“Do we have to forgive Timothy McVeigh?” That question was discussed on the John Erling show on 740 AM, KRMG. A wide range of answers were given to that question. Some said, “No.” Others said, “Yes.” The host said he didn’t want to forgive him. There was a caller who said that since Mr. McVeigh didn’t ask for forgiveness we didn’t have to forgive him. Other callers insisted that we must forgive him and others said that God would be the one to judge Timothy McVeigh. Although I rarely call radio stations I picked up the phone and began to dial the number for KRMG. I stopped after the first three digits and hung up the phone. I realized that the host really wasn’t looking for an answer from a pastor. He was just boosting his ratings with a hot button discussion that touched the hearts of most Oklahomans. The debate also caused me to realize that there is a lot of misunderstanding in our society about forgiveness.
In our service this morning we are taking up the thought of how Jesus reveals forgiveness. He secured forgiveness for all sins through his death on the cross. Yes, he even died for the horrible act of murdering 168 people with a truck bomb. In light of how he forgives us Jesus now calls us who claim his Name to forgive those who sin against us--even our enemies. To illustrate what forgiveness is and who should be forgiven Jesus told many parables and preached many sermons. Each of them gives us additional insights into forgiveness.
The lesson of forgiveness is one that God’s people of every age have had to learn. In our Old Testament reading for this Sunday we see a beautiful example of forgiveness. Joseph forgave his brothers for the evil they had inflicted upon him. As followers of Christ with a fuller view of God’s forgiveness than perhaps Joseph had we can learn a lesson from him on how to forgive those who sin against us. Let’s set as the goal for our time together the objective of learning to forgive like Joseph. That thought will work well for the theme of our sermon:
LEARN TO FORGIVE LIKE JOSEPH
I. With unconditional love for others (3-5a, 15)
II. With understanding of God’s will for all (5b-8)
It is very difficult to summarize all the events that led up to our Old Testament lesson. Perhaps you recall some of the history. Jacob, the one who wrestled with God and received the name Israel, had twelve sons. He foolishly showed favoritism to one of his sons--Joseph. He gave him the now famous “coat of many colors.” In time the sibling rivalry that Jacob fostered reached a boiling point and almost led to murder. Instead of killing him Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery and faked his death. Joseph was seventeen years old when he was taken down to Egypt as a slave. He rose to become the manager of Potiphar’s house. Then he was falsely accused of rape by Potiphar’s wife and imprisoned. By God’s plan and under his protection Joseph eventually became the ruler of Egypt, second only to Pharaoh himself.
Then one day it happened. His backstabbing brothers came to Egypt and bowed at his feet. They came asking to buy some food during the seven-year famine that was devouring a large part of the world at that time. With the tables turned Joseph could have taken revenge on them. But through some clever plans he uncovered the fact that his brothers had changed. In fact he saw that one of them was ready to give his life for another. Then, after he couldn’t contain himself any longer he revealed his identity and forgave them. The verses of God’s Word that we are considering for our sermon teach us a powerful lesson about forgiveness. May the Holy Spirit lead us to learn to forgive like Joseph. Transition: “Joseph said to his brothers, ‘I am Joseph! Is my father still living?’ But his brothers were not able to answer him, because they were terrified at his presence. Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here.”
We can understand why Joseph’s brothers were speechless. Their past had finally caught up to them. The helpless teenager they sold into slavery was now one of the most powerful men in the world. The brother they hated and even wanted to kill was standing in front of them with their lives in his hands. Guilt must have flooded over them. Fearful speculation crowded their minds as they thought about what Joseph might do to them for what they had done to him.
Although the reaction of Joseph’s brothers makes sense his reaction doesn’t. Joseph did what is unnatural for humans He didn’t hold a grudge. Did you notice how he called his brothers to come close to him? With his body language he showed that he had forgiven them. He embraced them.
But then why did Joseph identify their sin against him if he had forgiven them? Why did he say, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt!”? He wasn’t rubbing their noses in their sin. It wasn’t intended to make them feel guilty. Joseph took the initiative to forgive them. He offered forgiveness even for a silent confession from his tongue tied brothers. Then Joseph reassured his brothers and encouraged them to forgive themselves for what they had done. “And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here.” We are told in verse 15 of this chapter, “And he kissed all his brothers and wept over them. Afterward his brothers talked with him.” (Genesis 45:15) Joseph forgave his brothers with unconditional love. Their sin against him was forgiven and forgotten.
Brothers and sisters in the faith, our opportunities to forgive will probably never come in such dramatic ways as this. A member of our family will probably never sell us into slavery. Someone we love may never desire our death. No, we will more likely be faced with much smaller wrongs against us. We will be faced with the hurtful words our spouse spoke when the checkbook was overdrawn. Perhaps a fellow member of Mt Olive will call into question the wisdom of one of our ideas for serving the food at a potluck. Someone at work may betray or defame us. A classmate at school may be mean to us or call us names. Instead of a direct attack on our body and life we will more likely face gossip, or a critical comment, or a cold shoulder. But we dare not think that it is any easier for our sinful nature to forgive even the smallest wrongs than it is for the victims of the OKC bombing to forgive Timothy McVeigh. All forgiveness is unnatural for us.
So where do we learn how to forgive the way Joseph forgave his brothers? We come to the foot of the cross. In a statement of unconditional love Christ extended his arms to forgive us. Our rebellion against God had no boundaries. We did not love him above all things. We have treated others the way Joseph’s brothers treated him. Hatred has clouded our hearts. We have wished evil on others. Even thoughts of murder are not foreign to us. Yet, without any strings attached, God has declared us forgiven and our sins forgotten. They have been taken from us “as far as the east is from the west.”
With the love of Christ in our hearts we can then learn some practical lessons about forgiveness from Joseph. With the kind of body language he used, by taking the first step, and with reassuring words we too can forgive unconditionally. When your spouse sins against you must he sleep on the couch for a time to pay the price for what he has done? Do you only forgive someone if the person who has sinned against you tracks you down, drops to his knees, and grovels for a while? Do you pout for a time before offering forgiveness to inflict revenge upon those who have sinned against you? How sad and pitiful are our offers of forgiveness! As an Old Testament believer Joseph gives us an example to follow. When you forgive get close to the person who has hurt you. Initiate contact out of love. Reassure the person by your words and actions that you forgive him or her.
A man was walking along a trail in East Africa with some friends, he became aware of a delightful odor that filled the air. He looked up in the trees and around at the bushes in an effort to discover where it was coming from. Then his friends told him to look down at the small blue flower growing along the path. Each time they crushed the tiny blossoms under their feet, more of its sweet perfume was released into the air. Then his friends said, “We call it the forgiveness flower.” This forgiveness flower does not wait until we ask forgiveness for crushing it. It does not release its fragrance in measured doses or hold us to a reciprocal arrangement. It does not ask for an apology; it merely lives up to its name and forgivesfreely, fully, richly. What a touching example of outrageous forgiveness!
Garth Brooks has a song, which says, “We buried the hatchet, but left the handle sticking out.” Although country music may not be the best guide for Christian living there is some truth in that expression. How often don’t we pretend to forgive but then attach some condition to our forgiveness? We may say or think, “If you don’t do it again I will forgive you! If you make it up to me I will forgive you!” That is like grabbing hold of the handle of the hatchet. We are called upon to forgive unconditionally. Let’s use Joseph as an example to learn that lesson. With the unconditional love of God in our hearts we can forgive like Joseph--unconditionally.
Of course our ability to forgive comes from the fact that God has forgiven all of our sins. But the practical application of forgiveness also comes from our understanding of God’s will for us and others. Joseph went on to say to his brothers after he forgave them, “....because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt.” Joseph was able to step back from the wrong done to him and see the big picture.
Joseph saw God’s plan for him, his family, and his people. Although it was his brothers who sold him into slavery Joseph said that it was God’s plan that was carried out. Three times he repeated that thought. “God sent me ahead of you...But God sent me ahead of you...So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God.” Through the hatred and jealousy of Joseph’s brothers God worked out his plan. Joseph was raised from the status of a slave to a position of power. The nomadic descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were kept from starvation.
But God’s plan went way beyond Joseph and his brothers. The lives of many people were saved in that area of the world where the famine struck. Joseph also seems to have looked ahead to the “BIG” plan God had for the world. It seems as though he had an understanding of God’s plan for the whole world. He and his brothers were part of the promise God had given to Abraham. All people would be blessed through one of their descendants. As we look back over history we know that from that small group of people a great-grandson many generations later would be born in Bethlehem. He would rescue all people from sin by paying for the sins Joseph committed, and his brothers committed, and the sins of every sinner who has ever lived.
When we wonder about how Joseph could forgive his brothers for the terrible things they did to him we can find some explanation in his understanding of God’s will. He learned that God always does what is best for those who love him. He learned that God even uses the evil actions done to his children for their good.
So how do we apply the lesson Joseph learned about forgiveness to our lives? We can begin by listening to God’s promises to use everything for our good. Romans 8:28 assures us, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” It doesn’t matter what we suffer from others since God promises to use it for our good. The Apostle Paul wrote about suffering at the hands of those who sin against us. In 2 Corinthians 4:1617 he wrote, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.”
The writer to the Hebrews encouraged us to, “Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?” (Hebrews 12:67 ) James 1:23 tells us, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.” If someone sins against us God promises to use the disappointment or pain we suffer for our eternal good.
Not only does understanding God’s will for us help us to forgive others unconditionally but also understanding God’s will for others is an additional motivation to forgive. In our gospel lesson Jesus told us to forgive even our enemies. The Apostle Paul took this thought up on Romans 12:2021, “On the contrary: ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” 1 Peter 3:9 says the same thing, “Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.” When we forgive those who sin against us others see the forgiveness we enjoy through Jesus Christ.
Forgiveness comes to us through Christ. The willingness and ability to forgive comes through Christ. But the confidence to forgive can only be found through trust in God and from the kind of understanding of his will that Joseph had. He understood that no matter what someone did to him God would make good out of it or come from it. Joseph also understood that God’s will to reach people with his forgiveness is often shown through the forgiveness his people show to others.
It has been said that people learn best when they can see an abstract idea put into practice. The Scriptures not only teach us about forgiveness they show us forgiveness in action. Joseph forgiving his brothers is just such an example. Through this Word of God we are taught to forgive like Joseph. We forgive with unconditional love for others. We forgive with understanding of God’s will for all. Amen.
