This is the transcript of a radio conversation of a US naval ship with Canadian authorities off the coast of Newfoundland in October, 1995. Radio conversation released by the Chief of Naval Operations 10-10-95.
Americans: Please divert your course 15 degrees to the North to avoid a collision.
Canadians: Recommend you divert YOUR course 15 degrees to the South to avoid a collision.
Americans: This is the Captain of a US Navy ship. I say again, divert YOUR course.
Canadians: No. I say again, you divert YOUR course.
Americans: This is the aircraft carrier USS Lincoln, the second largest ship in the United States' Atlantic fleet. We are accompanied by three destroyers, three cruisers and numerous support vessels. I demand that YOU change your course 15 degrees north, that's one five degrees north, or countermeasures will be undertaken to ensure the safety of this ship.
Canadians: This is a lighthouse. Your call.
Now I am pretty sure that story was not true, but warnings are useful if you do something with the warning. Ignoring the warning can be a pretty silly thing.
When our family went to Carhill Crossing, we saw this sign, about how crodiale fatalities have happened at this exact spot. And just further up, there is like a viewing platform where you can watch the 4 wheel drives going through the water, and there we saw this. This guy was fishing in the water, and there was a visible croc in the water not far from him.
In our passage today, Pharaoh, the King of Egypt, has two dreams that unsettle him. It was about cows and corn eating each other. There was something freaky about these dreams that he knew he had to get to the bottom of them.
Now I am pretty sure that story was not true, but warnings are useful if you do something with the warning. Ignoring the warning can be a pretty silly thing.
In our passage today, Pharaoh, the King of Egypt, has two dreams that unsettle him. It was about cows and corn eating each other. There was something freaky about these dreams that he knew he had to get to the bottom of them.
So he asks his wise men and his magicians; those who know the secret things of this world, but they didn’t know what they meant. It was then that Joseph's tragedy of a life takes a turn.
Remember Joseph’s story so far? He got sold into slavley because he had two dreams and was Dad’s favourite child who was given a special coat. He then worked as a servant in Egypt, but then was falsely accused because of another coat. Then, in prison, he helps two others with their dreams, but was forgotten for another two years. It is now the cubbearer who remembers Joseph. He remembers the help he got with his dream, and so he tells the Pharaoh.
So Joseph is taken out of prison, made presentable and brought before Pharaoh. He is told about his dreams. Joseph doesn’t say, yep, I’m the dream guy, lay it on me”, instead, through all this time as a salve and in prison, Joseph still has faith in God. Joseph admits to the guy who can set him free, that he can't do what is asked of him, but only God can do it.
And so after a second retelling of the dreams, this time a little worse than last time, Joseph tells the king that these two dreams mean the same thing. There is going to be seven years of plenty and then seven years of nothing. There is time, before this disaster comes, to get ready.
So what is going on here? Why does God give these dreams to Pharaoh? It seems lucky for Pharaoh that the one guy who knows dreams just happened to be in one of his prisons.
What God was doing in all this was manoeuvring things around so that His purposes would be fulfilled, and yet no one character really knew what was going on.
Remember, Genesis is about following this family of promise. From Abraham, Issac, Jacob and now Joseph. This family was promised by God to be a blessing to the whole world, and here we see that God was warning the Egyptians and blessing them with an interpreter so that they would be able to navigate this coming disaster. We will see that this warning will also be the means for saving Joseph's family too, not to mention a bunch of others, because God has a heart for everyone to be saved.
Well, it is because that is how God rolls. God warns people about what He is going to do, so that they can respond to His warnings. This happens all the time in the Bible. This is so that people can stop what they are doing and come back to Him.
We also need to remember that we are not world leaders or some national prophet. If we were to write ourselves into this story, we are closer to the Egyptian people, who are going to be caught up in this time of plenty and this time of famine.
We are those who need to be told about the problems coming, and we are those who are going to need guidance so we can be saved from disaster.
And in order to be saved from disaster, the first thing we need to do is to hear the warnings about what is coming.
Now I can not tell the future, I don’t know about the economy, or political things going on the world and who is going to win the next election or what your maths grade will be at the end of the year, but I do know a bit about what is going to happen in the future.
Jesus warned that when he returns, it will be a bit like a fisherman with a big catch of fish:
And so the warning is there, for all people to hear, and so it means that while we have time, we can do something about this problem. We can go to Jesus, so that we are known by Him, so that at the end we are not cast away, and He doesn’t say “I don’t know you”.
Life right now might feel comfortable. Things might be going ok, you have friends, school stresses aren't out of control, the soccer and netball seasons have started, things are going well. In all the goodness, in all this time of plenty, we can forget that there is a judgment coming. All the goodness can distract us, and in our comfort, we might not feel our own need for rescue.
But the warning has been said, it has been said for 2,000 years, and that is because God wants people to know about the coming judgment so we can do something about it. We have all done wrong, we have all failed to live to God’s standards, but Jesus came to take our place for us. The good news is that God sent Jesus to save us from His judgment. So we can trust in Him, and we can be found and known by God so that when He comes again, He will know us, as we will be part of His people.
So while we still have time, we can listen to the warning. God gives us time so that we can hear and so that we can prepare for what is coming. Repent and come to Him, for He will ensure you are saved from the coming judgment.
Remember Joseph’s story so far? He got sold into slavley because he had two dreams and was Dad’s favourite child who was given a special coat. He then worked as a servant in Egypt, but then was falsely accused because of another coat. Then, in prison, he helps two others with their dreams, but was forgotten for another two years. It is now the cubbearer who remembers Joseph. He remembers the help he got with his dream, and so he tells the Pharaoh.
So Joseph is taken out of prison, made presentable and brought before Pharaoh. He is told about his dreams. Joseph doesn’t say, yep, I’m the dream guy, lay it on me”, instead, through all this time as a salve and in prison, Joseph still has faith in God. Joseph admits to the guy who can set him free, that he can't do what is asked of him, but only God can do it.
So what is going on here? Why does God give these dreams to Pharaoh? It seems lucky for Pharaoh that the one guy who knows dreams just happened to be in one of his prisons.
What God was doing in all this was manoeuvring things around so that His purposes would be fulfilled, and yet no one character really knew what was going on.
Remember, Genesis is about following this family of promise. From Abraham, Issac, Jacob and now Joseph. This family was promised by God to be a blessing to the whole world, and here we see that God was warning the Egyptians and blessing them with an interpreter so that they would be able to navigate this coming disaster. We will see that this warning will also be the means for saving Joseph's family too, not to mention a bunch of others, because God has a heart for everyone to be saved.
God is a warning God
I’m trying to read the whole Bible in a year, and I’m up to a bunch of the prophets. Here, in some parts of the Old Testament, it can be a bit of a slog, as there are long stretches of judgment pronounced to different cities and areas. Why do we have so many predictions of trouble coming to nations? Why do we have lots of warnings about what God is going to do because this nation or that city as a whole is evil?Well, it is because that is how God rolls. God warns people about what He is going to do, so that they can respond to His warnings. This happens all the time in the Bible. This is so that people can stop what they are doing and come back to Him.
Today's warning
So what does this mean for us today? We sometimes read passages like this and think that we emit the main character's energy. We might want to be Pharoh who God speaks to us through dreams and visions. We might want to be like Joseph, who can give glory to God in the halls of power. But we need to remember our place in history and our place in this world today. We don’t need dreams from God anymore; we already have access to His word. It's like a free app, you can download. We can hear from God whenever we feel like it.We also need to remember that we are not world leaders or some national prophet. If we were to write ourselves into this story, we are closer to the Egyptian people, who are going to be caught up in this time of plenty and this time of famine.
We are those who need to be told about the problems coming, and we are those who are going to need guidance so we can be saved from disaster.
And in order to be saved from disaster, the first thing we need to do is to hear the warnings about what is coming.
Now I can not tell the future, I don’t know about the economy, or political things going on the world and who is going to win the next election or what your maths grade will be at the end of the year, but I do know a bit about what is going to happen in the future.
Jesus warned that when he returns, it will be a bit like a fisherman with a big catch of fish:
“Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (Matthew 13:47–50 NIV)What Jesus is saying is that there is coming a day when people will be sorted. Good fish from bad fish. This is going to happen. We aren’t told if it will be seven years, or 70 or 700 years from now, but it will come.
And so the warning is there, for all people to hear, and so it means that while we have time, we can do something about this problem. We can go to Jesus, so that we are known by Him, so that at the end we are not cast away, and He doesn’t say “I don’t know you”.
Life right now might feel comfortable. Things might be going ok, you have friends, school stresses aren't out of control, the soccer and netball seasons have started, things are going well. In all the goodness, in all this time of plenty, we can forget that there is a judgment coming. All the goodness can distract us, and in our comfort, we might not feel our own need for rescue.
But the warning has been said, it has been said for 2,000 years, and that is because God wants people to know about the coming judgment so we can do something about it. We have all done wrong, we have all failed to live to God’s standards, but Jesus came to take our place for us. The good news is that God sent Jesus to save us from His judgment. So we can trust in Him, and we can be found and known by God so that when He comes again, He will know us, as we will be part of His people.
So while we still have time, we can listen to the warning. God gives us time so that we can hear and so that we can prepare for what is coming. Repent and come to Him, for He will ensure you are saved from the coming judgment.
- What warnings have you heard and ignored?
- How did God warn the nation of Egypt about coming trouble? (Pharos dreams and Joseph trusting in God). Why do you think God warns people before trouble?
- What warnings do you know that Jesus has given (can look up Luke 13:3,5 - that section)
- Why might someone not listen to the warnings of Jesus? How have you responded to him?
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