GENESIS 50:15-21

BACKGROUND

The story of Joseph and his coat of many colors is a long and fascinating one.  Actually, that’s what we call the story, when teaching it to Sunday school children.  But the coat has little to do with the story or the God Lesson for the story.  I’ll give you a brief summary of the high points, but I encourage you to read the whole story.  It’s full of twists and turns.  You’ll find it in Genesis, running from chapter 37 and going to chapter 50.  You can skip chapters 38 and 49, which have little to do with the story.

Jacob (nicknamed “Israel” by God) has 12 sons, but Joseph is the clear favorite. Jacob makes Joseph a beautiful, colorful robe.  Joseph’s eleven brothers are green with envy.  To make matters worse, Joseph has dreams which predict that his brothers will bow down to him.  (Gen 37:5-11) His brothers can’t stand it, and sell him off to a caravan headed to Egypt.  They tell their father that Joseph was killed by a wild animal. Things go well for Joseph in Egypt. He rises to the number two spot in Egypt, right behind Pharaoh.  There is a famine, and his brothers come begging for food.  Jacob dies, and Joseph buries him in Canaan, their home.  That’s where our reading begins.

DETAILS

• In verses 15-17, Joseph’s brothers show concern for their safety.  While their father was alive, they had some security.  With the father gone, Joseph could now seek revenge. So, their plea in verse 17 is hiding behind their father’s coat tails. 
• In 17b, Joseph cries, revealing his true emotion. 
• Verse 18 is the fulfillment of Joseph’s childhood dream, found in Genesis 37:5-11.
• Verse 20 is the whole reason for this long story, and the God Lesson for us.  “God made a very bad thing turn out for the best.”

TAKEAWAY

Because Joseph was a man of faith, he saw God’s hand, active in the world around him.  Joseph understood that God used the bad actions of his brothers to prepare a place for them to survive the 7 year famine that was ravaging the middle east. As a result, God saves Jacob’s sons as a remnant of Israel.  These 12 would become the 12 tribes of Israel, delineated in chapter 40.  So, amidst all the nasty stuff going on in this story, God’s grace shines through.  He preserves his people.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Bad things happen to everyone, whether they are bad or good.  The difference for people of faith is that they know that God can work good from the bad.  Non-believers just don’t get that.  Think back on your life at some of the unpleasant experiences that you have gone through.  How has God worked good from them for you and your family?

ROMANS 14:1-12

BACKGROUND

Two things are important to know, before digging into this reading.

1. The church in Rome was a mixture of Gentile Christians and Jews who recognized Jesus to be the messiah.  At times, this caused tension and conflict.
2. Most of the meat consumed by the people in Rome and the middle east was a byproduct of the practice of sacrificing animals to pagan gods. Even though Christians were free from the condemnation of eating this food, many Jews just couldn’t do it.  The Gentile Christians appear to be OK with it. But the problem was that the meat eaters were giving the meat-abstainers a hard time.

DETAILS

• Paul starts out by labelling those who refrain from eating sacrificed meat as “weak in faith”. This is a bit harsh, to be sure. But I think he did this to appeal to the Gentiles.  “You’re strong, they’re weak.  Cut them some slack.”  (vv. 1-3)
• In verse 4, he gives them a subtle reminder of Jesus’ words in Mark 10:42-45. 

“42 So Jesus called them and said to them, “You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. 43 But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all.”

In other words, we are all servants of the Lord and one another.  We should not judge one another.

• Part of the Jewish religious practices included observing festivals, new moons, etc. (Did you know that the reason Easter changes from year to year is because it is tied to the lunar cycle?)  The Gentiles could care less about all these festivals and lunar hocus-pocus.  Sounds like they were making life difficult for the Jewish Christians who observed them. Paul says that if it gives glory to God, then it is good.  Don’t judge them!  (vv. 5-6)
• Then, Paul steps back, and reminds them of the big picture.  It’s not about us.  It’s all about living for the Lord!  Quit your nit-picking, and start living for the Lord! (vv. 7-9)
• To conclude, Paul reminds them of the ultimate judgement. He suggests that they should quit judging one another, because that’s God’s job.  And we’re all going to be judged in the end.  (vv. 10-12)

TAKEAWAY

Jesus made it clear that we are not to judge one another, but leave that task to God.  We do well to remember that there are different ways of serving, but the same Lord is served.  Our religious practices and even some of our beliefs may vary.  But the important thing is that God is glorified in all of it.  Rather than focus on our differences, we need to concentrate on all the good we have in common.  When we do this, we truly do become the Body of Christ.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

We all love to find fault with other people!  I think it makes us feel better about ourselves, doesn’t it?  But it is very destructive, when you think about it.  It’s just our nature, I guess.  How can we work to build the Body of Christ, rather than pick at it?

MATTHEW 18:21-35

BACKGROUND

This passage directly follows last week’s reading.  Since the subject is about forgiveness, Peter has a question.

DETAILS

• I’m with Peter. Forgiving someone seven times for one transgression seems like enough.  Jesus’ mathematical answer doesn’t mean that we can quit when we hit #490 (seventy times seven).  Jesus is saying that we must keep on forgiving.  (vv. 21-22)
• Then, Jesus tells them a long and peculiar parable.  The details are downright disturbing.  They involve slavery, a HUGE debt (10,000 talents is about $3.5 trillion dollars!), selling off families, and torture.  I’ll summarize it below, in the Takeaway.  (vv. 23-34)
• In the last verse, Jesus gives us the moral of the story.  He says that if we don’t forgive one another, “our heavenly Father will also do to every one of you.”  (v. 35)

TAKEAWAY

A wise preacher once told me that parables are intended to be simple stories with only one lesson.  All too often, we get hung up in the details of the story*, and miss the God Lesson.  Here, Jesus is telling us that God knows all our sins; our sin-debt is huge. God has forgiven us by having His only son die on the cross for our sins.  We must show this same loving forgiveness to those around us, forgiving them without limit.