The Life of Joseph … God meant it for good
Genesis 39:1-6
Faithful is as Faithful does
We are looking at the life of one of the most amazing characters in history.
Joseph was born into a crazy family
He was the 12th child – the 11th boy
He was the son of the only wife that Jacob ever really loved
He was so amazing that I can’t help but think – How does that happen?
How does someone like him come out of a family like that?
There’s a lot of background that leads to the events we are going to look at today.
You can catch the background from listening to the teachings on our website
Let’s jump into today’s lesson
We’re going to talk about Joseph’s faithfulness
Video Clip – 0:42 – 5:15
Pray
When Joseph was taken to Egypt by the Ishmaelite traders, he was purchased by Potiphar, an Egyptian officer. Potiphar was captain of the guard for Pharaoh, the king of Egypt.
When we left Joseph last week he was tethered and headed for Egypt
He had a band around his neck and shackles on his feet
The torment that he was in was unbearable
25 years later his brothers’ recalled the anguish and torment that Joseph was in
Map
As the caravan of merchants entered Egypt Joseph entered a strange new world
The Egyptian dynasty was in full swing
Middle Kingdom
The pyramids were fully built in all their grandeur and glory
Now the land was bustling with building projects and public works projects
One of the parts of this new life was the myriad of Egyptian gods
Everywhere Joseph looked there were signs of these god
There were local deities:
Ptah, the god the craftsman of Memphis;
Thah, the god of learning and the moon, at Hermopolis;
Amon the hidden god of Thebes.
There were cosmic gods: Ra, the sun-god; Nut, the sky goddess; and three gods of the air - Shu, Geb, and Nu. There was the cult of Osiris
Pharaoh was himself considered a god, the falcon sky-god Horus.
I thought of the Old McDonald song - Here a god, there a god, everywhere a god, god.
Joseph found himself in a country he didn’t know or understand
This was a strange culture and a strange language
Everything you could imagine was different
This was worse than being in the cistern
He was now under someone else’s complete control
Joseph starts his life as an Egyptian slave at 17
He has no friends, no family, no other countryman
Jacob’s family was his country
He endures the hardship of slavery – day after day – after day
A slave was not a ‘person’ per say but a piece of machinery
A tool to get the massive building and public works projects built
The record doesn’t give us any/many details of what occurred
These 6 verses cover about 10 years
We are left to imagine and to fill in details from what we know about what life was like
We can assume that he was assigned the most menial tasks under constant supervision and surveillance.
Though Joseph had been removed from everything familiar
Taken from his family
No more Dad or little brother
His precious coat had been taken from him
His character had not been taken from him
The Egypt that Joseph found himself serving in was a land of incredible contrasts
People were either rich beyond measure or poverty stricken.
There was no middle class.
Joseph found himself a slave of Potiphar
Rich families like Potiphar’s had elaborate homes two or three stories tall with beautiful gardens and balconies.
The aristocracy enjoyed live entertainment at home while they dined on delicious fruit from expensive dishes.
Their houses were filled with all the niceties of life: alabaster vases, paintings, beautiful rugs, and hand-carved chairs.
Dinner was served on golden tableware, and the rooms were lighted with gold lamp stands.
Potiphar was a high-ranking Egyptian official
He wasn’t the top 1% - he was on Pharaoh’s list of the wealthiest few
He is identified in Scripture as “captain of the guard”
This means that he was the the lead man in Pharaoh's team of bodyguards,
Other sources refer to him as “chief of the executioners.”
Potiphar was responsible for seeing that those who were to be executed were executed.
The Lord was with Joseph, so he succeeded in everything he did as he served in the home of his Egyptian master. Potiphar noticed this and realized that the Lord was with Joseph, giving him success in everything he did.
Joseph went from wandering the desert and living in tents and/or sleeping under the stars – a rock for a pillow --- to the palace of Potiphar
Pillars, gardens, sphinx- guarded gates, feasts – servants - opulence
There was something about Joseph’s character
There was a health, resilience, coping/prospering character
Potiphar noticed …
He noticed that everything Joseph did succeeded
He realized that this success was not the result of one of the many Egyptian god’s
He realized that Joseph’s success was from the God that Joseph served
Joseph maintained not only faithfulness in his work but towards God
Let me tell you about an event that occurred in Jacob’s life – Genesis 35
Shortly before Joseph’s mom died giving birth to his brother Benjamin, Jacob had a powerful encounter with
God
He told his family and everyone in his house to hand over their idols/jewelry used in worship
When the family members had turned everything over he buried them
The result of Jacob and his household’s new devotion and obedience to God
A ‘terror’ came over the people in the regions that they were traveling through
Up to that time they had experienced one people group after another attacking them as they traveled
Now, as a result of God’s intervention – the people in the regions just watched in terror as Jacob’s family traveled through their region
God revealed himself to Jacob as - El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty’
God spoke to Jacob and God changed his name from Jacob to Israel
These encounters and the change that Joseph witnessed in his Dad’s life had a profound effect on him as a developing young man
Something sunk into Joseph’s heart
It was Joseph’s work ethic that enabled God’s hand of blessing
It was God’s hand of blessing that led to Joseph’s work ethic
The better part of 10 years passed before he was ‘put in charge’ of the house
Joseph was no ‘one song wonder’ or ‘flash in the pan’
Joseph slowly and faithfully plodded along
Slow and steady … wins the race
This pleased Potiphar, so he soon made Joseph his personal attendant. He put him in charge of his entire household and everything he owned. From the day Joseph was put in charge of his master’s household and property, the Lord began to bless Potiphar’s household for Joseph’s sake. All his household affairs ran smoothly, and his crops and livestock flourished.
Potiphar kept hearing about this one slave Joseph.
People kept saying that everything he did went his way.
Everything he did was ‘successful.’
Potiphar could not help but noticed
If Joseph was involved – it was up and to the right.
Jesus said: That a servant who has “been faithful with a few things” will be put “in charge of many things” (Matt. 25:21).
That’s what happened to Joseph
When the other slaves/servants worked hard enough to stay out of trouble
He worked hard to know the hand and the blessing of God
Joseph had no possibility of advancement
Advancement and prosperity was not the realm of slaves
Advancement and prosperity was for the aristocracy – not slaves
He didn’t work in hopes of a promotion
He didn’t work so that his bank account was enlarged
The best a slave could do was hope to keep from being beaten or killed
Joseph was faithful not in the best of circumstances but in the worst of circumstances
We're not talking about faithfulness for a day or two – or a week – or a month
We’re talking about year after year after year
Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies. -Mother Teresa
There is a unique tension in what is happening to Joseph
He is in rough circumstances but has God’s blessing
Did God bless him because he was faithful or was he faithful because God’s blessing was on him
Depending on which translation you were to read you could get either idea.
Both
It was God’s blessing because he was faithful and he was faithful because of God’s blessing.
Faithfulness and God’s hand - Spiral up or spiral down
Faithful/bless/faithful/bless
Negligent/failure-less than success/negligent
So Potiphar gave Joseph complete administrative responsibility over everything he owned. With Joseph there, he didn’t worry about a thing—except what kind of food to eat! Genesis 39:1-6 (NLT)
Joseph was faithful with no view as to what the future might hold
He was not faithful for a week in hopes that he might get noticed and promoted.
Joseph was faithful – because he was faithful
Joseph was given supervision of all the other servants and employees, handling Potiphar's public relations, overseeing his finances, administering his agricultural interests and all of his other business activities.
Never before had Potiphar seen his workers so motivated and his crops so productive.
All of Potiphar’s household affairs ran smoothly, and his crops and livestock flourished.
Joseph was faithful with someone else’s goods/materials/wealth/property
He was faithful to ‘serve’ even when there was no promise or reward
He was faithful to ‘serve’ when there was no promise of personal benefit
Would you mind if Jesus made your ‘boss’ prosper because of you AND there was no promise of
reward/promotion/benefit to you?
Joseph obeyed God by serving his ‘master’
Too many believers make obeying God a ‘spiritual’ thing – a ‘mystical’ thing
‘I need a word from God so I can obey it and be blessed.’
Joseph obeyed God and had God’s blessing because he faithfully served his master
He made decisions that were good for his master’s house/business
He didn’t make decisions that were good for him or his bottom line.
Joseph’s obedience was fully for someone else’s benefit
Joseph’s obedience to God was seen in his obedience to Potiphar
Jesus talked about the idea of being faithful
One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful in that which is another's, who will give you that which is your own? Luke 16:10-12 (ESV)
The Apostle Paul also addressed the idea of being faithful
Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. Colossians 3:22-24 (ESV)
Notice what Paul writes – Obey in everything
Do what your boss asks of you --- PERIOD
*** Not by way of eye-service
*** Not as people-pleasers
*** Work heartily as for the Lord
What are you doing with the job that he has given you?
How do you serve your boss? – With sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord?
Is your obedience to God seen in how you work?
When you arrive to work are you ‘whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord’?
Are you being faithful in ‘a very little’?
Our faithfulness in what life sends our way, the doors that open, the jobs we are given to do --- may not be ‘rewarded’ or noticed in this life
This life is training for what happens in the future
Kent – YWAM
I remember being in a meeting – where a decision was being made about someone getting paid more than 2xs my salary and benefits … ‘That’s what we have to pay to get that level of leader.’
Here’s the truth – let me put it in terms about me – just so I’m not pointing a finger at you
My faithfulness is not for others
My faithfulness is not for advancement
My faithfulness is not to be dictated or directed by ‘time’ – I’ll be faithful for … and if something doesn’t change than …
My faithfulness is solely for God’s advancement and for God’s kingdom
My faithfulness is about Him and His advancement
My faithfulness is not to be compared to others level of faithfulness
When I’ll more faithful than …