Advanced Level, Block 3—Outcomes of Jacob and Joseph
Week 30
Joseph Caring for His Family
Point to Emphasize: Can we give to others when they don’t deserve it?
Reference Reading: Genesis 42:1-6, footnote 31 [point (8)]; 45:1-28; 47:11-12; 50:21
Memory Verse: Blessed are the merciful, for they shall be shown mercy. (Matthew 5:7)
Story Sample
As governor of the land appointed by Pharaoh, Joseph gathered and stored the food within each city during the seven years of abundance. The seven years of plenty ended and famine began. The famine was not only in Egypt, but overall the face of the earth. At that time Joseph opened all the storehouses of grain. Because of all that had been stored, the land of Egypt had plenty to eat.
The famine reached the land of Canaan where Joseph’s father and brothers lived. Jacob had to send his sons to buy grain. They came to Egypt and bowed down to the ground in front of the governor of the land asking him to sell them some food. They were unaware that they were bowing down to the brother they had betrayed. Does this scene seem familiar? [Remind the children about Joseph’s dream when his brothers bowed down to him.] This was the fulfillment of Joseph’s dream.
At this time, Joseph kept his identity secret from them. Joseph was full of feeling for his brothers and father, but he knew he shouldn’t make himself known to them yet. After getting their food, his brothers returned to Canaan. Because the famine was so severe, they had to return again. Finally, Joseph realized it was time to reveal his identity to his family. As he told them who he was, he began weeping and he showed his affection to his brothers.
Some might have expected Joseph to want revenge. It’s easy to consider revenge when you have been wronged. Can you be like Joseph who gives people what they don’t deserve? Would you share something with someone who has wronged you?
We all have been in a situation similar to this. A boy I know told me that when he was in the second grade, two boys made fun of him a lot. One day, these two boys threw him to the ground and punched and kicked him. This boy never fought back. A few years later, when they were in fifth grade another situation came up. This boy noticed that during snack time, one of the boys who treated him badly had nothing to eat. He decided to share his snack with him. He didn’t have to share his snack. No one asked him to do it. He shared the snack with a person who did not deserve it. Would you have done the same? Would you give to others what they don’t deserve? [Storyteller, please share this story in third person and lead the children into a discussion about treating others kindly when they don’t deserve it.]
To be righteous is to give one what he deserves, but to be merciful is to give one what he does not deserve. It might be easy for us to give to others what they deserve, based on how they treat us and how they behave when they are with us. But, how would you treat the ones who do not deserve your kindness? Most often we find that we are not willing to treat others with kindness if they have done something against us. This shows there is something wrong in our heart. We should never be this way. We should not ignore it and say, “They were not nice to me. I don’t need to be nice to them”. A way to take care of the wrong things in your heart is to talk to your parents about it and learn to follow the proper patterns in the Bible. We should all learn to be like Joseph. We should see how his actions resulted in a wonderful outcome. He was full of affection and full of care for his family.