Have you ever received an email or snail mail saying, “You are the winner”? The prizes may vary between cars, cash, or vacations, but the message we receive is that we have won something good. However, how many of us believe those messages?
Why do we not believe those messages? We have dealt with scammers and people only after we have received our money. We have learned that there is always a catch to obtain the prize.
There is a reason why we view any good thing with a bit of skepticism. As we continue in our series about Joseph and the honest men, we will explore this thought.
Genesis 42:21-28(CEB):
21 The brothers said to each other, “We are clearly guilty for what we did to our brother when we saw his life in danger and when he begged us for mercy, but we didn’t listen. That’s why we’re in this danger now.”
22 Reuben responded to them, “Didn’t I tell you, ‘Don’t do anything wrong to the boy’? But you wouldn’t listen. So now this is payback for his death.” 23 They didn’t know that Joseph was listening to them because they were using an interpreter. 24 He stepped away from them and wept. When he returned, he spoke with them again. Then he took Simeon from them and tied him up in front of them.
25 Then Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain, to put back each man’s silver into his own sack, and to give them provisions for their trip, and it was done. 26 They loaded their grain onto their donkeys, and they set out. 27 When they stopped to spend the night, one of them opened his sack to feed his donkey, and he saw his silver at the top of his sack. 28 He said to his brothers, “My silver’s been returned. It’s right here in my sack.” Their hearts stopped. Terrified, they said to each other, “What has God done to us?”
This is the word of God
For the people of God
Thanks be to God
If you are just joining us or have slept since last week, let me fill you in on what is happening. Fifteen to twenty years prior, the brothers sold their brother Joseph into slavery, telling their father he was killed. Now a famine had hit the area, which led them to Joseph who was in charge of Egypt’s grain. Joseph knows it is them, they do not know it is him, otherwise, they would not have answered Joseph’s accusation that they were spies with, “We are honest men.”
At this point, Joseph is testing their character to see if they have changed. He has arranged to hold one of the brothers until the rest return with the youngest brother, Benjamin. Benjamin is Joseph’s full brother.
Verses 21 through 22 share the brothers' reactions to Joseph’s plan. For twenty years they have lived a lie, knowing they tossed Joseph into a cistern before selling him. A common belief in this period was “Do good things, good things happen. Do bad things, bad things happen.” They had covered up the incident by lying to their father and gotten away with it for a long time. But now they believe their retribution is at hand.
“When he begged for mercy, but we didn’t listen.” This is a vivid detail. I believe these brothers were haunted by Joseph’s cries, with their minds constantly returning to the event. They are riddled with guilt, which is weighing heavier at this moment. Reuben even says in verse 22, “I told you not do it.” A speech Reuben has repeated many times. But the important note here is that the brothers remember.
What the brothers do not know is that Joseph is listening to this entire conversation. Joseph was using a translator to speak with them, so the brothers had no clue Joseph understood them. And to hear them full of regret and sorrow over what happened must have overwhelmed Joseph’s heart. These brothers hated him, now Joseph could see they were in agony because they sinned against him. He has to leave the room to cry.
After Joseph composes himself, he returns with orders. First, Simeon is taken per the arrangement. Then as an act of kindness, Joseph orders his servants to return the silver used to purchase the grain to each of the brothers. The brothers load up the grain, not knowing their silver had been returned.
What does this have to do with us? What does it teach us about being skeptical of a good thing? We have to pay attention to the brothers’ reaction in verse 28. Upon discovering the silver, it says, “Their hearts stopped. Terrified, they said to each other, ‘What has God done to us?’”
For twenty years they had been living in a lie, haunted by Joseph’s screams. They had just been accused of being spies believing the event was God’s punishment against them. A punishment they had earned. Seeing the silver, they do not recognize it as an act of kindness toward their family. Instead, they see it as a trap. Sin has them blind to the possibility of the situation being good, all they see is the potential for evil. The same evil they had when they threw Joseph in the pit, they believe is driving the decision of the Egyptian who supplied their grain. They believe good things do not happen to wicked people.
We doubt the validity of good things because we are sinners motivated by sin. Living in a sinful world has taught us that nothing good comes without strings attached. Like the brothers, we believe good things do not happen to wicked people.
But Joseph is not motivated by sin. Joseph told his brothers, “I am a God-fearing man.” As a God-fearing man, Joseph would not seek revenge, though no one would blame him. Instead, Joseph extends mercy and grace. The same brothers who sold him, Joseph gives them grain.
This is how God is with us. Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners Christ died for us.” We do not deserve Christ’s sacrifice, but God’s grace is not about us deserving it. It is all about God’s love so He offers grace to us through faith in Jesus.
Sin had the brothers so full of fear and panic that they could not fathom the good shown to them. The enemy wants to keep us trapped in the same chains believing retribution and destruction are the only options. But what if we dared to take God at His word.
Do not let your past blind you to God’s grace. Do not let your sin keep you from seeing the goodness of God. His grace is not a trap but freedom. Freedom from fear, guilt, and skepticism. Unlike those “You’ve won” messages, with God’s grace there are no strings attached.
Examine your own heart. Where are you doubting God’s goodness today? Where does guilt from your past keep you from trusting in His love? God is inviting you to stop living in fear and embrace the freedom He offers. Let go of your guilt and embrace the truth that His grace is real and unconditional—there is no catch.
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