One man was responsible for Joseph’s pit and it was his brother Rueben.
Verses 21, 22 "And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him. And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again."
It was Rueben, the eldest brother, that suggested they throw Joseph in the pit rather than take his life. Rueben was there when Joseph was thrown into the pit, but he was not there when he was lifted out.
Verse 29 “And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes.”
Rueben was surprised and shocked because he saw him go into the pit. He saw him struggling and begging to be delivered from the pit, but now he’s looking into that same pit expecting to see Joseph full of fear and confusion crying and begging to be delivered only Joseph wasn’t there.
There are some people who saw you in the pit. There are some people that even helped put you in the pit, and they have watched you struggling, and pushing, and scratching and clawing trying to climb your way out. When they left you were in the pit and the last time they saw you were in a mess.
I don’t know what that pit is for you today:
-It may be a pit of debt.
-It may be a pit of sickness.
-It may be a pit of bondage or addiction.
-It may be a pit of despair or depression.
-It may be a pit of marriage problems that looks so deep and so dark and impossible that you feel like giving up.
-It may be a spiritual pit and you just don’t feel God like you used to, and you’re dry.
-I don’t know what your pit because they come in all different shapes and sizes.
-I don’t know what that pit is for you; but I want you to look at your neighbor and tell them I’ve spent my last night in the pit.
Psalm 30:5 “Weeping may endure for a night but joy cometh in the morning.”
Rueben came back to the pit where he last saw Joseph and Joseph wasn’t there. He was distraught because he thought the worse had happened and that Joseph was dead.
There are some people that thought they knew you pretty good. They thought they knew where to look for you. They even talked about your pitiful condition to other people. But that was yesterday.
-Yesterday you were in the pit.
-Yesterday it looked like you were going to die in the pit.
-Yesterday you felt like you were going to die in the pit.
Hear a Word from God.
-You hear Joseph say: Don’t you dare die in the Pit.
-You hear Joseph say: The fall doesn’t have to be fatal; it just delays the blessings.
-Don’t quit dreaming.
-Don’t quit believing.
-Don’t quit trusting.
-Don’t quit expecting.
It looked like Joseph was going to die in the pit, and it felt like Joseph was going to die in the pit, but through a turn of circumstances in a matter of minutes Joseph was up out of the pit on solid ground.
I want to tell you God is going to turn it around:
-I don’t know how He’s going to do it
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-I don’t know when He’s going to do it
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-I don’t know who He’s going to use to do it
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but God’s going to turn it around.
If you learn anything from the Bible it is that God is a God of the turn-around. From Genesis to Revelation God is always turning things around for those that trust in Him.
Proverbs 3:5, 6 "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."
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