted root vegetables that were so tasty.  Definitely a taste that I wanted to savor with every bite.  

 Actually they were so good that I decided to make them the next  week so the international students who board with us could know what I was talking about.   

I served these roasted vegetables with oven fried chicken, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, and a salad. I don't remember where I picked up this recipe, but it brought home all those same amazing flavors!  

ROASTED ROOT VEGETABLES

1.  Prepare 3 pounds of root vegetables - Scrub all the vegetables and then cut them into 1" cubes: or all different kinds of shapes:
(1)  1 rutabaga
(2)  2-3 parsnips
(3)  2-3 beets
(4)  1/4 to 1/2 of a medium sized butternut squash
(5)  2-3 sweet potatoes
(6)  3 carrots
(7)  Optional:  1 onion and 2 Yukon gold potatoes.  You can also substitute turnips for the rutabaga.

2.  Toss with seasonings:   Place in a large bowl or just do it in the pan and toss with 1/4 cup of olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and 1 teaspoon each of rosemary, thyme, and sage.  

3.  Roast vegetables:  Put them in a large  9 x 13 pan and roast at 400 for 20-25 minutes.  Flip and then roast another  20-25 minutes or until tender.

List of Vegetarian Recipes on this Blog:

Pasta:

Oh So Good Vegetarian Lasagna  (From Internet search)

Fantastic Gluten Free Macaroni & Cheese  (Modified from Heritage & Internet search)
Making Pad Thai With a Thai Student  (Just omit the chicken)

 

Other Main Dish Entrees:

Cheese & Vegetable Enchiladas

Scalloped Potatoes  (My Mother-in-law's recipe)

Amazing Vegetable Panang Curry  

Make Your Own Thai Fresh Rolls 

Gluten Free Mexican Quinoa Casserole  (From an Internet search)
 

Recipes with Quinoa:

Baja Salad with Black Beans & Quinoa   (My copycat of a salad I had at a restaurant)

Gluten Free Mexican Quinoa Casserole

 

Tofu & Rice Main Dishes:

Gluten Free Tofu & Vegetable Stir Fry   (Modified from Internet)

Orange "Beef" Tofu Stir Fry   (Modified from Internet)

Vietnamese Saigon Style Tofu Curry  (Idea from Internet search; curry sauce recipe from a friend)

Fabulous Gluten Free Fried Rice

 Beans:

Best Recipe for Boston Baked Beans

Grandma Pitcher's Family Favorite Baked Beans   (My husband's grandmother gave me this)

My Aunt Janie's Pennsylvania Baked Beans   (From my aunt)

Breakfast for Dinner:

Hash Brown Egg Casserole  (From my friend Lisa)

Mexican Migas Breakfast Casserole  (Modified from a recipe from an airport cookbook)

Baked Zucchini Frittata  (I picked this up from a Whidbey Island farmer's market)

How Do the Stories of Jacob & Joseph Mirror God's Purpose in Genesis 1:26?

    The story of Joseph is not just about sibling rivalry gone haywire.  As far as that goes, the brothers' jealousy and plotting to get rid of Joseph seems more like a modern day drama than a story out of the Bible.   But the fact that it did actually encourages me.  If Jacob's family had been too perfect, I wouldn't be that able to relate to them.  These Life-Studies on Jacob and Joseph have encouraged me for many years to not give up. 

   And it's not like Joseph did anything to deserve being sold to traders or unjustly accused by Potiphar's wife and then thrown into the dungeon.  And it's not like he was there for just three months or two years--Joseph was in prison for over ten years!! 

  But when Joseph becomes second in command, you don't see a bitter young man trying to get even with society or his family.  You see a true reflection of God.  I was fascinated to see on pages 1188 and 1190  in chapter 92 of the Life-Study of Genesis that the story Jacob and Joseph's story show how God fulfilled His desire that man have His image and dominion:

"The subject of Genesis is man bearing the image of God and exercising God's dominion over all things….In order to know this in a progressive way, we need all fifty chapters of this book. All the generations recorded in it--Adam, Abel, Enosh, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph--are for one purpose: to show that God's economy in the universe is to express Himself through man. This is God's purpose, God's goal, and the desire of God's heart….The record in the Bible has a purpose.  Genesis, a book of God's image and dominion, shows a complete picture of how human beings can be remade and transformed to express God in His image and to represent Him with His dominion.  The last fourteen chapters of Genesis indicate that after Jacob had become Israel, he bore the image of God and exercised the dominion of God.  The book of Genesis is complete; it ends the way it begins.  It begins and ends with God's image and dominion" (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Genesis. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1977, Print). 

     From my reading I saw that everything that happened to Joseph was actually training him to become a ruler of Egypt.  At every turn he was actually being disciplined and prepared for the throne.  And God is doing the same thing in our lives.

You can  also listen to live excerpts from these messages on  Genesis on Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee.  

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Genesis:

From the Life-Study of Genesis - What is the Focus of the Bible?
What Happened Between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2?
Why Did God Create Man in Genesis 1:26?
Why Did God Create Man With 3 Parts in Genesis 2:7?
Why Did God Put Man in Front of the Two Trees in Genesis 2?
Seeing God's Purpose of Life & Building in the Book of Genesis
What is the Story Behind the Story of Cain & Abel?
What Did Enosh Learn to Do in Genesis 4:26?
How Did Enoch Escape Death in Genesis 5:24?
Why Did Noah Need to Find Grace in Genesis 6:8?
What Does the Rainbow Symbolize in Genesis 9:13?
How Did God Call Abraham in Genesis 12:1?
How Did God Fulfill the Birth of Isaac in Genesis 12:7?
What Does the Marriage of Isaac & Rebekah Show in Genesis 24?
How Does the Story of Jacob Show God's Selection in Genesis 25?
Why Did Jacob Dream About a Ladder in Genesis 28:12?
Seeing Our Spiritual Journey in the Lives of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, & Joseph
What is the Meaning of the Two Altars in Genesis 33 & 35?