"I only have the sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the valley of Elah," the priest replied. "It is wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. Take that if you want it, for there is nothing else here." "There is nothing like it!" David replied. "Give it to me!" - 1Samuel 21: 9 (NLT)
As American Christianity becomes more secularized we see a movement toward focusing on the positive aspects of being saved and an avoidance of the more difficult topics. We see this salad bar theology play out in liberal denominations where aspects of the love and goodness of God are extolled while the aspects of wrath and topics such as sin are dismissed out of hand. Supernatural blessings are chased instead of the relationship needed between God and His people for them to be blessed. The result is an ATM mentality where people think they can go to God to withdraw blessings as they see fit and then question God when things may not go their way. This Mountaintop Christianity is leading far too many people astray because it is only half the picture of real life.
That is because real life occurs also in the valley. The sad truth is that if life was nothing more than hopping from one mountaintop to the next then we would eventually believe that we did not need God. But Jesus told us in no uncertain terms what we can expect:
I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world." -- John 16: 33 (NLT)
Jesus did not say we would have many mountaintops and no valleys beloved. Does God want to bless us? Absolutely -- Jesus did say that He came to give us life more abundantly. Too many Christians also live their life with no victory. But victory is not just for the mountaintop. It is even more so for the valley. Because sometimes, the valley runs deeper than we ever thought it was going to. I always preach about how God always has another level for us to go up to if we are willing to pursue Him but this week He has impressed upon me the fact that He often also has new depths for our valleys to go down to. You know what I mean. You're out of work for months and trying to figure out how to pay the bills when the bad medical report comes. You have been dealing with a problematic marriage for years but now there are issues with the children too. You feel lost in one area of your life and then suddenly it expands to other areas as well. You were walking through the valley and looking for the end to be in sight when all of a sudden it takes a downward turn. The valley runs deeper.
It must have seemed that way for Joseph. Sure Joseph was a spoiled brat with his older brothers but that didn't mean he deserved to be sold into slavery by them! Talk about going from the mountaintop of being the favorite child to the valley! All of his value in this life was gone in one day. Everything he knew had changed permanently in one day. At the age of 17 he had to learn a new language and culture as a slave instead of the golden child of a well-to-do family. Suddenly he found himself squarely in the valley; a slave in the house of Potiphar. How many of us can feel like we are Joseph sometimes? Suddenly everything we know has been turned upside down! Our life has been thrown into complete chaos and we wake up in the middle of the valley. And then the testing comes. We are tempted to do things we know we should not do. Cut corners, compromise our faith. And we stand strong in our relationship with God just like Joseph did when Potiphar's wife accosted him for sex:
But Joseph refused. "Look," he told her, "my master trusts me with everything in his entire household. No one here has more authority than I do. He has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God." -- Genesis 39: 8-9 (NLT)
And then despite the righteous stand"the valley ran deeper. Joseph is thrown into prison, falsely accused of sexual assault by Potiphar's wife because he did the right thing. How many of us can relate to Joseph now? Have you ever felt like you had done all the right things yet the situation seemed to grow worse? Have you ever looked up to the heavens and admitted that you just don't understand? Why the wicked prosper while your valley keeps spiraling downward?
And so it was for Joseph for the next eight years. Yes you heard me right, eight years. We can get upset if God doesn't answer us by the end of the day but Joseph's valley would soon be pushing almost ten years from when his brothers sold him into slavery. And then in Joseph's most human moment, his valley went even deeper. Joseph pours his heart out to the cupbearer asked him to share his plight with Pharaoh so that he might be released. And the cupbearer proceeded to forget all about Joseph once he was freed. How many of us have had to deal with the betrayal of people when we are walking in our valley? God has a way of revealing to us who is really with us in the valley. Of revealing who we really need. Joseph's valley ran deeper still for another two years. That is twelve years in all. Before God delivered him from the prison to the palace in just one day. Just like his whole world collapsed in one day -- he would be restored beyond his wildest dreams in one day as well. He would become the second in command to the Pharaoh himself and would reign in that position for 80 more years. Twelve years of valley that must have seemed to run deeper every day followed by a mountaintop that not only delivered him but reunited him with his family and allowed for Israel to survive a devastating famine. God always has a better plan!
God had planned that Joseph would lead Egypt and Israel through this seven year famine. But when Joseph was 17 and a spoiled kid he was not ready. When he was a slave in the house of Potiphar, he was not ready. After eight years in prison he was obviously still not ready. Why? Because if he was then God would have moved the timetable up. God is not mean and cruel. He did not want Joseph to stay in prison the extra two years but he knew he needed to. Maybe he had to weed out the last bits of anger against Mrs. Potiphar or the last remnants of resentment against his brothers. Remember God's plan was to save the nation of Israel, not just Joseph. If Joseph ascended too soon, who knows if he would have been willing to save his family? There was still work to be done in the valley for Joseph, so God kept him there. Sometimes we learn all we are going to at the level the valley is at in our lives so God has to take us deeper. Deeper into our pain. Deeper to break our self-reliance. Deeper to realize how much we need God and how utterly helpless we truly are. The Apostle Paul teaches us when he speaks about the thorn in his flesh. A messenger from Satan himself that Paul suffered from. Some think it may have been a physical ailment others think he was haunted by the memories of when he presided over the stoning of Stephen. Either way, God left the thorn right where it was:
Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, "My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That's why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong. -- 2Corinthians 12: 8-10 (NLT)
We live in a world that despises weakness and a culture that embraces arrogance and self-sufficiency. God always works the opposite of the worldly system. It is through our weakness that we realize how much we need him. Joseph must have still needed some refinement. Those last two years, when he was abandoned yet again, must have finally led him to rely solely upon the sufficiency of God. To purge from him all of the hate and anger he must have felt. To be ready for the future God had planned for him.
King David had a future too once. He had been but a shepherd boy, the least of his brothers when the Prophet Samuel anointed him to be the future king of Israel. But there was a long valley he had to go through before he would ascend to the throne. He spent years running from King Saul who wanted to kill him. David would understand when we talk about the valley running deeper. For David, it may have always seemed to run deeper. That is where we find the key verse today. David finds himself running for his life and in the town of Nob. It was there God reminded David about who He is; just like He wants to do for you today"
