Sermon Notes April 7, 2013 FBCam
The Troubles of a Teenager
Genesis 37:1-11
What were you up to when you were seventeen? For me, it was my first year at Bible College. I was a year younger than Kim who attended when she was 18. At 17 Kim was enjoying her senior year of High school, like most other 17 year olds.
2013 was a great year for seventeen-year-old Nick d'Aloisio, from Wimbledon, England. He sold an app he developed to shorten programs run by a mobile device. Yahoo bought his app for 30 Million dollars!
SEVENTEEN is a time of FUN and GROWTH and PLANS and FRIENDS and DATING and ENTHUSIASM for life. It is also a time when God speaks in powerful ways.
I am struck with the impact of the opening words of Genesis 37:2. The chapter begins with “Joseph, a young man of seventeen...” (Genesis 37:2)
The emphasis on his age is strikingly important. It is rare that a young age is mentioned in Scripture. To my knowledge, no other character is specifically mentioned at the age of seventeen anywhere else in the Bible.
The point is clear - Joseph is a young man. Yes, by Jewish custom he was a man, but he was still a young man and the troubles of his life are similar to the struggles that we face in the early years of our entrance into adult life. I believe that there are important lessons that we can learn from the life of Joseph that apply particularly to young people today.
I. Joseph’s Importance in Genesis
From this point forward, The rest of GENESIS will focus on Joseph. Joseph receives more chapters than any other character in Genesis, including Abraham!
Genesis 37:2 marks the final Toledot section in the book. Toledot is the Hebrew word translated “These is the account of Jacob...” As we have studied, this word marks the major character shifts throughout the book. But there is something unique about this use of toledot. Notice the shift in the verse from JACOB to JOSEPH.
Genesis 37:2 "This is the account of Jacob. Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them."
The “account of Jacob” continues with JOSEPH, not Jacob! Joseph will fulfill the promises that were given to his father ISRAEL. Joseph will rise above the other sons of Jacob, demonstrating a principle that carries throughout the Bible. The LAST will be FIRST and the first will be last!
Seth passes Cain
Jacob is greater than Esau
Joseph is greater than his brothers
David, the youngest, is chosen King
“But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first." Matthew 19:30
For the next several weeks we will be studying the life of Joseph. On our first examination of his life, we will examine the struggles encountered by this godly young man. Although his circumstances were different from ours, the types of trials that Joseph faced at seventeen are similar to the struggles that you and I face in our youth. By examining these struggles we will discover the manner in which God can provide for us through our times of testing.
II. The Struggles of a Godly Teenager.
A. Joseph was Unappreciated.
1. There was a struggle within the FAMILY. Genesis 37:2 identifies the family situation with the distinctive of calling Joseph’s brothers “sons of Bilhah and Zilpah....” This emphasis demonstrates that there was division in the family between JOSEPH the son of Rachel, and the other sons of Leah and the handmaids. If ever there was a dysfunctional family, it was this one! One father. Four mothers. Joseph grew up in FAMILY CONFLICT. Not only that, but Father Jacob showed extreme favoritism toward Joseph, making the family situation worse and added to the hatred that the brothers all felt toward Joseph. Don’t forget, this entire family had to leave their home and flee for their lives! On the way, they encounter Crazy Uncle Esau! Perhaps they heard stories about him, but now he was coming out to meet them and bringing 400 men with him! This family was in turmoil.
Notice the birth order and you will see that Joseph is next to the youngest. As such, he was the brunt of every joke, the ridicule he must have endured must have been severe!
SON MEANING TEXT MOTHER
Reuben “Behold a son!” Gen 29:32 Leah
Simeon “God has heard” Gen 29:33 Leah
Levi “Joined” Gen 29:34 Leah
Judah “Praise” Gen 29:35 Leah
Dan “Justice” Gen 30:5-6 Bilhah (Rachel)
Napthali “Wrestling” Gen 30:7-8 Bilhah (Rachel)
Gad “Fortune” Gen 30:10-11 Zilpah (Leah)
Asher “Happy” Gen 30:12-13 Zilpah (Leah)
Issachar “Reward” Gen 30:17-18 Leah
Zebulun “Dwelling” Gen 30:19-20 Leah
Joseph “God has added” Gen 30:23-24 Rachel
Benjamin “Son of the right hand” Gen 35:16-18 Rachel
B. Joseph was Unpredictable
1. 37:2 “he brought their father a bad report about them”
2. It is hard to know Joseph’s motives
3. POSSIBLE that he was a tattletale. “Was he a pesky tattletale? Or was he an obedient son, carrying out his father’s instructions” K. A. Mathews, Genesis 11:27–50:26, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2005). 687.
4. POSSIBLE that he was a virtuous son. The text leaves this point undetermined.
5. The RESULT is that his brothers hated him for it.
C. Joseph was Uncertain of his father’s approval. Genesis 37:10 "When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, “What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?”" Like many young people today, Joseph wanted desperately to gain the approval of his father Jacob. But Jacob’s response to Joseph’s dream was to ridicule Joseph and express his disapproval. Joseph had to accept his father’s disapproval. Many adults struggle with feelings of rejection because of the disapproval of one of their parents. It is important for parents to understand the importance of affirming our children. It is also important for us to seek God’s approval more than anyone else. If your life story includes a parent whose approval was withheld, don’t let that hinder your life today! Ultimately, God’s approval is all that matters. It seems that Joseph understood this.
D. Joseph was Unloved. The hatred of Joseph’s brothers is repeated three times in Genesis 37:4, 5, 8. The first is in verse 3-4. Genesis 37:3–4 "Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made a richly ornamented robe for him. " "When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him." Joseph was Loved by his father, but hated by his brothers. THREE REASONS:
a. His fancy robe (37:5)
b. His dream of sheaves of grain (37:8)
c. His dream of stars bowing to him. (37:10-11)
2. Their HATRED grew
a. Brothers were unkind to Joseph (37:4)
b. Brothers hated Joseph (37:5)
c. Brothers were jealous (37:11)
d. Brothers plot against him (37:18)
e. Brothers ridicule Joseph (37:19)
f. Brothers sell him for 20 pieces of silver (37:28)
g. Even the price they asked was an INSULT. They sold him for the price of a child slave. Leviticus 27:5 "If it is a person between the ages of five and twenty, set the value of a male at twenty shekels and of a female at ten shekels."
h. Split ten ways, each brother received 2 shekels
i. Shekel = ½ ounce.
j. 2 shekels = 1 ounce of silver
k. At TODAY’S PRICE of SILVER each brother would have received $27. That’s all that Joseph was worth to them!
The RESULT?
E. Joseph was ALONE.
1. 37:14-17
2. Joseph is home when the brothers are out with the flocks.
3. This added to the brothers hatred of Joseph
4. He has to travel alone 60 miles from Hebron to Shechem
5. He then travels another 14 miles north to Dothan
6. He approaches them as an OUTSIDER
7. Illus - Jerome Moody - Surrounded by your friends and still alone. AP Published: August 2, 1985, The New York Times “A guest at a party for lifeguards celebrating their first drowning-free swimming season in memory drowned Tuesday, the director of the New Orleans Recreation Department said today. Madlyn Richard, the department director, said the body of Jerome Moody was found on the bottom at the deep end of a department pool as the party ended. She said Mr. Moody, who was 31 years old, was not a lifeguard, but four lifeguards were on duty at the party.
8. Frank Reed was held hostage in a Lebanon cell from 1986 to 1990. For months at a time, he was blindfolded and lived in complete darkness. Most of the time he was chained to a wall and kept in absolute silence. It was a very difficult time, because he was beaten and tormented. But what Reed suffered from the most was the feeling that no one cared about him. In an interview with Time magazine he said, “Nothing I did mattered to anyone. I began to realize how withering it is to exist with not a single expression of caring around [me].... I learned one overriding fact: caring is a powerful force. If no one cares, you are truly alone.”
Joseph faced some of the greatest struggles that a person can face at this age
Factors Contributing to Teen Suicide: http://www.teensuicide.us/articles1.html
Divorce of parents.
Violence in the home.
Inability to find success at school.
Feelings of worthlessness.
Rejection by friends or peers.
Substance abuse.
Death of someone close to the teenager.
The suicide of a friend or someone he or she "knows" online.
III. Lessons from a Teenager Who Just wanted to Live for God
A. No one gets everything right.
B. Problems seem worse when you are young. Illus - 8 year old came home from school Mom could tell something was wrong. “Sandy wouldn’t sit with me during recess! This is the worst day of my life!” He mother wisely said, “Sweetheart, I hope that is true!” Joseph learns to forgive his brothers.
C. You can’t replace your family, so you better learn to love them! Hebrews 13:1 "Keep on loving each other as brothers."
D. Integrity is of greater value than potential. There is a CONTRAST between Genesis 37 and 38. JOSEPH is a man of integrity. JUDAH is a man of potential. Judah is arrogant, undiscerning and led by his lust. He destroy’s the family’s honor.
