PowerPoint

Jack Graham: We no longer have to live under the power and the dominion of sin in our lives. We can overcome temptation. We can win over sin in this life and therefore live a godly life with a character that honors Christ.

Guest (Male): On today's PowerPoint, Dr. Graham brings a message about the victory you can have over sin. Now, here's Dr. Graham with his message, Iron Man.

Jack Graham: There are no shortcuts to character. In today's message, we are going to see how God continues to shape the character of His servant, Joseph, and enable him to elevate in life to the degree that he would stand as one of the most powerful men on Earth, saving a nation of people, including his own family.

In the series of tests, trials, and temptations that Joseph faced, we also face these same trials. In Christ, we are saved not only from the penalty of sin, which means every sin—past, present, and future—is forgiven, but we are saved from the power of sin, the reigning power of sin in us. In other words, we no longer have to live under the power and the dominion of sin in our lives. We can overcome temptation. We can win over sin in this life and therefore live a godly life with a character that honors Christ.

Let me remind you what temptation is because we are going to be dealing with the subject of temptation. Temptation is the seduction or the solicitation to fulfill a God-given desire in a God-forbidden way—to take what God has made and abuse it and misuse it. Certainly, that is true when it comes to sexual behavior because God gave this gift, but it is to be a gift that is to be cherished and nurtured in the boundaries and in the blessings and the beauty of a commitment that we call marriage. That is what the Bible teaches.

Temptation in itself is not a sin. It is the yielding to temptation that produces sin. Did you know every time you resist temptation and overcome temptation and win over sin, you are building the moral fiber and character of your soul? This will enable you the next time temptation comes along to win again. Successfully resisting temptation in our lives will enable us to grow strong in faith.

Today we are going to see how Joseph handled intense sexual pressure and temptation and how he chooses purity over wickedness. His choice would cost him dearly. He would be falsely accused and even imprisoned, not for doing the wrong thing, but for doing the right thing. But what is important is that God never abandoned him in the midst of all of this. The steadfast love followed him wherever he went, and God was making it all possible because God's word was coming true in his life.

There is a Psalm, Psalm 105, which says that God's word tested Joseph even when his neck was shackled with iron. Thus, the title of my message, Iron Man. Because when God allowed his neck to be shackled with iron, He was doing something deeper, and that was framing his soul, forging his soul with iron so that he could fulfill his destiny.

Everything is going great for Joseph at this point. He has ridden on the back of camels into Egypt, sold as a slave, but a man by the name of Potiphar purchases him. Joseph determined one day that he would rise above the circumstances of his life and situation, and rather than die in Egypt and his dreams with him, he chose, "If I'm going to be a slave, I'm going to be God's slave. I'm going to be the best man in Egypt that I can possibly be." Joseph himself must have been stunned by the success that he experienced.

Potiphar saw that there is something unique about this man, something so strong about this man. What was it about Joseph? Was it the obvious favor of God upon his life? Was it the fact that he refused to bow down to the gods of Egypt? There were many. They worshipped the Nile, they worshipped the sun god Ra, they worshipped Pharaoh himself. Was it the fact that this Hebrew young man, now in his 20s and single, worshipped God and lived an honorable life, a life of integrity? Was this what made the man stand out?

Probably all of the above. And so Potiphar, the master of the house, gives Joseph ultimately oversight of the entire household. He is now commanding the entire operation of this huge Egyptian estate. Potiphar was an aristocrat, a bureaucrat of sorts, powerful in the Egyptian world at that day. So Joseph is carrying on, doing the right thing, and notice what happens beginning in Verse 6 of the 39th Chapter.

"So he left all that he had in Joseph's charge. And because of him, he had no concern about anything but the food he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. And after a time, his master's wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, 'Lie with me.' But he refused and said to his master's wife, 'Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house and he has put everything that he has in my charge. He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except yourself because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?'"

"And as she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not listen to her to lie beside her or to be with her. But one day, when he went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house was there in the house, she caught him by his garment, saying, 'Lie with me.' But he left his garment in her hand and fled and got out of the house. And as soon as she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled out of the house, she called to the men of her household and said to them, 'See, he has brought among us a Hebrew to laugh at us. He came in to me to lie with me and I cried out with a loud voice. And as soon as he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried out, he left his garment beside me and fled and got out of the house.'"

"Then she laid up his garment by her until his master came home, and she told him the same story, saying, 'The Hebrew servant whom you have brought among us came in to laugh at me. But as soon as I lifted up my voice and cried, he left his garment beside me and fled out of the house.'" Not even Hollywood can make this story up. A sordid, sensual situation. Potiphar's wife notices Joseph because Joseph is no average Joe. He is successful in spite of being a slave. He is good-looking and gifted. The Bible says that he was handsome and fit.

He exudes confidence and charisma and undoubtedly, being a single young man in his 20s, there was quite a bit of chemistry. And so Potiphar's wife, she begins to lust after him. And so she hits on him again and again and again. It is in the throes of this temptation that Joseph shows the iron of his soul. This woman says, "Come lie with me." Not a very subtle approach. Historians tell us that Egyptian women of this era were particularly immoral. Think Cleopatra generations later.

Apparently, the aristocratic women of Egypt in this day were extremely immoral along with their husbands. She thinks nothing of it, apparently, and she goes after Joseph. There are tests in life, and then there are tests. And this was a test with a capital T-E-S-T. And the battle is on. Joseph begins to deal with this. Joseph refused, he resisted at the outset, but it doesn't stop. It keeps on. She came after him, according to Verse 10, again and again.

We can only imagine what is being said at this point. "Come on, handsome. Nobody's going to know. I'm a married woman, I'm sure not going to tell my husband. You're young, you're beautiful, you're in your 20s. Have you ever even had a girlfriend? Come on, Joseph." We can only imagine what she was saying. But Joseph, with iron in his soul, said no again and again. And you have to wonder how.

All of us know when we face temptation, certainly there are different kinds of temptations. There are temptations that have to do with personal ambitions. There are other temptations that have to do with our spiritual allegiances. The Bible talks about the lust of the eye, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. There are all kinds of temptations, but this one in particular is a powerful seductive tool of the enemy.

We live in a sexually saturated culture and society, and these kinds of temptations are in our faces every single day. So we must be prepared to resist and to be resolute in our self-denial.

Guest (Male): You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message, Iron Man. Did you know that you can join Dr. Graham for his daily devotion? It's a study of God's word that will help you grow in your faith, encourage you in your walk with Christ, and show you how to navigate through the challenges of life. To sign up, text DEVO—D-E-V-O—to 59789 and begin receiving Dr. Graham's devotional every day. Again, text DEVO to 59789.

Every day, people around the world are hearing the truth of Jesus Christ through PowerPoint's broadcast, podcast, television ministry, and digital outreach, often during some of the most difficult moments of their lives. Friends like you help make that ministry possible. That's why this month we want to say thank you for your gift of $10 or more by sending you Dr. Jack Graham's book, Destiny.

In this encouraging resource, Dr. Graham walks through the life of Joseph to show how God is always working even through painful and confusing circumstances to accomplish His greater purpose. To give your gift and request your copy, text OCT—O-C-T—to 59789. That's OCT as in October to 59789. Now let's get back to today's message, Iron Man.

Jack Graham: How did Joseph do this? Well, let me mention a couple of reasons of many I'm sure, but several that jump to the top of the list. One is trust. Joseph said no to this woman because he knew that Potiphar, her husband, trusted him explicitly and completely. Joseph obviously was loved by this man, cared for by this Egyptian. Though he was a pagan, there was this definite connection with Joseph the Hebrew. He knew Potiphar was counting on him.

The trust factor comes into play here. Someone trusted him. I should say here that someone is trusting you, sir, you ladies. God has entrusted you salvation. Your wife, your husband has entrusted you their life. Your children trust you. Your friends, your family trust you. Your church trusts you. The question is: are we trustworthy? Joseph said, "How could I do this thing to my master, to Potiphar, who has blessed me in such a way?"

The trust factor. Secondly, spiritual values. Joseph along the way had developed a strong core of spiritual values that developed his character. These are the iron core convictions of his life. Remember, this is before Moses and the law. This is way long before the Ten Commandments are given. So the Seventh Commandment hasn't been written yet: "You shall not commit adultery."

And yet somehow, Joseph knew instinctively that this kind of sin was wrong and disobedient to the will of God in his life. I believe it is because he had a love for God. Joseph knew God. He knew His presence and His hand upon his life. And because Joseph had this relationship with God, he spiritually knew that to break God's commandments by committing a sin like this would be wrong. He had developed moral character and convictions. He had a moral code, a strong one, a good one.

But there was a third reason and that is God's reputation. Joseph said, "How could I do this thing to Potiphar my master and commit this sin against God?" Ultimately, all sin and rebellion is against God. Had Joseph taken the woman up on her offer, it would have been a sin against her. It would have been a sin against Potiphar, her husband. It would have been a sin against Joseph himself. In fact, the New Testament tells us that this kind of sin in particular is a sin against your own body.

He would have sinned against the woman, sinned against her husband, sinned against himself, but ultimately he said, "How can I do this thing and sin against God?" He was committed to the love of God of his life. Joseph viewed himself as God's man in Egypt and therefore he was a representative of God in Egypt. He had faith that was working. The whole house understood this.

Everybody knew that Joseph was a godly man. Everybody in the house knew that he professed a faith in the one true God in the midst of all of this darkness of Egypt. He is shining as a bright light for the glory of God in this place. So how could he deny and dishonor the name of his God? He recognized he had the responsibility to live his faith by making the right choice, and this choice is critical to us as well.

Because we live in a generation primarily who does not know God. There are people in your school who know that you profess Christ. There are people at your office who know you profess Christ. There are people in your neighborhood. You are a representative of the Lord your God. It is our witness of God's reputation in the world—who He is and what we believe about Him—that is at stake in our own generation.

So like Joseph, let us be trustworthy. Let us form strong moral convictions and the fiber of the soul, the iron of the soul that stands against this kind of wickedness in our lives. And yes, let us be concerned about the reputation of God, our witness in the world. Now, there are some principles that I want to share with you that I believe give us guidance as to how we can do this. Principle number one: when we are successful, we are most vulnerable to sexual temptation.

Satan uses promotion and prosperity to produce pride in our lives. When that happens, when you achieve some measure of success in life in whatever your chosen field, if you're not careful as a Christ follower, you can begin thinking that the rules don't apply to you anymore or that the boundaries have moved. You can take the position that you're above all this and you're not responsible as other people are responsible. I've seen ministers and pastors play this game.

The higher we rise in life, the more likely we are to be susceptible to pride, which is the root of all of this anyway. We're put in this precarious position, and this is why we must always guard our hearts, protect ourselves. Satan can attack us seemingly out of nowhere. It appears when you read this passage of scripture that Joseph is minding his own business, doing the right thing, and then out of nowhere comes this storm in his soul. The temptation is on, but he wasn't surprised, and Satan was not allowed to deliver a crushing blow.

Number one: when we are successful, we are most vulnerable. That's what happened to Joseph. Secondly, to resist—