There we go. All right, here we go. The Dreamer,
the life of Joseph. Now, if you have the companion
piece, and again, I'm just going to let you guys
know because it's the first week, you will see
certain words underlined. That is to help you
in finding your answers. Okay, the answers that
are on there. I tried to make it something as
easy as I could do, knowing you're all a lot
smarter than I am. So hopefully you will figure
it out. If not, we will also send something out
or put it on social media with that, or you can
email and we'll send it to you. How many people
here... remember their dreams. How many of you
are willing to talk about any of your, oh, that
went straight down those hands, right? Some dreams,
right, some dreams can be exciting, right? Some
dreams you remember and are, you know, almost
like you're living in them the next day. Some
of your dreams are terrifying, we call those
nightmares or night terrors that are maybe still
with you at the end of the day. Now here, all
honesty, we've already prayed for the extension
of grace. How many of you that are in deep, meaningful
relationships, whether marriage or dating or
otherwise, that you have had a dream where you've
gotten so mad in your dream at your... I already
feel the tension rising. Already so mad that
you actually carry that anger through your day.
Come on. Show your hands. Right? Cheyenne, yours
went up way too fast. And so understanding that
there are times our dreams can really impact
us. There have been times that I've had dreams
where maybe I'm mad at Carrie or one of the boys
or the dogs, and I wake up and I don't want to
deal with them. And they're like, what is going
on? And I go, well, when you did that thing.
And they're looking at me like, you're insane,
more than they normally do. It's like those dreams
can impact us. And that really is the life of
Joseph. Joseph was a dreamer, that God met with
him in dreams. Some of us call it prophecy, right?
Some of us call it foreknowledge. But Joseph
had a gift and a connection with God about dreams.
So we're going to start with the power and the
problem of dreams. Because, again, I'm not a
dream interpreter, right? We're not going to
even go down that road. But God, throughout his
word, throughout the scriptures, the story of
the sovereign God, dreams are used. And there's
something powerful about dreams. And maybe not
just the kind you have at night, but the kind
that grips your heart. Maybe a lot of us live
in a dream or a deja vu because of things we
dreamed. We walk through things of life that
you've never done before, but you go, whoa, I've
been here before. Maybe that was a dream. That's
all done in what we call the subconscious, and
we can't really make sense of it. But the Lord,
the sovereign God, the one who gives us the subconscious,
works in that. We see that throughout scriptures.
The kind of dream that makes you believe something
might be possible. The kind of dream that whispers
God might be doing something here. But let's
be honest, dreams can be dangerous. Again, we
can hold on to issues in our dreams and carry
them on into everyday life, and that's never
good. Because what happens when the dream creates
tension? Or the dream doesn't make any sense?
Or the dream seems to make your life harder?
And maybe, even more honestly, what happens when
God gives you a glimpse of something in the future,
but not the full picture? That's where we meet
our friend Joseph. Not as a hero yet, not as
any kind of ruler, but as a young, immature,
favored, maybe a little arrogant dreamer. And
yet, God is already at work. So let's jump into
Genesis 37. So it's going to be the first 11
verses. Again, we use the ESV English Standard
Version for teaching. You use whatever you might
have on your phone or the Bible you brought with
you. It also is going to be on the screen. We're
going to be in Genesis 37, the first 11 verses.
Jacob lived in the land of his father's sojournings,
in the land of Canaan. These are the generations
of Jacob. Joseph, being 17 years old, was pastoring
the flock with his brothers. He was a boy with
the sons of Benah and Zalphah and his father's
wives. And Joseph brought a bad report of them
to their father. Now, Israel loved Joseph more
than any other of his sons because he was the
son of his old age. And he made him a robe of
many colors. But when his brothers saw that their
father loved him more than all of his brothers,
they hated him and could not speak peacefully
to him. Now Joseph had a dream. And when he told
his brothers, they hated him even more. He said
to them, hear this dream that I have dreamed.
Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field.
And behold, my sheave arose and stood upright.
And behold, your sheaves gathered around it and
bowed down to my sheave. His brother said to
him, Are you indeed to reign over us? Or are
you indeed to rule over us? So they hated him
even more for his dreams and for his words. Then
he dreamed another dream and told it to his brothers
and said, Behold, I have dreamed another dream.
Behold, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars
are bowing down to me. But when he told it to
his father and to his brothers, his father rebuked
him and said to him, What is this dream that
you have dreamed? Shall I and your mother and
your brothers indeed come to bow ourselves to
the ground before you? And his brothers were
jealous of him, but his father kept the saying
in mind. A lot going on there, right? We see
a lot about Joseph. We see a little bit about
Jacob. We see, unfortunately, about the brothers.
So let's... Break down this idea of dreams with
my first point. God speaks before we're ready.
Now just that in of itself binds us. Because
sometimes when we get a word from the Lord or
when we feel the Lord calling us to do something
or to move something, we don't believe we're
ready. That happens all the time. So Joseph receives
something real from God. It was a dream. It is
an imagination. It's not ambition. This is a
revelation from the Lord. But here's the tension.
Joseph has the dream, but not yet the maturity
to carry it. So when I'm reading this and I'm
doing my study, Joseph, being a young man, is
given something profound from God and does not
know how to carry it yet. You move that to the
New Testament, it's why new believers should
not be put in places of leadership. Because they
become conceited. Because there's something about
growing as a believer, getting weathered by the
ups and downs of life, to realize three profound
truths. I'm going off script, it's not on your
sheet. That we don't know everything, we'll never
know everything, and we need to be okay with
that. That's called wisdom. That's called maturity.
It's the arrogant one that always has an answer
for everything. It's the fool that believes they
know the same amount as God. And where does this
play out for Joseph? Because he shares his dream
quickly. Boldly. As I'm going to put it, without
wisdom. Hey brothers! You're all going to bow
down to me. How many of you have brothers? How
many this would go over well if you told them
the same thing? Really? You guys, Jack, Teddy,
you think that's going to go well? All right.
That's not exactly a recipe for family unity,
right? You're at family dinner. and you're in
the, well, we'll go, there's a lot, Schleicher
house, right? And one of the kids stands up and
said, you're all going to bow down to me one
day. Jason, how are you taking that? Loving,
okay, yeah. Jason is a better man than I, right?
Because mine would have been like, you can go
to your room. Yeah, bow down to me, I'll lock
you in a closet. And so understand that this
brought a lot of family tension. But don't miss
this. God often gives vision before he gives
formation. We see this throughout the scriptures,
especially in the Old Testament. Moses had a
calling before the wilderness had to shape him.
David was anointed before he was ready to reign
and lead. The disciples were called before they
understood the cross. We talked about that at
the communion table. And Joseph, well, he got
dreams before he was refined. This is not about
Joseph's greatness. This is about God's sovereign
initiative. The Belgian Confession, Article 13,
reminds us nothing happens in this world without
his, God's, orderly arrangement. Orderly arrangement.
Regardless of what my desk might look like. That
nothing can happen. It goes back to what we sang
about Lord's Day 1. Not a hair can fall from
my head without the will of my Father in heaven.
Even in this moment for Joseph. Even with the
immature sharing, even with the family tension,
all of this is under the providence of God. So
what can we learn from this? Well, for the head,
God's plans don't depend on our readiness. God's
not rolling the dice on you and saying, okay,
Al, you're ready. I can finally put you in. Okay,
Matt, you're good to go. I'm going to send you.
No. God's plans do not depend on our readiness.
For our heart. Don't despise where you are in
the process. Because some of us think we want
to be way farther along. I've got this. I know
everything I need to know. Let's go. Let's do
it. Trial by fire. God doesn't always put you
in that for our hands. Maybe we ask, what is
God forming in me right now? I would have loved
it if Joseph would have asked those questions
first. Because maybe what we're going to go to
next week would not have happened. But all under
the providences of God, what do we see the dream
reveal now? The dreams reveal the heart. His
brothers say to him, are you indeed to reign
over us? So they hated him even more. Now let
me pause here. Because some of you and your family
systems actually deal with hate. And this is
different than siblings saying, I hate that we
always get to watch your TV show. That's not
what we're talking about. There's a deep -seated
hatred here. There's a resentment here. And I
know that I know that I know some of you deal
with that in your family. It's something you
go back to. It's something you might not be able
to shake. But understand that God could be and
will be and probably is using you despite the
hatred in your family. Because we all fall under
the category of sin, right? We're all sinners
in need of a Savior. If you're not a sinner,
you shouldn't have taken communion. but understanding
that God has every right to hate us because of
our sin. But not only does he reign over us,
he extends us grace. But what this dream reveals,
what Joseph, in his words, now reveal about the
three different groups, first and foremost, it
reveals the future. It reveals the heart of not
only the brothers, but of Joseph and Jacob. So
the brother's heart, what does it reveal in the
brother's heart? First, jealousy, bitterness,
and rejection. Wendy, leave that one up there.
You might be dealing with that in your family.
You might be dealing with all three of those
things. God is still at work. God is not going
to leave you in that place. But if it's a heart
issue, what do we have to do? We have to crucify
our heart at the foot of the cross and walk out
with our hearts open to what the Lord has. But
that takes time. There's a process. I know for
me, I've had to work that out with my counselor.
Been in the ministry 22 years, seen a counselor
for 25. Why? Because my seminary made me do it.
And I'm forever thankful that they did. And just
a reminder, if mental health and seeing a counselor
is something you need, by all means, let's talk
about it and we'll get you set up with the many
individuals and counseling centers that we partner
with. But what does it reveal about Joseph's
heart? Well, perhaps pride or immaturity. Right?
He's given a story. Right? It's like a kid with
a candy. Right? He wants to go and tell people.
He wants to do a showing of naivety. That if
we had to think about our lives. that there are
times we're given maybe a good thought to say
or a comeback or something we want to post right
away, a reaction, and we hit post way before
we've prayed about it, way before we discerned
it. Because my guess is, I'm not even going to
make up a statistic for this, my guess is a lot
of the time that is a word that doesn't need
to be said, a phrase that doesn't need to be
posted, a shot or an arrow that does not need
to be shot. So it reveals Joseph's heart, potentially
pride. naivety, but definitely a lack of discernment.
You want to know a mark of a believer growing
in their faith? It is the word discernment. Or
if you go to the Beatitudes, a meekness. Knowing
when to speak, knowing when to not speak and
listen. What does it reveal about dad's heart,
Jacob's heart? I think there's confusion. There's
definitely concern. Yet, He keeps this saying.
He keeps what Joseph has in his mind. I found
that fascinating. Because here's what's happening.
God is using the dreams and the situations to
expose what's already there. Remember, Joseph
was favored. We're told that, right? I guarantee
you, if you have multiple siblings, there is
always going to be a conversation of who is the
favorite. And 99 % of the time, it's the youngest,
or at least in their mind, they believe that,
right? And the oldest can get resentful. All
of my oldest say amen. Well, we have a lot more
than that, but here we go. Understand, and then
the middle one just doesn't know what's going
on. And so understand that what is going on is
exposing what's already there. The dreams and
the movement that God has in your life, first
and foremost, is going to expose where you're
not faithful, where you're not following after
God. Spoiler alert, that stinks. That is a hard
place to be. But sometimes we have to go through
that to be refined by the fire. And this is still
how God works today, right? Success often reveals
pride. Waiting often reveals impatience. Conflict
often reveals what we truly trust, usually ourselves.
This is a picture of what's confessed in our
canons adored. That apart from grace, the human
heart always bends towards itself, towards sin.
But even in a covenant family, sin is present
and brokenness is real. And yet, God is not surprised
by any of it. Which, if we're being honest, is
a sobering thought. That even when we're sinning,
God is grieving something he already knew. Sit
in that for a minute. We're never going to pull
one over on God, right? We're never going to
go, ha ha, God, I got you. It's like trying to
play hide and seek with someone who's omniscient
and omnipresent. It doesn't work. So we've got
to ask ourselves before we go to our next point.
What has God used recently to expose your heart?
Not an easy question. Rarely do you get easy
answers. Is it success? Conflict? Maybe even
a warning? Where is he revealing something that
needs refining? Because guess what? We all have
it. We all need it. Because before God fulfills
the dream, he transforms the dreamer. This is
the amazing story of Joseph. And here's my third
point. That God's plan begins quietly. Not with
fanfare, right? Not with a parade, but quietly.
And his brothers were jealous of him, but his
father kept the saying in mind. This moment feels
small, but it is not insignificant. There's no
miracles happening. There's no angels. There's
no dramatic intervention. Things are just going
to go as they're going to go. But what do we
have as we start this sermon series? We have
a dream, multiple dreams. We have a divided family.
But we have a quiet, pondering father. And yet,
this is the beginning of God saving his people.
God is working even when nothing important seems
to be happening. We go, okay, this is going to
end up on Maury or whatever TV show we had to
watch when we got called sick or when we were
sick off of school and when Price is Right was
over. Right? This family should go there. But
God's doing something much bigger. He's giving
us a glimpse of salvation itself. Because this
dream will lead us to first a pit, to slavery,
to prison, to a pharaoh, to famine, but ultimately
to salvation. Joseph thinks it's about him. It's
not. When we think life's all about us, guess
what God's favorite thing to do is? Reminding
us that it's not. This is about preserving Israel.
Advancing the covenant and preparing the line
for Christ. Joseph is a shadow of something greater.
Joseph's story is ultimately about God's salvation
plan. And here's the truth. God's greatest dream
is not your success. It's your salvation. Nothing
happens outside of God's will. So let's connect
this to Christ, our Christ connection. Because
Joseph points us to Jesus. How? Let's break it
down. We have a beloved son in Joseph. We have
Jesus, the beloved son. Rejected by his own,
Christ was rejected by his own. Exalted after
suffering, as we will see, Christ is raised in
glory. Joseph is used to save many. And we'll
get to that part of the story. Christ saves eternally.
So friends, we're about to start a fun journey.
Six weeks we're going to be in this. Lean in.
Enter these places with me as we go where Joseph
is going to go. Because sometimes, or all the
time, we don't understand the dream. So what
do we do when we don't understand the dream?
Some of you are in one of these places right
now. You might be here today feeling like God
has placed something on your heart, but it hasn't
happened yet. And you just want to see God move.
But God is saying, wait. Maybe you're in the
middle of tension that doesn't make sense. Submit
that tension and yourself to the cross. Because
when you think you're above the tension is usually
when that tension takes you down. Or maybe you're
here today wondering if God is even working at
all or if God's even real. If you're here today,
please come find me. Come find one of the elders.
We'll only be able to explain it to you in our
testimony, but there's power in that. That God
is real and he is at work. Because Genesis 37
reminds us today, God is working even when you
don't understand. Spoiler alert, not about you.
God is forming. even when it feels uncomfortable.
And ultimately, God is leading even when the
path feels unclear. Let me sit on this one for
one minute. God is leading even when the path
feels unclear. As a church, there's many paths
that we're going right now. Staffing, building,
new ministries, all the things. And as a church,
we'd love to know what the next 3, 5, 10, 15,
20 years are going to look like. Some of you
are like, 20 years? I don't have to worry about
it. I'll be in glory. But understand that the
best thing we can do as a church, bind together,
even when we don't agree, even when we maybe
sit on different sides of whatever aisle, but
binding together under the cross of Christ to
keep walking if and when God says walk. Through
disagreements, through conflict, through interest
payments, through all the things, we are called
to do it together because that is the church
of Jesus Christ. That is the church of 214 Ridge
Road. So my final challenge for this sermon as
we lead to the next sermon, let's not rush the
dream. Let's not force the outcome. And let's
not assume that we see the full picture. Instead,
together, let us trust the God who gave all of
it to the right people. Because friends, next
week, the dream doesn't get easier. It actually
gets a lot darker. Joseph is going to be sold.
And it will look like the dream might be dead.
But what we'll see is this. God's providence
is not going to stop just because of a pit. Take
that for your life. We're going to see it in
the life of Joseph. Let's pray.