Genesis 39:1-23
Genesis Study 121
THE LORD WAS WITH JOSEPH
Genesis 39:1-23
Key verse 39:23
"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."
Last week we studied that the God of Judah is the God of hope. In him we have hope to be forgiven and raised as a source of blessing for this generation. Today we want to study how the Lord guided Joseph in Egypt.
Look at verses 1 to 6a. Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. While entering the country he saw enormous pyramids and the giant Nile. He also saw the slaves suffering under the whips of Egypt. He was then brought to a slave market. Chains and shackles were all around from his neck to ankles. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh's officials, the captain of the guard, bought him. He had hard eyes. He looked sharp and fierce. Entering his master's house, Joseph saw many soldiers around. He also saw the prisoners being tortured and screaming in pain. No one smiled. No one talked. The house was the house of death.
But ever since Joseph entered the house things began to change. He carried out his tasks with a sense of ownership—"This is my master's house. But this is my house too." He washed the soldiers' uniforms as if they were his own uniforms. He cleaned the prison cells as if they were his own rooms. People began to like him. One day his master called him to his office and said, "Joseph. You are supposed to be a slave. However I see leadership quality in you. In fact I see a God in you. Your God gives you success in everything you do. So now I put you in charge of my household. I entrust to your care everything I have." This was quite news to the people in the palace. Since then the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the Lord was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field. The servants worked with a sense of ownership. The soldiers were loyal to their master. The prisoners repented of their guilt. The harvest was abundant and the house was filled with laughter. Potiphar was awarded as the best official in Egypt.
All the miracles happened when the Lord was with Joseph. Being with Joseph, the Lord did not rescue him from the physical slavery. Instead he rescued him from spiritual slavery. Without the Lord Joseph could have been a slave of sorrow and bitterness. But the Lord was with him. The Lord helped him remember his dreams. According to the dreams someday Joseph would surely meet his family. And his life would never end in slavery. Someday he would surely be a leader to serve his generation. This helped Joseph take every hardship as leadership training. He served everyone and every task not before men but before the Lord.
Look at verses 6b to 20a. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome. We remember how beautiful his grandmother and his mother were. Joseph had many other good qualities such as loyalty to his master, intelligence to his works, kind heart to the people and pure heart to the Lord. But his master's wife, Mrs. Potiphar, took notice of him only because of his well-built body and handsome look. She said to him, "Come to bed with me!" She considered him as her plaything. The temptation was hard to overcome. Joseph was a young man in his twenties. He was deserted by his family members. Moreover it was a command from his mistress. And it was a common practice in those days. No one would know what happened.
But he refused. "With me in charge," he told her, "my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" Joseph remained faithful to the Lord and his master to the end. He feared the Lord's judgment more than Mrs. Potiphar's revenge. The lady was the freest woman in the house. But she was enslaved by her lust. On the contrary slave Joseph had freedom to refuse the temptation. Mrs. Potiphar might have thought she was seeking another kind of love. But Joseph called it a wicked thing against God.
Love and lust share many common points. They have strong affection. They give emotional excitement. They are ready to sacrifice anything. And they have four alphabets starting with "L". But they are completely different in many more points. Lust desires to please myself but love desires to please God and others. Lust comes from my sinful nature but love comes from God. Lust is short sighted. It sees only today's momentary pleasure. But love is farsighted. It sees the future. In fact true love sees eternity. Lust makes one's heart dirtier and dirtier. But love makes one's heart purer and purer. Relationship built on lust surely breaks but relationship built on love lasts forever. Lust blinds our minds but love makes us wise and discerning. Being loved by God, Joseph learned how to practice true love. His refusal was the expression of his true love.
But Mrs. Potiphar was so blind by her lust that she spoke to Joseph day after day. Joseph refused to go to bed with her or even be with her. He gave no chance for her to tempt him. He knew his weakness as a human being. His life was the practice of 2 Timothy 2:22, "Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, and along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart." How could Joseph live a pure life before the Lord? Somewhere in the Bible it is written, "How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word." (Psalm 119:9) The God-given dreams were the word of God to Joseph. He could not exchange such a wonderful promise for a temporary pleasure. Temptation was so strong. But the power of God's word was stronger. So he could grow as a leader with purity.
Let's read verses 11 and 12. "One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. She caught him by his cloak and said, 'Come to bed with me!' But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house." Joseph did not compromise to the end. By looking at Joseph's decision of faith, God should have richly rewarded him. But what happened? Mrs. Potiphar falsely accused him. Mr. Potiphar did not give Joseph a chance to speak. He believed his wife's words. Joseph was considered as the dirtiest criminal. He was confined in prison. Why didn't God defend his cause? In human point of view Joseph fell to the bottom of the world. But in God's point of view, he was elevated to a higher leadership training course. From a school of leadership training, Joseph entered the University of leadership training. There would be many more tough subjects. But when he mastered them he would be raised as a great leader of the generation. Most of the time we are at the bottom of our spiritual lives because of our own laziness and compromise. At that time we must deeply repent. But sometimes in spite of our hard spiritual struggle things get worse. At that time we should not be discouraged. God is testing our faith. He is moulding us inner beings. Job said, "But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold." (Job 23:10) The temperature to extract gold is much higher than the temperature to extract iron. God increased the degree of hardships in Joseph's life in order to mould a golden leadership in him.
Look at verses 20b to 23. Some may think Joseph would be at the dark corner of his prison cell sobbing and pulling his hair. In the prison political criminals are considered as ministers and swindlers as professors and burglars as engineers. But rapists are considered as good for nothing. Joseph was despised even by the criminals. Overcoming his bitterness against Mrs. Potiphar might be harder than overcoming her temptation. But the Lord was with him. He hated no one. He complained nothing. He accepted the situation as a necessary step to grow as a true leader. In the prison he met the worst people of Egypt. No one cared for them. They were the waste of the society. They deserved only punishment. But Joseph cared for them. He served each of them with God's love. He kept on them tell them, "God loves you. God has a great hope on you." He accepted all the prisoners as his sheep. The prison became his mission field. The prison warden was deeply moved by Joseph and made him in charge of the prison. The Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did. Every night Mr. Potiphar and Mrs. Potiphar fought. But the prison was filled with laughter. When the Lord put Joseph in prison, he also went down to the prison to be with him. It means when we are at the bottom of our lives we are not alone. Even our beloved ones may misunderstand us and despise us. But the Lord is with us. He takes care of us until we go through his training. He goes into the prison together with us and walks out of the prison together with us. He never let his people suffer alone. He suffers together with us and shares his glory together with us. We see so many temptations and hardships around us. We may be at the bottom of our lives. But the God of Joseph is with us. People around us today are God's trainers. And the situation we are facing today is God's training field. May God bless us to receive his training with hope and thanksgiving.
THE LORD WAS WITH JOSEPH
Genesis 39:1-23
Key verse 39:23
"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."
Last week we studied that the God of Judah is the God of hope. In him we have hope to be forgiven and raised as a source of blessing for this generation. Today we want to study how the Lord guided Joseph in Egypt.
Look at verses 1 to 6a. Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. While entering the country he saw enormous pyramids and the giant Nile. He also saw the slaves suffering under the whips of Egypt. He was then brought to a slave market. Chains and shackles were all around from his neck to ankles. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh's officials, the captain of the guard, bought him. He had hard eyes. He looked sharp and fierce. Entering his master's house, Joseph saw many soldiers around. He also saw the prisoners being tortured and screaming in pain. No one smiled. No one talked. The house was the house of death.
But ever since Joseph entered the house things began to change. He carried out his tasks with a sense of ownership—"This is my master's house. But this is my house too." He washed the soldiers' uniforms as if they were his own uniforms. He cleaned the prison cells as if they were his own rooms. People began to like him. One day his master called him to his office and said, "Joseph. You are supposed to be a slave. However I see leadership quality in you. In fact I see a God in you. Your God gives you success in everything you do. So now I put you in charge of my household. I entrust to your care everything I have." This was quite news to the people in the palace. Since then the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the Lord was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field. The servants worked with a sense of ownership. The soldiers were loyal to their master. The prisoners repented of their guilt. The harvest was abundant and the house was filled with laughter. Potiphar was awarded as the best official in Egypt.
All the miracles happened when the Lord was with Joseph. Being with Joseph, the Lord did not rescue him from the physical slavery. Instead he rescued him from spiritual slavery. Without the Lord Joseph could have been a slave of sorrow and bitterness. But the Lord was with him. The Lord helped him remember his dreams. According to the dreams someday Joseph would surely meet his family. And his life would never end in slavery. Someday he would surely be a leader to serve his generation. This helped Joseph take every hardship as leadership training. He served everyone and every task not before men but before the Lord.
Look at verses 6b to 20a. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome. We remember how beautiful his grandmother and his mother were. Joseph had many other good qualities such as loyalty to his master, intelligence to his works, kind heart to the people and pure heart to the Lord. But his master's wife, Mrs. Potiphar, took notice of him only because of his well-built body and handsome look. She said to him, "Come to bed with me!" She considered him as her plaything. The temptation was hard to overcome. Joseph was a young man in his twenties. He was deserted by his family members. Moreover it was a command from his mistress. And it was a common practice in those days. No one would know what happened.
But he refused. "With me in charge," he told her, "my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" Joseph remained faithful to the Lord and his master to the end. He feared the Lord's judgment more than Mrs. Potiphar's revenge. The lady was the freest woman in the house. But she was enslaved by her lust. On the contrary slave Joseph had freedom to refuse the temptation. Mrs. Potiphar might have thought she was seeking another kind of love. But Joseph called it a wicked thing against God.
Love and lust share many common points. They have strong affection. They give emotional excitement. They are ready to sacrifice anything. And they have four alphabets starting with "L". But they are completely different in many more points. Lust desires to please myself but love desires to please God and others. Lust comes from my sinful nature but love comes from God. Lust is short sighted. It sees only today's momentary pleasure. But love is farsighted. It sees the future. In fact true love sees eternity. Lust makes one's heart dirtier and dirtier. But love makes one's heart purer and purer. Relationship built on lust surely breaks but relationship built on love lasts forever. Lust blinds our minds but love makes us wise and discerning. Being loved by God, Joseph learned how to practice true love. His refusal was the expression of his true love.
But Mrs. Potiphar was so blind by her lust that she spoke to Joseph day after day. Joseph refused to go to bed with her or even be with her. He gave no chance for her to tempt him. He knew his weakness as a human being. His life was the practice of 2 Timothy 2:22, "Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, and along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart." How could Joseph live a pure life before the Lord? Somewhere in the Bible it is written, "How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word." (Psalm 119:9) The God-given dreams were the word of God to Joseph. He could not exchange such a wonderful promise for a temporary pleasure. Temptation was so strong. But the power of God's word was stronger. So he could grow as a leader with purity.
Let's read verses 11 and 12. "One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. She caught him by his cloak and said, 'Come to bed with me!' But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house." Joseph did not compromise to the end. By looking at Joseph's decision of faith, God should have richly rewarded him. But what happened? Mrs. Potiphar falsely accused him. Mr. Potiphar did not give Joseph a chance to speak. He believed his wife's words. Joseph was considered as the dirtiest criminal. He was confined in prison. Why didn't God defend his cause? In human point of view Joseph fell to the bottom of the world. But in God's point of view, he was elevated to a higher leadership training course. From a school of leadership training, Joseph entered the University of leadership training. There would be many more tough subjects. But when he mastered them he would be raised as a great leader of the generation. Most of the time we are at the bottom of our spiritual lives because of our own laziness and compromise. At that time we must deeply repent. But sometimes in spite of our hard spiritual struggle things get worse. At that time we should not be discouraged. God is testing our faith. He is moulding us inner beings. Job said, "But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold." (Job 23:10) The temperature to extract gold is much higher than the temperature to extract iron. God increased the degree of hardships in Joseph's life in order to mould a golden leadership in him.
Look at verses 20b to 23. Some may think Joseph would be at the dark corner of his prison cell sobbing and pulling his hair. In the prison political criminals are considered as ministers and swindlers as professors and burglars as engineers. But rapists are considered as good for nothing. Joseph was despised even by the criminals. Overcoming his bitterness against Mrs. Potiphar might be harder than overcoming her temptation. But the Lord was with him. He hated no one. He complained nothing. He accepted the situation as a necessary step to grow as a true leader. In the prison he met the worst people of Egypt. No one cared for them. They were the waste of the society. They deserved only punishment. But Joseph cared for them. He served each of them with God's love. He kept on them tell them, "God loves you. God has a great hope on you." He accepted all the prisoners as his sheep. The prison became his mission field. The prison warden was deeply moved by Joseph and made him in charge of the prison. The Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did. Every night Mr. Potiphar and Mrs. Potiphar fought. But the prison was filled with laughter. When the Lord put Joseph in prison, he also went down to the prison to be with him. It means when we are at the bottom of our lives we are not alone. Even our beloved ones may misunderstand us and despise us. But the Lord is with us. He takes care of us until we go through his training. He goes into the prison together with us and walks out of the prison together with us. He never let his people suffer alone. He suffers together with us and shares his glory together with us. We see so many temptations and hardships around us. We may be at the bottom of our lives. But the God of Joseph is with us. People around us today are God's trainers. And the situation we are facing today is God's training field. May God bless us to receive his training with hope and thanksgiving.
posted by bunyan90 @ 9:06 PM
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