Joseph's Legacy. (Chapter 1)

 What’s in a name?

Introduction to Exodus

Three men died 60 years ago, and each one had a tale to tell the planet. Their stories are more than fiction however. They impacted their worlds and as a result have affected ours even though none of them ever lived in Australia. The men are a pair of authors who were both obvious philosophers and the 35th President of the US. In order: CS Lewis, Aldous Huxley and John Kennedy. 

One of my favorite authors is Peter Kreeft who is prolific in his own way and a Lewis devoteé. He writes of these three in a book entitled "Between Heaven and Hell", Kreeft imagines a meeting somewhere beyond earth for these famous men. Dismissing the obvious theological problem of conversations in a sheol-type venue, the story line is quite good as he has them share their own philosophies. Lewis the believer, Kennedy the wishy-washy Catholic agnostic and Huxley the self-assured atheist. But in the realm of the after life, neither Huxley nor Kennedy is so sure. Lewis gains all the substance that the down payment of his faith had guaranteed him so many years before. 

Now sixty years after their passing, what remains of our awareness of these men? What about any historical person and what do we learn of life from them? I'm hearing the word 'legacy' as I ponder these opening comments. And I believe legacy is key in any long-ranged enterprise. Our concerns as fathers or as men or as Australians or as Jews or ... you fill in the blank... is 'what will remain?" 

This is the beginning of a series. I encourage you to read a section from the Scriptures and try to learn what that has to say to us as 21st Century people. For some, Bible rejecters we might call them, this consideration is old fashioned or irrelevant, filled with myths or fables from another time. But for others, this is a book with legacy. This is the handed-down traditions of men and women of God who had lives that were shaped by their relationship with the Almighty and who want to help shape our lives so many generations later. 

We could call this series "Out of Africa" since that's what the Latin compilers of the biblical texts decided to name the 2nd book, Exodus. The name of course means 'going out.' But the Hebrew name for the book, like all the biblical books, is taken from the first few words of the text. The Hebrew name for this book is "Sh'mot" meaning 'names.' 

In Shakespeare’s classic, Romeo and Juliet, the servant states “Find them out whose names are written here. … but I am sent to find those persons whose names are here writ.” After their first kiss, the star-crossed lovers separate. Act II features Juliet’s soliloquy, “O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo,” and continues with “Tis but thy name that is my enemy, thou art thyself though not a Montague,. What’s Montague? It is nor hand, nor foot, nor arm, nor face, nor any other part belonging to a man. O be some other name! What‘s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet; so Romeo would, were he not Romeo called, retain that dear perfection which he owes without that title/ Romeo, doff thy name and for that name, which is no part of thee, take all myself.” Like Juliet we ask, “what’s in a name?” 

And the answer is, it's our legacy. It's our past, our present, and our future. It's everything that has shaped us and made us into our person and our family and our community. It's what lies ahead for us in the future of risk and reward. And it's in the understanding of our name and our nature and our legacy that we forge our life's choices today. Knowing who we were and who we shall be is what helps us decide today what we will do. 

AND NOW Chapter 1....

Joseph's legacy

Exodus 1

Who we were

Who we are is directly related to who we were! Joseph was the hero of the last 13 chapters of the previous book of the Bible, that is Genesis. And this story does what every good author would do, brings in the past to begin our new story. We read "And Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation." (:6) It brings to conclusion the stories of the past. You would think that there would be residual effects from Joseph's life. He was the prime minister in the famine of 7 years that hit this entire region of the Fertile Crescent. But what effects were there? We read that after a time, "a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph." (:8). The history of Joseph and the family of Egypt was lost to the new Pharaoh. The new king either didn't read history or didn't care what had happened before. Remember, we can learn from what people teach or what people do or as in this case what people don't do. The Egyptians were in debt to the family of Joseph. They should have had a sympathetic relationship to the man and to the family of the man. But we Jews were too many and thus caused the new leadership to fear. (:10) It is estimated we numbered 3 million.

Who we are

The Jewish people are still called Hebrews here.  The first use of that term was in Genesis when Abram was so titled. (14.13) But now we are given a new name "Sons of Israel." Of course, this derives from the name of Jacob, father of Joseph, who got the new name, Israel after the wrestling match with the angel of the Lord. (Genesis 32) The 11 other sons of Israel are listed Reuben, Simeon, Levi…Gad and Asher (Ex. 1.2-4).

Who we will be

The hint of our tomorrow is in the text as well. What God did in the past is evidence of His plans for us in the future. He wants us to represent Him on the earth. And He will preserve us, no matter what others who devise evil will do. Note how difficult the Egyptians made our lives.  

Listen for these toughening verbs from verses 11-14:  "afflict them with hard labor...   And the Egyptians compelled the sons of Israel to labor rigorously; and they made their lives bitter with hard labor in mortar and bricks and at all kinds of labor in the field, all their labors which they rigorously imposed on them."

Pharaoh's antagonism is aimed at the little Jewish boys and thus at the future of the community. But that anger and hostility will be featured in the drama as we continue to read.

Conclusion: What do we learn as a result of reading this text?

1)              Choose well because your choices today become your life tomorrow

2)              God will preserve His people whom He foreknew

3)              God's choices of a people will override all other human choices

4)              We are called to a legacy and a future with God