If you come from a large family, like I do, you have a large family, similar to ours every now and then somebody gets left behind. Have you ever had that experience of being left behind? Have you ever left the child behind? Amen. Tell the truth. It can be a harrowing experience. It can be a very stressful situation, a very stressful occurrence to either be left behind or to leave someone dear behind. When I was raised, I was raised, there was nine of us in our family, nine children, and I was second to the youngest. Most of my siblings, they were much older than me and my younger brother, my next older sibling, the seven years older than me. One of the principles that my father would teach to the older ones is that you don't leave your little brothers behind. One day, when I was a young boy, we were about seven or eight, somewhere in there, and we were making our way home. I was hanging out with my older teenage brothers, which was a rare occasion. And we were making our way home, and we lived up in the woods, dirt roads, and so to get home, you make your way through trails. Now, as we were making our way home through a trail, lo and behold, I remember that we came upon a yellow jackets net. I don't know where that yellow jacket net was. I don't know who disturbed it, but I do know that those walks were not very happy. What I was having disturbed them, and they came out in force. And of course, my older brothers took off running. I was making my way as best I could, but these yellow jackets, these walks were all over me. And by the time I reached home, my brothers were already secure in the house, and I came in yelling and screaming with these walks all over me. My father grabbed me, ripped off my shirt, and with his rough hands just started beating me, and beating these walks that were on me. Until he got them all off. He wasn't upset with those walks. My father was upset with my older brothers, and he let them know about it. Things were not well in our home that day. They had left. There, brother, things were not well in Jacob's home, and we come to the last part of chapter 42. You've listened as the scriptures were read, if you've meditated on it at all. Jacob had sent ten sons to Egypt to get food because of the family, nine sons returned. When the sons of Jacob returned back home, they had once again, beloved, left a brother, and when they offered their report to their father, it was not a good one. Jacob, be familiar with the story of Jacob and his sons. Jacob was accustomed to his sons bringing back reports. They certainly were not a source of encouragement to their father. The Bible says in Proverbs chapter 17 and verse 25, a foolish son is a grief to his father, and bitterness to her who bore him. Well, beloved, Jacob had foolish sons in space, and though they had brought back food and though they had even brought back money, their report of what happened in Egypt was not a good one. They report back to their father that they had been accused. They say the Lord of the land, prime minister, the governor of Egypt, we know who he is. Joseph, their younger brother, they report that the Lord of the land, this prime minister, had accused them of being spies and traitors. Joseph had accused them of being thieves and liars. They had been accused in Egypt, not only had they been accused in Egypt, but they had been detained in Egypt. They had gone to Egypt to get food so that they may survive the famine, but they had been held in prison. For no less than three days, and haven't been held in prison and detained, they were left there in prison for those three days to contemplate their fate. Do you remember, to even question, they report that they had been accused, they report that they had been detained, they report that they had been exposed. They were down a brother and the Lord of the land, Jacob, I mean, Joseph, they're for demanded that they bring back their younger brother if they were ever going to see their brother, Simeon again, they were exposed. They didn't know that Joseph knew, but they knew they knew that they had already left one brother behind, and now they were made to leave a nothing. They were accused, they were detained, and they were exposed, and this was bad news for Jacob. This report was a bad report. Because this was not the first time that his sons had showed up at home with more money and less funds. Jacob was suspicious. He was suspicious then, and he is suspicious now. He ought to be suspicious. God was suspicious. God was suspicious that came. Genesis chapter 4, the verse 9, the Lord said to Cain, where is your brother Abel? When Cain said, I don't know, can you imagine when they get home, they had just sold Joseph into slavery? And Jacob says to Judah and Rubin and Simeon, where is Joseph? Where is Abel? Am I my brother's keeper? So for him, the answer to that question is obvious. Yes, yes, yes, you are responsible for Abel. Yes, Rubin and Judah, you are responsible for Simeon. Yes, Marvin and Ricky, you are responsible for Tony and of Cain, beloved. Yes, that he refused to be his brother's keeper. The son of Rubin, Levi and all the rest, is that they refused to be Joseph's keeper. I want to say this, and I want to be clear this morning, because I know that most of us don't want other people in our business. I know that. I'm here to tell you that God says otherwise. I want to be clear again. I want to be clear. Contrary to what you might think, I don't want to be in your business. I've got my own business. I have to tell Knucklehead husbands to love their wives. I want to do that. I have to walk around and tell hard-headed women to love and honor their husbands. I want to do that. But when the Lord comes to me and says, where is Philip? Am I my brother's keeper? I'll be told. I'll be questioned. Tell the collarbone. Have they seen him? Even him behind that beloved because you and I need to be very careful when the Lord sends your brothers and sisters to you. To find out where you are and you shut the door needs to be very careful that when the Lord is gracious to you and I, I love us enough enough. That he was in the others to find out where we are, that we refuse that grace of accountability. Some of us do refuse but the grace of accountability in the family of God. And I say to you this morning, whoa, whoa to you, for God will not hold you guiltless if you refuse his grace. He sends to you beloved. He sends to you his word. He sends to you his love. He sends to you his mercy. He sends to you his forgiveness. You are your brothers and sisters. You better believe I am and you are mine. There are times. There are times when it breaks my heart and when the Lord asks me, where is so and so? And I have to tell you, we've tried. Isn't it? Have a beloved? Here is the amazing grace of God. Isn't it good to me that we have an older brother who is also a keeper? That he never ever had and never ever will leave anyone behind. Jesus said of all the brothers and sisters that my father has given to me. I have lost none. He doesn't leave anybody. He doesn't leave any behind all those whom the father gives to him come to him and the Bible says that he will never lose one nor cast one away. None, none of his brothers. Can you imagine the Lord Jesus Christ getting to heaven and the father says, where is so? I don't know, beloved, in all our counsel because he is a faithful brother who leaves none of his brothers or sisters behind. His brothers and his sisters keep. And yet, due to him and his brothers, they lost Joseph. Ruben and his brothers left him behind. Now, the text tells us they wanted to put Benjamin at risk, Jacob didn't trust his sons and he wasn't going to have it. So, you see the response that he gives to their report. When he hears the report from his sons, he is devastated. I mean, you can sense his grief in his words. You should know the weight and the pain that are inherent in this response. They have money. They have phone have simmium. They have left another son for her. And no matter how much grain they have, and no matter how much money they came back with, it was not a good day. And Jacob says so, doesn't verse 32, they talk about money and grain and being able to trade and Egypt, they are talking about prospering. And Jacob says, you have bereaved me of my children. What are you talking about? The loss of my sons. You have left. I love it behind. There is no more Benjamin as well. He told me it would be days like this. He blamed his sons, didn't he? Literally blamed them. Leave me of my children. You are costing me sons. Every time you leave. They not only blame the son. He also blamed God. He says everything is against me. It's all going wrong. He believes life was at war with him. Nothing was going right. The famine was against him. His family was against him. And now all that is against him is causing him to question his face. I'm losing everything. I love it. If I had a dog for every time someone hinted that life was being unfair to him or that everything was against him. Now don't get me wrong. Sometimes it does feel that way. Sometimes it seems that way. It seems that if anything could go wrong it does. Sometimes it seems that everyone in all of life is battling against all of your efforts to make any type of advancement or to experience any sense of joy. It seems that way. But love it. And therefore I don't want to be little. Jacob's grieving here. But he was strapped. And he was grieving and much love against him. Just like much is often against us. Jacob had enemies. You and I got enemies. And they were against us every day. The Bible says we have the enemy of the world. The world is not your friend. contrary to what it says. Contrary to the appeals that it makes the world is not your friend because the Bible says clearly that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God. The children are friends with the world. We say, oh, not be. It's an enemy against you. Jacob's world was against him. And not only is the world against you and I love it. The Bible says that the flesh is war against the flesh. Every moment of every day for the flesh is not your friend. But the flesh seeks to deceive you and I and to believe in that if it feels good it must be right. The flesh seeks and tries to convince you and I that the easy road is always the right road. This was the life of Jacob's son. If they could be characterized as anything beloved they would be characterized as men given over to fleshly love. They were given over to the flesh and the lust thereof they were warring against Jacob. The world the Bible says is an enemy ever present pressing in upon us not only is the flesh but the Bible also reminds us doesn't it that the devil is our enemy is the enemy of our souls. He is the great accuser of the saints. He was our enemy in the beginning. He is ever our present enemy as the Bible says seeking those whom he might devour seeking out souls that he might devour because the Bible says he is a murderer. He was a murderer from the beginning. He is a liar. He is the father of lies was against Jacob. He was against Jacob because the devil is against God and that puts him against God's people. He was against Jacob and therefore he tries to destroy Joseph. Joseph has to be explicitly spoken of beloved for you and I to be aware of what he is doing. He is ever present seeking to undermine the faith of God's people and therefore to curtail the agenda of God in the world. And since that is the case was against the flesh who began to contemplate all of that beloved you will find yourself sitting in the seat that Jacob was sitting in oftentimes saying everything is against me because it seems that way. A lot of things can go wrong but I am here to tell you this more that no matter how things matter or no matter how bad things may look be assured of this God and not against you. Now I want you to think about that but therefore everything is not against you. There may be a lot of things that are against you but if God is not against you everything is not against you. You may find your sin is against you but even in your sin this morning beloved God is for you may be pressing in upon you this morning. And God's word even as it is being proclaimed this morning may sound fake and it may sound like it is way off in the distance but I want to encourage you this morning that no matter how it sounds God has not forgotten you. Here this morning to tell you the flesh may be rising up and tempting you even this very moment to strain even this very hour. And your flesh may be strong beyond even right now to bring you down today and it may be poised beloved to win the battle that you have been fighting all week but let me assure you that God has not surrendered you. May I have the clause in you that you and tempting you to forsake the words even as it seeks to take root in your heart and calling you with the siren songs of short term pleasures.
I just called to say how much he can't and I just called to tell you beloved that it ain't over till God says it over. It ain't over till God says it over beloved and it may seem that all is against you but I want to assure you and remind you this morning that greater is he who is in you than he that is in the world. If I could have told Jacob anything that day I would have told Jacob that it's over. He doesn't seem to God says so. Did you hear what I say? Well so offer I don't think you understand. Listen. Rubin heard the cries of his father. Rubin felt the guilt, felt the weight, felt the weight even. Simeon behind the grief and the pain of his father. He felt the responsibility for his brothers. His father ideal offered his father for his father and I believe beloved that he says this with awesome spirit with as much sincerity that he can must. He looks at his grieving father and he says father my too is I don't bring Benjamin back to you. Even another brother behind I understand Rubin's angst. I'm with him beloved. I'm with him. I'm with him this morning. Rubin wants to get his brother Simeon back. Rubin wants to make up for his sins against his brother Joseph. I'm with him. I get it. He wants to comfort his father. He is hoping beloved to cover his own sins with him to do something with the guilt and the shame. Get it, Rubin. Question. That's a test that the text is begging of us this morning. What do you do with your sin and guilt? This question to a Muslim friend of mine. What do you do with your sin? What do you do with the guilt? He responded to me well to forgive me. I said well that's fine. Why? Do that. That's because you asked. Get guilt. My friend does what Muslims do. My friend does what most people do. He does what too many of us try to do. He does what Rubin tried to do. We try to amend this for us. We try to make amends don't we? If we're not trying to make amends then we try to just cover it up. We try to cover it up. We try to forget about it hoping that others and God will forget about it too. We try to do better. The man in the mistake last time. I'm going to do better this time Father. I love Joseph. I love Simeon. I'm not going to leave Benchman. All will be forgiven and all will be well. But here is the fact of the matter beloved. Since cannot be amends for. Can't be covered up. Be forgotten. In fact to assure you this morning that sin can't just be forgiven. Sin has to be paid for. It is a debt beloved that has to be cancelled. Sin is a ransom that has to be paid. You can't pay the price for your own sins and I can't pay the price for your sins because I got my own sins to pay for. What are you going to do with your sins? Ruben tried to make a deal with this Father. Make a deal with God. Jesus has already made the deal. This is why. You do know that Jesus already made that deal Ruben. That deal is done. This is why when John the Baptist saw Jesus walking there by the sea and he sees him coming he lifts up and he says, Behold the Lamb of God who has made the deal. To take away the sin of the world. Therefore the only question remains. Have you been to Jesus for his cleansing power in the blood? That's the only deal because his angst beloved is really the weight of sin. It is the weight of the guilt and the shame of sin. He wanted relief. He wanted relief. But beloved, relief doesn't come by effort. Relief comes back. It's the lame man. In Acts chapter 3 and verse 8 who after he has been healed goes running and leaping and dancing for John. For the weight and the burden of his infirmity has now been lifted by the grace of God. And he is released to death. He is released to shout. He is released to lead you this morning. If you have never felt the weight of sin and you have never felt the relief of grace. Who's who experienced the weight of their sin and then come to Jesus? Experience the relief and it is life change. It is joy bringing. It is hope filling. It is death rotten. After he is saved from a wretched life of sin and blasphemy. Right, amazing grace. How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I'm found. I was blind. But now I see if you've never felt the weight of sin you can never know what John Newton is saying is the release of grace. It is John Bunion in the Pilgrim's progress. As Christian is carrying and burdened down with the weight on this journey and he finally gets to the cross. There at the cross, the burden is rolled off of him. And he experiences the release of grace. It is me every time and I like rooted. Since the 8th, the weight, the guilt and the shame of my return sin. And then I hear someone say down at the cross where my savior down where for cleansing from sin I cried. There to my heart was the blood applied singing glory to his name singing glory to his name precious name singing glory to his name precious name. There to my heart was his blood applied singing glory to his name and is there beloved that I sensed the release of grace. So every day beloved and I don't care how many times I hear it doesn't get all down at the cross where my down where for cleansing and sin to my heart was the blood singing glory to his name. I'm singing glory to his name precious name there to my heart was the blood singing glory.