The bones of Joseph (Quality: Average)

[0:00] And help me with the last three verses of the 50th chapter of the book of the Genesis. The book of the Genesis, chapter 50, verses 24 to 26.

[0:15] And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die, and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, who rise into Jacob.

[0:32] And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and he shall carry up my bones in his hands.

[0:43] So Joseph died, being a hundred and ten years old. And they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.

[0:56] There may be some who might say, well, I'm afraid there won't be anything very possibly talking about dead men's bones, or even about Joseph's bones.

[1:09] But you know, Joseph's bones had a very important place in the word of God. Generally speaking, of course, there is a reference, perhaps, in the word of God, of the dead of certain persons, and in some cases, the man of their burial, the place of their burial.

[1:28] Whilst so, of course, with Joseph's father, Jacob, and also with Abra and Sarah. And whilst there is that, we don't read very much afterward about the body or the burial place of that kind.

[1:46] It seems that no one single reference to it in the word of God is sufficient. But you see, altogether, there are at least four references in the word of God to the bones of Jacob, from their head, widely scattered through the word of Scripture.

[2:01] And so I think the very fact that there is this frequent reference to the bones of James Joseph goes to show the importance that the Holy Ghost does put upon this matter, the importance of divine instruction to us, and the importance that it should be to us if it is going to be of any real profit to us too.

[2:22] I don't forget, my friends, how the word of God testifies in itself, and it says that all Scripture is given by the inspiration of God, and it is profitable.

[2:33] It tells us that, by the thought, it is profitable, and the doctrine, and its structure, and prediction, and so on. Yet there is profit in the use of the Mexican word of God, that only goes to those who believe it.

[2:48] I realize, my friends, the world can store their mind with the historical record of the word of God, and have a very complete and accurate apprehension of it, and yet that the knowledge they have of that nature does not really profit their spirit.

[3:07] I hope, friends, that as we turn to this word this morning, we may seek that blessing of the Holy Ghost so that any meditation upon this strange subject of the bones of Joseph might indeed be made profitable to us.

[3:22] In this chapter, very briefly, we have set before us, of course, the death of Jacob and the death of Joseph. I expect that we were reading an ordinary mind of this book.

[3:35] We can find, my friends, that the 50th chapter of the book of Genesis, for this state is aware of so many books. Because there is no doubt that the long-life of Joseph, as the writer of Egypt, the Prime Minister of Egypt, must indeed have been alive, full of incidents, full of important matters in Egyptian history.

[3:57] And yet you notice, friends, that all that that was done in Egypt by Joseph is passed over with just a few, a different verse or two in this chapter. There doesn't seem to be any significance to threaten to enforce.

[4:13] Why do you think it is that these matters are not spoken of so much in the word of God? Since, my friends, at once, Joseph did live down in Egypt, and he did much good down in Egypt, doubtless.

[4:26] And one great purpose of the Lord is to set before us the manner of his feelings with his feet, a chosen female God, the Lord who serves the world in being, in order that he may perform those gracious purposes of everlasting covenant, in calling sinners down to darkness, and bringing them to salvation, and light, and knowledge, and faith in Jesus Christ, and at last, after their life here, taking them to be granted as his.

[4:58] That is, the great purpose, the gathering out and the gathering in of the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And therefore, these are matters, they are but secondary, they are comparatively insignificant, compared with the great interest of the soul, of the people of God.

[5:18] I don't know how many of you in this place who agree with me in that. Don't think that I may be unmindful of your bodily, personal, probably nature of interest, rather than did that I should.

[5:31] If you must seek, then pray to my trust that I will sin the mind within your sickness. If you don't break loss, then may we be able to minister to reward one another in the losses that we can spend.

[5:43] If we trade a pathway of prosperity, under the blessing of our Lord, then may we be able to rejoice together and share the benefits of the Lord, the one with the other.

[5:55] But these things are strange and only me, just for a little time. 78, 80, 90, 100 years, we look upon a centred area as being an outstanding sort of creature in this world of knowledge.

[6:10] And then what? Well, friends, notice how, even with regard to this message, thank Joseph, we bring the master of the body, being imbalanced and laid in a cottage in Egypt.

[6:22] And you see, we must come to death if the Lord is still tarry. Let's it to come again. Let's it, friends, sooner or later, we shall all have to be tarried for the tomb.

[6:34] And what then? Well, you see, friends, there is importance of the interest of the soul. It was well with God, as he knew it was well. He could look upon death with equanimity and with peace of mind, believing that the promises of God would most certainly be performed.

[6:52] He could not only think, friends, about the state that the Lord would bring him true in restlessness and peace under the faith of God to all eternity, but also he could speak of things yet to come from this earth in the performance of God's eternity.

[7:09] and he speaks about his own bones as being a testimony from God of that which will take place in the future. If we return to the 13th chapter of the Book of the Excellence, we should there find that when Moses is leading the trouble of the Lord's life of Egypt, he doesn't forget, nor does Israel forget, the command that Joseph laid upon his people in that past day.

[7:38] Probably over a hundred years has now left since that command was given. But nevertheless, Moses and the people, they pick up the copy that was in Egypt, the sarcophagus, shall I say, of Joseph.

[7:52] And there they begin the journey. Sooner or later, they will carry an ark, and they will carry a tent, and they will carry a altar, and they will carry a table of show bread, and they will carry a label.

[8:07] But my friends, they will not forget to carry the bones from Egypt from Israel, from Egypt down to Israel. And then, of course, later on, we think right at the end of the Book of Joshua, I think it's in the last chapter that I remember writing, how the time came when those bones that had been carried all the way to the wilderness, by the hands of their courts.

[8:30] There must have been a remote and stand that were appointed to care for those that Joseph as they traveled, and evidently later willing to do so. And at last, right at the end of the history of the Joshua's life, we come to the place where at last, those bones are taken to the place where the dead were buried, and there the bones are buried also.

[8:57] But you know, that is at the end of the record of the scripture. It is only in the object that is set before us. But if we turn to that well-known chapter in the epistle of the Hebrews, the 11th chapter of the epistle of the Hebrews, there is a certain reference by into Joseph.

[9:14] Of course, the things that I mentioned in the notes of the Hebrews are things in which we see the outstanding nature of faith, and the wonderful demonstration of it, and the prevailing of it in the hearts and the minds of men and women ages.

[9:32] Many different instances of our faith with regard to the way in which the faith of these men and women of ancient days were so wonderfully maintained as it was given and also how it was wonderfully managed.

[9:48] And in connection with Joseph, he doesn't speak my friends about his faith in the prison and his faith in God and his faith in the green and his wonderful faith in being able to serve there and meet him and his faith in forgiving the sins of his brethren, looking after his father and caring for the mighty host of Israel as they grew and increased in the land of Gersia.

[10:13] He doesn't speak about those things. But it speaks like this. It says, By faith, Joseph, when he died, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel and gave command concerning his love.

[10:29] Surely, it reads the very fact that these words are included in the United chapter of the Hebrews as an evidence of the importance of the fact that Joseph gave command concerning the manner in which his bow should be born in Greece.

[10:46] And of course, there is a name that has been in my mind during the last day or two. And that is why the bowels of Joseph were dealt with in such a different way for the bowels at this time.

[10:59] You remember in the earlier part of the 50th of Genesis, we read about Joseph, when Jacob died, immediately applied to Pharaoh for permission to leave the country for time and carried the body of Jacob down to Israel and buried it in that tomb that had already been provided for his resting points.

[11:23] And of course, Pharaoh gave permission. You know, the great funds have made up. You know, the amazement that the Italian Acts felt in this great company tomb there bearing just simply one often to be buried.

[11:38] And how they returned back is that in having laid the bowels of Joseph in the land of Israel. You might say to me, well, why was it that Israel didn't feel that it was the same way with Joseph?

[11:51] Won't the Pharaoh of that guy have let the bowels do that? Might they be Jacob? I don't see any reason why not. But you see, friends, it was not the will of Joseph, not was it the will of God, that those bones should be immediately carried back in the land of Israel.

[12:11] It was the will of Joseph, and also the will of God, that those bones should abide in Israel's journey, as a constant witness to the word of the living God, the promise of God.

[12:26] God, you think, my friends, at the time, when there had a place of grace, down to the Middle East you found the horrors of the captivity, and the dreadful suffering most people had to endure there, upon occasion they might go to a certain place, that they hid the place to the knowledge of the Egyptians, maybe so, maybe they kept the natural secret where this economy was, and there they would go there, and they would look upon the streets, and they would say, well, it's dark would be impossible, but what was promised to do, to change and blame them, whatever they thought.

[13:07] The Egyptians were not too strong and they had to determine, instead of making us become an ancient, it looks to me as though, rather, they will completely cut us off and destroy us, they have taken us on ever so many occasions, and I won't get to the words instead of the book.

[13:25] So notice my friend at the work of this man, Joseph, as he speaks to his brethren, God will surely visit you, and he shall carry up my bones from him.

[13:39] Think of those words, God shall surely visit you, as sure as God is God, he will visit you, as sure as God's word is true, he will visit you, as sure as God's carried upon me, says Joseph, God will visit you, and as sure as God gives you pain to believe his word, so he will perform the word that he has spoken and he will visit you.

[14:07] You see, my friend, that here in the midst of Israel is a testimony, a witness to the truth of the living God of the prevailing of his work. And also, at the time and at last, they need him an activity.

[14:23] Now, of course, the prospect of that, that some of them might say, well, we didn't think much about all this care of the cotton of Joseph, but he suddenly now sees that though it was worthwhile, taking care of his while it is in issue, now, of course, here is the prospect which will soon be in the land of came in and the promise that Joseph was given will soon be for forth, if you know when he does and that before he is.

[14:50] And wouldn't it only time people in this brown eyes have the best thing to do is to just simply leave it behind, it doesn't matter where phones are very done.

[15:20] I feel my friends that if I'm left to myself under some words and ways of that I could easily argue along the same line. But no, no, the Lord's not going to allow that to happen.

[15:33] My friends there is a people in the midst of Israel that have still made with it in the diary of God's power, those that God has said shall be carried into Egypt he speaks it by the purpose of God.

[15:47] And there are these people journey into Egypt they can look upon these birds and say if God is faithful to his promise although twenty years has gone and twenty five years has gone and thirty years has gone and thirty five years has gone and we be carrying world that we believe he is then the time will come when we can enter Israel with the bones of journey and again my friends is the witness in the midst of the people and of course the time does come when they reach to their religion you may say to me well why was it that they didn't go straight away and bury the bones!

[16:33] I can't turn you to! exact date than they did but we do know that they did but I do want you to know this friend that it doesn't appear that it took place until Joshua was being buried or was being buried and it doesn't look as though it took place until a little time before the bones of the age of death it was right at the end of the history of Joshua that this record will be you might say to me well I can't see any significance in that my dear friends let me tell you this the Lord is going to!

[17:35] the Lord is not satisfied with the performing heart in he is faithful he is the yai and the amen of the promises of God in Jesus and together he's the one that has spoken to the beginning he's the one who put amen to the whole of the performance of his work and now the divine friend at this time when Israel has come in and they are occupied to a considerable extent the man Joshua provided the blessing of the Lord was attended him and God's word has been performed in a considerable measure in the land of Canian and then when the word of the Lord has been performed they carry the loans of Job that they did just another thought before we can't more particularly the I want you to remember that the thing may be a witness to the people of God is not to be worshipped so we thought about it not to be worshipped we're not to worship those we're not to set up shrines we're not to visit them my friends and think that there is some particular merit that will come to us because we kiss the bone or bow before the bone the bones have got to be buried buried out of time seems to be the same lesson you know with regard to the brazen serpents you know that was made up in the little serpent was made up in the house of

[19:09] Israel and there friends this serpent became an object to idolatry to the children Israel instead of worshipping God they worshipped the serpent not as result!

[19:24] well of course it was the vulnerable provision of God it was something the Lord had provided in a very dark and dreadly sinful eyes exposed the Lord's mercy exposed his grace that says the Lord he's never not worshipped out of the water there's only one God that should be worthy Lord my friends what it is that I all shrines and only places that are being and do a pilgrimage for this place and the other places the Lord a penance here a penance there and even my friends in one conformist place it would worship objects are being set up in young people come brought and kneel before it and bow before it and worship there you know friends it's all together outside of the command of our God completely contrary to it is things and now a bone shall be buried you remember that you know the day of

[20:26] Israel when he saw the evil of this thing what was happening he said I'll destroy it I'll destroy it he did he destroyed it he had counted it and a cursing thing that's what he called it this thing that had been such a great blessing now because of the prevailing of idolatry had become a curse to the people of Israel it was turning away from God there they will not worship in God bury the bones bury the bones they should be a witness for years and years they should be a witness of the faithfulness of God and when the world is the book bury the bones let God be exhausted let God be exhausted you think friends are this prevailing in the antiquation of the truth there is a man in his rain by God to be the!

[21:19] Lord and say to Jesus Christ I speak of John Baptist Lord Jesus Christ himself said all those who are born in him there has not been one that has been greater than John Baptist but he that is released in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he not one would be greater than John Baptist what happens with the God and John Baptist well you see friends this testament in providing the blessing of God attending the mighty gathering the people together and then he must increase the iron secret and they went and buried it and then they went and told me that's where my friend every instance has come to the Christ in his body he must increase the heart of Jesus for we may be able to increase this but now

[22:21] I'll return back to the lessons that we have here first of all I want you to notice how a promise he did given by God doubtless but it was also given through Joseph and that by facing God God has given a promise to Abraham and he has given a promise to Isaac it has been reviewed to Jacob and it was viewed in Joseph's heart my friends and I want you to notice that promise of God that was spoken so many years ago of the gift of the Nazarene of the people of Israel is believed by Joseph and spoken of by Joseph and testified by Joseph some people may say but if I had a wonderful vision of God and if an angel cried and spoke some promise to me I believed it my dear friends when the apostles were forwardly writing about Joseph and the 11th of the Hebrew he doesn't say because God gave him a vision or sent an angel to him and told him to do this he gave commandment concerning his bones but what's it saying by saying

[23:29] Joseph when he was a dine gave commandment concerning his bones in the word of God in the simple testimony of God in the word that was spoken away from the nature of Jacob in the east had no definite clear declaration of some fresh revelation to Joseph that painted the word of God and exercise of that faith of the word of God he gives commandment concerning his faith beloved that you testify to others of what the Lord is to you and what he's done for you and what you have for the future it is not only for time but more important for your soul in eternity what is the reason of it from what ground do you speak and testify God is it faithful word faithful word he that believes of the side hath life but he that believes not the side hath not mine that the rock of

[24:32] God abide in the point I can't tell you how solemnly those words have come in my spirit in the past week I really wondered in my church whether I have to speak about those solemn words maybe I shall I do one day but don't forget my friends he that believes on the side hath life not the man who has a special demon not the man who has an angel of tears not the man who sings a mighty miracle or views the clothes and tongues of thy coming of another people's head not that but the man who has a living faith with their soul in Christ and in his world a sinful faith of a little child who believes and claims and holds at life that's it and there goes from the ground of that sweet sacred operation of faith in his heart to all the love of God that he gives Jesus commanding concerning his boat!

[26:03] God will visit people he'll come forward and he'll come to them and he'll be with them and he'll protect them and he'll also give them his life and protect my bones as well put them in a coffin in Egypt and let them wait to die God die there's a great day of the Lord now in that great day we shall know that the Lord is supporting his own promise to take yes it's the Lord and also in his world but notice the trial of it the trial of the promise death of course is a great trial of that he doesn't deny or destroy the promise of God he the!

[26:52] son! the promise we bury our dear one strength that the promise will divine the man the boy the little child that died in his Jesus Christ the promise may seem to be kind by death but the promise will divine even at this time has ever left in life you know how you have it it it!

[27:22] it! that's how you know don't forget that it by faith you have it you may say to the other that it's a divine gift that it's because God has been gracious that I have it yes but he that has the son has might and have by faith faith!

[27:40] that has to have to store their mind and knowledge about Jesus Christ but they haven't Jesus Christ the Lord brings the whole Christ in the arms of faith to have him my faith and love in the song and that faith is sure of that is also there is some labor under the promise as well I think that there are men who carried the cup in all that way and you blame you now is it worth fine is it necessary you think my treasured the son the things that the word of God commanded you I think the thought of that word where it says not the ascending of yourselves together as the man of son is it not too easy to get to chapel!

[28:33] there all thought the difficult to stand in the Bible as we haven't had the same blessing in the prayer meeting on a Monday evening that God may be tonight that Israel journeys with the most of wilderness God may be tonight that you carry the testimony of the word of God in your heart and you sit to abide it with all the difficulties that encompass it and the cost that it may be to you there is some person here who says

[29:39] I have a much happier life that I have to invert could you could you let me tell you this my friends the happiness of this world is a very transient thing it like the dew that falls from the ground in the morning when the sun rises it just simply patience and right that's the happiness of this world ah says one old rejoice in the man always and again I say rejoice if you would seek the secret of happiness it's in Christ and him and I will know in here the happiness that will out by all the happiness of this world those of you that have taken the joy and pleasure!

[30:33] happiness that the soul of a sinner can know reading the book of the Ecclesiastes and there you'll find an end who can opportunity to indulge all the happiness of his life and what we say in there it's all vanity it's all vanity but not that rejoicing that is in Christ that's not vanity it's a broad face my friends a balm of blessing and excellent things yet to come the fullness of which my friends will tell the hearts of the redeemed and abide in eternal rapture as there they look upon the one that has been viewed through the vine the glorious son of God the cheapest among ten thousand and the altogether lovely one yes of course there is vain on the cross but there is also endurance and obedience my grace is sufficient for thee my grace is sufficient for to year the

[31:33] Lord was carrying bones about in a cottage and all the bird on him forty years it doesn't seem necessary with no that you should endure unto the end and you should say but again there is the communication it isn't my friends dropping the word down and forgetting the promise and turning back to the word and going back to Egypt and its garden isn't that why you were stretching it means no no in the keeping of my statutes there is great reward there is endurance and also obedience to promise but there is the prevailing there is a way right through the Jordan you remember it don't you how that way was made through the Jordan the priest went down there bearing the ark and the waters ran back and there was a way through the Jordan the priest went through and Moses went no he died the other side of the flood no he said

[32:39] Joshua went through the farm and there they went through the waters didn't they ah and when they got through the waters what happened the other side I'll tell you what there was there whoever was there whoever wasn't there I know what was there the moment of Joseph finished the promise of the life although Moses has to die on the other side the moment of Joseph entered this right because God had promised God had promised to be with Moses right away through the journey but he has to hand over to Joshua that all my friends that had owned the golden gold it there that could make him the promise do you know the value of it has one ever been applied to your life my friends is there something in you that believes a promise concerning Jesus Christ you think it's a little tender faith all just to be the exercise of faith of that word it's a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation that Christ

[33:49] Jesus came to the world to save sinners of whom I am choose you say I don't feel I don't feel my sin as I want to and I don't know the word from them as I shoot and I don't feel to repent as I want to repent of and I don't know the full assurance of forgiveness of my sin as I long to but friends you believe the word that's the thing that faith in your soul to believe that Jesus Christ came into the world to make ungodified sinners don't forget that there's no qualification to sinners sinners they may not feel to be able to repent they may not have their heart they may not be as they could do as great concern to they know that they would be but there's one thing they do know that is that sinner sin father's talking then they seem to be tied up with their guilt and their burden the father's talking that their friends are rising up the faith towards yes and it will be the problem the bones that goes that reaches right yes the bone that goes to reach his one who continues this take my bone not with you and then

[35:12] I want you to notice something else and that is of course that in the end it's the birth of God that provides it it isn't just the bones it isn't the nature of reading the Bible regularly and attaining the means of grace regularly and isn't the fact that you've borne with all the adversity and problems so long and afflictions though they have been sanctified to you being so troublesome no it isn't that but in the end friends you notice that when the promise has been completely performed with bones and men buried out of sight that the word of God has been performed Christ still lives the eye and the eye and the promises of God is in heaven he lives there to make it the station for for guilty sinners upon this earth oh I'm horrified sinners yes I'm horrified sinners they might be dreadful they might not be as they would be they don't feel what they want to feel they don't feel my!

[36:19] to be! in the sight they want to be able to all they know that still and Jesus Christ came to this world this time still blessed word of promise blessed word of promise friends I trust that some of you carry a promise you will die you have a way to run for it it is pretty difficult to keep to keep believing it and only to pass through it and pleading it and acting upon it doing as the promise said you say oh it can be hard later for me all through those years yes I know it that but my dear friends the promise is sure why because it's not security in you nor any your diligence or your obedience it is yine and amen in Jesus Christ there was a time when Christ to whom he committed the great work of salvation it's there and from the accursed tree and he said in this image this image let me assure you of this my friend that the time will come when there the whole number of the redeemed will be gathered before God and the dear son and God will be able to show you to his own dear beloved father father all that thou hast given me are here not one of this life the promise will be the promise will be the promise may be seemingly unnecessary things to cabin a topic may be a heavy but my dear friends where the word of God provides to show this the word of God the most sure in the

[38:09] Lord may Lord have you bless you amen amen amen amen amen amen