Year C Epiphany VII \Genesis 45:3-11, 15 Luke 6:27-38

Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph.”

The story of Joseph! It is one of the Bible stories children love to hear, colourful and filled with adventure, and often confused by them with “fairy tales”. It’s such an amazing and seemingly upbeat story it was made into a successful musical, “Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat”. We’ve been so flooded with the bright and shining images of Joseph, most of us don’t really have a clear picture of what the Bible story actually says. Let’s take a closer look.

Jacob had waited years to marry Rachel, his beloved and favourite wife, after first being tricked into marrying her sister, Leah. Joseph is Racheal’s son, and thus becomes the apple of his father’s eye, receiving from his father every gift and favour, everything he desires. That multicoloured coat we all know about was the sort of gift reserved for royalty, but Jacob gifted one to Joseph.

Was Joseph a brat? We don’t know for certain, though, spoiled as he was, it sounds likely, but we do know his older brothers, Leah’s sons, hated him. They wanted rid of the boy who Jacob might make his heir, who might usurp their rightful place in the line of succession. They wanted rid of the boy whose head was always “in the clouds”.

We know how it went for Joseph, being seized by his brothers, thrown into a pit, and, when they saw the sudden opportunity, sold into slavery in Egypt. How would a pampered child react to this act of hatred, to this violence? The reaction we might expect would be fear, even terror, followed by terrible anger and a lust for revenge. Perhaps Joseph initially experienced all of this, but as his story continues we realize Joseph differs from what we would consider the “norm”.

Joseph’s brothers called him a “dreamer”. Of course, a spoiled child could be thus, plenty of comfortable time for daydreaming, but that isn’t what the brothers meant about Joseph. As it turns out, he is more than just a dreamer; he has a gift from God. He can interpret dreams, and by using this God given gift, once in Egypt he manages to rise from slavery to the top post in Pharaoh’s household. He is now in a place where he has comfort and prestige and power. He’s set for whatever comes next.

And then - in today’s reading we come to the moment when, at last, Joseph faces the brothers who so hated him they sold him. It is their turn to be terrified. Having come seeking help in a time of terrible drought and famine, they find themselves unexpectedly in front of an incredibly important and powerful Egyptian official. What does Joseph do?

He has brought his brothers into his presence by a trick, and now it is his chance to finally get even with them, but instead, he first identifies himself to them and then asks, “Is my father still alive?"

Joseph is quite human. So flooded with emotion at this reunion, he has wept at seeing his brothers, and he now asks after his father. Having his brothers at his mercy must have been a great temptation, to do the cruel thing, the thing God would not condone, but the answer to Joseph’s question will help him determine which course to choose. If his father lives, this will help him to not harm his brothers, because it would cause his beloved father terrible pain. But his brothers could not answer him, so dismayed were they at his presence. So it falls to Joseph to choose, will he seek revenge or set any residual anger aside?

Years before the drought and famine, but after he was sold into slavery, Joseph made his choice. Once in Egypt, he could have wallowed in misery, refused to use his God given gift, and lived wretchedly. But instead, with reliance on the gift of God, and through his own strength reinforced by God, he has lived a good life, rising to the top position in Pharaoh’s court. Joseph choice was to not dwell on the past, not to dwell on injuries to his person, but to continue on the path of righteousness, to continue his relationship with God.

Using what God has given him, he has saved himself, saved Egypt and, now, he chooses to forgive and to save his own family from starvation. Because Joseph has been and is faithful to God, because he has lived for what is positive and healing, the reunion is not filled with hatred. All those years ago, Joseph chose Love.

Jesus said, "I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.”

Today’s Gospel reading picks up where last Sunday’s left off. Jesus has proclaimed what we know as The Sermon on the Plain, and He is continuing to speak to the crowd. Those who heard Him speak that day were most likely not comfortably well off, but were poor and even disenfranchised. They wait to hear what good news Jesus will offer them, and He immediately startles them by encouraging them to not hate, to not condemn those who are cruel to them. We know that in His parables, our Lord always aimed to shock His listeners, and what He says here no doubt had that affect as well.

Jesus is addressing a crowd in a time when among the Jews there was rampant hatred for the Romans. Many of the people are living in poverty, some exploited for what little they have, others reduced to begging. It is a time when anger flares. Injustice toward the Jewish people from their Roman oppressors is a given, and retaliation is the norm. But here is a Rabbi, who seems to be telling His followers not to resist or rebel, but to be satisfied with being the victims. How can this be so?

We are familiar with several passages in today’s Gospel. There is the one about turning the other cheek, and the one about doing to others as you would have them do to you, no matter what they’ve actually done to you. We call this latter The Golden Rule. These passages seem to support the idea that being passive is the correct response to abuse. But hidden in what Jesus says is a call to action, a kind of action with which we are not as well acquainted as we are with anger, revenge, and retaliation.

It is human nature to stand and fight, to defend one’s self and one’s honour, to correct others when they are wrong, to set the record straight. We are biologically conditioned to fight or flight, and whenever we can we put up the good fight for what we see as the just cause. It is also human nature to love those who love us, to agree with them and support them, often against others with whom we disagree. But Jesus asks us: If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.

St. Paul explained the situation to the Corinthians by using the analogy of a seed. Seeds sown then “die” so that new life can spring from them. Therefore, we must die to what is the normal, human way of reacting to injustice against us, so that Love may grow within us and spring from us. In this way we are not passive but active, and Jesus gives us the tools to do just this without becoming victims.

By taking a proactive stance, by exerting our ability to choose, by acting on what God wills us to do, using the gifts He has given us, we become, not victims, but conquerors. The “Love” of which Jesus speaks is not something mushy and sentimental, it is strength, strength to surrender to God’s will, and with strength from God to actively pursue the loving path forward. While some are called to do this on a grand scale, enacting legislation and law to protect the poor and disenfranchised, we can do this in the smallest actions in our daily lives. God sees and rejoices at even the tiniest action done with great love.

Jesus tells us, "Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you.”

Joseph chose to serve God, and thus to forgive, to Love. Jesus calls us to do the same reassuring us, “A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.".

Let us pray:

Dear Merciful Lord, thank you for your gift of forgiveness. Your only Son loved us enough to come to earth and experience the worst pain imaginable so we could be forgiven. Your mercy flows to us in spite of our faults and failures. Your Word says to “clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.” Help us demonstrate unconditional love today, even to those who hurt us. Give us the strength to love and forgive, as you call us to do. In Jesus Name - Amen.