Genesis 39:1-23
September 25, 2022

Genesis 39:1-23

Passage: Genesis 39:1-23
Service Type:

Coping with Resistance to God’s Plan for our Lives
Genesis 39:1-23

The tale of Joseph and his coat of many colors is one of the most beloved stories of the Bible. It has been characterized as a novella, a work that is a little longer than a short story but not as long as a novel. Joseph’s tale has all the qualities of a good story: a protagonist, antagonists, tragedy, humor, unexpected turns in the plot, and a happy ending.

Yet the story of Joseph is much more than a very good novella. It is part of God’s word written and as such it is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness so that we may be complete and equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16).

Joseph’s experience is fairly typical of all people who endeavor to follow God’s plan for their lives. Inevitably, we encounter strong resistance from the world around us, but through all our trials and tribulations, we experience God’s steadfast love and favor, and we also witness God’s unfolding plan.

You will recall from Genesis 37 that Joseph was a dreamer. He dreamed that he was binding sheaves in the field with his brothers. In the dream, Joseph’s sheaf of grain stood up and his brother’s sheaves gathered around his and bowed down to it (Gen. 37:6-7). In another dream, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars bowed down to Joseph (Gen. 37:9). Joseph’s father, mother, and brothers rejected his dreams as the arrogance of youth, but their dismissal was far from the end of the matter.

The dreams, combined with Jacob’s favoritism, inculcated a deep hatred of Joseph in his brothers. Their hatred grew into monstrous rage. Joseph’s brothers conspired to murder him. The only things that saved him were the entreaties of his older brother, Reuben, and the greed of his siblings. In the end, the brothers opted to sell Joseph into slavery and turn a profit from their malice. Evil was like a hungry lion circling Joseph, looking for an opportunity to pounce and devour him.

Jesus prayed to his Father for us saying, “I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world” (Jn. 17:14). This was Joseph’s experience, and it is ours too. There is real evil in this world that hates us. We hear about it almost every day. Children are killed by a stray bullet as they sleep in their beds. Adults commit heinous acts of violence against each other in senseless, unprovoked attacks. Politicians embezzle money appropriated for the poor and redistribute it to their wealthy cronies.

Thankfully, we are usually spared from personally experiencing such extreme examples of evil, but we must never forget that the enemy of our souls is always at work attempting to undermine our faith and hope in God. The evil one is forever working, very subtly, to darken our minds and persuade us to exchange the truth about God for a lie so that we will worship idols of our own making (Read Romans 1:18-32.). Indeed, our adversary the devil is like a roaring lion prowling around, looking for an opportunity to devour us (1 Peter 5:8). As we seek to stay true to God’s plan for our lives, we will encounter strong resistance in the form of evil. In this world we will have tribulation, but Jesus has overcome the world. Therefore, we will not fear (Jn. 16:33).

This perennial resistance also comes in the form of temptation. Joseph was purchased from the Ishmaelite slave traders by Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh. In fact, Potiphar was the captain of the guard that protected Pharaoh. The text tells us that Joseph was handsome and good looking. Unfortunately for Joseph, Potiphar’s wife was an adulteress. She pursued Joseph brazenly and relentlessly, but Joseph steadfastly rejected her advances. As the old adage goes, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.” Eventually, the woman accused Joseph of attempted rape, and Potiphar sent Joseph to prison. It is worth noting that Potiphar did not execute Joseph on the spot. He probably knew of his wife’s proclivities and gave Joseph the benefit of the doubt. Potiphar appears to have been a righteous man.

The Apostle Paul advised Timothy to “flee youthful lusts” (2 Tim. 2:22). Now most of us are older people, but the temptation to sin, to disobey God’s revealed will, is still very much with us. The lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes may not be as strong in us as they once were, but the pride of life is still very much with us (see 1 Jn. 2:16).

One of the great temptations of our time is to hate our neighbor. Such animosity is rooted in pride: the belief that we are superior to others, that we see more clearly, that we know the truth more perfectly. We see this kind of hatred at work in our body politic. Our President almost daily decries the Ultra-Maga Republicans as a threat to our democracy. Republicans denounce the President and his party as dangerous Socialists. The mutual animus of our leaders, transmitted to us through the media, is feeding hatred in our hearts. Last week, in our study of the Chosen, we focused on James and John. Jesus nicknamed them the “Sons of Thunder” because they wanted Jesus to call down fire from heaven on the hated Samaritans. This is the same kind of hatred we saw in Joseph’s brothers, that we see in the war between Russia and Ukraine, and that we see in our own society.

Jesus taught us to pray, “Lead us not into temptation.” A better rendering of Jesus’ words is “Do not allow us to fall into temptation.” God, after all, tempts no one with evil. We need to resist the hateful, prideful, murderous sprit of our age. If we yield to it, hatred will lead us to very dark and terrible places as a society. It will keep us from following God’s good plan for our lives as individuals, as households, as churches, and as a society. We need to pray, “Do not allow us to fall into the temptation to hate our neighbor.”

There is one other form of resistance to God’s purposes that the story of Joseph warns us of. Following the debacle with Potiphar’s wife, Joseph was jailed in Pharaoh’s prison for political dissidents. The chief cupbearer and the chief baker were in custody with Joseph in the prison. We do not know exactly why these two were sent to the jail, but given their positions, it is reasonable to surmise that Pharaoh suspected them of trying to poison him. The cupbearer and the baker both had dreams while they were incarcerated. Joseph interpreted the dreams for them. He foretold that the cupbearer would be exonerated and restored to his position, but the baker would be executed.

Joseph made this plea to the cupbearer. “Remember me when it is well with you; please do me the kindness to make mention of me to Pharaoh, and so get me out of this place” (Gen. 40:14). Verse 23 of the same chapter records, “Yet the cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.” Joseph languished in prison for another two years. Another form of resistance we may encounter as we seek to follow God’s plan for our lives is a sense of being forgotten or abandoned by God and by our fellow man.

We strive to lead a blameless, upright life. We do our best to turn away from evil and do good. We endeavor to conform our lives to God's revealed will in holy scripture. We seek to love God with our whole heart and to love our neighbor as self, but things still go awry. Sometimes it is because of our own folly, but in other instances, problems come through no fault of our own. When things fall apart in our personal lives, when we lose a loved one to death or become estranged from those dear to us, when our church struggles to survive, we can feel forgotten and abandoned. The danger is to grow bitter or discouraged, to become weary of well-doing, feeling that our efforts do not amount to much in the end.

Ancient Israel felt this way at times. The psalmist gives voice to these feelings. “All in vain I have kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence” (Ps. 73:13). Or again, “All this has come upon us, yet we have not forgotten you, or been false to your covenant. Our hearts have not turned back, nor have our steps departed from your way” (Ps. 44:17-18).

I often think of these texts when I consider the plight of mainline Protestantism in our time. Our nation is moving in a secular direction. This is particularly true for younger people. Christianity is moving in the direction of the mega-church and contemporary worship. We are being left behind, and it is discouraging. It is natural to feel this way, but we must not forget the most central theme of Joseph’s story. It is an antidote to discouragement.

God had a plan that was unfolding despite the malice of Joseph’s brothers, despite the injustice of Joseph’s incarceration, despite being forgotten by the cupbearer. God was working his purpose out as year turned into year. What was true of Joseph is also true for us. Although Joseph could not follow God’s unfolding plan, even as we cannot, God’s purpose and God’s favor for Joseph remained a constant throughout all his trials and tribulations. In each instance of woe, the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love; he gave him favor in the sight of Potiphar and the chief jailer.

Joseph himself eventually realized this at the end of the story. He said to his brothers, “Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good to preserve many people alive” (Gen. 50:20). The Apostle Paul gave voice to the same truth in Romans 8:28. “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” We have the even greater steadfast love and favor of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Christ died for us; Christ rose for us; Christ will come again for us. Come what may, we have an anchor for our souls. When we are battered by malice, temptation, or discouragement, we can stand on Christ the solid rock.

Our lives are very much like Joseph’s life. Our woes are generally not as dire as Joseph’s, but we too know the realities of human and spiritual malice, of the temptation to hate our neighbor, and of feeling forgotten and abandoned. Yet we can be sure of God’s plan to preserve our lives and to show us his steadfast love and favor to the end.

Jesus warned us saying, “In the world you shall have tribulation,” but he added, “Be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (Jn. 16:33). So let us commit our way to the LORD. He will take care of us in this life and in the life to come. All glory be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Alleluia! Amen.