Well, we have been following the narrative of Joseph and we have watched Joseph go from basking in the privileges afforded to the favorite son of a doting father, to an object that is auctioned off at a slave market to the highest bidder. We have watched his brothers strip his coat from his body like skin from an animal. And that began a process by which his entire identity was just as violently stripped away from him. His language was stripped, culture stripped, values, name, reputation, influence, and position stripped. He was truly naked - body and soul. If ever there were circumstances where you could say you were justified in being bitter, resentful, and angry, circumstances where you’d be entitled to a bit of self-pity and depression, it would be this. Imagine the confusion and loneliness in Joseph’s mind as he tries to make heads or tails of why all this happened. Is God even real? What did I do to deserve this? Joseph could have forever been imprisoned in these dark lonely walls of self-pity and feeling sorry for himself. God delivered Joseph from that mental prison. Joseph was able to trust God to the point that he not only was able to exist, but he thrived. He rose and became a blessing in Potiphar’s house. And if you didn’t know better, it would sure seem that the rags to riches story is complete. Joseph has risen to a position of prominence in the house of Potiphar. This is a significant accomplishment. Potiphar was a wealthy captain in Pharaoh’s army and probably had dozens and dozens of slaves. I know the English rendering ‘captain of the guard’ doesn’t sound that impressive. But the same title is given to the Babylonian general who destroys Jerusalem in 2 Kings 25. Joseph is no longer doing manual labor. He’s administrating, managing, and organizing. He has authority. He is respected. The text says Joseph was an attendant to Potiphar. That word ‘attendant’ is used to describe Joshua’s relationship with Moses. In other words, Joseph was not just a personal assistant. He was the COO of a major business, of the whole estate. I’m guessing that his lifestyle and influence as a slave in Potiphar’s house far exceeded his lifestyle and influence as a shepherd in Palestine. The rags to riches story is complete. Joseph has arrived, right? Put a bow around it. The end. But the story is far from over. In fact, we are just getting started. The screws are going to be turned in on him in ways he never could have dreamed. It’s not going to be pretty. And this stage two of testing begins with temptation. Now when you think Potiphar’s wife and temptation you are likely thinking sexual temptation and that is there for sure - in spades. But it’s much more sophisticated as we are going to see. In fact, as we build out the temptations that surround the sexual temptation, it helps us to understand why sexual sin is so powerful and how to overcome it. Definition of Temptation Let’s begin with a simple definition. What is temptation? Temptations are like fishing lures. Picture a big juicy worm threaded on a sharp hook. To a fish, it looks really good, but there are really bad hidden consequences. It’s an enticement to do something harmful. And as we read the text, there at least 6 ways in which Joseph is tempted and so we’ll identify those lures that drift by and then talk about how Joseph avoided them. Now the first lure, the first temptation, comes at the end of verse 6: Where’s the temptation there? That just sounds like a blessing. Well, be careful what you wish for. Being beautiful can be a curse. Well, curse me. No. Think about it. Everywhere Joseph went, he was liked. He was liked by his father. He was liked by Potiphar and in this text, we will see that he is also liked by Potiphar’s wife. And you’re saying, “Man, I hate people like that.” Ah! You see, you’ve demonstrated the curse of beauty. It is not fun to be hated simply because of your gifts. Isn’t that what Joseph’s brother’s said? Joseph is dad’s favorite. He is handsome. Joseph got all the muscles, the height, the wavy hair, the charm, the athletic ability, and the administrative ability. And did Joseph’s brothers like him for that? They envied him. Being the object of someone’s jealousy is not fun. And if it’s for no fault of your own, how can you apologize for being born? It’s actually not easy being extremely talented, extremely beautiful, extremely smart, extremely wealthy, or extremely athletic. People envy you. People become jealous of you. You become, as in Joseph’s case, the object of someone else’s desire. Okay, so there’s a temptation for onlookers not to envy, but what’s the temptation for Joseph? The temptation is to believe it. To believe that because he has the currently in-style desirable traits that he is superior to those who do not have such traits. The temptation is to believe that because you have wavy hair, muscles, beauty, academic ability, social talent, or wealth that you are superior to others who do not. It is true that being handsome and beautiful will open many doors of opportunity, but we better be aware as they swing wide, because many of them will close behind us and lock us into prisons much worse than the prison we thought we were in. And that much worse prison is the belief that you are better than others. Why is it a prison? Because then your value and worth are chained to those identity markers. As soon as that happens, you are living on borrowed time. You are valuable so long as you are beautiful, athletic, successful, etc. But the second you lose those things, you are yesterday’s news. Being in this prison forces you to run from the drooling monster of time who runs at a pace you can barely outrun, but the problem is he never tires and you do. Eventually, he will catch you and gobble you up and you will be worthless. Time will ensure that one day you will not be beautiful, not successful, not athletic, not powerful…it will win. It’s tempting to believe that we are superior to others because we possess the gifts they want. We tell ourselves, “It wasn’t even my idea. Others believe it and told me about it. Even my enemies believe it which is why they are jealous. If even my worst enemies believe it, it must be true. Because they want to be like me, that proves that I have more value than them.” And there’s an incredible temptation to lord this over others and to subtly remind them of the valuable things they want that you so effortlessly possess. Man, there is an allure of thinking oneself superior. But Joseph refused the bait! Here comes the second temptation. I’m focusing on one aspect of this sentence. The way the text captures this is perfect. After a time, his master’s wife “cast her eyes on Joseph.” When Joseph was first taken into captivity, he was a boy. He was just 17. He wasn’t even done developing as a man. He was in a low position. But as he aged, as he learned the language, as his form filled out, Potiphar’s wife began in her mind to look at him differently. At first, it’s nothing overt. It’s subtle. It’s a second glance. It’s a glance that lasts slightly longer than normal. It’s being caught staring from across the room when you think nobody’s looking. At first, it’s like, “Oh, there’s that new Canaanite slave. I hate it when Potiphar drags in these inarticulate slaves. What’s his name? Joseph. Okay.” But then as he grew: “Oh, there’s Joseph…he’s kind of cute.” And maybe she starts picking him for certain slave related chores because he’s pleasant to be around. She wanted him. And it’s nice to be wanted, isn’t it? As Potiphar’s wife comments and remarks and peers at Joseph, this temptation, at least at first, is not appealing to Joseph’s sensuality. It’s actually appealing to his insecurity. You see, beneath the sensual desire, is a soul desire. It’s among the most basic needs of the human being to be wanted. We all want to be wanted. Being wanted: - Flatters our vanity. - Prooves to our egos that we have worth. - Silences our self- condemning consciences Yes, it’s sexual but first it’s spiritual. When there is a vacancy of worth, identity, and value, then we open ourselves up for sexual sin. This is so often the crack in the foundation that leads to adultery. A woman stops feeling loved, valued, and cherished by her husband. She stops feeling wanted and then someone else expresses interest and desire and it’s over. Now if Joseph was in a vulnerable position of needing to be wanted, just think how influenced he would be by Potiphar’s wife’s advances. “Joseph, dang, you got some rippling muscles. Love the cheekbones and the washboard abs. Joseph, I love your deep blue eyes. Wow, your sandy hair is so seductive.