The Lord Was With Joseph

Why is Joseph’s story appealing and inspiring to so many people? If you asked folks familiar with Biblical stories, ” What are some of your favorite Old Testament stories?”, they would likely mention this one. The Bible’s main character is God, and the story of Joseph is one of many in which God teaches us something about Himself. He is our Creator and Redeemer, and the Bible is an instrument He uses to reveal Himself to us, to instruct us how to live, and invite us to participate in His […]

Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife

Today, we look at the intriguing story of Joseph and the adulterous advances of Potiphar’s wife. Like so many others, this story reminds us that God’s servants lived in the “real world” and faced the same kinds of challenges and temptations common to us. This incident in Joseph’s life reminds us that wisdom is not reserved for the elderly, but can be demonstrated by young people facing life-changing temptations. We can learn much from Joseph. What have we learned about Joseph? You can review last week’s blog, “Joseph and Potiphar” […]

Joseph and Potiphar

The story of Joseph and Potiphar is related in the first twenty verses of Genesis 39. Potiphar buys Joseph from the Ishmaelite traders when he is seventeen, and Joseph serves him well until Potiphar puts him in prison after his wife accuses him of attempting to rape her. We will look at Joseph and Potiphar’s wife in the next blog, but I want to share some interesting things that will give Joseph’s story a broader context. Sometimes, biblical stories like this one pique my curiosity. I want to know more […]

Easter People in a Good Friday World

” Easter people in a Good Friday World.” I was intrigued and curious when I heard her say it. Our speaker that morning was a very bright and devoted follower of Jesus named  Kristi McClelland. What did she mean by this arresting introductory statement to her powerful message? My primary takeaway from Kristi’s message is that followers of Jesus serve a Risen Lord. Good Friday is important, but if Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, God’s plan has failed, and we would still be in our sins. We are to […]

The Pharaoh, Potiphar, and God

God is the main “character” in the Bible’s story of salvation. He orchestrates His plan, working through and around the evil and pride of kings and lesser men to accomplish His ultimate goal. Thousands of years after Adam and Eve decided to play God and plunged us into the bondage of sin, God has not forgotten His promise to provide a savior. I say this to remind us that when things look darkest, God is working and will win the battle against evil. No king, no power, or Satan himself […]

How Joseph Became a Slave

Do you believe God works in everything for good to those who love Him and are called for His purpose? (Romans 8:28) Do you think that because the Bible says so or have you come to KNOW it because you have experienced it? Why does God allow bad things to happen to good people? We often see bad things happening to good people, which may cause us to wonder where God is in this. Only God sees the end from the beginning, and we may never know what good He […]

From Dreamer to Slave

Have you noticed how quickly life can make a U-turn?  Everything seems to be going great when something happens to send your life in a different direction. This happens to all of us; a deal falls through, your marriage turns sour, your child becomes rebellious, or you get a life-threatening medical diagnosis. Such things are hard and test our faith. One of the things I appreciate about the Bible is that it is about real life, real people who struggle with the kinds of problems we can identify with. When […]

Joseph, Sold Into Slavery

The biblical story of Joseph demonstrates God’s foreknowledge of things to come and His providence in moving all events, good and bad, toward fulfilling the promise of a savior. In this series of blogs about God’s promises, we have seen God’s patience and determination with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as He worked through their disobedience, doubts, and dishonesty to keep His plan on track. Joseph, Abraham’s great-great-grandson, is the central figure in the last fourteen chapters of Genesis. How is he related to God’s promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob? […]

The Dreamer

The dreamer, Joseph, is the next person to play a strategic role in God’s promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And what was that promise? Let’s return to Genesis 12, where God chose Abram and called him to leave Haran for the land He would give him and his posterity. Here’s the promise to Abram that his great-great-grandson Joseph will be instrumental in preserving. “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; your name will be great and you will be a blessing. I will […]

The God of Promise

 This blog is different from any I have sent you. It cannot be read and processed in a couple of minutes. I intend to challenge you to think deeply about the stories we have covered in Genesis and what they tell you about who God is. Genesis has fifty chapters, filled with exciting stories about God’s promise to redeem our fallen world. After finishing chapter thirty-two, we are taking a break to remind ourselves about the central character in all the stories we have considered.  We have examined the roles […]