“But Joseph replied to them: “Do not fear. Can I take the place of God?
Even though you meant harm to me, God meant it for good, to achieve this present end, the survival of many people.”
Genesis 50:19-20 (NAB)
A church close to my home in Mount Prospect, Illinois, has been showing Season 3 of the Chosen, a superb drama series on the life and ministry of Christ. Each Wednesday morning, I go there and watch an episode, then join in on a group discussion afterward.
While I was at the third episode discussion, a lady told us that she knows the actor, Demetrius Troy, who plays Lazarus. She said “D”, as he was called growing up, was one of the neighborhood boys from Mount Prospect, and went to the same school as her own children. It’s not often that a local neighborhood kid becomes a successful actor.
We never know how a person we know, may reappear years later. I started wondering if there are any other true stories about a “neighborhood boy” who reappeared in a surprising way later, and then I found myself meditating on some biblical examples of neighborhood boys.
David was the baby of his family with seven older brothers. He was a neighborhood shepherd boy from Bethlehem. He was also known for playing his harp and writing songs (Psalms) while caring for His father’s flock. He was too young to join the military, while his older brothers were at war with the Philistines, but he was sent to their camp on occasion to bring them a package of food to eat.
One day, David arrived with their lunch, and could hardly believe his eyes. He saw a nine foot tall giant Philistine taunting the armies of his people, Israel. As the army retreated, David asked to be allowed to confront the giant, but his older brothers became furious, calling him arrogant. (1 Samuel 17:28)
After persisting, he was finally allowed to approach the giant with his trusted sling shot, and we all know how that story ends. God led an underage lunch boy to become the hero who killed a giant, and later established his reign as the king of Israel.
Joseph was another neighborhood boy, Jacob’s second youngest of twelve sons. His envious brothers mistreated him, and threw him in a cistern one day. They went home and told their father that Joseph was killed by a wild beast, and Jacob mourned for years. Although his brothers kept their dark secret all that time, God had other plans, and led Joseph into a path of leadership, where he became a major political influence in the land of Egypt.
His brothers and father met up with Joseph twenty years later, during a famine. Joseph as the governor of Egypt, stockpiled a huge supply of grain for years. People from all over came to Egypt to buy grain. Jacob and his sons arrived in Egypt and were shocked to see Joseph alive. For Jacob, seeing Joseph alive, was like a resurrection from the dead.
In spite of the mistreatment by his brothers, Joseph forgave them and took care of his whole family.
When Joseph’s brothers feared that he might still kill them in vengeance, he said to them,
“Can I take the place of God?” He acknowledged that it’s not our place to repay evil, and whatever injustice people suffer, if they trust in God, He will turn things around for the good, at a later date.
Both neighborhood boys, David and Joseph, had two common virtues that reaped many blessings in their lives. They had unusual humility to endure unfair treatment by their brothers, yet never took vengeance. They also had great faith in God to keep trusting in His goodness and mercy. Their stories are proof that God will bring good out of a bad situation through faith and humility.
Now I can see Jesus as the third example of a neighborhood boy, who was also disrespected by those who were like His brothers in the faith, the Jewish authorities. Like David and Joseph, Jesus was also mistreated, accused of being arrogant, envied and plotted against.
He was the neighborhood boy from Nazareth, who reappeared later as the Lamb of God, who with great humility, forgave all His enemies from the cross, and then made a surprise reappearance as our resurrected living Savior.
Lord, thank you for your goodness and mercy toward us. Help us to grow in faith and humility, even when we are disrespected by others. We learn through your wisdom in all scripture that “the last will be first, and the first will be last.” Amen