Subject: The Man God Uses
Text: Genesis
Introduction: “Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the spirit of God is?” The idea for my subject is taken from this phrase, “one such as this is”. I want to talk about the man God uses. Why does God use some people in a greater capacity than others? Why do some people seem to soar and build lasting legacies, while others seem to make little impact on the world? I think every person, and especially Christians should have a desire to be used mightily by God. There is probably not a nobler goal for a Christian, than the desire to be used by God, a Christian who realizes that God created them for a special purpose and will be satisfied with anything less than fulfilling that purpose. Does anyone in this room want to be used by God? Using the story of Joseph, I want to address the subject: The Man God Uses.
Many of us are familiar with the story of Joseph. Remember, Joseph was one of the twelve sons of Jacob, born of his favorite wife, Rachel. Joseph became the favorite son of his father. The father’s favor caused him to be hated and despised by his brothers. As a sign of Jacob’s special favor, he gave Joseph a beautiful coat of many colors. It was the kind of coat worn by a prince or other in the royal family. As a young man, this son of Rachel was full of confidence, self assurance and he dreamed of elevation to a position of greatness. He seemed to know that he was going to rise to the top. Joseph got himself into serious trouble by telling his dreams to his brothers. The tension of this sibling rivalry came to a head, when Jacob sent Joseph to check on his brother’s welfare, who were feeding the flocks in Dothan. When Joseph found them, they were angered at the sight of him. They began to say to one to another, "Here comes that dreamer." Because of their anger and jealousy against Joseph, they took hold of him, stripped him of his coat of many colors that reminded them of the father’s favor and threw him into a pit, saying, “Let us see what will become of his dreams now!” The bible said, they later decided to lift Joseph out of the pit and sell him to a ban of Ishmaelite traders as a slave. They considered Joseph as a dead man. How does a man like Joseph rise up out of pit of life and end up in the palace of triumph?
Maybe some of you can identify with some of the hardships Joseph faced: He was hated by his brothers; betrayed, deserted and sold into slavery by those closest to him. He falsely accused after years of faithful service; exposed to sexual temptation and punished for doing the right thing. He suffered a long unjust imprisonment and was forgotten by those he helped. Through it all, the Bible says, “but God was with him.” Old saints use to sing, “You ought to take the Lord with you everywhere you go…” How did Joseph become a man God could use? How did Joseph rise above it all? I believe Joseph was a man God used because of five basic characteristics, let’s begin our study.
1. Joseph was a man who dared to dream and he dared to do something about his dream-Dreams set the stage for a man’s life. Even though people accuse him of being proud and arrogant, Joseph dared to hold on to his dream. He confessed his dreams, dressed for his dreams and a dared to be different. He stood for right even when it meant standing alone. When his brothers did wrong, he was courageous enough to reported it to Jacob and suffer repercussions of his brothers. A Man God uses is a man who dares to dream and to do something about his dream. There are many dreamers in the world, but few who will rise up and work towards their dreams. Dreams and visions are the blueprints God uses to shape our destiny. God uses dreams to change us from the inside out. Dreams put into words have the power to create images in our hearts. What do you dream about? What do you see? Fannie Cosby once said, “There is something worst than blindness, having eyes and not seeing.” Joseph was a man who dared to dream and he dared to do something about his dream.
2. Joseph was a man who made the best of a bad situation - The quickest way to get on top of
a bad situation is to develop a positive attitude about it. Joseph made the best out of every situation he faced. His positive response transformed each setback into a step forward. "A Setback is a setup for a comeback" He didn’t spent time asking why, or why me? His approach was always, "Well, what shall I do now!" All who that met Joseph were aware of the fact that God was with him. Wherever he went and whatever he did, Joseph was also confident that God was with him. When you face setbacks in life, adopted a Joseph-like attitude by remember that God is also with you. There is no like His presence to shed new light on a dark situation. What matters most in life is not so much the events and circumstances that surround us, but our response to them. A man God uses must dare to dream and to do something about his dream; a man God uses must learn to make the best out of bad situations of life.
3. Joseph was a man who overcame temptation - Joseph was known for personal integrity and spiritual sensitivity, but these qualities did not prevent him from being tempted. Your ability to handle temptation will determine the level of success in God. Every person will be tempted to do wrong, to avenge your self, to cheat, to lie or to take an improper short cut of life. Joseph overcame temptation by doing two things: (1) He knew how to say no. “Just say no!” Do you know how to say no! We have an entire generation that has abandoned many of the absolutes of life. Today, there seems to be no right or wrong, and no black or white answers. Our generation is filled with compromise. The Bible has not compromise its stand. So, we must say “no” to sin. Joseph said , “No.” (2) He knew how to run! When Potiphar’s wife persisted in her sexual advances, Joseph knew how to run. He kept himself from sin by saying no and then he was willing to run away from temptation. If we are going to be used mightily by God, we must keep ourselves unspotted from the world.
James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
A man God uses must dare to dream and to do something about his dream; a man God uses must learn to make the best out of a bad situation, and a man God uses must overcome temptation.
4. Joseph had a great view of Providence – When refer to “Providence”, I mean fate, divine intervention, eternal influences, chance and sometimes a combination of all these things that God uses to guide our lives. Joseph knew that God was up to something in his life! His dream was not unfolding the way he thought. He really did not expect his journey to the palace to take him through a pit, into slavery and then imprisonment, but he knew God was up to something in his life. Remember, after the death of his father, his brothers thought Joseph seek revenge against them and have them put to death. They even forge a letter in their dead father’s name, pleading Joseph to spare them. But Joseph said,
Genesis 50:20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
With God’s help, any situation can be used for good, even when others intend it for evil. Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” A man God uses must dare to dream and to do something about his dream; A man God uses must learn to make the best out of a bad situation, a man God uses must learn to overcome temptation and he must great view of Providence, God is up to something in my life. No, I am not forgotten or abandoned, God is up to something in my life. Every child of God has an assurance that no matter where they are, they are forsaken nor forgotten. God is up to something in your life.
5. Joseph had a great view of the future - The place is not our home, God will visit us and lead us home. Joseph kept his eyes towards the future.
Genesis 50:24-26 "And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence. So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt."
Joseph had a great view of the future. Joseph’s sojourn in Egypt, begin when he was 17 years old, he died 93 years later, but he knew he could depend on the promises of God. God promised that He would come and visit them to carry his people home. Joseph did not want to be left behind. So 337 years later, the whole nation of Israel marching under the leadership of Moses departed from Egypt, and at the front the line, there was a coffin filled with the bones of a man God could use. Joseph saw that day by faith, prepared himself for that day and refused to be left behind. We must keep our eye towards the future. This world is not our home either. We are pilgrims and strangers on an earthly pilgrimage. We are called out to “work while it is day for night is coming when no man can work.” We must work realizing that the Lord has promised to visit us and carry his children home. He is coming again! He is coming soon! I don’t know the day nor the hour, but I don’t want to be left behind!
Joh 14:1-3 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
Those who trust God as Lord and Savior can go back with him. John 3:16,17 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
A man God uses must dare to dream and to do something about his dream; a man God uses must learn to make the best out of a bad situation. Remember, a setback is a setup for a comeback! A man God uses must learn to overcome temptation: Just say no and mean it, and then if necessary run and keep yourself unspotted from the world. A man God uses must have a great view of Providence, God is up to something in my life. No, I am not forgotten or abandoned, God is up to something in my life and finally, a man God uses must have a great view of the future, God will visit us and carry his children home! Dare to be man God uses!
"And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?
