Do You Dare To Dream?
Genesis 30:22-24, 37:3-11
Intro: This man Joseph is the second to the youngest of all of Jacob’s twelve sons. He is the firstborn of Rachel unto Jacob after God opened Rachel’s barren womb to bare him miraculously. Joseph was loved of his father more than any of the other boys, and they hated him. He was sold into slavery by his brothers who told their father he was attacked by a wild animal. He was imprisoned in Egypt for a crime that he did not commit while serving as a slave. He was forgotten of the Butler and Baker after meeting them in prison and interpreting their dreams, but he was recognized with the position of governor for interpreting Pharaoh’s dreams. He was reunited with his family during a seven year famine in Egypt, and his bones were carried out of Egypt and buried in Canaan when the Israelites went back to Canaan four hundred years later.
This man Joseph is the premier dreamer of all the characters in the Bible. Many dreamed dreams, and we may study some of them in the next few weeks. However, no person seemed to have his entire life altered by dreams the way that Joseph did. Notice:
I. The Content of His Dreams:
A. He dreamed of his promotion: Gen. 37:7 “For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf.” Gen. 37:9 “And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.”
B. He dreamed of his parents and siblings giving him honor: Gen 37:7
C. He dreamed of his power extending throughout the world and beyond: Gen 37:9
II. The Contention of His Dreams:
A. His Brothers Hated Him: Gen. 37:8 “And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they HATED him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.”
B. His Father Rebuked Him: Gen. 37:10 “And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?”
III. The Consequences of His Dream:
A. He was sold into slavery: Gen 37:28 “Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt.”
B. He was stripped of his special garment: Gen 37:31-33 “And they took Joseph’s coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat in the blood; And they sent the coat of many colours, and they brought it to their father; and said, This have we found: know now whether it be thy son’s coat or no. And he knew it, and said, It is my son’s coat; an evil beast hath devoured him; Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces.”
C. He was shipped far from his homeland: Gen 39:1 “And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him of the hands of the Ishmeelites, which had brought him down thither.”
Dreaming did not seem to work out too well for Joseph, but the Lord was with him in Egypt. God put his hand on him. All would surely be well, right? No. He was imprisoned for raping his master’s wife, and he was not guilty. Yet God was with him in prison, and he allowed him to interpret a dream for the Butler of the king who promised to remember Joseph. All would surely be well now, right? No. He forgot Joseph. It was not until the king dreamed that Joseph’s dreaming paid off. But when it paid off, it paid off well! He had dreamed of others bowing to him, but as a slave, a foreigner, and a convict in a strange land he had ten thousand times bowed his head to others, but when God promoted him and his dreams came true, he was bowed to time and again. His dreams were long in being fulfilled, but God did reward them!
If you dare to dream your life may be as it was for Joseph...
1. You May Watch You Life Go Right Backwards To The Way You Dreamed It.
2. You May Not Be Appreciated By The Persons With Whom You Would Like To Share The Joys Of Your Dreams.
3. You May Not Find That The Road To Your Dreams Is An Easy One At All.
4. You May Even Find Yourself Wondering If Your Dreams Will Ever Come True Or Not, Or Wondering If It Was Worth It To Ever Have Dreamed At All.
5. You May Want To Just Forget It All And Just Go Back To Life Before You Dared To Dream, But You Can Not.
6. However, If You Never Dream, You Will Never Get The Opportunity To Fulfill Those Dreams.
7. The Chance To Fill One Dream Is Worth Dreaming A Thousand Dreams.
8. Dare To Dream Of A Family That Is Converted And Saved, Children Who Grow Up To The Honor And Glory Of God, And A Home That Has A Little Heaven In It.
9. Dare To Dream About Souls That Will Hear The Gospel And Be Converted And Grow The Church, Sunday School, And Go To Work Here At This Church.
10. Dare To Dream About A Knowledge Of God’s Word, God’s Spirit, God’s Worship, And God’s Will.
11. Dare To Dream About A Land Where There Is No More Heartaches, Sorrows, Death, Crying, Sickness, Sin, Satan, Tragedy, And Turmoil Of Life.
Dare to dream, and pay the price for those dreams. You will find that even when life goes wrong and you find yourself in Egypt, the Lord will be there with you working out all your life to make it better than you ever dreamed. Aim for nothing and you will surely reach it, but shoot for the stars, and you just might catch the moon. And one day all that know the Lord will go to a land that goes beyond our fondest hopes and wildest dreams.
Have you got a dream for your life that you would like to talk to God about? Come address him about that in the altar this morning.
