Charles Simeon is an example of a believer who was a blessing even to people who rejected him as their beloved pastor. Charles Simeon’s sermons have blessed my life. He produced twenty-one volumes of sermons. Those sermons were preached in the crucible of a fiery furnace of opposition. Today the Charles Simeon Trust holds workshops on preaching not only in America but around the world. He being dead still influences through his sermons.
Simeon was appointed pastor of Trinity Church in 1782 in Cambridge by a bishop of the evangelical wing of the Anglican Church. The church, however, wanted the assistant to the pastor who had left. The assistant’s name was Mr. Hammond. Simeon was willing to step aside, but the bishop insisted and Simeon, therefore considered this appointment the will of God.
The church disagreed and rebelled against Simeon. The church had jurisdiction over the evening service and appointed Mr. Hammond to preach instead of their new pastor. For five years, Simeon had to tolerate the church preferring someone else preaching to his own. When Mr. Hammond left, the church chose another preacher to preach for seven years. For a total of twelve years, the church paid to hear another preacher besides their own pastor.
The church also rejected their pastor, Simeon, by locking the pew doors on Sunday mornings. At that time the members owned their pews. To keep people from hearing their pastor on Sunday morning, the members locked the gate to their personal pews. This cut the attendance in half. Those who continued to come to hear Simeon preach had to stand in the aisle. Simeon rented chairs and placed the chairs in the aisles. But the leadership of Trinity Church threw the chairs into the churchyard. This lasted for over ten years.
Finally, one of the members produced pamphlets criticizing Simeon’s sermons and distributed them to the community. After twenty-four years of pastoring a church that rejected Simeon, peace finally came. Simeon had ministered to a people who bitterly tried to drive him away.
To be a blessing is sometimes difficult. Joseph preceded Charles Simeon in being a blessing to people who rejected him. Joseph came from a dysfunctional family. Joseph’s father showed favoritism and Joseph’s brothers consequentially hated him. Yet, Joseph became a blessing to them. Joseph allowed God through his amazing providence to make him a blessing to those who hated him.
We must through difficulty and hardship permit God to make us a blessing to others. How can we let God make us a blessing? By following the example of Joseph. God through his providence can make us a blessing
1. Through Difficult People (Genesis 37:1-36)
A. These difficult people are envious (37:1-11)
This envy was caused by the favoritism Jacob showed Joseph. Joseph’s brothers “hated” him (37:4, 5, 8) because of envy (37:11). The brothers also envied Joseph because of the favoritism shown Joseph by God in 37:5-11 when God gave Joseph two dreams that revealed Joseph’s future which included his family honoring Joseph. Some hear Joseph saying to his family, “I am going to be President of America and you are going to clean my bathrooms.”
B. These difficult people are greedy (37:12-28)
Judah persuaded his brothers not to kill Joseph because there was no money in that. They sell their brother for the price of a slave.
C. These difficult people are loveless (37:29-36)
They broke their father’s heart in 37:35. Joseph at seventeen was not ready to be “President.” So instead of allowing this responsibility to crush him, God used difficult people to mold him to become the leader God intended.
A. W. Tozer accurately stated, “Before God uses a believer greatly, he hurts him deeply.” Not only does God providentially use difficult people but difficult circumstances.
2. Through Difficult Circumstances (Genesis 38-39)
A. The difficult circumstance is recorded in chapters 38-39.
1) In Genesis 37:36, we are informed that Joseph was sold into Egypt. But the storyline seems to be interrupted by the story of Judah’s immorality. The narrator starts Genesis 38, with “and it came to pass” which often is a new episode in the same story. In Genesis 38, Judah was not only envious, greedy, and loveless, but immoral. This is graphically displayed in chapter 38 when Judah mistakes his daughter-in-law for a prostitute.
2) In contrast to the immoral Judah in Genesis 38, Joseph is moral in chapter 39 because “the Lord was with Joseph” in 39:2, 3, 21, and 23. In Genesis 39:5, God is using Joseph to bless all nations which God promised Abraham in Genesis 12:3. The theme of Genesis is being lived out by Joseph. But in spite of Joseph’s integrity, he is falsely accused and arrested.
B. The believer’s response to difficult circumstances in chapter 40.
Joseph responds to his difficult circumstances by serving others in 40:1-7. Wherever God plants Joseph, he blossoms. Joseph did not allow hardships to make him bitter toward people. I have heard pastors say jokingly, “I would not mind pastoring if it were not for the people.” I also know of pastors who dropped out of the ministry because of difficult people.
Joseph responds to his difficult circumstances by serving God in 40:8. Joseph is disappointed again in life when the cupbearer forgets to recommend Joseph to Pharaoh in 40:23. Sometimes we say, “I could be happy if this difficult person was not in my life.” We should meditate on Joseph we have those thoughts.
C. God’s response to the believer’s difficult circumstances in chapter 41.
God providentially intervenes again with two more dreams. Joseph interprets the dreams and gives God the glory and is promoted by Pharaoh thirteen years (Gen. 41:46) after God initially revealed to Joseph with two dreams that he would lead his family. In addition to God providentially using difficult people, and difficult circumstances, God uses difficult confrontations to make us a blessing.
3. Through Difficult Confrontation (Genesis 42-44)
Joseph confronts the three sins of his brothers to see if they have grown. Joseph recreates Genesis 37 where the brothers were envious, greedy, and loveless in his life.
A. The sin of greed is confronted in chapter 42.
This was Joseph’s first meeting with his brother in over twenty years. “Money” is mentioned five times in chapter 42. Joseph tests his brothers’ greed (Gen 42:15-16). The brothers are no longer greedy but guilt-ridden over their sin against Joseph (Gen 42:26-29).
B. The sin of envy is confronted in chapter 43.
Judah has grown and becomes the leader (Gen 43:3-14). Joseph shows favoritism to the youngest in Genesis 43:34 and the brothers rejoice instead of being envious.
C. The sin of lovelessness is confronted in chapter 44.
In their third meeting with Joseph, the brothers have dramatically changed. Judah deeply cares about his father whom he refers to fifteen times (44:22, 33- 34). Martin Luther said of Judah’s plea, “I would give very much to be able to pray before our Lord God as well as Judah prays here before Joseph. For this is a perfect pattern of prayer, yes, of the true feeling which should be in a prayer” (Luther’s Works, 7:368). God has providentially used difficult people, circumstances, and confrontations, and now God uses difficult reconciliation to make us a blessing.
4. Through Difficult Reconciliation
There is reconciliation in Genesis 45:1-3; 14-15. How did this reconciliation happen? Through forgiveness (Gen 50:15-17). The brothers ask for forgiveness and Joseph forgives their envy, greed, and lack of love. Also, belief in God’s sovereignty and providence (Gen 50:19-21) is necessary for reconciliation. Joseph acknowledged that God providentially worked through all of his difficulties so Joseph could fulfill God’s purpose stated in God’s covenant to Abraham in Genesis 12:3 to be a blessing to all people. God can use evil people to accomplish his will. Peter shows this balance between human responsibility and God’s sovereignty in his sermon in Acts 2:22-23. God predetermined before the foundation of the world the death of his son for the sins of the world and yet wicked men carried out God’s plan.