The Lord is With Us

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

THE LORD IS WITH US

Gen 39:1-6

39:1 Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh's officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there. 2 The LORD was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. 3 When his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD gave him success in everything he did, 4 Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned. 5 From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the LORD blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the LORD was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field. 6 So he left in Joseph's care everything he had; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate.

 

One major truth at the beginning of Joseph's life in Egypt is that the LORD was with him and he prospered. One interesting fact is that Potiphar saw that the LORD was with Joseph. Potiphar was an Egyptian who would have been polytheistic, worshipping over a thousand different gods and goddesses, so noticing that the LORD was with Joseph was not that Potiphar knew the LORD whom the Israelites served, but that Joseph reflected the LORD's power. He was a visual representation of the LORD because the LORD was with him and prospered him, giving success in everything he did. Although Joseph was a purchased slave in human affairs, because the LORD was with him, Potiphar put him in charge of his household and entrusted everything he owned to his care. This major truth is that Joseph reflected the LORD's power in his life, and Potiphar could see it. This should give us something to both ponder and embrace in our lives. We know the Lord is with us, for he has sent us the Holy Spirit to empower us with his gifts and influence us with his fruit. The Lord has also given us all His armor, in which every part represents Jesus, so we can take our stand against all the forces of evil. This should create in us not just an image, but a character that others would see as the Lord is with us and has given us success in whatever he has led us to do. This means a believer would not be a failure in life. That does not mean we cannot experience failures, but it also does not mean the Lord is not with us. We will see that Joseph experienced a failure, so to speak; he ended up in jail, but the LORD was always with him. As born-again, spirit-filled followers of Jesus, we know, without a shadow of doubt, that the Lord is with us, so we live as representatives of the Living God. Others should see that the Lord is with us.