Epaggelia

The Spirit of Christ says through the apostle Paul, that there is “a new order of existence, and on all who are guided by this rule, be peace and mercy on the Israel of God. (Galatians 6:15-16). Who exactly is the Israel of God? Whoever they are, they have access to the peace and mercy of God. Paul proclaimed that Christians had God’s peace. That is to say, God was not only their God in Jesus, but also their friend. He is merciful to them, in giving them every reason to praise Him and be thankful for the blessings of forgiveness and the hope of a victorious life in Heaven. This was planned for you and me before the earth was created. The ancient prophet Ezekiel prophesied that God’s people would be united under one King forever. Read Ezekiel 37:15-22. He promises that divided Israel and Judah would be reunited as the house of Joseph. Paul calls Christians “the true circumcision” (Philippians 3:3) and the Israel of God, because he knows what Jesus has given us.

The life of Joseph is prophetic, God was foretelling how the Messiah would lead all his children out of Eygpt/Sin.  This wasn’t something Moses did all by himself. It was Joseph who made his descendants promise to carry his bones back to the promised land. After 400 years, Moses kept the promise by the instigation of God, and led the house of Joseph back home! You can see Jesus in Joseph when you look at this story in Genesis, prophetically.

Why is Joseph and Jesus so attractive and essential ? The character of Joseph and his lifestory has many uncanny parallels with the life of Jesus. Without Joseph living the way he lived, he could have died and never had descendants, however his success ensured life and a future for Israel. Joseph cheated death at least 3 times in his life, 1-in the pit from his brothers. 2-in lies of Potiphers wife & prison. 3-in the court foretelling dreams of the Pharoah, if Joseph’s explanation proved false, Pharoah could have killed him. Here is a list of similarities which bring the lives of Joseph and Jesus into an analogy of a Savior.

They both had amazing births, Gen. 30:22-24 & Mat. 1:18-23

… were taken into Egypt to escape death, Gen. 37:28 & Mat. 2:13

… saved lives from Egypt, Hosea 11:1 & Mat. 2:15

… became servants, Gen. 39:4 & Php. 2:7

… began ministry at about age 30, Gen. 41:46 & Lk. 3:23

… were full of the Spirit of God, Gen. 41:38 & Lk. 4:1

… returned good for evil, Gen. 50:20 & Mat. 5:44

… were taught by God, Gen. 41:16 & Jn. 5:19

… loved people freely, Gen. 45:15 & Jn. 13:34

… gained the confidence of people quickly, Gen. 39:3 & Mt. 8:8

… gave bread to the hungry, Gen. 41:57 & Mk. 6:41

… resisted difficult temptations, Gen. 39:8-9 & Heb. 4:15

… had his own brothers reject him, Gen. 37:5-8 & Jn. 7:5

… had visions into the future, Gen. 37:6 & Mt. 24:3

… tested people to reveal their true nature, Gen. 42:25 & Mk. 11:30

… were hated for their words, Gen. 37:8 & Jn. 7:7, and his followers too. Ac. 5:17, 7:9-14, 13:45.

… were sold for the price of a slave, Gen. 37:28 & Mat. 26:15

… were silent before false-accusers, Gen. 39:20 & Mk. 15:4

… were condemned between two prisoners, Gen. 40:2-3 & Lk. 23:32

… were pronounced dead before their fathers, Gen. 37:33 & Lk. 23:46

… rose to reign in a new life as a Lord, Gen. 41:41 – 45:8, & Mk. 16:6 – Rev. 19:16.

 Lastly it is interesting to note that Pharoah said the same words of Joseph, as Mary said of Jesus, “Do whatever He tells you”, Gen.41:55 & Jn. 2:5. One for bread, the other for wine. We must come to church with the priority of seeing Jesus, and we will if we desire to. The Communion is a spiritual feast wherein we proclaim a risen Savior from the dead, in his flesh/bread and blood/wine. We can see Jesus in eachother’s physical fellowship too. Joseph was not physically recognized by his own brothers when they came to him starving in Egypt, Gen. 42:8, and neither did the nationalistic brothers of Jesus recognize Him for who He really was, Jn. 8:19, “You know neither Me nor my Father, if you knew me, you would also know my Father.” Do we really know who Jesus is, and do we desire to see Him? Our life depends on believing He is who he says he is.