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I want to invite you to take out your Bibles and turn to Genesis 39. It's only 23 verses, this chapter, so my plan is to read the whole chapter and go through the story as one message. And the title of today's message actually comes directly from the text.
This phrase, the Lord was with Joseph, is given to us four different times in this chapter. And not all the same way, but it basically says the same thing four times. It basically says the Lord was with Joseph.
The presence of the Lord is the key to this entire passage. Because Joseph's life is marked by turmoil. It is marked by suffering. It is marked by strife. In fact, in the 105th Psalm, Joseph is mentioned in that Psalm, and this is what it says.
It says, Joseph, who was sold as a slave, his feet hurt with fetters and his neck was put in a collar of iron. So that Psalm, just that one section of the Psalm, gives us a picture of the life that he had to suffer.
But even in that, this chapter tells us, even in his imprisonment, even in his false accusation, even in his slavery, the Bible tells us the Lord was with him and that he was a success. It's hard to think of a man who's a slave as a success.
It's hard to think of a man who's accused of being a rapist as a success. It's hard to think of a man who was in prison as a success. But the Bible says several times in this passage that the Lord was with him and that he was a successful man.
What a wonderful thing to consider that God sees success much differently than we do. Let's stand together and read chapter 39. Nate, bring the game down just a little. I feel like I'm a little hot this morning.
Now, Joseph had been brought down to Egypt and Potiphar, the officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, had brought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there. The Lord was with Joseph and he became a successful man and he was in the house of his Egyptian master.
His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands. So Joseph found favor in the sight and his sight and attended him and he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had.
From the time that he made him an overseer in his 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 his house and field.
So 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. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance and after a time his master's wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, Lie with me.
But he refused and 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 for me except yourself because you're his wife.
How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God? And as he spoke, as she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not listen to her to lie beside her or to be with her. But one day when he went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house was there in the house, she caught him by his garment saying, Lie with me.
But he left his garment in her hand and fled and got out of the house. And as soon as she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled out of the house, she called to the men of her household and said to them, See he has brought among us a Hebrew to laugh at us.
He came in to me to lie with me. And I cried out with a loud voice. And as soon as he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried out, he left his garment beside me and fled and got out of the house. Then she laid up his garment by her until his master came home and she told him the same story saying, The Hebrew servant whom you have brought among us came into me to laugh at me.
But as soon as I lifted up my voice and cried, he left his garment beside me and fled out of the house. As soon as his master heard the words that his wife spoke to him, This is the way your servant treated me, his anger was kindled.
And Joseph's master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king's prisoners were confined and he was there in prison. But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
And the keeper of the prison put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were in the prison. Whatever was done there, he was the one who did it. The keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph's charge because the Lord was with him and whatever he did, the Lord made it succeed.
Father in heaven, I thank you for your word. I pray even now, O God, that you would first and foremost keep me from error. Lord, fill me with your spirit. Lord, that your people might hear your word and Lord, that through your word it might encourage, edify, correct and instruct the believers.
And Lord, for those who are here who may not know you, Lord, perhaps their hearts have not yet been converted, maybe they have not yet bowed the knee to Christ, that today might be the day that they come to the Lord Jesus Christ in faith.
We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. All right, you may be seated. One of the most celebrated television personalities of the last century was a man by the name of Bob Ross. Bob Ross had an infectious way of bringing delight to people, not just because of his awesome hair or his radiant smile, but because he engaged people with art and the title of his program was called The Joy of Painting.
Oftentimes when he would begin to paint his canvas, he would do so by making strokes that made no sense to the unintelligent observer. I would watch him take a big brush and he would just begin brushing paint onto the empty canvas and he would say, this is the base coat or whatever, this will make sense later.
And then he would bring another brush with another color and it was like he was just slapping it on, like there was no rhyme or reason to anything that he did. But eventually, more and more that he placed paint onto the canvas, more and more the picture began to become very clear.
And eventually, by the end of the 25-minute program, he had made a beautiful work of art by beginning with what seemed like just out-of-control brushstrokes. He was an amazing artist and he was demonstrating the image of God.
When we do things like that, when we create, when we build, when we imagine and make things, that's displaying the image of God that is within us. And Bob Ross was doing that. But Bob Ross was also demonstrating something else about God's nature.
Because oftentimes in life, God is making brushstrokes that don't make sense to us at the time. And we are going through battles or we're going through suffering or we're going through some kind of event that looks like someone just took paint and threw it all over the canvas.
It doesn't make sense at the time. Now Bob Ross always did talk about happy accidents, but we serve a God who doesn't make happy accidents. We serve a God who decrees everything that comes to pass because he has a greater purpose that he is bringing about as he decrees the events of our lives.
I want you to, for a moment, think about one verse. And this verse is a verse that you probably have memorized. Maybe you've memorized it in a different translation. But the verse is Romans chapter 8 and verse 28 which says what?
All things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose. Now I want to challenge you for a moment on that verse that I think the New American Standard Bible actually gets it the best.
Because most of us say what we just said. All things work together for good. But the New American Standard Bible translates it slightly different based upon the underlying Greek language. I do think this is accurate.
It says God causes all things to work together for the good of those who love him. And by adding that word cause I do think it's getting to the heart of what Paul is saying. You see sometimes people say well all things work together for good as if we are some type of fatalists that live in some type of a world that's constantly in flux and just sort of happening but God's going to God's going to take lemons and make lemonade.
That's not what Paul is saying. Paul is saying that God is actively working. He's actively causing all things to work together for the good of those who love him. He is the cause. In fact in the I believe it's the Westminster Confession of Faith it talks about God being the cause of everything that comes to pass.
That God actually causes all things to come to pass because he has a plan and a purpose that he is working out in all of those things. I don't know about you but that brings great comfort to me. Because when I look at my life and I think of some of the days that have been most hard when I look at some of the things that have been the most difficult when I look at the days where I cried the most tears or felt the most pain I can look at those days and I could say God had a purpose for that.
There is no purposeless day in the life of Keith or in the life of Jennifer or in the life of Mike or Andy or anyone else. There's no purposeless pain. There's no purposeless hurt. There's no purposeless suffering.
There's no purposeless evil. God has caused it all to work together for two things his glory and your good. Now with that in mind we turn our attention to what we're about to read in the life of Joseph because I will say this when you read the life of Joseph in this passage many bad things happen.
It begins with him being sold into slavery which we saw back in chapter 37. His brothers beat him and put him in a pit held him there were going to kill him instead of killing him they decided to pull him out and and use him for profit.
They sell him to the Ishmaelite Midianite traders who are going by they sell him into slavery and that's where the story leaves off and then you'll remember we looked at the life of Judah last time we were in Genesis and chapter 38 takes us to the life of Judah.
Well now it takes us back to the moment that we ended in chapter 37 back to the life of Joseph and the events that are happening in his life and we see beginning in chapter 39 the story of Joseph's time as a slave.
Now the outline of today's text is simple I'll give you the four points they're on the screen. Four points of outline today one Joseph is exalted in Potiphar's house that's verses one to six Joseph is then propositioned by Potiphar's wife that's verses seven to ten.
Joseph is then accused by Potiphar's wife that is verses 11 to 18 and then finally Joseph is exalted in Pharaoh's prison. So let's begin simply by looking through the text and we're going to read through and I'll make comments as I go as I normally do.
It says beginning in verse one Joseph is exalted in Potiphar's house it says Joseph had been brought down to Egypt and Potiphar an officer a pharaoh the captain of the guard an Egyptian had bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there.
Now you can imagine for a moment what this scene would have looked like. Joseph has been sold to these slave traders they have now put him into a slave market so they have probably put him up for sale.
He's a young man he's 17 it's going to say in just a few moments that he's a good looking young man probably very strong probably very handsome probably looks like a person who would be a good worker.
He's put on the in the market he's he's put up with the other slaves and along comes Potiphar a man of high esteem and reputation. The word Potiphar actually connects him to the sun god Ra which was one of the gods in Egypt and Potiphar is related to that name Ra and so he had a an esteemed position he had an esteemed name.
And here comes this man this this person who is of great wealth and opportunity he comes to the slave market to purchase for himself someone to work in his home and he sees Joseph there and he sees the young man to purchase and he purchases him now.
Verse 2 it says the lord was with Joseph now a lot of times we we we write read right past that we go right past that don't think much of it. The lord was with Joseph. Okay the Lord's with everybody. The Lord's everywhere but understand this and this is probably the most important thing you'll hear in today's sermon when the Bible says the Lord was was with Joseph.
This is not speaking of God in his omnipresence. This is speaking of God in his covenant faithfulness. There is a difference because I can say to anyone in the world God is present because God is everywhere.
We believe that nowhere you can go can you escape the presence of God. The Bible says in Psalm 139 you can go up into heaven or you can go down into Hades. You can go as far to the east or to the west and you can never outrun the presence of God.
You're never outside of God's presence. But that doesn't mean the Lord is with you in the same way that the Lord is with Joseph. I cannot look at the pagan I cannot look at the unbeliever and I cannot look at a person who spurns the Lord Jesus Christ or hates the gospel and say the Lord is with you.
Now I can say the Lord is present. But the idea of the Lord being with someone speaks of covenant faithfulness. It speaks of being with them not only presently but within a relationship. Like if I say if I say I'm with like if I say to brother Mike and we're standing in the narthex and I look at him and say you know I'm with you.
And he says well yeah I'm with you and we're standing there together that that's that's speaking of proximity. But if brother Mike is about to face a difficulty in life let's say brother Mike is about to have to confront a serious evil.
Maybe he has an elder is having to confront someone and I look at him and I said brother I'm with you. See the difference. It's not now about proximity it's about relationship now it's about I am with I'm standing with you.
And you know the difference. Right. You know the difference when somebody says I'm with you or somebody says I'm with you and that's what this means. The Lord was with Joseph and his covenant faithfulness he's with him not only proximately but he is with him personally.
He is with him in relationship. And therefore because of the presence of God it says he became a successful man and he was in the house of his Egyptian master and his master saw notice verse 3 his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands.
Understand this. This is a fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham. What was God's promise to Abraham. I will bless you and I will bless those who bless you and I will curse those who curse you. What.
Yes yeah you could say that the Lord was with him. The Lord was supporting him. The Lord was making him succeed. And the thing is potter for knew it because it says right here part of her said to him or or or recognized in him the Lord is we in fact it says what's interesting about this is it says it says his master knew the Lord was with him.
But here's the thing. Part of her probably did not know Yahweh as God. Part of her probably knew the Pantheon of the of the Egyptian God as I said his name is named after the Sun God and so he would not have known God as the God of the of the Bible that we know God as that God.
But he knew this. He knew that the God of Joseph was with Joseph. And again the promise of Abraham was this. I will bless you and I will make you a blessing. And I will bless those who bless you and those who curse you I will curse.
That's Genesis chapter 12 that is the Abrahamic blessing. And it's being inherited here by Joseph who becomes a blessing to his master. Everything he does in his master's house is a success now. Verse 4.
So Joseph found favor in his sight. Of course he did if everything it meant if everything I gave you turned to gold. I'm gonna keep giving you stuff. Right Dale. Right. If everything you do is is is a is a blessing to me that I'm gonna keep getting you to do things because that's the natural thing to do.
So he found favor in Potiphar's sight. He made him overseer of his house and he put him in charge of everything that he had. And from the time that he made him overseer in his house and overall that he had the Lord bless the Egyptians house.
Again that word bless. I will bless those who bless you. He blessed the Egyptians house. For what. For Joseph's sake. Not for Potiphar's sake. Not because Potiphar was the believer but because he was connected to a believer.
Because he was connected to a blessed man. I don't know I don't want to go too far off off the beaten path with this. And this is just a thought. But I will say this there are times where if you think about like employer employee relationships if you're a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ you should be an employee that is a blessing to your employer.
You should be a person that they are thankful to have because you are a person of integrity. Because you are a person who does what he says he's going to do. And he arrives on time. He does what he's he does what he's called to do because he's working not unto men but under the Lord.
Right. And so in that sense is a as a way of sort of a long example of an application of this text. Joseph is a blessing to his master. In that sense we ought to be blessings in our places of work. The Bible calls us to that in the New Testament it calls us to be obedient and to do well and to work hard as unto the Lord and everything that we do we do it as unto the Lord.
So the blessing of the Lord was on all that he did or see me all that he had his house and his field. Now verse 6 is very important it says. So he left all that he had in Joseph's charge and because of him he had no concern about anything.
He had no concern about anything but the food that he ate. Now you may think that doesn't seem like I mean I make sense. Ok obviously Joseph's not sitting there feeding him. So so the only thing he's gonna care about is the food that he ate.
But this is an interesting play on words here and I'm gonna give you a thought about this particular sentence because what it says it says he had no concern about anything but the food that he ate. Rabbi Rashi is one of the one of the ones who is a Old Testament commentator and he talks about this particular passage and he refers to the fact that the food here actually could be euphemistic in Hebrew to speak about his wife.
Now the reason why that's important is because in just a few verses Joseph's gonna say to Potiphar's wife the only thing he's held back from me is you. So if we go back up to verse 6 it says he had no concern about anything except his wife.
That could be the way that this would be understood now that is again that is based on somewhat of a euphemistic understanding of the word food here it could simply mean the only thing he cared about was his food.
Because everything else was taken care of it could simply mean that. And I'm just offering up an idea as how this would fit into the context because later he is going to say to her specifically the only thing he's kept back from me is you.
The only thing he has not given into my hand is you when she wants him to have that relationship. So there could be in the connection between verse 6 and what comes later doesn't have to be I'm giving that as an option as a thought.
But the next part I think is hugely important second half of verse 6. I've actually talked about this a lot with my wife this week because John Calvin gives what I consider to be the funniest interpretation of this passage in all of his writings John Calvin is not known as a humorist.
Obviously John Calvin is known as being a very serious scholarly theologian. And I don't think he was trying to be funny here but he nailed it and I'll tell you I'll give you the exact because here's what it says.
It says now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. And that word handsome is an interesting word because it is only used up until this point it's only been used of women. It was used of Sarah who was considered to be so beautiful that every time Abraham went somewhere he said she's my sister.
And it was used of Rachel who also was Isaac said she's my sister. Remember so or no. I'm sorry Rachel's the wife of Jacob so but anyway this idea of beauty and being beautiful is the word so it's translated in ESV handsome man.
King James Version says he was a goodly man. But what it's really say he would a pretty man. He was. He was. He was a good-looking dude. He was. In fact some of the translation say was well built you know.
But here's what Calvin said. I want you to hear. This is Calvin's commentary on verse 6. Listen closely. Whereas elegance of form was the occasion of great calamity to Holy Joseph. Let us learn not greatly to desire those graces of persons which may conciliate the favor of the world but rather let each of us be content with his own lot.
We see how many dangers are exposed by those who excel in beauty for it is very difficult for such to restrain themselves from all lavish desires. Let me translate that for you. Sometimes it's easier to be ugly.
That's exactly as exactly what he said. He say. He say Joseph was it was given the burden of beauty because that burden of beauty made him appealing to this woman. And I think you know Calvin might have said you may have been easier if you look like Quasimodo.
I may not have such a hard time if he was a little rough looking. But he wasn't. He was a goodly man. He was a handsome man. And because of that Potiphar's wife turns her attention towards him. This where we get to verse 7.
It says. After a time his wife's his master's wife cast her eyes upon. Joseph said lie with me now right away. She won't take no nap. Just to be clear there was a certain according to ancient documents and historical records there was a certain promiscuity which was very common in the aristocratic or higher society Egyptian people.
And therefore this actually would not have been that uncommon that there would be an illicit relationship that was taking place among the rich high society if you will. And of course Potiphar's wife would have been among those.
I mean he's he's he works for Pharaoh directly. He's a very well off man. And his wife probably has everything that she wants taken care of. She probably has every desire fulfilled that she has. And now she has a young man in the house who who has tickled her fancy in a sense has has made her interested.
And she wants that too. And so she goes to him directly and says lie with me. And here's the amazing part. Verse 8 is amazing. But he refused. You say why is that amazing. Because from the perspective of a worldly well from the world's perspective Joseph is he's.
He's been mistreated. He's been beat down. He's been put into slavery. And now he has the opportunity to fulfill what is a natural desire among young men. And yet he refuses. He chooses to do what's right rather than what's pleasurable.
He chooses to do what's right rather than what maybe his flesh may have desired says he refused. And he said to the master's wife behold because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house.
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 you because you are his wife. How then notice. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God.
By the way the word God. They're very important because generally we see the word God as the word Yahweh which is the covenant name of God. But not this time. This time it is the word Elohim which is the more generic use of God.
But when Elohim is used in this context it's almost always in regard to God being the ruler or judge of the world. God is the judge. How can I stand before the judge of the universe and do this thing.
Here's the thing to consider. Joseph had a lot of respect for his employer. That's true. Joseph when I say respect I mean he. He treated his employer well he was a good worker. He did what he was supposed to do as a worker.
But he did not sin against Potiphar just because he loved Potiphar. He didn't sin against Potiphar because he loved God. Understand. Hear that again. Young man Joseph didn't choose not to sin against Potiphar just because Potiphar he loved.
He chose not to sin because he loved God. And notice what he says. He says how can I do this thing and sin against God. Do you understand young people. Do you understand old people. Do you understand men or women that when you sin it is not just a sin against another person.
But when you sin you are sinning against a holy and righteous God. Please hear this. I really I was thinking about this all week. I have heard so many young people. I've heard old people tell you I just people in general are bad.
Don't have to be young to be bad. Everybody's bad. But I've heard so many people say this. It doesn't matter what I did I didn't hurt nobody. Hear people say that who cares what I'm looking at at two o 'clock in the morning when I'm by myself.
I'm not hurting nobody who cares what I think about in my mind and how I let my mind mull over these horrible vicious things. And I house in my soul hatred and bitterness. I hurt nobody. Sin is first and foremost an offense against God not your neighbor.
This is why David when David sinned against Uriah and he took his wife Bathsheba into his home and that prophet Nathan came before him and said thou art the man. And he pointed to him with that little crooked prophet finger and he said thou art the man.
And David realized his sin. He writes Psalm 51. And Psalm 51 says these words against thee. And thee only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight. You say that's not true David. You sinned against Uriah.
You took his wife and had him murdered. You sinned against Bathsheba. You sinned against the nation. You sinned against your family. You sinned against yourself. But David said no against you. And you only have I sinned.
Why. Because David knew that the weight of his sin was not on his neighbors but on the God who they are made in his image. So Joseph looks to the wife of Potiphar and said how can I do this wicked thing and sin against God the Lord who is with me.
How can I do this. Well verse 10 she spoke to him day after day. What's funny about that. That's Hebrew yam. Yam. The word yam in Hebrew is day. You probably heard about that from like the Genesis day argument whether or not yam means day or not.
But when you see the word yam yam sounds like a dish yam. Yam literally means day-to-day every day. And it literally says verse 10 it says she spoke to him day after day after day saying lie with me.
Lie with me. Just come lay beside me. Notice it says here he would not listen to her to lie beside her or to be with her. Not only would he not lie with her but he didn't want to be in her didn't want to be around her.
By the way this is a good example of what the Bible says young men. It says to flee fornication. It doesn't say flirt with it. It doesn't say entertain it. It doesn't say make her your best friend at work because you got a work wife.
That ain't how it works. Guys I'm not talking anybody in specific but if it's you and it's your feet and I'm walking on them then get ready. Because I'm not here to be your friend today. I'm here to tell you what it is.
And if you are making these relationships and you're creating these flirtations and you're producing in yourself a desire for somebody other than your wife the Bible tells us to repent and flee from that.
I'm gonna be preaching a couple weeks brother Andy and I take turns on Wednesday night. He's in Proverbs 4. In a couple weeks I'll be in Proverbs 5. And young man you should read Proverbs 5. Proverbs 5 of brother Mike always praise about that whoreish woman.
It's true. The woman who's a deep ditch who will drag you down like a pit. But the Bible says it says delight yourself in the wife of your youth. Delight yourself in your wife not somebody else's wife or women not somebody else's husband.
Right to delight yourself in your wife. So Joseph knows this. Joseph is. I don't want to be near you. I don't have the opportunity to do this. So he wasn't with her. But one day. Verse 11. One day when he went into the house to do his work none of the men of the house were in the house.
Now it doesn't say that this was intentional but I got a feeling again little bit sanctified imagination. It wasn't normal that there was another people there. This was new. This is different. I think they might have been sent away.
Maybe it was a celebration. Maybe there's something going on. But the wife knew just gonna be me and him. So she caught him by his garment which would have been like a long t-shirt and she said lie with me.
But he left his garment in her hand. He fled and got out of the house. Now I gotta say if it is like a long t-shirt as I imagine it is it probably didn't come off super easy. I mean she grabbed a hold of him and he wiggled away.
He squirmed and got away. He did exactly what the Bible said do. The Bible says make no provision for the flesh. Romans 1314. 2nd Timothy 222. Flea youthful passions pursue righteousness. 1st Corinthians 10.
No temptation has overtaken us. It's not common to man. God is faithful and he'll make a way of escape. He had a way of escaping. He took it. But Potiphar's wife was not going to be. She was not going to be denied.
In 1697 poet William Congreve wrote these lines in a play. You've probably heard these lines before. It says this heaven has no rage. Like love to hatred turned and hell hath no fury. Like a woman scorned.
She's not happy. She's been told no. And in a position that she was in she was not used to being told no. And as soon as she saw verse 13 as soon as she saw that he had his garment in her hand and he fled out of the house.
She called to the men of the house and she said to them see he has brought among us a Hebrew to laugh at us. By the way the word Hebrew there would have been somewhat of a racial slur because he's indicating that this young man was not one of us that's been brought in here.
Also the term laugh there is better probably translated mock and she's accusing him of rape or attempted rape. He came in to lie with me and I cried out with a loud voice. And then notice what verse 16 says.
Then she laid up his garment by her until her master came home. Can you imagine that look just sitting there. I know you can't see me over there but she got the garment right here and she's just waiting for Potiphar to come home so that she can unload her vicious anger at her husband who she blames.
You'll notice in the text the Hebrew servant brought among us came in to laugh at me. Now I want to say something. This might not be popular but I'll say it do the outcome later. Feel free to send Andy or Mike an email.
I almost titled this sermon hashtag believe all women. Now if you're not familiar with what that means few years ago there was a man who was being vetted for the Supreme Court. While he was being vetted for the Supreme Court a woman came and said that in his youth that he had raped her.
And the the common response among the the news media and in the popular culture was she's a woman. Therefore she must be believed in fact the hashtag and if you're unfamiliar with hashtag praise God because they're just silly.
But they're just these little notations that go out on social media. The hashtag was believe women. Meaning that if a woman says something she's automatically to be believed. And then it became it actually morphed and became believe all women.
That is until a woman making that made an accusation against Joe Biden and then it was not believe all women anymore not getting political. I'm just saying that's what happened very clear that it's only believe some women as long as they're on the right political position or wrong political position.
The point is this we don't believe anybody without any evidence because everybody can lie whether you a man or a woman. Whether you're old people say old people don't lie. Oh people are. And kids will lie.
Don't you tell me your kid is good too good to lie. I love on parents say well my kid wouldn't do that mine would. And I know it. You come with an accusation. I'm most likely going to believe you. Because I know their heart is desperately wicked.
Jeremiah 17 tells me they have little wicked sinful hearts there are. They're able to lie. They're able to do these things. And my job is to use the rod of correction to push that foolishness out of their heart until the Lord so wills to correct them by way of regeneration until every generated it's the rod.
That's what does it. But you understand the point right is nobody is to be given carte blanche. And the idea of hashtag believe all women that's a foolish idea. There's no such thing if you want the proof it's right.
In the text potter's wife was a woman. And even our new Supreme Court justice nominee we could say she's a woman a grown adult female. That's what a woman is. By the way if anybody asked you I don't know what a woman is to grow adult female as the definition there's only two genders just one 2627.
God made them in his own image male and female made him they know such thing as a third or fourth or fifth or 16th or 72nd gender. You're either a man or woman no matter what you dress like now I said all that because look how foolish we become that we have to say that ten years ago that sentence would have made sense.
But this is a woman who has lied and and she is willing to see a man be punished for her life. Keep that in mind. So now verse 19 as soon as the master heard the words his wife spoke this is the way your servant treated me.
His anger was kindled and Joseph's master took him and put him into the prison the place where the king's prisoners were confined. And he was there in prison. Now I want to say something about that section.
Many commentators and myself included in this are uncertain as to what potter's actually angry about. Because a lot of people would say well he's angry because a man tried to rape his wife. However in this particular time in Egyptian culture when a man tried to rape another man's wife especially a man in a position of authority the result would not be prison.
The result would be death. The result would be execution. And the fact that potter for does not seek execution for Joseph but rather incarceration is an indication that he may not really believe everything that his wife is spitting out but he has to do something.
So the anger that's here may be an anger of frustration with the situation more so than absolute anger and hatred at Joseph who maybe or maybe not tried to touch my wife. And again in a culture of permissive permissivity he might not been only want to try to touch his wife.
But in this situation he says I'm not gonna have him killed him haven't put him to prison now there are some who translate this next section where it says the keeper of the prison as being potter for himself.
Because potter for was the captain the guard would have also made him likely to be over the prison as well. So some people think that he basically potter for just took him out of his house and said okay can't be near the wife anymore.
I'm not gonna kill you. I'm gonna put you in prison and you're still under my authority. Whether or not that's true. There's the Hebrew sort of speak to that because it's a similar word that the titles are very similar here the captain the guard and the keeper the prison very similar.
So the idea is it's possible I'm not willing to die on that hill. But the idea would stand to reason. You got potter for gotta do something. But you're a good worker man and I'm. So here's what we're gonna do.
I'm gonna take you and put you over here because notice the very next thing to happen and the keeper of the prison but Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were in prison. He went from being in charge of everything potter for owned to being accused of rape put into prison and now he's in charge of all the prisoners.
He's the greatest prisoners called to get the work detail. She's a greatest trustee in the history jail like he's the guy they put him in charge of the prison. Notice what it says here at the very end.
Notice the pattern it says keeper the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph's charge because the Lord was with him and everything he did he made to succeed. Think about that we have this this person this man Joseph and his whole life up to this point is marked by this concept the presence of God.
God is with him. Whether he's in slavery God's with him and he's a successful slave. Whether he's accused of rape God's with him. He's not murdered for the false accusation but he's put into prison where what happens.
He's again exalted and he's a success again. He's a successful slave is a successful prisoner because the Lord is with him. And I want you to take your Bible and do one more turn with me. We're gonna close with this turn in your Bible all the way over to Acts chapter 7.
In Acts chapter 7 Stephen is speaking to the Sanhedrin. The Sanhedrin was the the the legal authority in Israel and Stephen is giving his proclamation of the gospel to the Sanhedrin. And he's going through the history of Israel to point to Christ.
But notice what he says in verse 9. He says in Acts 7 verse 9. And the patriarchs that's the brothers were jealous of Joseph and they sold him into into slave sold him into Egypt but God was with him.
Notice what it says. Notice this is how Joseph is described thousands of years later. But this is how he is described by someone telling his story. This is how he's described by by the man Stephen who's telling the history of Israel in a very very 30 ,000 foot way.
He's going by person by person by person and he's saying this happened this when this happened this one and there was Joseph who was the envy of his brothers and this way and he was sold into slavery but God was with him years ago.
I draw to a close years ago there was a there was a saying that's pretty common still common in some churches. It's not just a Catholic thing but I know Catholics do it but it's also done in Protestant denominations.
But it's fairly common. And maybe you've heard this before where someone will say to another person at church the Lord be with you. Oh come on now y 'all can do the Lord be with you and also with you.
Now why do you think that that became so common among the people of God. That phrase it became common among the people of God because they understood a precious truth and that is as the children of God there is a special way which God is present with us.
He is present with us not just in his omnipresence but he is with us in his covenant faithfulness. So when someone says to you the Lord be with you they're not just saying the Lord be present but they're saying the Lord be faithful.
The Lord be with you like he was with Joseph. The Lord be with you like he was with Christ. The Bible says that Jesus Christ is the Lord but he also had the Father with him full of the Spirit. And we say to one another the Lord be with you because that's what we need.
You need to know that when you're by yourself and you have those moments of temptation the Lord is with you. You need to know when you're at work and you're having that difficulty with the person you work with that the Lord is with you.
You need to know that when your loved one is there in the hospital and you don't know if it's going to turn out good or if it's going to turn out bad that the Lord is with you. You need to know that when persecution comes and you're facing the edge of a sword and you know that the next breath out of your mouth may be your last that the Lord is with you because in that you will be able to stand and you will be successful because the Lord is with you.
The Bible says that there is nothing if you were in Christ. There's nothing that can separate you from the love of God. Nothing in the world neither famine or nakedness anything even sword can separate us from the love of God.
May the Lord be with us. Let us pray father. I thank you for your word. I thank you for this picture of Joseph a man who the Lord was with. And I pray the Lord be with us. I do pray Lord for those here who are believers that they would experience the presence of the Lord in genuine reality the Lord for those who are not Christians.
For those who have not bowed the knee to Christ Lord that you would that you would bring them to the end of themselves and that they would realize that there is nothing outside of Jesus Christ that can save them.
And what they need more than anything in the world is to turn from sin and turn to Christ whereby they can know the presence of the Lord. Lord. I pray all this that you might work in our hearts in Jesus name amen.