The Life of Joseph According to Stephen
9 "Because the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him
10 and rescued him from all his troubles. He gave Joseph wisdom and enabled him to gain the goodwill of Pharaoh king of Egypt; so he made him ruler over Egypt and all his palace.
11 "Then a famine struck all Egypt and Canaan, bringing great suffering, and our fathers could not find food.
12 When Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers on their first visit.
13 On their second visit, Joseph told his brothers who he was, and Pharaoh learned about Joseph's family.
14 After this, Joseph sent for his father Jacob and his whole family, seventy-five in all.
15 Then Jacob went down to Egypt, where he and our fathers died.
16 Their bodies were brought back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought from the sons of Hamor at Shechem for a certain sum of money.
A. God did not abandon Joseph (Immanuel)
1) Suffering too great for one person to bear
2) Not just a human success story, but a part of God's plan to save a nation
B. Joseph's life was a prophecy of the savior to come
1) The sufferer would bring salvation to his people
2) Crucifying Jesus and not believing in his resurrection amounts to rebellion against God
Summary
We have been given the Bible so that we can learn from human history and from prophecies. Stephen wanted people to believe in Jesus Christ and spoke of God's plan of salvation that began during the time of the Old Testament. Joseph's life foreshadowed Jesus' suffering and glory. Because Joseph's response suffering was not despair or anger, he was able to experience God's presence during difficult times. Jesus did not just come for the people of Judea, but came as Immanuel for all of us. If we don't accept Jesus as Lord, we become like those who refused to believe in his resurrection and persecuted Stephen to the point of death.
For Discussion
1) Why was Joseph able to bear his suffering?
2) How is Joseph's life like that of Jesus?