WITH ME IN CHARGE

By Apostle Dr. Opoku Onyinah

Chairman, The Church of Pentecost

(Text: Genesis 39:1-9, Key Verses 8-9)

INTRODUCTION

ONE OF THE GREATEST CHALLENGES people face in the modern world is trust. The issue is, who do I put in charge of affairs, especially in charge of money?  One of the responses I received on people's expectations from the Chairman was that he would teach church members to be faithful to their employers. The feeling is that church members, including officers, misappropriate funds belonging to their employers. But the opposite should be the case; Christians should be seen to be trustworthy. Unfortunately, people do not seem to trust even pastors.

 In spite of this unfortunate perception, the picture is not all that gloomy. There is a story about somebody in the Bible who was absolutely trustworthy. His master could completely rely on him. He was a capable workman, a remarkable man of integrity known for his humility and boldness. His intents were honest and had no hidden agenda. This person was Joseph, one of the patriarchs.

 Joseph as a Servant

The prince who became a servant, Joseph, was the eleventh child of Jacob. The Lord was with him and his father also loved him.  This caused envy among his brothers who sold him to some traders. The traders took him to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar, captain of the Pharaoh’s palace guard. Joseph therefore became a servant to Potiphar. I want you to get the picture, the prince and pampered child became a servant.

 Joseph, a conscientious worker, changed his attitude quickly and adjusted to the work of a servant. He became a conscientious worker whose attitude was rewarded with the blessing of God. Your attitude towards work is very important. Why are you working? Let me put it this way; maybe your present job is not your first choice. So, since you could not get what you had wanted you have been placed here.  A person who only works because he must usually displays a bad attitude towards his or her work. He is neither excited by nor happy with his work, does only what he is asked to and closes on the dot of the hour. He may come to work late and does not care whether the work is flourishing or not; he only wants his pay.

 Joseph Stopped Complaining About his Brothers

Bitterness could have been one of the greatest challenges that Joseph faced.  He could have spent much time thinking about his brothers who sold him into slavery.  How did he overcome this painful experience? He pushed it behind and worked with his whole heart as a servant. 

 You should not let circumstances overcome you.   You must endeavour to live above human temptations and life’s traumas. Joseph did not choose to become a slave. He became one by providence. Yet he accepted the challenges that went with his new status in good faith, and God blessed his efforts (39:2).  No matter what brought you to your present situation; whether by choice or by accident, I urge you to respect the God you serve, work with a good attitude and the living God will bless you.

 IN CHARGE OF POTIPHAR’S HOUSEHOLD

Portiphar took notice of Joseph’s work (Gen. 39:4). There is one thing that every good leader takes notice off.  That is good work.  Every leader likes a good worker. Good work is noticed by other people.  So also is bad work noticed by people.  When Portiphar realised that Joseph was faithful and that the Lord was with him, he put him in charge of his entire household and entrusted him with all his business dealings (39:4). A person's gift and attitude can bring him before great people.

 What Makes a Person Recognised that Way?

Capability (Gen 39:4, cf 6b)

 Two things could be derived from Joseph’s situation. First, he pleased Potiphar (vrs 4, GNB).  This implies that he was capable.  Later we read that the master did not concern himself with anything that went on in his household.  Once somebody is serious and has the ability, he is likely to be recognised and promoted. 

 The Presence of God

The second thing that was evident in Joseph’s life that caused Potiphar to recongise his work was the Lord’s presence in Joseph’s life.  Potiphar noticed that the Lord was with Joseph and blessed him greatly as he served (Gen 39: 2-3). This implies that Potiphar saw something extraordinary in Joseph's work; he noticed that the Lord (Jehovah or YAHWEH) was with Joseph.  It is one thing to be called an elder, a pastor, man or woman of God, and another thing for people to recognise the presence of God in your life.  Are you a man of God? How do people see you? I pray that you will be a blessing to your corporation, manager, boss or subordinate.

 The blessings enjoyed by Potiphar continued as long as Joseph faithfully worked for him. Genesis 39:5 reads: “From the day Joseph was put in charge, the Lord began to bless Potiphar for Joseph's sake. All his household affairs began to run smoothly, and his crops and livestock flourished (NLT).  The blessing that the man of God brings is enormous. This leads us to the next point.

 JOSEPH IN CHARGE OF EVERYTHING POTIPHAR OWNED

Potiphar extends complete trust to Joseph (Gen 39:6)

 Potiphar committed everything he owned to Joseph’s care. The New Living Translation puts this very well: “So Potiphar gave Joseph complete administrative responsibility over everything he owned. With Joseph there, he did not have a worry in the world, except to decide what he wanted to eat (Gen 39:6)! Here was a servant who had earned trust to take charge of everything his master owned.

 What is meant by Trust?

Trust conveys the idea that you have confidence in people. That you believe in their integrity and abilities. Distrust is the opposite of trust. When you distrust people, you are suspicious of their integrity, their agenda, their capabilities, or their track record. If you trust a person, things work faster than normal. There are no bureaucratic practices and long legal procedures. Once you say something, you know the person will do it. There can be two types of trust relations: high-trust relations and low-trust relations.

 In a high-trust relationship, you say the wrong thing and people still get the meaning. In a low-trust relationship, you can be very measured, even precise, documented, and still be misinterpreted by people.

 The problem that the world is having now is that there have been distrust and suspicion and we are all are paying for that. Examine the auditors we need to employ, security personnel, two persons to run a small office. Think of the trouble that September 11 has brought to the whole world. We all pay for these. Low trust relationship also slows down work.

 Potiphar entrusted to Joseph’s care everything he owned. His life was in his care.  The only thing that he was concerned with was what he would eat.  Are you trustworthy?

Why Did Potiphar entrust Joseph with such trust?

 Joseph was getting results. He was capable and he was getting the results. Potiphar saw it.

People do not trust you if you cannot get things done. Result is very important. You may have excuses, you may have good reasons.  But at the end of the day if the result is not there, people will not trust you. 

 Result may be put into three groupings: past, present and future.

Past is your tract record: That is, your past performance. People value you from what they know about you.  Your past record is very important.

 Present: How are you performing today. Your current performance is also very important. People don’t only view you from what is past, but what is going on now. The great humorist, Will Rogers, had this to say about the past, “Don’t let yesterday take up too much of today.” We don’t want to forget the past, because that is where we find lessons for today. But neither do we want to get stuck in the past.  You were good sometime ago, what about now? Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.

 Future: How people think you will perform in future. How people perceive your work is also very important. Do they see you as being progressive?

Result and competence are not the only quality needed, but character is essential.

If you are getting the result but your character is not good your product will be stained.

 JOSEPH IN CHARGE OF HIMSELF (6-8)

 Potiphar’s wife took notice of Joseph

Despite the fact that Joseph had proved very capable, competent and reliable in many cases, his very self (nature) needed to be tested. Touching the “self” is a great temptation.

 Potiphar’s wife took notice of him. First, it was Potiphar who took notice of Joseph. His taking of notice led to promotion. This time it was the wife who took notice of Joseph. Hers was leading to demotion.

 “Come to bed with me” (Gen 39:7).  This is a request which is not easy to reject by men. Besides, it was very tempting for the young man who was a servant and also mature in age. The lust of the flesh was strong. 

 Joseph’s reasons for refusing (Gen 39: 8-9) were those that another person might have given for yielding (cf. Is. 22:15-25; Luke 16:1ff.). ‘With me in charge, my master does not concern himself with anything’ implies he was free from supervision. Nobody is greater than I, nobody supervises, not even my master, how can I do this? This is what we call integrity.

 Joseph was a man of Integrity

Integrity means honesty. This means telling the truth and leaving the right impression. Integrity includes self-trust, humility and courage.

 Joseph trusted himself: Self-trust

Self-trust is part of integrity. Joseph trusted himself.  How do we know that Joseph had “self-trust”? This derives from his statement “With me in charge.” This is a strong statement that a person must be able to make. It shows a person who believes in himself, a person of integrity, a person who keeps to his commitments and a person who is credible.