The Lord is With You

I. Even When Dreams are Suspended

Joseph’s dreams:

• Suspended by evil actions of his brothers
• Threw him into the dry pit
• Sold him to the Midianite slave traders

Yet we see the intervening Hand of God, for the Lord was with Joseph.

II. Even When Life Hands You a Lemon

2 The Lord was with Joseph, so he succeeded in everything he did as he served in the home of his Egyptian master. 3 Potiphar noticed this and realized that the Lord was with Joseph, giving him success in everything he did. 4 This pleased Potiphar, so he soon made Joseph his personal attendant. He put him in charge of his entire household and everything he owned. 5 From the day Joseph was put in charge of his master’s household and property, the Lord began to bless Potiphar’s household for Joseph’s sake. All his household affairs ran smoothly, and his crops and livestock flourished. 6 So Potiphar gave Joseph complete administrative responsibility over everything he owned. With Joseph there, he didn’t worry about a thing—except what kind of food to eat! (Gen 39:2-6, NLT)

Joseph’s success:

• From a slave he became Potiphar’s administrator
• God’s blessings flowed into Potiphar’s household

When life hands us a lemon, let’s make lemonade out of it.

We will turn our adversities around for:

• our good
• God’s glory
• others to see that the Lord is with us

For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure (Phil 2:13).

18 When I said, “My foot is slipping,” your unfailing love Lord, supported me. 19 When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy. (Psa 94:18-19)

Day by day and with each passing moment,

Strength I find to meet my trials here;

Trusting in my Father’s wise bestowment,

I’ve no cause for worry or for fear.

He whose heart is kind beyond all measure

Gives unto each day what He deems best-

Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure,

Mingling toil with peace and rest. – Day by Day, by Lina Sandell

III. Even When You Are Wrongly Accused

19 Potiphar was furious when he heard his wife’s story about how Joseph had treated her. 20 So he took Joseph and threw him into the prison where the king’s prisoners were held, and there he remained. 21 But the Lord was with Joseph in the prison and showed him his faithful love. And the Lord made Joseph a favorite with the prison warden. 22 Before long, the warden put Joseph in charge of all the other prisoners and over everything that happened in the prison. 23 The warden had no more worries, because Joseph took care of everything. The Lord was with him and caused everything he did to succeed. (Gen 39:19-23)

“He felt it a cruel thing, to be under such a slander, and to suffer for his innocence. A young man so pure, so chaste, must have felt it to be sharper than a whip of scorpions to be accused as he was; yet as he sat down in the gloom of his cell, the Lord was with him.” – Charles Spurgeon

Joseph’s success:

• won the trust of the prison warden
• promoted and took charge of everything in the prison

God’s move preparing Joseph into a position of authority

• serve in Pharoah’s court
• save the Egyptians, his own relatives, the people around from famine that would sweep the whole world

The Enduring Word Commentary sums up Joseph’s life:

From privilege in his father’s house…

• To the pit his brothers threw him into.
• To being property in the slave market.
• To the privilege of managing Potiphar’s house.
• To the principled stand against temptation.
• To the perjury of false accusation.
• To the prison of Pharaoh.

The Lord is With Us and In Us!

16 I will ask the Father, and he will give you another helper who will be with you forever. 17 That helper is the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept him, because it doesn’t see or know him. You know him, because he lives with you and will be in you. (John 14:16-17)