Willow Ridge Sermons

Sunday, February 2nd | Beau Bradberry

"And they went and woke him, saying, 'Save us, Lord; we are perishing.' And he said to them, 'Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?' Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying, 'What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?'" — Matthew 8:25-27

This week’s message explores the theme of faith through the story of Joseph in Genesis 47-48 and the disciples in Matthew 8. In times of uncertainty, both Joseph and the disciples faced challenges that tested their trust in God’s provision and power. From Joseph’s leadership during famine to Jesus calming the storm, we see how faith in God’s word, covenant, and purpose shapes our response to life’s trials. Join us as we reflect on what it means to have unwavering faith in God’s perfect timing.

–
Podcast: https://pod.link/willowridgechurch
Website: https://willowridgechurch.org
Instagram: https://instagram.com/willowridgechurch
Facebook: https://facebook.com/willowridgechurch
YouTube: https://youtube.com/@willowridgechurch

Creators and Guests

Host

Beau Bradberry

Senior Pastor

What is Willow Ridge Sermons?

Sermon audio from Sunday services at Willow Ridge Church.

Welcome to the Willow Ridge Sermons podcast.

We're so glad you chose to listen today.

This week's message explores the theme of faith

through the story of Joseph in Genesis 47 to 48

and the disciples in Matthew 8.

In times of uncertainty,

both Joseph and the disciples face challenges

that tested their trust in God's provision and power.

From Joseph's leadership during famine

to Jesus calming the storm,

we see how faith in God's word, covenant, and purpose

shapes our response to life's trials.

Join us as we reflect on what it means

to have unwavering faith in God's perfect timing.

Thanks for listening.

Good morning.

If you have your Bibles, and I hope you do,

I want to invite you to join us in Genesis chapter 47.

If you're wondering,

why did I send Grayson out of the auditorium

and in a panic trying to get my glasses clean?

I don't know.

That worship set just produced a little bit of tears

and a lot of sweat.

So I really appreciate that

and kind of fogged up my glasses a little bit.

So trying to get that

so that I don't have to try to play on memorization for this.

But we're glad that you guys are here.

And I think I can see good enough out of my glasses

for the remainder of our service together.

Hey, if you're a first-time guest,

thank you so much for being here.

At the end of the service,

I'll be back here to my left,

back here at this table.

Would love for you to stop by.

It's a great place if you've got questions

about our church to get those questions answered.

But if nothing more,

I would just like to personally learn your name,

shake your hand,

and thank you for being here

and for worshiping with us.

Also, with that,

we are going to have the Lord's Supper

at the very end of the service together.

So I'll preach here

and then the band will come up

for a time of response for us.

And then the very last thing we'll do

is I'll come back on stage

and we'll partake in the Lord's Supper together.

If you are a follower of Jesus,

regardless if you're a member of Willow Ridge Church or not,

we want to encourage you to take that with us

if the Spirit of God so leads you to.

We'll walk through that together

about what we're doing

and why we're doing it

and the heart that we need to have

in order to do that.

But if you are a follower of Jesus,

I want to encourage you to do that.

And then also,

we do have our third through fifth graders in the room

and we're doing that the first Sunday of every month

because we're so excited to see what God is doing to them.

So many of them have given their life to Jesus Christ

as their Lord and Savior.

We wanted them when we have baptism

to be able to celebrate that with us

as so many others are getting baptized.

But we also want to provide them,

those that are followers of Jesus,

the opportunity to partake in the Lord's Supper together.

And so we're glad, kids,

that you were here with us,

a part of our church,

and that God is working and moving

in our students,

in our youth,

in our kids,

in our adults,

in all three of our church.

And we celebrate Him for that.

Before we get into Genesis 47, though,

I want to read out of Matthew chapter 8.

Starting in verse 25, it says,

And they went and woke Him, saying,

Save us, Lord, we are perishing.

And He said to them,

Why are you afraid?

Oh, you of little faith.

Then He rose and rebuked the winds and the sea,

and there was great calm.

And the men marveled, saying,

What sort of man is this?

Let even winds and sea obey Him.

Would you pray with me?

God, I thank You so much

for our time together in Your Word.

God, I pray as You've taught me this week,

Lord, I pray that You would teach us today.

God, if any part of this is of me,

is from me,

God, please remove it.

And Lord, may this be of You and from You.

Lord, may it penetrate our hearts

in the way that You desire

and in the way that we need.

God, I pray that if there's anyone here

who doesn't know You,

that today they would put their faith

and their hope and trust

in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

God, I pray if there's anyone

who is running from You,

that today would be the day of their repentance.

And that, God, all of us,

who are Your sons and daughters,

would be strengthened in our faith

to live for Your glory

and for Your purpose.

And it's in Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

So this morning,

we're gonna pick up here

in Genesis 47, verse 13.

We're gonna read all of the remainder of 47,

all of 48.

And then we got two more weeks in Genesis.

We'll do chapter 49

and then we'll wrap up with chapter 50.

And then we're gonna be getting

into New Testament book.

We're gonna be looking

in the book of Titus,

I believe, for about six weeks.

And we're gonna work through that together.

And so excited about that.

It's been a,

just God's taught me a lot.

I hope that God's taught you a lot.

Some of the feedback

that I've been getting

of walking through a book

the way that we've done

over the last two years in Genesis

to really dive in,

to kind of see.

I do feel like sometimes

we can become very New Testament heavy.

And you guys have shared that with me.

And so we wanna make sure

that all of this is God's word

and it's all good.

Sometimes different parts, right?

They're more challenging for us

as we labor through.

And I mean that in a good way

as we work diligently through them

to see what God has for us.

And so we're gonna be wrapping up.

Kind of look at these.

This week and the next two weeks

is kind of wrapping up Genesis.

There's a lot of referring back to

remember when,

think about this kind of pieces

as we see God for us

in so many ways

putting the final puzzle pieces together

of his story in Genesis

as he shares them with us.

So let's read,

we're gonna start verse 12

and read all the way through chapter,

I'm sorry, verse 13

and read all the way through

the remainder of chapter 47.

It says,

Now there was no food in all the land

for the famine was severe

so that the land of Egypt

and the land of Canaan

languished by reason of the famine.

And Joseph gathered up all the money

that was found in the land of Egypt

and in the land of Canaan

in exchange for the grain

that they had bought.

And Joseph brought the money

into Pharaoh's house.

And when the money was all spent

in the land of Egypt

and the land of Canaan,

all the Egyptians came to Joseph

and said,

Give us food.

Why should we die before your eyes

for our money is gone?

And Joseph answered,

Give your livestock

and I will give you food

in exchange for your livestock

if your money is gone.

So they brought their livestock

to Joseph

and Joseph gave them food

in exchange for the horses,

the flocks,

the herds,

the donkeys.

He supplied them with food

in exchange for all their livestock

that year.

And when that year ended,

they came to him

the following year

and said to him,

We will not hide from my Lord

that our money is all spent.

The herds of our livestock

are my Lord's.

There's nothing left

in the sight of my Lord

but our bodies and our land.

Why should we die before your eyes,

both we and our land

by us

and by our land for food

and we with our land

will be servants to Pharaoh

and give us seed

that we may live

and not die

and that the land

may not be desolate.

So Joseph bought all the land

of Egypt for Pharaoh

for all the Egyptians

sold their fields

because this famine

was severe on them

and the land became Pharaoh's.

As for the people,

he made servants of them

from one end of Egypt

to the other.

Only the land of the priest

he did not buy

for the priest had fixed,

had a fixed allowance

from Pharaoh

and lived on the allowance

that Pharaoh gave them.

Therefore,

they did not sell their land.

Then Joseph said to the people,

Behold,

I have this day bought you

and your land for Pharaoh.

Now here is seed for you

and you shall sow the land.

And at the harvest,

you shall give a fifth

to Pharaoh

and four fifths

shall be your own

as a seed for the field

and as food for yourselves

and for your household

and as food for your little ones.

And they said,

You have saved our lives.

May it please my Lord,

we will be servants to Pharaoh.

So Joseph made it a statute

concerning the land

that it stands to this day

that Pharaoh should have the fifth.

The land of the priest alone

did not become Pharaoh's.

Thus Israel settled

in the land of Egypt

in the land of Goshen

and they gained possessions in it

and were fruitful

and multiplied greatly.

And Jacob lived

in the land of Egypt

seventeen years.

So the days of Jacob,

the years of his life

were a hundred and forty-seven years.

And when the time drew near

that Israel must die,

remember,

I will say these names

back and forth,

Israel and Jacob,

same person,

that Israel must die.

He called his son Joseph

and said to him,

If now I have found favor

in your sight,

put your hand under my thigh

and promise to deal kindly

and truly with me.

Do not bury me in Egypt,

but let me lie with my fathers.

Carry me out of Egypt

and bury me in their burying place.

And he answered,

I will do as you have said.

And he said,

Swear to me.

And he swore to him.

And then Israel bowed himself

upon the head of his bed.

So last week,

we were looking back

in an exciting time,

a family torn apart,

a family destroyed,

is reconciled.

But as we see right here

in 47, right,

not everything's easy.

The famine is still there.

The famine is growing.

The famine is spreading.

Because of Joseph

being in the right place,

in the right time,

with the right skills,

not because of happenstance,

but because of the move

in the hand of God,

there is still food

that is available.

While people,

while there could have been

massive death,

massive famine across,

that what we see here

in the land of Egypt,

in the land of Canaan,

that there is hope.

There's hope because of

the hand of the move of God,

which has been placed on Joseph,

and Joseph doing

what God has called him to do.

And so first people

paid with money.

And then when their money

was gone in order to buy food,

they paid with their livestock.

And then when their livestock

was gone,

they paid with themselves.

They paid with their land.

And scripture is very clear

that the agreement was

that they would give a percentage,

give 20%,

and keep the remainder.

And we see that what happens

in this is that Pharaoh's power

and wealth would multiply.

And essentially he was able

to secure the land

and the people

that worked the land.

And in essence,

what we see if we were going

from Genesis to Exodus,

we would see that a foundation

is being laid

for the enslavement

of the people who would come.

Right now we see servants

for a percentage,

but we will something

that will happen

to Joseph's people,

the Israelites,

as they'll become slaves.

As we wrap up Genesis,

chapter 49 will be

where Jacob,

where Israel will bless his sons.

All of these sons

and these dysfunctional relationships

that God is working

powerfully in

and amongst

and he will bless his sons.

And then we'll see

in chapter 50

where he'll die.

And then in Exodus,

here's how it will begin.

And I apologize,

this isn't on the screen,

but if you want to jot this down,

Exodus 1, 8 says,

now there arose

a new king

over Egypt

who did not know Joseph.

And we see the oppression

that Pharaoh,

that Egypt

will have on God's people.

Why?

Well, remember God's promise,

God needed to build himself.

God said

that he would build himself

a people.

And this is what he will do.

He will not build this people

in the land of freedom.

God will build this people

in enslavement.

And here's what we will see happen.

We see,

oh, and all the way back

with God and Abraham

and Genesis 12,

all the way rolling through

into Exodus.

of what we will see

with this people

that it took,

in the very beginning,

it took about 50 years

to grow to 100 people.

But then what we will see

happen in the way

that God does,

because God doesn't say,

I'm going to create

for myself a family.

God says,

I'm going to create

for myself a nation,

a people.

Is that what we will see

over the next 430 years

is several million people.

Were these times easy?

No.

But were these times

of the hand of God?

Yes.

In our lives,

whether we're looking

at the account of Genesis

or we're looking

at the account

of our lives

in present day time,

what does our trust

look like

in trusting

the plan of God?

I think if we were

to sit down,

like we know

how God works

and what God

is working for,

His glory,

our good.

But let's be honest,

sometimes it's a little difficult

to understand

the route

that God has taken

to get us there.

We know the start.

We know the destination.

But the means

in which we will get there

is a little complex,

especially in the moment.

And I believe

what God is growing

in us,

what God is doing

in us

is developing

big faith.

Big faith.

I think if I were

to ask you,

and I believe

many of you

that are here today

are professing

followers of Jesus Christ.

Maybe not all of us.

And if you're not,

we're glad you're here.

We're glad you're here.

We're glad you came

to listen,

to understand,

and we've been praying

for you.

Man, we've been praying

for you.

But for all of us

here,

if I were to say,

do you have faith

in God?

Yes.

Do you have faith

in God's plan?

Yes.

Do you have faith

in God's purpose?

Yes.

Do you have faith

in God's word?

Yes.

Do you have faith

in God's love

and kindness?

Yes.

But the question is,

not do you have faith,

but what is the depth

of your faith?

Do you have little faith?

Do you have big faith?

We start off

with Matthew 8.

I want to read

this story to you

because this,

this to me,

is so powerful

in Jesus' words here.

Matthew 8,

23 and 27.

It says,

when he got into

the boat,

he being Jesus,

his disciples

followed him.

So who took him there?

Jesus.

He led the way.

Where are we going?

I don't know.

We're going where

Jesus takes us.

And behold,

there arose a great storm

on the sea

so that the boat

was being swamped

by the waves,

but he was asleep.

And they went

and woke him saying,

save us, Lord,

we are perishing.

How many of you,

raise your hand,

get seasick?

I do.

All right?

Here's,

if you don't know

if you get seasick or not,

my understanding is

there's only one way

to really find out

if you get seasick or not,

and that's get on a boat

and go out into the water

and find out.

And when you get out

into that water,

if you get seasick,

let me just tell you,

it doesn't matter

how much fun

they've told you

the rest of that day

is going to be,

it is awful.

I spent eight hours

on a boat

off of Edisto.

Now,

we didn't even

get out deep.

At one point in time,

we got stuck.

And by the end of that,

here's what I know,

I never need to get

on a boat again.

And the sky was clear,

there was no storms,

the wind was good,

but there was just enough

of da-da-da-duck,

da-da-da-duck,

constantly to cause me

to say no thank you.

And let's look at them.

Let's look at them.

They're not on a simple

ride around Edisto

with some waves

moving the boat.

The Bible says

that the boat

was being swamped,

overrun

by the waves.

This wasn't,

hey, Jesus,

John's out here

throwing up

because you kind of

come help him a little bit.

He's a little weak

when it comes to this,

right?

This isn't this.

Look at their words.

Save us, Lord,

we're perishing.

Now,

in our times

of difficulty

and dismay,

and we should,

man,

we should run

to the Lord,

run to the Lord,

run to the Lord.

Cast all your anxieties

on him,

all your cares.

Bring him to the Lord,

bring him to the Lord.

That's what they do.

So they should be

commended, right?

They followed Jesus.

He took them on the boat.

They're on the boat.

Things aren't going as planned.

They didn't get mad.

They didn't try

to have a mutiny.

Save us, Lord.

We're perishing.

Verse 26.

And he said to them,

why are you afraid,

oh, you of little faith?

Then he rose

and rebuked

the winds

and the sea

and there was

a great calm

and the men marveled

saying,

what sort of a man

is this

that even the winds

and sea

obeyed?

You've used that verse.

I found out this week

when I think of that verse,

I always think of that verse

in the King James.

Oh, ye of little faith.

I don't say ye

in any context,

but I do when I think

of that verse.

Oh, you of little faith.

So why does Jesus

rebuke them

and not commend them?

Why in this moment

is Jesus like,

listen, stop.

Stop.

Little faith people,

stop.

Because he put them

in the boat.

He put them in the boat.

You get like,

he's like,

you're trusting me.

You're following me.

You want to be a part

of this.

Like, you're pumped

when I cast out the demon.

You're pumped

when I turn the water

into wine.

You're pumped

when the blind man sees.

You're pumped

when the crippled person

gets up and walks.

But now there's

a little bit of calamity.

There's a little bit

of difficulty.

There's a little bit

of stress.

There's a little bit

of things that you think

that are outside

of your hand.

Oh, you of little faith.

Here's what I want

you and I

to grasp

in our minds

that Jesus

wants you

and me

to not have

little faith.

He doesn't want us

to have faith.

He wants us

to have big faith.

Big faith.

So what is big faith?

I mean,

we've been seeing

some big faith

moments

throughout Genesis.

And when we think

oftentimes

about big faith,

we think about

big decisions.

We think about

big actions.

We think about

monumental moments

in Scripture

and monumental moments

in our life.

Just walking through

Genesis, right?

We see big faith.

Build an ark.

Okay,

I've never built a boat.

Well, here's what

you got to do.

You got to build

one big enough

for your family

and for

at least

for two

of every animal.

Well,

am I going to build it

by the river?

Am I going to build it

by this?

No, you're going to build it

on dry land

because rain,

it's never rained before

but rain's going to fall

and the whole earth

is going to flood.

We think, man,

that's big faith.

That's big faith.

Go have big faith

like that

in that moment,

in that big moment

that's there.

Big faith.

We think about Abraham

when he was Abraham

and the call

to leave

because of what God

wanted to do

and you remember

what he had to leave?

He had to leave everything.

He had to leave his home,

his business,

his power,

his influence,

everything

to follow God.

That's big faith.

It's a big faith moment,

big faith action.

Think of

God calling Abraham

Abraham to

sacrifice the son

that God had promised

that he'd always wanted

and Abraham goes

and I believe

was willing to do

exactly what God

called him to do

until God stopped him.

That's big faith.

But here's

what I want us to get.

If you wait

to have big faith

on big faith

moments

then you're not

going to have

big faith.

Right?

Like,

what about,

let's just say

today is just boring.

It's just plain.

There's no

arc moment.

There's no

sacrifice moment.

There's no

leave everything

behind moment.

There's no

big decision

quote unquote

big faith.

We've been

reading through

and seeing

moment by

moment

of big faith

decisions

that God

has called

these men

and women

to make

and what I would

argue

is that in the

momentum

to get to

big faith,

if you've got to

have big faith

on Friday,

let me just tell you

something,

you can't have

little faith

on Monday,

Tuesday,

Wednesday,

and Thursday.

And so

in big faith

also requires

big faith

and simple

decisions.

Here's a lot

of what we've

seen in God's

word.

We see men

and women

of faith

give an offering.

Here's what

we've seen

in Genesis.

We've seen

men and women

of faith

worship.

We've seen

them choose

to be honest

instead of lie.

we've seen

them do

what is

fair

and what

is right.

We've seen

them

as they're

waiting and

preparing

themselves

from the

big decisions

that they

would have

to face

implement

big faith

in the

simple

decisions

of life.

And if

you and

do not

make

simple

daily

decisions

based off

of big

faith

we will

never

make

the big

faith

decisions

when big

decisions

come.

We'll never

do it.

You and

will never

stand

still

in minimal

faith

and then

when big

faith

call

happens

take that

step.

Jesus is

I'm

here

I'm

with you

I'm

on this

journey

small

you know

who I

be still

and it's

calm.

what we

see in

Genesis

is Jacob

is going

to bless

two

individuals

and what

we will

see from

these

are just

some

simple

but

powerful

decisions

of what

it means

to have

big

faith.

Big

faith.

So let's

read verses

1-7

to 48

it says

after this

Joseph

was told

behold

your father

is ill

so he

took with

him his

two sons

Manasseh

and Ephraim

and it

was told

to Jacob

your son

Joseph

has come

to you

then Israel

summoned his

strength

and sat

up in bed

and Jacob

said to

Joseph

God

almighty

appeared

to me

Lutz

in the

land of

Canaan

and blessed

and said

to me

behold

I will

make you

fruitful

and multiply

you

and I

will make

you a

company

of peoples

and will

give this

land to

your

offspring

after

you

for an

everlasting

possession

and now

your two

sons

who were

born in

the land

of Egypt

before I

came to

you in

Egypt

are mine

Ephraim

and Manasseh

shall be

mine

as Reuben

and Simeon

are

and the

children

that you

fathered

after them

shall be

yours

they

shall be

called

by the

name

of their

brothers

in their

inheritance

as for

when I

came to

Padnam

and my

sorrow for

Rachel

died in

the land

of Canaan

on the way

when there

was still

some distance

to go

to Ephrath

I buried

her there

on the way

to Ephrath

that is

Bethlehem

Jacob

is going

to receive

two of

the sons

of Joseph

and he's

going to

adopt

them

into the

family

at the

highest

level

now

if you've

been journeying

with us

it's a

risky move

but it's

very interesting

and you guys

know this

we've been

on this

journey

with Jacob

Jacob

is a

godly

man

who

doesn't

always

get it

right

but he's

a man

of faith

that we

see

so hopefully

that

maybe

describes

you

and describes

we're people

of faith

who don't

always get

it right

but that's

why God

gives us

his grace

and so

what does

he lean

into in

this moment

he leans

into God's

word

verse 3

he presses

look what he

says

and Jacob

said to

Joseph

God

almighty

appeared

to me

let's

in the

land

Canaan

and blessed

and said

to me

but behold

I will make

you fruitful

and multiply

you and I

will make

you a company

of peoples

and give

this land

to your

offspring

after you

for an

everlasting

possession

he presses

into

he can't

say

hey man

go get

your bible

let's walk

through this

together

he doesn't

have

God's

copy

of God's

word

but what

does he

in this

moment

for what

I'm

going to

in this

moment

for the

actions

that I

have

in this

moment

for this

piece

let me

press in

let me

say

this

God's

word

and if

you and

I are

going to

live

in big

faith

if you

and I

are

going to

base

our

daily

life

not in

the

ye of

little

faith

but if

we're

going to

base

our

faith

in the

get out

of the

boat

and walk

with

Jesus

faith

then what

we have

to do

is have

to have

big

faith

in the

daily

moments

and what

we see

right here

is faith

in God's

word

faith

in God's

word

there's

nothing

in this

part

right here

that's

blood

in people's

mind

is just

hey let me

remind you

of the

plan

and the

faithfulness

of God

now

there's

agenda

with what

I'm about

to say

but

there's

two types

people

in my

house

there

are those

in my

house

who do

all of the

things

and go to

all of the

doctor's

appointments

that the

doctors have

asked them

to do

as they

look to

daily care

for their

bodies

and then

there's

and I

just go

when it

gets bad

enough

and my

wife is

like I'm

done

dealing

with this

you

stubborn

man

get up

and go

right

I need

to go

I need

to care

for myself

I'm

stubborn

I'm

hard

headed

I don't

do it

if you

if I

asked you

again

the same

question

do you

have faith

in God's

word

the answer

for you

would be

yes

if you're

a follower

of Jesus

I assume

and I hope

that your

answer

would be

yes

but

but I

asked you

if I

asked you

when it

comes

to the

practice

and to

the

discipline

and to

the joy

and

desire

of your

life

do you

constantly

go to

and find

fulfillment

and hope

and promise

and joy

and purpose

and in

calling

in God's

word

and I

hope

that your

answer is

yes

but all

too often

our answer

is no

when the

answer is

how do we

know what

to do

when God

places us

in the

moment

oh ye

of little

faith

God's

word

is here

when we

need it

some of you

approach God's

word the way

that I

approach the

doctor

it's all

falling apart

I can't get

out of bed

I've lost

control

I've

turned to

everything

else

now I

turn to

you

when we

don't need

to approach

God's

word

because we

need it

in the

situation

solely

but we

approach

God's

word

because we

need it

daily

because we

don't know

when the

situation

is going

to come

all right

let's keep

on reading

verse 8

when Israel

saw Joseph's

son he

said whose

are these

and Joseph

said to

his father

they are

my sons

whom God

has given

me here

and he

said bring

them to

please

that I

may

bless

them

now the

eyes

of Israel

were dim

with age

so that he

could not

see so

Joseph

brought them

near him

and he

kissed

them and

embraced

them

and Israel

said to

Joseph

I never

expected

to see

your face

and behold

God

has let

me see

your

offspring

also

then

Joseph

removed

them

from his

knees

and he

bowed

himself

with his

face

to the

earth

and Joseph

took them

both

Ephraim

in his

right hand

toward Israel's

left hand

and Manasseh

in his

left hand

toward Israel's

right hand

and brought

them near to

him

and Israel

look at this

Israel stretched out

his right hand

and laid it

on Ephraim

who was the

younger

in his

left hand

on the head

of Manasseh

crossing his

hands

for Manasseh

was the

firstborn

and he

blessed

Joseph

and said

the God

before whom

my fathers

Abraham

and Isaac

walked

underline this

in your

Bible

the God

who has

been my

shepherd

all my

life long

to this

day

the angel

who has

redeemed

me from

all evil

bless

the boys

and in

them let

my name

be carried

on in

the name

of my

fathers

Abraham

and Isaac

and let

them grow

into a

multitude

in the

midst

of the

earth

so here's

what's

happening

here

Jacob

is going

to bless

the boys

but he's

going to

bless

Ephraim

the younger

with the

greater

blessing

which was

against

custom

okay

but he

blessed

both boys

because here's

what I want

us to see

in this

daily

decisions

of faith

mean

daily

faith

in God's

covenant

daily

faith

in God's

covenant

Jacob

in his

blessing

in verses

15 and

recounts

the covenant

going all

the way

back to

Abraham

the covenant

that God

made with

Abraham

continues

on with

Isaac

and Jacob

and now

will continue

on with

his sons

and these

two now

adopted

sons of

Jacob

but he says

something very

interesting

what I told

you to

underline

in verse

the God

who has

been my

shepherd

all my

life long

to this

day

what he

does right

here is he

speaks to

God's covenant

by talking

about God's

grace

remember this

is the same

guy

this is the

same guy

a couple

of chapters

ago

who was

feeling like

every part

of his

world

was falling

apart

and he

was cursed

and now

look at what

he's doing

now what

we see here

is what

he is

acknowledging

in his

life

is that

he says

God

you've

been my

shepherd

all my

life long

to this

day

shepherd

theme

over and

over

throughout

scripture

because can

I tell you

what a

sheep

cannot do

is keep

itself

a sheep

needs a

shepherd

when a

sheep

wanders

the shepherd

gets it

when the

sheep

gets in

trouble

the shepherd

rescues

when the

sheep

gets hurt

the shepherd

heals

when the

sheep

are lost

they go

find it

it's the

shepherd

it's the

shepherd

it's the

shepherd

and what

he's saying

here is

I'm the

dumb

sheep

and you're

the holy

shepherd

and in the

covenant of

what you've

promised

it's not

because we've

done it

right

it's because

of your

goodness

and your

grace

to us

faith in

God's

covenant

faith

in Christ

faith in

his grace

is not

saying

just

this is

how God

saved me

in the

past

but is

also

looking

currently

how God

is saving

daily

by his

grace

and mercy

how he

keeps you

how he

keeps me

and how we

celebrate him

for that

and so

when we're

having to

make in

those day

to day

decisions

I don't

need that

emotional

moment to

remind me

of his

goodness

and how

I'm

undeserving

of that

in my

life

because

it's a

daily

reminder

of who

I am

of his

goodness

and so

within that

it puts

all of

the bad

that has

happened

around me

it puts

all of

the suffering

that's

happened

around me

in perspective

because I

can trust

no matter

what happens

in the boat

out of the boat

coming over

into the boat

of my life

that God

is good

that God

is control

and his grace

and his mercy

are keeping me

and I deserve

none of it

because I deserve

to be on the boat

that's flood

and set

on fire

and sinking

to the bottom

that's what

I deserve

but he gives

me his grace

he gives

me his grace

so verse 17

so when

Joseph saw

that his father

laid his right

hand on

Ephraim

it displeased

him

and he took

his father's

hands

to move

them

from Ephraim's

head to

Manasseh's head

and Joseph

said to his

father

not this way

my father

since this

one is the

firstborn

put your right

hand on his

head

but his

father

refused

and said

I know

my son

I know

he shall

become a

people

and he

also shall

be great

nevertheless

his younger

brother

shall be

greater than

and his

offspring

shall become

a multitude

of nations

so he

blessed them

that day

by you

Israel

will pronounce

blessings

saying God

make you

as Ephraim

and as

Manasseh

thus

he put

Ephraim

before

Manasseh

he's trusting

in God's

plan

he's trusting

in God's

plan

remember

Jacob is

blessing the

younger

not the

older

Joseph

tries to

correct him

but that

doesn't

work

I believe

on the

screen

incorrectly

I wrote

from my

notes

faith in

God's

purpose

and you

can write

purpose

maybe purpose

and plan

are interchangeable

but I like

that

even I like

plan better

so I

changed it

this morning

after I

turned my

notes in

what

we see

here

son

listen

know

what

should

know

how

think

this

should

work

but

let me

tell you

what

God's

doing

and it's

this

know

you're

comfortable

with

this

but

God's

doing

this

but

this

makes

sense

this

accepted

culture

know

but

God's

doing

this

and so

here's

what

God's

doing

and so

even

the

culture

and

everything

says

this

and

your

mind

says

this

and

your

wife

going

say

this

and

your

co-workers

are going

to say

this

and

everybody

going

say

this

but

here's

what

God's

doing

this

plan

and

when

comes

time

for

this

really

twisted

intermingled

plan

all we

can

trust

is our

plan

and we

can't

even

trust

this

it's

going

to be

difficult

to walk

through

those

days

you

know

plan

oftentimes

good

plan

man

hope

it's

moral

plan

hope

smart

hope

plan

sincere

but

plan

doesn't

match

God's

plan

then

doesn't

matter

that

plan

good

smart

moral

and

sincere

because

plan

can

also

evil

and

foolish

and

selfish

because

sometimes

that's

who I

can

but

God's

plan

it's

always

wise

God's

plan

always

right

God's

plan

always

holy

and

God's

plan

always

perfect

even

what

doesn't

make

sense

here's

what

hope

about

your

faith

God's

plan

hope

your

faith

solid

and

fixed

and

set

Christ

and

flexible

to move

with

him

and

flexible

to go

goes

and

even

when

takes

you

onto

the

boat

you

can

God's

got

this

God's

got

this

man

that

wave

may

sink

God's

got

this

may

drown

God's

got

this

God's

got

this

his

plan

good

his

plan

holy

his

plan

right

and

may

not

the

path

that

we're

but

can

trust

the

plan

and

the

purpose

behind

last

two

verses

then

Israel

said

Joseph

behold

I'm

about

die

but

God

will

with

you

and

will

bring

you

again

the

land

your

fathers

moreover

I've

given

you

rather

than

your

brothers

one

mountain

slope

that

took

from

the

hand

the

Amorites

with

sword

and

with

bow

that's

just

some

pretty

awesome

last words

right there

right

I'm

giving you

a mountain

slope

here's

where I

got it

from

right

from

the

hand

the

Amorites

with

sword

and

with

bow

147

year

journey

that's

a long

time

that's

time

than

you

and

could

possibly

fathom

being

this

earth

that's

time

than

can

begin

wrap

our

minds

around

and

when

look

and

think

natural

question

would

come

God

why

did

take

all

this

time

for

you

work

and

move

and

how

you're

going

work

and

move

God

why

didn't

you

live in

God's

timing

and

here's

why

it's

great

that

you

and

live

God's

timing

because

God's

not

bound

time

God's

not

bound

time

always

knows

he's

always

there

he's

always

acting

he's

always

moving

he's

not

bound

time

don't

know

all

the

reasons

but

came

with

one

reason

this

timing

one

reason

why

all

this

would

have

take

place

know

there's

but

found

one

and

it's

this

love

hearing

about

Joseph

love

when

God

gives

the

Old

Testament

mean

God

does

much

Moses

David

with

many

but

with

Joseph

too

and

gives

Joseph

that

can

see

Jesus

gives

Joseph

that

you

and

stand

here

February

1st

2025

Lexington

South

Carolina

long

removed

from

the

famine

Egypt

and

Canaan

long

removed

from

the

day

that

servant

boy

was

brought

through

the

ranks

and

became

the

right

hand

Pharaoh

that

could

look

his

life

and

see

this

Joseph

and

Jesus

loved

his

father

but

rejected

and

hated

his

brothers

endured

punishment

and

imprisonment

and

sold

for a

few

pieces

silver

tempted

Joseph

with

the

master's

wife

Jesus

Satan

but

did

not

sin

and as

result

made

to be

servant

both

them

associated

with

two

criminals

one

pardoned

one

was

not

showed

compassion

brought

message

forgiveness

reconciliation

deliverance

and

freedom

and

became

the

source

life

for

the

world

through

the

bread

offered

don't

know

why

I own

a lot

God's

timing

and

you

don't

either

but

as we

walk

these

daily

decisions

these

faith

moments

our

life

it's

not

knowing

God's

timing

that

we're

called

but

it's

knowing

that

his

timing

always

perfect

always

I'm

going to

ask the

band

if they'll

make their

way to

the

stage

we're

going to

prepare

partake

in the

Lord's

Supper

today

Jesus

Christ

sent

his

father

and

rejected

those

came

save

hated

mocked

sold

for a

few pieces

silver

and as

a result

was

punished

and

imprisoned

and

crucified

became

the

sacrifice

for our

sin

that in

the

temptation

Satan

and in

every

moment

of his

life

was

sinless

and was

perfect

and so

his

sacrifice

sinless

and

perfect

and as

he hung

on the

cross

a thief

on either

side

one who

put his

faith

and one

who

mocked

one

who

was

pardoned

and one

who

was

not

and he

offers

you

and I

the

gospel

the gospel

message of

compassion

that the

father has

for us

who are

sinners

and

in the

gospel

that

Jesus

says

that

came

through

his

spilled

blood

offer

forgiveness

for your

sin

for my

sin

the

sin

that

condemns

to hell

Jesus

says

forgive

past

forgive

present

forgive

future

he's

going

deliver

from

our

sin

that

we're

longer

slaves

sin

but

we're

slaves

righteousness

we're

longer

enemies

God

but

we're

sons

and

daughters

God

we're

reconciled

him

because

offered

the

forgiveness

of sin

through

his

blood

and

the

bread

life

through

his

body

for

all

who

put

their

faith

their

hope

and

their

trust

him

would

you

pray

with

God

pray

as we

prepare

partake

in the

Lord's

Supper

God

for an

examination

of our

heart

God

if any

of us

is found

with

unrepentant

sin

may we

confess it

before you

may we

repent

prepare

acknowledge

the

work

Christ

God

there's

any

bitterness

and anger

hold

in our

hearts

as we

have been

forgiven

God

you've

called

forgive

others

God

pray

that

would

forgive

freely

forgive

without

agendas

without

selfish

motivation

but for

glory

to your

name

and God

if we

need to

ask for

forgiveness

from someone

that we've

hurt

from someone

that we've

wronged

today

Lord

commit

to you

will do

just

that

God

give us

the power

through your

Holy Spirit

to be

big faith

people

big faith

in our

worship

big faith

in our

sacrifice

big faith

in our

obedience

big faith

with our

family

big faith

with our

finances

big faith

with our

growth

big faith

with lostness

big faith

with brothers

and sisters

in Christ

God

may we

this daily

faith

in your

word

faith

in your

gospel

faith

in your

grace

faith

in your

plan

and faith

in your

time

in Jesus

name we

pray

amen

that's it

for this

week's

message

be sure

to check

back

next week

for another

episode

in the

meantime

you can

stay up

to date

with everything

happening

at Willow Ridge

by visiting

us on

Facebook

Instagram

YouTube

and online

willowridgechurch.org

thanks again

for listening

More episodes

Chapters

Creators and Guests

What is Willow Ridge Sermons?