Review:

1. Discover the beauty of God’s rhythms of working six days resting one in the midst of a stressed society.
2. Combatting anxiety and worry by trusting in God’s active investment in your life and in the lives of those around you.
3. Climbing out of depression is not a journey that you have to do alone. God meets you where you are with compassion and strength.  

Stress, anxiety, and depression are prevalent issues that we as a society are struggling with, but there is another issue that lurks in the shadows that has damaged so many people. This issue is not of one’s own making, rather harm coming from another.  Abuse in its various forms has hindered and severely affected nearly half of our society. 

Abuse is “a corrupt practice or improper, excessive treatment, or misuse” at the expense of another.Merriam-Webster

Abuse is a “a pattern of behavior used by a person to gain and maintain power and control over another.”REACH

Statistics

• For those have been in an intimate relationship with another 1 in 4 women and 1 in 9 men have been physically abused by that partner. HP
• 29% of women and 22% of men have experienced some form of sexual abuse. HP
• Nearly 15% of all emergency room visits are due to domestic violence. HP

There are six primary forms of abuse readily acknowledged.

1. Physical
2. Sexual
3. Verbal
4. Mental
5. Financial
6. Cultural/Identity 

The Bible is not silent on these issues relating to abuse and man’s depravity.  Examples:

1. Physical abuse—Philippian citizens to Paul or Egyptians to Hebrew infants.
2. Sexual abuse—Amnon to Tamar.
3. Verbal abuse—King Saul to David.
4. Mental abuse—Delilah to Samson.
5. Financial—tax collectors (Zacchaeus) to fellow Jews.
6. Cultural—Laban to Jacob. 

Abuse is really about Power and Control!!! 

So, is God powerless and not able to control?

Where was God when that person was abusing me or harming my friend, child…? 

Does God truly care, and if he does, why did he not intervene?

Will there be justice and this evil person be brought into account?

Will the pain ever go away? 

Biblical perspective to such difficult questions.

• God said that abuse would increase. 2 Timothy 3:1-8
  “…there will be terrible times in the last days.  People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love…”

• God will bring about justice to the oppressor. Jeremiah 22:17-30; Romans 12:19
  “It is mine to avenge; I will repay, says the Lord.”

• God actively operates on behalf of the oppressed. Psalm 9:9; 146:7; Luke 4:18
  “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free…” 

• God is still powerfully in control. Revelation 1:17; Romans 8:38-39
  “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able separate us from the love God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Joseph’s story.

Context for abuse.  Genesis 37:1-11

• A favored teenage son who told on his brothers. (2b-3)
• Threatened by favoritism, brothers began to hate him. (4)
  • Could not speak a kind word to him—verbal abuse. (4b)
  • Envious of their father’s attention and love.
  • Future power and control is in jeopardy.
  • There was jealousy of Joseph’s position due to his dreams. (11)

Where was God? After all, the prophetic dreams were from him? 

Long season of abuse. Genesis 37-40

• Human trafficked by his brothers. Genesis 37:19-28
• Falsely accused of sexual abuse and imprisoned. Genesis 39
• Taken advantage of for his giftedness, lied to, and forgotten. Left in jail for another two years. Genesis 40

13 years he suffered as the result of abuse of varying kinds!!!

Where was God? 

God’s presence and care in the season of abuse. Genesis 39

• The Lord was with Joseph in his slavery. Genesis 39:2
• The Lord made him successful in spite of being a slave. Genesis 39:3
• The Lord was with Joseph in the prison. Genesis 39:20-21 
• The Lord showed Joseph kindness and granted him favor in prison. Genesis 39:21b

13 years of abuse, yet the Lord was with Joseph and blessed him.  Did Joseph feel it? 

Hindsight and time allow you to see God’s care.

• Joseph thanked God for helping erase his memory of his trouble. Genesis 41:51
• Joseph acknowledged that God had granted him favor in place of his suffering. Genesis 41:52
• Joseph leads with purpose in saving lives. Genesis 41-50 

God is in control and reigns in power.  Genesis 50:15-21

• Fear grips the abusers as justice is imminent. (15-18)
  • The abusers humble themselves.
  • Approximately a 39-year-old dream has been fully fulfilled his brothers fully bowed.

• The victim (Joseph) does not place himself in God’s seat to judge. (19)
• God’s purpose revealed—saving lives. (20)

Take aways

1. Abuse is evil and it harms deeply.
2. God is there with you and has not abandoned you.
3. Justice will come to the abuser.
4. Evil cannot hinder God’s purposes.
5. Seek help.

Isaiah 41:10-13“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. All who rage against you will surely be ashamed and disgraced; those who oppose you will be as nothing and perish.  Though you search for your enemies you will not find them.  Those who wage war against you will be as nothing at all. For I am the Lord you God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, ‘Do not fear; I will help you.”