Introduction:
A. The story is told of a newspaper reporter who was interviewing an old rancher and asked him this question: “To what do you attribute your success as a rancher?”
1. With a twinkle in his eye, the old rancher replied, “It’s been about 50 percent weather, 50 percent good luck, and the rest is brains.”
B. To what or to whom should we attribute any success that we experience?
1. We should attribute our success, first and foremost, to the Lord.
2. God is the one who gives us the abilities we have.
3. God is the one who grants us favor and blessing.
4. None of that means that we don’t have to work hard and be consistent, or do any of the other things that lead to success, but we couldn’t do anything without God’s blessing and assistance.
C. So what was it that led to Joseph’s great success? What led to his promotion from the pit to the palace? It was the Lord.
1. Last week we studied Genesis 41:1-43, and saw how that when Joseph, with God’s help, interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams, his life and career came to an amazing turning point.
2. Joseph could never have imagined just how dramatic the turn in his life was going to be.
3. Within a matter of hours, Joseph was taken from a pit in Egypt to the pinnacle of power in that same country.
4. Listen to the way commentator F.B. Meyer described this turn of events: “It was a wonderful ascent, sheer in a single bound from the dungeon to the steps of the throne.
• His father had rebuked him; now Pharaoh, the greatest monarch of his time, welcomes him.
• His brethren despised him; now the proudest priesthood of the world opens its ranks to receive him by marriage into their midst, considering it wiser to conciliate a man who was from that moment to be the greatest force in Egyptian politics and life.
• The hands that were hard with the toils of a slave are adorned with a signet ring.
• The feet are no longer tormented by fetters; a chain of gold is linked around his neck.
• The coat of many colors torn from him by violence and defiled by blood, and the garment left in the hand of the adulteress, are exchanged for vestures of fine linen drawn from the royal wardrobe.
• He was once trampled upon as the offscouring of all things; now all Egypt is commanded to bow before him, as he rides forth in the second chariot, prime minister of Egypt, second only to the king.”
5. I wonder what was going through Joseph’s mind as he lay down to sleep that night.
a. Did he expect to wake up at any moment and realize that it was all just a dream?
b. I can only imagine how he must have praised God that night.
6. Thirteen long years he had cried out for deliverance, and now it had finally come!
7. As he thought back over the 13 years, I’m certain he could see the very hand of God bringing him to and preparing him for this very moment.
D. Let’s spend our time this morning looking at the part of the story of Joseph when he gets to enjoy the fruit of his labor.
1. Let’s be looking for lessons about how to maintain faithfulness in the midst of abundance.
2. Let’s look for lessons about how to rejoice with those who are being blessed.
I. The Story
A. Let’s start reading in Genesis 41:41: So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.” 42 Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on Joseph's finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. 43 He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in-command, and men shouted before him, “Make way!” Thus he put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt.
Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, but without your word no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt.” 45 Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphenath-Paneah and gave him Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, to be his wife. And Joseph went throughout the land of Egypt. (Gen. 41:41-45)
B. Let’s note a couple of important things at this point.
1. First, consider this decision on the part of Pharaoh – it really was quite remarkable for a number of reasons.
a. First of all take into consideration the fact that Joseph was a foreigner.
1. How many kings put foreigners in charge of their country? Not many.
b. Second, take into consideration that Joseph was an ex-con.
1. How many kings put an ex-convict in charge of their country? Even fewer.
c. Third, consider the fact that Pharaoh just met Joseph – he hasn’t known the guy five minutes.
1. How many kings put a stranger in charge of their country?
d. Finally, perhaps the most unusual thing of all is that the Pharaoh actually appointed the person who was most competent for the position!
1. How many kings actually appoint people who are the most competent person for their position?
2. Unfortunately, most appointees get the job because they are a political ally or a supporter or have somehow curried favor.
2. A second important thing we notice is the way the Pharaoh tried to “Egyptianize” Joseph.
a. First of all, Pharaoh dressed Joseph like an Egyptian.
b. Second, he gave him an Egyptian mode of transportation.
c. Third, Pharaoh gave Joseph an Egyptian name.
1. The name he gave him is Zaphenath-paneah (Zaf-fen-ath).
2. The name contains the syllable “nath” which carries an association with Neith who was one of the goddesses of Egypt.
d. Fourth, Pharaoh gave Joseph an Egyptian wife.
1. His wife’s name was Asenath – again notice the syllable, “nath.”
2. Her name meant “belonging to Neith,” and she was the daughter of an Egpytian priest.
e. All this “Egpytianizing” was going to be a challenge for Joseph.
f. We will have more to say about it when we focus on application.
C. Let’s continue the story: Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from Pharaoh's presence and traveled throughout Egypt. 47 During the seven years of abundance the land produced plentifully. 48 Joseph collected all the food produced in those seven years of abundance in Egypt and stored it in the cities. In each city he put the food grown in the fields surrounding it. 49 Joseph stored up huge quantities of grain, like the sand of the sea; it was so much that he stopped keeping records because it was beyond measure.
Before the years of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On. 51 Joseph named his firstborn Manasseh and said, “It is because God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household.” 52 The second son he named Ephraim and said, “It is because God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering.” (Gen. 41:46-52)
D. Let’s note several important things that we learn from these verses.
1. First, we are told Joseph’s age.
a. Calvin, the reformer, suggested two reasons why Moses tells us how old Joseph was.
b. First, Calvin suggested that Moses wanted us to marvel that such a young man would be put in charge of the country.
1. I remember when age 30 seemed pretty old – certainly over the hill.
2. Now age 30 seems so young!
3. God has often used youthful individuals.
a. David was 20 when anointed king, and 30 when he took office.
b. Daniel was only a teenager when the King made him a top man in his court.
c. Josiah was 8 years-old when he began to reign as king.
d. Mary, Jesus’ mother was likely still in her teens when she bore the Christ child.
c. Second, Calvin suggested that Moses told us Joseph’s age so we would know how long he had suffered away from his family as a slave and prisoner.
1. Joseph was 17 years-old when his brothers sold him into slavery.
2. So at age 30, Joseph has gone through 13 years of suffering.
3. That is almost half of his life – that’s a long time.
2. The second thing I want us to notice is the names he gave his sons.
a. The names Joseph gave his sons speak volumes.
b. The names say something of Joseph’s relationship and commitment to God.
1. Even though he was now in charge of Egpyt, he gave his sons Hebrew names.
2. And those Hebrew names are an expression of his trust in the goodness of God.
a. Manasseh sounds like “forget” - “God has made me to forget all my trouble.”
b. Ephraim sounds like “twice fruitful” - “God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”
c. The names also say something about the reality of Joseph’s suffering.
1. While he had been waiting on God and trusting in God, he experienced great pain.
2. Joseph had experienced great trouble and affliction – it was real and it was hard.
3. The other important thing we notice from this section is Joseph’s work ethic.
a. Joseph applied himself the same way, all the time, regardless of the circumstances – that’s what integrity is all about.
b. When Joseph was a slave he applied himself and proved himself to be competent and trustworthy.
c. The case was the same when he was a prisoner – he applied himself and proved to be competent and trustworthy.
d. Now that he was no longer a slave or a prisoner, now that he was the boss, he just keep doing the same thing – he worked hard and he worked faithfully and efficiently – how about that!
e. With God’s help, Joseph foresaw what would happen, and with quiet and brilliant efficiency, stockpiled sufficient food to handle the years of famine that lay ahead.
II. The Application
A. What lessons can we learn from today’s chapter in Joseph’s story?
B. First of all, we can learn that lengthy afflictions need not discourage us.
1. Joseph suffered for a long time – 13 years.
a. It was 13 years of ups and downs, but mostly downs.
b. It was 13 years of one setback after another.
c. It was 13 years before things changed for the better.
2. What if Joseph had given up during that time?
a. What if he had thrown in the towel and walked away from God?
b. He would not have experienced this period of reward and abundance.
3. If you are presently experiencing a time of lengthy affliction, I pray that you won’t give up!
a. No matter how long it takes, be faithful and you will see things change for the better.
b. As I said in an earlier sermon, a better, brighter day is coming.
4. How sad to think that many people have given up just when they were on the verge of blessing.
5. What if Joseph had said, “I have given the Lord 10 years to turn things around, and my life continues to stink. I’m done with the Lord”?
a. If he had given up after 10 years, he would have only been 3 years from vindication.
6. So, with God’s help, let’s not allow lengthy periods of affliction to discourage us.
C. A second lesson we learn is that bad memories need not defeat us.
1. I know that that is easier said than done.
2. Many of you have far worse memories than I.
3. How would your bad memories compare with Joseph’s?
4. Whatever painful memories we have, we have the ability to choose whether or not to allow those past memories to hold us hostage.
5. In addition to God, we may need the help of a friend, or a mate, or a professional counselor to come alongside us to aid in the process of getting rid of the negative influence of painful memories.
6. It looks like Joseph had had God’s help in dealing with his painful memories.
7. Look again at the name Joseph gave his firstborn son – Manasseh – “It is because God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household.”
8. God can help us to some degree have amnesia about our painful past – The Lord can heal those wounds and bring a sense of freedom from their painful effects.
9. So let’s learn this wonderful lesson – we do not need to be defeated by bad memories.
D. A third lesson we learn is that great blessings need not derail us.
1. How wonderful to see that even though Joseph had been elevated to power in a social and political sense, he still acknowledged that God was his God and was faithful to his God.
2. In other words, wealth, power and prestige had not ruined Joseph like it has done to so many others.
3. How sad it is when a man or woman marries into money, or is blessed with a dream job and a corner office, and then they suddenly change.
a. Seemingly over night, their attendance becomes spotty at worship.
b. They step down from their responsibilities at church because they no longer have time.
c. They put aside their church friends for a new set of wealthy, high achieving friends.
4. Thankfully, none of that happened with Joseph.
a. When the flood of material blessings flowed into his life, he kept his bearing straight; he kept his focus on God.
5. I mentioned earlier how that Pharaoh tried to “Egyptianize” Joseph, and make no mistake, the world tries to do with same with us.
a. We are daily bombarded and challenged to think differently than God would have us think.
b. The world wants us to dress and think and act like them.
c. Satan wants to take us away from the Lord and he entices us with all kinds of passions and pleasures.
6. When a person is blessed with vast amounts of power and possessions, it can easily be their spiritual undoing.
1. The test of prosperity can be as daunting as anything we face in this life.
2. Oswald Sanders wrote, “Not every man can carry a full cup. Sudden elevation frequently leads to pride and a fall. The most exacting test of all to survive is prosperity.
7. But how wonderful it is when a person can be blessed abundantly and then become a blessing to others.
1. That’s what God did with Joseph, and what Joseph allowed God to do through him.
2. I’ve known a few people over the years who have been blessed abundantly and then they in turn blessed others and made a difference for Christ.
8. So we learn from Joseph that people who are blessed with abundance can continue to serve the Lord.
E. A final lesson I want us to consider is: Other people’s blessings need not displease us.
1. Romans 12:15 says, “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.”
2. Do you find it easier to mourn with those who mourn, than to rejoice with those who rejoice?
3. I wonder if there weren’t people who didn’t rejoice when Joseph got his promotion?
a. What about the other prisoners in that prison where Joseph had been for more than two years?
b. Did they rejoice with Joseph over his promotion, or did envy, jealousy and frustration set in?
c. Did they say: “What about me? Why didn’t I get out of prison? Why does he get to get out and I’m stuck here? It’s not fair!”
4. I wonder if there weren’t other officials who were not happy about Joseph’s promotion?
a. What about the guy who used to be second in command? – What happened to him?
b. What about the guy who had served in Pharaoh’s court and had been jockeying for that position for many years?
5. How do we really feel when others are promoted or blessed or healed and we are not?
6. May God help us to be thankful and contented right where we are, with who we are, and with what we have.
7. And may God help us to rejoice and be thankful that others are receiving prosperity, blessings and opportunities, even when we are not.
F. Praise God that we can serve Him in whatever circumstance we are in.
1. Whether healthy or sick.
2. Whether wealthy or poor.
3. Whether educated or uneducated.
4. Whether young or old.
5. Whether holding a powerful position, or no position at all.
6. No matter who we are or where we are, we can faithfully serve God and honor Him with our lives.
G. Thank God for Joseph who shows us how to serve God when things are going badly or wonderfully.
1. The only way to do so is to humbly and faithfully walk with God.
2. Let’s end with the Psalm we used as our Scripture Reading.
3. I think it is a good description of what happened with Joseph.
4. “Blessed are all who fear the LORD, who walk in his ways. You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours. Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your sons will be like olive shoots around your table. Thus is the man blessed who fears the LORD.” (Psalm 128:1-4)
5. Let us all fear the Lord and walk in his ways, so that we can enjoy the fruit of our labor, both now and for ever more!
Resources:
Joseph: A man of Integrity and Forgiveness, by Charles Swindoll, Word Publishing, 1998
Pit to Pinnacle – The Keys to Joseph’s Character, Sermon by Brian Priest, July 26, 2009
Ruler in Egypt, Sermon by F.P.C. Jackson, www.fpcjackson.org/resources/sermons/genesis
