Well, if you want to keep your Bibles in front of you,
that would be helpful as we walk through the text together.
It's already been read to us.
For those who didn't catch it before, we're in Genesis 39 and 40.
I think I'm carrying on a series that you've been doing in Genesis.
What's this one, the third?
Second?
Third.
So it doesn't matter if you haven't been to the other ones.
This will stand independently,
but hopefully fit nicely into what you've been learning through Genesis.
Shall we ask for the Lord's help?
In this, as we come to look at his word, let's do that now.
Father God, we thank you for the words of that hymn,
because they remind us that you are a God who is faithful to us.
And when we look back on our lives, we can see just how faithful you've been.
The fact that we're standing here today,
praising your name still shows that you have preserved us
through the ups and downs of life.
And we thank you that he who began a good work
and as we'll bring it to completion one day.
And we'll always have his hand upon us.
And Lord, we thank you that we have your words to look at this evening.
We thank you that it is living and active, Lord.
I pray that you'd help us to understand the text we're going to be looking at.
I pray for anyone who's feeling particularly tired on this Sunday evening.
I pray you give us ears to really listen to what you have to say to us.
And I pray that as I preach, Lord, that I might do it faithfully to you.
And that by your spirit, you might speak to each one of us.
I pray this in Jesus' name.
Amen.
So I wonder if you've ever been in a place in your life
where you feel like life is just all over the place
and you don't know what God is doing.
If life's all over the place, you don't know what God is doing.
It might be that something difficult has happened to you.
There's some sort of suffering or it might be that you've had a plan in your head
and hasn't gone quite as you maybe planned out for it to happen.
It's just like life has hit you right in the face
and suddenly it's like, where is God?
What's going on?
What's he doing?
It's like that couple that you've read in the news
went up Mount Everest for their honeymoon a few weeks ago
and then the earthquake hit.
And suddenly their honeymoon is not so joyous anymore
as their camp is filled with snow all around them.
Life just hits.
Happens to us, doesn't it?
Well, imagine how Joseph felt
as he shipped down the road by his brothers.
Imagine that.
He was daddy's favourite, wasn't he?
With the coat.
He had these mad dreams about him becoming great.
Life seemed good.
Joseph had plans for the future.
God's blessing was on his life.
God was going to sort him right out going forwards.
But as we find ourselves in chapter 39,
all those dreams seem crushed, don't they?
I mean, Joseph is a slave in Egypt, the text says.
And that would have been a pleasant experience.
It's easy to skirt over the details.
That would have been difficult for Joseph.
I mean, he's away from his family,
his place of security.
He's away from the land that God had promised to his ancestors.
He's in a pagan country
where they literally would worship every god under the sun.
And he's a slave in a ruthless society.
Life has hit him in the face.
Life is all over the place for this young teenager.
But the key in this text that we see throughout
is that although Joseph's life is difficult here,
God is with him.
Throughout this chapter,
we see that although Joseph goes through very difficult circumstances,
God's hand is on Joseph.
Just look at verse 2.
It says there,
the Lord is with Joseph
and he became a successful man
and he was in the house of his Egyptian master.
And at the end of a chapter,
it says,
but the Lord
was with Joseph
and showed his steadfast love
and gave him favor.
That's verse 21.
So even though Joseph is a slave
and then later on he's in prison,
the God of the Bible
is with him.
And the word here for the Lord
is the word Yahweh.
Which is his personal name
with which he reveals himself to his people.
It's his covenant-keeping name.
And it's interesting,
as you read through Genesis,
the word Yahweh hasn't been used
for the last 10 chapters.
Hasn't been used.
It's only when he gets down to Egypt
in this godless society
as a slave
that again Yahweh has used this word,
his covenant-keeping name.
What does this show us?
This shows us that the God of the Bible
is with his people
in the most difficult
and godless situations.
When people's lives are all over the place
and things are all at sea,
God is with his people.
And this is the kind of language
that is used throughout
the Old Testament and the New.
Even just before in Genesis,
in Genesis chapter 26,
verse 24,
God says to Isaac this,
I am the God of Abraham,
your father.
Fear not,
for I am
with you.
Fear not,
for I am with you.
A bit later on
to his father,
Jacob,
he says this,
Behold,
I am with you
and will keep you
wherever you go
and will bring you back
to this land
for I will not leave
until I have done
what I have promised you.
That was 28.15
if you're taking notes.
And so no matter
what we go through in life,
in the ups and downs,
the lefts and rights,
God is with his people.
He never leaves them
nor does he forsake them.
And while Joseph
is at Potiphar's house
as a slave,
God's hand is upon him
as we see in the text.
And it says that he rises
through the ranks.
God is with him
and so he allows
his child to prosper.
The text says that
Joseph found favor
in Potiphar's sight
and he made him
overseer of the house.
He trusted Joseph
with everything.
Just look at verses 5 and 6.
From that time
that he made him
overseer in the house
and over all that he had,
the Lord blessed
the Egyptian's house
for Joseph's sake.
The blessing of the Lord
was on all that he had
in house and field.
So Potiphar,
he left all that he had
in Joseph's charge.
And because of him
he had no concern
about anything
but the food he ate.
That's big,
that's amazing, isn't it?
He's a slave
and he's a foreigner
and yet
because God's hand
is upon him
he is put in charge
of this house.
How did Potiphar
see that God's hand
was on him anyway?
Well one,
Joseph must have been
sharing his religious convictions
with Potiphar.
He must have been
telling him about Yahweh
and how he'd been
leading his people
and the promises
that he had kept.
But two,
Joseph as we see
throughout these chapters
is a man of integrity.
As we see later on
he's a man who is faithful.
He's a man who is trustworthy.
He's a man who doesn't
cut corners.
He works hard
for his boss.
And if you think again
about the circumstances
this is an amazing reaction
from Joseph, isn't it?
I mean,
rather than getting bitter,
rather than getting depressed
with his new surroundings
which would have been
difficult for him
as we've seen,
what does Joseph do?
He gets on with the job.
He doesn't moan.
He doesn't complain.
He doesn't sulk.
Throughout the next
two chapters
we see that despite
what is thrown at Joseph
he's faithful to his God.
That's a challenge
to us this evening,
isn't it?
Because often when
things don't go our way
we go off in a little huff,
don't we?
We act like toddlers.
We get impatient.
We get angry.
We sulk.
We get frustrated with God.
Oh,
it hasn't worked out
as I wanted it to.
But Joseph shows us
what to do
in difficult circumstances,
does he not?
Stay faithful to God.
Maybe you're in a situation
this evening
where things haven't worked out
as you planned
for whatever reason.
Maybe you're going
through a difficult time
in your life
as we do.
The key is not to sulk
and get bitter
with our circumstances
but to stay faithful to God.
To get on with
what God has called us to
because he's with us
even if it's difficult.
Anyway,
things are going well
for Joseph
and part of his house.
He's risen through the ranks
and God's hand is upon him
but as we see
throughout the Bible
whenever there's times
of prosperity
the devil is lurking
in the background,
isn't he?
He's always trying to tempt
and destroy the people of God.
It's been like that
since the garden
and Joseph is no different.
The text says that
Joseph was a bit
of a good looking guy.
Look at verse 6b.
The scene shifts
slightly, doesn't it?
Now Joseph
was handsome
in form and appearance.
Apparently he was a bit
of a Brad Pitt.
A few girls like Brad Pitt,
I don't know.
Good jawline,
nice abs.
Good looking guy.
Stephen knows
what I'm talking about.
Apopha's wife
takes a bit of a shine
to the young lads.
In fact,
she is full of lust for him
and she ain't shy about it.
The text says that
day after day after day
she gets him to try
and lie in bed with him.
Now think about it.
The circumstances
that we just built up
in our heads.
You're Joseph.
You're a young man.
You're full of testosterone.
You're away from home.
You're in a foreign land
and you have a beautiful lady
offering you sex.
What would you do,
lads,
if you're honest with yourself?
Most men
would jump straight
into bed with her.
That's a major bit
of temptation
that Joseph's facing.
And it would have been easy
for him to justify
it in his head,
wouldn't it?
Just a quick one.
No harm done.
I deserve this little bit
of joy after all the
difficult things
I've been going through.
I mean, I'm a slave.
Or maybe this will help
me get ahead even more
and fulfill God's plan.
It would have been easy
for him to justify
it in his head.
But how does Joseph react?
He's a man of integrity.
He's a man of purity.
Look at verses 8 and 10.
But he refused.
He refused.
He said to his master's wife,
Behold,
because of me
my master has no concern
about anything in the house
and he has put everything
that he has in my charge.
He is not greater
in this house than I am,
nor has he kept back
anything from me
except yourself
because you are his wife.
How then can I do
this great wickedness
and sin against God?
And as she spoke to Joseph
day after day,
he would not listen to her
to lie beside her
or to be with her.
He says,
basically,
I can't sleep with you
because it will dishonor
your husband
and my master
and more importantly,
it will dishonor
the Lord.
God's.
He knows that God
is with him
and he knows
that this is a great wickedness.
Reminds us of Psalm 51,
isn't it?
After David sinned
against Bathsheba
and he said,
only against you.
Against you only
have I sinned.
That's his main thing.
That's his main
drive in life.
He wants to honor the Lord.
He wants to stay faithful
to him as we've seen.
And how different
is his reaction to us?
He says,
this is really
a great wickedness
against you,
the Lord.
Often when we
want to sin,
what do we do?
We sweep the seriousness
of the sin
under the carpet.
Push it to the sides.
Speak to ourselves,
well this sin,
it's not that bad.
God won't mind that much
if I do this or that.
What harm am I doing anyway?
I deserve it.
But Joseph knows
the Bible.
Joseph knows
that God is a God
of holiness
and that he takes sin
very, very seriously
and so he says no.
The thing is
with Joseph
that I admire,
he doesn't just say no once,
but day after day
she's after him
and he says no again
and again
and again.
And on that final encounter
when she actually
pulls his cloak,
he runs from her.
Reminds us of
the New Testament
where Paul writes
in 1 Corinthians 6
verse 18,
flee.
Flee
from sexual
immorality.
In other words,
run away from sin.
That's what we've been
called to do as Christians.
The problem with us
sometimes as Christians
is this,
we don't run away from sin,
we run straight into it.
Sometimes when our hearts
going off
away from the Lord,
we look for it,
don't we?
We don't guard against sin.
In fact,
we dishonor the Lord.
But if we're going to be
people of integrity,
we're going to be people
who follow like Joseph,
then we need to run
from temptation,
not straight into it.
We need to know
the seriousness of sin,
the great wickedness
that it is against the Lord.
Don't sweep under a carpet.
Remember that God
is the holy,
holy,
holy God
and creator
who has called us
to holiness as well.
We need to know
that our sin leads
and has difficult
and bad consequences
in our lives.
It leads to death.
A famous guy
called John Owen
writes this,
Do you mortify?
Prosh word for
do you kill sin?
Do you make it
your daily work?
Be always at it
while you live.
Cease not a day
from this work.
Be killing sin
or it will be killing you.
Be killing sin
or it will be killing you.
You see,
the Bible says run.
The Bible says flee.
The Bible says kill sin.
The Bible says
don't play with it.
Don't play with it.
Don't be like a dog
that constantly returns
to its vomit.
As the proverb writer says,
kill sin
or it will literally
kill us spiritually.
And it's interesting
that as you look at Joseph
here in verse 10
that it's the opposite
of Adam and Eve
in the garden.
So in the garden,
what does Satan do?
He tempts.
Then with the one thing
they're not allowed.
They've got everything
that they could want
and need.
But God says one thing.
Don't eat of the tree
of knowledge
of good and evil.
What do they do?
They disappear
with that one thing.
But here,
Joseph has been given
all things by his master
as he says in verse 9.
Except that one thing,
his wife.
And what does he do?
He rejects it.
He's a man of integrity
and he has the honour
of the Lord
at the forefront
of his mind.
And in his actions,
he points forward
to the Lord Jesus,
doesn't he?
Hebrews 4.15
says this,
we do not have
a high priest
who is unable
to sympathise
with our weaknesses,
but who in every respect
has been tempted
as we are yet
is without sin.
I mean,
Joseph is faithful
to God
in this moment.
And God uses him
to complete
his plan of salvation
for his people,
doesn't he?
You know that
from a couple of chapters
later on.
What did the Lord Jesus do?
He resisted temptation
against temptation
against temptation.
He was without sin
and he was able
to buy our salvation.
Joseph points to the better
and greater Joseph
which is Jesus.
Let me challenge you
this evening.
Maybe you've been
dabbling with sin
a little bit in your life.
Maybe you're bitter
with your circumstances
and you've been
justifying your little sins.
Maybe you haven't been
taking sin seriously
in your life.
Maybe you've been
running to sin
and not away from it.
Well, the call here is
follow Joseph
and receive life.
Follow Joseph
and run away from sin.
Leave it behind.
Because if you live
a half-hearted
Christian life,
it leads to misery.
That's all it leads to.
When we walk
with the Lord
of integrity of heart,
we are blessed
and we receive
great joy.
And know that
if you are in sin
this evening,
that there is great hope
for each one of us.
And that's through
Jesus Christ,
isn't it?
Because when we run
away from sin,
we can run into his arms
and receive mercy
and find grace
for our time of need,
as the writer
of the Hebrews
later says.
So what does Joseph
get for his troubles
of rejecting
the temptation?
Does he get a nice
pat on the back?
A little hug
from his wife?
No, he gets
prisoned for his troubles.
Pot of his wife,
angry at the rejection,
she calls rape.
She tells the guards
and tells Potiphar
himself.
She plays on the fact
that Joseph is a foreigner.
Potiphar is obviously
outraged
and so he throws
Joseph in prison.
Sometimes the reward
for a godly life
leads to what?
Persecution.
Look to that.
This morning in Nidri,
Matthew 5, 8,
Blessed are those
who are persecuted
for righteousness' sake,
for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven.
When we stand up
for the truth,
don't always expect
a pat on the back
for your troubles,
but expect persecution
and opposition.
People will revile
and reject
and slander
and throw us
into prison
for our faith
in Jesus Christ.
And that's what's
happened to Joseph.
Man,
this is a rollercoaster
for him,
isn't it?
This is a rollercoaster
for Joseph.
He's in slavery,
doesn't know
what's going on,
but then he rises
through the ranks,
God's hand is upon him
and now he's back
at the bottom
of the pile again
in such a brief
amount of time.
In fact,
he's even in a worse
scenario than he was
when he began.
I mean,
prison would not
have been a nice place
back in the day
in Egypt.
It's not like it is
in the UK
if you've ever visited
a prison full of TVs,
running hot water,
three square meals a day,
even if the meals
were not that nice.
But this prison
would have been dank,
this prison would have
been dark
and full of hunger.
Just flick ahead
to Psalm 105,
gives us a little insight
into what Joseph
must have been feeling
as a psalmist
commentates
on his life.
Psalm 105,
18 says this,
his feet
were hurt
with fetters,
talking about Joseph,
his neck
was put
in a collar
of iron.
That wasn't a hotel
he was in
when he was in prison.
Literally,
he was chained
by the neck
and his feet.
And the question is,
again,
as you're walking
through the text
and you're walking
through Joseph's life,
is what is God doing?
How can this man
be blessed by God
after he had
all those dreams?
It seems like
Joseph is a million miles
away from fulfilling
the dreams that God
gave him all those years ago.
It feels like God
is not there.
Where is he?
Again,
as we walk
through the text
and we walk
through Joseph's life,
it says in verse 21
again,
but the Lord
was with Joseph.
You see,
this is all part
of God's plan.
You see,
God is going to
use this situation
as we find out
in chapter 40
for Joseph
to interpret
the dreams
of the cupbearer
and baker.
And the cupbearer
will get reinstated
at Pharaoh's palace.
And when Pharaoh
gets dreams later on,
the cupbearer
will recommend
that Joseph
interprets them.
And then Joseph
is going to interpret
the dreams
and be made
a powerful figure.
And his brothers
will come along
and he will feed them
and he will save
his family.
You see,
right now,
he doesn't know
what God is doing,
but when you read
a couple of chapters
down the line,
you know what God
is doing.
God hasn't abandoned
his servant Joseph
even though he's in prison.
God is sovereign
and God is working
behind the scenes.
The question is,
as I was thinking
through this,
why does Joseph
have to go through
these dark times
to get there though?
Why couldn't just
God on his
bing, bing, bang thing
and just got him
straight to Pharaoh
instead of going
through the prison stuff?
Well, God is preparing
Joseph for the future.
God is going to use
these circumstances
to refine his character
back to Psalm 105
briefly.
The psalmist gives us
a bit more insight
in verse 18 and 19.
He says,
his feet were hurt
with fetters,
his neck was put
in a collar of iron
until what he had said
had said come to pass.
The word of the Lord
tested him.
It's interesting,
isn't it?
His feet were hurt,
he was in collar
of iron
until what he had said
come to pass.
The word of the Lord
tested him.
You see,
God was preparing
Joseph for the future
through this time
of suffering.
He was refining
his character.
I mean,
remember,
although Joseph
was a man of integrity
in Pharaoh's life,
sorry,
in Potiphar's,
he was a man of integrity
in Potiphar's house.
Remember that Joseph
was cocky.
Remember that Joseph
was an arrogant young man
as we see earlier
in Genesis.
That's what got
sort of into slavery
in the first place.
His brothers
didn't like his attitude.
Yes,
they were jealous of him
but he didn't help things,
did he?
And so God wanted
to humble him,
God wanted to test him
and God wanted to change him
so he was ready
for the future.
That's the same
for us today,
isn't it?
God always uses
suffering
to humble us
and to make us
more like Christ.
We get this image
in 1 Peter 1
verses 6 and 7
where Peter writes this,
In this you rejoice,
though now for a little while
if necessary
you've been grieved
by various trials,
so that the tested
genuineness of your faith,
more precious than gold
that perishes
though it is tested by fire,
may be found to result
in praise
and glory
and honour
of the revelation
of Jesus Christ.
In other words,
during times of suffering,
God refines us
like gold.
If you know anything
about the process
of refining gold,
it goes like this,
they get the gold,
they put it in a special pot
called a crucible
and they heat it up
to a very hot temperature
and what happens
is that the heat
melts everything
but it brings the impurities
to the top
and the goldsmith
can wipe away
what's called the dross,
the impurities at the top.
They let it cool down
and they do it again,
they heat it up
to a higher temperature
and the dross comes
and they wipe it away.
And they keep on doing it
until the goldsmith
can see his face
in the actual gold
until it's nice and shiny
like it has in your rings
and your jewellery.
That's what happens
to us, isn't it?
It's the heat
that gets the impurities out
and it's the heat
of suffering
that humbles us
and changes us.
What does it do?
It helps us to cling
to Christ more clearly.
It helps us
to not be proud.
It shows us
our sinful hearts.
It changes us,
doesn't it,
those times of difficulty
as the Lord
walks with us.
Now let me be clear,
I don't want to be trite
about people's sufferings
this evening.
Some of us may be
going through
very, very difficult times.
But in all things
we need to know
that God is in control
and that he's working
for our good
and his glory.
He is our heavenly Father.
Remember,
he's our heavenly Father
who wants good for us.
He's not a cruel God.
He's not a distant God.
He's a God who is good.
He's a God who is loving.
He's a God who is wise.
And he knows
what he's doing
in every season
of our lives.
And the question
for us this evening
is this,
will we be like Joseph
who trusts the Lord
through these difficult times
and is refined
in his character?
Or will we grow bitter
with the circumstances
that we face in life?
You see,
Joseph is an example again
of what we do
when we go through suffering.
We get bitter
with his surroundings
but he stayed faithful.
He trusted in the Lord
and his timing.
I mean,
he was in prison
for a long time
and I want us
to understand that.
Even after he interpreted
his fellow prisoners' dreams
he had to wait
another two years
until he got out.
Two years in prison,
can you imagine that?
I struggle with one day
of suffering
yet alone two years
in prison.
Joseph asked the cupbearer
to remember him,
it says in chapter 40,
after he helped him out.
What did he do?
Did he remember him?
Look at verse 23
of chapter 40.
Yet the chief cupbearer
did not remember Joseph
but he forgot him.
He forgot him.
And yet Joseph knew
that although everyone else
had abandoned him,
the Lord had not.
He knew from his father Jacob
that God does not leave
his people.
He knew that God
was a God
who is faithful
to his people.
And when we go through
times of suffering,
we need to know that
as well,
don't we?
You see,
as Christians,
we need to know
that God works
on a bigger canvas.
In a bigger canvas
that is way bigger
than our lives.
You see,
when we suffer,
we can only see
the small ground level,
can't we?
But God,
God can see into eternity.
It's a little bit like
going on a journey
by a boat.
You're sailing along
on the waters
and a fog hits you.
And you can't see
the way forward.
That's what it's like
during suffering,
isn't it?
We cannot see
what's going on.
We don't know
what's happening.
We don't know
where God is.
We can't understand
the suffering we're facing
and how God
could be working.
Life seems all over
the place.
But the thing is,
if you're flying
on a plane
above the fog,
then you can see
exactly where you're going.
And that's like God.
He knows the future
and so we can trust
our lives
into his hands
no matter what
the circumstances are.
And when we trust
in God's total
sovereign care,
we find comfort
in the middle
of life's difficulties.
I hope to say
it's easy.
It never is.
We always have to battle
to get there.
We have to know
that God is
in control
and totally trustworthy.
We have to know
that God
is a God
who never leaves
his people
nor forsakes
his people.
We don't know
what the future
holds, do we?
But we know
who holds the future.
And God is
totally dependable,
utterly trustworthy,
perfectly good
and totally
in control
over all things.
When we get
to the end
of our lives
and we look back
on our life,
we will see
God's hand
on every moment.
Guaranteed.
Do you know
where we can look
when we're doubting
these things?
When we're doubting
God's goodness
and his wisdom
and his sovereignty?
When we feel
that life is all
over the place
and God is no
longer with us?
All we have to do
is look up
at the cross.
All we have to do
is look
at Jesus Christ.
You see,
Jesus was in
the darkest place
in history
as he hung
on the cross.
He was abandoned
by his friends,
he had all the
dark forces
of the world
unleashed against him
and as he hung there
he shouted,
my God,
why have you
forsaken me?
He was at death's doors.
He was in the darkest
place.
Even God had
turned his back
on him.
But the good news
is that
he was forsaken
so that no matter
how we feel
about our relationship
with God
or the circumstances
we're going through
we can know
that we never,
ever,
ever
will be separated
from the love
of God
in Christ Jesus.
Amen?
Let's finish
by just reading
Romans 8 together.
Romans 8,
verse 34.
It's a brilliant
truth in this passage.
Romans 8,
verse 34.
Who is to condemn?
Christ Jesus is the one
who died,
more than that,
who was raised.
Who is at the right
hand of God,
who indeed is interceding
for us?
Who shall separate us
from the love of Christ?
Shall tribulation
or distress
or persecution
or famine
or nakedness
or danger
or sword,
as it is written,
for your sake
we are being killed
all the day long.
We are regarded
as sheep to be slaughtered.
Now in all these things
we are more than conquerors
through him who loved us.
For I'm sure that neither death
nor life
nor angels
nor rulers
nor things present
nor things to come
nor powers
nor heights
nor depth
nor anything else
nor creation
will be able to separate us
from the love of God
in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Sometimes life
does not make sense.
Sometimes our heads
are battered.
Sometimes we feel
all over the place.
But in those times
of suffering
we must come back
to the cross
and remember Jesus.
He is our hope
in the day of trouble
because He was forsaken
so that we will never
be forsaken again.
Life is difficult
but the cross proves
that,
this,
that God
is always
with His people.
Amen?
Shall we pray together?
Lord God,
we know that
there's many troubles
in life that we face.
many difficulties,
many ups and downs.
Thank you that you are
the God
who is always
with His people.
We see this
in the life of Joseph
as you walk beside him
and lead him
through slavery
and prison.
Lord,
I pray for anyone
who's maybe
going through
a difficult time
at the moment
for whatever reason,
maybe there's small
things going on,
maybe there's big things,
feeling confused
about the future,
Lord.
I pray that they would know
that you are with them
this evening,
you are leading
and guiding them.
I pray for those
who might be going
through suffering,
Lord,
that although it's difficult
that you might continue
to refine people's characters.
I pray for those
maybe who are having
a good time at the moment,
maybe feel full of joy,
don't feel any of this
suffering or difficulty.
I pray when suffering
comes that they might
be like Joseph
and trust in you.
Thank you for the cross
of the Lord Jesus Christ
that reminds us
that he was forsaken
so that we might not
be forsaken again.
Help us to trust in Christ.
Always remember that
he is good and loving
and wise.
We are his children
and he never puts us
through anything
unnecessary.
Lord,
we need your help
because we can't do this
by ourselves,
so send your spirit
to lead and guide us.
In Jesus' name,
Amen.