Sermon Central
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The Evidence Is Right, But The Story Is Wrong Series
Contributed by Bright Adeyeye on Oct 11, 2019 (message contributor)
Summary: What do you do when facing false accusations? What do you do when accusers have "fact" to destroy you. Joseph taught us how to handle false accusation.
THE EVIDENCE IS RIGHT, BUT THE STORY IS WRONG
"And it came to pass, as she spake to Joseph day by day, that he hearkened not unto her, to lie by her, or to be with her.
And it came to pass about this time, that Joseph went into the house to do his business; and there was none of the men of the house there within.
And she caught him by his garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out.
And it came to pass, when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand, and was fled forth,
That she called unto the men of her house, and spake unto them, saying, See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock us; he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice:
And it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled, and got him out.
And she laid up his garment by her, until his lord came home."
Joseph had been his father’s beloved son but now he was nothing. Everything he had, everything he had been was gone.
Joseph’s brothers hated him for being all the things that they were not! They hated him for his honesty and integrity. And, they hated him because he was loved and favored by their father.
God gave Joseph various dreams of greatness, and he disclosed it to his brothers. They hated him even more.
Beloved, the depths of your battle gives insight into the greatness of the potential God has deposited in you. As a matter of fact, what you carry determines your warfare. Whenever you’re going somewhere higher, there will be a noticeable increase in demonic activity against you.
Perhaps you are in the midst of a warfare now. Some people would have you believe that, the issues, challenges or problems that you’re going through is because of choices or sin. But, it’s not so! Stones and sticks are thrown only at fruit bearing trees. Even the righteous suffer (Psalm 34:19). But, you’re not alone in this warfare! God is with you. Just keep trusting. Be vigilant. Guard your secrets. Be prayerful. Be wise. Be bold. No matter the attacks against you, you’ll step into the greatest season of your life. This pain and sorrow will not last forever. A change is coming. You’re on the verge of a major breakthrough. You’re about to experience a divine turn around. Don't give up now! The night will soon be over
Joseph brothers sold him into slavery. A prince in Israel became a slave in Egypt.
In Egypt, Joseph was promoted from a slave boy to a "domestic manager," having authority over other domestic workers in Potiphar's house.
This brought him into a regular contact with Potiphar's beautiful wife. She was attracted to his good look and made it her target to sleep with him him. Joseph, a God fearing person rejected all her advances. But, she relented.
As the temptation increases, Joseph could not change jobs. He was a slave. But, with holy determination, he refused to sleep with Potiphar’s wife. He refused to give in to her sexual demands.
She became enraged and vowed to herself, "if I don't have him no one else will." Potiphar's wife cooked up a story to destroy Joseph.
One day, when no one else was in the house and Joseph came in to do his work, she made her move. She grabbed him by his coat and begged him to sleep with her just one time. He struggled with her and fled out of the house, abandoning his coat with her.
She raised an alarm and the people gathered. Potiphar's wife convinced them she was a victim. That a slave boy and a foreigner raped her. And she had a piece of evidence with her-Joseph's torn coat. They all believed her story
An innocent man was convicted and imprisoned.
Have you been unfairly accused? False accusation can come in many shapes and sizes; physical and even spiritual. In the physical, friends can accuse you; family member can lie against you; colleagues in the place of work can conspire against you.
Sometimes our motives will be questioned. Sometimes our words will be twisted.
Sometimes people hear what they want to hear regardless of the facts. Sometimes we’ll be hated or deliberately misquoted. Sometimes we’ll be the victims of a ‘whispering campaign’ where we can’t even pin down the things said against us. Sometimes we'll be accused wrongly. These things will happen from time to time.
HOW DO WE REACT WHEN WRONGLY ACCUSED?
King David in the Bible provide us with a godly way to deal with failse accusation.
