K. P. Duty

Text: Genesis 38 - 39

Title: K. P. Duty

Topic: Christian Living

Theme: Living in Sexual Purity

My purpose is to be the Holy Spirit’s second witness calling God’s people in my care to keep themselves pure sexually by the grace of God.

REPENTANCE POINT {paradigm shifts or changes in our thinking}: In a culture that sees sex as a recreational activity like tennis or as a benefit of being good friends, God calls his people to a life of purity. In a society where sex has become both a form of entertainment and a multi-billion dollar business, God calls us to maintain a pure lifestyle.

In response to today’s message, I will…

1. Memorize Genesis 39:7-10

2. Read about Jesus’ crucifixion daily until I can picture it easily

3. Starve the sources of sexual temptation in my life

Response Goal / Invitation: Individuals prompted by the Holy Spirit will commit themselves to Keeping Pure Duty.

PATTERN: INDUCTIVE – Biblical Narratives (Weaving two stories together)

Introduction:

This is the second part of a two-part message entitled, COMPLETE: One Plus Jesus. In Part One, we discovered that since Jesus’ coming God’s family grows not by sexual reproduction but by spiritual regeneration. That means single persons can be just effective in expanding His family as married persons. I also gave five guidelines for singles.

1. Seek God’s plan for your life. Love him with your whole heart, soul, mind and spirit. Seek his will in everything you do every day.

2. Live with quality now. Be intentional about what you do. Don’t wait until something else like marriage comes along. Focus your time and energy on carrying out Jesus’ mission in the world.

3. Cultivate deep caring relationships. We all need people who will encourage and challenge us. Find some caring friends.

4. Be careful about getting married just to be “happy.” No marriage is better than a bad marriage. Be cautious about marrying to fulfill someone’s expectations – even if they are your expectations.

5. Stay morally and sexually pure. That’s the theme for this morning.

Judah Narrative (Genesis 38)

Hint of Trouble: When it started, the old man thought it was a dream come true. He was out of town on business and he saw a woman by the roadside. She appeared to be a prostitute. He thought a little sex would make him feel better and the negotiations went quickly. All she wanted was a small goat, but since he did not have one with him, Judah gave her his seal and his walking stick. The next day, when he sent the goat, she had vanished.

Normal world: Years before, Judah had left his father’s house to make his fortune. Perhaps it was the tears of grief that often flooded Jacob’s eyes. Maybe it was a guilty conscience. Whatever the reason, Judah left home and married. He and his wife had three sons. The oldest son married a woman named Tamar. He died without any children. According to their customs and laws, the next brother married Tamar in order to have a son to carry on his older brother’s name. He died too. Judah’s third son was younger and not ready to marry so he sent Tamar back to her father’s house. He promised to have the third son marry her when he was old enough. It was a lie.

Trouble Arrives: Even though it started like a dream come true, it became the old man’s worst nightmare. A couple of months after his secret fling, word came that Tamar was pregnant. She was not married and so he declared she should die. That’s when a package arrived from Tamar. Inside Judah found three things. There was a note that said, “The owner of these objects is the father of my baby.” Under the note, Judah found his missing seal and staff. He was busted and Tamar gave birth to twin boys.

Joseph Narrative (Genesis 39)

Hint of Trouble: When it started, the young man thought it was his worst nightmare come to life. His older brothers had ganged up on him and sold him to slave traders headed to Egypt. Once they arrived there, a high-ranking government official bought Joseph and put him to work.

Normal world: Joseph had been his father’s favorite son. He was the firstborn of Jacob’s favorite wife. Joseph often dreamed of the day his brothers would bow down to him and he foolishly told them about his dreams. That’s why his brothers had ganged up on him. They almost killed him but Judah had talked them into selling Joseph as a slave.

Trouble Arrives: But life as a slave in Potiphar’s house had not been as bad on young Joseph as he had expected. The Lord blessed everything he did and soon Potiphar promoted him to manager of all he owned. Then suddenly it all went south for him. He was propositioned by a cougar, an older woman. Potiphar’s wife wanted him and wanted him bad. She chased and teased him whenever her husband was gone. Other young men have dreamed of this kind of thing but Joseph said, “How could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” One day she grabbed his robe but he ran leaving it behind. She cried, “Rape.” Potiphar put him in jail with a life sentence. Joseph was framed. His nightmare come to life had just gotten worse – until the day he interpreted a dream for the Pharaoh and became the Prime Minister of Egypt. Even though it started like his worst nightmare come to life and only got worse, it eventually became his dream come true.