Joseph & Temptation

Over the past couple of weeks we have been talking about the life of Joseph. Remember Joseph was the son of Jacob, and he had 11 brothers who hated him because he was their dad’s favorite.

2 weeks ago we talked about Joseph’s 2 dreams, about how he was going to rule over his family. This made his brothers hate him even more. So much more that we talked last week about how they abandoned him. They sold Joseph off to the first person who came along, for today’s equivalent of $110. We found out that Joseph had everything he could ever want in life, but had it all stripped away because his brothers hated him. Genesis 39:1-12

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. The LORD was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD gave him success in everything he did, 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. 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. 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, and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me!” 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. 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?” And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her. One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. 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.

In Egypt Joseph was sold to a man named Potiphar. Potiphar was the captain of the guard in the military. He was the top dog, his office would be in the pentagon of that day, and he answered only to pharaoh. When Joseph got to Potiphars house, it was obvious that God was with him. Because God was with Joseph it showed, Potiphar took notice and promoted Joseph to be his attendant. This meant that Joseph was Potiphar’s right hand man. Think about it this way! Because of the way Joseph served Potiphar, he was promoted from a slave to an attendant. That’s like being promoted from a fri cook at McDonalds to a chef at a 5 star restaurant! Life was starting to get pretty good for Joseph. He was starting to enjoy life again, and, WHAM!! He gets knocked down again by Potiphars wife. “Come to bed with me” she said. Joseph said there ain’t any way I’m doing that. First, Potiphar, your husband, has trusted me with everything he has. Second, Your his wife! And third, I’d be doing something bad, and would sin against God. Potiphar’s wife tempted Joseph everyday! Again and Again she tempted him! And everyday Joseph said the same thing… “No!” Then one day Joseph to do his job and was cornered. There was no one in the house, and Potiphar’s wife grabbed him by the shirt and tempted him again. Joseph said “NO!”, slipped out of his shirt because she wouldn’t let go of him, and he ran out the door.
Choices Spur of the moment choices are rare. We usually have time to think about the choices we’re about to make. There are times, however, that we have to make choices on the spot based on immediate action, stress, anger, and temptation. Our choices reveals who we really are, what we really are on the inside. Joseph had a spur of the moment choice to make when he was ambushed by Potiphar’s wife in the empty house. Even when no one was there, no one would have ever known, and Joseph could have easily given in. In that moment Joseph ran from sin. Due to his character, and his devotion to God, Joseph did the right thing. He may have lost another coat, but he gained more character, strength, and had a clear conscience. Think for a moment about who you are: This is the real you: You are the decisions you make in an instant. You are what you do when no one else is looking. Have you ever been in a situation like Joseph? Have you ever been tempted to do something you could probably get away with? What do you think Joseph was feeling as he tried to avoid Potiphar’s wife’s temptation? The first thing that probably ran through Josephs mind is “This is Potiphar’s wife. He is the captain of the Guard, and will have me killed!” Second, “God said this is wrong.” And third, “Where is the closest exit?” The Rest Of The Story After Joseph left, Potiphars wife saw that Joseph left his shirt. She called her servants and told them “Look what this guy has done! He came to make sport out of me. As soon as he did, I screamed, and he ran off!” So here is Joseph, a young guy, alone a long ways from home, and is being framed! Potiphars wife lied to everyone in the house, kept his shirt, and waited for Potipher to get home. When Potipher got home she told him the lie too. “This slave you brought home has come to make sport out of me. When he did, I screamed, and he ran off leaving his shirt behind.” This made Potiphar really mad. At least for a few minutes. Potiphar had to be a pretty smart guy to hold the position he had. He knew what his wife was like, and the kind of character she had. My thinking is that Potiphar had to know that his wife was a floozy and was hitting on Joseph. That is why he sent Joseph to prison instead of killing him. But that is what happened, Potiphar sent Joseph to the King’s prison where the king sent his prisoners. Can you imagine being punished for something you didn't do? Has that ever happened to you? How has your faith been shaped by unfair circumstances like doubt, fear, anger, stress, and anything else? Hebrews 2:17-18

“For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.”

How could this example of Jesus’ mercy make a difference in how we treat other people? Hebrews is the only New Testament book that refers to Jesus being the High Priest. High Priests were mediators between the people of Israel and God, and made sacrifices on Israel’s behalf. As a man, Jesus is our High Priest, our mediator to God. When he died on the cross, he became the ultimate sacrifice. Jesus removed God’s wrath, his justified anger and punishment, against us because of our sin When we are tempted Jesus sends his Holy Spirit who comes with mercy and sympathizes with us and comes to help. He does this because he know what its like to be a human and suffer through temptations. When we are tempted to do something wrong, we must pray to Jesus. Jesus rose above temptation and now he wants to give us strength and help us over come that temptation. However, it is our responsibility to ask Jesus for help when we are being tempted. Everyone has been tempted, and failed to overcome that temptations. When we follow through with temptation and do something bad, we deny God and Sin. We abandon God! Romans 3:23 tells us that we have all sinned, we have all fallen into the temptation. But God has made away out for us. John 3:16-18 tells us that God loves us so much that he sent his one and only son to die on the cross as a living sacrifice for the sin we commit. God didn’t send his son to point a finger, telling us how bad we are. He came to help put us right again. Anyone who trusts in Jesus, God will forgive and allow them to have eternal life in Heaven, but anyone who doesn’t is not forgiven and by their choice will spend eternity in Hell. God wants to forgive us all of every sin we have ever committed. Remember that the bad things we do makes us abandon God, but if we accept Jesus into our hearts it fulfills God’s dream of having a personal relationship with us. If you would like to be forgiven of all the sins, all the bad things you’ve done, and would like to have a personal relationship with God, Please pray this prayer from your heart:

"God, I’m sorry for all the bad things I have done. Please forgive me and come live in my heart. Please give me the strength and help I need to overcome temptation, and help me to love you with everything that I am. I confess that Jesus is Lord, and thank you for sending your son to die on the cross so I can have a relationship with you. Amen."

Everyone struggles with Temptation. If you are currently struggling with temptation or anything else pray that Jesus will send his Holy Spirit to give you strength and help you with the temptation your dealing with.