INTEGRITY & FORGIVENESS

1. © Dr. Pothana
Meditation on “Joseph”: Part-3
INTEGRITY & FORGIVENESS
• Joseph’s life in prison as an innocent man (a dark time).
• How God uses our dark times of life.
• How to deal with dark times in life.

2. JOSEPH-Part 3
INTEGRITY & FORGIVENESS

3. • Thrown in pit Sold into
slavery Falsely accused
Imprisoned Forgotten
I have the right to be angry!
Thrown in pit Sold
into slavery Falsely
accused
Imprisoned
Forgotten

4. Genesis45:3
•“ I am Joseph !
•Is MY Father still
living?”

5. Genesis 45:4-5
• “come close to me.
• When they ( 10 brothers) had done so, he said
, “ I am your brother JOSEPH , the one you
sold into Egypt. “
• Do not be distressed.
• Do not be angry with yourselves for selling me
here.
• Because it was to save lives that God sent
me ahead of you .

6. Genesis 45:8
•It was not you
who sent me
here, but God

7. Forgiveness (1)
• please come near to me ; it is very heart
touching, because Joseph who was mistreated
by his brothers in the distant past is asking for his
brothers to come close to himself and have a
private conversation with them in stead of
shying away from them or in stead of avoiding
them in word or in action. Joseph is the
one who chose to shorten the
distance between himself and his
brothers.

8. Forgiveness (2)
• It is a remarkable scene to behold and there is
something special to learn from it. In 9 out
10, under an ordinary circumstance ,
most of people would have
mistreated his brothers for their past
sin or mistakes, or malicious intention to
harm Joseph when he (Joseph ) was in a weak
position and totally powerless, no social or
political power at all.

9. Forgiveness (3)
• Yet Joseph did not return evil for evil ! it is truly
remarkable to behold and meditate on it. The
take home point is : do not return evil
for evil and return good for evil ! it
is difficult to do it in actual life situation . The
human nature is to return good for good and
return evil for evil ! it is a fair game. It takes a
special courage and a real firm, rock solid
character to return good for evil.!

10. Forgiveness (4)
•I am Joseph , your
brother, whom you sold
into Egypt ;
•comparison between
Joseph and Jesus:

11. Joseph & Jesus
Josh
• Was mistreated by his
brothers
• Coat of many colors, Jocob’s
favorite among his sons.
Joseph in the heart of
Jacob
• Was sold to Egypt for
slavery by his own brothers
Jesus
• Was mistreated by Jews and
eventually killed
• God’s most favorite in
heaven, Jesus in the heart
of the Father.
• Was betrayed by his own
disciple to Jews

12. • Blood stained garment of
Joseph to Jacob , the father to
signify the death of Joseph
• Heir of the wealthy family
• Many temptations by Egyptian
woman , but no record of
sinning against God’s principle
• Among two individuals , a
baker and a butler. the baker
died, the butler lived
• Arose from prison to palace in
one day
• Blood stain of Jesus on the cross
and blood stain garment left here
on earth
• King of the kings. Heir of god head,
household in heaven, Jesus , god
head
• Jesus was tempted by Satan to sin
but to no avail. No record of
sinning against God
• Jesus between the two
individuals, thieves. One thief-
dead, the other thief- saved ,
believing in Jesus.
• Arose from death to life in one day

13. • Among two individuals , a
baker and a butler. the
baker died, the butler lived
• Arose from prison to palace
in one day
• Jesus between the two
individuals, thieves. One
thief- dead, the other thief-
saved , believing in Jesus.
• Arose from death to life in
one day

14. • Joseph instrumental for
bringing Jacob and his
family ( Israel ) at the time
of famine to Egypt and get
them out of slavery at
Egypt to canaan , (-)=(+)=(-
)=(+)
• Jesus instrumental in
bringing God’s people from
the slavery to sin to
salvation , eternal life . (-
)=(+)

15. • Stored and saved grain, (
bread) for emergency;
noah; prepared the ark for
the coming flood , with one
year supply of foods for his
human beings and animals.
• Jesus= bread of life = foods=
source of life or energy

16. • The whole world came to
Joseph for foods in Egypt,
because he stored and
prepared the foods for
emergency at the time of
famine; there was no other
alternative or other choice
to make. Every one came to
Joseph.
• The whole world came to
Jesus, no other alternative
or choice except to come to
Jesus for eternal life and
salvation

17. • 10 other brothers came to
Joseph for foods and circle
and bowed down in front of
Joseph, Joseph in the center
and all other brothers in the
periphery
• Joseph did not return evil for
evil but good for evil . did not
retaliate his brothers for their
wrongs in the past , did not
abuse his authority and power
for his own good
• Everyone came to Jesus and
worship and bow down in
front of Jesus, Jesus in the
center and everyone in the
periphery

18. • Joseph did not return evil
for evil but good for evil .
did not retaliate his
brothers for their wrongs in
the past , did not abuse his
authority and power for his
own good
• Jesus never use or abuse his
authority or power for his
own good or show ,or
display for public relation
(PR)

19. • Joseph wanted to embrace
his own blood related
brother – Benjamin,
restrained himself from
public eyes for a while but
could not do so for ever ,
reveal himself to his own
brothers by taking out the
veil or mask from his face
• Jesus wants to take veil and
mask from our eyes and
wants to reveal himself to
us . we can see himself ,
Jesus, clearly without any
blurry vision

20. • Joseph desperate to
embrace Benjamin ‘s neck
and show love
• Benjamin, cup of Joseph =
the test to see the sincerity
of heart and true
conversion of heart, the
cup= salvation , the cup was
used for test with regard to
salvation ,
• Jesus desperate to show his
love to everyone who wants
to believe in HIM
• Cup of suffering and sour
wine to drink, cup = the
central theme, cup =
salvation , the cup was use
for test of Jesus for
salvation, cup of Jesus

21. • Judah = offer himself for
slavery on behalf of his
blood relative of Benjamin,
offer himself as a substitute
for Benjamin. Self sacrifice
and be a substitute for
someone else; God chose
Judah ,the 4th son, for
lineage of Christ !
• Jesus offered himself as a
substitute for human
beings, self sacrifice and
offer himself as a substitute
for some one else.

22. • Joseph in a position either
retaliate or not retaliate his
brothers for their wrongs,
evil deed, had a power to
deliver them from the
misery or hunger
• Jesus had a power to deliver
human beings from sin.

23. • Joseph gave his father and
brothers the best part of
the land in Egypt
• His brothers were talking
among themselves about
their plan of action in their
native tongue but Joseph
was able to understand
everything of what they
were talking . nothing was
hidden from Joseph ,
• Jesus will give the best part of
land in heaven
• Nothing is hidden from God’s
ear and God can hear and
understand everything of what
we say and think, there is
nothing hidden from God’s eyes
and ears. God can understand
multiple languages and does
not need any interpreter for
communication

24. • His brothers paid money to
Joseph for foods but Joseph
did not accept money from
his own people and return
money back to them, food=
gift= offering= salvation=
• Jesus will not accept our
money for salvation, we can
not pay Jesus enough
money to earn salvation ,
food= salvation= free gift=
something you appreciate
eternally

25. • Joseph , the prime minister
of Egypt came down the
royal chariot and greet his
old aged father, Jacob on
the road , the two
individuals kissed and
embraced each other ;
meeting between father
and son ; a happy moment
of reunion
• Jesus and the God , father in
heaven ; there will be a time
and occasion for Jesus and
his followers and God ,the
father , meet together in
heaven and kiss and
embrace each other ! a
joyous moment of reunion !

26. Forgiveness (5)
•“ do not grieve over or
angry over with yourselves
because you sold me to
here, for God sent before
you to preserve life. “

27. Forgiveness (6)
•
– Joseph assumed that his brothers had conscience
in their heart and still remembered what they did
to Joseph and what kind of evil deed it was for
them to do so at that time.
His brothers ware in a superior position and
stronger and more powerful : Joseph was in a
weaker position, in an inferior and unfavorable
circumstance.

28. Forgiveness (7)
• Joseph was quietly reminded his brothers of the evil
nature of the past deed. That is all . there is no trace of
blame for Joseph toward his brothers. The old saying:
what goes around comes back. Or you
reap what you sow You fall into the ditch you dug
for someone else. But you fall into it! There is an
important lesson for any one to glean and learn from this
incident. That is : you do what is right
because it is right and do not do wrong
because it is wrong , irrespective of your own
personal feelings !

29. Forgiveness (8)
• it is very interesting for me to observe what Joseph
did to and for his brothers. In stead of blaming and
trying to hurt or torture their brothers for the very
bad and evil nature of the past deed and act , using
his superior position or power in his hands as the
prime minister of Egypt, Joseph made the first step
to come near his brothers and offered better
solution to the situation : act of kindness (+) in
stead of meanness or harshness,
torture, (-)

30. Forgiveness (9)
• Joseph did what ordinary people did not nor could
not do . Joseph simply returned good for
evil !!. That is all. Ordinary people did and
determined to return evil for evil. Get even with it !
The old Hammurabi code of conduct says. : you knock
out my teeth, I will knock out your teeth, if you take
out my eye , I will take out your eye, if you break my
leg, I will break you leg. Basically , tooth for tooth,
hand for hand, leg for leg, head for head, feet
for feet. You get what you pay for . You really reap
what you sow!!!

31. Forgiveness (10)
• Joseph turn the table around and changed
the circumstance in terms of superior and
inferior relationship between him and his
brothers. Now, Joseph is in a superior and
more powerful position and his brothers in
an inferior and less powerful and very
dangerous position.

32. Forgiveness (11)
• Easily, Joseph could have made the situation
very hard for his brothers to take and tried to
teach them a lesson for what they did to Joseph
in the distant past , using his present power and
position . But Joseph did not do it. He simply
did not exercise his authority and did not
use or abuse his power or position for
his own good or benefit .It is really
remarkable for me to see it .

33. Forgiveness (12)
•it takes a firm character and
personal integrity with moral fiber
inside to resist the human natural
tendency to return evil for evil and see
other people suffering from the consequence of
wrong doings and sin. It takes tremendous amount
of energy to resist the natural tendency to retaliate
your opponents or enemy and see your opponents
suffering from the consequence of wrong choice or
action.

34. Forgiveness (14)
•Joseph used the circumstance
from bad to good, not from good
to bad, and did not succumb to
the situation of life . He patiently
waited for the God’s providence
unfolded or open before his eyes

35. Judah , Benjamin (2)
• the end result = good. All 10 brothers
came back to Joseph and
pleaded to Joseph that they
wanted to be put in prison on
behalf of Benjamin, and let
Benjamin go free and return to Jacob.

36. The End
Thank you for coming

37. Respond @
Dr. Pothana
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