WEBVTT 00:00:02.580 --> 00:00:12.320 - Welcome to the Willow Ridge Sermons podcast. 00:00:12.320 --> 00:00:15.040 We're so glad you chose to listen today. 00:00:15.040 --> 00:00:19.360 In today's episode, we'll journey through Genesis 39 to 41, 00:00:19.360 --> 00:00:22.080 following Joseph's story from captivity to favor 00:00:22.080 --> 00:00:23.820 in Pharaoh's court. 00:00:23.820 --> 00:00:26.720 Joseph's life shows us how a steadfast character 00:00:26.720 --> 00:00:30.360 can testify to God's presence, even in hardship. 00:00:30.360 --> 00:00:32.280 We'll see how God's faithfulness shines 00:00:32.280 --> 00:00:34.160 through Joseph's trials and triumphs, 00:00:34.160 --> 00:00:36.920 reminding us that our testimony can inspire hope 00:00:36.920 --> 00:00:40.400 and trust in God's provision, no matter the circumstance. 00:00:40.400 --> 00:00:42.880 Join us as we learn what it means to have a testimony 00:00:42.880 --> 00:00:45.360 that reflects true faith and goodwill. 00:00:45.360 --> 00:00:46.460 Thanks for listening. 00:00:51.620 --> 00:00:57.760 Good morning. 00:00:57.760 --> 00:00:58.880 - Good morning. 00:00:58.880 --> 00:01:01.360 - All right, I know that we need a little bit more 00:01:01.360 --> 00:01:03.280 excitement than that in here. 00:01:03.280 --> 00:01:04.560 All right, that was a lot of announcements, 00:01:04.560 --> 00:01:05.800 a lot of exciting things. 00:01:05.800 --> 00:01:06.640 Good morning. 00:01:06.640 --> 00:01:07.480 - Good morning. 00:01:07.480 --> 00:01:08.300 - There we go. 00:01:08.300 --> 00:01:09.860 If you have your Bibles, and I hope you do, 00:01:09.860 --> 00:01:14.720 I want you to invite you to join us in Genesis chapter 39. 00:01:14.720 --> 00:01:16.360 And here's why we're gonna need your excitement. 00:01:16.360 --> 00:01:18.360 We're gonna move fast today. 00:01:18.360 --> 00:01:20.160 I was talking to Berger about this, 00:01:20.160 --> 00:01:22.880 and remember all the way back a long, long, long time ago, 00:01:22.880 --> 00:01:25.480 when we talked about Noah and the flood, 00:01:25.480 --> 00:01:28.440 that story kind of encompassed a lot within there. 00:01:28.440 --> 00:01:30.460 So I had to move through a lot of scripture 00:01:30.460 --> 00:01:31.720 to get to where we're going. 00:01:31.720 --> 00:01:34.960 And today is that, is we're gonna be looking at Joseph 00:01:34.960 --> 00:01:37.780 and in a specific season in the life of Joseph. 00:01:37.780 --> 00:01:41.520 So we're gonna quickly cover three chapters this morning, 00:01:41.520 --> 00:01:43.960 but excited for the challenge to do so 00:01:43.960 --> 00:01:45.680 in the faithfulness of God's word. 00:01:45.680 --> 00:01:47.360 I wanna echo what Pastor Dave said. 00:01:47.360 --> 00:01:50.640 If you are a first time guest, you are special to us, 00:01:50.640 --> 00:01:53.160 and we are so glad that you were here. 00:01:53.160 --> 00:01:54.640 I would ask, Dave, ask one thing, 00:01:54.640 --> 00:01:55.480 I'm gonna ask one thing. 00:01:55.480 --> 00:01:57.400 So we've got two things we'd love for you to do. 00:01:57.400 --> 00:01:59.840 At the end of the service, my wife and I will be back here, 00:01:59.840 --> 00:02:01.640 back at this table to my left. 00:02:01.640 --> 00:02:03.280 We would love for you to come back there 00:02:03.280 --> 00:02:04.640 and introduce yourself to us 00:02:04.640 --> 00:02:06.640 and let us introduce ourselves to you. 00:02:06.640 --> 00:02:08.660 It's not that we think that we're anything special, 00:02:08.660 --> 00:02:09.880 but we think you're pretty special, 00:02:09.880 --> 00:02:12.120 and we're so glad that God has brought you here. 00:02:12.120 --> 00:02:14.800 And we just wanna learn your name, thank you for being here. 00:02:14.800 --> 00:02:17.720 And then by chance, if you have any questions 00:02:17.720 --> 00:02:20.060 about our church, we would love to be able 00:02:20.060 --> 00:02:22.100 to answer those for you. 00:02:22.100 --> 00:02:23.800 Kind of let you know, guys, where we're going. 00:02:23.800 --> 00:02:27.760 Another reason for us to push through for 41 this morning 00:02:27.760 --> 00:02:30.800 is next week we are gonna begin our Christmas series. 00:02:30.800 --> 00:02:32.020 Really excited about this. 00:02:32.020 --> 00:02:33.920 We're gonna look at some of those individuals 00:02:33.920 --> 00:02:36.160 that helped tell the Christmas story, 00:02:36.160 --> 00:02:40.640 and then looking at them to learn about who God is 00:02:40.640 --> 00:02:44.840 by their acts of faith and their acts of faithfulness. 00:02:44.840 --> 00:02:47.000 And so this morning, as we get started, 00:02:47.000 --> 00:02:50.080 I wanna read Genesis 39, 21. 00:02:50.080 --> 00:02:52.560 It says, "But the Lord was with Joseph 00:02:52.560 --> 00:02:55.880 "and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor 00:02:55.880 --> 00:02:58.980 "in the sight of the keeper of the prison." 00:02:58.980 --> 00:03:01.000 Would you join me in prayer? 00:03:01.000 --> 00:03:02.520 God, I thank you so much for this time 00:03:02.520 --> 00:03:04.200 that we could be here. 00:03:04.200 --> 00:03:07.400 God, I thank you that it is not just that we have gathered, 00:03:07.400 --> 00:03:10.140 but you are here with us. 00:03:10.820 --> 00:03:14.020 God, I pray that all that is said and done 00:03:14.020 --> 00:03:16.740 will bring glory and honor to your name. 00:03:16.740 --> 00:03:18.940 Lord, take out of this what is me. 00:03:18.940 --> 00:03:21.160 Lord, and may this all be filled with you. 00:03:21.160 --> 00:03:24.260 Lord, would you speak to our hearts? 00:03:24.260 --> 00:03:26.740 Lord, if there's anyone here who does not know Christ 00:03:26.740 --> 00:03:30.420 as their Lord and Savior, God, I pray that today 00:03:30.420 --> 00:03:32.180 will be their day of faith. 00:03:32.180 --> 00:03:35.740 And it's in Jesus' name we pray, amen, amen. 00:03:35.740 --> 00:03:40.740 I'll never forget, I had been saved for about five months 00:03:40.740 --> 00:03:44.580 and a friend of mine, a guy by the name of Ryan Hearn, 00:03:44.580 --> 00:03:47.340 he pastors a church up in North Carolina now. 00:03:47.340 --> 00:03:50.460 He came to me and he said, "Hey, I'm trying to get," 00:03:50.460 --> 00:03:53.100 USC Aiken was the school that we were at 00:03:53.100 --> 00:03:54.600 getting our undergrad, and he said, 00:03:54.600 --> 00:03:57.480 "Listen, I'm trying to get an FCA started back up here 00:03:57.480 --> 00:03:58.380 "at USC Aiken." 00:03:58.380 --> 00:04:01.540 At that time, there was not an on-campus ministry 00:04:01.540 --> 00:04:02.740 at USC Aiken. 00:04:02.740 --> 00:04:04.900 And he said, "What I would love for you to do 00:04:04.900 --> 00:04:08.820 "is on week two," he said, "I'm gonna speak week one. 00:04:08.820 --> 00:04:11.260 "I'd like for you to speak on week two." 00:04:11.260 --> 00:04:13.340 And I was like, okay. 00:04:13.340 --> 00:04:15.700 That's when it hits that I've sat in 00:04:15.700 --> 00:04:17.860 and heard a lot of messages in my life. 00:04:17.860 --> 00:04:20.800 While I hadn't been saved long, I'd grown up in church, 00:04:20.800 --> 00:04:23.380 but I had no clue about what it would look like 00:04:23.380 --> 00:04:24.580 to begin to put something together. 00:04:24.580 --> 00:04:27.180 So I looked at him, wanting him to give me an outline 00:04:27.180 --> 00:04:29.480 of say these things, and I said, 00:04:29.480 --> 00:04:32.040 "What would you like for me to talk about?" 00:04:32.040 --> 00:04:34.300 And he said, "Share your testimony." 00:04:34.300 --> 00:04:37.180 And there was some good confidence within that moment 00:04:37.180 --> 00:04:39.820 of me being able to share my testimony, 00:04:39.820 --> 00:04:42.060 because what I'd known, what I'd experienced 00:04:42.060 --> 00:04:44.400 within the church was that my testimony 00:04:44.400 --> 00:04:45.900 was simply telling my story. 00:04:45.900 --> 00:04:48.900 And there was an authentic moment within that, 00:04:48.900 --> 00:04:51.620 that I could say, "I believe that this is something 00:04:51.620 --> 00:04:54.220 "that I'm capable of doing and able to do, 00:04:54.220 --> 00:04:57.820 "and the Spirit of God worked through that with me." 00:04:57.820 --> 00:04:59.140 I don't remember a whole lot of things 00:04:59.140 --> 00:05:02.380 that I said that night, but I know that I felt 00:05:02.380 --> 00:05:04.820 the Spirit of God working and moving in my life 00:05:04.820 --> 00:05:07.420 and in the testimony and in my story as well. 00:05:07.420 --> 00:05:09.660 And maybe you've had that moment in time 00:05:09.660 --> 00:05:11.560 where someone has come up to you and said, 00:05:11.560 --> 00:05:14.940 "We would like for you to share your testimony." 00:05:14.940 --> 00:05:17.620 I think oftentimes when we hear that, 00:05:17.620 --> 00:05:19.480 when we hear, "I'd like for you to share 00:05:19.480 --> 00:05:22.480 "your story of faith, your testimony of faith," 00:05:22.480 --> 00:05:26.940 we kind of fall into like a two-category piece 00:05:26.940 --> 00:05:29.220 for our testimony. 00:05:29.220 --> 00:05:31.460 And these two categories are good, 00:05:31.460 --> 00:05:35.960 they're right, they're definitely needed in a testimony. 00:05:35.960 --> 00:05:39.460 The first one is the testimony of faith in your past. 00:05:39.460 --> 00:05:41.700 We communicate what God saved us from. 00:05:41.700 --> 00:05:43.940 Like you talk about, maybe your testimony 00:05:43.940 --> 00:05:45.900 was you were five years old and you were going 00:05:45.900 --> 00:05:48.180 to Sunday school and you got saved at BBS, 00:05:48.180 --> 00:05:50.100 and that's where you're at or where you were. 00:05:50.100 --> 00:05:52.040 Maybe your testimony of your past, 00:05:52.040 --> 00:05:54.940 maybe you're a little wilder, a little more reckless, 00:05:54.940 --> 00:05:56.540 maybe you were older in life, 00:05:56.540 --> 00:05:58.340 lived through some different things, right? 00:05:58.340 --> 00:06:01.180 But either way, part of your testimony, 00:06:01.180 --> 00:06:03.620 is the past of what God saved you from, 00:06:03.620 --> 00:06:07.340 like regards to how young you were or how old you were, 00:06:07.340 --> 00:06:09.300 when you got saved, you had a past 00:06:09.300 --> 00:06:11.020 that God needed to save you from, 00:06:11.020 --> 00:06:12.900 and that's what God did. 00:06:12.900 --> 00:06:15.980 You had a testimony within your testimony of faith, 00:06:15.980 --> 00:06:18.060 there's your salvation moment, right? 00:06:18.060 --> 00:06:19.660 There's when God saved you, right? 00:06:19.660 --> 00:06:23.220 Like it may be 5/22/52/72/92, right? 00:06:23.220 --> 00:06:25.680 When God saved you, there's that point in time 00:06:25.680 --> 00:06:27.520 and moment in your life for some of us, 00:06:27.520 --> 00:06:30.660 like we can narrow it down to this exact day and time 00:06:30.660 --> 00:06:33.540 for those of us, it's more of a season stretched out 00:06:33.540 --> 00:06:35.580 of what God was doing in your life, 00:06:35.580 --> 00:06:38.420 so when God saved you, but also like how God saved you. 00:06:38.420 --> 00:06:40.420 Let me kind of explain that, all right? 00:06:40.420 --> 00:06:42.260 What I mean by how God saved you, 00:06:42.260 --> 00:06:44.940 like you're only saved through Christ, right? 00:06:44.940 --> 00:06:46.900 Like what Jesus has done, 00:06:46.900 --> 00:06:48.240 he's the way, the truth, and the life, 00:06:48.240 --> 00:06:50.620 no one else comes to salvation except through him, 00:06:50.620 --> 00:06:52.200 but like what was that like? 00:06:52.200 --> 00:06:54.420 How did God reveal himself to you? 00:06:54.420 --> 00:06:55.540 Who did God use? 00:06:55.540 --> 00:06:57.000 Were you someone at youth camp? 00:06:57.000 --> 00:06:58.220 Were you someone at a revival? 00:06:58.220 --> 00:07:00.660 Were you someone, were you sitting down over a cup of coffee 00:07:00.660 --> 00:07:02.820 with one of your friends and they shared the gospel 00:07:02.820 --> 00:07:05.180 of your story, but I found that so many times 00:07:05.180 --> 00:07:10.180 that our testimony is kind of bound to those two categories. 00:07:10.180 --> 00:07:13.500 A testimony of faith of your past 00:07:13.500 --> 00:07:15.780 and a testimony of your salvation moment. 00:07:15.780 --> 00:07:20.140 We kind of share these and that's good, 00:07:20.140 --> 00:07:23.540 and God uses that, but there's a testimony 00:07:23.540 --> 00:07:26.460 of faith of today as well, 00:07:26.460 --> 00:07:27.660 and I think that's the important part 00:07:27.660 --> 00:07:29.900 that oftentimes that we forget 00:07:29.900 --> 00:07:31.820 is your testimony of right now, 00:07:31.820 --> 00:07:34.760 of what has God, since you've been saved, 00:07:34.760 --> 00:07:37.760 what has God been doing in your life? 00:07:37.760 --> 00:07:42.620 Right, so I remember when I shared my testimony, 00:07:42.620 --> 00:07:44.260 when I shared my story of all that God had done, 00:07:44.260 --> 00:07:46.700 I mean, there was definitely some carelessness, 00:07:46.700 --> 00:07:50.300 some recklessness that existed in my life, 00:07:50.300 --> 00:07:52.500 and I remember a friend of mine 00:07:52.500 --> 00:07:54.780 that was going to FCA with us at the time 00:07:54.780 --> 00:07:57.180 was a part of this, he said, you know, 00:07:57.180 --> 00:07:58.700 this stuck with me, he said, 00:07:58.700 --> 00:08:01.060 he said, "My testimony's boring." 00:08:01.060 --> 00:08:05.460 I said, "Well, how is your testimony boring?" 00:08:05.460 --> 00:08:06.940 He's like, "You know, I was just kind of one of those kids. 00:08:06.940 --> 00:08:07.960 "I got saved when I was five. 00:08:07.960 --> 00:08:09.800 "I've never not known who Jesus is. 00:08:09.800 --> 00:08:11.260 "Like, it's just always been there, 00:08:11.260 --> 00:08:13.100 "and I've struggled with sin and all of these things, 00:08:13.100 --> 00:08:18.100 "but there's just been this life lived of following Jesus." 00:08:18.100 --> 00:08:21.300 It's like, man, that's not boring at all. 00:08:21.300 --> 00:08:22.900 Like, that's evidence of the goodness 00:08:22.900 --> 00:08:24.620 and the grace of God, of who God is 00:08:24.620 --> 00:08:27.580 and what God has done, but continuing on 00:08:27.580 --> 00:08:31.180 to what God is doing in your life as well. 00:08:31.180 --> 00:08:33.980 So a testimony in the past, 00:08:33.980 --> 00:08:37.020 testimony in your salvation is important, 00:08:37.020 --> 00:08:38.780 but then there's the testimony 00:08:38.780 --> 00:08:40.300 of what is God currently doing in your life? 00:08:40.300 --> 00:08:42.380 How is God molding you and shaping you 00:08:42.380 --> 00:08:43.900 and who he's called you to be more 00:08:43.900 --> 00:08:47.420 in the reflection of who Christ is? 00:08:47.420 --> 00:08:50.040 And when we look at this in the life of Joseph, 00:08:50.040 --> 00:08:53.460 this is the piece that I wanna draw us to a little bit, 00:08:53.460 --> 00:08:55.260 is for you and I to understand 00:08:55.260 --> 00:08:57.620 that it's not that our testimony has been written, 00:08:57.620 --> 00:08:59.700 it's that our testimony is being written. 00:08:59.700 --> 00:09:03.700 And what does that look like in your life? 00:09:03.700 --> 00:09:08.360 So let's start, we're gonna read all of chapter 39, 00:09:08.360 --> 00:09:11.020 and then pause for a little bit there. 00:09:11.020 --> 00:09:14.020 It says, "Now, Joseph had been brought down to Egypt." 00:09:14.020 --> 00:09:15.420 Remember, Pastor Dave, from two weeks ago, 00:09:15.420 --> 00:09:16.460 talking about Joseph's been sold 00:09:16.460 --> 00:09:17.900 into slavery by his brothers. 00:09:17.900 --> 00:09:20.660 "And in Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, 00:09:20.660 --> 00:09:23.460 "the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, 00:09:23.460 --> 00:09:25.620 "had bought him from the Ishmaelites 00:09:25.620 --> 00:09:27.260 "who had brought him down there." 00:09:27.260 --> 00:09:29.580 This is gonna be an important part 00:09:29.580 --> 00:09:30.660 that I want you to focus in on. 00:09:30.660 --> 00:09:35.660 The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, 00:09:35.660 --> 00:09:39.700 and he was in the house of his Egyptian master. 00:09:39.700 --> 00:09:41.060 Again, we see this, his master saw 00:09:41.060 --> 00:09:42.980 that the Lord was with him, 00:09:42.980 --> 00:09:45.420 and that the Lord caused all that he did 00:09:45.420 --> 00:09:47.220 to succeed in his hands. 00:09:47.220 --> 00:09:51.020 So Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him, 00:09:51.020 --> 00:09:53.380 and he made him overseer of his house 00:09:53.380 --> 00:09:55.920 and put him in charge of all that he had. 00:09:55.920 --> 00:09:59.940 From the time that he had made him overseer in his house 00:09:59.940 --> 00:10:01.780 over all that he had, the Lord blessed 00:10:01.780 --> 00:10:04.460 the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake. 00:10:04.460 --> 00:10:07.060 The blessing of the Lord was on all that he had 00:10:07.060 --> 00:10:09.700 in house and field. 00:10:09.700 --> 00:10:13.260 So he left all that he had in Joseph's charge. 00:10:13.260 --> 00:10:16.660 Because of him, he had no concern about anything 00:10:16.660 --> 00:10:18.780 but the food he ate. 00:10:18.780 --> 00:10:23.780 Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. 00:10:23.780 --> 00:10:26.500 And after a time, his master's wife 00:10:26.500 --> 00:10:30.540 cast her eyes on Joseph and said, "Lie with me." 00:10:30.540 --> 00:10:33.580 But he refused and said to his master's wife, 00:10:33.580 --> 00:10:36.640 "Behold, because of me, my master has no concern 00:10:36.640 --> 00:10:38.240 "about anything in the house, 00:10:38.240 --> 00:10:42.520 "and he has put everything that he has in my charge. 00:10:42.520 --> 00:10:46.360 "He is not greater in this house 00:10:46.360 --> 00:10:50.020 "than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me 00:10:50.020 --> 00:10:54.380 "except you, because you are his wife. 00:10:54.380 --> 00:10:59.300 "How then can I do this great wickedness and sin," 00:10:59.300 --> 00:11:01.100 very important, "against God?" 00:11:01.100 --> 00:11:06.940 And he said, and she spoke to Joseph day after day. 00:11:06.940 --> 00:11:10.480 He would not listen to her, to lie beside her 00:11:10.480 --> 00:11:11.980 or to be with her. 00:11:11.980 --> 00:11:14.700 Verse 11, "But one day, when he went into the house 00:11:14.700 --> 00:11:17.220 "to do his work, and none of the men of the house 00:11:17.220 --> 00:11:20.640 "was there in the house, she caught him by his garment, 00:11:20.640 --> 00:11:22.540 "saying, 'Lie with me.' 00:11:22.540 --> 00:11:24.980 "But he left his garment in her hand 00:11:24.980 --> 00:11:27.460 "and fled out of the house. 00:11:27.460 --> 00:11:30.180 "And as soon as she saw that he had left his garment 00:11:30.180 --> 00:11:32.660 "in her hand and had fled out of the house, 00:11:32.660 --> 00:11:34.540 "she called to the men of her household 00:11:34.540 --> 00:11:39.020 "and said to them, 'See, he has brought among us 00:11:39.020 --> 00:11:41.420 "'a Hebrew to laugh at us. 00:11:41.420 --> 00:11:44.640 "'He came in to me to lie with me, 00:11:44.640 --> 00:11:47.380 "'and I cried out with a loud voice. 00:11:47.380 --> 00:11:51.020 "'And as soon as he heard and lifted up my voice, 00:11:51.020 --> 00:11:54.300 "'I cried out, and he left his garment beside me 00:11:54.300 --> 00:11:56.240 "'and fled out of the house.' 00:11:56.240 --> 00:11:58.780 "Then she laid up his garment by her 00:11:58.780 --> 00:12:00.920 "until his master came home, 00:12:00.920 --> 00:12:03.660 "and she told him the same story, saying, 00:12:03.660 --> 00:12:07.460 "'The Hebrew servant whom you have brought among us 00:12:07.460 --> 00:12:09.860 "'came in to me to laugh at me, 00:12:09.860 --> 00:12:12.400 "'but as soon as I lifted up my voice and cried, 00:12:12.400 --> 00:12:15.900 "'he left his garment beside me and fled out of the house. 00:12:15.900 --> 00:12:18.720 "'As soon as his master heard the words 00:12:18.720 --> 00:12:20.260 "'that his wife spoke to him, 00:12:20.260 --> 00:12:22.900 "'This is the way your servant treated me,' 00:12:22.900 --> 00:12:24.620 "his anger was kindled. 00:12:24.620 --> 00:12:28.380 "And Joseph's master took him and put him into prison, 00:12:28.380 --> 00:12:30.900 "the place where the king's prisoners were confined, 00:12:30.900 --> 00:12:32.580 "and he was there in prison." 00:12:32.580 --> 00:12:36.120 Verse 21, important, "But the Lord was with Joseph 00:12:36.120 --> 00:12:38.220 "and showed him steadfast love 00:12:38.220 --> 00:12:40.440 "and gave him favor in the sight 00:12:40.440 --> 00:12:42.080 "of the keeper of the prison. 00:12:42.080 --> 00:12:44.360 "And the keeper of the prison put Joseph in charge 00:12:44.360 --> 00:12:47.140 "of all of the prisoners who were in the prison. 00:12:47.140 --> 00:12:50.320 "Whatever was done there, he was the one who did it. 00:12:50.320 --> 00:12:52.280 "The keeper of the prison paid no attention 00:12:52.280 --> 00:12:55.820 "to anything that was in Joseph's charge 00:12:55.820 --> 00:12:59.060 "because the Lord was with him. 00:12:59.060 --> 00:13:04.060 "And whatever he did, the Lord made it succeed." 00:13:04.060 --> 00:13:05.920 What I want us to talk about this morning 00:13:05.920 --> 00:13:08.400 is the reality that right now, that you and I, 00:13:08.400 --> 00:13:11.200 we are writing our testimony. 00:13:11.200 --> 00:13:13.600 Right now, whether you think about this 00:13:13.600 --> 00:13:16.960 intentionally or not, that you and I 00:13:16.960 --> 00:13:19.680 are writing the story of our life. 00:13:19.680 --> 00:13:23.440 That you and I have a very set of specific circumstances 00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:25.780 and details that vary from person to person. 00:13:25.780 --> 00:13:27.920 We have very specific differences 00:13:27.920 --> 00:13:29.800 in who we are and our personalities. 00:13:29.800 --> 00:13:32.120 We have some very specific differences of things 00:13:32.120 --> 00:13:34.000 that have happened and taken place in our life. 00:13:34.000 --> 00:13:38.040 But you and I are writing our testimony. 00:13:38.040 --> 00:13:41.280 And there will be people that refer to us, 00:13:41.280 --> 00:13:44.160 that look at who we are by evidence of what they see, 00:13:44.160 --> 00:13:46.480 of what they understand, of what they believe us to be. 00:13:46.480 --> 00:13:49.840 And in many instances, this is our testimony. 00:13:49.840 --> 00:13:52.640 And there are things in your life 00:13:52.640 --> 00:13:57.640 that if allowed, will determine, will influence, 00:13:57.640 --> 00:14:01.140 and will impact your testimony for the positive 00:14:01.140 --> 00:14:03.400 or for the negative. 00:14:03.400 --> 00:14:07.240 And my hope for you and for I, that in who we are, 00:14:07.240 --> 00:14:11.040 in the writing of our testimony, of what we will see, 00:14:11.040 --> 00:14:14.960 is that our character that matches the testimony. 00:14:14.960 --> 00:14:18.200 A character that matches testimony. 00:14:18.200 --> 00:14:19.600 That if I were to say to you, 00:14:19.600 --> 00:14:22.760 share your testimony of Christ with me, 00:14:22.760 --> 00:14:24.920 that what you talk about in your past 00:14:24.920 --> 00:14:28.800 and what you talk about in your salvation moment 00:14:28.800 --> 00:14:32.340 matches with who that you really are. 00:14:32.340 --> 00:14:34.320 And it's the desire that I have for you, 00:14:34.320 --> 00:14:36.240 and it's the desire that I have for me. 00:14:36.240 --> 00:14:39.320 And Joseph is one of my favorite characters 00:14:39.320 --> 00:14:43.240 in all of scripture, because this is what we see in him. 00:14:43.240 --> 00:14:48.240 We saw through, and the lineage of his family before him, 00:14:48.240 --> 00:14:50.160 of the mountaintops and the valleys, 00:14:50.160 --> 00:14:51.680 of the times of in between, 00:14:51.680 --> 00:14:54.240 where the situations in their life 00:14:54.240 --> 00:14:56.160 would determine the testimony 00:14:56.160 --> 00:14:57.480 of what people said about them. 00:14:57.480 --> 00:14:58.640 But that's not what we find, 00:14:58.640 --> 00:15:02.160 that's not what we see here with Joseph. 00:15:02.620 --> 00:15:06.100 Joseph has character in his testimony, 00:15:06.100 --> 00:15:07.900 because it's very evident what we said, 00:15:07.900 --> 00:15:10.760 underlined in my Bible, in God's word, 00:15:10.760 --> 00:15:14.140 because the Lord was with Joseph. 00:15:14.140 --> 00:15:19.140 The power of Joseph's testimony is not found in, 00:15:19.140 --> 00:15:22.340 man, this is just a really good guy. 00:15:22.340 --> 00:15:25.300 But the power of his testimony 00:15:25.300 --> 00:15:28.080 is found in the God who's with him, 00:15:29.180 --> 00:15:32.380 and who's evident in his life. 00:15:32.380 --> 00:15:36.560 The question is this, go back to the friend of mine 00:15:36.560 --> 00:15:40.280 who said, man, I wish my testimony was like yours. 00:15:40.280 --> 00:15:45.120 Your testimony and my testimony may be similar, 00:15:45.120 --> 00:15:46.020 may be different. 00:15:46.020 --> 00:15:50.520 I will tell you what I believe makes a powerful testimony. 00:15:50.520 --> 00:15:55.080 It's not at what age did you get saved. 00:15:55.080 --> 00:15:57.880 It's not at what depth of depravity 00:15:57.880 --> 00:15:59.980 did you find yourself in. 00:15:59.980 --> 00:16:02.900 It's not in what struggles did you overcome. 00:16:02.900 --> 00:16:06.220 But what I believe makes the power of the testimony is this, 00:16:06.220 --> 00:16:09.360 is who does the testimony point to? 00:16:09.360 --> 00:16:16.300 And in this what we see, in the testimony of Joseph, 00:16:16.300 --> 00:16:21.740 the Lord was with him. 00:16:21.740 --> 00:16:24.900 In Matthew chapter five, Jesus tells at the beginning 00:16:24.900 --> 00:16:26.300 of the servant on the mount, 00:16:27.140 --> 00:16:29.420 to go out into the world 00:16:29.420 --> 00:16:34.140 and to let our light shine before others. 00:16:34.140 --> 00:16:37.720 To go and do good, to love, to care, 00:16:37.720 --> 00:16:39.580 to be all of these things 00:16:39.580 --> 00:16:44.420 so that people will brag on who we are and what we've done. 00:16:44.420 --> 00:16:46.740 It's not at all what he says. 00:16:46.740 --> 00:16:48.580 He says we go and we do these things 00:16:48.580 --> 00:16:50.340 so that others may see our good works, 00:16:50.340 --> 00:16:54.600 others may see our testimony and give glory to God. 00:16:55.620 --> 00:17:00.060 So Joseph has character because the Lord was with Joseph. 00:17:00.060 --> 00:17:02.800 The second thing we see about Joseph's testimony here 00:17:02.800 --> 00:17:05.800 is others should see your testimony, not just hear about it. 00:17:05.800 --> 00:17:11.400 I think it's very interesting that in two instances, 00:17:11.400 --> 00:17:15.100 both in the master of the house, Potiphar, 00:17:15.100 --> 00:17:18.240 and those in charge of Joseph in the prison, 00:17:18.240 --> 00:17:23.240 both, the Bible says, saw that the Lord was with him. 00:17:23.780 --> 00:17:27.380 It's not just what he said, it's not just what they heard, 00:17:27.380 --> 00:17:30.340 but it's what they realized with their own eyes. 00:17:30.340 --> 00:17:33.660 It passed eyesight. 00:17:33.660 --> 00:17:37.020 It passed the test of faithfulness. 00:17:37.020 --> 00:17:41.880 When we understand as we write our story of our testimony, 00:17:41.880 --> 00:17:45.760 is that our testimony is a story about God, not about you. 00:17:45.760 --> 00:17:51.000 What did Joseph say to Potiphar's wife? 00:17:51.000 --> 00:17:53.180 You remember? 00:17:54.020 --> 00:17:56.820 Joseph talked about the faithfulness 00:17:56.820 --> 00:17:59.020 of what her husband had entrusted him to. 00:17:59.020 --> 00:18:02.900 Joseph was very clear in laying out 00:18:02.900 --> 00:18:05.220 the character of who he was. 00:18:05.220 --> 00:18:07.340 You see, Joseph was a man of his word. 00:18:07.340 --> 00:18:11.100 Joseph was a man of integrity, but in this, he said, 00:18:11.100 --> 00:18:15.540 if I were to do this, this that you're asking of me, 00:18:15.540 --> 00:18:19.340 this even that you're demanding of me in this moment, 00:18:19.340 --> 00:18:22.300 that I would sin against God, 00:18:22.900 --> 00:18:26.700 more so than what I would lose on this earth, 00:18:26.700 --> 00:18:31.340 is what I would cause against my creator, 00:18:31.340 --> 00:18:37.260 but that your testimony is not the story about you, 00:18:37.260 --> 00:18:42.100 but the story about God in your life. 00:18:42.100 --> 00:18:45.260 And so what we see from 39 that will continue to ring true 00:18:45.260 --> 00:18:49.420 in 40 and 41 this morning is to let your testimony 00:18:49.420 --> 00:18:53.620 drive your character and not your situation 00:18:53.620 --> 00:18:55.540 to drive your character. 00:18:55.540 --> 00:18:59.860 Joseph could have chalked it up to a weak moment. 00:18:59.860 --> 00:19:01.740 Joseph could have walked, chalked it up to, 00:19:01.740 --> 00:19:04.660 you don't know what it's like to have this continual 00:19:04.660 --> 00:19:07.400 day after day pursuit in my life, 00:19:07.400 --> 00:19:11.340 but Joseph determined in himself that it's the testimony 00:19:11.340 --> 00:19:14.380 of the faithfulness of God who was with him 00:19:14.380 --> 00:19:18.300 and not the testimony of the situation 00:19:18.300 --> 00:19:19.680 that he found himself in. 00:19:19.680 --> 00:19:24.960 You see, Joseph's surrender was not to the moment. 00:19:24.960 --> 00:19:30.140 Joseph's surrender was to his God. 00:19:30.140 --> 00:19:35.040 You see, Joseph was the victim. 00:19:35.040 --> 00:19:39.900 Joseph was the one taken advantage of. 00:19:39.900 --> 00:19:44.360 Joseph was the one spoken falsely against, 00:19:45.500 --> 00:19:50.500 but yet those who responded in anger was not the victim, 00:19:50.500 --> 00:19:56.780 but the attacker, the deceiver, 00:19:56.780 --> 00:20:00.900 and Joseph responded in faith. 00:20:00.900 --> 00:20:04.680 The thing that we see in Joseph's life that we find 00:20:04.680 --> 00:20:07.700 within our testimony of how God is working 00:20:07.700 --> 00:20:11.220 and how God is moving is you may not have found yourself 00:20:11.220 --> 00:20:14.000 in situations like Joseph finds himself, 00:20:14.000 --> 00:20:16.420 but you're gonna find yourself in a situation 00:20:16.420 --> 00:20:19.140 where you are standing and you begin to look at 00:20:19.140 --> 00:20:21.220 and you begin to sense and you begin to think, 00:20:21.220 --> 00:20:26.220 man, God, I'm just trying to do all that you have 00:20:26.220 --> 00:20:30.820 for me to do, and while my testimony rings true with that, 00:20:30.820 --> 00:20:33.580 the situation that I find myself begins 00:20:33.580 --> 00:20:35.260 to speak differently to that. 00:20:35.260 --> 00:20:39.420 And what's important about the testimony of what we see 00:20:39.420 --> 00:20:43.340 of how God is working and moving in the life of Joseph 00:20:44.160 --> 00:20:47.160 is that a testimony of faith in Joseph's life 00:20:47.160 --> 00:20:50.400 and a testimony of faith in your life and in mine 00:20:50.400 --> 00:20:55.400 seeks to trust God before it seeks to understand or act. 00:20:55.400 --> 00:20:59.640 God, I'm gonna trust you. 00:20:59.640 --> 00:21:03.420 God, I don't know why I'm here. 00:21:03.420 --> 00:21:07.400 God, I don't know why my brothers did this to me. 00:21:07.400 --> 00:21:10.700 Of all of the people who could have bought me, 00:21:11.600 --> 00:21:15.300 I don't understand how I ended up in this house. 00:21:15.300 --> 00:21:19.220 God, when I found myself in this house, 00:21:19.220 --> 00:21:22.940 I sought to do all that you would have for me to do. 00:21:22.940 --> 00:21:24.680 God, I was faithful. 00:21:24.680 --> 00:21:29.040 The character was there, and instead of shaking his fist 00:21:29.040 --> 00:21:33.580 and questioning God about why he is where he is, 00:21:33.580 --> 00:21:37.400 what we will see is that Joseph trusts 00:21:37.400 --> 00:21:39.740 that God's in control. 00:21:40.780 --> 00:21:42.140 Let's start chapter 40. 00:21:42.140 --> 00:21:48.140 Sometime after this, so Joseph's in prison. 00:21:48.140 --> 00:21:53.100 Sometime after this, the cupbearer of the king of Egypt 00:21:53.100 --> 00:21:57.940 and his baker committed an offense against their lord, 00:21:57.940 --> 00:21:59.420 the king of Egypt. 00:21:59.420 --> 00:22:04.520 And Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, 00:22:04.520 --> 00:22:08.260 the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, 00:22:08.260 --> 00:22:11.120 and he put them in custody in the house 00:22:11.120 --> 00:22:14.000 of the captain of the guard in the prison 00:22:14.000 --> 00:22:16.980 where Joseph was confined. 00:22:16.980 --> 00:22:20.500 The captain of the guard appointed Joseph to be with them, 00:22:20.500 --> 00:22:23.260 and he attended them, and they continued 00:22:23.260 --> 00:22:25.820 for some time in custody. 00:22:25.820 --> 00:22:28.600 And one night, they both dreamed. 00:22:28.600 --> 00:22:30.620 Dreams are important in the life of Joseph. 00:22:30.620 --> 00:22:33.620 We saw this all the way back when Pastor Dave shared 00:22:33.620 --> 00:22:36.260 in Genesis 37 a couple weeks ago. 00:22:36.260 --> 00:22:38.940 It says, "And they both dreamed, and the cupbearer 00:22:38.940 --> 00:22:40.620 "and the baker of the king of Egypt, 00:22:40.620 --> 00:22:44.060 "who were confined in the prison, each his own dream, 00:22:44.060 --> 00:22:47.580 "and each dream with its own interpretation. 00:22:47.580 --> 00:22:49.400 "And when Joseph came to them in the morning, 00:22:49.400 --> 00:22:52.500 "he saw that they were troubled. 00:22:52.500 --> 00:22:55.660 "So he asked Pharaoh's officers who were with him 00:22:55.660 --> 00:22:58.620 "in custody in his master's house, 00:22:58.620 --> 00:23:01.380 "'Why are your faces downcast today?' 00:23:01.380 --> 00:23:04.280 "And they said to him, 'We have had dreams, 00:23:04.280 --> 00:23:07.180 "'and there is no one to interpret them.' 00:23:07.180 --> 00:23:08.740 "And Joseph said to them, 00:23:08.740 --> 00:23:11.520 "'Do not interpretations belong to God? 00:23:11.520 --> 00:23:13.500 "'Please tell them to me.' 00:23:13.500 --> 00:23:16.100 "Verse nine, 'So the chief cupbearer told his dream 00:23:16.100 --> 00:23:18.060 "to Joseph and said to him, 00:23:18.060 --> 00:23:21.360 "'In my dream there was a vine before me, 00:23:21.360 --> 00:23:24.220 "'and on the vine there were three branches. 00:23:24.220 --> 00:23:27.040 "'As soon as it budded, its blossoms shot forth, 00:23:27.040 --> 00:23:30.020 "'and the clusters ripened into grapes. 00:23:30.020 --> 00:23:32.720 "'Pharaoh's cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes 00:23:32.720 --> 00:23:34.500 "'and pressed them into Pharaoh's cup 00:23:34.500 --> 00:23:36.760 "'and placed the cup in Pharaoh's hand.' 00:23:36.760 --> 00:23:37.940 "And then Joseph said to me, 00:23:37.940 --> 00:23:40.980 "'This is its interpretation. 00:23:40.980 --> 00:23:43.980 "'The three branches are three days. 00:23:43.980 --> 00:23:46.600 "'In three days, Pharaoh will lift up your head 00:23:46.600 --> 00:23:48.420 "'and restore you to your office, 00:23:48.420 --> 00:23:51.560 "'and you shall place Pharaoh's cup in his hand 00:23:51.560 --> 00:23:53.820 "'as formerly when you were his cupbearer. 00:23:53.820 --> 00:23:56.960 "'Only remember me when it is well with you, 00:23:56.960 --> 00:24:00.760 "'and please do me the kindness to mention me to Pharaoh, 00:24:00.760 --> 00:24:03.900 "'and so get me out of this house, 00:24:03.900 --> 00:24:07.180 "'for I was indeed stolen out of the land of Hebrews, 00:24:07.180 --> 00:24:10.120 "'and here also I have done nothing 00:24:10.120 --> 00:24:13.260 "'that they should put me into the pit.'" 00:24:13.260 --> 00:24:16.780 Verse 16, "Then the chief baker saw 00:24:16.780 --> 00:24:19.140 "that the interpretation was favorable, 00:24:19.140 --> 00:24:23.020 "and he said to Joseph, 'I also had a dream, 00:24:23.020 --> 00:24:27.320 "'and there were three cake baskets on my head. 00:24:27.320 --> 00:24:28.700 "'And in the uppermost basket, 00:24:28.700 --> 00:24:32.900 "'there were all sorts of baked foods for Pharaoh, 00:24:32.900 --> 00:24:34.680 "'that the birds were eating it 00:24:34.680 --> 00:24:37.660 "'out of the basket on my head.' 00:24:37.660 --> 00:24:40.420 "And Joseph answered and said, 00:24:40.420 --> 00:24:42.840 "'This is its interpretation. 00:24:42.840 --> 00:24:45.900 "'The three baskets are three days. 00:24:45.900 --> 00:24:49.800 "'In three days, Pharaoh will lift up your head from you 00:24:49.800 --> 00:24:51.660 "'and hang you on a tree, 00:24:51.660 --> 00:24:55.340 "'and the birds will eat the flesh from you.'" 00:24:55.340 --> 00:24:56.700 Right? 00:24:56.700 --> 00:24:59.880 He did not get the good interpretation. 00:24:59.880 --> 00:25:05.320 Verse 20, "On the third day, which was Pharaoh's birthday, 00:25:05.320 --> 00:25:07.420 "he made a feast for all his servants, 00:25:07.420 --> 00:25:09.960 "and lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer 00:25:09.960 --> 00:25:12.880 "and the head of the chief baker among his servants. 00:25:12.880 --> 00:25:15.760 "He restored the chief cupbearer to his position, 00:25:15.760 --> 00:25:18.460 "and he placed the cup in Pharaoh's hand. 00:25:18.460 --> 00:25:20.420 "But he hanged the chief baker 00:25:20.420 --> 00:25:24.120 "just as Joseph had interpreted to them. 00:25:24.120 --> 00:25:27.540 "Yet," verse 23, 00:25:27.540 --> 00:25:30.500 "Yet the chief cupbearer 00:25:30.500 --> 00:25:34.680 "did not remember Joseph, 00:25:34.680 --> 00:25:36.180 "but forgot him." 00:25:36.180 --> 00:25:40.920 What should your testimony look like? 00:25:40.920 --> 00:25:45.340 Well, argue and look and see from God's Word. 00:25:45.340 --> 00:25:47.500 In the life of Joseph, 00:25:47.500 --> 00:25:49.780 hopefully you can begin to see and understand 00:25:49.780 --> 00:25:50.760 that there's some connections 00:25:50.760 --> 00:25:53.360 between Joseph's testimony and yours. 00:25:54.140 --> 00:25:56.920 There are people who seek to do you harm. 00:25:56.920 --> 00:26:01.040 You find yourself the victim in certain situations. 00:26:01.040 --> 00:26:02.600 There are things that are out of your hand. 00:26:02.600 --> 00:26:05.120 There are things that are out of control, 00:26:05.120 --> 00:26:06.040 out of your control. 00:26:06.040 --> 00:26:08.120 There are times when you've been passed over. 00:26:08.120 --> 00:26:10.480 There's times when you've been forgotten about. 00:26:10.480 --> 00:26:11.840 There's times where you wonder, 00:26:11.840 --> 00:26:13.600 "Why in the world am I walking through this? 00:26:13.600 --> 00:26:15.760 "Why in the world am I experiencing this?" 00:26:15.760 --> 00:26:17.320 But we'll find, and what we'll see 00:26:17.320 --> 00:26:19.040 in the life of Joseph in this, 00:26:19.040 --> 00:26:22.280 is a testimony that trusts, 00:26:22.280 --> 00:26:24.760 a testimony that trusts. 00:26:24.760 --> 00:26:25.720 If you're here this morning, 00:26:25.720 --> 00:26:26.940 and you're a follower of Jesus Christ, 00:26:26.940 --> 00:26:28.680 I wanna ask you a question. 00:26:28.680 --> 00:26:30.520 Do you trust God? 00:26:30.520 --> 00:26:31.600 Do you trust God? 00:26:31.600 --> 00:26:37.240 That answer for you, I'm gonna be willing to say is yes, 00:26:37.240 --> 00:26:38.280 you do. 00:26:38.280 --> 00:26:40.640 You do trust God, well done. 00:26:40.640 --> 00:26:42.860 Here's another question, though, that I wanna ask you, 00:26:42.860 --> 00:26:44.980 a question that I've wrestled with myself 00:26:44.980 --> 00:26:46.560 throughout the course of this week, 00:26:46.560 --> 00:26:51.560 is this, do you trust God enough to wait on God? 00:26:52.160 --> 00:26:57.160 Do you trust God enough to wait on God? 00:26:57.160 --> 00:27:02.800 You see, in order for Joseph to trust God, 00:27:02.800 --> 00:27:06.240 Joseph needed to wait on God. 00:27:06.240 --> 00:27:09.960 You know, it's easy to wait 00:27:09.960 --> 00:27:15.020 when there's an end to our waiting that we know. 00:27:15.020 --> 00:27:18.040 Christmas is coming. 00:27:18.040 --> 00:27:21.160 I love Christmas. 00:27:21.880 --> 00:27:26.280 I love everything about Christmas. 00:27:26.280 --> 00:27:28.200 I'll talk about Christmas stories 00:27:28.200 --> 00:27:31.400 over and over and over again. 00:27:31.400 --> 00:27:32.880 I already had someone, Aaron, 00:27:32.880 --> 00:27:34.560 I had someone come up to me this morning 00:27:34.560 --> 00:27:36.860 to show me some new inflatables. 00:27:36.860 --> 00:27:40.720 Why do you shake your head no? 00:27:40.720 --> 00:27:45.040 You need to trust that this might be what God has for us. 00:27:49.160 --> 00:27:54.160 I remember being a little kid, man, and just knowing, 00:27:54.160 --> 00:27:58.000 knowing that Christmas morning was coming, 00:27:58.000 --> 00:28:01.920 and knowing that the items on that list, 00:28:01.920 --> 00:28:04.220 the things that I'd asked for, 00:28:04.220 --> 00:28:08.160 that kept me up at night was gonna come to an end, 00:28:08.160 --> 00:28:10.040 and I could not wait. 00:28:10.040 --> 00:28:15.920 For Joseph to wait was a waiting without a deadline 00:28:17.820 --> 00:28:19.640 that Joseph was aware of. 00:28:19.640 --> 00:28:24.720 Paul writes in Romans 5 about waiting. 00:28:24.720 --> 00:28:29.120 He uses a little different words though than that. 00:28:29.120 --> 00:28:32.800 He says, "Not only that, but we rejoice in our suffering, 00:28:32.800 --> 00:28:38.580 "knowing that suffering produces endurance, 00:28:38.580 --> 00:28:43.840 "and endurance produces character, 00:28:43.840 --> 00:28:47.780 "and character produces hope." 00:28:47.780 --> 00:28:52.020 You see, what we find is that as we wait, 00:28:52.020 --> 00:28:54.980 as we endure, as we persevere, 00:28:54.980 --> 00:28:57.820 as we're looking forward to this season to end, 00:28:57.820 --> 00:29:00.840 and for God to work, and for God to move, 00:29:00.840 --> 00:29:04.280 what we find is that God is doing something, 00:29:04.280 --> 00:29:09.040 not only there, but God is doing something here. 00:29:10.680 --> 00:29:15.540 Joseph shared his story. 00:29:15.540 --> 00:29:21.460 Joseph has been a man in prison of character. 00:29:21.460 --> 00:29:24.240 Joseph has said, "I didn't deserve this, 00:29:24.240 --> 00:29:27.400 "I didn't deserve that," but he doesn't grow bitter, 00:29:27.400 --> 00:29:31.240 he doesn't grow angry, he doesn't grow spiteful, 00:29:31.240 --> 00:29:34.100 but instead he grows patient. 00:29:34.100 --> 00:29:37.720 My plea for you this morning, 00:29:37.720 --> 00:29:39.720 as you begin to look at your own life 00:29:39.720 --> 00:29:42.320 in these seasons of suffering that you walk through, 00:29:42.320 --> 00:29:44.640 is do not let the troubles of this world 00:29:44.640 --> 00:29:48.200 drive you from God, but let the troubles of this world 00:29:48.200 --> 00:29:49.640 drive you to God. 00:29:49.640 --> 00:29:55.080 In the 20 years now that God's given me 00:29:55.080 --> 00:29:58.360 the wonderful privilege to serve in leadership 00:29:58.360 --> 00:30:03.360 within his church, what I've noticed time and time again 00:30:03.360 --> 00:30:07.840 is men and women walking away from faith, 00:30:07.840 --> 00:30:10.320 walking away from the church, 00:30:10.320 --> 00:30:13.560 not just because this terrible sin pattern 00:30:13.560 --> 00:30:17.600 infiltrated their life and they became a person 00:30:17.600 --> 00:30:19.360 who one day they weren't before, 00:30:19.360 --> 00:30:21.520 but is instead on the other side of that, 00:30:21.520 --> 00:30:23.440 that in walking through a hardship, 00:30:23.440 --> 00:30:25.560 and walking through a suffering, 00:30:25.560 --> 00:30:28.000 and walking through a difficulty of life, 00:30:28.000 --> 00:30:30.600 whether it be death, loss, financial hardship, 00:30:30.600 --> 00:30:33.160 marriage difficulties, rebellious children, 00:30:33.160 --> 00:30:36.360 instead of clinging to God, they run from him. 00:30:37.440 --> 00:30:38.520 They run from him. 00:30:38.520 --> 00:30:44.040 When the temperature of life begins to crank up 00:30:44.040 --> 00:30:47.800 and the battle of this world begins to ensue, 00:30:47.800 --> 00:30:51.200 instead of holding on to the one who will be faithful 00:30:51.200 --> 00:30:53.680 to get them through, they shake their fist 00:30:53.680 --> 00:30:54.680 and they run at him. 00:30:54.680 --> 00:30:57.640 But it's why Paul writes to Timothy in 2 Timothy, 00:30:57.640 --> 00:31:01.320 and he reminds him that this life, 00:31:01.320 --> 00:31:05.280 it's not a walk in the park and a picnic to be had, 00:31:06.700 --> 00:31:11.620 but it's a race, it's a battle, it's a fight, 00:31:11.620 --> 00:31:17.260 and that our responsibility of what God calls us to 00:31:17.260 --> 00:31:21.740 is not to think in and of ourself that we have to win, 00:31:21.740 --> 00:31:26.120 but to finish, to finish, 00:31:26.120 --> 00:31:31.120 because Christ is the one who will win on our behalf. 00:31:34.320 --> 00:31:39.320 So Joseph, he waits, and he waits, and he waits. 00:31:39.320 --> 00:31:48.660 Chapter 41, after two whole years, 00:31:48.660 --> 00:31:54.540 just pause there. 00:31:54.540 --> 00:31:58.360 Just pause there. 00:31:58.360 --> 00:32:03.120 I don't know your season of struggle, 00:32:04.120 --> 00:32:08.400 I don't know the battle where you find yourself, 00:32:08.400 --> 00:32:11.980 I don't know the suffering that you find, 00:32:11.980 --> 00:32:16.860 but I feel the weight of your story, 00:32:16.860 --> 00:32:19.160 and I feel the weight of Joseph's. 00:32:19.160 --> 00:32:24.240 After two whole years 00:32:24.240 --> 00:32:27.680 of being innocent but imprisoned, 00:32:27.680 --> 00:32:32.360 of sharing but people forget, 00:32:33.360 --> 00:32:38.120 over helping but it's not credited toward him, 00:32:38.120 --> 00:32:43.840 after two whole years, 00:32:43.840 --> 00:32:47.620 Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing by the Nile, 00:32:47.620 --> 00:32:53.740 and behold, there came up out of the Nile seven cows, 00:32:53.740 --> 00:32:59.040 attractive and plump, and they fed in the reed grass, 00:33:00.400 --> 00:33:05.000 and behold, seven other cows, ugly and thin, 00:33:05.000 --> 00:33:07.540 came up out of the Nile after them, 00:33:07.540 --> 00:33:10.600 and stood by the other cows on the bank of the Nile, 00:33:10.600 --> 00:33:15.440 and the ugly, thin cows ate up 00:33:15.440 --> 00:33:19.100 the seven attractive, plump cows, 00:33:19.100 --> 00:33:22.640 and Pharaoh awoke, and he fell asleep 00:33:22.640 --> 00:33:24.200 and dreamed a second time, 00:33:24.200 --> 00:33:28.760 and behold, seven ears of grain, 00:33:28.760 --> 00:33:31.720 plump and good, were growing on one stalk, 00:33:31.720 --> 00:33:36.800 and behold, after them sprouted seven ears, 00:33:36.800 --> 00:33:39.680 thin and blighted by the east wind, 00:33:39.680 --> 00:33:44.680 and the thin ears swallowed up the seven plump, full ears, 00:33:44.680 --> 00:33:48.680 and Pharaoh awoke, and behold, it was a dream. 00:33:48.680 --> 00:33:52.640 In the morning, his spirit was troubled, 00:33:52.640 --> 00:33:58.720 and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt, 00:33:58.800 --> 00:34:03.800 and all its wise men, and Pharaoh told them his dreams, 00:34:03.800 --> 00:34:08.400 but there was none who could interpret them to Pharaoh. 00:34:08.400 --> 00:34:12.760 Remember, two years later, 00:34:12.760 --> 00:34:18.480 then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, 00:34:18.480 --> 00:34:23.560 I remember my offenses today, 00:34:23.560 --> 00:34:26.600 when Pharaoh was angry with his servant, 00:34:26.600 --> 00:34:29.880 and put me and the chief baker in custody 00:34:29.880 --> 00:34:32.640 in the house of the captain of the guard. 00:34:32.640 --> 00:34:35.480 We dreamed on the same night, he and I, 00:34:35.480 --> 00:34:39.080 each having a dream with its own interpretation. 00:34:39.080 --> 00:34:41.600 A young Hebrew was there with us, 00:34:41.600 --> 00:34:44.240 a servant of the captain of the guard. 00:34:44.240 --> 00:34:47.320 When we told him, he interpreted our dreams to us, 00:34:47.320 --> 00:34:49.640 giving an interpretation to each man 00:34:49.640 --> 00:34:52.080 according to his dream, 00:34:52.080 --> 00:34:55.760 and as he interpreted to us, it came about. 00:34:55.760 --> 00:35:00.760 I was restored to my office, and the baker was hanged. 00:35:00.760 --> 00:35:05.920 Verse 14, then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, 00:35:05.920 --> 00:35:08.720 and they quickly brought him out of the pit, 00:35:08.720 --> 00:35:11.680 and when he had shaved himself and changed his clothes, 00:35:11.680 --> 00:35:14.960 he came in before Pharaoh, and Pharaoh said to Joseph, 00:35:14.960 --> 00:35:19.160 I've had a dream, and there's no one who can interpret it. 00:35:19.160 --> 00:35:22.820 I've heard it said of you, that when you hear a dream, 00:35:22.820 --> 00:35:24.280 you can interpret it. 00:35:24.280 --> 00:35:25.720 Look at verse 16. 00:35:25.720 --> 00:35:32.440 Joseph answered Pharaoh, it is not in me. 00:35:32.440 --> 00:35:37.260 God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer. 00:35:37.260 --> 00:35:40.680 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, 00:35:40.680 --> 00:35:44.120 behold, in my dream I was standing on the banks of the Nile. 00:35:44.120 --> 00:35:46.000 Seven cows, plump and attractive, 00:35:46.000 --> 00:35:48.360 came out of the Nile and fed in the reed grass. 00:35:48.360 --> 00:35:51.780 Seven other cows came up after them, very ugly and thin, 00:35:51.780 --> 00:35:54.520 as I've never seen in all of the land of Egypt, 00:35:54.520 --> 00:35:58.360 and the thin, ugly cows ate up the first seven plump cows, 00:35:58.360 --> 00:35:59.420 but when they had eaten them, 00:35:59.420 --> 00:36:02.620 no one would have known that they had eaten them, 00:36:02.620 --> 00:36:05.680 for they were still as ugly as at the beginning. 00:36:05.680 --> 00:36:07.000 Then I awoke. 00:36:07.000 --> 00:36:09.400 I also saw in my dream seven ears 00:36:09.400 --> 00:36:12.720 growing on one stalk, full and good. 00:36:12.720 --> 00:36:15.660 Seven ears withered thin and blighted in the east wind, 00:36:15.660 --> 00:36:17.960 sprouted after them, and the thin ears 00:36:17.960 --> 00:36:19.600 swallowed up the seven good ears, 00:36:19.600 --> 00:36:21.620 and I told it to the magicians, 00:36:21.620 --> 00:36:24.320 but there was no one who could explain it to me. 00:36:24.320 --> 00:36:26.940 Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, 00:36:26.940 --> 00:36:29.380 the dreams of Pharaoh are one. 00:36:29.380 --> 00:36:34.060 God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. 00:36:34.060 --> 00:36:36.700 The seven good cows are seven ears, 00:36:36.700 --> 00:36:39.020 and the seven good ears are seven years. 00:36:39.020 --> 00:36:40.780 The dreams are one. 00:36:40.780 --> 00:36:43.980 The seven lean and ugly cows that came up after them 00:36:43.980 --> 00:36:46.780 are seven years, that the seven empty blighted ears 00:36:46.780 --> 00:36:50.500 by the east wind are also seven years of famine. 00:36:50.500 --> 00:36:52.540 It is as I told Pharaoh, 00:36:52.540 --> 00:36:55.380 God has shown to Pharaoh what he is about to do. 00:36:55.380 --> 00:36:58.080 There will come seven years of great plenty 00:36:58.080 --> 00:36:59.900 throughout all the land of Egypt, 00:36:59.900 --> 00:37:02.900 but after them will arise seven years of famine, 00:37:02.900 --> 00:37:06.260 and all the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Egypt. 00:37:06.260 --> 00:37:08.180 The famine will consume the land, 00:37:08.180 --> 00:37:10.440 and plenty will be unknown in the land 00:37:10.440 --> 00:37:12.920 by reason of the famine that will follow, 00:37:12.920 --> 00:37:15.460 for it will be very severe. 00:37:15.460 --> 00:37:17.640 And the doubling of Pharaoh's dreams 00:37:17.640 --> 00:37:20.500 means that the thing is fixed by God, 00:37:20.500 --> 00:37:23.300 and God will shortly bring it about. 00:37:23.300 --> 00:37:27.700 Now, therefore, let Pharaoh select a discerning and wise man 00:37:27.700 --> 00:37:30.380 and set him over the land of Egypt. 00:37:30.380 --> 00:37:33.720 Let Pharaoh proceed to appoint overseers to the land 00:37:33.720 --> 00:37:36.160 and take one fifth of the produce of the land 00:37:36.160 --> 00:37:38.300 during the seven plentiful years, 00:37:38.300 --> 00:37:41.260 and let him gather all the food of these good years 00:37:41.260 --> 00:37:43.180 that are coming and store up grain 00:37:43.180 --> 00:37:46.220 under the authority of Pharaoh for food in the cities, 00:37:46.220 --> 00:37:49.280 and let them keep it that food shall be a reserve 00:37:49.280 --> 00:37:52.200 for the land against the seven years of famine 00:37:52.200 --> 00:37:54.500 that are to occur in the land of Egypt 00:37:54.500 --> 00:37:57.580 so that the land might not perish through the famine. 00:37:57.580 --> 00:38:00.460 Now, he lays it all out. 00:38:00.460 --> 00:38:03.940 Lays it all. 00:38:03.940 --> 00:38:08.020 Here's the dream, here's the interpretation, 00:38:08.020 --> 00:38:09.000 here's the action. 00:38:09.000 --> 00:38:11.340 Verse 37. 00:38:12.900 --> 00:38:17.460 This proposal pleased Pharaoh and all of his servants. 00:38:17.460 --> 00:38:20.980 And Pharaoh said to his servants, 00:38:20.980 --> 00:38:25.540 can we find a man like this in whom is the Spirit of God? 00:38:25.540 --> 00:38:26.500 Let's just pause there. 00:38:26.500 --> 00:38:28.540 Like, man, like sometimes the answer's right 00:38:28.540 --> 00:38:31.420 before your face and you ain't realizing it, right? 00:38:31.420 --> 00:38:32.360 Verse 39. 00:38:32.360 --> 00:38:34.620 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, 00:38:34.620 --> 00:38:36.660 since God has shown all of this, 00:38:36.660 --> 00:38:40.200 there is none so discerning and wise as you. 00:38:40.200 --> 00:38:42.100 You shall be over my house, 00:38:42.100 --> 00:38:45.740 and all my people shall order themselves as you command. 00:38:45.740 --> 00:38:50.220 Only as regards the throne will I be greater than you. 00:38:50.220 --> 00:38:51.980 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, 00:38:51.980 --> 00:38:55.380 see, I have set you over all the land of Egypt. 00:38:55.380 --> 00:39:00.340 Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his hand 00:39:00.340 --> 00:39:02.540 and put it on Joseph's hand, 00:39:02.540 --> 00:39:05.340 and clothed him in garments of fine linen, 00:39:05.340 --> 00:39:07.140 and put a gold chain about his neck, 00:39:08.220 --> 00:39:10.360 and made him ride in his second chariot. 00:39:10.360 --> 00:39:13.500 And they called out before him, bow the knee. 00:39:13.500 --> 00:39:17.800 Thus he set over all of the land of Egypt. 00:39:17.800 --> 00:39:19.240 Moreover, Pharaoh said to Joseph, 00:39:19.240 --> 00:39:22.440 I am Pharaoh, and without your consent, 00:39:22.440 --> 00:39:25.240 no one shall lift up hand or foot 00:39:25.240 --> 00:39:26.940 in all of the land of Egypt. 00:39:26.940 --> 00:39:32.680 And Pharaoh called Joseph's name Zathnapanea, 00:39:32.680 --> 00:39:36.680 and he gave him in marriage Azuneth, 00:39:36.680 --> 00:39:39.880 the daughter of Potiphar, priest of On. 00:39:39.880 --> 00:39:43.520 So Joseph went out over the land of Egypt. 00:39:43.520 --> 00:39:48.160 From slave to prisoner, 00:39:48.160 --> 00:39:52.700 from prisoner to second in charge. 00:39:52.700 --> 00:39:57.260 When you look at your testimony, 00:39:57.260 --> 00:40:03.080 may we have a testimony that expects. 00:40:03.080 --> 00:40:06.580 We have a testimony that expects. 00:40:07.580 --> 00:40:09.700 Now the key is what do we expect? 00:40:09.700 --> 00:40:13.820 What do you and I expect? 00:40:13.820 --> 00:40:15.260 In the moments, in the seasons, 00:40:15.260 --> 00:40:17.260 in the places where we find ourselves, 00:40:17.260 --> 00:40:18.500 what do we expect? 00:40:18.500 --> 00:40:21.700 What did Joseph expect? 00:40:21.700 --> 00:40:24.260 Vindication, no. 00:40:24.260 --> 00:40:27.100 Restoration, no. 00:40:27.100 --> 00:40:30.720 Wrongs to be made right, no. 00:40:30.720 --> 00:40:33.640 Retaliation, no. 00:40:33.640 --> 00:40:35.620 Vengeance, no. 00:40:36.460 --> 00:40:39.060 What I believe of what we find with the character 00:40:39.060 --> 00:40:41.700 and the response and the expectation is this, 00:40:41.700 --> 00:40:45.780 is that Joseph simply expected for God to work 00:40:45.780 --> 00:40:49.780 in God's time and in God's way. 00:40:49.780 --> 00:40:55.380 See Joseph didn't come with a bunch of 00:40:55.380 --> 00:40:56.740 but if you love me's, 00:40:56.740 --> 00:41:03.720 but Joseph came with a heart of saying but I can trust. 00:41:03.720 --> 00:41:06.020 But I can trust. 00:41:06.660 --> 00:41:07.820 But I can trust. 00:41:07.820 --> 00:41:10.980 Notice that Joseph in the moment, 00:41:10.980 --> 00:41:14.420 brought before Pharaoh, 00:41:14.420 --> 00:41:17.980 didn't say how can I leverage this for my good? 00:41:17.980 --> 00:41:22.380 But instead he leveraged it for God's good. 00:41:22.380 --> 00:41:28.080 God is writing the story of Joseph 00:41:28.080 --> 00:41:31.680 and Joseph through his character of who he is, 00:41:31.680 --> 00:41:34.940 is writing the story of his testimony. 00:41:34.940 --> 00:41:37.380 Think about your testimony this way. 00:41:37.380 --> 00:41:39.500 What is God doing? 00:41:39.500 --> 00:41:41.460 Where do you find yourself? 00:41:41.460 --> 00:41:43.740 And in this moment how are you reacting? 00:41:43.740 --> 00:41:47.580 And how we react when we're surrendered to God 00:41:47.580 --> 00:41:49.580 of who God is and what God is doing 00:41:49.580 --> 00:41:51.700 is to say God you're in control. 00:41:51.700 --> 00:41:54.740 And Joseph came with an expectation that God would work. 00:41:54.740 --> 00:41:58.220 And Joseph came with an expectation 00:41:58.220 --> 00:42:02.500 that when God leads him to, he'll respond and he did. 00:42:02.500 --> 00:42:04.220 And he did. 00:42:05.140 --> 00:42:07.220 Let's close out chapter 41, 00:42:07.220 --> 00:42:10.160 starting in verse 46. 00:42:10.160 --> 00:42:13.940 Joseph was 30 years old when he entered the service 00:42:13.940 --> 00:42:15.240 of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. 00:42:15.240 --> 00:42:18.740 And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh 00:42:18.740 --> 00:42:20.940 and went through all the land of Egypt. 00:42:20.940 --> 00:42:22.540 During the seven plentiful years, 00:42:22.540 --> 00:42:24.820 the earth produced abundantly. 00:42:24.820 --> 00:42:27.460 And he gathered up all the food of these seven years 00:42:27.460 --> 00:42:29.460 which occurred in the land of Egypt 00:42:29.460 --> 00:42:31.420 and he put the food in the cities. 00:42:31.420 --> 00:42:33.140 He put the food in every city, 00:42:33.140 --> 00:42:35.060 the food from the fields around it. 00:42:35.060 --> 00:42:37.700 And Joseph stored up grain in great abundance 00:42:37.700 --> 00:42:42.180 like the sand of the sea until he ceased to measure it 00:42:42.180 --> 00:42:44.460 for it could not be measured. 00:42:44.460 --> 00:42:45.740 Before the year of the famine, 00:42:45.740 --> 00:42:47.860 two sons were born to Joseph. 00:42:47.860 --> 00:42:50.420 Azunah, the daughter of Potiphar, 00:42:50.420 --> 00:42:52.980 priest of On bore them to him. 00:42:52.980 --> 00:42:56.820 And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh 00:42:56.820 --> 00:43:01.420 for he said, "God has made me forget all of my hardship 00:43:01.420 --> 00:43:03.100 "in my father's house." 00:43:03.100 --> 00:43:06.460 The name of the second son he called Ephraim 00:43:06.460 --> 00:43:11.460 for God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction. 00:43:11.460 --> 00:43:13.700 The seven years of plenty that occurred 00:43:13.700 --> 00:43:15.860 in the land of Egypt came to an end 00:43:15.860 --> 00:43:18.460 and the seven years of famine began to come 00:43:18.460 --> 00:43:20.180 as Joseph had said. 00:43:20.180 --> 00:43:22.460 And there was famine in all the lands 00:43:22.460 --> 00:43:25.060 but in the land of Egypt there was bread. 00:43:25.060 --> 00:43:27.700 And all the land of Egypt was famished. 00:43:27.700 --> 00:43:30.220 The people cried out to Pharaoh for bread 00:43:30.220 --> 00:43:32.420 and Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, 00:43:32.420 --> 00:43:36.900 "Go to Joseph, what he says to you, do." 00:43:36.900 --> 00:43:39.920 So when the famine had spread all over the land, 00:43:39.920 --> 00:43:41.860 Joseph opened all the storehouses 00:43:41.860 --> 00:43:43.900 and sold to the Egyptians. 00:43:43.900 --> 00:43:47.020 And the famine was severe in the land of Egypt. 00:43:47.020 --> 00:43:50.680 Moreover, all the earth came to Egypt, 00:43:50.680 --> 00:43:53.340 to Joseph to buy grain 00:43:53.340 --> 00:43:58.220 because the famine was severe all over the earth. 00:43:59.220 --> 00:44:04.220 Joseph doesn't have a testimony of I gotcha. 00:44:04.220 --> 00:44:10.240 Joseph doesn't have a testimony of I told you so. 00:44:10.240 --> 00:44:15.400 Joseph has a testimony of goodwill, of goodwill. 00:44:15.400 --> 00:44:18.680 You know, we kind of take these cliches sometimes 00:44:18.680 --> 00:44:21.040 but oftentimes they ring true. 00:44:21.040 --> 00:44:24.780 We hear the cliche, don't get bitter but get better. 00:44:24.780 --> 00:44:26.620 And it's true. 00:44:27.560 --> 00:44:32.560 Joseph had every moment to allow his heart to be hardened 00:44:32.560 --> 00:44:36.740 and instead he trusted God. 00:44:36.740 --> 00:44:39.980 He did it from a good heart 00:44:39.980 --> 00:44:42.580 but more importantly he did it from a godly heart 00:44:42.580 --> 00:44:45.340 because God was with him. 00:44:45.340 --> 00:44:49.580 And in his land of affliction 00:44:49.580 --> 00:44:52.460 and what we're gonna see after our Christmas series 00:44:52.460 --> 00:44:55.040 of how it spreads beyond there, 00:44:55.040 --> 00:45:00.040 Joseph being a man of God will choose to do good 00:45:00.040 --> 00:45:06.500 not to those who, not simply to those who just deserve it 00:45:06.500 --> 00:45:08.180 but to all. 00:45:08.180 --> 00:45:10.980 I wanna close with a story. 00:45:10.980 --> 00:45:17.740 This past Thursday I was invited to attend a lunch 00:45:17.740 --> 00:45:23.140 and at the lunch it was for a missions organization 00:45:23.140 --> 00:45:25.400 that my brother-in-law serves on the board. 00:45:25.400 --> 00:45:28.700 And he said, "I mean I would just love it if you could come, 00:45:28.700 --> 00:45:31.660 "if you could sit at the table with me 00:45:31.660 --> 00:45:35.080 "and hear the stories about what God is doing 00:45:35.080 --> 00:45:37.380 "in and amongst this missions organization." 00:45:37.380 --> 00:45:39.780 And my brother-in-law, this missions organization, 00:45:39.780 --> 00:45:44.780 they focus their work in Central Eastern Africa. 00:45:44.780 --> 00:45:48.280 My brother-in-law's been over there on mission trips 00:45:48.280 --> 00:45:51.540 largely to South Sudan and Sudan. 00:45:52.380 --> 00:45:56.940 Pastor got up there, I forget his name, 00:45:56.940 --> 00:45:59.140 he was a Sudanese pastor. 00:45:59.140 --> 00:46:03.300 And he got up and he shared part of his story. 00:46:03.300 --> 00:46:05.820 And if you're not familiar with Sudan 00:46:05.820 --> 00:46:07.900 and the area, the country that's there, 00:46:07.900 --> 00:46:12.900 it is a part of our world that the norm is civil war. 00:46:12.900 --> 00:46:17.060 Destructive civil war. 00:46:17.060 --> 00:46:20.440 Horrific civil war. 00:46:20.440 --> 00:46:23.180 Where there appears to be no end in sight. 00:46:23.180 --> 00:46:27.180 And he says, "Our people have gone through 00:46:27.180 --> 00:46:33.020 "great years of war and then few years of peace. 00:46:33.020 --> 00:46:37.920 "And when the war breaks out, the church moves 00:46:37.920 --> 00:46:41.880 "and there's refugee camps in Uganda that they travel to." 00:46:41.880 --> 00:46:44.300 He said, "So the war will break out, 00:46:44.300 --> 00:46:46.500 "we don't know how long the war will come, 00:46:46.500 --> 00:46:48.460 "but we know what comes with war 00:46:48.460 --> 00:46:52.260 "on the minimum of what we can expect is famine. 00:46:52.260 --> 00:46:58.080 "On the extreme of what we can expect is war criminals 00:46:58.080 --> 00:47:00.440 "tearing through our villages, 00:47:00.440 --> 00:47:03.740 "raping and killing everyone there." 00:47:03.740 --> 00:47:07.760 So the church, when war breaks out, 00:47:07.760 --> 00:47:11.920 they pack up in Sudan and they move. 00:47:11.920 --> 00:47:13.020 They move to Uganda. 00:47:13.020 --> 00:47:17.860 There was a local pastor who was there. 00:47:18.780 --> 00:47:23.780 An older gentleman who his life had only known 00:47:23.780 --> 00:47:28.620 war, famine, refugee camp. 00:47:28.620 --> 00:47:32.300 War, famine, refugee camp. 00:47:32.300 --> 00:47:33.820 His name's Pastor John. 00:47:33.820 --> 00:47:38.900 War broke out near his village. 00:47:38.900 --> 00:47:45.180 Everyone surrounds, begins to prepare to mobilize 00:47:45.360 --> 00:47:49.020 to get from where they are to Uganda, 00:47:49.020 --> 00:47:52.980 to find safety, to find refuge, to find peace. 00:47:52.980 --> 00:47:57.520 John says, "I'm gonna stay. 00:47:57.520 --> 00:47:59.760 "I'm gonna stay." 00:47:59.760 --> 00:48:03.280 Because you see, there are men and women and children, 00:48:03.280 --> 00:48:06.180 as many as mobilized and who left were limited 00:48:06.180 --> 00:48:09.720 in their capabilities of leaving and always stayed behind. 00:48:09.720 --> 00:48:13.000 And he said, "I don't just need to be the pastor 00:48:13.000 --> 00:48:14.720 "for those in the refugee camp. 00:48:15.720 --> 00:48:18.720 "I need to be the pastor for those here." 00:48:18.720 --> 00:48:21.340 Years went by. 00:48:21.340 --> 00:48:25.040 War tore through the villages. 00:48:25.040 --> 00:48:27.880 War tore through his village. 00:48:27.880 --> 00:48:30.340 Many people lost their life. 00:48:30.340 --> 00:48:35.820 And just like we heard in the story of Joseph in Egypt, 00:48:35.820 --> 00:48:39.340 famine began to consume. 00:48:39.340 --> 00:48:43.700 He said women were going out into the trees 00:48:43.700 --> 00:48:46.100 and would climb the trees 00:48:46.100 --> 00:48:49.740 and take whatever leaf they could find off, 00:48:49.740 --> 00:48:54.280 put it in water, add a little salt, boil it, 00:48:54.280 --> 00:48:58.020 and even though that leaf was not edible, 00:48:58.020 --> 00:49:00.220 they would eat it anyways, 00:49:00.220 --> 00:49:03.780 just in a hope to fill their stomach with something 00:49:03.780 --> 00:49:05.100 so the pain would go away. 00:49:05.100 --> 00:49:09.860 This is where Pastor John found himself. 00:49:09.860 --> 00:49:13.040 He got in contact with this pastor 00:49:13.040 --> 00:49:14.480 who's sharing the story, 00:49:14.480 --> 00:49:19.740 and he shared the dire need of the village 00:49:19.740 --> 00:49:21.140 that he found himself in. 00:49:21.140 --> 00:49:26.380 And he said, "What we need, we need food. 00:49:26.380 --> 00:49:28.300 "We need food. 00:49:28.300 --> 00:49:32.060 "Could you please get us some food?" 00:49:32.060 --> 00:49:34.700 He said, "I'll do my best." 00:49:34.700 --> 00:49:37.420 He began to pray. 00:49:37.420 --> 00:49:39.580 There began to be an opportunity. 00:49:39.580 --> 00:49:41.500 There was an NGO who was working, 00:49:41.500 --> 00:49:43.900 bringing things back and forth. 00:49:43.900 --> 00:49:47.820 The NGO committed to take this food 00:49:47.820 --> 00:49:52.440 out of the zone that was safe and into the war zone 00:49:52.440 --> 00:49:55.040 so that Pastor John's village, 00:49:55.040 --> 00:49:57.860 primarily Christians, could have food. 00:49:57.860 --> 00:50:01.880 They show up there, they show up with the food. 00:50:01.880 --> 00:50:05.320 They take the food, they store it inside of the building 00:50:05.320 --> 00:50:07.400 that is their church. 00:50:07.400 --> 00:50:08.920 The men and the women and the children, 00:50:08.920 --> 00:50:12.280 they cry, they celebrate, they praise God. 00:50:12.280 --> 00:50:19.380 The next day, Pastor John walks into the church. 00:50:19.380 --> 00:50:23.300 He says, "I want you to take half of the food out. 00:50:23.300 --> 00:50:27.540 "You see, we're gonna deliver this food. 00:50:27.540 --> 00:50:32.540 "Now, I've been hungry based off of my standard, 00:50:32.540 --> 00:50:37.460 "but I've never experienced famine, 00:50:38.500 --> 00:50:41.940 "anything remotely close to what these men 00:50:41.940 --> 00:50:44.960 "and women would experience." 00:50:44.960 --> 00:50:47.760 So I could imagine what their reaction was, 00:50:47.760 --> 00:50:50.580 which was, why, absolutely not. 00:50:50.580 --> 00:50:55.120 Why would we take what God had provided for us 00:50:55.120 --> 00:50:56.920 and take it somewhere else? 00:50:56.920 --> 00:51:03.460 Pastor John said, "Because through the war zone, 00:51:03.460 --> 00:51:05.000 "I've heard of another village. 00:51:05.000 --> 00:51:07.800 "It's a Muslim village. 00:51:08.800 --> 00:51:13.800 "And their imam has shared of the devastating poverty 00:51:13.800 --> 00:51:17.840 "and famine that is there. 00:51:17.840 --> 00:51:20.980 "And how can we keep all of this 00:51:20.980 --> 00:51:25.000 "when they are so hurting as well?" 00:51:25.000 --> 00:51:31.280 So against the wishes of many, they loaded up the food, 00:51:31.280 --> 00:51:34.920 and they took it to the mosque. 00:51:37.240 --> 00:51:41.480 The imam came out, said, "What are you here to do?" 00:51:41.480 --> 00:51:46.920 He said, "The war criminals have taken everything from us. 00:51:46.920 --> 00:51:48.580 "And we see that you have things 00:51:48.580 --> 00:51:51.580 "that you've probably taken from other people. 00:51:51.580 --> 00:51:54.080 "There's nothing here for you to take. 00:51:54.080 --> 00:51:55.960 "Go away." 00:51:55.960 --> 00:51:58.100 Pastor John said, "No, brother. 00:51:58.100 --> 00:52:00.080 "I'm not here to take away. 00:52:00.080 --> 00:52:01.180 "I'm here to give." 00:52:03.540 --> 00:52:07.120 And they unloaded the boxes and boxes and boxes of food. 00:52:07.120 --> 00:52:11.580 Christians who were hungry within themselves, 00:52:11.580 --> 00:52:16.300 handing over food to Muslims. 00:52:16.300 --> 00:52:21.480 Said the imam began to weep, began to cry. 00:52:21.480 --> 00:52:23.780 And he made this statement. 00:52:23.780 --> 00:52:26.100 He said, "In the middle of our battle, 00:52:26.100 --> 00:52:28.460 "no one thinks about the people of Sudan." 00:52:28.460 --> 00:52:32.500 He said, "The people," and began to name 00:52:32.500 --> 00:52:36.340 the different Muslim countries of this world. 00:52:36.340 --> 00:52:39.320 "They've turned their back on us 00:52:39.320 --> 00:52:42.820 "because they've said that we're not worthy to be helped. 00:52:42.820 --> 00:52:47.420 "But you, a Christian, seek to help us." 00:52:47.420 --> 00:52:50.140 He said, "As we unload the food, 00:52:50.140 --> 00:52:52.420 "here's what I want you to do." 00:52:52.420 --> 00:52:54.900 He said, "I want you," this is the imam 00:52:54.900 --> 00:52:57.240 speaking to the pastor. 00:52:57.240 --> 00:53:01.580 He said, "I want you to go into the mosque. 00:53:01.580 --> 00:53:03.780 "I want you to open your Bible, 00:53:03.780 --> 00:53:06.700 "and I want you to tell the men who are in there 00:53:06.700 --> 00:53:08.560 "your story of Jesus Christ." 00:53:08.560 --> 00:53:13.820 And John walked into a mosque, 00:53:13.820 --> 00:53:20.180 opened God's word, proclaimed the truth of the gospel. 00:53:20.180 --> 00:53:27.320 And on that day, praise God, 00:53:28.880 --> 00:53:32.520 people stepped out of the law of Islam 00:53:32.520 --> 00:53:36.280 and into a relationship with Jesus Christ. 00:53:36.280 --> 00:53:40.800 You see, what John knew 00:53:40.800 --> 00:53:45.800 was above all that he needed to wait, 00:53:45.800 --> 00:53:50.040 above all he needed to obey, 00:53:50.040 --> 00:53:54.500 above all his situation could not determine his character, 00:53:54.500 --> 00:53:59.500 but he could trust the God who held him in his hand, 00:53:59.500 --> 00:54:02.860 and that's his testimony. 00:54:02.860 --> 00:54:06.780 What's your testimony? 00:54:06.780 --> 00:54:10.620 Who do you follow? 00:54:10.620 --> 00:54:13.640 What has he saved you from? 00:54:13.640 --> 00:54:19.160 How has he saved you in the name of Jesus Christ? 00:54:19.160 --> 00:54:24.160 And then no matter what season you find yourself in today, 00:54:24.220 --> 00:54:28.140 how is he working and moving in your life? 00:54:28.140 --> 00:54:30.540 Would you pray with me? 00:54:30.540 --> 00:54:38.820 God, I thank you for the story of Joseph. 00:54:38.820 --> 00:54:47.440 Lord, a man sold into slavery. 00:54:47.440 --> 00:54:52.420 Lord, a man cast aside 00:54:53.420 --> 00:54:58.420 a man whose falseness, falseness about him 00:54:58.420 --> 00:55:01.400 was spread greatly, 00:55:01.400 --> 00:55:08.800 but in all things sought to endure, 00:55:08.800 --> 00:55:14.360 to persevere, to cling to his Lord, 00:55:14.360 --> 00:55:17.760 to share the name of his God, 00:55:20.500 --> 00:55:25.500 to care for others, to grow in his faith, 00:55:25.500 --> 00:55:32.420 all for your name, for your renown, 00:55:32.420 --> 00:55:38.820 for your kingdom, for who you are. 00:55:38.820 --> 00:55:46.100 God, I pray for each and every one of us 00:55:48.500 --> 00:55:53.500 that the core, the essential nature of our testimony 00:55:53.500 --> 00:55:57.340 will be a life surrendered to you, 00:55:57.340 --> 00:55:59.820 Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, 00:55:59.820 --> 00:56:04.580 and that God, regardless if we find ourself 00:56:04.580 --> 00:56:09.260 in the prison or in the palace, 00:56:09.260 --> 00:56:14.300 will trust you, will seek to do good, 00:56:16.240 --> 00:56:21.000 will expect you to work in your will and your time. 00:56:21.000 --> 00:56:23.540 Lord, that we'll trust. 00:56:23.540 --> 00:56:26.880 Lord, that we'll not grow bitter, 00:56:26.880 --> 00:56:31.200 but we'll grow more like Christ. 00:56:31.200 --> 00:56:38.220 God, thank you for your patience with us. 00:56:43.440 --> 00:56:47.820 God, may our testimony be, may our story be 00:56:47.820 --> 00:56:52.740 one that impacts the world. 00:56:52.740 --> 00:56:59.180 Lord, I thank you for Pastor John. 00:56:59.180 --> 00:57:03.200 I thank you for his church. 00:57:03.200 --> 00:57:07.240 I thank you that in the midst of war, 00:57:11.900 --> 00:57:14.620 that Lord, their response is how do we love, 00:57:14.620 --> 00:57:20.500 how do we share, how do we glorify the name of Jesus? 00:57:20.500 --> 00:57:25.460 And it's in his name we pray, amen, amen. 00:57:28.040 --> 00:57:36.040 - That's it for this week's message. 00:57:36.040 --> 00:57:39.200 Be sure to check back next week for another episode. 00:57:39.200 --> 00:57:40.940 In the meantime, you can stay up to date 00:57:40.940 --> 00:57:42.700 with everything happening at Willow Ridge 00:57:42.700 --> 00:57:46.460 by visiting us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, 00:57:46.460 --> 00:57:49.220 and online at willowridgechurch.org. 00:57:49.220 --> 00:57:50.580 Thanks again for listening.