DOMINION DILEMMA: GO ALONG TO GET ALONG?

DUKE CHAPEL, DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA, USA

THE BIBLE HAS NOTHING TO SAY REGARDING JOSEPH'S TRANSITION TO EGYPT.

We are told only that Joseph was sold to Pharaoh's captain of the guard, Potiphar.  His position as captain of the guard was sort of like Colin Powell's when he made us to finally understand what the Head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff did.  If Potiphar wasn't the top man, he was certainly the most influential.  Pharaoh depended on him to keep the political intrigue under control, and to protect him from usurpers, interlopers, and would-be assassins.

Joseph did well in Potiphar's household:  

"The LORD was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master.  When his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD gave him success in everything he did, 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."

(Genesis 39:2-4)

• When the LORD is with you, you will prosper
• Powerful people notice God's favor in your life
• Influential people are intensely interested in the manifest favor of God

God caused Joseph to have success at whatever he was doing.  Potiphar took note of that, and soon turned the entire responsibility for the running of his household over to Joseph.  The captain of the guard now had a clear field to focus upon his duties, and complete confidence in the enslaved man--Joseph became an integral part of his success.  He gave Joseph authority over everything in his household, and went about his business of protecting and advising the ruler of Egypt.

Joseph had dominion.

This dominion settled upon him easily.  He had adapted and adjusted to his new situation, and purposed to make the best of it.  This determined attitude and diligent mindset soon caused Joseph to rise to a position as Potiphar's attendant.  He must have proven a trustworthy and personable assistant, for he "found favor in his eyes." (Genesis 39:4)  Nothing in his background had prepared him to do well in this environment; it was God's favor and his own personality and value system that caused Joseph to navigate these unfamiliar circumstances successfully.  Joseph was not afraid to take on these responsibilities and master them.  The customs and worship of the new culture did not cause him undue stress, either.  He never stopped following his faith, and he did his job so well, became so valuable to his enslavers, that no one even questioned it.  No one tried to impose the predominating culture upon him.

Joseph walked into his dominion fearlessly; he took it on with facility, and he manifested it with extraordinary results.  He was well-liked and respected by his master and his master's household.  

The young man Joseph handled his dominion so well that God even blessed the one who held him in chattel slavery.  Potiphar was astute enough to see God's favor on his young servant and not try to bust it up, or cause it to conform with his personal values.  He certainly showed respect for the Most High God--possibly even reverence that was rewarded :  

"The blessing of the LORD was on everything Potiphar had, both in  the house and in the field." (Genesis 39:5)  The scripture says that it was because of  Joseph. (39:5)

DOMINION IS CONTAGIOUS.  It shines light on everything. Even an unbeliever can be blessed by the obedience and humility of one who loves the LORD.

On a superficial level, Joseph was in control.  However, being in God's favor and exercising His dominion stirs up The Enemy.  In Joseph's case,  he was "well built and handsome, and after a while his master's wife took notice and said, '"Come to bed with me!"' (Genesis 39:7) The lustful, selfish nature of the boss' wife came against young Joseph's authority.  It was beyond his control.  

Still, with echoes of the same immaturity that got him sold off in the first place, he stated, 

"No one is greater in this house than I am."  (Genesis 39:9) 

Joseph lacked the wisdom to pacify Potiphar's wife before he refused her.  He let her know that everything was sooo great because of him.  His response to her advances was insensitive, and therefore unwise.  Possibly, if he had let her down more gently, she would not have gone to such great lengths to set him up:  

"He came in here to sleep with me, but I screamed."   

(Genesis 39:14)

The servants most certainly were aware that the lady of the house had been hitting on "that Hebrew," (Genesis 39:14) as she now referred to him, but his lack of humility may have been just the thing that kept them from coming to his defense.

No one spoke up for him when Potiphar got home and found his wife snuggled up with Joseph's cloak, telling a lurid story about how "that Hebrew slave you brought us" (Genesis 39:17) treated her.  Apparently, Joseph did not try to defend himself to Potiphar either--possibly to keep from being executed, rather than merely imprisoned. He prudently refrained from pointing out the things he had told the man's wife.  Potiphar, angry and embarrassed, did not stop to ask himself any questions--about his wife or her motives, or why a slave who had never given him a moment's trouble suddenly began coming on to her.  Perhaps he knew his wife better than he was letting on, and so did not put Joseph to death.  To save face, and to hush his wife, he put the young man in prison.

As a practical matter, dominion without wisdom does not last.  If we lack subtlety, tact, and discretion, our dominion can vanish like smoke.  Like Joseph, we can find ourselves, literally or spiritually imprisoned by circumstances beyond our control.  Immaturity is lethal to dominion.  

We may obtain mastery over circumstances, but if we have not gained mastery over ourselves, our connection with God and His plan for our lives is tenuous, and easily broken.  The Holy Spirit is always there with us; the question is, are we available to hear and submit and be obedient to His direction?

We all want to achieve mastery over our lives.  No matter how ambitious or laid back we may be, the call to have dominion over our sphere of influence is pretty much inescapable.  Sometimes, it is hard to recognize where we hold or could be holding dominion.  When we finally get to that place, if we are not ruling ourselves, there is no way we can maintain mastery over the outer planes of our existence.  Temporal dominion cannot be maintained without spiritual dominion--over ourselves, over our relationship with Christ and the Holy Spirit, and over our communication with them.  Joseph did not have the gift of communication with Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit of God.  You do!

Knowing this, there is no excuse for not discerning God's plan for your life on Earth.  The things that block, hinder, and stop you are the things that serve to prepare you for your ultimate victory; your dominion--but only if you learn from them.  Only if you overcome them.  As we will see, Joseph even had dominion in jail, because "the LORD was with him." (Genesis 39:21)

Dominion transcends outward circumstances.

Thanks for taking the time to read this blog.

DOMINION AND DESTINY

DOMINION IS DESTINY!

Jacob, now Israel had a favored son.  The story of Joseph is one of the most well-known Bible stories, and it is instructive.  Dominion was a long time coming for Joseph.

Israel received his dominion at Bethel in Canaan:

"God said to him, '"Your name is Jacob, but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel."  (Genesis 35:10)

"And God said to him, I am God Almighty; be fruitful and increase in number.  A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will come from your body.  The land  I gave to Abraham and Isaac I also give to you, and I will give this land to your descendants after you."  

(Genesis 35:11-12)

None of us has been so fortunate as to have God Himself sit down with us and explain that He is giving us our dominion with such specificity.  Israel memorialized the time and the place accordingly, and after three thousand years, this place can still be visited. Part of establishing dominion is memorializing it for future generations.  Whether it is an heirloom, a road named after a hard-working ancestor (there is a lot of that here in North Carolina), or a given name that appears in each generation--I am the current William-holder in my fam--it is important to bring the efforts of past lives into the present for the future.

Corbett Athletic Facility, North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA.

Just because you get dominion, doesn't mean things get easier.  The next thing that happened to Jacob after he got his new name and the promise of dominion was that his beloved Rebekah died in childbirth.  Then his eldest, unloved Leah's child and Israel's firstborn Reuben, "went in and slept with his father's concubine Bilhah, and Israel heard of it." (Genesis 35:22)  In the Bible days. a son slept with his father's concubines to establish dominion.  David's son Absalom did it with ten wives on a rooftop, in front of the entire city of Jerusalem.  He thought he was going to be king.  

Reuben did it as a sign of disrespect for his father, and to tell the world that one day he was going to be the leader of the tribe.  Dominion can be stolen, but not usurped.  Apparently Reuben disregarded what God told his father, and decided that he could just work around the Sovereign Plan.  Israel didn't mention it until much later.

Meanwhile, Esau also had twelve sons.  It says in Genesis 36 that Basemath was the "daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nabaioth."

  

The Mystery of Esau's Wives

This blog goes a long way in helping to sort this out!

The rivalry between Israel and Esau was NEVER concluded.  It rages on, after a fashion, to this very day.

Seventeen years later, Joseph began to learn the same hard lesson.  Achieving dominion is never easy. He was his father's favorite.  His brothers knew it.  So it did not help when he snitched on them at the beginning of Genesis 37.  Then, "Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more."  (Genesis 37:5)

Joseph's dream was one of dominion.  God told him that he would rule over his brothers.  Joseph never thought that maybe he should not tell them that.  When your dominion arrives, not everyone will be happy for you.  It is best to be prudent.  Better yet, just proceed to live it out, and don't say anything about it to anyone!  

"Here comes that dreamer!" They said to each other.  Come now, let's kill him...then we'll see what comes of his dreams."  (Genesis 37:20)

Reuben wanted to save him; Judah wanted to sell him.  "after all, he is our brother," said he. (Genesis 35:27)  So they waited for a caravan, pulled the young man out of the cistern where they'd imprisoned him and sold him for twenty silver shekels. Stripped him of his beautiful robe--the signifier his father's favor.  Reuben was not there to prevent it, and though he had impugned his father most grievously, he went and broke the news. Joseph was gone from them.  They  took the robe they were so jealous of and dipped it in goat's blood.  They likely ate the goat they'd slaughtered to supply the fake evidence, and then went and told Israel the story they'd manufactured.   It was a lie, but Reuben's distress was genuine.  

One can only guess at how Joseph felt:  first in the dark cistern, a dry well that flooded and stayed full after a rare desert rain--often for years; then callously sold by his brothers, and finally, carted off to an unknown land.  He was sold yet again, and wound up in Egypt.

As a practical matter, you could be anywhere along this dominion continuum.  You could be basking in the glow of learning that God has big plans for you.  You could be impetuously, imprudently bragging to your haters about those plans.  Or, you could be carried away on a swift tide of unforeseen events, traumatizing happenstance designed to prepare you for your destiny.  Dominion could appear far away on a dim horizon.  You could spend years trapped in oppressive circumstances.  Someone could take advantage of your brains, your looks, or your assets--and you might be helpless to stop them.

Just don't give up on dominion.  Stick to your values and your principles, as Joseph did.  Don't give up on helping people when opportunity presents itself.  Like Joseph, if you persevere, your dominion will come.

Your dominion can overtake you at any point in your life.  Joseph was a young man with a bright future.  Circumstances led him to his dominion and his destiny.  He was prepared by adversity to meet them when they arrived.

We will talk more about Joseph's road to dominion.

Thanks for taking the time to read this blog.