vs. 8 "It was not you who sent me here, but God."

vs. 36 "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful."

You may not have endured what Joseph had to endure. You weren’t stripped of your clothes, thrown into a cistern, sold into slavery or thrown into jail, but none the less you did encounter someone who wronged you.  Maybe you endured even worse than what Joseph endured.

How did you react?  What did you do?  Did you get angry?  Did you want revenge?  Did you break off relationship with that person?  Did you treat that person the way they treated you or the way you wished they would have treated you?

The natural thing to do is react out of the hurt and pain which we are feeling.  Like an animal which is cornered, we want to lash out at that person.  We want them to feel the pain which we are feeling.  We want them to know the hurt.  We want the satisfaction of revenge.

I wonder if at any time in Joseph’s life of slavery and imprisonment did he ever curse his brothers or God for that matter.  I wonder if Joseph had met his brothers in Pharoah’s prison if he would have treated them any differently.  I wonder what Joseph’s response would have been if he hadn’t seen his brother’s change in attitude when the imprisoned Benjamin and Judah pleaded to change places with him.  I wonder if Joseph was still a prisoner and not Pharoah’s right hand man would he have said to his brothers,

"It was not you who sent me here,
but God."

Unfortunately not every human story ends like this. Not every family, not every friendship, not every relationship which is torn apart by sinful behavior is restored and they live happily ever after. This is not God’s fault. This is our fault. Chances are you have heard the saying, "To err is human, to forgive is divine."  It is so true. Forgiveness is a gift from God.  A forgiving spirit demonstrates that a person has received forgiveness.

Personal I believe that Joseph’s ability to forgive his brothers was brought about by his faith in God. Joseph may have found a new attitude in his brothers, but Joseph also had a new attitude.

Do you remember why Joseph’s brothers did what they did to Joseph? Joseph was always flaunting in their face that their father loved him more than he loved them. Joseph boasted about his dreams, which depicted him lording over his brothers. It was Joseph’s attitude and behavior toward his brothers which fed their jealousy.

We see a very different Joseph in today’s Genesis passage. We see a Joseph who is boasting not about himself, but about God.

We see demonstrated in Joseph, the love of God. It was the love of God which sustained him, which changed him, which enabled him to open his arms, but more importantly his heart to his brothers. Did they deserve it? No!, but then neither did Joseph.

Let me ask you this, if you were Joseph what would you have done? Your answer to this question most likely can be found in your life story. What have you done when someone: has hurt you; wronged you; sinned against you? Have you forgiven them or are you still holding on to hurt, the pain, the grudge?

When it comes to forgiveness God is not asking you to do the impossible. God is simply asking you to do what God has done for you. When Jesus said, "Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you....do to others as you would have them do to you." he was simply asking you to follow his example. He exemplified forgiveness throughout his life. He exemplified forgiveness from the cross,

"Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."

Forgiveness is something you and I know a lot about, because we have it received many times. Forgiveness is also something you and I know little about, because we have refused to offer it. What you need to remember that forgiveness has 2 sides. Jesus linked them when he taught us to pray, "Forgive us our debts, our sins, our trespasses, AS we forgive our debtors, those sinned, those who trespass against us."

If you are holding unto unforgiveness towards someone, LET IT GO! for your sake as much as theirs because forgiveness is freedom for you. To refuse to forgive keeps you anchored in the past.   LET IT GO because Jesus said,

"For with the measure you us, it will be measured to you."

If you treat others generously, graciously, compassionately, and with forgiveness these qualities will come back to you in full measure. LET GO of your unforgiveness so that you may be one with God.

AMEN