God Bless My Mess!
Genesis 39
TEXT: Genesis 39
1 Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there. 2 The Lord was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. 3 When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, 4 Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned. 5 From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the Lord was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field. 6 So he left in Joseph’s care everything he had; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome,
7 and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, "Come to bed with me!" 8 But he refused. "With me in charge," he told her, "my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. 9 No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" 10 And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her. 11 One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. 12 She caught him by his cloak and said, "Come to bed with me!" But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house.
13 When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house, 14 she called her household servants. "Look," she said to them, "this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us! He came in here to sleep with me, but I screamed. 15 When he heard me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house." 16 She kept his cloak beside her until his master came home. 17 Then she told him this story: "That Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me. 18 But as soon as I screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house."
19 When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, "This is how your slave treated me," he burned with anger. 20 Joseph’s master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined. But while Joseph was there in the prison, 21 the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. 22 So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. 23 The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.
Focus: I want you to use as a remembrance for what the Lord is saying to you today….the latter portion of Genesis 39:23….where it records these words about the destiny of Joseph – “….the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.”
PRAYER
? What is a mess ? - I’ve heard that word all my life. I’ve spoken it from my mouth. I’ve been is some situations that (at least in my assessment) were an absolute mess. What is a mess?
Well…Miriam Webster’s dictionary defines a mess as….a disordered, untidy, offensive, or unpleasant state or condition.
Some of you have chosen that word to describe the disorderly state in which you find yourself.
Others have described themselves by this word “mess” when we find ourselves in a condition as Webster says is “unpleasant”.
The man that we are talking about today found himself in some rather unusual situations that the words “disorderly, offensive, or unpleasant” might have been a mild choice of words to offer description for his feelings and his dilemma. His name was Joseph.
I cited just one passage of a mess that he found himself in, but I want to extract from the life of Joseph just a bit this morning and see how he responded; see how God met him at every moment of his MESS.
And together we’ll be encouraged as the Holy Spirit speaks to you today and tells you not to worry about your MESS. (Somebody say…”God bless my mess!”)
Romans 8:28 - And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
1) Joseph’s 1st Mess - HIS MOTHER DIED
Genesis 35:16 - 19
16 Then they moved on from Bethel. While they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth and had great difficulty. 17 And as she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife said to her, "Don’t be afraid, for you have another son." 18 As she breathed her last--for she was dying--she named her son Ben-Oni. But his father named him Benjamin. 19 So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
When Joseph was just a young boy his mother, Rachel, died. She died while she was in the throws of childbirth and left young Benjamin for the family to take care of.
Joseph lost his mother. Jacob lost Rachel whom he loved dearly. The family was now in a mess. But Joseph learned the value of a father’s love.
Some of you have experienced the loss of a loved one and found yourself in a mess. Questions arose in your mind. “How in the world would you make it? How could you carry on the family? How could you ever love someone again knowing that you would eventually lose them?
But God is a God of all comfort! He takes you through those situations and is a friend that sticks closer than a brother. He’s the healing balm of Gilead. He comforts all who mourn! Jesus in his Sermon on the Mount said, “Blessed are they that mourn for they SHALL be comforted.”
“Weeping may remain for a season, but JOY comes in the morning!”
Joseph faced the mess of death, but God kept him.
2) Joseph’s 2nd Mess - HIS BROTHERS HATE HIM
Genesis 37:3-5
3 Now Israel(Jacob) loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made a richly ornamented robe for him. 4 When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him. Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more.
Listen, Joseph did not have a good family life. The blessing he had become because he was born in his father’s elder years was something that those brothers could not bear. They were jealous. The bible says in vs. 4 that “they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.”
It has been said that the only time they opened their mouths to Joseph was to curse at him. They hated Joseph. Their family life was a MESS. And Joseph had to spend his years bearing that; knowing from the dreams that God gave him that God’s hand of blessing was upon him. And it was difficult to face the realities of his brother’s hatred, but Joseph knew the love of his father and it sustained him.
Some of you may not have good family relationships. You may see your brothers or sisters walking around with that coat of many colors. And it may cause you to feel left out or forsaken. But I want to tell you to love anyway. You may feel used or mistreated by a family member. You may feel like you don’t have a family, but your family is your ENEMY.
But the Jesus said it this way…in Matthew 5:43-45 43 "You have heard that it was said, ’Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
Listen, God is reminding you of His steadfastness as your Heavenly Father. He will not waver concerning His love. He is “no respecter of persons.” He loves us all the same. And when your EARTHLY relationships cause you challenge and concern, you just remember that you’ve got a Father in heaven who loves you with an everlasting love; agape love; sacrificial love; a love that never fails!
You may say, “Pastor….our family is in a MESS.” You do like Jesus said….”love them and pray for them!”
3) Joseph’s 3rd Mess – HE WAS TOSSED IN THE PIT
Genesis 37:23, 24
23 So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe--the richly ornamented robe he was wearing-- 24 and they took him and threw him into the cistern. Now the cistern was empty; there was no water in it.
Joseph was sent by his father to see how his older brothers were doing in the field. They saw him coming with his coat of many colors a great way off. They devised a plan to take his life. He was stripped of his coat and thrown into a pit without water.
Now the KJV version states that this place which they tossed Joseph was a “pit”. The Hebrew translation of that pit is “cistern”. It was a literal well for water. But the Bible says that it was dry.
You know it’s one thing to be tossed into a well that is filled with water. But this well was empty. It had no life in it. It was dry. It was deep. It was a MESS.
Some of you have been tossed into the pit before. Some of you were in the PIT OF DESPAIR. You felt no life. You felt no refreshing. You were dry and barren. It was a deep place; a dry place.
For some it may have been an ADDICTION.
For some it may have been an EMOTIONAL PIT of LONLINESS or REJECTION.
For some it may have been a PHYSICAL PIT of ill health or disease.
But the Word of God says…PSALMS 30:3 O Lord, you brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit.
PSALMS 40:2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.
PSALMS 103:1-5 1 Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. 2 Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits-- 3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, 5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Joseph learned the same that you and I must learn. No matter where we go or what we are facing, the Lord knows where you are…even if you’re in the pit. And he is well able to lift you out.
4) Joseph’s 4th Mess - HE WAS SOLD INTO SLAVERY
Genesis 37:26-28
26 Judah said to his brothers, "What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? 27 Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood." His brothers agreed. 28 So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.
Instead of going through with taking Joseph’s life, his brothers pulled him out of the pit and sold him into Egyptian slavery.
As a slave, you learn to OBEY. You and I cannot possibly make it in this life without being obedient. Obedience is DISCIPLINE. (Oh…yall are not going to help me here.)
Nobody wants to talk about discipline. It’s a hard word. It’s a challenging word. Be it food, friendships, finance, or family….discipline in your life is tough.
Joseph was disciplined. He learned the value of OBEDIENCE. And when he found himself faced with the FLESHLY PRESSURES of Potiphar’s wife, he was able to say “NO” and leave out of her presence with her holding his jacket!
You may be “ENSLAVED” to something that seems impossible for you to get out of…but the Lord will pull you out. You must be OBEDIENT. You must DISCIPLINE yourself and say “NO” to some things. And God will get you out of your MESS.
5) Joseph’s 5th Mess – HIS REPUTATION WAS DAMAGED BY LIES
Genesis 39:13-19
13 When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house, 14 she called her household servants. "Look," she said to them, "this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us! He came in here to sleep with me, but I screamed. 15 When he heard me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house." 16 She kept his cloak beside her until his master came home. 17 Then she told him this story: "That Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me. 18 But as soon as I screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house." 19 When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, "This is how your slave treated me," he burned with anger.
Joseph said “NO” to the temptation, but Potiphar’s wife opened her mouth and told lies….lies that caused Joseph more problems….lies that damaged his testimony and his reputation….lies that put him into prison.
But the Bible says, that Joseph was shown favor …Genesis 39:20-23
20 Joseph’s master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined. But while Joseph was there in the prison, 21 the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. 22 So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. 23 The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.
Listen friends… the Lord has the last say so.
You may have been lied about….your reputation may be at stake, but the Lord will watch over you.
He says, “Vengeance is mine..saith the Lord.”
Jesus says, “If you offend one of my little ones it is better that a millstone be tied around your neck and that you be cast into the depths of the sea.”
Joseph might have been a prisoner, but the Bible says the warden paid him no attention…..and the Lord was with Joseph.
I’m telling you “he is with you in your MESS.”
CONCLUSION:
You may have lost your mama!
Your brothers may hate you!
You may be in a pit of despair!
You may be enslaved to something!
Or they may have told some lies on your and punished you for something you didn’t do….
I’m here to tell you today…the Lord will BLESS your MESS! Your untidy, disordered, uncomfortable, unpleasant, state of condition!
