FLEE ALL-TOO-CONVENIENT EVIL
Scripture Text: Genesis 39:1–23
Preaching theme: Those who are more than survivors
You can be more than a survivor!
Although you live on an island, you are not survivors in danger of being voted off—you are more than survivors!
After all, Jesus lost his life so you might do more than survive. He died for you so that you might learn to thrive spiritually.
I am come that they might have life and have it more abundantly. John 10:10
Last Sunday, we looked at Moses.
Today we look at Joseph.
Whoever would say that sexual temptation is more prevalent today than in Old Testament times hasn’t spent much time in the Scriptures. Between the covers of our Bibles are numerous accounts of bedroom scenes and moral dilemmas of the kind we have read about this morning.
Perhaps what is more prevalent today is the convenience of sexual allurement.
In our culture, moral compromise is but a click away.
If statistics are true, more than a few men in this congregation are trapped by an addiction to pornography on the Internet.
The embarrassment of having to carry a Penthouse or Playboy from the newsstand to the checkout counter (which has hindered many a young man from giving in to this desire) is no longer a deterrent. The Web offers embarrassment-free valet service, although it doesn’t advertise how entrapping the invisible strands of this particular web can be.
But it’s not just the Internet. And it’s not just men.
Pornography undermines the spiritual health of men and women alike.
You who travel as part of your job know that you can watch sexually explicit programs and movies in your hotel room without anybody ever knowing.
No longer is it necessary to risk the embarrassment of going to an adult bookstore to buy or rent material to fuel lustful passions. Just order premium channels as part of your cable system. Or call the 900 phone number that flashes across your TV screen in the early morning hours.
The “Mrs. Potiphars” in our lives are not always as obvious as what I’ve just described.
Billboards on the interstate appeal to our sexual instincts while attempting to sell us perfume, soft drinks, or new cars.
Music on our favorite radio stations includes seductive lyrics that subconsciously lower our standards and increase our appetite for physical gratification.
Sitcoms on network television consistently rely on sexual situations for storylines.
Back to the story...
Joseph was trapped. Most likely he was tempted, too. It’s quite possible that Potiphar’s wife was very attractive.
But Joseph, Jacob’s son (his second to youngest son) had been trapped before. Remember?
Before going to work for Potiphar in Egypt, he’d been ditched by his jealous brothers. Left in an abandoned well and then sold into slavery to a passing caravan.
He’d experienced God’s faithfulness that first time, so when painted into a corner by this painted woman with mischief on her mind, he had reason to expect God to be faithful once again.
And God was. If you look at this passage of Scripture on your own, beginning with verse 1, you will notice over and over again this phrase, “and the Lord was with Joseph.”
It’s a good news/bad news thing.
The bad news is this: Temptations are sure to come.
We are surrounded by all-too-convenient evil. That’s a given for all those living on a fallen planet.
Someone once said, “I wouldn’t be tempted if temptation wasn’t so tempting.”
Sam Levenson said, “Lead us not into temptation. Just tell us where it is; we’ll find it.”
Temptation comes... to everyone...in various forms.
The good news is that when things are moving fast and furious and you’re speeding down the highway of personal destruction and career-ending compromise, God promises an exit ramp.
“No temptation has seized you except what is common to man, but God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it” (1 Cor. 10:12–13).
Joseph recognized the escape route God had provided for him to flee temptation. We can decipher his flight plan by looking briefly at the passage.
See Yourself.
Take an honest look at yourself and make an honest evaluation.
YOU ARE A SINNER! You are not a sinner because you sin.
You sin because you are a sinner.
((You are not a basketball player because you dribble, you dribble because you are a basketball player))
((You are not sick because you sneeze, you sneeze because you are sick))
S.E.E. the enemy
This past weekend I completed... successfully, I might add, a Motorcycle Safety Course.
I am now a bona fide motorcycle rider.
In the course we learned that one of the most important things a rider can do to reduce risks of an accident is something called S.E.E. an acronym for Search... Evaluate and Execute.
A good rider will SEARCH or aggressively scan the environment in front, back and to both sides... for a distance of 12 seconds ahead. He is looking to identify any possible safety hazards... like pedestrians, traffic, roadway hazards, debris, etc.
Next the rider should EVALUATE... that means imagining possible things that could go wrong... like the pedestrian walking into the road, or the car ahead stopping quickly... or a car running a stop sign.
Finally, the good rider will EXECUTE.
Here the rider adjusts speed and position to best respond to whatever happens.
Failure to do any one of these steps increases the likelihood of an accident.
A successful Christian should employ the SEE method of dealing with temptation.
SEARCH
Paul said, “Be sober, be vigilant...”
This is language that conjures up the vision of a soldier on guard.
That means we should be on our toes watching for the enemy to attack.
We absolutely know, without any doubt that our enemy, Satan, will attack us.
Sometimes we even know when and where He will attack, and still he is successful.
You have to learn to be constantly scanning your life, your activities, your companions to be on the lookout for the attack.
Secondly: EVALUATE
Come up with a game plan. OK, If Satan attacks here, I will do this. If he zigs this way, I will zag that way.
You already know with about 85% accuracy where, when and how Satan will attack. He is not real creative. He uses the same temptations over and over.
He doesn’t have to change... you haven’t stopped him yet.
Finally, EXECUTE
Position your mind, your eyes, your time in a way that once the enemy is spotted... you can take the evasive action you have already planned on.
Why don’t most Christians overcome the enemy?
They don’t S.E.E. the enemy
To be more than a survivor in this area we “must have a predetermined plan fixed in [our minds] so [we] can withstand the sneak attacks of the enemy” (Farrar, Point Man, 94).
The reason Joseph was able withstand is that he had already worked out a battle plan, at least in general terms (2–6, 8–10).
Recognize the hand of God in your life.
He knew his achievements were not the result of his own ingenuity or networking.
The Lord’s fingerprints were only too evident.
If he had somehow seen his prosperity tied to pleasing people and making pragmatic choices, he might have seen caving in to the woman’s advances as politically expedient.
But, Joseph saw himself as simply a steward of God-ordained opportunities.
How could he possibly sin against God by sleeping with this woman?
Such a transgression would not only fly in the face of all God’s blessings, it would be the ultimate expression of ingratitude.
Run for your life.
No need to try and retrieve his clothes, just get out of there as fast as he could.
When you’re blindsided by an attractive yet self-destructive opportunity, do the best Michael Johnson impersonation you can.
Don’t stop and evaluate your options. Run!
And it’s a solution to temptation that is as appropriate in the first-century Roman Empire as in Pharoah’s Egypt.
Nearly 1,500 years after Joseph taxied down the tarmac of Potiphar’s balcony, Paul files a similar flight plan for his young disciple Timothy, when he calls him to “flee youthful lusts.”
I like the way it is worded in the journal for early elementary children. It says simply, “stay away from bad things.”
“Joseph knew what all-too-convenient-evil was. Potiphar’s wife had sexual designs on him, and her intentions were quite clear. All-too-convenient evil is prevalent in our culture as well.
Unless we agree to flee, we probably won’t.
Those who would thrive spiritually plan ahead.
“Lord Jesus, I live in a world with all sorts of temptation. The truth is, I’m not always sure I can survive—let alone thrive—in these situations. You taught us to pray, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” Help me, like Joseph, to flee all-too-convenient evil. Amen.”
Conclusion
Maybe you’re sitting here this morning, thinking, Pastor, I’ve already blown it. I haven’t been living in God’s presence. I’ve been hurting the One who died for me. Don’t despair. Leave your coat where it is and run from evil. Leave your coat where it is. Do a 180 turn-around and run to him. He will welcome you with those wounded and outstretched hands.
Here are some insightful words for all of us from Every Man’s Battle: “We must choose to be strong and courageous to walk into purity. In the millisecond it takes to make that choice, the Holy Spirit will start guiding you and walking through the struggle with you” (91).
Even if you struggled this past week, know that the Holy Spirit walks through that struggle with you every time.
You’re not alone; others battle the same thing, and Jesus Christ can be relied upon to not let the temperature rise higher than you can tolerate and He will show you how to flee.
