Genesis 39:20-23
HOW TO THRIVE IN THE PRISONS OF LIFE
Intro: The life of Joseph is one of the most remarkable
stories found in the Bible. His life is a mixture of
sadness and glory, or pain and of success. As a result,
Joseph's life contains many lessons from which modern
believers can learn. One of those lessons is found in
this passage.
In these verses, we find Joseph at one of the lowest
moments of his young life. We find him as a young
man, having been sold into slavery into Egypt. There,
he is purchased by a man named Potipher, and in
Potipher's house, Joseph quickly rises to a place of
authority and prominence. However, Potipher's wife
has eyes for Joseph and attempts to get him to commit
adultery with her. He refuses and actually has to run
away from her, leaving his garment in her hand, Gen.
39:7-13. His coat had gotten him into trouble again,
Gen. 39:14-18; Gen. 37:3-4. After she has been
spurned by Joseph, Potipher's wife accuses Joseph of
attempting to rape her. Her husband, who is a high
ranking Egyptian official, has Joseph thrown into the
King's prison.
It is in this Egyptian prison that Joseph learned
some very valuable lessons. He learned some facts
about the Lord that would serve him well in the years
ahead. It is those facts that we need to learn this
evening!
Now, Joseph wasn't alone in having to go through a
prison experience. In fact, many of the great men of the
Bible found themselves in one prison or another. For
instance, there is Samson, Daniel, Jeremiah, Hosea,
John the Baptist, John, Pater, Paul, and Silas. Many of
the Lord's greatest servants had to go through the
prison from time to time. In each of these prisons, the
Lord revealed His power and providence on behalf of
His servants.
What does all this mean for us? Well, we al find
ourselves in the prison from time to time. Often, the
trials, valleys and troubles of life can be compared to a
prison experience. These times can cause us great
problems, but they can also be the means to great
success for the Lord. I just want you to know that the
prisons of life do not have to defeat you! In fact, it is my
conviction that God leads us into the prison experiences
of life so that we might thrive in His work and to His
glory.
I would like for us to take a few minutes this evening
to notice some facts that appear in the account of
Joseph and his prison experience. As we do, there are
some truths taught here that teach us How To Thrive
In The Prisons Of Life. Here is what you need to know
to thrive in life's prisons.
I. V. 20 THE PRISON
IS A PLACE OF OPPRESSION
A. The Bible tells us that Joseph was "bound" in
the prison. He had lost his liberty and was held
against his will. Certainly it was not the place
that he has dreamed of years before, Gen. 37.
It was a place of harshness and suffering that
brought pain into the life of Joseph.
(Ill. This is often our experience as well. There
are times when everything around us seems to
fall apart at the seems. This was the experience
of Job, Job (Job 1-2), and it will be the
experience of every other person who ever lives
in this world, Job 14:1, Eccl. 2:23. It is these
experiences of life that we all fear, but through
which we all must go! These aren't fun times,
but they are part of every life! No one is exempt
from the day of trouble!)
B. However, in this prison, Joseph was going to
learn the powerful lesson that a person who's life
is lined up with the will of God is abundantly free
despite the walls that enclose him!
(Ill. Here is the difference between the children
of God and the rest of the world! While they
struggle through their difficulties, the child of God
can rest in the sure knowledge that God has us
where we are for His Own purposes and that
when we are walking in His ways, we are free
despite the prison we find ourselves in at that
moment, Job 23:10! That is a precious lesson
to learn!)
C. G.A. Young, in his song, "God Leads Us Along"
put it this way:
Sometimes on the mount
Where the sun shines so bright,
God leads His dear children along;
Sometimes in the valley,
In darkest of night,
God leads His dear children along.
Some through the waters,
Some thought the flood,
Some through the fire,
But all through the blood;
Some through great sorrow,
But God gives a song,
In the night season
And all the day long.
That is a lesson we all need to learn this
evening. Regardless of the oppression we are
under at the moment, God is still leading His
children. This was the idea David had in mind
when he penned Psalm 23! I may be oppressed
by the circumstances of life, but I am blessed by
the author of life when I am lead along by Him!
I. The Prison Is A Place Of Oppression
II. V. 20 THE PRISON
IS A PLACE OF OBSCURITY
A. When Joseph was sold into slavery by his
brothers and then when he was locked up in the
prison house, it must have seemed to him that
all those dreams he dreamed as a younger man
had really meant nothing, Gen. 37:7-10. He had
dreamed that God was going to make something
special out of his life, but here he is going
nowhere fast. It must have seemed like God
had forgotten all about Joseph. Surely, Joseph
felt alone, deserted and defeated by the trials
and problems he faced.
B. Ill. The prisons of life can leave us all feeling that
way. When the problems of life mount up
against us, it is easy to feel like we have been
deserted by the Lord. When we are thrown into
one of life's prisons we tend to fell forgotten and
overlooked by the Lord. The devil uses those
times to whisper his lies to us and he says,
"Well, if God really cares about you then why
are you going through this valley?" Or, "You
trusted God, and what did it get you but
trouble." My friends, if that is the way your are
feeling this evening, let me remind you that God
does care! Others may forget about us, but God
knows exactly where I am and what I am facing.
In fact, I have His promise concerning this
matter, Luke 12:6-7; Heb. 4:15.
C. When we face the lonely times of life when it
seems that God has forgotten all about us, just
remember that you aren't the first, nor will you be
the last, person who has felt this way.
Remember that even great men of God like
Elijah went through times of defeat and
discouragement, 1 Kings 19:1-18. However, it
the depths of his despondency, God knew
exactly where Elijah was and God came to him,
spoke to him and used him for His glory. He
knows where you are serving too!
(Ill. Never forget the truth that God knows where
you are! He knows about your prison this
evening and He holds the key to your freedom.
It may be a place of obscurity, but God will bring
you out for His glory. The hardest part is
learning to submit to Him, even when we don't
like where we are!)
I. The Prison Is A Place Of Oppression
II. The Prison Is A Place Of Obscurity
III. V. 21 THE PRISON
IS A PLACE OF OPPORTUNITY
A. In this prison, Joseph had the great privilege of
learning some valuable lessons about God. He
learns about God's Presence, God's
Providence, God's Purposes and God's
Power. He learned lessons that could not have
been learned under more pleasant
circumstances.
B. Certainly, one of the greatest blessings of going
through the trials of life is the truths we learn
about God. In fact, the trials of life teach us
lessons about God that cannot be learned any
other way. Think about it, Daniel could not have
learned of God's power over the lions unless he
was first cast into the lions den. The 3 Hebrew
could not have learned that God was able to
deliver them from the fire until they had been
cast into the furnace. The Disciples would never
have known that Jesus could still the storm until
they found themselves in the midst of it. Mary,
Martha and Lazarus would never have
understood that Jesus is The Resurrection and
the Life unless Lazarus had died. The
multitudes would never have known that Jesus
could multiply the loaves and fishes unless they
had been hungry first. The women with the
issue could not have experienced the healing
touch of Christ, without the suffering and the cost
of her illness. The list could go one, but the fat
is, we learn more about Him in the prisons of life
than in any other way.
C. When we go through the prisons of life, we learn
that He is with us, that He is able to sustain us,
that He is greater than our problems, that He
does have a plan. We learn the truth that the
prisons of life are not designed to stop us,
but to strengthen us! Even in the midst of
difficulty, Joseph was still being blessed and
used by the Lord! God's hand was evident in the
life of this young man!
D. If we really understood the fact that our prisons
are opportunities, we would never allow
ourselves to ask "Why?" when these times came
about. Instead, we would realize that God was
working out His divine purpose and plan for us
and we would learn to ask "What?". We would
know beyond a doubt that God was doing
something good for us, Rom. 8:28!
I. The Prison Is A Place Of Oppression
II. The Prison Is A Place Of Obscurity
III. The Prison Is A Place Of Opportunity
IV. V. 22 THE PRISON
IS A PLACE OF OBEDIENCE
A. Notice that even in the prison, Joseph remained
faithful. For him, it was just another place of
service. This tells us a lot about this man named
Joseph. He was a man of integrity, who was
going to remain faithful to the Lord despite his
circumstances. Even in this prison experience,
we do not find Joseph sitting in his cell whining
about how unfair everything is. We find him
being a man of God, even when nothing is going
his way! What a lesson!
B. I can tell you this evening that it is God's will for
you to bloom where you are planted!
Regardless of the circumstances or problems
that may be true in your life this evening, God
expects you to remain faithful to Him and serve
Him diligently!
(Ill. Some people point to their family and say,
"Well, they won't serve God and it's too hard
to do it alone. I might as well quit." Or, "You
just don't know what I am facing." Or, "I have
this problem or that circumstance that is
hindering me from serving the Lord." May I
say that all of these are foolish statements? My
friends, each of us serves God to the degree we
choose to! We can either choose to be faithful
in spite of what we are going through, or we can
allow the trials of life derail our walk with the
Lord. God help us all to learn the truth that God
has us exactly where we are for our good and for
His glory! We can either honor God by a life of
obedience in spite of difficulty, or we can
dishonor Him by allowing our trials to hinder our
service.)
C. I challenge each of us to remember that nothing
in life "just happens". There is no such thing as
coincidence! God is either in absolute control of
the events of life, or He has nothing to do with
them at all. Well, the Bible teaches that He is a
sovereign God, Psa. 50:10-12; Psa. 115:3. The
truth if the matter is that God is in absolute
control of all of life.
Therefore, we can with be in submission to
His will for our lives, or we can be in rebellion to
His will. Submission means that we serve Him
faithfully regardless of the prison we may find
ourselves in at the moment.
D. The whole idea here is summed up in one word
"faithfulness". God's desire for each of our lives
is that we be faithful to Him and His will every
minute of every day, regardless of what we are
going through. Friend, nothing can happen in
your life unless God allows it. Therefore, you
can either serve Him through it in obedience and
faithfulness, or you can deny His work in your life
through rebelling. Either way, it does not change
the fact that God has us where we are so that
His light might be seen by a lost and dying world,
Matt. 5:13-16.
V. V. 23 THE PRISON
IS A PLACE OF OVERCOMING
A. Joseph remained in this prison for at least two
years, probably for a while longer. However,
while he was there, God used him greatly.
Chapters 40-41 tell us that Joseph glorified God
while he was there and that the Lord used him to
touch the lives of the other prisoners.
Eventually, the day came when Joseph was
delivered from the prison. In less than an hour,
Joseph went from being a prisoner to being the
Prime Minister of Egypt, Gen. 41:38-45. His life
changed in an instant of time!
What we need to understand is that the Lord
used the trials that Joseph experienced to
prepare him for the place of service God had
planned out for Him. You see, God put him in
the prison to have him in the proper place at the
proper time.
Through his trials, Joseph learned
compassion on others, administrative skills and
he learned obedience and faithfulness. Notice
the progression of the assignments he was
given.
1. He was placed over an assignment - Gen.
37:13-14.
2. He was placed over a household - Gen.
39:4.
3. He was placed over a prison - Gen. 39:22-23.
4. He was placed over a nation - Gen. 41:40-41.
God used the prison as Joseph's proving
ground. He learned all the lessons he needed to
be able to flourish on the throne of Egypt!
B. As we pass through the prisons of life, God is
merely training us. When we are found faithful
in these valleys, we are allowed to experience
greater levels of authority and blessing. God
uses the difficulties of life to grow us so that He
might us our lives in a more wonderful way than
would otherwise be possible, Matt. 25:41; Luke
16:10. As we endure the prison experiences of
life, we are trained for expanded usefulness b
the Lord!
C. Therefore, we need to learn not to rebel against
the prisons we find ourselves in. We must learn
to yield to the Lord's work in our lives and trust
Him to have His way in us and through us. He
knows where He wants us ans He knows what
He would have us do. Let us learn to trust Him
and experience the best He has to offer us!
Conc: Friend, if you aren't in a prison of life this
evening, you will be someday. In either case, you need
what Joseph has taught us this evening. I challenge
you to look deep into your heart and ask yourself
whether or not you are in that place of alignment with
the plan and purposes of God for your life. Are you
blooming where He has planted you? Or do you find
yourself struggling against the bonds that hold you?
Whatever the need, there is hope and help in our
glorious Lord this evening!
