JOSEPH: A MODEL FOR THE CHRISTIAN LIFE
TEXTS: 1 Cor. 10:11 - Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Rom. 15:4 - For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
INTRODUCTION:
The Old Testament Scriptures are filled with many clear portraits and types of Jesus. Some of them are:
1. Noah’s Ark – Gen. 6-9.
Jesus is the ark of safety into which sinners can run, to escape the waters of sin and sinful living that seek to drown men and women boys and girls, and drag them down to hell. When we are safely in Him, the true Ark, the waters of sin can never touch us.
2. The Manna – Ex. 16
In John, the 6th chapter Jesus explained to the people and to us that He is the TRUE manna that one can eat and NEVER die. He said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. I AM the bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness and are dead. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. I AM the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world” (John 6:47-51).
3. The High Priest; the Tabernacle
Paul the Apostle wrote in the Book of Hebrews, comparing between the Levitical Priesthood and Christ, the eternal High Priest: “But He, (Jesus) because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood…Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a Minister of the sanctuary and the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man” (Heb. 7:24; 8:1, 2). “But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is not of this creation” (Heb. 9:22).
And many, many others could be mentioned, such as the Jewish offerings as types of Christ’s ultimate offering, Aaron’s rod that budded, representing the resurrected Christ, and the fiery serpent that Jehovah instructed Moses to make and put it on a pole, so that everyone who had been bitten by the snakes could look upon and live, that Jesus said portrayed His crucifixion, in John the 3rd chapter.
In fact, if one looks hard enough, Jesus Christ can be found on every page of the Old Testament. In his “The Chemistry of the Blood,” M.R. DeHann said that a scarlet thread, standing for the blood, runs through the entire Bible, and Christ is looking out at us from every page, if we look by faith. Jesus Himself said that that Old Testament is a Book about Him. He said, “You search the scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me” (John 5:39).
Of all the types of Christ found in the Old Testament, however, one seems to stand out above, all the others. It is Joseph, the son of Jacob. When one studies this extraordinary man’s life, many parallels with Jesus begin to appear. Such as:
1. Both were beloved of their Fathers – Gen. 37:3; Matt. 3:17; 17:5
2. Joseph was a shepherd. Christ is the Great Shepherd.
3. Both were hated by their brethren – Gen. 37:4, 8, 11; John 15:25
4. Both were rejected and conspired against – Gen. 37:18-20; Matt. 27:28-36; John 11:53
5. Both were mistreated and delivered up to die – Gen. 37:23-25; Matt. 27:28-36
6. Both were delivered from the pit of their death – Gen. 37:28; Matt. 28:1-6
7. Both were servants – Gen. 39:1-6; Phil. 2:5-7
8. Both were exalted by God – Gen. 41:14; Acts 5:30-31
9. M.R. DeHann writes: “Jesus typified by Joseph was the Father’s well-beloved Son. In the fullness of time. He sent Him into the field of the world to seek His brethren., He found the nation of Israel in the land of Dothan, the land of the law. But they rejected Him, and sold Him for thirty pieces of silver into the hands of the Gentiles.”
There are many more parallels that could be mentioned, but these are sufficient to demonstrate to us that the life of Joseph is a very good picture of the Lord Jesus Christ.
But I’m going to take a little different tack today. Rather than look at Joseph as a type of Christ, I want to look at what happened to Joseph as a type of the journey that Christians take in our pilgrimage from death and sin, to grace and glory, and ultimately to heaven.
The types of the Christian’s journey in the life of Joseph
I. FROM A PIT
A. Joseph’s brothers cast him in a pit because they were jealous of him and of their father’s affection for him, and the fact that he had given Joseph a special and beautiful coat of many colors. His brothers were evil and sinful in doing this.
B. Joseph went to Shechem where his brothers had last been heard of, but didn’t find them. Shechem means fellowship, and the brothers had moved to Dothan which means law. Here Joseph found them in the land of the law. But when they saw him coming, we read that “…they were filled with hatred...”
C. But what a wicked bunch of men these brothers were!
They all conspired and came up with the plan to cast Joseph into a pit – empty, with no water. Just as that pit was empty, so too, is a life lived outside of Christ empty of true life. And the pit had not water. The water that we drink from the world’s trough will never satisfy our thirst for meaning in this life.
D. Isn’t it interesting that it was through Judah’s Plan that Joseph was delivered from the pit? Jesus is of the tribe of Judah. Judah is a type of our deliverance by Jesus, who is “the Lion of the tribe of Judah,” from the pit of sin.
E. Reuben had to go elsewhere, and while he is gone some Midianite merchants pass by. They’re heading toward Egypt to sell their wares. Judah convinces the other brothers that they should sell Joseph and not kill him. After all, he is their brother, he says. The rest of the brothers like this idea and that is just what they do.
F. To me, the pit represents the sin – the deep, dark hole of sin that everyone born of woman is born into. Sin is not merely what we do, or what we desire, but it is what we ARE. Paul wrote to the Ephesians that, “we were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind” (Eph. 2: 3).
1. Romans 3: 10 says, “As it is written, there is none righteous, no not one.”
2. The Bible only deals with two theological concerns: Man’s sin, and Man’s salvation. Man finds himself in sin, and suffers its effects, and God by His grace offers salvation from that sin. This is the essence of the whole of the Bible’s teaching.
3. So, just as Joseph was in the pit of sin, so too, are we all born as sinners, needing deliverance. Romans 3: 23 says, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God,” and we can’t get out of that pit by ourselves.
II. TO POTIPHAR’S HOUSE
A. As I said, Joseph’s deliverance from the pit through the intervention of Judah, is a type of our deliverance from sin. But after Joseph was delivered from sin, as a type and shadow of our deliverance from sin, he next went to Potiphar’s House
B. Joseph was set up. He had the honor of ruling over all that Potiphar had – all the lands, and buildings and crops and money, but Joseph may have been purchased by Potiphar, but Joseph belonged to God!
C. When we are delivered from sin by the grace of God, just like Joseph, we are “set up” for life. We have it made. We are children of the King; heirs and joint heirs with Jesus Christ, with all the promises of God ready for us to take hold of.
D. But, to me, Potiphar’s House represents the Christian’s life after salvation, as we struggle with the flesh and the temptations of the world, and all it allures and charms.
E. I have a song called “The Land of the Living.” One verse says, “We struggle and fight against evil. This world is still fallen in sin. The devel torments the believer, though he knows that he cannot win.”
F. We’re told that in Potiphar’s house, Joseph was “a prosperous man.” We’re told that “the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand.” But there, amid plenty and blessing, Joseph had a mighty struggle with the desires of the flesh.
G. I found an illustration from pastor Alan Carr that was helpful to me. He said, “Despite Joseph’s walk with the Lord and holy lifestyle, temptation still stalked him. These verses have much to teach us about how temptation can come to us as well.”
H. He goes on to say that sin was subtle - Potiphar’s wife began her temptation of Joseph by first “casting her eyes” upon him. We’re told that Joseph was a handsome young man. (Gen. 39:6). This proved to be his Achilles Heel. A teenage boy might have been flattered to know that he had caught the eye of a sophisticated, beautiful Egyptian woman.
I. Temptation is almost always subtle in the beginning, but if it is not stopped at that point, it will quickly escalate into outright sin! When temptation comes into the life of a Christian – yours or mine, it will seldom appear as a full-blown invitation to sin. Most of us would quickly see through that and avoid it altogether.
J. The Tempter, the devel, is more subtle than that! He will attack us is small ways, that on the surface, might not appear evil. We’re told that he can “transform himself into an angel of light” (II Cor. 11:14). Here, he worked through a sinner woman, who had no morals, and saw nothing wrong with committing adultery against her husband with Joseph.
III. TO A PRISON
A. Potiphar’s wife caught Joseph when there was no physical reason why they should not and could not commit adultery. The only thing that stopped them was Joseph’s integrity. He stood his ground, determined to do what was right regardless of the cost, and it cost him his freedom.
B. We need to remember that our enemy, the devel, is a master at setting things up. He will put us in just the right places at just the wrong times, and in the wrong places at just the right time.
1. He will make sin look so innocent and easy. He will make it seem that we are fool to refuse him.
2. We need to be reminded that the opportunities he gives us to sin will lead to disappoint, disillusionment, discouragement and possibly death.
3. To me, Joseph’s re-imprisonment is representative of the devel’s attempt to keep our testimony locked up and imprisoned, so that we can’t share with the world, the good things God has done for us.
C. Saten never gives up, so even after Joseph resisted the charms of Potiphar’s wife, and would not lay with her in her bed of sin, he learned the truth of that saying, that “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned”.
1. Mrs. Potiphar had been scorned and she set her trap. When Joseph ran out to get away from her, she probably rumpled her hair, smudged her makeup and tore her clothing. She started to scream and cry. The other servants came running to see what was going on. She told them Joseph tried to rape her.
2. Of course, Potiphar was honor bound to believe his wife over a servant, so off Joseph went to prison
D. There Joseph is back in the pit once again. This time he is not in a pit of earth, he is in an earthly prison. Surely, he felt like his star was on the rise, now, it looked like those dreams would never be fulfilled. Many people would have given up and quit had they found themselves in the same situation. But not Joseph!
E. He just did in the prison what he had done at Potiphar’s house, and what he had done at his father Jacob’s house. He remained faithful to the Lord and His word despite everything life threw at him.
F. He was so faithful to the Lord, that eventually, Joseph ended up running the prison. The jailer trusted Joseph to do the right thing and he turned the day to day operation of the place over to him.
G. How was this possible? Verse 21 of chapter 39 in Genesis says, “The Lord was with Joseph.” That verse also says that God “shewed him mercy”. Verse 23 tells us again that “the Lord was with him”. It also says, “and that which he did, the Lord made it to prosper”.
H. No matter how hard the devel works against us, we must remember, that God is for us! The battle is not ours, it is the Lord’s. He may try to imprison Christians, but if we, the children of God, remain faithful to our heavenly Father, He will prosper us, just as he did Joseph. Just as Joseph gained favor with his jailor, so too, will God’s favor find us. He will not forget us.
I. In fact, God is the one who allows saten to tempt and try us and fight against us, and try to imprison us, in order to bottle up our testimony, and douse our light. But our Master says, we are to “let our light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify the Father which is in heaven” (Matt. 5:16).
J. Here is a powerful truth: There will be times in our Christian life when the bottom will fall out. This is the clear teaching of the Word of God. Jesus said, “…In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). We will be tempted to just give up and quit on God. The flesh will say, “What’s the use? I’ve been faithful and still trouble comes. I might as well give up.” saten will tell you that you should just quit on God. People will tell you that serving the Lord has gotten you nowhere, but in trouble. They will do their best to get you to drop out of this thing. But the world, our own flesh and the devel are liars!
K. God knows what He is doing and He is working out a perfect, eternal plan, causing ALL THINGS to work out for our good. (Rom. 8:28), and he will bring us out of the darkness into the light, just as he eventually did for Joseph.
IV. TO A PALACE
A. Joseph had no Bible. Moses had not yet written the first five books of the Bible, which tell us of the life of Joseph. He did have oral history passed on to him from his father Jacob, who had it from his father Isaac, who had it from Abraham, the original patriarch.
B. But Joseph also had a word from God. God had spoken to him in dreams and had also given him the ability to interpret dreams. He used the word God had given him as an anchor for his soul in the sea of sin.
C. And through the ability to interpret dreams that God had given to his cell mates, and to the Pharaoh of Egypt, he was taken from the prison to the palace.
D. Friends, brothers and sisters, we have something much better than what Joseph had, we have THE FINAL WORD. THE HOLY BIBLE! GOD’S WORD WRITTEN, and WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS IS WHAT GOD SAYS!
E. We have so much more then Joseph had. Peter said in his epistle, we have, “…exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (II Pet. 1:4).
F. To me, the palace is representative of our victory over the flesh and the devel by faithfully proclaiming and standing on the word that God has given to us.
Closing:
When Joseph stood on the word God had given him, God made him a prince, second only to the Pharaoh in power and prestige. God is working out His plan for our life too, just as he did Joseph’s. Joseph was made a prince, but all Christians are already princes and princesses. As Peter said, we are a “…chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people…” (I Pet. 2:9). God allowed an evil deed done by the brothers, so that He could work it as a good thing for Joseph and many others. God blessed Joseph and used him in prison because Joseph remained faithful. If we will stand by the Lord and be the people he saved us to be, He will use us as well. People in the valley of depression can be used of the Lord. People in the grip of a terminal illness can be used of the Lord. People who don’t have a dime to their name can still be used by God. If we will be faithful where He puts you, He will use us there for His glory!
The greatest thing that can ever be said about us, as far as our walk with the Lord is concerned, is that we are faithful. Let’s be faithful to our family. Faithful to our wives and husbands; faithful to our calling, where the Lord has put us. Let’s be faithful to our Lord Who has never been unfaithful to us!
Let’s just keep living for Jesus. Let’s keep praying when the answers don’t come when we’d like them to. Let’s keep going to church even if results are meager. Let’s keep praising Him even if we must do it through our tears. If we will stay faithful in the prisons of life, God will get glory from our lives, and just as He blessed Joseph, He will bless us in ways we can never have imagined. Bow with me in prayer.
