What Counts and What Matters

            When you focus only on what counts, you’ll end up losing track of what really matters. That’s the lesson Pharaoh learns, the hard way, in Exodus 1 and 2, our Old Testament reading for this morning. Years have passed since Joseph, the great prince adviser of Egypt, died. Once welcomed with open arms, the Israelites, or the Hebrews, have become a nuisance to the Egyptian monarchy. Pharaoh, a new Pharaoh, fears the Israelites. There’s no reason to fear them—they’ve done nothing, as far as we can tell, but live peaceably in Egypt. Like every other Pharaoh, Egyptian or not, this new king invents a problem so that he can satisfy his bloodlust.

The Tears of Joseph

            The scene is tense. The sons of Jacob stand before the throne of Egypt’s most powerful prince. They are tired and hungry—they are desperate. Already they have been before this throne and sent away. Now their youngest brother, Benjamin, has been detained and accused of stealing the prince’s silver. If they had anyplace else to turn, they would have done so, but they are poor, and they need this prince’s help. Their family will starve without it.

Brother Joseph

Starting today, and for most of the next fourteen weeks or so, our sermons here at Centre are going to be based on the Old Testament lesson. We are going to pay careful attention to God’s covenant love with Israel, starting this morning with Joseph and continuing through the birth of Moses and the Exodus to the entry into the Promised Land under Joshua. Along with the story of the life of Jesus Christ, this long story is the core story of our Christian faith.

You Give Them Something to Eat

            In the middle of the lush fields and summer green of Forest Hill, the desert can seem a long way off. The closest desert, as far as I can tell, is somewhere out west, Texas, maybe, or New Mexico or Colorado. Here it’s easy to forget what deserts are like—or to pretend that they don’t exist.