If you had brothers and sisters who did not like you when you were young and they wanted to kill you, how would you feel about them?  If, instead of killing you they sent you to another country where you ended up a slave but later were put in jail for a crime you did not commit, how then would you feel about your siblings?  Of course, that is the story of Joseph found in the book of Genesis.  You may remember him as the boy who was given the coat of many colors by his father Jacob.  (Most of us learned that story in Sunday School.)  There is a lesson here about forgiveness.  How does one define forgiveness?

Perhaps we need to ask the question – did Joseph forgive his brothers for what they did to him?  The story of Joseph would have occurred almost 2000 years prior to Jesus coming into the world.  Joseph, like his father and great-grandfather (Abraham) before him, believed firmly in one God who was Creator of all things.  However, they were long gone by the time Jesus is in the land of Judah with his disciples teaching them about forgiveness.  They did not hear him when he answered Peter’s question about forgiveness (Matthew 18) – Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?  As many as seven times?  Jesus said to him, I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.  The traditional understanding here is that Jesus is simply saying forgiveness is not about counting how many times we are to forgive but rather to learn to forgive and then to put into practice the act of forgiveness to anyone who offends us. 

One definition of forgiveness that has been put forth is that it means we will forget the offense.  However, we are human and simply put many offenses cannot be forgotten even though one may say “I forgive you.”  It is only God who will actually forget our sin.  Isaiah 43:25 [Thus says the Lord] I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.  And, Hebrews 8:12 (quoted from Jeremiah) For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.  We humans on the other hand usually remember but that does not mean we cannot forgive.  Can we consider the possibility of different modalities of forgiveness?  Does one forgive a total stranger for an offense the same way one forgives their spouse or child?  For the stranger, forgiveness is demonstrated by not seeking retribution.  What else can one do?  You may never see that person again.  On the other hand, if your spouse or your child or sibling commits an offense, aren’t we to practice forgiveness and then seek, not retribution but reconciliation?  That is exactly what God has done with us. 

Here is the best way of defining forgiveness found in 2 Corinthians 5 - in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.  The word “reconciling” means ‘to make friends with.’  When we forgive someone we know, and especially a loved one, aren’t we to go beyond just saying ‘I forgive you’ and seek to repair the relationship?  How that looks depends on the circumstances but at the least it will involve healing at some level.  Granted, there are times when someone wants to hang onto the situation.  Our response as believers never involves retribution and we always remain open to reconciliation. 

Joseph did forgive his brothers because he saw something beyond their desire for doing away with their brother.  Joseph saw God’s plan for saving his people.  He said to them in later years after he had become the most powerful person in Egypt outside of the Pharoah, 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. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them. Now, here is where the rub comes for all believers.  That plan of salvation for God’s people would not come for another 400 years after Joseph was gone.  Forgiveness is not about the moment; it is about understanding that God always has a plan of saving grace involved in all of our relationships.  Sometimes that plan may take a life time to complete.  The PRACTICE of forgiveness is the key.  Forgiveness goes beyond a moment in time and becomes a way of life for all believers who seek to follow after Jesus who is called the Christ.

Who do you need to forgive today?

Pastor David