The Third Sunday of Easter (OT)

Genesis 45:1-15

Then Joseph could not control himself before all those who stood by him. He cried, “Make everyone go out from me.” So no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. ² And he wept aloud, so that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it. ³ And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence.

⁴ So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.” And they came near. And he said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. ⁵ And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. ⁶ For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are yet five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. ⁷ And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. ⁸ So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt. ⁹ Hurry and go up to my father and say to him, ‘Thus says your son Joseph, God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; do not tarry. ¹⁰ You shall dwell in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children’s children, and your flocks, your herds, and all that you have. ¹¹ There I will provide for you, for there are yet five years of famine to come, so that you and your household, and all that you have, do not come to poverty.’ ¹² And now your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see, that it is my mouth that speaks to you. ¹³ You must tell my father of all my honor in Egypt, and of all that you have seen. Hurry and bring my father down here.” ¹⁴ Then he fell upon his brother Benjamin’s neck and wept, and Benjamin wept upon his neck. ¹⁵ And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them. After that his brothers talked with him.

What was hidden from their eyes is now revealed! Joseph did not hide behind a curtain or silly mask. It had just been a long time since the brothers did this wreched act to him. But now the brother's see Joseph is their savior. He is the one God has provided for them to find food and comfort in the Land of Egypt.

It may seem strange to say, in the bible someone is finding comfort in the land of Egypt. But we are traversing a world full of sin and oppression. Ideas and thoughts are policed by politeness. Speech and proclamation are hampered by equality. It makes it difficult to speak the truth in a dying World. There is a famine in the land, and in our lives. The famine is not bread, but morality, righteousness, and purity.

This may be a stretch, but God has provided us with a righteous, moral, and pure brother. This brother may be hard to recognize from time to time. He is there to feed us with his righteousness, holiness, and purity. He provides us forgiveness of our guilt, shame, and sorrow. He covers us, or cloths us, with his righteousness in this world of Sin. This brother is Jesus Christ our Savior.