Building a Strong Faith

Submission to God’s will is key to building a strong faith.

Before we get into the text let me just define submission for you. Submission, is “an attitude of yielding or surrender.” As followers of Jesus, it speaks to giving way for Him to work through us.

I understand you all have been walking through Joseph’s story, talking about what it means to have a strong faith. Tonight, we’ll continue with that theme, looking at how Joseph submitted to God’s will and in so doing He grew in His faith. We’ll discuss how when we submit to God’s will we, too, can grow in our faith.

Let’s get into the text — we read in Gen. 40:1-8:

Genesis 40:1–8 ESV

Some time after this, the cupbearer of the king of Egypt and his baker committed an offense against their lord the king of Egypt. And Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, and he put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, in the prison where Joseph was confined. The captain of the guard appointed Joseph to be with them, and he attended them. They continued for some time in custody. And one night they both dreamed—the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison—each his own dream, and each dream with its own interpretation. When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they were troubled. So he asked Pharaoh’s officers who were with him in custody in his master’s house, “Why are your faces downcast today?” They said to him, “We have had dreams, and there is no one to interpret them.” And Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Please tell them to me.”

So, at this point in Joseph’s story, he’s probably in his late 20’s and he’s been imprisoned for about 10 or 11 years, when all of a sudden this chief baker and the chief cupbearer end up in prison, with him.

Quickly, let’s talk about the cupbearer and the baker. These might sound like unimportant positions, but in ancient Egyptian culture, these were highly desired and incredibly important positions. Both of them served the king of Egypt. And so the chief butler was the “the head man among those who served the king his drinks.” The chief baker was “the [leader] of those who baked the king’s bread.”

Young people, please don’t miss this — two of the top guys in the Kings household, ended up in prison, because they offended the King. They went from a high place to a low place, because in the kings eyes, they “sinned” against him. Now, the offense is not recorded, because I think the offense is less important than the principle.

I heard someone once say that, “high places are slippery places.” Listen, a lot of people strive for position and popularity, without factoring God into the equation. And, if we’re not careful and intentional to submit our plans, our desires before God, we’re liable to wind up in a dark place of shattered dreams and disappointed expectations.

I know this so well. Look, I was born and raised in church. At 19, God placed a call to ministry on my life and my dream was to lead a church, preaching, spending time with people, and inspiring people to God’s purpose. After graduating college and serving as a social worker for six years, I was finally granted the opportunity to serve on staff at a local church. I served teens and young adults and had a great time doing it, but still felt like God had more. Then finally, just about two years ago I was afforded the opportunity and I took it. But, I took the position without consulting God and only considering that it was a chance to fulfill my dream. For a year and a half, I served in that position preaching, loving people and pointing them to God’s purpose, but deep down I can honestly say that I just worked and worked, without consulting God. It took a significant crisis moment filled with anxiety and hopeless to get me to realize it. At that point, though, I had found my way down that slippery slope. I recognized that it was time to change courses and refocus my life and my ministry on the Lord. God was gracious to give me a new opportunity, where I could continue fulfilling God’s call on my life and focus on submitting to His will and not my own which ultimately brought me to Liquid Church.

All that to say:

High Places are Slippery Places

So, Joseph is in prison and these two guys are thrown in there with him. The scripture says, “The captain of the guard appointed Joseph to be with them, and he attended them. They continued for some time in custody.” I love this part of the text — Joseph was “appointed” to be with them. He was given a responsibility, but it was really a choice for him to take that responsibility. He was in prison — like, he didn’t HAVE to do anything. He could have just done his time and eventually, as the king saw fit, be let free. But, Joseph recognized throughout the course of his life that God was with him and faithfully presenting him opportunities to prove himself faithful. And all Joseph had to do was submit to God’s will, even in the most difficult of circumstances.

So the text says, “he attended them,” or he cared for them. You see a person who willingly submits to God’s will is someone who takes care of all the people and things, God gives us charge over.

I’ll say it differently:

Submission to God’s will means being responsible for what God places in our hands.

So, I did some research on that word attended. It means that Joseph literally “served” them. Imagine that — Joseph never stopped being a servant — whether in Potiphar’s house, or in the prison, he always took on the posture of a servant. And not only was God blessed by his servants heart, but so were other people.

Jason Lynch is a fan of the Seattle Seahawks football team, but he was surprised when Seahawks player Marshawn Lynch found and returned his wallet. Jason Lynch, who is not related to the football player, accidentally dropped his wallet outside a local gas station because he was distracted when Lynch, the player, drove up. Jason Lynch wanted to ask to get a picture with the player but decided not to bother him. Instead, Jason continued his errands, picked up his son from school, and then went home.

Not long after arriving home, Jason’s neighbor came over and gave him his wallet, telling him he would never believe who brought it to her. She said Marshawn Lynch and two other men were on their way to an appointment and dropped it off. She said Marshawn Lynch had found it at the gas station and since Jason’s house was on the way to an event, he dropped it by. Jason used social media to send his thanks to Marshawn, saying, “Thank you so much for going outta your way to return my wallet! A Lynch taking care of a Lynch.”

We’re talking about how having a submissive heart before the Lord, ultimately will build your faith. And, part of that is being a servant above all. It’s about going out of the way to serve others. It’s the way Joseph served these two guys, even when he didn’t want to. It’s about Marshawn going out of his way to drop of Jason’s wallet. It’s what Jesus said in Mark 10:43-45.

Mark 10:43–45 ESV

But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Submission is never about a position, but always about a posture.

It’s about being willing to be a servant regardless of what it looks like. Being a servant could mean losing popularity. An,d being a servant could mean forfeiting a current position.

We’re almost done, so bare with me for just a couple of minutes. Now, Joseph is in prison with the cupbearer and the baker. And one day he gets up to find them both incredibly sad. So he actually goes and asks them, “why are you so sad?”

Joseph genuinely cared about these two men. He recognized their pain and took interest in them, by asking them this question. Listen guys, submission to God’s will means caring for others.

Submission to God’s will means caring for others.

Ephesians 5:21 ESV

submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Guys, for those of you who follow Jesus this life is more about how you can point others to Jesus, than what you can get out of it. Let me encourage you that if you want to build your faith you’re commanded to care for others out of reverence, or “honor” for Jesus. When we care for others our faith is built, as those we serve draw closer to Jesus.

There’s a gentleman I know, named Carlos. He was a man who’d just started attending my previous church with his family. He was Catholic and really wanted nothing to do with a personal relationship with Jesus. Instead, he would only attend church with his family, because his wife and two daughters wanted to come. I pretty quickly recognized that this was someone God intentionally placed in my life, for me to care for. So, I did. I met with Carlos, cared for Carlos and his family, I invested time and energy to build a strong relationship with him. And after two years of us spending that time together, he gave his heart to the Lord. His story is so much a part of my story, because it helped build my faith.

Remember, submission to God’s will means caring for others.

So the cupbearer and the baker share with Joseph, why they’re so sad. They had dreams, both on the same night, and both were struggling to understand dreams. Listen to how Joseph responds:

Genesis 40:8 ESV

They said to him, “We have had dreams, and there is no one to interpret them.” And Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Please tell them to me.”

Now, if you don’t know this already, you’ll soon find out that Joseph has this God-given skill of being able to interpret dreams. Later, in the story he even interprets Pharaoh’s dream and his story is changed FOREVER. But, I find it interesting that Joseph doesn’t hoard his talent or use it for his benefit. Instead, he uses this ability to point these two men back to God.

Let me give you this last encouragement:

Submission means using what God’s given you, to point others to Jesus.

So what talents, skills, abilities has God given you? Let me encourage that you can use all that God has given you to point others to Jesus.

I’ll close with this scripture, James 4:7-10, and we’ll recap before closing. Listen to what James, the half-brother of Jesus says:

James 4:7–10 ESV

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

Remember:

Submission to God’s will means being responsible for what God places in our hands.

Submission is never about a position, but always about a posture.

Submission to God’s will means caring for others.

Submission means using what God’s given you, to point others to Jesus.