In the sermon titled 'The Fear of God and the Mortification of Sin,' Mike Davenport explores Genesis 39, focusing on Joseph's encounter with temptation and his steadfastness against sin due to his fear of God. The sermon discusses the concept of the fear of God through three main points: the heat of the moment, the heart of the matter, and the habits of mortification. Joseph's story is used to illustrate how one should prepare for temptation and maintain integrity. Richard Sibbes' three types of fear—reverence, watchfulness, and jealousy—are highlighted as essential in developing a fear of God that leads to holiness. The sermon emphasizes that sin originates from within the heart, and mortification is necessary to weaken sin's grip. The teachings of biblical figures like Solomon and Paul are referenced to reinforce the importance of fearing God, keeping His commandments, and living a life of holiness through constant vigilance and reliance on God's promises. The ultimate goal is to emulate Christ's perfection, relying on His righteousness when we fall.

Today's passage will be read from Genesis 39, the sermon we taught on 1 through 10. I'm going to read 1 through 20. Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, Captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him down there. The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful 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 he did to prosper in his hand.

So Joseph found favor in his sight and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house, and all that he had put under his authority. So it was, from the time that he had made him overseer of his house and all that he had that the Lord blessed the Egyptians house for Joseph's sake, and the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had in the house in the field. Thus he left all that he had in Joseph's hand, and he did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance, and it came to pass after these things that his master's wife cast longing eyes on Joseph, and she said, Lie with me.

But he refused and said to his master's wife, Look, my master does not know what is with me in the house, and he has committed all that he has to my hand. There is no one greater in this house than I, nor has he kept back anything from me but you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God? So it was, as she spoke to Joseph day by day, that he did not heed her to lie with her or to be with her. But it happened about this time when Joseph went into the house to do his work, and none of the men of the house was inside, that she caught him by his garment, saying, Lie with me.

But he left his garment in her hand and fled and ran aside. And so it was when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and fled outside, that she called to the men of her house and spoke to them saying, See, he has brought into us a Hebrew to mock us. He came into me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice. And it happened when he heard that I lifted my voice and cried out that he left his garment with me and fled and went outside. So she kept his garment with her until his master came home.

Then she spoke with him with words like these, saying, The Hebrew servant whom you brought us, came in me to mock me. So it happened, as I lifted my voice and cried out, that he left his garment with me and fled outside. So it was when his master heard the words which his wife spoke to him saying, his servant did to me after this manner, that his anger was aroused. Then Joseph's master took him and put him into prison, a place where the king's prisoners were confined, and he was there in prison. Let's pray.

Father, we thank you for this passage that you have brought before us. Father, I pray that you would open our ears, open our hearts, that your Holy Spirit would work today with us. We pray a blessing upon the words as they're spoken. Father, we pray that you would give Mike physical strength and spiritual strength to speak to us today through you We are so grateful Lord for this opportunity to serve you today in this manner and your mighty name. We pray.

Amen Peter Golding in a paper delivered to the 1985 Evangelical Fellowship of Congregational Church's study conference about the subject of John Owen and the mortification of sin, this Mr. Golding conveyed the following story. Some years ago, a friend of the writer was present at a conference in which Dr. Cornelius Van Til of Westminster Theological Seminary was taking part. Van Til was already in his seventies.

He was in his seventies. And in the question and answer session, someone asked him, Dr. Van Till, isn't there a sense in which as you get older, sins that once bothered you no longer do so? Van Till, his finger shaking, answered the question energetically, young man, that is incipient perfectionism. That is incipient perfectionism.

The greatest battles I have now are the sins of my youth. The questions that arise are, do we see sin in this same light? Are we aware of its presence and of its power? Do We view our sin in its ugliness. The great Puritan John Flavel stated it this way, oh the depth, the depth of the evil of sin, If you ever wish to see how great and horrible an evil sin is, measure it in your thoughts by either the infinite holiness and excellency of the God who is wronged by it or by the infinite sufferings of Christ who died to satisfy for it.

And then you will have deeper apprehensions of its enormity. Well the title of this message is The Fear of God and the Mortification of Sin. The Fear of God and the Mortification of sin. And this morning I would like for us to consider this subject under the following headings. Number one, the heat of the moment, the heat of the moment or a motive for the fear of God.

Secondly, the heart of the matter, the heart of the matter, or the main spring of a fear of God. And then Thirdly, the habits of mortification, the habits of mortification or the maintenance of a fear of God. You will hear often from the Puritans throughout this message, Their doctrine and experiential religion runs deep in comparison to the shallowness of evangelicalism in our day. That being the case, they had much to say about the subject of the fear of God and also the mortification of sin. So first of all, the heat of the moment, the heat of the moment, the motive for a fear of God.

Well we read in verses 7 and 10, and it came to pass after these things that Joseph's Master's wife cast longing eyes on Joseph, and she said, Lie with me. So it was as she spoke to Joseph day by day that he did not heed her to lie with her or to be with her. We have all been there, the heat of the moment, That moment when temptation crosses our pathway and we are faced with a decision to make. And temptation is no respecter of persons or of places. Or of places.

It came to Eve in the garden, to Cain in the field, to Achan in the city. It came to David on a rooftop, to Ahab in a vineyard, to our Savior in the wilderness. It came to Judas in the upper room. It came to Peter in a courtyard, and to Ananias and Sapphira within the very walls of the church of Jesus Christ. And it came to Joseph in the house of his Egyptian master.

And if there ever was a man who could have provided a multitude of excuses had he given into temptation, Joseph would be the poster boy. After all, it was God's providence that had carried him far away from home as a servant in a foreigner's house. It was God's providence that out of all the homes in Egypt had placed him in the home of a man who was rarely at home and in the home of a woman who was an aggressively immoral woman. But also it was God's providence that had fashioned Joseph into a young man who was handsome in form and in appearance. On top of that, no one in Egypt knew Joseph.

No one in Egypt knew his God or his God's laws. No one there knew the expectations of his upbringing, and he had no accountability partner. And worst of all, He had practically no means of avoiding the temptation. He was a servant, a slave in the very household that was the scene of this daily temptation. When the heat of the moment comes to you, it is too late, it is too late to get serious about the fight.

It is too late to start contemplating how to respond. It is too late to run and get your spiritual armor. Jesus instructed His disciples there in the garden to watch and pray so that they would not enter into temptation. Matthew 26, 41, he instructed them concerning these matters because he knew that moments of temptation can arise at any time and from anywhere. By watching and praying they would make themselves ready for the heat of the moment.

The United States Special Operations Forces have garnered much attention in these last few years. The dangerous missions of groups such as the Navy SEALs have been the topic of many books and movie productions. These teams are ready to be thrown into the most intense, heated conflicts, and they never know what a mission will entail. Awareness of these realities and the danger that goes with it drives these teams to prepare and train in the most extreme environments, pushing themselves to their physical, emotional, and mental limits. And for what reason?

Simply for readiness. For a readiness for the possible heat of the moment that lies just around the corner. I find it interesting that this account of Joseph here in chapter 39 comes on the heels of the account of the sexual sin of Judah mentioned in chapter 38. Judah who was still at home. Judah who had still the means of grace at his disposal, who knew not the dark providence of God in such a manner as had Joseph.

But in spite of this, Joseph did not allow himself to be caught off guard. He was not as the simple young man described by Solomon, that simple young man in Proverbs 7, who passed along the street near her corner and took the path to her house. We are told by Solomon that the simple young man was caught, enticed, and seduced, and that he yielded and went after her. Solomon shares this story with his sons and pleads for them to remember his words, his commands and his law, and not just to remember them, but to keep them, to treasure them, to bind them and to write them on the tablet of the heart to what end? That they may be kept from falling in the heat of the moment, that these words, these commands, these laws may keep you from the immoral woman, from the seductress who flatters with her words, so that you do not let your heart turn aside to her ways, and so that you do not stray into her paths." Unlike Joseph, We are often more like the man described in Proverbs 6, 27, and 28, who takes fire to his bosom and expects his clothes to not burn, and walks on hot coals and expects his feet to not be seared.

We have no intention of falling into sin But we go about life as a man with a candle walking in a room full of gunpowder and dynamite. And rather than being blindsided by this heat of the moment, we too often sit and play by the cobra's hole and then wonder why we are bitten. The ultimate test was about to come. The moment when the heat would reach boiling point. We read in verse 11, but it happened about this time when Joseph went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house was inside that she caught him by his garment saying, lie with me.

And note first the objective of Joseph, his objective. He went into the house to do his work. Joseph remained faithful to both his master, his earthly master Potiphar, and to his Lord and Savior. He was going about his duty. That was what was on his mind.

He is not a Proverbs 7 young man. He was not playing with temptation. He was about the business he had been given. But note secondly the occasion, the occasion of temptation. None of the men of the house was inside.

None of the men of the house was inside. This phrase is not included in order to simply describe the context. This phrase is of utmost importance. Not one other servant was in the house. No one would know.

His father and his mother would never know. His brothers would never know. Potiphar would never know. The other servants would never know. Solomon describes the immoral woman in this way in Proverbs 9, 16 through 18.

And as for him who lacks understanding, she says to him, stolen water is sweet and bread eaten in secret is pleasant. But he does not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of hell. How is it with you in those secret moments? How is it when no one else is around? You are there, just you and your phone.

You with your computer or your tablet. Computer or your tablet, you there alone with the television, or just you and your thoughts. Where do your eyes roam and your thoughts go when you are alone in that hotel room? When you are alone in the restaurant or when you are alone in your car? When you are up at night and everyone else in the house is asleep What are you engaging in that you would never ever be caught doing if the men of the house were inside, if your wife was sitting there by your side, if your mom or dad were there in the room, or if your brother or sister in Christ was sitting across from you.

Although no one was in the house, And although Joseph knew that no one was in the house, his heart was not moved from the reality that his God was there. God's eye was upon him. And think what scripture we have been given that Joseph never had. Hebrews 4, 12 and 13, for the word of God is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from his sight.

But all things are naked and open to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. Psalm 90 verse 8. You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your countenance. First Chronicles 28-9, David speaking to his son Solomon, As for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve him with a loyal heart and with a willing mind for the Lord searches all hearts and understands all the intents of the thoughts. Revelation 9 23 in the letter to the church at Thyatira, John writes the words of Christ, and all the churches shall know that I am he who searches the minds and hearts, and I will give to each one of you according to your works." In Ecclesiastes 12 verses 13 and 14, let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter.

Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man's all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil. So when will you find yourself once again in the heat of the moment like Joseph. And what are you doing to prepare yourself now for that moment? Well, not only do we see in the passage the heat of the moment, but secondly we see the heart of the matter, the heart of the matter, the mainspring of a fear of God.

As we have already considered, Joseph could have pointed to a multitude of circumstances, exterior forces and realities that could have given birth to excuses as to why he could not obey God. How often we excuse our falling into sin by pointing to our circumstances. But James makes it clear that sin does not come to birth because of the outward circumstances that we may encounter. He says in James 1, 14 and 15, but each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then when desire has conceived it gives birth to sin and sin when it is full-grown brings forth death.

It is the desires within a man's heart that are the agents of enticement and drawing away. If the desires of a man's heart that conceive and give birth to sin. Christ also spoke of this very thing in Matthew 15, 19, for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. And again in Matthew 12.35 He says, a good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. So keeping ourselves from sin, abstaining from the desires and the lust of the flesh, mortifying the deeds of the body, this is all ultimately heart work.

Heart work. The battlefield that will determine the outcome of our war with sin is found in our hearts. Do you recall Solomon's wise counsel to his sons in Proverbs chapter 4 verse 23? Keep your what? Keep your hearts with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life." And there were two things at work in the very heart of Joseph that is evidenced in his response to Potiphar's wife.

Number one, a sense of duty to his master Potiphar, and number two, a right fear of God. Look back at verses 8 and 9 again. But he refused and said to his master's wife, Look, my master does not know what is with me in the house, and he has committed all that he has to my hand. There is no one greater in this house than I, nor has he kept back anything from me but you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?" It was these two things that were at work in Joseph's heart to produce this resistance to temptation?

And note that these two responses flow out of an obedience to the two greatest Commandments, loving God supremely and loving your neighbor as you love yourself. Yes, there are other pressures, other impacts, other realities that may hold us back from a specific temptation for a time, such as love, honor, or fear of parents. You don't want to disappoint them or you are afraid of the repercussions if they find out about that sin. Or pride in consideration of what others would think if they found out. In other words, our reputation before men.

Or another is self-righteous justification. You want to think that you are strong enough to not yield to that temptation and so you can play on the edges and not have to worry about falling. Well these and other pressures may prove helpful for a season, but mark it, they will not hold the heart back from temptation for very long. Something greater, something stronger is needed, and that is a heart that is governed by the fear of God. I will go so far as to say that the fear of God is a necessary, if not the necessary, element for continuous victory over sin.

The Puritan Richard Sibbes writes of three kinds of fear in the fifth volume of The Works of Richard Sibbes, volume 5, page 12. Spiritual fear may be branched into three diverse kinds. First, a fear of reverence, which is a fear mixed with love when we fear one or stand in all of him for his greatness, yet love him for his goodness to us, and thus a Christian fears God. Secondly, hence proceeds the second kind of fear, which is a fear of watchfulness. And thirdly, a fear of jealousy, lest we should offend against God.

And this arises from the consideration of our weakness and that falseness of our hearts. So that Paul, here saying in Philippians 2.12, work out your salvation with fear, bids them that they proceed on in their course with reverence watchfulness and jealousy. Well Mr. Sibbs makes some interesting observations. First, he pinpoints three different kinds of fear, that they each one proceed from the one before it.

Reverence gives birth to watchfulness, which in turn gives birth to jealousy. Secondly, Mr. Sibbs observes that reverential fear is not devoid of love. In fact, it is actually mixed with love. We stand in awe of his greatness and we respond in love to his goodness to us.

And then thirdly, he says that these kinds of fear flow out of a healthy, realistic acknowledgement of our own weakness as well as the deceitfulness of our own hearts. Jameson, Fawcett, and Brown in their commentary on this passage before us this morning write the following in regards to Joseph's determination to not sin against God. This remonstrance, this declaration, how then can I sin against God, when all inferior arguments had failed, embodied the true principle of moral purity, a principle always sufficient where it exists and alone sufficient? So I think they make two important points in that statement regarding facing temptation. First, the desire to not sin against God is always sufficient to keep us.

If this desire is at work in our hearts, it will not fail us. If it's at the forefront, How can I sin against God? Then it is sufficient. But note secondly, this desire to sin against God is alone sufficient to keep us. All other reasons will ultimately fail.

It is the fear of God, fearing to sin against His love and grace that we must learn. And the Bible couples the fear of God with departing from evil in several places. Job 1-8 as well as Job 2-3 and back in 1 verse 1. Then the Lord said to Satan, have you considered my servant Job that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil? Job 28, 28, and to man God said, behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding.

Proverbs 3, 5 through 7, not just 5 through 6, how often Proverbs 3, 5 through 6 is quoted to talk about understanding what the will of the Lord is. Well here's what the will of the Lord is. It's verse 7. Proverbs 3, 5 through 7. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding and all your ways acknowledge him and he shall direct your paths.

Do not be wise in your own eyes. Fear the Lord and depart from evil." That's the heart of it. Not leaning on your own understanding, not looking to your own strength, your own way, but fearing the Lord and departing from evil. In his commentary on this passage, Matthew Henry highlights the engagement of Joseph's heart. Matthew Henry says, he would not offend his God.

Three arguments Joseph urges upon himself. First, he considers who he was that was tempted, one in covenant with God who professed religion and relation to God Remember earlier in this passage The household of Potiphar knew that this blessing had come to their house. Why? Because of Jehovah. He confessed his God and he considered who it was who was being tempted, one in covenant with God.

Secondly, Matthew Henry says, Joseph urged upon himself what the sin was to which he was tempted. Others might look upon it as a small matter, but Joseph did not think so of it. Call sin by its own name and never lessen it. And then thirdly, Joseph urges upon himself, against whom he was tempted to sin, against God. Sin is against God, against his nature and his dominion, against his love and his design.

Those that love God, Mr. Henry says, for this reason hate sin. So you who confess Christ as your Lord and your Savior, do you know anything of this kind of fear of God, a fear of displeasing Him, a fear of disappointing him, a fear of offending him, a fear of grieving him and driving his presence away. Does God even cross your mind when you are tempted? And as you consider how your own heart responds to those questions, remember how the psalmist describes the Wicked man in Psalm 10 for the wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God.

God is in none of his thoughts. May God grant us the heart of the matter, even a very main spring of the fear of God. Now thirdly and finally, the habits of mortification, the habits of mortification, the manifestation of a fear of God, the manifestation of a fear of God. We just dealt with the mainspring of the fear of God, but this is not sufficient in and of itself. We need the keeping of the mainspring so that the fear of God is not forgotten or forsaken.

This manifestation of the fear of God is best seen through the formation of habits in the area of mortification. As we just saw from the testimony of Scripture in a few places, the fear of God and departing from or shunning evil operate side by side. They never walk alone. If you do not fear God, you will not be habitually departing from evil and temptation. And the converse is true also.

If you are not shunning evil and fleeing from youthful lusts, then you have no fear of God in your hearts." What is meant by the word mortification? That word is not used very often in our day. Well, its roots are Latin. Morse meaning death, faccio meaning to make. So taken literally, mortification is to make something dead.

Dear brothers and sisters, do not underestimate the importance of this work of mortification. It truly is a matter of life and death. Okay? It's a matter of life and death. You are all probably familiar with the well-known quote of John Owen, be always at it.

Cease not a day from this work be killing sin or sin will be killing you this is not an overstatement of reality given to the reader just to try to get his attention. It is an inescapable reality for every one of us in this room. The act of killing is going on in your life at this very moment. It's going On. In another place, John Owen writes as follows, he who ceases from this duty lets Go all endeavors after holiness.

Sin will not die unless it be constantly weakened. Spare it and it will heal its wounds and recover its strength. We must continually watch against the operation of this principle of sin in our duties, in our calling, in conversation, in retirement, in our straits, in our enjoyments, and in all that we do, if we are negligent on any occasion, we shall suffer by it. Every mistake, every neglect is perilous. Now Owen did not leave his readers to their own conclusions as to how this works, its way out in a believer's life.

He wanted his readers to have a right understanding of this work of mortification and not to have false expectations. Have false expectations. He goes on to state, to mortify a sin is not utterly to kill, root it out, and destroy it, that it should have no more hold at all, nor residence in our hearts. It is true that is that which is aimed at, but This is not in this life accomplished. There is no man that truly sets himself to mortify any sin, but he aims at, intends, desires its utter destruction, that it should leave neither root nor fruit in the heart of life.

He would so kill it that it should never move nor stir any more, cry or call, seduce or tempt eternity. Its not being is the thing aimed at. Now, though doubtless, there may by the Spirit and grace of Christ a wonderful success and imminency of victory against any sin be attained so that a man may have almost certain triumph over it, yet An utter killing and destroying of it that it should not be is not in this life to be expected. Sobering words. The Apostle Paul highlights the necessity of mortification in the eighth chapter of his letter to the Romans, chapter 8 verses 5 through 6, and then 13.

And remember, all the rest of Romans 8 hinges on the very opening statement, There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. There's no condemnation to those who are in Christ. But does that mean the war is over? No. Paul says, for those who live according to their flesh, set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit, for to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

For if you live according to the flesh, You will die. But if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. Do you understand? There is dying and living going on. If you are living according to the flesh you are in the process of dying But if you are putting to death the deeds of the body by the Spirit You are living So there is death going on a killing going on in each of us at this very moment.

Now we must not miss the two facts that this duty of mortifying sin is ours. This duty is ours if you by the Spirit are putting to death if you're doing it. But also of importance is the fact that this verb in the Greek is a present tense, if you're putting to death, if you continue to mortify, if you are in the process of killing. But also we understand That Paul here in this same passage is calling us to recognize our filial relationship with God It is no longer a servile or slavish fear that the Spirit brings us. He does that in the beginning when we are in our sins.

He gives us a slavish fear of God and shows us that we are endangered, that we are under condemnation. But now those who are in Christ who no longer have this condemnation resting on them, the Spirit comes and He brings a filial fear, a relational fear, a fear that is born out of a realization that we have been adopted by God. And being gripped with this reality would impress upon our consciences an attitude similar to Joseph. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God? Sin against my Father?

Sin against him who has wiped the slate clean, before whom now I stand, alive in Christ, no longer condemned. Well, because Joseph's thoughts were vertical, he was filled with the sense of the presence of God, with the holiness of God, and with the commands of God. Because his thoughts were vertical, he considered this to be great wickedness. A lack of the fear of God leads us to call sin by some other name than what God calls it. Sin becomes simply an error in judgment, a weak moment, a struggle, a failure, a mistake.

We actually rob the sin of its heinous character, its hellish origin and its damning effects. In his book entitled The Pursuit of Holiness, Jerry Bridges explains the Reality of habits in the areas of sin and mortification He says the more we sin the more we are inclined to sin But the converse is also true The more we say no to sin, the more we are inclined to say no. Owen also speaks to this reality when he says, repeated acts of the consent of the will unto sin may beget a disposition and inclinableness of the will unto a proneness and readiness to consent unto sin upon easy solicitation. We get in the habit of saying yes to the sin and what happens when the sin comes and it asks us again we say yes. Say yes.

We do this far too often. So how are we to fuel the holy habits that tend to mortification? From whence will its strength arise? Well, we see the answer in Joseph. How was he protected from sin and temptation?

It was an overwhelming consciousness of God. He feared his God. Owen understood the role of the fear of God in the work of the mortification of sin. In volume 3 of his works, page 461, he writes the following, that fear which keeps from sin and excites the soul to cleave more firmly to God, be the object of it what it will, is no servile fear but a holy fear or due reverence unto God in His Word. But this is the most genuinely gracious fear of sin when we dread the defilement of it.

And that contrariety which is in it to the holiness of God, this is a natural fruit of faith and love. It's a fear born out of faith and love that causes us to run from the defilement of sin and anything which is contrary to the holiness of God. Consider also the following from the works of John Flavel, volume 3, page 252. There is an holy and laudable fear, a fear which is our treasure, not our torment, the chief ornament of the soul, its beauty and perfection, the awful, filial fear of God. This fear is a gracious habit or principle planted by God in the soul whereby the soul is kept under the holy awe of the eye of God and from thence is inclined to perform and to do what pleases him and to shun and avoid whatsoever he forbids and hates.

Mr. Flavel says first of all it is planted in the soul as a permanent and fixed habit. It is not of the natural growth and production of man's heart, but of supernatural infusion and implantation. Jeremiah 32 40, I will put my fear in their hearts to fear man is Natural but to fear God is holy supernatural Secondly, mr. Flavel says this gracious fear puts the soul under the awe of God's eye.

It is the reproach of the servants of men to be I servants, but it is the praise and honor of God's servants to be so. Thirdly, this respect to the eye of God inclines them to perform and do whatsoever pleases Him and is commanded by Him. If we truly fear God, we dare not but do the things He commands. And if this fear be exalted in our hearts to a high degree, it will enable us to obey Him in duties accompanied with deepest self-denial. And then lastly, Mr.

Flavel says, this fear engages and in some degree enables the soul in which it is to shun and avoid whatsoever is displeasing to God and forbidden by Him. So how are you doing in the area of mortification? Are you killing sin? Are you being guided by a constant awareness of the nearness of Him whom you call your Father? Do you fear Him?

Do you love Him?" So that is how the fear of God protected Joseph. In the heat of the moment, he was able to resist the temptation because he had the heart of the matter in himself, a main spring of the fear of God, and he had developed habits of mortifying sin wherein that fear of God was truly manifested. And so I close with some applications. Number one, rule over every appetite of the flesh. Rule over every, every appetite of the flesh.

In Matthew 26 41, Jesus said to Peter, watch and pray lest you enter into temptation. But then he said, the Spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. In speaking these words, Jesus declares that there is something more than the readiness of the Spirit that is needed in order to overcome temptation. The spirit may indeed be willing, but what of the flesh? What of the mind, the will, and the emotions?

Therefore we must give diligence to the strengthening of our flesh and not just our spirits. Or to state it another way, mortification is a work that involves the entire being. The Puritan Thomas Boston said the following, they that would keep themselves pure must themselves pure must have their bodies in subjection. And that may require, in some cases, a holy violence. Jerry Bridges in his book, The Pursuit of Holiness, also discusses the importance of bringing the body under subjection as part of the work of mortification.

There he says, there must be an attitude of total subordination of the body and obedience in all areas if we are to have success in mortification of any one particular area. Subjection in all areas if we are to have success in mortification of any one particular area. He says there is no place for laziness and indulgence of the body in a disciplined pursuit of holiness physical softness leads to spiritual softness Men Young men I plead especially with you, listen to me. Potiphar's wife lurks behind every click. Potiphar's wife lurks behind every click.

What do I mean by that? Well, Most of us are not particularly handsome in form and appearance. Most of us will never encounter such a bold and blatant proposal as did Joseph, At least not in person. But just one click away. One click on our computers, our tablets, and our phones.

Potiphar's wife lurks. Phones, potiphar's wife lurks. Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war, they war against the soul. Joseph did not trust in the strength of his flesh. He fled he fled at the first rising of temptation He didn't seek to reason with Potiphar's wife as he had before.

The strength of the temptation caused him to flee. Because he had resisted temptations in its first risings, he was able to escape the snare in its strongest allurements. And remember what Solomon told his sons about the immoral woman. It's the strong man who she conquers. You are not strong enough.

If you think you are, you will be one of those who are in the depths of hell, because you have followed. You have listened because you thought you were strong. You're not strong enough. Rule over every appetite of the flesh. Heed the warnings of Paul in 1 Corinthians 9, 24 through 27.

Not sure if that's the right verse or not. Yeah, it is. Okay. Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it, and everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things.

Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. Therefore I run thus, not with uncertainty. Thus I fight, not as one who beats the air, but I discipline my body and bring it into subjection lest when I have preached to others I myself should become disqualified indeed the spirit may be willing but the flesh is weak Rule over every appetite of the flesh. Secondly, live on the promises of God. Live on the promises of God.

Joseph never forgot his God. He clung to Jehovah and to his promises far away from his homeland, far away from his family, far away from all the normal means of grace. Though he considered himself as afflicted, He knew his God meant it for good. And because of such a confidence in his God, he was moved to godly fear, and he sought to keep himself pure before God. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?

Second Corinthians 6, 16 through 7, 1, for you are the temple of the living God. As God has said, I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore, come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.

I will be a father to you and you shall be my sons and daughters says the Lord Almighty Therefore Paul says therefore having these promises beloved. Let us Cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit Perfecting holiness in the fear of God Live on the promises of God thirdly Fear God and keep his commandments fear God and keep his commandments As we saw earlier from Ecclesiastes 12, 13, and 14, the conclusion that was drawn from the man who sought out and experienced all pleasures to be had was to fear God and keep His commandments. In Solomon's mind, no other action made sense. In his experience of pleasures, he found no pleasure worth the pursuit of his heart. He found that man's all, that for which he was created, that in which true enjoyment, true fulfillment, and true pleasure was to be had.

Man's all is to fear God, the God of heaven and earth, and to keep his commandments. He goes on in the last verse of that book to explain why. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil. I heard the following quote when I was a young teenager and it has never left me. I wish it was truer that it has not left my heart as much as it has not left my mind, But I have repeated it often to my children.

Sin will take you farther than you want to go. It will keep you longer than you want to stay. And it will cost you more than you want to pay. That's the reality of sin. God will bring every work into judgment, even the secret things that no one else knows anything about.

Oh, may we be controlled by a realization of the all-seeing eye of the Father. May we by His grace be controlled by a fear and reverence of Him, by a love for Him that would desire to do the things that please Him and flee from the things that displease Him. And then lastly, Lastly, let us dwell on the perfection of Christ. Let us dwell on the perfection of Jesus Christ. We have in Joseph a type of Jesus Christ.

Time does not allow us to examine all of the ways in which he is a type of Christ, but here in this passage we see a picture of Christ loving his Father, seeking to do his Father's will, keeping himself pure though tempted just as we are tempted. Brothers and sisters, We will fall. And sadly, we will do so more often than we like. But the Apostle John reminds us in the opening of the second chapter of his first epistle, remember those wonderful words? If anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous.

He the righteous one is our righteousness. When we sin, we must confess that sin, which means to say the same thing about that sin as God, that as Joseph said, it's great wickedness. And we must refresh ourselves in the finished work of Jesus Christ. And for you who do not know Christ, I plead with you to cast your soul on Jesus Christ. Repent and believe on Him, and He will put His fear in your heart and give you a desire to walk in His ways.

This righteous advocate is the propitiation of our sins. He is the satisfying atonement for our sins, but not only for ours, but also for the whole world. He is the only way. Dwell on His perfection. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?

Oh, that we had such a heart that we would fear our God and always Keep all his commandments that it might be well with us. May God make it to be so. Amen. Oh gracious God, we thank you for your for your mercies in showing us our sin Lord help us to truly see it and to flee from it Oh father that we would walk in such a way with you that when it rose up in in Our midst right before us Lord that we would flee That we would say is Joseph how can I do this great wickedness and sin against God? Oh, Father, come by your Spirit, quicken us in the work of putting to death the deeds of our body that we might truly live and help us to serve you all the days of our lives, remembering the testimony which we have of walking with you, that you are a good and gracious God.

Help us, we pray, in Jesus' name. Amen.