Joseph’s Eyes

Then Joseph said to his brothers, “. . . God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.”
Genesis 45:4,7

Daily Devotion – February 22, 2022

Devotion based on Genesis 45:4,7

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And so there Joseph stood. As the Prime Minister of Egypt, he had just revealed to his brothers his true identity. He was their brother, Joseph—the very one his brothers sold into slavery many years earlier.

In that moment, Joseph could have fixed his eyes only on his brothers. He could have filled his field of vision only with what they had done to him so many years earlier.

But he didn’t. Instead, by God’s grace, Joseph’s eyes rested on his Lord. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Joseph could see that God’s hand had been guiding his life all along. He could see that God’s hand had caused even the past actions of his brothers to submit to his good and gracious will.

Like Joseph, you and I can have times when we can easily fix our eyes only on those who have hurt us. Perhaps there’s someone who has disappointed us. Perhaps there’s someone who has humiliated us. Perhaps there’s someone who has abandoned us.

If that is where we fix our eyes, however, then we are placing our eyes precisely where Satan wants them to be. For when we look only at those who have hurt us, then we are blocking our line of sight to see the hand of God.

But that’s why Jesus came. As our substitute, he lived a life of perfect trust in his heavenly Father’s will. Even when he endured the cruelty of sinful men, Jesus knew that his heavenly Father would guide it all for good. The result was full forgiveness for our every sin. The result was a home for each of us in heaven. The result was a place for you and me in God’s family through faith in his Son. That, and God’s promise that he will guide all things in your life for good.

And here’s the best part. It is his very forgiveness of our sins that empowers you and me to lift up our eyes and see God’s guiding hand.

Prayer:
Lord, lift up my eyes to see that your hand is always at work in my life. Amen.

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