JOSEPH: A SLAVE WHO BECAME A PRISONER

When he arrived in Egypt and was purchased by Potiphar, Joseph's circumstances
were less than ideal. He was still a slave, although he lived and worked in a nicer
environment. The Scriptures tell us that "The Lord was with Loseph and he prospered"
(Gen. 39:2). Now, slaves own nothing! How did he prosper? As we read further in
Scripture, it becomes clear that Joseph's was not a prosperity of wealth or possessions,
but rather a prosperity of effort! Potiphar, who did not know God, saw that God blessed
Joseph's work.
Unfortunately Joseph's career was headed for a nose dive! He encountered a bit of a
sexual harassment, as we call it today. Potiphar's wife tried to seduce him. He told her,
"How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" (Gen. 39:9). When
she accused Joseph of attempted rape, he was thrown into prison. Yet he had been obedient
to God! What happened? Did God let Joseph down?
No. God used every turn of events for kingdom purposes! Joseph hit bottom again.
But he did not stay there. God was with him, working strategically for Joseph's good, in
spite of the accusations of Potiphar's wife.
Joseph's career was on the rise again not just because of his abilities, but because of
God's involvement in his life. God continued to bless Joseph's work, and it affected his
life in prison. Finally, God provided him the opportunity to interpret the dreams of two prisoners. Joseph did so, giving God full credit. He said to them. "Do not interpretations
belong to God?" 9Gen. 40:8).
Because both dreams came true as he had predicted. Joseph was asked to interpret
the pharaoh's dream. Pharaoh's dream. Pharaoh told Joseph: "I had a dream, and no
one can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it" (Gen. 41:15).

The world's agenda is our attempt to live and work apart from the authority of God.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of
the Father is not in him. For everything in the world, the cravings of sinful man, the lust
of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does comes not from the Father but from
the world (1 John 2:15-16).

"While Joseph was there in prison the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and
granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. 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.
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 (Gen. 39:20-23).

A COVENANT PEOPLE

Acts 8:1-4 records that the Romans persecution separated the Christians
in Jerusalem and sent them in small groups to live in other parts of the
empire. Little did Roman know how God would use that action to spread
the gospel. Everywhere the Christians went, the Christians witness sprang
up because of the way the Christians shared the gospel.

Well . . . nearly everywhere! The group who went to Corinth did not do so
well. After their relocation they had a treasurechest problem. Jewish
values did not fare so well in the lust capital of the empire. Located on a
little strip of land between two major bodies of water, their new town was
filled with pagan and immoral influences.

Conflict between Christians values and Corinthian values began to take its
toll. One man had an affair with his father's wife. Critical spirits, fed by guilty
consciences, fractured the life of the little group in the church. Spiritual gifts
were used as toys for play and for private, personal enjoyment. Embarrassed
by their lack of fellowship with the Master, Christians found little basis for
fellowship with one another. A selfish spirit replace their servant spirit.
Gatherings were marked by strife. Factions and divisions devastated their
meetings.

The Christians at Corinth were still going through the motions of worship, but
the reality of being the body of Christ had vanished. They were similar to clouds
with no water. When servanthood is lost, the body of Christ is dead. What replaces
it is an ugly and self-serving assembly. When they tried to share the Lord's Supper,
there was no intimacy, no love. The feast time was marked by self-serving actions
common meal was shared; each family brought food and are separately from the
others. As a result, one drank too much wine while a poor family ate little or nothing.

How different from the church they left behind in Jerusalem! There they had gone
from house to house, breaking bread and sharing their wealth as needs arose. Here
they had kept the form of a body of Christ, but the life of that body was dead.

*The most powerful form of evangelism available today is the lifestyle of the
transformed community of God.
* When servanthood is lost, the body of Christ is dead.
*The church's fellowship suppers were actually adding to the problem rather than
helping it.
*The church was divided.
*Factions existed.
*The Corinthians were not sharing their food at the fellowship suppers.