Doing Right When Things Go Wrong
by Pastor Jim Green
Dr. Jim Green is the pastor of Parker Memorial Baptist Church in Lansing, Michigan.
“It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundred and twenty princes, which should be over the whole kingdom; And over these three presidents; of whom Daniel was first: that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage. Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm. Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him. Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God. Then these presidents and princes assembled together to the king, and said thus unto him, King Darius, live for ever. All the presidents of the kingdom, the governors, and the princes, the counsellors, and the captains, have consulted together to establish a royal statute, and to make a firm decree, that whosoever shall ask a petition of any God or man for thirty days, save of thee, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions. Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it be not changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not. Wherefore king Darius signed the writing and the decree. Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.” (Daniel 6:1-10)
Daniel is one of the few men in the Bible that didn’t have a black mark against his name. You can read about David, Samson, and Solomon, who were all great men in their own ways, but what strikes me about Daniel is that he did right even when things went wrong.
In life things don’t always go the way we had it planned. I was talking to a fellow pastor. He was asking me about the work here, and I asked him about the work down where he is. He asked me, “Brother Green, what is it that you’re doing up there that’s causing so much excitement?” It kind of took me by surprise.
I said, “I’m really not doing anything. God’s doing His thing, and I’m just trying to stay out of His way. I just kind of direct traffic sometimes.”
I said to him, “I’m just staying out of God’s way and doing right. I know if I do right and follow God’s Word, that God will bless. We’re just doing right when things go right, and we’re also doing right when things go wrong.”
Whatever circumstances are in front of you, as long as you’re doing right, God will vindicate your life. When you’re doing right in the work of God, God will vindicate your work for God. When you do right in your church, God will bless your church. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
I’ve always loved the Lord and loved God’s people. I’ve always loved the Word of God. I’m not some great hero like Daniel, or like Joseph or David or Paul. But we can take the example of these men in the Word of God and they can inspire us to go on when we don’t know what to do.
Daniel kept going when things were not going right. When David’s friends turned on him, he just kept on going. When Paul’s own brethren turned on him, he just kept on going. Sometimes your own friends in the church will turn on you. You just do right when things go wrong, and God will see you through.
I read my Bible every day no matter what’s going on, whether it’s a good day or it’s a bad day. I pray every day, whether things are going right or wrong. I’m going to go to church every service, whether things are going right and even when things are going wrong. I’m going to witness to the lost when things are going right or when things are going wrong. I’m going to keep my testimony clean every day of my life, whether things are going right or wrong.
Daniel was consistent, and God honored him for that. The three Hebrew children went through the fire and God brought them safely through because they were doing right. What you don’t need, and what the church doesn’t need, and what your family doesn’t need is for you to give up when things are going wrong. They don’t need anybody to throw in the towel. Christianity has seen a lot of people back up on God and leave His church. They look at the circumstances and problems of life and they fail to take the challenge to go through the storm. David, Joseph, Daniel and Moses went through the storm. You just do right, and trust God.
In Exodus three, you see Moses and the miracles God did for him when things were going wrong. He had been run out of the kingdom of Egypt for something he had done. God sent him way back off to the backside of the desert to teach him some things.
I’d hate to be put on the backside of the desert for 40 years before God spoke to me. But it was 40 years before God began to move in Moses’ life again. It may take five years. It may take ten years, but you just be patient and you do right, and God will bless you.
In Exodus 3:2-4 the Bible says, “And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.” Verse 9-10, “Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.”
Moses had the call of God upon his life. God gave him instructions on what to do in Exodus chapter four. He went and did as God commanded him to do.
God is watching us, just as He was watching Moses. And when we turn aside to see what God wants to do, He sees that we’re recognizing His working in our lives. He’s trying to show us something. But if we turn our back on that call of God or whatever it might be, that’s when we get in trouble.
Moses went down to the children of Israel. They had been praying and crying for 400 years that God would send somebody to pull them out of the bondage of Egypt. God answered their prayer. All of a sudden Moses walks in the door and shows them some marvelous things. He showed them the miracles with the rod. They could see the call of God upon this man’s life, and that God was going to use him to be their deliverer.
Then Moses went to Pharaoh and the plan began to backfire. In Exodus 5:20-21 the Bible says, “And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh: And they said unto them, The LORD look upon you, and judge; because ye have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us.” They complained to Moses because he had gone to Pharaoh and Pharaoh had made it a little bit harder on them. So they were complaining against the man that God had sent them to deliver them.
What did Moses do? In verse 22, “And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Lord, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me?” “Why in the world am I here, God, if all these problems are going to take place?” “For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all.” “Lord, You haven’t even done what You said You were going to do.” God doesn’t always do things the next day. Sometimes it takes time. Sometimes it takes weeks. We can’t get intimidated, and we can’t get ahead of God.
Moses was only doing what God had called him to do, and the people were complaining about it. Moses went to the Lord in prayer. In Exodus 6:1, “Then the LORD said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh: for with a strong hand shall he let them go, and with a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land.” Verse nine says, “And Moses spake so unto the children of Israel: but they hearkened not unto Moses for anguish of spirit, and for cruel bondage.”
Thank God he didn’t veer away from God’s instructions. God told him exactly the message to tell Pharaoh. There were ten plagues that God sent on Egypt. But even though the people complained, Moses did what was right when things were going wrong. Did he quit? Did he go back home to Jethro, back to his wife and children, back to his old life? No, he stayed with the call of God upon his life, and did exactly what God had for him to do, in the place where God had led him to go, and through the process of time and many miracles God brought him through those problems, because God is faithful to His Word. God keeps His promises.
God gave His Word that He was going to deliver His people way back, long before this. But everybody was against him. They were speaking against him. But when things were going wrong he did what was right.
When things were going wrong, Moses still had a close, personal relationship with the Lord, and God could speak to him when things were going wrong. A lot of times when things are going wrong, we get so wrapped up in trying to correct the circumstances, so we leave God out. But when we talk to God about it, then He gets to speak to us, and He tells us how to get the problem corrected. Moses stayed close to the voice of God.
We need to stay close to the voice of God. That still, small voice. As God told Jeremiah, “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” (Jeremiah 33:3) God showed Moses some awesome things.
How do we stay close to that voice? When things are going wrong, and the clouds are so dark, and it seems like the heavens are brass, and we can’t seem to get hold of God? How does He speak to us today? Through His Word, through the Spirit of God.
The Lord had built Moses up in the eyes of Pharaoh to be some great magician. He could do things with the rod that Pharoah’s own magicians could not do. Moses must have had a close walk with God for such power to be shown through him. God wasn’t going to use some sloppy, inconsistent, lazy preacher to lead His people out of bondage, and to deal with the leader of a country.
Moses had the character. He had the convictions. He had the courage. He had the call of God upon his life. He had the calm assurance that everything was going to be alright. He had the compassion for the people. He had callouses on his hands. He wasn’t afraid to get in there and work and do what needed to be done.
God led Moses to Pharaoh, and then cast ten plagues on the country of Egypt because of this man’s intercession. The last one was the hardest of all the plagues. You know the story. Because of their coldness, and their callousness, and the rebellious heart of Pharaoh, God took Pharaoh’s firstborn son, and the firstborn of every household in Egypt where the blood was not applied above the doorpost.
I’m sure it was hard for Moses to pronounce that last plague. I’m sure it was hard for Moses to put it into motion. I don’t know exactly how he did it. As a man of God, as a preacher, as a leader, some things are hard to say and do, but you’ll have to do right when others are doing wrong. That’s all there is to it. It’s easy to back off. It’s easy to not want to hurt or offend somebody. It’s tempting for preachers just to back off on from their position and stand of the Bible because of others’ hardness or rebellion. We don’t want to hurt anybody. We just want to help people.
Moses, knowing the consequences, made the proclamation that God had given, and he stood and did as God had called and commanded him to do to Pharaoh. He did right.
Had he backed off, I believe he would have died at the hands of Pharaoh. I don’t believe the children of Israel would have been delivered the way they were delivered. Maybe some other way, God would have sent a deliverer. But Moses stuck to his call. Many preachers have fallen by the wayside. They’re falling into the hands of Satan because they fail to preach the whole counsel of God.
Make up your mind that you will do right when things are going wrong, when other people are giving up. The children of Israel said to Moses, “What are you doing here? Why don’t you just leave us alone. We had it so much better with the onions, and the leeks, and the garlic of Egypt. Why did you even come and bother us?”
Moses could have said, “I don’t want to offend these folks.” But he did right when things were going wrong. You just look at the miracles that took place. They looted the Egyptians. God provided for them. They didn’t have any money. They had been slaves for four hundred years. God knew that an offering was going to be taken up for the tabernacle of God, so God put money in their pocket so they’d be able to give to the building program. You do right and you’ll have money to give to the building program.
They freely walked out from those who wanted to keep them in bondage. Can you imagine the parade and excitement that day? Can you imagine the children of Israel as they were marching out of the town, saying, “So long, Pharaoh. So long, folks”?
They got all the way out to the Red Sea. They crossed through that Red Sea on dry ground, another miracle, because if you do right when things are going wrong, God will work miracles in your life. I believe they could have walked on top of the water if God had wanted them to do it that way.
God miraculously gave them food, manna from heaven. God gave them fresh water to drink when they got to the other side, caused it to come out of a rock. God gave them His law. What more could you ask? When things are going wrong, then God gives you the promise from the Scripture, the Word of God, to help you do what you’re supposed to do when you’re supposed to do it. Why all the miracles? Because Moses chose to do right when things were going wrong.
I could tell you about Joseph. God gave Joseph direction through his dreams, and a desire to follow God’s Word. But God had to put him through some tests to see if he would be faithful.
Joseph was no fair weather Christian. He was going to serve God whether things were going right or wrong. God wanted to see if Joseph would just go along with his brothers and their evil deeds, or if he would truly put his faith in Jehovah God, stand alone and serve God no matter what.
Joseph had to go through some temptations. He might have been tempted to quit. He might have fallen into sin. The story begins in Genesis chapter 37 and ends in chapter 50. Joseph was loved by his father, but hated by his brothers. God tested him to see if he was really going to serve God or not. God tested him to see if he was really going to follow through.
He was sold to the Midianites as a slave. He got down to Egypt and the Midianites sold him to Potiphar, the captain of the guard. He was going to be a slave down in the pits of Egypt, but God saw fit to place him as a servant in Potiphar’s house.
God wanted to see if Joseph was really going to be the successor to the family of Jacob. God wanted to see if He took him out of those surroundings, if he would worship Jehovah, and serve Jehovah all by himself in a strange land.
It’s easy to live for God in the church. It’s another thing to live for God and do what’s right out in the world. God wanted to test him to see if he could make it out there as well as at home.
God wanted to see if he’d quit if he was stranded in a pagan country with a bunch of pagan people with some pagan idols, with some pagan music, with some pagan women. Joseph did right when all his surroundings were wrong. It was just a test that he had to go through so that God could use him later on in his life. It was 20 hard years of testing. I don’t know if I want to go that long in testing. I don’t know if the average Christian today could even go through something like that.
It was 20 years before God finally used him. How long would you like to wait for God to test you? The average Christian workers today want to throw in the towel and join the pagans. They want to quit church, quit God, and go on out into the world. Don’t get impatient with God. Joseph had the stuff to keep on going.
Genesis 39:1-4 says, “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.” How would you like to be kidnapped and be taken off to some foreign land without your family? He was doing right when things were going wrong. He was sold by his own brothers. How would you like your family to turn on you? But God was still with him.
That wasn’t the only test. God wanted to test his morals. A woman came into his life, the wife of Potiphar, a godless, pagan, lustful woman. She wanted Joseph, and God tested him with this woman. He wanted to see if he would pass this test.
He came into his master’s house just like he always did to take care of his master’s business. Everything in the master’s house was at his disposal. He could go to the refrigerator and get a Coke. (I’m sure they had Coke back in those days!) He could go to the treasury and borrow a hundred dollars, or if he needed a new set of clothes, or a new pair of shoes, he could order it and have it brought in to him.
Nobody was around when he came into his master’s house this one day, and here came Mrs. Potiphar sliding into the room. I don’t know what she had on, but I don’t think she wore too much. Most women that want to seduce men don’t wear too much. In the summer they run around with hardly anything on so they can seduce men into sin.
Young ladies, you’re supposed to dress modestly. That’s what the Bible says. We need to wear clothes that are attractive to God, and draw attention to our countenance, not show off the body.
Joseph didn’t like the looks of this Jezebel. He said, “Wait a second. This thing ain’t looking right.” He did right when it looked like he could do wrong. Nobody was around. He could have done anything he wanted to. He probably could have gotten away with it and never got caught. But he knew that God would know. Inside his heart, he had the call of God upon his life. The Bible says the Lord was with him.
You stay close to God and you’ll do right when wrong is easier to do. The sorry thing today in the churches across America is that people are doing wrong just because wrong is easy to do.
Years ago one of our men was in a house cleaning carpet, and this woman home was from work. She went into her room and when she came out she had nothing on but a towel. She was holding it in front of her talking to the man. He needed to get out of there fast! The devil wants to entice you to do wrong.
When the world wants us to do wrong, we have to do what’s right. When you’re close to God, you can do right even when wrong is easier. The world makes wrong easy these days. If you have a television you know what I’m talking about. We need to have some Christians who will take a stand when the world does wrong. Have something inside you that says, “Hey, I’m not going along with that stuff. I want to please the Lord.”
There are some men and ladies that God can’t use, because the “Mrs. Potiphars” of this world have seduced them into wicked sin. Joseph was close to God, and God gave him the courage to do what was right.
I could tell you story after story about good men that should be preaching the Gospel, that should be in the ministry today who are not because they chose to do wrong when wrong was available. We need some Christians, some moms and dads, some boys and girls, some teenagers in America to stand up and do what’s right. Have some courage to live for God, to stay away from wrong and stay close to God. Christian people are living way too close to the world, and God puts us to the test to see what we’re going to do, what we are really made of, and how determined we are to please and obey Him.
Joseph may have had to live in Potiphar’s house. She continually pressured him to do wrong. He may have had to work there, but he did not have to give in to the temptations that were available there. Just remember that. You men that work in the world, you’re faced with temptations all the time. You go into places and there are things that are not right. There is music that you may have to hear. There are things that you may have to listen to. We may have to work in this world, but we don’t have to be a part of it. We need to do what’s right when wrong is easier to do.
I’m so glad Joseph passed the test. Even though he was lied about. He was put into prison for something he didn’t do. Still he did right when things went wrong. And remember, all along when people lied about him, when others believed the lies about him, God knew the truth.
I never read about Joseph complaining to God. He didn’t bellyache to the guards and the prisoners. He was a blessing and an encouragement. “But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners that were in the prison; and whatsoever they did there, he was the doer of it. The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand; because the LORD was with him, and that which he did, the LORD made it to prosper.” (Genesis 39:21-23)
Have you ever been lied about? Have you ever been misrepresented by your own family or friends? Joseph lost everything. He lost his position, his good job, his nice living quarters, his freedom, he lost everything. But God was still with him.
He didn’t have a Bible to read like you do. He didn’t have Christian friends to call on the telephone, or even somebody in the next cell. He didn’t have a pastor to talk to. He didn’t have a church to go to. He didn’t have a church family. He didn’t have a phone to go call Daddy or Momma. All he had was God. All he had were the provisions of the precious Holy Spirit that promised that He would never leave us nor forsake us. That’s all he had way down in the prison because he did right when things were going wrong, and had he gotten bitter, the Lord wouldn’t have blessed him like He did. The Bible would say, “The Lord was not with Joseph because he was a bitter man. He did not show him mercy. He did not show him favor.”
The Holy Spirit, our constant Friend, gives us courage to go on, He gives us hope for tomorrow. ‘Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus; just to take Him at His Word. Just to rest upon His promise; just to know “thus saith the Lord.” Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus. Oh for grace to trust Him more.
Joseph had that kind of grace. Grace to do right when things are going wrong.
God can still use you when things are going wrong to be a blessing to a lot of people. You be a blessing to somebody else. When you’re walking close to God, that’s what happens. You’re a blessing to people. Things may be totally blown away in your life, but you can still be a blessing to a lot of people. You can be a great example and encouragement to others, especially by doing right when things go wrong.
Joseph was a blessing to the whole country. Pharaoh elevated him to be the governor. He was a blessing to Pharaoh and the people of Egypt, and soon he had opportunity to be a blessing to his own family.
What if he had gotten bitter? What if he would have gotten mad at God? What if he had said, “I’m going to just join this pagan country. God doesn’t seem to be doing anything for me?” Don’t get impatient with God’s plan.
What if he had said, “I don’t like this test God is taking me through. I quit!?” What if he would have done wrong when things were going wrong? He would not have been a blessing to anybody. He would have died in that prison. Nobody would have ever heard of Joseph ever again. He would have lost out on many blessings God had waiting in store for him.
Joseph chose to live for God. We need some Christians who will do the same thing. Joseph was a blessing to millions of people, and especially to his own daddy.
Do you want to be able to look back and say, “Jesus led me all the way”? Maybe you can’t say that you passed every test the first time. But I’m glad that God is the God of the second chance.
If He could use Moses, if He could use Joseph, if He could use Jim Green, He could put it in your heart to not quit, and to keep on doing right even when things are going wrong.
Daniel is one of the few men in the Bible that didn’t have a black mark against his name. You can read about David, Samson, and Solomon, who were all great men in their own ways, but what strikes me about Daniel is that he did right even when things went wrong.
In life things don’t always go the way we had it planned. I was talking to a fellow pastor. He was asking me about the work here, and I asked him about the work down where he is. He asked me, “Brother Green, what is it that you’re doing up there that’s causing so much excitement?” It kind of took me by surprise.
I said, “I’m really not doing anything. God’s doing His thing, and I’m just trying to stay out of His way. I just kind of direct traffic sometimes.”
I said to him, “I’m just staying out of God’s way and doing right. I know if I do right and follow God’s Word, that God will bless. We’re just doing right when things go right, and we’re also doing right when things go wrong.”
Whatever circumstances are in front of you, as long as you’re doing right, God will vindicate your life. When you’re doing right in the work of God, God will vindicate your work for God. When you do right in your church, God will bless your church. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
I’ve always loved the Lord and loved God’s people. I’ve always loved the Word of God. I’m not some great hero like Daniel, or like Joseph or David or Paul. But we can take the example of these men in the Word of God and they can inspire us to go on when we don’t know what to do.
Daniel kept going when things were not going right. When David’s friends turned on him, he just kept on going. When Paul’s own brethren turned on him, he just kept on going. Sometimes your own friends in the church will turn on you. You just do right when things go wrong, and God will see you through.
I read my Bible every day no matter what’s going on, whether it’s a good day or it’s a bad day. I pray every day, whether things are going right or wrong. I’m going to go to church every service, whether things are going right and even when things are going wrong. I’m going to witness to the lost when things are going right or when things are going wrong. I’m going to keep my testimony clean every day of my life, whether things are going right or wrong.
Daniel was consistent, and God honored him for that. The three Hebrew children went through the fire and God brought them safely through because they were doing right. What you don’t need, and what the church doesn’t need, and what your family doesn’t need is for you to give up when things are going wrong. They don’t need anybody to throw in the towel. Christianity has seen a lot of people back up on God and leave His church. They look at the circumstances and problems of life and they fail to take the challenge to go through the storm. David, Joseph, Daniel and Moses went through the storm. You just do right, and trust God.
In Exodus three, you see Moses and the miracles God did for him when things were going wrong. He had been run out of the kingdom of Egypt for something he had done. God sent him way back off to the backside of the desert to teach him some things.
I’d hate to be put on the backside of the desert for 40 years before God spoke to me. But it was 40 years before God began to move in Moses’ life again. It may take five years. It may take ten years, but you just be patient and you do right, and God will bless you.
In Exodus 3:2-4 the Bible says, “And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.” Verse 9-10, “Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.”
Moses had the call of God upon his life. God gave him instructions on what to do in Exodus chapter four. He went and did as God commanded him to do.
God is watching us, just as He was watching Moses. And when we turn aside to see what God wants to do, He sees that we’re recognizing His working in our lives. He’s trying to show us something. But if we turn our back on that call of God or whatever it might be, that’s when we get in trouble.
Moses went down to the children of Israel. They had been praying and crying for 400 years that God would send somebody to pull them out of the bondage of Egypt. God answered their prayer. All of a sudden Moses walks in the door and shows them some marvelous things. He showed them the miracles with the rod. They could see the call of God upon this man’s life, and that God was going to use him to be their deliverer.
Then Moses went to Pharaoh and the plan began to backfire. In Exodus 5:20-21 the Bible says, “And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh: And they said unto them, The LORD look upon you, and judge; because ye have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us.” They complained to Moses because he had gone to Pharaoh and Pharaoh had made it a little bit harder on them. So they were complaining against the man that God had sent them to deliver them.
What did Moses do? In verse 22, “And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Lord, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me?” “Why in the world am I here, God, if all these problems are going to take place?” “For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all.” “Lord, You haven’t even done what You said You were going to do.” God doesn’t always do things the next day. Sometimes it takes time. Sometimes it takes weeks. We can’t get intimidated, and we can’t get ahead of God.
Moses was only doing what God had called him to do, and the people were complaining about it. Moses went to the Lord in prayer. In Exodus 6:1, “Then the LORD said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh: for with a strong hand shall he let them go, and with a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land.” Verse nine says, “And Moses spake so unto the children of Israel: but they hearkened not unto Moses for anguish of spirit, and for cruel bondage.”
Thank God he didn’t veer away from God’s instructions. God told him exactly the message to tell Pharaoh. There were ten plagues that God sent on Egypt. But even though the people complained, Moses did what was right when things were going wrong. Did he quit? Did he go back home to Jethro, back to his wife and children, back to his old life? No, he stayed with the call of God upon his life, and did exactly what God had for him to do, in the place where God had led him to go, and through the process of time and many miracles God brought him through those problems, because God is faithful to His Word. God keeps His promises.
God gave His Word that He was going to deliver His people way back, long before this. But everybody was against him. They were speaking against him. But when things were going wrong he did what was right.
When things were going wrong, Moses still had a close, personal relationship with the Lord, and God could speak to him when things were going wrong. A lot of times when things are going wrong, we get so wrapped up in trying to correct the circumstances, so we leave God out. But when we talk to God about it, then He gets to speak to us, and He tells us how to get the problem corrected. Moses stayed close to the voice of God.
We need to stay close to the voice of God. That still, small voice. As God told Jeremiah, “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” (Jeremiah 33:3) God showed Moses some awesome things.
How do we stay close to that voice? When things are going wrong, and the clouds are so dark, and it seems like the heavens are brass, and we can’t seem to get hold of God? How does He speak to us today? Through His Word, through the Spirit of God.
The Lord had built Moses up in the eyes of Pharaoh to be some great magician. He could do things with the rod that Pharoah’s own magicians could not do. Moses must have had a close walk with God for such power to be shown through him. God wasn’t going to use some sloppy, inconsistent, lazy preacher to lead His people out of bondage, and to deal with the leader of a country.
Moses had the character. He had the convictions. He had the courage. He had the call of God upon his life. He had the calm assurance that everything was going to be alright. He had the compassion for the people. He had callouses on his hands. He wasn’t afraid to get in there and work and do what needed to be done.
God led Moses to Pharaoh, and then cast ten plagues on the country of Egypt because of this man’s intercession. The last one was the hardest of all the plagues. You know the story. Because of their coldness, and their callousness, and the rebellious heart of Pharaoh, God took Pharaoh’s firstborn son, and the firstborn of every household in Egypt where the blood was not applied above the doorpost.
I’m sure it was hard for Moses to pronounce that last plague. I’m sure it was hard for Moses to put it into motion. I don’t know exactly how he did it. As a man of God, as a preacher, as a leader, some things are hard to say and do, but you’ll have to do right when others are doing wrong. That’s all there is to it. It’s easy to back off. It’s easy to not want to hurt or offend somebody. It’s tempting for preachers just to back off on from their position and stand of the Bible because of others’ hardness or rebellion. We don’t want to hurt anybody. We just want to help people.
Moses, knowing the consequences, made the proclamation that God had given, and he stood and did as God had called and commanded him to do to Pharaoh. He did right.
Had he backed off, I believe he would have died at the hands of Pharaoh. I don’t believe the children of Israel would have been delivered the way they were delivered. Maybe some other way, God would have sent a deliverer. But Moses stuck to his call. Many preachers have fallen by the wayside. They’re falling into the hands of Satan because they fail to preach the whole counsel of God.
Make up your mind that you will do right when things are going wrong, when other people are giving up. The children of Israel said to Moses, “What are you doing here? Why don’t you just leave us alone. We had it so much better with the onions, and the leeks, and the garlic of Egypt. Why did you even come and bother us?”
Moses could have said, “I don’t want to offend these folks.” But he did right when things were going wrong. You just look at the miracles that took place. They looted the Egyptians. God provided for them. They didn’t have any money. They had been slaves for four hundred years. God knew that an offering was going to be taken up for the tabernacle of God, so God put money in their pocket so they’d be able to give to the building program. You do right and you’ll have money to give to the building program.
They freely walked out from those who wanted to keep them in bondage. Can you imagine the parade and excitement that day? Can you imagine the children of Israel as they were marching out of the town, saying, “So long, Pharaoh. So long, folks”?
They got all the way out to the Red Sea. They crossed through that Red Sea on dry ground, another miracle, because if you do right when things are going wrong, God will work miracles in your life. I believe they could have walked on top of the water if God had wanted them to do it that way.
God miraculously gave them food, manna from heaven. God gave them fresh water to drink when they got to the other side, caused it to come out of a rock. God gave them His law. What more could you ask? When things are going wrong, then God gives you the promise from the Scripture, the Word of God, to help you do what you’re supposed to do when you’re supposed to do it. Why all the miracles? Because Moses chose to do right when things were going wrong.
I could tell you about Joseph. God gave Joseph direction through his dreams, and a desire to follow God’s Word. But God had to put him through some tests to see if he would be faithful.
Joseph was no fair weather Christian. He was going to serve God whether things were going right or wrong. God wanted to see if Joseph would just go along with his brothers and their evil deeds, or if he would truly put his faith in Jehovah God, stand alone and serve God no matter what.
Joseph had to go through some temptations. He might have been tempted to quit. He might have fallen into sin. The story begins in Genesis chapter 37 and ends in chapter 50. Joseph was loved by his father, but hated by his brothers. God tested him to see if he was really going to serve God or not. God tested him to see if he was really going to follow through.
He was sold to the Midianites as a slave. He got down to Egypt and the Midianites sold him to Potiphar, the captain of the guard. He was going to be a slave down in the pits of Egypt, but God saw fit to place him as a servant in Potiphar’s house.
God wanted to see if Joseph was really going to be the successor to the family of Jacob. God wanted to see if He took him out of those surroundings, if he would worship Jehovah, and serve Jehovah all by himself in a strange land.
It’s easy to live for God in the church. It’s another thing to live for God and do what’s right out in the world. God wanted to test him to see if he could make it out there as well as at home.
God wanted to see if he’d quit if he was stranded in a pagan country with a bunch of pagan people with some pagan idols, with some pagan music, with some pagan women. Joseph did right when all his surroundings were wrong. It was just a test that he had to go through so that God could use him later on in his life. It was 20 hard years of testing. I don’t know if I want to go that long in testing. I don’t know if the average Christian today could even go through something like that.
It was 20 years before God finally used him. How long would you like to wait for God to test you? The average Christian workers today want to throw in the towel and join the pagans. They want to quit church, quit God, and go on out into the world. Don’t get impatient with God. Joseph had the stuff to keep on going.
Genesis 39:1-4 says, “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.” How would you like to be kidnapped and be taken off to some foreign land without your family? He was doing right when things were going wrong. He was sold by his own brothers. How would you like your family to turn on you? But God was still with him.
That wasn’t the only test. God wanted to test his morals. A woman came into his life, the wife of Potiphar, a godless, pagan, lustful woman. She wanted Joseph, and God tested him with this woman. He wanted to see if he would pass this test.
He came into his master’s house just like he always did to take care of his master’s business. Everything in the master’s house was at his disposal. He could go to the refrigerator and get a Coke. (I’m sure they had Coke back in those days!) He could go to the treasury and borrow a hundred dollars, or if he needed a new set of clothes, or a new pair of shoes, he could order it and have it brought in to him.
Nobody was around when he came into his master’s house this one day, and here came Mrs. Potiphar sliding into the room. I don’t know what she had on, but I don’t think she wore too much. Most women that want to seduce men don’t wear too much. In the summer they run around with hardly anything on so they can seduce men into sin.
Young ladies, you’re supposed to dress modestly. That’s what the Bible says. We need to wear clothes that are attractive to God, and draw attention to our countenance, not show off the body.
Joseph didn’t like the looks of this Jezebel. He said, “Wait a second. This thing ain’t looking right.” He did right when it looked like he could do wrong. Nobody was around. He could have done anything he wanted to. He probably could have gotten away with it and never got caught. But he knew that God would know. Inside his heart, he had the call of God upon his life. The Bible says the Lord was with him.
You stay close to God and you’ll do right when wrong is easier to do. The sorry thing today in the churches across America is that people are doing wrong just because wrong is easy to do.
Years ago one of our men was in a house cleaning carpet, and this woman home was from work. She went into her room and when she came out she had nothing on but a towel. She was holding it in front of her talking to the man. He needed to get out of there fast! The devil wants to entice you to do wrong.
When the world wants us to do wrong, we have to do what’s right. When you’re close to God, you can do right even when wrong is easier. The world makes wrong easy these days. If you have a television you know what I’m talking about. We need to have some Christians who will take a stand when the world does wrong. Have something inside you that says, “Hey, I’m not going along with that stuff. I want to please the Lord.”
There are some men and ladies that God can’t use, because the “Mrs. Potiphars” of this world have seduced them into wicked sin. Joseph was close to God, and God gave him the courage to do what was right.
I could tell you story after story about good men that should be preaching the Gospel, that should be in the ministry today who are not because they chose to do wrong when wrong was available. We need some Christians, some moms and dads, some boys and girls, some teenagers in America to stand up and do what’s right. Have some courage to live for God, to stay away from wrong and stay close to God. Christian people are living way too close to the world, and God puts us to the test to see what we’re going to do, what we are really made of, and how determined we are to please and obey Him.
Joseph may have had to live in Potiphar’s house. She continually pressured him to do wrong. He may have had to work there, but he did not have to give in to the temptations that were available there. Just remember that. You men that work in the world, you’re faced with temptations all the time. You go into places and there are things that are not right. There is music that you may have to hear. There are things that you may have to listen to. We may have to work in this world, but we don’t have to be a part of it. We need to do what’s right when wrong is easier to do.
I’m so glad Joseph passed the test. Even though he was lied about. He was put into prison for something he didn’t do. Still he did right when things went wrong. And remember, all along when people lied about him, when others believed the lies about him, God knew the truth.
I never read about Joseph complaining to God. He didn’t bellyache to the guards and the prisoners. He was a blessing and an encouragement. “But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners that were in the prison; and whatsoever they did there, he was the doer of it. The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand; because the LORD was with him, and that which he did, the LORD made it to prosper.” (Genesis 39:21-23)
Have you ever been lied about? Have you ever been misrepresented by your own family or friends? Joseph lost everything. He lost his position, his good job, his nice living quarters, his freedom, he lost everything. But God was still with him.
He didn’t have a Bible to read like you do. He didn’t have Christian friends to call on the telephone, or even somebody in the next cell. He didn’t have a pastor to talk to. He didn’t have a church to go to. He didn’t have a church family. He didn’t have a phone to go call Daddy or Momma. All he had was God. All he had were the provisions of the precious Holy Spirit that promised that He would never leave us nor forsake us. That’s all he had way down in the prison because he did right when things were going wrong, and had he gotten bitter, the Lord wouldn’t have blessed him like He did. The Bible would say, “The Lord was not with Joseph because he was a bitter man. He did not show him mercy. He did not show him favor.”
The Holy Spirit, our constant Friend, gives us courage to go on, He gives us hope for tomorrow. ‘Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus; just to take Him at His Word. Just to rest upon His promise; just to know “thus saith the Lord.” Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus. Oh for grace to trust Him more.
Joseph had that kind of grace. Grace to do right when things are going wrong.
God can still use you when things are going wrong to be a blessing to a lot of people. You be a blessing to somebody else. When you’re walking close to God, that’s what happens. You’re a blessing to people. Things may be totally blown away in your life, but you can still be a blessing to a lot of people. You can be a great example and encouragement to others, especially by doing right when things go wrong.
Joseph was a blessing to the whole country. Pharaoh elevated him to be the governor. He was a blessing to Pharaoh and the people of Egypt, and soon he had opportunity to be a blessing to his own family.
What if he had gotten bitter? What if he would have gotten mad at God? What if he had said, “I’m going to just join this pagan country. God doesn’t seem to be doing anything for me?” Don’t get impatient with God’s plan.
What if he had said, “I don’t like this test God is taking me through. I quit!?” What if he would have done wrong when things were going wrong? He would not have been a blessing to anybody. He would have died in that prison. Nobody would have ever heard of Joseph ever again. He would have lost out on many blessings God had waiting in store for him.
Joseph chose to live for God. We need some Christians who will do the same thing. Joseph was a blessing to millions of people, and especially to his own daddy.
Do you want to be able to look back and say, “Jesus led me all the way”? Maybe you can’t say that you passed every test the first time. But I’m glad that God is the God of the second chance.
If He could use Moses, if He could use Joseph, if He could use Jim Green, He could put it in your heart to not quit, and to keep on doing right even when things are going wrong.
