(Joseph) Forged In The Fire — Keith Malcomson

Psalm 105 and Joseph’s Refining Process

Let's come to the Word of God. If you have your Bible, if you don't, please listen carefully. But if you have your Bible here this morning, I want you to turn with me to Psalm 105. Psalm 105. And this is part two of our series.

And I'm going to preach the third and final part next Sunday morning. The first part was last week when we preached on a chosen vessel, looking at the life of Joseph as a vessel of recovery. But here this morning, I want to move on to part two.

And my message is forged in the fire. Reading from Psalm 105 and verse 6. And it says there in Psalm 105 and verse 6, O ye seed of Abraham, his servant, ye children of Jacob, his chosen, he is the Lord our God.

His judgments are in all of the earth. He has remembered his covenant forever, the word which he commanded to a thousand generations, which covenant he made with Abraham and his oath unto Isaac. And he confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law and to Israel for an everlasting covenant, saying unto thee will I give the land of Canaan, the lot of your inheritance.

And listen carefully, when they were but a few in number, yea, very few, and strangers in it, when they went from one nation to another, from one kingdom to another people, he suffered no man to do them wrong.

Yea, he reproved kings for their sakes, saying, touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm. Moreover, and notice this, this is in the context of Joseph's life. Moreover, he called for a famine upon the land.

This is God. He break the whole staff of bread. He sent a man before them. Who is them? It is his brothers, his family, his father. God sent him ahead of them. And it goes on to say, even Joseph, who was sold for a servant or for a slave, whose feet they hurt with fetters, he was laid in iron until the time that his word came, and the word of the Lord tried him.

And the king sent and loosed him, even the ruler of the people, and let him go. Let's pray here this morning. Father, we do pray for the word of God that you're gonna speak, oh God, in this hour of spiritual famine.

Lord God, there is a famine in the land, in the cities, in our world. And Lord God, we are asking in the midst of this famine that you speak from heaven, that you break and open up the word, that you would bless it from heaven, and that you would give it to every individual that hears this message.

We pray for every individual that you speak to their hearts, that you deal deeply with them, and that you would change lives. Oh God, even our visitors this morning in this gathering, will you especially speak to them from heaven.

Only you can do that. Only you know the heart of a man and can use a creature's lips. We bless you and thank you for our Lord Jesus Christ. In Jesus' name, amen. My message this morning, forged in the fire.

Trials as God’s Refining Fire

It says in Isaiah chapter 48 and verse 10, Behold, I have refined thee. I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction. The prophet Isaiah talks about an experience of God working towards an individual, where he chooses them while they're in the fire, the fiery furnace.

They are there, walking in the fire, and yet God chooses them. He separates them out. His eye is upon them, and yet they are in the midst of a burning, fiery affliction. They're literally in it. Listen again what Peter in the New Testament says.

He says that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than that of gold that perishes, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Christ.

What's Peter saying? He's saying that when your faith gets tested, you're in the fiery furnace. You are literally being forged in the fire when God allows trials, troubles, heartaches to come to you, things that you do not understand, and you cannot work out.

Do you know what? Your faith is being tested. You're in the fire. What do you mean, preacher, I'm in the fire? Your faith is being tested by the things that you have to face. Peter also says in chapter 4 and verse 12, Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you.

What happens when we walk into trouble? God, why did you allow this? Whereas Peter the apostle says, do not think it strange that when you find yourself in the midst of fiery trial, I'm in fire. Do you understand this symbolic meaning?

I mean, when you're in the fire, you go, this is burning hot. I don't want to be here. I don't like this situation. I don't like what it's doing to me. I would rather I wasn't in this. But do you know what he's saying here?

Don't think it strange. The fiery trial is sent to try you. Do you know God, those who love him with all of their heart, do you know God tries your heart? He proves you. He's not trying to disqualify you.

He's not gonna, he's not trying to show that you're a hypocrite. Do you know what he's trying to do? He's trying to bring forth a real pure faith. It's in the fire that your faith becomes gold. It's in the troubles, in the tests, and the things that you don't understand that you find a real faith in God.

And that faith goes from something weak to something very, very strong. Our message this morning and over these weeks is all about Joseph. Because I believe when we look at Joseph, we see how God deals with his best people, those who love him most.

The Joseph Company and Preparation for Crisis

In December 1992, a preacher called David Wilkerson in New York City from Times Square Pulpit sent out a teaching newsletter. And this was its title, The Joseph Company. He was speaking about, and this is many years ago, 1993.

And he was actually teaching in that, how God was then preparing a people for a tragedy that was gonna happen in the future. God was then preparing The Joseph Company, or a people of God across the world, who are gonna be used 20 years down the road in the plan of God to actually preserve the entire church.

Well, that was December 92, one month later, I arrived in Scotland at a church. And in that church, the pastor took that message from David Wilkerson, and he broke it down, printed it out, and gave it to us.

It impacted my life in a remarkable way. Then he took that message, and for two weeks, he preached messages upon it. Do you realize how much one message from God can actually impact your life for decades?

I mean decades. That message, it has become a part of me. That was 26 years ago. Then 12 or 13 years later, I'm just taking you somewhere, 12 or 13 years later, just down the road here, about an hour, was a convention.

And the preacher was called Carter Conlon, who was the new pastor of Times Square Church. Well, when he preached, I went up to him, never met him, never spoke to him before. But I went up and spoke to him, and I said, you need to meet a friend of mine called B .H. Clendenin.

And I really believe it's important. I believe that you'd enjoy his ministry. Well, Carter Conlon listened, and he said, I've never heard of him, but you know, and he just smiled. He said, I think you need to go and find a message by David Wilkerson.

And this is the one he told me. He said, I'm encouraging you, go and find his message called the Joseph Company. I believe it's for you. This was all those years later. Now, 26 years later, I believe that this is such an hour that all over the world, God has been preparing a Joseph Company.

There is a remarkable work of God. And in Joseph, we see how God works in the church. 20 years before the famine, before the crisis, before worldwide trouble, 20 years before that, God puts in motion in the heart of a young 17-year-old man, a plan that's going to take 13 years of that young man walking through fire.

I mean, God is going to put him in a fire. Why would God do that? Why would God take Joseph and put him in the fire for 13 long years and not explain it, not give him all the answers? We don't even know that he spoke to him ever again in 13 years.

All he done was give him a dream. For 13 years, he's not going to understand with his eyes or his ears or his natural understanding. For 13 years, the fire is going to burn all around him. What is God doing to him?

Is it because God hates him? No, absolutely not. Do you know what it is? God is preparing a Joseph Company and people ready for the famine. When does God start? The year before? Does he start in 2020?

Absolutely not. He was working in 2020. He was working in 1993. Some of you weren't here back then, but there was a young man in Scotland on his knees saying, oh God, give me a pure heart. What you did with Joseph and preparing him, I want you to do that.

I'm 22 years old and I'm saying, oh God, work in this heart of mine. I want to be a vessel that you can use in the days ahead. Do you understand why I'm preaching this to you as a church in this hour?

I've got five trials here. Five fiery trials in which God forged Joseph as a vessel that he was going to use in 20 years time. Listen carefully. The first trial was his brother's pet. His brother's pet.

Joseph’s Brothers and the Pit

We touched on it last week. You remember he had 10 older brothers. If any of you have had an older brother, you understand me. I had two older brothers. You can identify to some degree unless you are very blessed to have very godly brothers.

Joseph had 10 older brothers and we read in Genesis chapter 37 that they hated him. As God blessed him, they hated him. As his father loved him, they loved him less. In fact, they couldn't love him less.

They just hated him more. Then they got jealous of him. They hated the love that was shown to him, the coat that was given to him and then ultimately they got so angry that God was giving him dreams. Be very careful what you get angry at or it'll come and bite you like a serpent.

I can assure you those 10 brothers were getting enraged with this young man, Joseph. Listen to what happened to him. In Genesis 37, 24, and they took him and cast him into the pit and the pit was empty.

There was no water in it and then what did they do? They sat down to eat bread and they lifted up their eyes and they looked. They stripped the coat off Joseph. Why? They hated it. They utterly hated what that garment represented and it does have a meaning and then they put him within that pit.

Do you know what? They thought he was proud because of that coat. Do you realise people who are envious of you accuse you of pride? I don't know whether you've ever experienced this. They hate what you have so they'll say you're proud, you're arrogant, you think a lot of yourself.

No I don't. No I don't. It's because they want that coat. They're envious. They're jealous. So they make accusations. It happened with King David's older brothers. They accuse them. It's happened all through history that this has always stirred up.

I hate that coat. I hate the dreams. I hate the love upon you. So you know what? I'm gonna accuse you. You are the problem, not me. This is what began to happen with Joseph. Then they sat down at the mouth of the hole and they began to eat their food.

Do you realise a lot of people look like they're not convicted, that they have no conscience, that it isn't bothering them what they're saying or what they're doing. You look at them and say they're not even bothered.

Oh yes they are. I can prove that these 10 brothers sitting outside eating as he's in the hole and he's suffering and he's crying out. I can prove that their conscience bothered them. I can prove it to you.

Listen. 22 years later listen to what they say. We saw the anguish of his soul when he besought us and we would not hear. 22 years later they're still tormented. They're convicted. They're condemned. They still feel bad and yet outwardly they say hey I don't care.

I don't care about the the little scumbag. We just want rid of him and yet all the time they are condemned in their conscience in a very real way. Do you know what they try to do? That pit of the brothers.

What am I talking about brothers? Christians are called brothers. Born again believers are called your brothers, but yet I can assure you there's many in the church who call themselves Christian. The hatred in their heart proves they're not a brother in spirit.

You know what? The mark of a real brother is love. Real sacrificial love. That is a mark of a real genuine Christian and yet look at these brothers. Look at them. They tried to destroy his dreams. What God gave him, they hated it.

They tried to destroy it. We'll put him in this pit. We'll see what comes of his dream. You know what we're going to do? We're going to extinguish it. We're going to stop it. We're going to suppress it.

Knowing him he'll try to bring it about. So we're going to do everything in our power to stop it. This pit is to annihilate his dreams. These dreams will never be heard of again. Little did they realize God is there.

You see I'm talking about being forged in the fire. This is what man does. Man hates the things of God. Flesh does hate those things, but you know what God was saying? See that pit is vital in my plan.

You think you're destroying the dreams. That pit is going to initiate a 13 year work from God to prepare him for the throne of Egypt. You think you're destroying his dreams. You're actually bringing it about.

Your hatred, your bitterness, your jealousy. This pit in the ground. Do you realize you're birthing a man of God? Do you realize before all that hatred he could not have sat on the throne of Egypt? He could not have been second to Pharaoh.

No way. So what has to happen? There's got to be brothers in the house of God who hate him, who falsely accuse him, and who want to destroy his dreams. You're saying why don't they love me in the church?

Why doesn't everyone believe? Maybe it's of God to protect you and to guard your heart. It is many years later, some 20 years later, that we see God beginning to deal with these 10 brothers. What does God do?

He leaves him. Doesn't even touch them. He lets these 10 brothers. He doesn't chastise them. See if God isn't chastising you, you better get worried. You say I don't want to go in the fire with Joseph.

Would you rather stay with the 10 brothers and have peace for 20 years and unity and blessing and enjoy the inheritance and be at home and be in the land of Canaan and all the time in 20 years time there's going to come a famine and it's going to reveal what you are.

You'll have no bread. You'll have no answer. You've got no walk with God. Do you realize in 2020 the cover has been pulled off all across the church of the world and the church is being exposed. I mean multitudes of preachers.

They have no message for this hour. They don't know what God is doing in this hour. They see the world going crazy. I know what God is doing and I knew it 20 years ago. I knew what was coming to this world.

I'm absolutely ready, but I didn't get ready this year. The Bible actually prophesies what's going to happen in our world and since it's going to get a lot worse. We are on the verge of an economic collapse.

We are on the verge of a crisis. The mother of crises in our world and the church is not ready, but you know who is ready? Joseph is ready. Joseph is ready. 20 years preparing himself. Second of all, not only his brother's pet.

Joseph Sold to the Ishmaelites and Midianites

Second of all, oh it gets better brother Jer. Hold on to your mask there a second. Number two, captive to his cousins. Not only thrown in the pit by his brothers, now he becomes captive to his cousins.

Who are his cousins? We're told the brothers looked up and they saw this band of camels coming. These merchant men. They're called two different names. Ishmaelites and Midianites. Which is it? It's both.

This band that we're coming, it's made up of two tribes of family or two tribes of people. The Ishmaelites and the Midianites and they're merged together. Do you know who these two people were coming on their camels that God is going to use in the life of Joseph?

He's going to go, oh no, not them. Where are they taking me? God is in this, but you won't see it till later. You see, you think all this is working against you. You think all of this is the devil. You think all of this is going to destroy you.

You don't even think you can walk through this. You go, oh God help me. I cannot stand. Don't you realize this is the making of you? The fire is burning to bring forth a vessel. Who were the Ishmaelites?

Their father, I mean their great grandfather was Ishmael. He was born to Hagar through Abraham, the father of the faith. Now listen up. The Ishmaelites are descended from Abraham, the father of all those who believe.

Who are the Midianites? The Midianites were born from Keturah, who actually was Abraham's second wife after Sarah died. She had five children to Abraham. Now look at this. The Ishmaelites and the Midianites are now a growing tribe of people.

They intermarry. They work together. Who do they represent? They're born of Abraham, yet some of them are born of a second wife. Some of them are born of a concubine. Who do they represent? The religious cousins of Joseph.

In other words, they're not called brothers. They're not close family. They're not the direct seed of promise through Jacob and Isaac. No, they're not. Do you know who the Ishmaelites and Midianites represent?

The seed of Abraham according to the flesh. They are the carnal. They live by the law. They believe in salvation by works, and most in this city do. Oh, I try to be good. I go to confessional. I do the mass, and your conscience still torments you.

Do you realize religion will never set you free from sin? You must be born again. You may be religious, but that doesn't mean you're walking with God. Are your sins forgiven? Have you come to the blood of Jesus?

Are you saying, well, I'm just trying to be good? You know what you are? You're an Ishmaelite. You're an Ishmaelite. I'm going to try really good. God doesn't. Christ never, never once in the Bible saved a good man.

Never once. You say, I'm a good man. I've got hopes. God's going to save me. You're in trouble. I mean, you're a seer. You're an Ishmaelite. That's what you are. But look, we know churches get raised up who are Ishmaelites.

They are Midianites, and God will use them in the life of Joseph. Who were these Ishmaelites? They were merchants. They bought and they sold. They're religious of the seed of Abraham. You know what? They're going to be used in the life of Joseph.

They don't hate him. The Ishmaelites never hate him. His own brothers did. They don't hate him. They're not envious of him. They're not angry with him. They don't mistreat him. They don't put him in a hole.

You know, as they look at Joseph, they see merchandise. We want this young man to be, well, looked after. Feed him. Let's look after him. Let's care for his body. Make sure those feet don't get blistered.

We'll look after the young man. But you know what? All he is is money. We bought him for 20 bits of silver. Maybe they sold him for 30 bits of silver. They had to make money to get him down to Egypt. Do you know who they represent in Joseph's life?

The religious who are morally good. And they're involved in his life for a short journey to take him out of the land of promise and to take him down to Egypt, into the world. Do you realize religion will always sell you into the world?

How do I know religion? Say the mass. You know, go through the mass. Go to confessional. Ensure your sins are forgiven you. Now go out and drink the same beer. Sleep with the same girls. Blaspheme in the same name of God.

I've never heard blasphemers like the Irish. Never in my... I work with soldiers. And the old granny in Limerick. I mean it. The old devout granny blasphemes more than any soldier I ever worked with. And that's saying something.

Do you know what that is? That's religion. That is actually Ishmaelite religion. Do you know what? Here they are being used to move Joseph down into Egypt. He's going, I'm in trouble here. I'm in trouble.

What is happening to me? That all of this is around me. Do you know what? God is in this. God is in this. They don't care about you. They're buying and selling you. You're merchandise to them. But I assure you God is using them.

Joseph’s Service in Potiphar’s House

Third of all, a slave in Potiphar's house. A slave in Potiphar's house. It is in chapter 37, 36. And the Midianites sold Joseph into Egypt under Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh's and captain of the guard.

When he sees Potiphar coming to buy him, he must have said, how can God be in this? This has taken me further away from daddy, from the promises, from the fulfillment of my dream, away from all that God can do.

I'm going further and further and further. No, you're not. Don't you realize in Potiphar buying him, he was being brought into the royal household. Don't you realize he was even as a slave, he was sold as a slave and yet God was working and said, I'm getting you so, so close to that throne.

You don't even realize it. And yet you're going, I'm a slave. I'm merchandise. I'm worth nothing. I'm being treated like a servant instead of a prince with God. Did I just dream all this? Is this book just a mirage?

Is all of this a fairy story or is this something to be lived out in your life? I can imagine what was going on in his heart and his mind. And it says, and the Lord was with Joseph as a slave, as a prisoner, as someone working in Potiphar's house.

Potiphar gave him, clean the floor son. I want you to wash all the windows if they had windows. I want you to dig up this entire 10 acre garden. And when you finish with that, I've got another 10. Now that's where it began.

But you know what? God was with Joseph. God was actually there and working in that house. Do you think that he tried to cut the arse short? I'm not working for him. That's an attitude towards God. I'm not going to give my best to this.

You're not dealing with Potiphar. You are dealing with God. You realise there's lots of people in the church. God can never use them. He doesn't. He says, you're like the 10 brothers. You're lazy. You're arrogant.

You're a liar. You cut everything in half. You never finish a task. How do you expect God to use you? You see what Joseph done was he got in there. He rolled up his sleeves and he began to labour like he's serving God.

I'm a slave. I'm a servant. I'm here under his dominion. But I'm working for God. I'm going to labour. You know what? He become useful. He become successful even though he was a slave. He was a blessing to his master.

He made the house of his master to prosper. Some of you say, I don't want them to be blessed. Truth is you're not blessed. If you can't even bless those that would buy and sell you and that would use you.

You see who is this Potiphar? He's an Egyptian. He is a sinner. He's not a cousin. He's not a brother. He is a die hard Egyptian, but he's a hard working Egyptian. He's a wise Egyptian. He's a shrewd Egyptian.

You know there's sinners out there looking very carefully. Is there a Joseph in the midst? Is there a Joseph in the midst? I hope in the years ahead some boss comes to this church. Do you have any more people in that church who need a job?

Because you know what? They're honest, they're faithful and they work hard. I want someone from your church who's listened to you over these years and if they really listen to your preaching, I want them in my workplace because you know what?

I can leave the till open. They won't steal a penny. Won't steal a penny. They're not going to cut off work early. Do you hear what I'm saying here this morning? A blessing to his master. He prospers his master and then later it happens the same in prison.

He prospers his master and then no wonder years later that when he gets to the throne, he is still blessing others. It's not about him. Whether in Potiphar's house or in prison or on the throne, his entire life says, I just want to bless others.

I'm not here to fulfill my dreams. I'm not here to prosper myself. I want to make sure you get blessed. Church, I'm going to tell you and I mean this with all my heart. I don't care if my heart bleeds.

I don't care if I have to walk in here with a broken heart. I'm going to seek your blessing above anything of my own blessing. You know what that means? God is with me. That is the mark of God being with an individual and we're told that Potiphar looked on him and seen that God was with him.

You see, if God is going to make him ready to be master of Egypt, he's going to put you under a master. If all Egypt is going to come and serve you, he's going to make sure you are going to serve everyone and you'll serve others.

If you can't serve others, God will never use you for others to serve you. If you cannot be under a master, you'll never be over others. It's utterly impossible. It would serve no benefit. Look in chapter 39 verse 7 and it says, and it came to pass.

You see, you say, well, was that the trial, the fiery furnace of Potiphar's house? I could do that. I could do that. I can, yeah, just bite my lip, work hard, bless the master. I know what's coming, but there was another trial in Potiphar's house.

It says, and it came to pass after these things, after a few years, that his master's wife, Potiphar's wife cast her eye upon Joseph and she said, lie with me, lie with me. What a way to get revenge on your master.

What a way to take things back into your own hands. What a way to get an upper hand or to use the situation for your own benefit. What did Joseph do? But he refused. And listen to what he says. How can I do this great wickedness?

Madam, do you know that's wickedness? Sleeping around. Well, we're all sinners. No, it's wickedness. If you break your marital vows, it's wickedness. If you, as a young man, sleep with someone outside of marriage, it is wickedness.

Oh no, we're all flesh and blood. God's not going to think that. He'll cast men and women into hell for sexual sin. It can be forgiven totally. I mean, you can be totally free by grace. You can't work your way out of this.

You can be forgiven. What does Joseph say? He refused. He refused. God's blessing is there. And he said, I'm not going to sin against my God. See, you carry God in there. Do you realise you're in Potiphar's house?

You're a slave. You're a prisoner basically in there. But God is blessing you. A lot of men in the church become very slack when God blesses them and honours them before men and gives them responsibility.

They think they don't need a liverite anymore. I want to assure you, this whole thing will come down in your head. I could sleep with her and not get exposed. All of this will continue. But don't you realise God can leave you there?

You'll never go to the throne. If you stay in this situation saying, I'm blessed, I'm prospering, I've got a position. No one will ever know. God will know. And you will never fulfil God's plan for your life.

See, you're dealing with God. Then she came and spoke unto him day by day and he hearkened not. Nor would he be alone with her in a room. Young guys. And finally when she approached him and laid hold of him, he fled.

And she grabbed his garment and it was left behind. We do go through temptations. I want to show you. Do you know God allows you to be tempted? I want to see what sort of man you are, what sort of woman.

I want to see. You cannot be a chosen vessel to sit on that throne. To have great responsibility. If I can't even trust you with a man's wife. You know what? If I could not trust you in that situation, I wouldn't trust you with the souls of men in the church.

No man who is unfaithful in that area should be in ministry preaching in a pulpit. No way. If you're not faithful to your wife or your girlfriend, how could you be to the church? How could you be? It's the same attitude.

My heart to her is my heart to this church. You can see my entire desire for you as a church by how I treat her, how I speak to her, how I love her. I hope you say I care for her. You know what? You ought to take keen interest in how I treat my wife.

Because you go, this is going to affect me. What he is to her in that house. What he is to her in that car is what he's going to be to this church. Nothing more, nothing different. If he doesn't speak to her right, he won't speak to this church right.

I'm telling you that there was something he ran. He ran from it. What happens? Husband comes home and she screams and she's got his garment and said he tried to rape me. I'm talking about God putting you in the fire and allowing this.

You live holy. You do what is right. You run from sin and you get falsely accused of rape. And you know what happens? The husband gets angry with you and says I'm putting you in prison. The fourth point.

Joseph’s Imprisonment and God’s Presence

A right royal prison. A right royal prison. And it was. It says in chapter 39 and 20. And Joseph's master took him and put him in the prison. Would you not have killed this young guy for making a pass at your wife?

If you're working with the pharaoh of Egypt and you have this power and your slave makes a pass, wouldn't you have him killed according to Egyptian law? He didn't do that. What did Potiphar do? He put him into the prison.

Listen carefully. A place where the king's prisoners were bound. Joseph seems to be going down. Now his reputation's destroyed. He's going down and down and down. No he's not. He's getting closer and closer and closer.

He is now put in the prison. The last step before the final step. Where is it? It is in the king's prison. Only the prisoners of the king go in there. Why do you think Potiphar put him in that prison?

It was all in the plan of God. That shows me that Potiphar was not convinced that this young man was guilty. And he says if he's going to be a prisoner he'd be treated well. He's going to be a right royal prisoner.

He has to suffer his reputation, the loss of position, this shame of what's happening around him. But you know what? He's a right royal prisoner. He is bound. He didn't have chains as a slave. He walked about the house with freedom and liberty.

Now it's getting worse. So he thinks chains are put on his legs. I mean steel chains are there. He can't go outside the four walls. He has lost all his freedoms. Maybe Pharaoh will call for his death.

That's what happened in the royal prison. Either you could get set free as an act of sovereign grace or maybe you'll die. One or the other. And it says he was there in the prison. But listen carefully.

But the Lord was with Joseph. Oh come on brother Keith. First you're saying you can be sold as a slave. Heeded by your brothers. Carried down by Ishmaelites. Lied about by this woman. And you're God is with this man.

Yes. I mean 13 years here. God is with him. Look at the chains on my legs. God's with you. It's got nothing to do with the chains or the prison or your outward circumstance. It's got everything to do with this.

The heart. The heart and the choices and the decisions that you've made. But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy. What? I'm sitting in a prison forgotten by everyone. And you're saying God's shown me mercy.

Yes. Don't you realize it's an act of God's mercy. God. If God showed me mercy I'd be out of these chains. Really. So obviously God's mercy. If I'm stuck in the four walls of this prison. Obviously God's mercy isn't here.

Remember what God's mercy is. It's compassion. It's love. It's listening to your God help me. That's mercy. But it says God's mercy was there. What did he open the prison door and let him out. No that wouldn't have been God's mercy.

Did he remove the chains on his feet. No that wouldn't be God's mercy. See if you don't understand the ways of God you won't understand this. It's a foreign language that I'm talking to you. I've lived this for a long time.

20 30 years I've walked through this every step of the way. It says look God's mercy and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. That was God's mercy. And the keeper of the prison committed into Joseph's hands all of the prisoners that were in the prison.

And whatsoever they did there he was the doer of it. Brilliant. God's mercy. Now I'm in charge of a bunch of prisoners. I really feel like Joseph in this church. I assure you. Most of you is what you've been saved out of.