HOPE PRISON
"And
Joseph's master took him, and put him into the prison, a place where
the king's prisoners were bound: and he was there in the prison.
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 39:20-23]
The last place you expect to find hope is in prison. Prison, by definition, is a place to remove hope and cause those imprisoned to lose sight of joy, peace, contentment and beauty. We all have prison experiences--they don't necessarily involve prison bars, armed guards and barbed wire--at least, not literally. But life sometimes brings chains to imprison us--for some the "prison" is financial, or poor health, or lack of education, or a multitude of difficult things. Prison is not permanent--even though it always feels like it will last forever. It could indeed be permanent--as far as this world goes; but if you know God, you have a hope beyond the prisons of this "life". Paul wrote, "If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.
But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept." [1 Corinthians 15:29,30]. If this was all there is, then we would be doomed to misery; BUT because of Christ, they are (in perspective) only "light afflictions" and the glory that is to come will completely overshadow these temporal circumstances--they won't even be a memory.
Two things are important to remember: This is not it. Whatever I am going through is temporal--that doesn't mean that God will deliver me from every "prison" in this world--that's a mistake and a lie that many Christians believe--and it has caused many to give up in frustration when the "olive tree failed to yield fruit" and "there are no cattle in the stalls" (Habakkuk 3: 17-19). God didn't promise us a prison-free life--or even that He will remove us from the prison; His promise is to keep us, in spite of our difficult places and seasons, and to give us peace that surpasses understanding. It surpasses understanding--because having peace in prison simply makes no sense. However, that's the miracle of walking with God--our circumstances don't dictate our spirituality, worth, or how we respond. Trials that should destroy us--and that will destroy many don't, because God is in the midst of them upholding us and protecting us from the flames so that they do not consume us. The flames are real and destructive, but we won't be destroyed if our hope is in Him. He won't ever fail--He can't; and His Word is true. Expecting everything to go my way, or assuming that every time I find myself in a trial, God is going to remove it or remove me from it is immature and ungodly. 1 Peter 1 is the account of God's "elect" in a prison of torture, false accusation, and extreme brutality--and the only promise to them was "joy unspeakable and full of glory"--in the trial, but there was no expectation of deliverance--in this life. The promise is in an eternal glory and rest.
Secondly, this prison has a purpose. This is not the time to lick your wounds--it's time to grow. There is a reason for the term "growing pains"--growth is not comfortable--it hurts. It takes friction and force to grow. It is a trial by fire that brings the greatest growth to the child of God. Typically, we measure strength and faith by "blessings", but that is not how God measures--it's the wrong yardstick to measure with. We can't use a natural yardstick to measure spiritual things. God looks for spiritual fruit, while we tend to look for natural fruit--the proof is in the "love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance" in the trial. The trials of life teach us, to love, to have compassion, to be patient and how to walk after the Spirit--while we mortify the deeds of the flesh (the mortification takes place in prison--it isn't easy or comfortable) . "Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby."
In prison, right now? Stand and see the true salvation of the Lord--right there in the midst of the trial. Don't run, stand. He reigns and is ever-present, even in prison.
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 39:20-23]
The last place you expect to find hope is in prison. Prison, by definition, is a place to remove hope and cause those imprisoned to lose sight of joy, peace, contentment and beauty. We all have prison experiences--they don't necessarily involve prison bars, armed guards and barbed wire--at least, not literally. But life sometimes brings chains to imprison us--for some the "prison" is financial, or poor health, or lack of education, or a multitude of difficult things. Prison is not permanent--even though it always feels like it will last forever. It could indeed be permanent--as far as this world goes; but if you know God, you have a hope beyond the prisons of this "life". Paul wrote, "If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.
But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept." [1 Corinthians 15:29,30]. If this was all there is, then we would be doomed to misery; BUT because of Christ, they are (in perspective) only "light afflictions" and the glory that is to come will completely overshadow these temporal circumstances--they won't even be a memory.
Two things are important to remember: This is not it. Whatever I am going through is temporal--that doesn't mean that God will deliver me from every "prison" in this world--that's a mistake and a lie that many Christians believe--and it has caused many to give up in frustration when the "olive tree failed to yield fruit" and "there are no cattle in the stalls" (Habakkuk 3: 17-19). God didn't promise us a prison-free life--or even that He will remove us from the prison; His promise is to keep us, in spite of our difficult places and seasons, and to give us peace that surpasses understanding. It surpasses understanding--because having peace in prison simply makes no sense. However, that's the miracle of walking with God--our circumstances don't dictate our spirituality, worth, or how we respond. Trials that should destroy us--and that will destroy many don't, because God is in the midst of them upholding us and protecting us from the flames so that they do not consume us. The flames are real and destructive, but we won't be destroyed if our hope is in Him. He won't ever fail--He can't; and His Word is true. Expecting everything to go my way, or assuming that every time I find myself in a trial, God is going to remove it or remove me from it is immature and ungodly. 1 Peter 1 is the account of God's "elect" in a prison of torture, false accusation, and extreme brutality--and the only promise to them was "joy unspeakable and full of glory"--in the trial, but there was no expectation of deliverance--in this life. The promise is in an eternal glory and rest.
Secondly, this prison has a purpose. This is not the time to lick your wounds--it's time to grow. There is a reason for the term "growing pains"--growth is not comfortable--it hurts. It takes friction and force to grow. It is a trial by fire that brings the greatest growth to the child of God. Typically, we measure strength and faith by "blessings", but that is not how God measures--it's the wrong yardstick to measure with. We can't use a natural yardstick to measure spiritual things. God looks for spiritual fruit, while we tend to look for natural fruit--the proof is in the "love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance" in the trial. The trials of life teach us, to love, to have compassion, to be patient and how to walk after the Spirit--while we mortify the deeds of the flesh (the mortification takes place in prison--it isn't easy or comfortable) . "Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby."
In prison, right now? Stand and see the true salvation of the Lord--right there in the midst of the trial. Don't run, stand. He reigns and is ever-present, even in prison.
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