The Unfair Advantage

Access Church

Genesis 37:5 // Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. Genesis 37:17b-20 // So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him. “Here comes that dreamer!” they said to each other. “Come now, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we’ll see what comes of his dreams.” Genesis 37:23-24 // So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe—the ornate robe he was wearing—and they took him and threw him into the cistern. The cistern was empty; there was no water in it. Genesis 37:28 // So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt. Genesis 50:20 // You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. When life is unfair, it is to my advantage to: Recognize God’s Presence Genesis 39:1-2 // Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there. The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. Joshua 1:5 // No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. When life is unfair, it is to my advantage to: Move Forward Genesis 39:3-4 // When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned. Don’t let the bad of a past season create bitterness in your current season. When life is unfair, it is to my advantage to: Embrace God’s Redirection Genesis 39:20-21 // Joseph’s master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined. But while Joseph was there in the prison, the Lord was with him. As a follower of Jesus, even haters help make my purpose happen. When life is unfair, it is to my advantage to: Choose Forgiveness Genesis 50:15 // When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?” Genesis 50:18-21 // His brothers then came and threw themselves down before him. “We are your slaves,” they said. But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. So then, don’t be afraid. I will provide for you and your children.” Unfair scenarios happen to the best of us, but they don’t have to get the best of us. Luke 23:34 // Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.