Genesis 45:3-8a, 15 Pastor Nathan P. Kassulke
“What Does Loving Forgiveness Look Like?”
Epiphany 7 February 24, 2019
What is the worst thing that someone has ever done to you? Maybe that is a difficult question, and you can’t think of something that sticks out in your mind that was particularly hurtful or difficult for you to deal with. On the other hand, maybe someone did something to you that was so painful and difficult that when you hear the question, it immediately comes to mind. In either case, you probably can think of times when people have wronged and hurt you. You can understand what a challenge it is that Jesus gives when he tells his followers to love their enemies and do good to those who hate them. You can appreciate how difficult it is to show love and forgiveness in the most extreme circumstances. You can look at the life of Joseph as a shining answer to our question, “What does loving forgiveness look like?” Now, our First Lesson on which this sermon is based, gives just a brief glimpse of Joseph’s interactions with his brothers. In order to appreciate the lessons here, we’ll have to review the life of Joseph up to this point. Joseph was born into what we would definitely call a dysfunctional family. His mother was one of four women who had children with his father. She was also dad’s favorite among the four, so Joseph, her older son, was also dad’s favorite. Joseph was one of twelve sons born to his father, Jacob. As you might expect when dad shows favoritism, the other brothers were jealous of Joseph. To make things worse, Joseph talked about dreams that seemed to imply that his family members would bow down to him. Joseph’s brothers hated him. And one day, they found the opportunity to show their hatred. Joseph came out to check up on them while they were tending flocks. They saw him coming and at first thought that they would kill him. Instead, they captured him and eventually sold him to slave traders in a caravan that was passing through. I think that it is safe to say that if we could ask Joseph what the worst thing was that anyone had ever done to him, this would be it: his own brothers sold him as a slave, and he was taken to the land of Egypt. In Egypt, Joseph worked as a household servant. He was reliable and trustworthy, and his master put him in charge of the whole household. We’ll save a little time now and not dwell on all the details, but he was wrongly accused and then put in prison. While in prison, he helped two men understand the dreams that God had allowed them to have, dreams that foretold their futures. And exactly what Joseph told them would happen did happen. Finally, Pharaoh himself, the King of Egypt, also had some disturbing dreams. One of the men from the prison remembered how Joseph had interpreted his dream, so Pharaoh sent for Joseph. God allowed Joseph to help Pharaoh understand the meaning of his dreams, and Pharaoh rewarded Joseph by placing him into a very high position in Egypt. The only person above Joseph was Pharaoh. And the dreams that Joseph had interpreted foretold seven years of abundant crops followed by seven years of extreme famine. This warning allowed Pharaoh and Joseph and the Egyptians to prepare for what was coming. They stored up grain for food and would be able to use it when the famine struck. And that is exactly what happened. Well, the famine wasn’t only in Egypt where Joseph now lived. It affected that entire region, including the Promised Land where Jacob and his other sons lived. Word came to them that the Egyptians had food, and so the brothers made a journey to go buy food. Again, for the sake of time we won’t consider all that happened, but we note that Joseph recognized his brothers, and they did not recognize him. Our lesson this morning describes how Joseph shared with them who he was. We read, “Joseph said to his brothers, ‘I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?’ His brothers could not answer him, because they were terrified by his presence.” Now put yourself not in the position of Joseph, to whom the brothers had done wrong. Put yourself in the position of the brothers. Joseph, whom they had sold into slavery, had become the second most powerful man in the whole world. They were absolutely reliant on him for food, for their very lives. He
could in a very literal sense do anything to them that he wanted. You see why they were terrified. They knew that they had done wrong. They knew that they had mistreated their brother in a horrible way. Of course they were terrified. They expected that Joseph would punish them. But Joseph did not take advantage of his position or this opportunity. He didn’t seek revenge on his brothers. He demonstrated loving forgiveness by loving those who had done wrong to him. Again, our account is only a part of the story, but Joseph provided food for his family. He ultimately brought the entire family to Egypt where they could be taken care of during the entire length of the famine. Loving forgiveness doesn’t need to pretend that bad things don’t happen. It doesn’t need to rationalize them away. It just needs to look at them from a different perspective. Joseph realized all of the good that God had accomplished even through his brothers’ sinful actions. He realized what a blessing it was that he was in a position to help and save so many, including his own family. He looked for the good things that he could do for his brothers instead of the vengeful things. He looked for ways to repay their evil with good. He made a choice not to seek revenge. It is not explicit here in the words of our lesson, but it is in the life of Joseph, that Joseph believed in God’s promises. He believed that God was going to send a Savior for the world, and he knew that meant that God was sending a Savior for him, for Joseph. Joseph understood this perspective, that he was no more perfect than his brothers. He hadn’t handled every situation perfectly. He didn’t always seek peace instead of escalating the circumstances. He was as selfish at times as anyone. But he knew that God loved him and would send the Savior to take away his sins. That gave Joseph the strength to show love to his brothers who had wronged him. When Jesus says, “Love your enemies” and “Do good to those who mistreat you,” he is speaking to people he came to save. He is reminding us that we have a great many sins that he came to forgive. He took those sins on himself, and he suffered and died for them. So we can in turn offer mercy and love and forgiveness to others as well. What does loving forgiveness look like? It looks like love even toward people who have done us wrong. Forgiveness is more than a word. It is more than just saying that we forgive someone. It shows in the way that we act and how we treat people. It doesn’t seek revenge. It seeks the benefit of the other person. And it can do that because it takes God at his word. Joseph could have the perspective that he did because he knew what God had promised. He knew what God could accomplish. He took God at his word that he would bless Joseph and his family. He took God at his word when God had revealed how long the famine would last. He took God at his word that he would send a Savior through the family of Joseph, that is through the line of his father. As his forgiven children, God invites us to take him at his word. He invites us to rely on his promises that he will work all things, even the evils that others do against us, for our ultimate good. He promises that we do not need to seek revenge, but that everything is in his hands. He tells us that we should seek the good of others, show love to others, and humble ourselves. God invites us to take him at his word when he assures us that his only begotten Son Jesus Christ died for the sins of the world, which means that he died for you and for me. Heaven is our eternal home. One day, not because of what we do, but because of what Christ has done for us, he will take us to be with him there forever. Because we know and believe this, we can be loving and forgiving toward others. What does loving forgiveness look like? It looks like Joseph treating his brothers well after they had so seriously mistreated him. It looks like Jesus dying for a world of sinners who have rebelled against him and his heavenly Father. It looks like you and me living lives that reflect Christ’s mercy and love toward others. May God grant such a loving and forgiving attitude to all of his children.
The Text: Genesis 45:3-8a, 15 3Joseph
said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?”
His brothers could not answer him, because they were terrified by his presence. 4Joseph said to his brothers, “Come closer to me, please.” They came closer. He said, “I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. 5Now do not be upset or angry with yourselves for selling me to this place, since God sent me ahead of you to preserve life. 6For two years now the famine has been in the land, and there are still five more years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. 7God sent me ahead of you to preserve you as survivors on the earth, and to keep you alive by a great act of deliverance. 8So it was not you who sent me here, but God. 15He
kissed all his brothers and wept over them. After that his brothers talked with him.