Thursday, January 14, 2016

The Lord’s Favor – Genesis 39

 The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. And his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand. So Joseph found favor in his sight, and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house, and all that he had he put under his authority. So it was, from the time  
that he had made him overseer of his house and all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had in the house and in the field. Thus he left all that he had in Joseph’s hand, and he did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. And it came to pass after these things that his master’s wife cast longing eyes on Joseph, and she said, “Lie with me.” But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Look, my master does not know what is with me in the house, and he has committed all that he has to my hand.There is no one greater in this house than I, nor has he kept back anything from me but you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” 10 So it was, as she spoke to Joseph day by day, that he did not heed her, to lie with her or to be with her. 11 But it happened about this time, when Joseph went into the house to do his work, and none of the men of the house was inside, 12 that she caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me.” But he left his garment in her hand, and fled and ran outside. 
13 And so it was, when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and fled outside, 14 that she called to the men of her house and spoke to them, saying, “See, he has brought in to us a Hebrew to mock us. He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice. 15 And it happened, when he heard that I lifted my voice and cried out, that he left his garment with me, and fled and went outside.” 16 So she kept his garment with her until his master came home. 17 Then she spoke to him with words like these, saying, “The Hebrew servant whom you brought to us came in to me to mock me; 18 so it happened, as I lifted my voice and cried out, that he left his garment with me and fled outside.” 19 So it was, when his master heard the words which his wife spoke to him, saying, “Your servant did to me after this manner,” that his anger was aroused. 20 Then Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were confined. And he was there in the prison. 21 But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. 22 And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners who were in the prison; whatever they did there, it was his doing. 23 The keeper of the prison did not look into anything that was  under  Joseph’s  authority,[a] because the Lord was with him; and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper.



We all go to trials, and difficult things in life, BUT when we SERVE GOD, AND are FAITHFUL to HIM, His favor will be with us; and it will show! This is the principle that we want get out of this great account.  When you see Joseph’s name here, think for a moment it is you in his place, and when it talks about his master, think is talking about God.  Then you will see the story will gain a new meaning for you, because you will be able to see how God can and will prosper you too.

Joseph was a very handsome and well built young man, also honest, and wise, and thru his dreams God was already showing him His favor. Although he didn’t understand too much of it, his brothers were very jealous of him most likely for all those great qualities Joseph had, so they “got rid” of him by selling him as a slave.
This account those not says that Joseph talked about his “goods” or his “bads” either, but by the way he LIVED, he transpired his essence, and with time, we see Potiphar noticed the “gem” he had purchased. And he valued that gem, therefore he gave that gem a place of honor, and put him in charge of his household affairs.    

When you love the Lord with all of your heart, and soul, and mind, you will LOVE to spend time in His presence.  And while in HIS presence, HE will fill you up with whatever is it that you are lacking to make you successful wherever HE places you. It means that if your boss is not to be there for that position God said was for you, you be faithful and do your best were you are now and while you’re waiting, for in time, God will take care of that boss and the position will be yours. We do not have to tell God how to do it; HE knows when’s the time and how to, we just have to grown patience by praying while we wait. The benefits of waiting will be corporate because as you grow personally you will boost the company, and it will grow with you, and the more company grows, the more you’ll benefit from it; your family will benefit, and all those that your family benefits will grow with the ripple effect of you the favor of God in your life. Alleluia!!! Glory to God!!!

Back to Joseph, this man of God that lived as whom he was a man of integrity, although he had favor, he wasn’t exempt from trouble because his master’s wife, while her hubby worked she allowed her eyes to wander on her house servant…. Am I the only one thinking now about the hundreds of times we hear of marriages that had been shattered because the house servant/butler/nanny/domestic helper had been found having an affair with their “master”? Because either the servant or the master allowed longing eyes on the other counterpart; yes that’s still happens today as well as in Biblical times. In fact, as the story unfolds it looks more and more similar to some of the ones we hear on today’s news, because even when Joseph had rejected Potiphar’s wife times before, she still harass him. Joseph even took the time to explain this unfaithful and lustful woman about why he wasn’t responding to her advances, and even using the day’s “legal” terms like “wickedness” and “sin against God” but she wasn’t buying it. Obviously she wanted more attention than the one she was getting from her husband; this should be an eye opener for the husbands (and wives too) who sometimes get too caught up with making “good money” for the family, spending the time that ought to be to care, love and nourish the things money can’t buy, like a dedicated faithful wife (or husband). It’s a matter of prioritizing but that’s another subject we are not going to cover here. 

Then when she got tired of the rejection realizing she wasn’t going to get anything of the guy, she flipped the coin to make it look like she had been the victim, and accused him of assault with intent to commit a rape, that’s bad! No matters how good you’ve been, even today if you are found guilty of a felony it’s punishable by imprisonment, and that’s exactly were Joseph landed, in jail.

This is another eye opener, for whenever you’re being harass, you have to find the way out of getting exposed to the person who’s doing the harassment.  There are ways, depending on the case, and people trained to help you find the way out, but you have to speak up! Joseph, instead of talking to his master, he decided to flee, but did you know that what he did was Biblical?  “Those who want to get rich fall into temptation, and a trap, and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.”[1] But The Bible says: “7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you[2]

Joseph resisted the evil temptation and it fled, because then he was put into jail and temptation wasn’t there no more! The favor of God in his life, then continued, and he flourished as an inmate, and was placed in charge with authority all because God was with him! The Lord prospered him! In jail? You might ask; yes, even in jail!

My friends, even when things seems to be so bad as been thrown in prison, look deep, ask God and HE will show you than even then there’s a divine purpose when God is in control. In this lifetime, we will all be tempted, but only those who trust in God will be able to escape in victory.

1 Corinthians 10:12-13, give us a great reminder: “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! 13 No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, HE will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”

God bless you all, friends! I'm praying for you!




[1] 1 Timothy 6:9
[2] James 4:7

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