Scripture: Genesis 39:6-23, False Accusations
INTRODUCTION
Over the past two weeks we’ve seen how God’s hand had been upon Joseph, through his life. Although betrayed by his brothers and sold into slavery, God had something special in mind for this man. Then we discovered that although he was a slave in Potiphar’s house, God blessed him with huge success. Everything that he put his hand to, he prospered.
But in the midst of that success, we see today that his character was tested. Last week, we compared Joseph with his older brother Judah. We saw how the latter married a Canaanite woman and then committed immorality with his daughter-in-law. In our passage today, Joseph is faced with the same temptations, yet responds in a dramatically different sort of way. We see today that Joseph was tempted in ways that are common for adults and teenagers today. But how can we learn from his decisions? What can we get in our help toward any temptation? How do we tell ourselves no, when our desires say yes? We first see that…
I. JOSEPH SAW HIS BEHAVIOR AS IF GOD WERE WATCHING.
Genesis 39:6 Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. We are not told precisely what Joseph looked like; just that he was handsome in form and appearance. We can estimate thought that he was probably around 6’0 tall, maybe 30 or so pounds overweight. Probably a receding hairline; most likely a goatee to polish his appearance. He may have had just a bit of an accent to add to his charisma. That’s what I picture.
For as pristine as Joseph appeared, he was not immune to temptation. Notice verse 7: And it came about after these events that his master's wife looked with desire at Joseph, and she said, "Lie with me." 8 But he refused and said to his master's wife, "Behold, with me here, my master does not concern himself with anything in the house, and he has put all that he owns in my charge. 9 "There is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil, and sin against God?" No one can say that they have never been faced with sexual temptation, and yet it is just one sort of temptation. How do we deal with temptation? Joseph could have said Oh, no one’s looking. Who cares? God will forgive me. Besides, Potiphar is a negligent husband. Serves him right! The temptation is too great. Who wouldn’t find Mrs. Potiphar attractive!? I’ve got a deficiency. I’ve been abused. I’m predisposed to this type of behavior. Yet the Scripture is quite plain of what our reaction should be. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 6:18 Flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body. That’s interesting. Immorality is a form of self-abuse. Who would’ve thought?
You see a unique way of thinking in Joseph’s mind. In verse nine, Joseph notes the trust that Potiphar placed in him: My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. Sleeping with Mrs. Potiphar would have been transgressing the trust that existed between Joseph and his Egyptian master. Joseph also saw this sin as an offense against God. Verse nine continues: How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" We need to see our sin as transgressions against God’s character. They are not just moral glitches; a letting down of our guard. They are affronts to God’s character.
Lastly, there is the self-offense that takes place when we succumb to sexual temptation. This is what Paul reveals in 1 Corinthians 6:18: Flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body. I dare say if we methodically tested the ramifications of our actions, we just might rethink our decisions. Whatever kind of appetite that we might have, and to whatever degree, through Christ, we can have redemption and self control. Theologian J.I. Packer states: We are all sexually tempted, one way or another, yet we may all tread the path of chastity through the Spirit’s enablement, and thereby please God. And if we see our actions as a form of worship toward God, it just might serve as a deterrent to sin. Paul’s instructs us to do what Joseph did. Sex is a beautiful gift from God, but it is not meant to be used and exploited. It is a sacred blessing between a husband and his wife. Hebrews 13:4 Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral.
And yet we live in a world that treats sex much like a handshake: often prematurely, among strangers, with as little restraint as possible. We have normalized promiscuity. Public Health Reports just issued a study done by the Guttmacher Institute, a group that studies sexual and reproductive issues. The study, which examined sexual behavior before marriage has changed over time, based on interviews conducted with more than 38,000 people, most of them women, indicated that most people had had sex before marriage. But just because everyone may seem to be doing it, does not make it advisable or certainly not acceptable to God. Joseph replied to Potiphar’s wife: How then could I do this great evil, and sin against God? Oh, that we would have more people respond to their temptations in that way! I would venture to say that we would have more happy homes, less disease, more productivity, less jealousy, more self-esteem, less depression. John Sailhamer writes, Joseph is a striking example of one who always responds in total trust and obedience to the will of God.
- ALTHOUGH JOSEPH WAS WRONGFULLY ACCUSED, GOD BLESSED HIM, NONETHELESS.
Genesis 39:17 Then she spoke to him with these words, "The Hebrew slave, whom you brought to us, came in to me to make sport of me; 18 and it happened as I raised my voice and screamed, that he left his garment beside me and fled outside." 19 Now it came about when his master heard the words of his wife, which she spoke to him, saying, "This is what your slave did to me," that his anger burned. We may understand this portion of the passage as that Mrs. Potiphar plays the race card. She essentially says that these Hebrews are taking advantage of us Egyptians! Potiphar chooses to believe his wife. After all, blood is thicker than water.
So he takes his only trusted servant Joseph and throws him in jail. Verse 20: So Joseph's master took him and put him into the jail, the place where the king's prisoners were confined; and he was there in the jail. 21 But the LORD was with Joseph and extended kindness to him, and gave him favor in the sight of the chief jailer. 22 And the chief jailer committed to Joseph's charge all the prisoners who were in the jail; so that whatever was done there, he was responsible for it. 23 The chief jailer did not supervise anything under Joseph's charge because the LORD was with him; and whatever he did, the LORD made to prosper. What we can learn from this chain of events is that it makes no difference what happens to you; rather it’s what you’ll do with it. Psalm 105:18 is a commentary on Joseph’s life in slavery or in prison. It states: He sent a man before them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave. They afflicted his feet with fetters; He himself was laid in irons, until the time that his word came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him. From Joseph’s perspective, it probably could get no worse. From God’s perspective, it was heading somewhere. Joseph was right where he needed to be. This causes us to yet again look at the adversity in our lives from a different angle. Not to dwell on the immediate pain; but see it in the scope of eternity. What am I to learn in this instance? Maybe it is just to lean upon God. In response to our country’s dilemma, Father Jonathan Morris recently observed: Tough times have always forged great Americans. Why not now?
CONCLUSION
What is your purpose? Paul tells us that in the midst of so much immorality, Christians are to glorify God with their bodies. The Westminster Shorter Catechism teaches that man’s chief end and purpose is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. Is this your purpose? Is this your primary calling?
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