Most of us, at one time or another, have had someone do something unkind and undeserved to us. Often it might be something small or inconsequential that we can easily forgive and forget. However, sometimes it might be a bigger offense, something more hurtful, and more difficult to forgive. A few people go through some very horrendous treatment at the hands of someone, something that would seem impossible to forgive. Today we’ll take a look at a young man who went through some very horrific events in his life, and how he reacted when he had the chance to exact revenge for what he went through.
The young man in our Scripture today is Joseph, one of the twelve sons of Jacob, and whose life is recounted in the last thirteen chapters of the Book of Genesis. Joseph was Jacob’s favorite son, as he was the long-awaited child of his beloved favorite wife, Rachel. However, his older ten brothers were very jealous of Joseph, and when they had the chance, they threw him into a pit, contemplated killing him, and then sold him to slave traders. He ended up being sold as a slave in Egypt to Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh’s guard. A little later Joseph is falsely accused of rape and thrown into prison where he remains for several years. How can one forgive the brothers that did such a terrible thing as selling their sibling as a slave? How can one forgive the woman who lied, accusing one of something they didn’t do, which resulted in years in prison? The hand of God, though, was working in Joseph’s life, and he eventually became Pharaoh’s right hand man, second in command of all of Egypt.
As our Scripture passage opens, we find Joseph, basically the Prime Minister of Egypt distributing grain to starving people, including people from other countries, as there is a great famine. His eleven brothers have been brought before him, but they do not recognize him. Joseph, though, does recognize them. Now is his chance to get revenge! His every word is obeyed, so he could throw them in prison. He could even have them executed, and no one would question him. What would you do? What would I do? It’s hard to say, especially in light of the horror they had caused Joseph.
During those terrible years as a slave and then a prisoner, instead of becoming bitter and angry, Joseph drew closer and closer to the Lord. That became his salvation during that time, and God honored him by raising him to his current position. Joseph looked at all he went through with spiritual eyes, not worldly ones, and saw that God had worked everything out so that he, his family, and others would live through the famine (vs. 5-8). Rather than being bitter, knowing that his brothers had meant to harm, even kill, him, Joseph saw that this was used by God for a greater purpose, to save the lives of the family. Joseph saw the hand of God in all that had happened to him. We read the words “but God” in verse 8. Those two words changed everything. Joseph knew it was God working through everything, and he wanted his brothers to know the same. Rather than take revenge on them, he sent them home to fetch their father, and then return to Egypt to live in safety and comfort (vs. 21-28).
Could we respond like that? Would we stay free from all bitterness and anger, and see how God was working His good through all we had been through? Joseph saw that everything he had been through was part of God’s sovereign plan Even though his brothers’ actions were evil, God used them for good. God is omnipotent, and He can use even human sin and the evil deeds people do to accomplish His purposes.
Joseph’s relationship and walk with the Lord God was so strong that he was able to completely forgive his brothers, despite their terrible betrayal. Because he was able to see God’s purpose in all he went through, he was able to extend grace to his family. Joseph had deep trust in God all through those years, knowing that he could trust His plan, even when it wasn’t clear for years.
There are several lessons that we can learn from the life of Joseph. Though most of us won’t go through the depths of pain, despair, and betrayal that he did, we may have some terrible events of our own in our life that were caused by others. Can we forgive like Joseph did? God’s Word encourages us to trust that His purposes are good, even when we are going through some bad times. Jesus challenges us to forgive those who have wronged us, just as Joseph did. God is sovereign, and His plans prevail.
In spite of the bad things that happen in our lives, we can go on as Christians, not because we understand God, but because we see His true heart in Jesus. In spite of evil, we know that God is good because we see Jesus. We know He loves us because Jesus died and rose for us. We continue to walk on through life, even in darkness, because of Jesus. Remember, God can bring good out of evil.
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