Israel's early family gatherings in Egypt must have been great. There was just a bit of family tension I would suppose? It must have been tough for the boys to reminisce ... "Remember that time Joseph, you know, when we all ganged up on you and sold you into slavery? Then we told our Dad you were dead? Wasn't that a riot? How was prison life?" Actually I don't imagine much was said before Yaakov's death about "that event" in the 17 years that Joseph and his brothers lived in a reunited family situation in Egypt. Like most families, who have had their share of turmoil, these kinds of things may not have been dealt with to the degree that everyone felt resolution. Sure there was an acknowledgment of forgiveness in the family of Israel's case, even hugging and tears. As we examine the passage in Genesis 50: 15 however, deep down there was much uncertainty. Listen to these words " When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "what if Joseph bears a grudge against us and pays us back in full for the wrong which we did to him!' Because we all come from imperfect families (yes it's true we do), I think all of us can think of "Joseph" type situations that they may have been the victim of or even the perpetrator of. It troubles us even more because of the level of trust and love that was supposed to be there and yet all of that seemed very moot in light of the feeling of betrayal involved. If we're truly honest with ourselves, we would admit most of these situations with family, friends, congregations, in the workplace etc. that we can fret about for years, thankfully are not of the severity of what happened to Joseph. They still may have affected and shaped our lives in some way however, whether good or badly. How we deal with these hurts is what God calls "forgiveness" and it's the only thing that not only makes us right before God, but also keeps us sane. I googled this on the definition of forgiveness and I think it's as close to the scriptural one as I could find -- "A definition for forgiveness could be -- giving up my right to hurt you, for hurting me. It is impossible to live on this fallen planet without getting hurt, offended, misunderstood, lied to, and rejected. Learning how to respond properly is one of the basics of a believer's life." Joseph's response in verses 19 - 21 is awesome. Read it for yourself. How much pain could be removed if we simply responded to those who have damaged us, even severely, in this manner? The thing is, at some point all of these things will be examined and judged according to their merits or problems by YHVH who is the judge of all the earth (Gen 18:25) anyway. What good does it do to let something that will eventually be dealt with and dealt with fairly keep us from the joy that God wants us to experience in living? Besides, God forgave us as Ephesians 4:32 says, what right have we to hold a grudge or bitterness when we have been forgiven so much?
Myles
No comments:
Post a Comment