Many teachers (myself included) have used the Egyptian pharaoh of the Exodus as an illustration of the interplay between God's will and ours. It is pointed out that the biblical record states that Pharaoh hardened his heart, and then also that God hardened his heart. That's a great illustration of two realities, both that of the LORD's absolute sovereignty and of our truly free choices.
But the same both/and reality is brilliantly made clear in one compact paragraph earlier in the Genesis narrative, one that involves a Hebrew governing for an earlier pharaoh. Joseph, the eleventh son of Israel (Jacob) was sold into slavery by his brothers, some of whom wanted rather to murder him for his favored status with dad, and for his annoying dreams. Sibling rivalry at its near worst! (They did stop short of actual murder.) And multiplied times ten! (Benjamin, the youngest, wasn't involved.)
Well, read it for yourself, but the short version is that God orchestrated things so that Joseph ended up second only to pharaoh in Egypt during a catastrophic famine that extended to every land. This famine brought Joseph's brothers (who did not recognize him) to Egypt at his mercy to buy food. Their injustice was the first of several that led to this point, and Joseph put it into a perspective befitting a brilliant leader, and one that is appropriate for every Christian.
In Genesis 45:4, first notice that Joseph recognized their actual wrong choice, "I am...the one you sold into Egypt." He didn't pretend they didn't make this choice, or that the action was forced against their will. They wanted it, and some wanted even worse. In the next statement he continues to acknowledge their choice, "...yourselves for selling me here." The brothers' choice was real, and it was freely their own - they OWNED it, and Joseph acknowledges that reality.
But he has a higher perspective, and seeks to draw their own view up to it. He presumes they have been beating themselves up for their horrific action - "don't be grieved or angry with yourselves" - but offers them relief. They can't undo what they've done. But Joseph shows them a greater reality at work. In their own work, they were unwitting agents of God's work: "God sent me ahead of you to preserve life." Joseph amplifies that statement in the following verse, and then in v.8 summarizes, "Therefore it was not you who sent me here, but God."
Joseph is not contradicting his earlier statements that the brothers freely made a horrible choice. He is simply offering a perspective that this horrible free choice is swallowed up in a beautiful free choice by One who is more powerful than them. God is so powerful and so brilliant that he can both allow our free choices - even the most horrible ones - and still somehow work things out that they ultimately always accomplish exactly what he wants.
And the same is true for all OUR free choices too, from the best ones to the worst ones. We may beat ourselves up about the latter kind, but that is not the end of the matter. God will accomplish what he wants, even through our worst decisions. But that word "ultimately" above requires our trust. For many times we do not see our bad decisions - or those of others - reach those points where the beauty and brilliance of God's wisdom are evident to us. That often will not happen even in our lifetimes.
We may not be able to see HOW God will work all things for good for those who love him and are called according to his purpose (Rm 8:28), but we can trust THAT this will hold true. If we will trust in this way and take this perspective, we can be set free of our past riddled with bad choices. They are real choices, and we are responsible for them. But Christ paid for them, and all our Lord requires of us is godly grief. This kind of grief brings a change of direction that leads to salvation without regret (2 Cor 7:10). Anything short of that keeps us stuck in regret and death.
Whenever we struggle with this, let us confess our bad choices and be propelled forward, free of regret, knowing that God is powerful enough and brilliant enough to bring beauty out of our worst moments.
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