The Life of Joseph: A Man of Character in the Providence of God

In this Sunday evening service, Pastor Chris Parker opens a new character study on the life of Joseph, beginning in Genesis chapter 37. Setting the stage with Psalm 105:17 — “He sent a man before them, even Joseph, who was sold for a servant” — he frames Joseph’s story as a window into the providence of God, who works through the hardest circumstances to accomplish His purposes. Drawing in part on study material left behind by a former pastor of the church, Pastor Parker introduces Joseph as a young man of character in a deeply troubled family. Genesis 37 recounts how Joseph, the favored son of Jacob, was hated by his brothers because of his father’s love and the coat of many colors, and how their envy deepened when he shared the dreams God had given him. That envy hardened into a plot that led to Joseph being cast into a pit and sold to passing traders bound for Egypt. Yet the message emphasizes that even in betrayal, God’s hand was never absent. Joseph’s integrity, his refusal to return evil for evil, and his steady faith through undeserved suffering mark him as a man worth imitating. Pastor Parker draws out the lessons that character is forged in the valley as much as on the mountaintop, that God often prepares His servants through hardship long before He exalts them, and that the mistreatment of others can never thwart the plan of God for a surrendered life. The congregation is encouraged to trust the Lord’s providence in their own seasons of difficulty, believing that what others intend for harm God is able to work for good. As the first installment of the study, the evening lays the groundwork for the unfolding account of a man whose life testifies that the Lord is with those who fear Him. It is a hopeful, faith-strengthening look at God’s sovereign care.