ANOTHER COFFEE BREAK: RULING AND REIGNING WITH GOD Part 4

RULING AND REIGNING WITH GOD Part 4

August 21, 2020

Let’s continue today with where we were last week in our discussion. We have a ways to go with these scriptures as a part of our foundations.

Let’s explore the real cost of true authority. We are going to look at the lives of some individuals in Scripture who exercised the authority given them by God. That authority did not (and does not at any time in history or the present) come without cost.

The authority of the Lord is not cheap! If we are going to operate in all that we’ve been designed and created for, our flesh is going to undergo pain, deprivation and occasional periods of what seems like torture.

The big difference between what our flesh endures and what our spirits experience is that our spirits prosper, and we grow into the level of spiritual maturity that must exist in us. We were designed from the beginning for dominion and rulership, but we know from the original Creation that there were commands and restrictions for that dominion to function and continue.

Before we begin today taking a look at the life of Joseph, and all that he experienced before he sat on the throne of Egypt as second in command over the whole nation, let’s wrap up the last part of last week’s discussion.

I want to come back to the revelation of Jesus Christ. That comes by and through the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation — one of the Seven Spirits of God.

The rational-thinking human mind cannot even begin to comprehend the depth of the love that Jesus has for us. Understand that Father God has that same love. He would not have appointed Jesus (and Jesus fully agreed) before time began (knowing in advance that Adam and Eve were going to blow it) to become our redemption and deliverance from the resulting curse that came upon the human race. Jesus had imbred in Himself a calling, a drawing, a driving force to see that we, who were first designed by Him and for Him to become a Heavenly family imbued with His Glory, His authority and His power.

The natural, unredeemed mind just goes TILT when trying to conceive all of that!

Consider how the apostle Paul put it when writing to the Ekklesia in Corinth:

I Corinthians 2:9-12: But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.

Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

Chew on that for awhile!

I Corinthians 2:9-10: Natural mind cannot grasp, cannot conceive, cannot wrap its head around the things that God has developed, matured and seasoned, for and on behalf of, all those who are immersed in His love, and are totally given over to Him.

But God has, and continues to reveal them to us through and by His spirit, which is the Holy Spirit because Holy Spirit has taken off the veil of our minds, and revealed the heart of God to us, by virtue of the fact the He continually studies and investigates the deep and profound essence of Father and Son. (RAC Translation & Amplification)

Are you seeing it?

THAT is a revelation of Jesus Christ. That is how Holy Spirit reveals to us the true character, the nature, the essence of Who Jesus Christ IS!

We are talking about ruling and reigning with Christ. That cannot happen until we have a real revelation of Who Jesus is — not only in Heaven, or as the Son of Father God, but IN US!

Let’s review again some statements that Jesus made.

Matthew 28:18-19: And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

Matthew 10:5-8: These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

You see, it begins with the fact that Jesus says, All power in heaven and in earth is given unto me. The Greek text uses the word exousia instead of dunamis for power. Jesus was saying, All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me.

When Jesus sent the twelve disciples out, He commanded them with that same authority to state unequivocally that the ruling authority and power of the Kingdom of God had come — and here’s the kicker — vested in them! They were commanded with that authority to heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead and cast out demons.

Luke 10:1, 9:After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come…...And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.

Again we see the authority of the Lord in action. The Greek word translated “appointed” means to commission and make evident to all who see and hear that His Kingdom authority and rulership are at work.

Now, on to the life of Joseph as the first example of the processes that get worked out in us as we are prepared for rulership.

Genesis 37:5-11: And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf.

And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.

And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, Whatis this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?

And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.

So Joseph receives these dreams from the Lord. They excite him, and yet he finds them very unusual, so he shares them with his parents and his brothers. Let’s not forget that Joseph was the youngest of all. The fact that he would share these dreams with his family — and the dreams showed him in a rulership position over his family — didn’t exactly make him popular.

His sharing, however, unwittingly opened the way for him to experience the cost of his preparation. The dreams were real, but Joseph was going to go through a lot of things before he could ever become the ruler for which he’d been given him a vision by God. A whole lot of things are going to unfold.

Genesis 37:13-22:And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed the flock in Shechem? come, and I will send thee unto them. And he said to him, Heream I. And he said to him, Go, I pray thee, see whether it be well with thy brethren, and well with the flocks; and bring me word again. So he sent him out of the vale of Hebron, and he came to Shechem.

And a certain man found him, and, behold, he was wandering in the field: and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou? And he said, I seek my brethren: tell me, I pray thee, where they feed their flocks. And the man said, They are departed hence; for I heard them say, Let us go to Dothan. And Joseph went after his brethren, and found them in Dothan.

And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him. And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh. Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say, Some evil beast hath devoured him: and we shall see what will become of his dreams.

And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him. And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again.

What happens when you experience a vision or dream from the Lord and you share it with folks who have not had such experiences and are not walking in communion with the Lord? They begin to conspire against you!

Those who conspire may be members of your own family or they could be people you associate with and consider your friends.The problem is fear and jealousy. It is also a case of their viewing themselves as less than worthy of the same experiences.

(I know this because of what I experienced in my youth as a result of sharing my experiences with angels, with the Lord appearing at my bedside and with my first visitation to heaven. I was mocked, made fun of and criticized by my own brother — not to mention the kids I played with. So I shut up for years to come.)

Genesis 37-23-36: And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they stripped Joseph out of his coat, his coat of manycolours that was on him; And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it.

And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a company of Ishmeelites came from Gilead with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt. And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood? Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content.

Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt. And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes. And he returned unto his brethren, and said, The child is not; and I, whither shall I go?

You see what is unfolding for Joseph. He’s done nothing to deserve this, but his brothers are determined to be rid of him. Were it not for Judah’s suggestions, there is no doubt that Joseph would have been killed. The circumstances intervened and the Ishmeelites solved the brothers’ problem by buying him to market as a slave.

Nevertheless, this is part of the testing process; Joseph has had some important dreams that bear on his future, the future of his family and the future of one or more nations. He doesxn’t know that yet but before all that can come to fruition and manifestation. This is part of the cost of authority.

And they took Joseph’s coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat in the blood; And they sent the coat of manycolours, and they brought it to their father; and said, This have we found: know now whether it be thy son’s coat or no.

And he knew it, and said, It is my son’s coat; an evil beast hath devoured him; Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces. And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days. And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down into the grave unto my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him.

And the Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh’s, and captain of the guard.

First, Joseph is sold to the Ishmeelites for the price of a slave — 20 pieces of silver. They journeyed to Egypt where the Ishmeelites sold Joseph again as a slave to Potiphar, who was captain of Pharaoh’s guard. Now a strange thing occurs. Joseph is not going to take all of these experiences like some defeated, doomed individual. Joseph obviously hasmaintained his faith and trust in the Lord. While none of this makes sense, he walks in absolute integrity before the Lord, before Potiphar and before everyone around. Consider what we see next.

Genesis 39:1-6: And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him of the hands of the Ishmeelites, which had brought him down thither. And the LORD was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.

And his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand. And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand.

And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the LORD was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field. And he left all that he had in Joseph’s hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured.

Notice something? And the LORD was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; By all natural reasoning, that’s a contradiction in terms! Joseph is a slave! How do you reckon that he was prospering? Did he have lots of money? Nope! Did he have his own elegant home? Nope! Did he wear the finest tailor-made clothing? Somehow, I don’t think so! Was he recognized as a man having authority, one who mingled with the “upper crust”?

Well, not yet anyway!

Then how can the Scripture say that Joseph was prosperous? The answer is simple.

THE LORD WAS WITH JOSEPH!

Prosperity is not measured by what you possess in a material realm. Prosperity is measured by your standing with God. If you walk in intimate fellowship with the Lord, then everything you do will prosper. And that’s exactly what we see unfolding here.

Joseph’s faithfulness and integrity were a standout to Potiphar. He wasn’t used to seeing that kind of integrity. So Joseph gets his first elevation to a place of authority. But thyis is not the first experience with authority. Watch!

Brother! THAT is a place of trust! Potiphar left everything that he had into Joseph’s trust, and his control. Joseph was now number two in Potiphar’s household. His level of authority is increasing, and he is being groomed by the Lord for what comes next.

But wait! The Enemy is going to try and throw a monkey wrench into Joseph’s life.

Genesis 39:7-20: And it came to pass after these things, that his master’s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me. But he refused, and said unto his master’s wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand; There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? And it came to pass, as she spake to Joseph day by day, that he hearkened not unto her, to lie by her, or to be with her. And it came to pass about this time, that Joseph went into the house to do his business; and there was none of the men of the house there within. And she caught him by his garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out.

Joseph, in his youth and naivete, missed the fact that with Potiphar’s wife making daily passes at him, passes which did not succeed with other workers being present, didn’t think about the fact that if there were no other witnesses present, he needed to take someone else with him into the house to take care of business. That’s a lesson for all of us!

And it came to pass, when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand, and was fled forth, That she called unto the men of her house, and spake unto them, saying, See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock us; he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice: And it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled, and got him out. And she laid up his garment by her, until his lord came home. And she spake unto him according to these words, saying, The Hebrew servant, which thou hast brought unto us, came in unto me to mock me: And it came to pass, as I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled out.

And it came to pass, when his master heard the words of his wife, which she spake unto him, saying, After this manner did thy servant to me; that his wrath was kindled. And Joseph’s master took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king’s prisoners werebound: and he was there in the prison.

So, once again, Joseph’s integrity has been challenged. Despite the great integrity and trust that Joseph had shown to Potiphar, Potiphar was so used to the Egyptian mentality and lack of morals that his first thought was to believe the accusation against Joseph.

From his perspective, he had no option but to get rid of Joseph. Because of the perceived disrespect and dishonor of his household, there was no other choice he could make but to put Joseph into the prison reserved for those who committed offenses against Pharaoh. These were considered the worst of the worst offenders in the land.

But, wait! Joseph’s integrity hasn’t suddenly vanished. He is still the man of God. He still has favor with the Lord. It is that favor that is going to make all the difference in what transpires next.

And that, folks, is where we will pick up this narrative next week!

In case you are missing out on real fellowship in an environment of Ekklesia, our Sunday worship gatherings are available by conference call – usually at about 10:30AM Pacific. That conference number is (712) 770-4160, and the access code is 308640#. We are now making these gatherings available on video usingZOOM. If you wish to participate by video on ZOOM, our login ID is 835-926-513. If you miss the live voice-onlycall, you can dial (712) 770-4169, enter the same access code and listen in later. The video call, of course, is not recorded – not yet, anyway.

Blessings on you!

Regner

Regner A. Capener
CAPENER MINISTRIES

RIVER WORSHIP CENTER
Temple, Texas 76502

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