Listen here.
Welcome to Devotions for Worship where we meditate on the
appointed Scripture readings for the upcoming Sunday. Thank you for being with
me today.
I am Pastor Eric Tritten from Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in
Hudson, OH.
This coming Sunday is the 14 Sunday after Pentecost. Yesterday
we read about Peter asking Jesus how many times he should forgive his brother
when he sins against him. Today’s Old Testament lesson comes from one of the
most incredible stories of forgiveness in the whole Bible. It is Joseph’s
statement of forgiveness for his brothers. Let me read you the account, and
then give you the backstory.
The Reading: Genesis 50:15-21 – I will be reading from the
English Standard Version translation.
15 When Joseph's
brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "It may be that Joseph
will hate us and pay us back for all the evil that we did to him." 16
So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, "Your father gave this command
before he died: 17 'Say to Joseph, "Please forgive the
transgression of your brothers and their sin, because they did evil to
you."' And now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the
God of your father." Joseph wept when they spoke to him. 18 His
brothers also came and fell down before him and said, "Behold, we are your
servants." 19 But Joseph said to them, "Do not fear, for
am I in the place of God? 20 As for you, you meant evil against me,
but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept
alive, as they are today. 21 So do not fear; I will provide for you
and your little ones." Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.
(Gen. 50:15-21 ESV)
Comments
You might
remember that Jacob had two wives, sisters, and their servants were also (in
essence) his wives also. He was a man who played favorites. Despite the fact
that the other three wives has each had more children than Rachel, Rachel was
the wife he loved, and when she finally had a child, a son named Joseph, that son
quickly became his favorite. You can imagine the jealousy of the ten older
brothers, and the other women.
Jacob loved
Joseph more than his brothers. He gave him gifts – particularly a very nice
multicolored coat. Jacob also had prophetic dreams that one day he would rise
above all his brothers and rule them – dreams that he told to his older
brothers. And Jacob also used Joseph to check on his brothers and make sure
they were taking care of the flocks. All of this made for a toxic relationship
of bitterness, jealousy, and hatred.
Once when
Jacob went out to check on his brothers they decided to take action. They
grabbed him, threw him into a pit, and decided to kill him. They did not become
fratricides however because they saw the opportunity for profit and sold their
brother into slavery in Egypt. Can you imagine the fear this young man must
have gone through?
While
Joseph was in Egypt he worked hard and successfully as a slave until he was
falsely accused of sexual assault, thrown into prison, and forgotten there for
years. Can you imagine his frustration? But he had shown that he could
interpret dreams, and Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, had had a dream that none
could interpret. It was remembered that he could interpret dreams and was
called from prison. He interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, and Pharaoh put Joseph in
charge of the nation, second only to Pharaoh himself.
The
opportunity came for Joseph to execute vengeance on his brothers when, in the
midst of a great famine, they came to buy grain in Egypt. There they were bowed
down before Joseph, just as his dreams had predicted. But Joseph, tested his
brothers, provided for them, and eventually revealed himself to them. Genesis
45:3 says that the brothers were dismayed when they learned that this powerful
man they bowed before was their brother whom they had sold into slavery.
Now listen
to what Joseph said to them at that time. “Do not be distressed or angry with
yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve
life. … God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant … it was not you
who sent me here, but God.” Can you think of a much more gracious response to
these rascals who had abused him, sold him, and cheated him out of a lifetime
with the people he loved?
Our reading
today takes place years later, after Jacob died. The brothers were still afraid
that Joseph would take his vengeance out on them. They did not think it
possible that he had truly forgiven them. So they made up a story, put words in
their father’s mouth, saying that he wanted Joseph to forgive his brothers. Joseph’s
response is so beautiful, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for
you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good….” He comforted them
and spoke kindly to them.
Do you see
why I say this is one of the most incredible stories of forgiveness in the
Bible? How hard would it be to forgive those older brothers? They had done
truly evil things to Joseph. And yet Joseph asks, “Am I in the place of God?”
And in many ways the answer is actually, “Yes!” He was in the place of God as far
as Egypt was concerned, and he had the authority to do whatever he wanted to
those men. But he knew God’s love and God’s plan was at the heart of what
happened, and for God’s sake … for God’s sake … forgave them.
Who are you
withholding forgiveness from? Where are you harboring a grudge? Have you been
slow to forgive? Remember Joseph. Remember God’s amazing mercy through Joseph
to his brothers. Remember how much you have been forgiven in Christ. How does
that impact how you feel about forgiving freely and generously?
Prayers
O God, Joseph’s story is full of fear and sorrow, betrayal
and hurt, and yet you poured forgiveness, reconciliation, mercy, generosity and
kindness into his life and the life of his brothers through him. We are in awe
of how you used Joseph’s pain and suffering to do good, to save lives, and to
bring about reconciliation. For that matter we are in awe of how you used
Jesus’ pain and suffering to do good for us, to save us, and to reconcile us to
yourself! Forgive us, Lord, for being slow to forgive, for harboring grudges,
and cherishing the hurts others have done to us. Help us to see them as places
where you bring forgiveness, peace, and love, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
I also want encourage you to continue to pray for those who
are rebuilding from Hurricane Harvey, and to add those who are now rebuilding
after Hurricane Irma. LCMS World Relief and Human Care is currently accepting
donations to help victims of both of those hurricanes. You can learn more about
what they are doing and find ways you can help, including how to donate at
lcms.org/disaster.
Thank you so much for using Devotions for Worship, I pray
that our time together has blessed you and given you something to meditate on –
some reminder of God’s grace to rattle around in your brain – for the rest of
the day. I hope you’ll come back tomorrow when we take time to meditate on
Psalm 32:1-7.
One of the things we can do to help us meditate on God’s
word is to memorize it. Psalm 119:11.
Memory Verse: Matthew 18:21-22 - Then Peter came up and said
to him, "Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive
him? As many as seven times?" 22 Jesus said to him, "I do
not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times. (Matt. 18:21-22 ESV)
Would you do me a favor? If you got something out of this
devotional time, would you like and/or share it on Facebook, Twitter, or
wherever you do social media? That would help me get the word out, and
hopefully help these devotions be a blessing to others.
God bless you!
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