When God is with us

Genesis 39:3, 4 And his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand. So Joseph found favor in his sight, and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house and all that he had, he put under his authority.

When God is with a person, there are some vital signs throughout the bible which should be displayed in our lives. This gift of God being with a person was seen with specific people and purposes but when Christ came to this world and died for us, Grace was dispensed and so we have very high amounts of support with us. In the Old Testament, God was with worthy people and empowered them for specific tasks. For us in that context, the purpose of God being with us as the Holy Spirit is for one big task, as in Acts 1:8, we will be witnesses unto Jesus. This means that when people see us they should understand that Jesus lives and He is able to save and willing to glorify us.

The presence of Holy Spirit in us should not be undervalued. We may think that having the Holy Spirit is a qualification and gift. These are true but it is a great honor from God because of grace. John 14:17 says that the world does not know Him, but we can because He abides in us. This knowledge of what righteousness and holiness makes us very much different from those of the world. This anointing is the best honor a person can ever get and we need to hold it well.

We often misunderstand scripture that if God is with us, no one can stand against us in terms of business competition, property disputes etc. The verse (Romans 8:31) is purely mentioned in a context where nobody could condemn us as sinners because we all are called, justified and glorified by God the Father. This is the purpose of God being with us. He stays with us while we are sinners as He has justified us by his blood and gives us the confidence to be glorified just like Christ.

If we look at details from Joseph’s life, when God was with Him, He was given enormous responsibilities beyond his capabilities at Potiphar’s residence, the prison and when he met Pharaoh. The verses say that the people saw that God was with Joseph. This visibility should be evident in every person in whom God resides as the Holy Spirit. We should excel at everything we do as in Psalms 1:3. There is a difference between a person prospering and his work prospering. The difference is that our customers, clients would be benefitted because of us. People would want to associate with us because our work always prospers. We are not called to consume light, but to be the light.

Joseph did not deny responsibilities given to him and in 40:8, he was confident enough to say that interpretations belong to God and you can tell them to me. This is the confidence and responsibility of a person in God’s presence. As in Psalms 1:6, God knew that Joseph would handle the situation really well and so gave dreams to those men. It was Joseph who had the concern of expressing his God to them. We always think God leads us into opportunities and we have to just stay and watch. But actually God wants us to stand up and start working so that God would be with us and help us grow up.

But Jacob was not even close to this attitude. Jacob was staying put in his father in law’s place and it was one or a few instances where God could use him. Nobody saw that Jacob was blessed because of God. When Laban wanted to capture Jacob, God personally had to intervene. But in Joseph’s case, wherever he went, God was seen.

When the lady tried to entice Joseph, he did not fall because Joseph had prioritized God’s presence and his righteousness more than all the authority given to him. But at most times, we fail because we try to protect what was given to us. It is important to remember that God is powerful and is with us if we stand against sin.

Another important lesson here is that God was with Joseph in his ways. That is, Joseph was progressing and God was with Joseph blessing him. This is how we need to be. We often stay lazy asking God for directions and doing nothing. It is straight forward that we need to progress towards Christ denying ourselves and taking up the cross. God wants us to make decisions and progress in life. God will be with us and lead us towards glory if we move forward.

Amen.