Turn with me to Genesis 40. We read together the chapter. The chapter serves as the text for the sermon this morning. And coming off of chapter 39, we know that Joseph, in resisting the advances of Mrs. Potiphar, is unjustly thrown into prison. Genesis 40. Hear now the word of God. Sometime later, the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt offended their master, the king of Egypt. Pharaoh was angry with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, and put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard in the same prison where Joseph was confined. The captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, and he attended them. After they had been in custody for some time, each of the two men, the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were being held in prison had a dream the same night. And each dream had a meaning of its own. When Joseph came to them the next morning, he saw that they were dejected. So he asked Pharaoh's officials who were in custody with him in his master's house, Why are your faces so sad today? We both had dreams, they answered. But there is no one to interpret them. Then Joseph said to them, Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams. So the chief cupbearer told Joseph his dream. He said to him, In my dream I saw a vine in front of me, and on the vine were three branches. As soon as it budded, it blossomed, and its clusters ripened into grapes. Pharaoh's cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh's cup, and put the cup in his hand. This is what it means, Joseph said to him. The three branches are three days. Within three days, Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your position and you will put Pharaoh's cup in his hand just as you used to when you were his cupbearer. But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness. Mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. For I was forcibly carried off from the land of the Hebrews and even here I have done nothing to deserve being put in a dungeon. When the chief baker saw that Joseph had given a favorable interpretation, he said to Joseph, I too had a dream. On my head were three baskets of bread. In the top basket were all kinds of baked goods for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head. This is what it means, Joseph said. The three baskets are three days. Within three days, Pharaoh will lift off your head and hang you on a tree, and the birds will eat away your flesh. Now the third day was Pharaoh's birthday, and he gave a feast for all his officials. He lifted up the heads of the chief cupbearer and the chief baker in the presence of his officials. He restored the chief cupbearer to his position so that he once again put the cup into Pharaoh's hand, but he hanged the chief baker just as Joseph had said to them in his interpretation. The chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph. He forgot him. Beloved in Christ the Lord, Hard to imagine. The chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph. He forgot him. Can you believe this? After all that the cupbearer had experienced, being thrown in prison, having this dream, the interpretation given to him, which was fulfilled just as it was given, not to mention the dead chief baker, And Joseph's part in all of it, how in the world could he forget? Especially since there was absolutely no evidence, you see, that the cupbearer deserved to be spared. Now, there are some who believe that. There are some who believe that the reason he was spared and the reason the baker was put to death is because the cupbearer wasn't really guilty. He was innocent, but the baker was really guilty. But you know, there's no evidence of that whatsoever. It was not uncommon on the birthday of the king, as in this case, or on the anniversary of the king's ascension to the throne, it wasn't uncommon for the king, like Pharaoh, to grant amnesty to some. Kind of like our president has the power to grant pardon to some, to let them go free, drop all charges before the president leaves office. Last week, in connection with Philippians 1, verses 20 and 21, we said that it was Paul's desire, knowing what the Lord Jesus Christ had done for him, it was Paul's desire that Jesus Christ be magnified, that He be exalted, that He be seen in all of His greatness and glory as He truly is. And that be done in Paul's life or in Paul's death. And in connection with that, we said that when someone does something for you that is so wonderful, something that words absolutely cannot express, you want everybody to know about it. And you would think that that would be the case with the chief cupbearer here. But he forgot. And really what's worse is the original Hebrew language gives us the idea that his forgetting wasn't just a slip of the mind or an innocent forgetting, but the idea there is that he ignored Joseph. That he purposefully put Joseph out of his mind. Well, as we think about all that Joseph had endured so far, it seems clear that things continue to go from bad to worse for Joseph. Well, there were glimmers of hope, weren't there? After he was sold by his brothers and became the servant, the property of Potiphar, there was a glimmer of hope in that he was raised to the status of chief servant for Potiphar, his number one servant. That was a glimmer of hope. But then after he was shoved down a little further and he was put into prison, another glimmer of hope that God was with him and he was made chief prisoner, we might say. Although the situations that Joseph faced were negative, we might say that the conditions were positive. There were glimmers of hope. And even here, there would be a glimmer of hope when the cupbearer was restored. There was a glimmer of hope that Joseph would be remembered. Yet if you think about it, it's really not that much consolation when things keep getting worse. But Joseph was not alone. His experience of painful, apparently fruitless waiting really is typical. We think of the patriarchs, his forefathers, especially Abraham, waited, apparently fruitlessly, for a son. We think of Job, who desired vindication for his situation, he waited apparently fruitlessly. Think of the psalmists. How many of them wrote, How long, O Lord, will you forget me forever? And we know the same thing is true for God's people often too, isn't it? We wait, apparently fruitlessly, for God to hear us in certain circumstances and situations. Now we know that our Lord Jesus Christ, as well as the writer of Hebrews and Peter and Paul, they all warn that all Christians should expect to suffer for righteousness' sake. Every one of us should expect to suffer for the sake of Jesus Christ. Now that's not new news to us, is it? Yet in some ways, isn't it true that deep down inside we all hope that it's not true for me? You see, we claim Christ's blood is for me too. That's part of the essence of our faith. That not only others, but I too have had my sins forgiven, have been made forever right with God, and have been granted eternal salvation. That's for me too. Yet, when it comes to suffering for righteousness sake, how many of us jump up? Me too. I'm ready. Joseph, we know, was a sympathetic man. He was a pious man. He was a man of prayer. but it seems his great hope and prayer of being released from this unfair situation was left unanswered. Yet we know, don't we, that it will be remembered and the prison will be a stepping stone to the palace. And therefore, with this episode, beloved, Genesis 40, we see God with Joseph as he has been in the past. God with Joseph as Joseph is prepared in the pit for service. In a sense, we could say that all that Joseph had been called upon to endure so far, we could describe that as a pit, not something pleasant. The word dungeon here in chapter 40 is the same word that is translated cistern in chapter 37, the place where the brothers threw Joseph before they sold him. God prepared Joseph in this pit, first of all, by facing another test of faith. Well, granted, we might say that the whole time was a time of testing. This testing had been going on for about 11 years already. But we might say particularly this is test number three. Test of faith number one was Joseph being sold by his brothers, being thrown into that cistern and then sold by his brothers into a far off country. Test number one. Test of faith number two is when he refused to sin against God with Potiphar's wife and he was unjustly thrown into prison. Test of faith number two. And now number three with this episode especially. Waiting to hear from the cupbearer being forgotten. It was a discouraging situation, no doubt. He was in prison for standing up for his faith in God. he was in prison for refusing to sin against God when the cupbearer and the baker will be put in prison for sinning against Pharaoh. And although Joseph has shown kindness, he's shown favor, he's raised to the highest position a prisoner could absolutely have, yet he was the lowest he could get, humanly speaking. Even Psalm 105, as we mentioned some weeks ago, points out the fact that at least when he was first thrown in prison, he was chained up like a dog, even with a collar around his neck. but this was a test of faith. Being a prisoner without deserving it was a test of faith, but also later on waiting in vain to hear from the cupbearer. Yet Joseph knew that he was called upon to persevere in the faith. He knew that he was to remain faithful. And as we think about the circumstances of this test, we see too that this test was shrouded in God's providence. God's stamp of providence was all over the details of this test. First of all, Joseph's presence in this prison as not just anyone, but a believer in the one true God in the midst of a pagan foreign land. God's stamp of providence is also seen in Joseph's position. The last part of Genesis 37, beginning in verse 20, it says, but while Joseph was there in the prison, the Lord was with him. He showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison and he was made responsible for all that was done there. The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph's care because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did. God's providence. Joseph's position. And it was to this one, This believer in prison, it was under his care that the cupbearer and the baker are put. That's another stamp of God's providence. These guys were important officials. Just like Nehemiah was the chief cupbearer to the king in captivity, and we know that he had a certain amount of influence. The king had a relationship with him. He was apparently the king's confidant. These men were important. They were Pharaoh's officials, and God's stamp of providence is seen in that and in the fact that they both angered Pharaoh at the same time and they were both put in prison at the same time. And then God's providence is seen in the dreams. These two important officials in prison have dreams in the very same night and the dreams are similar, both relating to their official positions, there's no mistake about that, and both pointing to the future. And then, of course, the interpretations. The fulfillment of those interpretations and the cupbearer's forgetting. All of it is of God's providence. But we need to understand, beloved, that it's not the details of the officials or the dreams that are important here. In fact, many things are left out. We don't know why these two officials, what they did to anger Pharaoh. We don't know why they were thrown into prison. We don't know how they responded to Joseph's interpretations, if they took them seriously. We don't know what they thought on that third day when the door opened and they were let out. We don't know really why the one was spared and the other was put to death. Those details are not what's important, but what's important is what God was doing with Joseph. And He was using all of these details, this situation, to prepare him for the palace. And that preparation includes, first of all, success in passing the test. The Lord gave Joseph success by preserving him in his faith. And this victory is seen, on the one hand, in Joseph's willingness to interpret the dreams. Now think about that. It had been approximately 11 years since Joseph was sold by his brothers. When these men told him their dreams, he could have said, I had a couple of dreams once. I thought they had meaning for my life. I thought they were significant. But my life seems to have turned out exactly opposite of what I thought the dreams meant. If I were you guys, I wouldn't sweat it. Don't even think about it. Serve your time. You'll be let go soon enough. But that's not Joseph. He was willing to interpret the dreams. And his success is also seen in his confidence in the fulfillment. Verse 14. but when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness. Mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. When all goes well with you. He had confidence that three days later, even though he was not able to interpret his own deliverance, he had confidence that three days later these men would be released from prison. That's amazing again since Joseph's own dreams had not yet been fulfilled. But this preparation also includes knowledge that God was with him. We know from the previous chapter that Potiphar noticed somehow that God was with him. And possibly, too, the chief warden noticed that God was with him. And no doubt, Joseph recognized that God was with him, giving him success, even in the midst of these troubling circumstances. And no doubt, Joseph also, after appealing to the cupbearer to remember him, was reminded that God has wonderful hidden ways of working that often do not match what makes sense to us. What we think would be the best. And still later on, God revealed to Joseph that God's timing is perfect. He asked the cupbearer to mention him to Pharaoh, But think about this, Joseph would not impact Pharaoh until Pharaoh had been prepared for Joseph through Pharaoh's dreams. At this point in time, we can only speculate, but at this point in time all we can say is Pharaoh might have said, thank you, that was a wonderful thing, and let him out of prison. Some say that Joseph might even have tried to return home had he been set free at that time. Well, there's a lesson for us here too, beloved. God does test our faith through the difficult situations and circumstances of life. Many of us can attest to that. God does test our faith. He calls us to trust Him. Do you trust Me? That I know what I'm doing, He says. That My way is perfect. He calls us to wait upon Him. He calls us to believe that He has our good in mind even when we don't see it. Even when we don't understand it. Even when we think, well, this situation would be the best for me right now. And it's only after the fact, isn't it, that we can look back and say, God was right. He had it in control all the time. God was preparing Joseph in the pit for service in the palace. Secondly, with a name of integrity. He was giving Joseph a name in Egypt. He was building up his name. Boys and girls, integrity, we might say, means to be trustworthy. It has the idea of being honest and keeping one's word. You can depend on one who has integrity. And little did Joseph know that all that he went through now prepared his name to be spoken to Pharaoh later. And his integrity included a number of things. First of all, compassion. Joseph was assigned to attend these officials of Pharaoh while they were in prison. And I don't know if you caught it, but you see, it's very possible that it was Potiphar himself, the captain of the guard, unless for some reason in a short amount of time Potiphar had died or had been relieved of his post, it's very possible that Potiphar himself was the one remembering Joseph's integrity and these men indeed they were officials of Pharaoh they were not just regular servants and they deserved a little extra special attention he puts them in Joseph's care and it was Joseph's job to make sure that their needs were met that they had food and clothing and all their necessities that they were allowed as prisoners that they were well cared for but Joseph goes beyond that he has compassion for them for their spirit, for their encouragement. In the NIV it says that Joseph noticed that they were dejected. He says, why are your faces so sad today? And the real idea behind the word dejected is that they were looking ill. You know, that feeling when something has you so bothered that it just makes you sick. They were looking ill. They were scared stiff. The idea is they were terrified, even to the point of anger, because they just didn't know what it meant. They were frustrated. You see, they weren't sad because they were in prison. But because in the Egyptian culture, there was a strong belief and superstition in the importance of dreams, and these men were convinced that their dreams had significance for them. But they had no way to find out the meaning. Joseph truly cared about these men, not just their physical needs, but giving of himself to help them in their dejection. And of course, he points, doesn't he, to the compassion of Jesus Christ. Our Lord had compassion on those who were sick, crippled. Those who had lost loved ones. He had compassion for the crowds, the Bible says. As he looked at the multitudes, He had compassion upon them because they were like sheep without a shepherd, walking around with no one to lead them, walking around aimlessly. He had compassion for His crucifiers. Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing. And we think of the cross of Christ, a symbol of compassion for lost sinners. But notice, with Joseph, his compassion opened the door for witnessing. His compassion opened the door for witnessing. How many of us, brothers and sisters, have let opportunities for witnessing go right on by because we were not filled with compassion. We did not have mercy on those who needed our compassion and mercy. But instead, we were wrapped up in ourselves and our own selfishness. But His compassion opened the door for witnessing. And another element of his integrity included the fact that he did witness. He gave credit to where credit was due. He gave credit to God. The cupbearer and the baker had no access to the self-proclaimed dream interpreters and magicians of Egypt. But Joseph said, do not interpretations belong to God? To the one God? To the one true God? Again, an amazing testimony since his dreams had been unfulfilled for 11 years. But Joseph pointed to God always. He did with Mrs. Potiphar. How could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God? He did with the cupbearer and the baker. He did later on with Pharaoh. He did with his brothers. What you meant for evil, God meant it for good. He always pointed to God. That was the habit of his mind, the habit of his heart. It was natural for him. to point to God. His integrity is also seen in that Joseph proved to be a true prophet of God. God had told His people in the Old Testament, He made it clear to them that they would know that one was a true prophet if the word that that prophet spoke came true. And the interpretations that Joseph gave came true down to the very details. And therefore later with Pharaoh's dream, when no one could interpret, the cupbearer would remember Joseph. And that his integrity is also seen in the fact that Joseph was one who told the truth. His compassion, his giving credit to God, his being a true prophet all proved Joseph to be a man of integrity. But there's one other detail that we must not overlook. He gave the bad news as well as the good news. Our society today, our government, doesn't think we ought to do that. I remember some years ago, hearing about outcome-based education. If a child thinks 2 plus 2 is 5, that's okay. They'll learn soon enough that it's not. But we can't tell them that it's wrong because that is just going to affect their psyche. It's going to affect their development. It's going to stunt them somehow. Now, you can't tell people the bad news. You can't tell them where they're wrong. You've got to tell them where they're right and where they're good. The baker was excited to tell Joseph his dream after he heard the interpretation of the cupbearer's dream. Maybe mine will be the same. The baker's news was not so good, was it? In fact, it was horrible. Again, we're not given the response of either of these officials after Joseph gave the interpretations, And that's not the point. Joseph told the truth even when it hurt. And that, beloved, is a reminder to preachers. It's a reminder to preachers to not compromise the hard truth of God's Word. I can tell you, beloved, that at times the temptation is real and the pressure is real to not say from the pulp of what needs to be said because somebody might get angry. Somebody might become offended. Somebody might even leave the church over it. You see, even as God's people, we don't like our faults. We don't like the things that we do wrong to be pointed out. We too want to hear what we're doing right. We want to be patted on the back and congratulated. We don't want to hear from the pulpit about our misuse of the Lord's Day. We don't want to hear from the pulpit of how we reject God by failing to show up for worship. We don't want to hear from the pulpit about our lack of compassion or our lack of hearts for service. We don't want to hear from the pulpit about those things which we comfortably justify in our own lives. That's okay for the next guy, but leave me out of it. But you see, preachers must preach. The law as well as the gospel. Punishment for sin as well as blessing for righteousness. We simply don't like to have our toes stepped on. But we must remember, beloved, that if the chastisement is true to Scripture and it steps on our toes, it's not really the preacher that we're offended at, although we might say we are. But it's God we are offended at. But this is a reminder also for the elders. You elders who have been given oversight over the flock, you must keep an eye on the congregation. You must exercise the oversight you have been given. You must encourage God's people. But at the same time, you must also rebuke them. You must correct them. You must challenge them all when needed. And as God's people, we must humbly and faithfully accept the oversight of the elders. We said we would. Do you remember that? As part of the Forum for Public Profession of Faith, you and I promised before God that we would humbly accept the discipline of the elders. But it's also a reminder to each one of us as professing Christians that we must care for our brothers and sisters in Christ enough to exercise mutual discipline when needed. It's so very hard, isn't it? But just as the writer of Proverbs says that the parent's rod, the parent's discipline delivers a child's soul from hell. That's what it says. God uses us as brothers and sisters in Christ to rescue each other from sinful habits. We must have an earnest love for each other's souls. In the same way, we must have an earnest love and care for the souls of unbelievers, the desire to be used of God to rescue them from the depths of hell. And that means that in a sense, we must treat each other as we would our children. And what I mean is this, parents, who of us would allow our small child to wander into a busy street and just sit back and watch? Who of us would allow our small child to play next to a fire or next to a fast-flowing river? No! We quickly pull them away. We quickly pull them out of the path of danger. Beloved, failing to tell the truth may be much more dangerous for one's soul than hurting that one's feelings with the truth. Only the truth sets one free. Joseph again points to Jesus Christ. Joseph was a means of blessing to one, but he was a pronouncer of judgment on another. And in Matthew 25, we read that on the great day of judgment, our Lord Jesus Christ, the judge will say to the sheep on his right, Come, you who are blessed by my Father, enter into the joy prepared for you. He'll say to the goats on his left, Depart from me, you cursed ones, into the everlasting fire. And again, there's lessons for us. God calls us to represent Him with integrity. He is building our name, beloved. He has given to us a name. The name Christian. And we are called to be Christians with compassion for others. And that doesn't mean that we just feel sorry for them. But true compassion has a desire to do something about it. To be used of God to relieve the misery of another. We are called to be Christians who acknowledge that God is the giver of every good and perfect gift. I was beautifully reminded Friday night in the closing prayer at 8th grade graduation, hadn't thought about it this way before, but even the work of our hands, that which we think is ours, which we do, is a gift from God. We are called to be Christians who speak the truth in love. We are called to be Christians who remember the undeserved eternal blessings freely given to us and we are to desire to be a blessing to and for God's kingdom. But as God was preparing Joseph in the pit for service in the palace, Joseph was reminded the hard way, finally, to trust only in the faithful one. Man fails. Only God is faithful. I believe there was encouragement through fulfillment of the dreams. Joseph, we know, he never ever gave evidence that we have recorded in Scripture. He never gave evidence of doubting God and the dreams that Joseph had been given many years before. But when he saw the cupbearer and the baker removed from prison three days later and no doubt heard that all that he had said came true, I trust that was an encouragement for him that God was still with him and pointed to his dreams yet to be fulfilled. Indeed, his hopes were dashed temporarily as he was forgotten. And we can speculate like some. Some speculate that after the cupbearer was released, every time that prison door opened, Joseph ran to the door expecting the cupbearer. He did that for a time. And then pretty soon after some days and maybe weeks passed, when the door opened, he walked to the door. Maybe it was the cupbearer. After that, he no longer even walked to the door. He simply might give a glance over to the door. And even further down the road yet, he completely ignored the door. His hopes were somewhat dashed. But speculation, you see, is a waste of time. It was not wrong of Joseph to ask to be remembered. He was not trying to go around God's will. God calls us to be responsible with the means that he gives to us. Joseph was simply asking for justice. The same as Paul when he appealed to Caesar. And of course we know that the cupbearer did remember two years later. Joseph was reminded to trust only in the faithful one and at the same time he was reminded that God's timing is perfect even when it doesn't match our schedules. Perseverance now led to Joseph's ascension later. The pit became a stepping stone to the palace and then it would become clear that the suffering of one righteous man proved to be the source of blessing not just to Egypt, but to keep many people alive. As he says to his brothers in chapter 50. Again, lessons for us. Joseph waited another two years. Imagine that. Boys and girls, sometimes we can't even wait for two minutes. Joseph waited another two years. And like Joseph, beloved, we must learn that God has wonderful hidden ways of working for our good that often don't make sense for us. And this is true throughout our daily lives and many of us here could give testimony to that. Again, that we thought that this would be the best way for God to work, but He didn't. And only later on did we see as we look back that God's timing was perfect. His ways of working are perfect. But the most wonderful hidden way of God's working is the cross of Jesus. All was prophesied about. The crucifixion was public, we know. Yet it's hidden in the fact that it's foolishness to the world. It just doesn't make sense even to unbelievers today. Yet it's the only way to be saved. And those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ are brought from the pit of hell to the heavenly palace of God Himself. And that's true today, right now. That's a certainty for all those who know their sin, who confess their sin, and trust in Jesus alone for salvation from their sin. It's a certainty right now. Yet we know the complete fulfillment of it is not yet here. And therefore, beloved, we must endure the pit of this life in the midst of a wicked world, in the midst of Satan's ongoing temptations, in the midst of sin and sickness and misery and difficulty. But there's something else that's also true today and that is that God is still with His people. In the midst of a fast-paced society where patience is a forgotten virtue and where people are used to instant gratification, when the circumstances of life attack our faith and we don't see our enemies falling before us as the Bible says, And we do fear our enemies, as the Bible says, we shouldn't. We are called to trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight. And when we own that confidence by the working of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, then even in the pit, God grants us the grace to heed the words of the psalmist in Psalm 27 where he says, wait for the Lord. Be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. Because as Joseph knew, the Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? God prepares you and I in the pit of this life for service in the palace of glory one day all because of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ suffered the full effect of the pit of hell for all of God's children and He has been raised up because He is victorious. And all those who believe on Him are more than conquerors and as conquerors, we are able to live this life in confidence. We are called to fix our eyes on Jesus as the author of Hebrews says, the author and perfecter of our faith who for the joy set before Him endured the cross scorning a chain and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God consider Him who endured such opposition from sinful men so that you will not grow weary and lose heart beloved Joseph was given the fulfillment of the dreams of the cup bearer and baker right before his eyes to assure him of his future redemption we have been given the victorious Christ who Himself is the joy set before us to assure us of our redemption already accomplished already given to us and in that hope then may we desire to be used of God wherever and in whatever circumstances He plants us with a confidence this confidence from Him the soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose I will not, I will not desert to His foes. That soul, though all hell, should endeavor to shake. I'll never, no never, no never forsake. Amen. Shall we pray? Dear Heavenly Father, once again as we give You thanksgiving and praise for your word this morning. We must confess that there are times when we find ourselves in the same sort of situation as Joseph. Maybe not exactly. No doubt he had it way worse than any of us ever had it or ever will have it. Yet we find ourselves stuck. And indeed, Lord, we cry out to you. And we confess that sometimes we are not satisfied with the speediness of your answer. Sometimes we feel that You are tardy, that You're ignoring us, that You forget us. Yet, Father, You have proven to us through Your Son, our Savior, that You do not and will not forget Your people. That indeed, You have our good in mind and every detail of our lives that we might face is for our good. And we pray, Father, that You would continue to prepare us in the pit of this life prepare us for that day when Jesus Christ puts all of His enemies under His feet and takes His people even us His bride to the palace of eternal glory O Lord make us ready for that day make us anxious for that day make us to long for that day hear our prayer O Lord for Jesus sake Amen