As I read about Joseph in Genesis 39, I can’t help but think about the powerful witness he had from his great grandfather Abraham, his grandfather Isaac and his father Jacob, the Patriarchs of the faith in God. They would have shared their stories of their personal encounters with the Lord. We know from Genesis 37:5-11 that Joseph had powerful dreams that he shared with his brothers and his father and that those dreams contributed to the animosity and jealousy his brothers had toward him and that his father kept in his mind pondering. Joseph knew of God from them. In this Chapter we find Joseph experiencing God’s working in him.

Joseph was sold to Potiphar, an Egyptian and captain of the guard of Pharaoh. The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned. v. 2-4. Joseph was faithful to God. He was not puffed up with arrogance. He was still a slave however his position in Potiphar’s household changed for the good. He was learning to walk faithfully with God and God blessed not only Joseph but Potiphar’s household.

What a contrast we find in Potiphar’s wife. We don’t even know her name but we know where her heart was and it was not with God. Joseph was handsome and she kept insisting he come to bed with her. Joseph kept refusing her and how careful he had to be because he was still a slave in her home…but he also knew he served God. Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires. Romans 8:5. Potiphar’s wife had her whole mind set on the flesh and her desire for Joseph. But those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. Romans 8:5-6. And the result for her? The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to Gods law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. Romans 8:7-8. She was hostile to God and also to Joseph since he kept refusing to give in to her desire for him. Joseph had to physically run from her to get away from her. His cloak was left behind in her hand and she used that to lie against Joseph and her husband believed her and had Joseph thrown into prison. How empty her life must have been.

But while Joseph was there in prison, the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. v. 20-21. We can read these accounts and move on or we can think about what it must have been like for each of these people. God was with Joseph and by extension those in whose authority he was held. Potiphar’s wife was hostile to God’s way and by extension to Joseph and I would imagine other slaves in her household. That’s not the end of her story. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 2 Corinthians 4:4.

As we heard in the sermon this Sunday, Satan is the god of this world and all the sin and evil we see, experience, have read about is from his influence and hate toward God. As our pastor told us, Satan is in control but God is Sovereign. God’s purpose will stand. Jesus said “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven…Luke 10:18. He witnessed that just as He witnesses our lives. Hebrews 12:29 tells us for our God is a consuming fire. His love will burn away all the sin and evil and leave His love and us cleansed and restored. But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. Hebrews 12:22-24.

We have come to God. Joseph was led powerfully by God working in him to accomplish His purposes and he was blessed in that walk. His life was big because he had a huge purpose but the work was God’s. Our lives may seem small but they are a gift from God who gives life to each of us. Grow close to God in your walk with Him and let His peace fill you as He reassures you of His love for you and for each one of us. Trust Him. He is Sovereign. His purpose will stand for each of us and His love for us will not be undone by our actions…rather we will be cleansed, restored, renewed. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16. Believe Him.