Genesis 37:18-36_39:1-10 – God Builds a Man, demonstrates how God often may allow very difficult circumstances in our lives, as He does here with Joseph. Joseph’s brothers first plot to kill him out of there envy of him, and then later decide to sell him into slavery at the tender age of seventeen. This story is an example of the human depravity and the extent his brothers go through to justify and cover up their sin. Joseph, a prophetic prefigure of King Jesus, is an amazing example for us, of how to continue to trust God and be faithful, even when life is not fair. Genesis 37:18-36_39:1-10 – God Builds a Man, is a great message that will help us understand how God wants us to respond to our own adversity.
The Apostle Paul wrote quoting many Old Testament Scriptures: As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one; There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one. Their throat is an open tomb; With their tongues they have practiced deceit; The poison of asps is under their lips; Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; Destruction and misery are in their ways; And the way of peace they have not known. “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Romans 3:10–18, (NKJV) https://www.blueletterbible.org/nkjv/rom/3/10-18/s_1049010
Put off your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, that you put on the new man, which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
Ephesians 4:22–24, (NKJV) https://www.blueletterbible.org/nkjv/eph/4/22-24/s_1101022
Joseph – a prophetic prefigure of King Jesus
1) The beloved son, sent by the father on a mission of love.
2) Rejected because of his testimony to his own brethren (Tribes of Israel)
3) Sold to gentiles for a few pieces of silver (the price of a slave)
4) His tunic taken by the captors
5) Left for dead
6) Raised to power, seated at the right hand
7) Savior of the world
How do you respond to adversity?
If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small.
Proverbs 24:10, (NKJV) https://www.blueletterbible.org/nkjv/pro/24/10/s_652010
How did Joseph thrive in adversity?
1) He had great reverence for God
2) He was full of gratitude to God
3) He honored the authority God placed over him