YEA Lesson Library
Bad Things Happen to Good People
About This Lesson
This lesson uses Joseph’s obedience to God’s ways and his work ethic as an example for the student to emulate. Additionally, the student is encouraged to trust God when things go awry.
Note: Discussion about date rape included in this lesson.
Scriptures
Genesis 39:1-23
Proverbs 3:1-6
Proverbs 4:1-27
Proverbs 5:1-22
Luke 16:10-13
Romans 8:23
Romans 8:28
Words to Know
BOORISH - uncouth and rudeness of manners, tasteless, lacking all grace
GROSS - immediately obvious; glaringly noticeable, usually because of inexcusable badness or objectionableness in manner
EXECUTIONER- one who puts to death
The Lesson
Joseph headed out with the Ishmaelite traders who bought him from his brothers. When they arrived in Egypt, they sold him to Potiphar, who was Pharaoh's body guard and chief executioner.
In spite of Joseph's problems, no slave had as much going for him as Joseph had. He was very handsome and very special to God. He was special to God because he was Abraham's, Isaac's, and Jacob's descendant. God was with Joseph and saw to it that everything he did succeeded. It was obvious to Potiphar that God was blessing Joseph in special ways. Joseph became Potiphar's favorite worker. He put Joseph in charge of the administration of his household, including his business affairs. He knew he could trust Joseph and didn't worry about a thing Joseph was doing.
Everything was going well for this handsome young man. He had an excellent job and his boss trusted him. But when things are going this well, sometimes it seems too good to be true. Then you start wondering, when is all of this going to end? Well it was about to end for Joseph.
Potiphar's wife was very much aware of what a good-looking young man Joseph was. She began making eyes at Joseph and
was so gross that she asked him to sleep with her. Joseph refused! He told her that his master, who was her husband, trusted him with his entire household and had given him equal authority with Potiphar. "He has held back nothing from me except you, yourself, because you are his wife. How can I do such a wicked thing as this? It would be a great sin against God."
Congratulations, Joseph! You did exactly the right thing. Potiphar's wife was so gross and cheap that she wouldn't even take no for an answer. This woman kept after Joseph day after day. Joseph, being a wise young man kept out of her way. Again, hurrah for Joseph! That's exactly what he should have done.
One day Joseph was alone in the house going about his work as usual. Potiphar’s boorish wife came and grabbed Joseph. "Sleep with me." Again, Joseph did exactly the right thing. He tore away from this tasteless woman. But as luck would have it, his jacket slipped off and this woman was holding on to it. When she realized that she had Joseph's jacket and he had gotten away from her, she began screaming and putting on a real show. Other workmen showed up and she cried almost hysterically, "My husband had to bring in this Hebrew slave to insult us!” She sobbed, “he tried to rape me, but when I screamed, he ran, and forgot to take his jacket."
She was a cheap, immoral women. She was not only out to seduce Joseph, but she lied about it, big time. Lying once wasn't good enough for Potiphar's wife. One lie called for another lie to her husband to cover up her adulterous acts. When Potiphar heard his wife's story he was furious and threw Joseph in prison and kept him in chains.
How unfair for Joseph! He was innocent and his heart was right. But God knew all of this and He was always with Joseph. It wasn't long before the chief jailer turned over the administration of the prison to Joseph. He took care of everything because God was with him.
Think about it. Joseph's brothers were jealous of him and threw him in a pit. They dragged him out and sold him to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar. Joseph's good looks didn't save him. But, because of his attitude and God's plan for him, He saved him every time. How would you like for God to always save you from such disasters as being in a pit, sold as a slave, and your boss' wife trying to seduce you, lying about it, and her husband throwing you in jail one more time? Bad Things Happen to Good People. But God looks on the heart as He did with Joseph. It was obvious to God that Joseph was doing the right things. If you will be honest and do right, you can pray this prayer in Psalm 17 with confidence that God will take care of you as well.
"I AM PLEADING for your help, O Lord; for I have been honest and have done what is right, and you must listen to my earnest cry! Publicly acquit me, Lord, for you are always fair. You have tested me and seen that I am good. You have come even in the night and found nothing amiss and know that I have told the truth. I have followed your commands and have not gone along with cruel and evil men. My feet have not slipped from your paths.
"Why am I praying like this? Because I know you will answer me, O God! Yes, listen as I pray. Show me your strong love in wonderful ways, O Savior of all those seeking your help against their foes." God can see to it that good things will happen to good people.
So what do you do when you find yourself in a compromising situation? You get out of there as fast as you can, even if it means leaving your coat. Do what is right. Trust God. And He will work it out for your good.
Student Prayer
Gracious Father,
Thank you for encouraging me with Joseph's example. I may not be as good-looking as he was, but you look on the heart. It's awesome how you intervened for Joseph every time and turned bad things into good things for Joseph. Help me to live an honest, moral life so that you will look after me too.
In Jesus' name I pray.
Amen.
Daily Devotions
Sunday - Luke 16:10-13
Monday - Genesis 39:7-12
Tuesday - Proverbs 3:1-6
Wednesday - Proverbs 4:1-6
Thursday - Proverbs 4:7-18
Friday - Proverbs 5:1-22
Saturday - Proverbs 4:20-27
Objectives
At the end of this lesson, students will be able to:
1. Discuss Joseph’s character traits that led God to protect him in some really bad times.
2. Explain what promises were given to his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather that made God to look upon him with favor and a part of His plan.
3. Compare Joseph trusting God when things went wrong and their responsibility to trust God in good times and bad times.
Topics & Themes
Egypt
God’s Promises
Holy Conduct
Joseph
Potiphar
Potiphar’s Wife
Trusting God
Materials Needed
Bible,YEA students' and teacher's books, attendance and memory verse charts, songbook, gold jewelry, gold-plated jewelry with the veneer wearing off, overripe fruit, and good fruit, prize
How to Teach This Lesson
After opening the class with prayer, explain to the class that they will be acting out today's lesson as a play. Have them draw for the parts that you've written on slips of paper. Give them a few minutes to plan their drama. Then let them put it on. They can use their Bibles and YEA students' books to get their scripts. After they act out the play have them sit again in a semicircle.
Debrief - Ask: How did you feel acting out the parts in a Bible story? How did this help you to better understand what took place? How do you understand Joseph’s position better? What lessons did you learn from this play? How did Potiphar's wife make you think of some women and girls in our society today? What did Joseph do right? How did you feel about Potiphar throwing Joseph in prison when he was guiltless? What do you think would have happened to Joseph had he given in to Potiphar's wife's wishes for him to sleep with her? (Death.) Was Joseph better off in prison as an innocent man than he would have been if he had given in to Potiphar's wife? What word would you use to describe Potiphar's wife? Why should you girls not want to be like her? What character traits did she have that you feel are ungodly?
Fruit and jewelry experiment - You shall know them by their fruits. Pass around the overripe fruit and let each student squeeze it. Now pass around the ripe fruit and ask the students to squeeze it as well. Ask: How would you compare the two pieces of fruit? Pass around the gold plated piece of jewelry and tell them to see if they can scrape off some of the gold. Then pass around the real gold piece of jewelry and ask them to try scraping off some of the gold. Ask: Which piece of jewelry is real and which one is fake? Ask: How would you compare this experiment with God testing Joseph? Did Joseph stand the test? Was he for real or fake? What types of things made Joseph real - capable of standing the test? What kinds of tests might you have that are similar to those Joseph had?
Application - What about you? If you're on a date and the person you're out with insists you have sex with him/her, what did Joseph do that you should do? How can you girls prevent date rape? (Have a plan. Do as Joseph tried to do, don't allow yourself to be alone with the opposite sex. Should things start going wrong, get out of his presence as quickly as possible. Scream if anyone can hear you.) The laws of our land don't administer the death penalty for adultery today. But what kinds of consequences could come about because of fornication or adultery that could bring about the death penalty? How does this lesson give you assurance that God will always be with you if you obey him? What impact will this lesson have on your life?
Teacher-Directed Activity
Have the students read the story they wrote in their book. You may want to read your story first to break the ice. Take a vote on which one was the best story and give a prize.
REACH Activity
Memory Verse Spotlight: Romans 8:28
Look up the phrase “work together.” Write down the Greek word and its meaning.
Then find three other Scriptures where this word is used.
The French rendition of this verse is literally translated into English this way: “All things concert together for good . . .” Oh, how interesting! A concert! Think about an entire orchestra playing together to perform a musical masterpiece. What if we asked everyone but the oboe to quit playing? Would you like to hear only the oboe playing? What about the bass? It likes to walk along the baseline, but it hardly ever lives on the melody. It also might not sound very good. But you need every one of those parts playing accurately at the same time to make a beautiful concert. And that’s how your life is; there are good parts, and there are bad part. And they all work together to make you who you are - and hopefully to draw you closer to God
Where in the World? Prison
It wasn’t all that long ago in the United States that major prison reform was made. Prior to that, it literally was “lock you up and throw away the key.” There were no rights; you were a criminal. There were so many prisoners who died of hunger and illness because of the filthy and damp conditions in many of the prisons and dungeons. Do some research. Find five facts about what prisons and/or dungeons used to be like. Write down what you find and share it with your family.
They Did What Back Then? Slavery
Slavery has been practiced by many different cultures down through the millennia. Sometimes the slaves were captured and sold to traders. Sometimes a person sold himself for a certain amount of time because he was too poor to live. Sometimes a person would sell himself - like the Irish indentured servants of the 1620-1660 era - so they could get out of a place or go to a new place to start over when their time was up.
Do some research. How many different nationalities were slaves at some time in the U.S? I think you will be surprised at what you find. Share it with your family.
Making It Mine: Endure to the End
Putting the numbers together, it looks like Joseph was in Egypt for 20 years. A lot of that time, he would have been a slave or in prison. But he didn’t give up. He didn’t compromise on his values. He continued to live his life in a way that honored God. He endured to the end.
Look up five verses which talk about enduring to the end, persevering, fighting the good fight. Write the verse and the scripture citation in your Bible notebook. Then choose one to post on the wall in your room. You can write it in block letters and post it as a stark reminder of how hard it’s going to be. Or you can decorate the paper to make it attractive, to remind you that there will be a reward at the end of enduring, if you belong to God.
Worldview Collisions: You Always Get What You Deserve
A Biblical worldview and a secular worldview agree: you always get what you deserve. The difference is timing. A secular worldview wants justice here and now, and the more swiftly, the better. A Biblical worldview says that you will get what you deserve; God is just. You will reap what you sow. There is one exception - the person who receives mercy. Because our God is so merciful, He does not treat us as we deserve. He pays our sin debt and God shows us mercy.
Write about this in your Bible notebook. Remember to thank God!
Questions
As you’re working through the YEA lesson, Daily Devotionals, doing the activity, or reading the Bible, be sure to write down any questions you have. That way you’ll remember to ask someone. Also remember to share the really interesting things you’re learning with family and friends.
Song
"Jesus Loves Me" is on page 69 of The Group Songbook.
Closing Prayer
Have the students form a circle and join hands. Go around the circle, beginning with you, and tell what lesson you learned today that will help you keep in mind that God is in charge and always loves you even when bad things happen. Ask for a volunteer to lead in prayer thanking God for being the same to us today as He was to Joseph.
Printable Pages
