They saw him in the distance, and before he had reached them, they plotted to kill him. 19 They said to one another, “Here comes that dreamer! 20 Come on, let’s kill him and throw him into one of the pits. We can say that a vicious animal ate him. Then we’ll see what becomes of his dreams!” 21 When Reuben heard this, he tried to save him from them. He said, “Let’s not take his life.” 22 Reuben also said to them, “Don’t shed blood. Throw him into this pit in the wilderness, but don’t lay a hand on him”—intending to rescue him from their hands and return him to his father. 23 When Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped off his robe, the robe of many colors that he had on. 24 Then they took him and threw him into the pit. The pit was empty; there was no water in it. 25 Then they sat down to eat a meal. They looked up, and there was a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were carrying aromatic gum, balsam, and resin, going down to Egypt. 26 Then Judah said to his brothers, “What do we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? 27 Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay a hand on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh,” and they agreed. 28 When Midianite traders passed by, his brothers pulled Joseph out of the pit and sold him for 20 pieces of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took Joseph to Egypt. 29 When Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not there, he tore his clothes. 30 He went back to his brothers and said, “The boy is gone! What am I going to do?” 31 So they took Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a young goat, and dipped the robe in its blood. 32 They sent the robe of many colors to their father and said, “We found this. Examine it. Is it your son’s robe or not?” 33 His father recognized it. “It is my son’s robe,” he said. “A vicious animal has devoured him. Joseph has been torn to pieces!” 34 Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth around his waist, and mourned for his son many days. 35 All his sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. “No,” he said. “I will go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” And his father wept for him. 36 Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and the captain of the guard.
When brotherly love fails it is like a storm has hit the family.
Sometimes that storm is like a hurricane. Hurricanes develop over long periods of time, days or even weeks. Sometimes, in a family when love fails, just like with a hurricane, you can see it coming and, although you can’t stop it and you are dreading it, at least you can be prepared for in some way.
Other times when brotherly love fails, it’s like a tornado. Tornados seemingly pop up out of nowhere. They sneak up on an unsuspecting community, they bring their devastating damage, and then they disappear. You don’t have to dread the coming of the tornado because you don’t have an opportunity to do so. On the other hand, you also can make little or no preparation for that particular storm.
Regardless of whether the storm is a hurricane or a tornado, it leaves destruction in its wake. Like Dorothy said in the “Wizard of Ozz”, you may find that “We aren’t in Kansas anymore!” Everything has changed, and not for the better.
At that point those affected must ask the question, “What do I do now?” This is the same question. Joseph found himself facing when brotherly love failed among the Children of Israel. Today we see what Joseph did, and how that turned out. This is what we can observe from Scripture:
Joseph’s Diligence:
Let’s begin with Genesis 39:1-6a,
Now Joseph had been taken to Egypt. An Egyptian named Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him there. 2 The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving[a] in the household of his Egyptian master. 3 When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made everything he did successful, 4 Joseph found favor in his master’s sight and became his personal attendant. Potiphar also put him in charge of his household and placed all that he owned under his authority.[b] 5 From the time that he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house because of Joseph. The Lord’s blessing was on all that he owned, in his house and in his fields. 6 He left all that he owned under Joseph’s authority;[c] he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate.
Joseph was Jacob’s favorite son and Jacob had doted upon him. He had given Joseph preferential treatment, including dressing him in a unique, even gaudy, multi-colored coat. Joseph had been spoiled by his dad, but now his whole world had been turned up-side down! He went from being the favored son being sold into slavery.
The fact that Joseph experienced such a reversal of fortunes was not an uncommon life event. One wag put it this way, “Somedays you are the windshield; other days you are the bug.” We might leave a supportive home environment to go to work or to go to school. There we may find people who don't know us, nor even care about us. Sometimes the situation we find ourselves in isn't the situation that we expected to happen.
I once served in a Christian ministry that had a practice of never downsizing staff. Instead, when ministry requirements changed, and when ministry programs were ended, the previous staff were just reassigned to different job descriptions. I knew several members of that ministry who had been called to do a specific task but who were later reassigned to an entirely different ministry. A few of those folks adjusted well; most however struggled. For some it was as if the ground beneath their feet had shifted nothing was the same as before and they never felt comfortable in their new role.
When placed in a situation like the one Joseph found himself in, many people might crumble. Joseph didn't! Joseph continued to be diligent, so much so that he was placed as steward over his master's household. I believe we can draw at least two lessons from Joseph's experience.
First, it's always right to do the right thing. Joseph knew it was right to be diligent, and he was. It certainly would have been easy for him to resent his master. But we must remember, that in whatever situation we are God knows what is happening to us. The scriptures remind us that we are a walking testimony to our God. We are often the only Bible anyone ever reads and that is why it was written in Colossians 3:23-24 that,
Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something done for the Lord and not for men, 24 knowing that you will receive the reward of an inheritance from the Lord. You serve the Lord Christ.
The second lesson, of course, is that God will reward us for being good stewards of His Holy Name. Hebrews 6:10 tells us,
For God is not unjust; He will not forget your work and the love you showed for His name when you served the saints—and you continue to serve them
When you aren’t in Kansas anymore, remember that God has a plan for your life. Work as if you are working for Him!
Joseph’s Purity:
Next, let’s read 39:6b-21,
Now Joseph was well-built and handsome. 7 After some time his master’s wife looked longingly at Joseph and said, “Sleep with me.” 8 But he refused. “Look,” he said to his master’s wife, “with me here my master does not concern himself with anything in his house, and he has put all that he owns under my authority. 9 No one in this house is greater than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. So how could I do such a great evil and sin against God?”10 Although she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her. 11 Now one day he went into the house to do his work, and none of the household servants were there.[h] 12 She grabbed him by his garment and said, “Sleep with me!” But leaving his garment in her hand, he escaped and ran outside. 13 When she saw that he had left his garment with her and had run outside, 14 she called the household servants. “Look,” she said to them, “my husband brought a Hebrew man to make fools of us. He came to me so he could sleep with me, and I screamed as loud as I could. 15 When he heard me screaming for help, he left his garment with me and ran outside.” 16 She put Joseph’s garment beside her until his master came home. 17 Then she told him the same story: “The Hebrew slave you brought to us came to make a fool of me, 18 but when I screamed for help, he left his garment with me and ran outside.” 19 When his master heard the story his wife told him—“These are the things your slave did to me”—he was furious 20 and had him thrown into prison, where the king’s prisoners were confined. So Joseph was there in prison.
We live in a fallen and sinful world and the hits just keep coming! The basic storyline here is that Potiphar's wife lusted after Joseph, yet he remained pure. As a healthy young man, Joseph was no doubt tempted, but he did not yield.
This kind of temptation is not unusual. In fact, a leading cause of ministerial termination is moral failure. In this case Joseph was alone and out on his own, and without a support system. That is a difficult situation. Often temptations come fast and furious and in all sorts of ways. It is easy to fall, and it is easy to rationalize that failure as well. Joseph could have said, “Maybe if I let her seduce me that will give me some power over her, and she can help me fulfill God's plan?” It is easy to talk ourselves into doing foolish things.
Even if you aren't tempted by such a situation, this kind of person can harm you. It is possible that Potiphar's wife misunderstood Joseph's motives. Maybe she thought he was trying to impress her or seduce her. People can misjudge your motives and treat you wrongly.
Even more troublesome is the fact that a person who has illegitimate motives and illegitimate desires may retaliate against you when you reject their improper advances. In such a case you will have done nothing wrong, but the offending person might manipulate facts and situations to imply that you were the offending party. In fact, you might yield simply to avoid such trouble.
Many people would fall into temptation under these conditions, but not Joseph. He was so desperate to stay pure that he ran out of his clothes. He knew God had a purpose for his life and he knew his God was righteous. He also knew that God never does his work with the devil's means. And he knew that he was working for that very same God.
When you aren't in Kansas anymore, remember that God is righteous. Live as if you are living for him!
Joseph’s Faithfulness:
Next, let’s read 39:6b-21,
But the Lord was with Joseph and extended kindness to him. He granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. 22 The warden put all the prisoners who were in the prison under Joseph’s authority, and he was responsible for everything that was done there. 23 The warden did not bother with anything under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him, and the Lord made everything that he did successful.
When you think you have hit rock bottom and you think that things can't get any worse, don't hold your breath, because, as Joseph’s story demonstrated, they can get worse. Potiphar's wife was a woman scorned, and she took her wrath out upon Joseph. He was falsely accused and wound up in prison and he should have been considering himself lucky that he wasn't killed.
Like Joseph we are also often treated wrongly. At times we are treated wrongly by the world, and other times we are treated wrongly by our families. The ones who love us can turn on us and cause us much pain.
People can wrongly accuse us, they can gossip about us and scorn our Christian faith and our Christian lifestyle. They may try to entice us into office politics and then turn on us when we participate. Even worse they can entice us into office politics and then when we participate, heap scorn upon us because we're hypocrites. Either way we are often punished for not conforming to the ways of this world.
When these things happen to us Joseph is a model for us to follow. Joseph did not give up hope. He knew his God, and he knew his God had a purpose for his life. He knew that his God was strong and that his God could and would fulfill that purpose. He also knew that ultimately that was who he was working for the God of his fathers. Despite all that happened to him Joseph remained faithful to that God.
If Joseph is a model for us to follow Joseph's God is even a greater source of encouragement to us. God used Joseph's faithfulness to advance his plan for his life. Also, we must realize that God put Joseph right to where he needed to be so that he could interpret the dreams of the Butler and the Baker. These events brought him to Pharaoh’s attention and these events occurred because Joseph and his God were both faithful. Paul had a similar experience as we see in Acts 16 beginning in verse 22:
Then the mob joined in the attack against them, and the chief magistrates stripped off their clothes and ordered them to be beaten with rods. 23 After they had inflicted many blows on them, they threw them in jail, ordering the jailer to keep them securely guarded. 24 Receiving such an order, he put them into the inner prison and secured their feet in the stocks. 25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the jail were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s chains came loose. 27 When the jailer woke up and saw the doors of the prison open, he drew his sword and was going to kill himself, since he thought the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul called out in a loud voice, “Don’t harm yourself, because all of us are here!” 29 Then the jailer called for lights, rushed in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he escorted them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” 32 Then they spoke the message of the Lord to him along with everyone in his house. 33 He took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds. Right away he and all his family were baptized. 34 He brought them into his house, set a meal before them, and rejoiced because he had believed God with his entire household.
Just like the children of Israel were saved from starvation by Joseph going to jail, so too there will be people in heaven that we can meet some day, because Paul went to jail.
When you aren’t in Kansas anymore, remember that God is in control. Live as if is He is!
Joseph’s Elevation:
Finally, let’s read Genesis 41:37-49,
Then Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find anyone like this, a man who has God’s spirit in him?” 39 So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one as intelligent and wise as you are. 40 You will be over my house, and all my people will obey your commands.[d] Only with regard to the throne will I be greater than you.” 41 Pharaoh also said to Joseph, “See, I am placing you over all the land of Egypt.” 42 Pharaoh removed his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, clothed him with fine linen garments, and placed a gold chain around his neck. 43 He had Joseph ride in his second chariot, and servants called out before him, “Abrek!” So he placed him over all the land of Egypt. 44 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, but no one will be able to raise his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt without your permission.”
God had great plans for Joseph. He had given Joseph a dream to become a great leader. Later, He had given Joseph the task of saving Egypt and Israel, and the known world from starvation. We often encourage children to “dream big”, and Joseph's big dreams were ultimately realized.
God, too, has a plan for each of our lives as well. He wants us all to be saved from our sins and He wants us all to be His disciples. He wants us to find abundant life in Christ and He wants us to help others find abundant life in Christ. As wonderful as the work that Joseph accomplished was, everyone whom he saved from starvation still died. Our work is greater than that. We can offer people living water, and the knowledge of how to acquire eternal life. Even Joseph's coat of many colors cannot outshine such things. God has great things in store for us.
As wonderful as God's plan for us is, we must also understand that His time frame and ours are not the same. God is running a marathon, not the 100 yead dash! We don't know how many years it was from Joseph's first dreams until the day he became Prime Minister of Egypt, but it wasn't just a day. The saying Rome was not built in a day is true, and it is also usually true for us as God builds in us the ability to serve him and fulfill his task for us. Even Paul, who had had a tremendous biblical education, spent three years in the desert with God teaching him the fuller truths of the Christian life. So, when God gives us a dream, don't be surprised that it may take time for us to realize that dream. AS Paul taught us in Galatians 6:9-10,
So we must not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, we must work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith.
When you aren’t in Kansas anymore, remember that God’s timing is perfect. Live according to his schedule, not our own!
Conclusion:
When the storm of conflict hits our family, and when brotherly love fails, what are we to do?
- Remember that God has a plan for your life and work as if you are working for Him!
- Remember that God is righteous and live as if you are living for him!
- Remember that God is in control and live as if is He is!
- Remember that God’s timing is perfect and live according to his schedule, not our own!
Every blessing,
Dr. Otis Corbitt
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