Genesis 45:1-15

Genesis 45:1-15
Treating Mistreaters
August 17, 2008

This summer we are spending some time looking at stories from the book of Genesis that make up a valuable part of our faith tradition. These are stories of folks like Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph – folks who were called by God and touched by God in certain ways – and – while they were not perfect – were used by God to bring His will and His love into the world.

As we look at these stories I believe we are discovering that God is at work in our lives and in our world – and that God can use us – as imperfect as we may be – to do His work and will in the world – if we will let Him use us.

We have looked at Noah — and how he was obedient to God – even when it was costly and messy to be obedient – and discovered a blessing for himself and his family – and all people – because of his obedience to God.

We have seen the story of Abraham – and seen how God – many times –
calls us to do new things –
calls us do away with things we may be comfortable with –
calls us to do things we have never done before
or –
calls us to do old things in new and different ways –
and – even though we may not know exactly what will happen when we try doing new things as individuals or as a Church –
or we may not know exactly what will happen when we try – as individuals or a Church — doing old things in new ways –
we need to step out in faith and follow God.

We’ve also seen in Abraham’s story that God keeps His wonderful promises – when we trust in Him – and how at times we have to have faith in God and God’s will for our lives.

We’ve seen as we’ve looked at Jacob – Abraham’s grandson how God does not call us or choose us because of what we have done – but because of who God is – and we’ve seen how we might be able to run from God’s love – but can not hide – and we have seen how he dared to let God change him – make a difference in his life – and how he changed to be a person who made a difference in the lives of others – how God is always with us – even in the midst of our problems and troubles.

Last week we looked at one of Jacob’s sons – Joseph — and saw how God gives us dreams – and how we need to dare to dream and follow the dreams God gives us. Today we are going to continue looking at Joseph – and how he treated those who mistreated him. As we look at Genesis 45, I believe we can learn how to treat those who mistreat us.

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In our passage from Genesis 37 last week we began the story of Joseph – the dreamer – the daddy’s pet – the young man who his dad loved so much he gave him a special coat to wear – the young man who dared to dream that the rest of his family would bow down to him. We saw that his brothers finally had enough of his attitude – his coat – and his dreams — and one day when he had come to check on them in the fields they beat him up and sold him to some merchants on the way to Egypt.
Well – the chapters between Genesis 37 and our passage for today from Genesis 45 tell how Jeoseph was taken to Egypt and purchased as slave to Potiphar, a high-ranking official in Pharaoh’s government. The Bible says…
Genesis 39 opens telling us that:
The Lord was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned…the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. (Genesis 39:2-5)
It sounds like Joseph landed on his feet, doesn’t it?
Well, things eventually took a turn for the worse. Genesis 39 continues …
Now Joseph was well built and handsome, and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me!” But he refused. (Genesis 39:7-8)
He was determined to do the right thing. But his rejection offended her, so she framed him and accused him of making advances towards her. When Potiphar heard of this, he became furious and threw him in jail.
But – Genesis 39 goes on to say:
But while Joseph was there in the prison, the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. (Genesis 39:20-21)
Yea – even in prison – God was with Joseph – and it wasn’t long before Joseph was running the prison for the warden.
While in prison, he meets 2 of Pharaoh’s officials he had become angry with and had thrown in jail. While in prison, these men had some strange dreams that they didn’t know how to interpret – but Joseph interpreted each one — telling one official that he was about to be set free, and the other that he was about to be executed. Sure enough, that’s what happened – but the one who was released did not remember his friend Joseph – who stayed in jail another 2 years. It was not until Pharaoh began having dreams that he didn’t understand – and the official remembered about the prisoner who could interpret dreams – that Joseph was brought to Pharaoh and interpreted his dreams. Joseph advised Pharaoh to appoint someone in charge of preparing for the famine God told Pharaoh through his dreams was coming — and Pharaoh took his advice – making Joseph second in command in the country.
So – here is Joseph — at the age of 30 – a former slave and former prisoner — now the second most powerful man in the most powerful nation of the world at that time. For the next seven years he did his job well, storing enough food to help the entire nation prepare for the years of famine. And sure enough, after seven years, famine struck – but the country of Egypt was ready.
But – what was going on in Canaan with Joseph’s family during this time?
The famine in Egypt affected their country, too. His father – Jacob — heard that there was plenty of food in Egypt — so he sent his sons on a journey to buy grain. Now, Joseph was the governor of the land, the one who sold grain to all of its people – so when Joseph’s brothers arrived, they bowed down to him with their faces to the ground. He recognized them – and probably thought about the dream he had years before – but they did not recognize him. He finally gets them to bring his youngest brother to Egypt – and this is where we pick up the story in chapter 45 today as we see Joseph make himself known to his brothers – forgive them for mistreating him when he was younger – and seeing God’s hand in his life.
It’s an incredible story, isn’t it?
Who ever came up with the idea that this book is boring? Not only is this a great story, but today, thousands of years later, there are lessons to be learned from these events.
As a young man, Joseph was on the receiving end of some rather cruel treatment, from his brothers — but he never gave in to despair, and he never gave in to bitterness. Instead, he made the most of every situation he faced, even when he was treated unfairly. And when the opportunity came for him to reconcile with his brothers, he received them with open arms instead of trying to punish them for what they had done to him.
You know – our stories may not be as sensational as Joseph’s, but we share something in common with him:
We are all, at some time or another, treated unfairly. We all know what it’s like to be given worse than we deserve. We’ve all been mistreated at sometime in our lives. Maybe it was by a parent, or sibling, or employer, or coach, or spouse, or child, or friend — regardless of who it was – we all have had times we have been mistreated – and will probably continue to have these times in our lives.
I believe we can all learn from Joseph’s story how to treat a mistreater. When we look at the events in Joseph’s life, we can see the significance of his reconciliation with his brothers here is chapter 45. I believe that there are 4 things we can learn from the way Joseph treated his brothers:
First of all, if you’ve been mistreated…
1. Recognize how God has adapted the situation for good.
Notice what Joseph said to his brothers…
(v. 5) “…it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.”
Even though the events of his life had been challenging, to say the least, Joseph recognized God’s hand in the details. Listen to what he says in verse 8:
(v. “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God.”
Regardless of where you may feel you are in your story – you can know that God has not abandoned you. Do you remember how the Bible said that the Lord was with Joseph when he was a slave, and the Lord was with Joseph when he was in prison, and the Lord was with Joseph when he served before the Pharaoh? In the very same way, the Lord is with you – whatever your situation in life may be. Maybe today you can see how God has worked out negative events in your life for good, or maybe that yet hasn’t been made clear to you. Either way, God is at work in your life – just as He was in Joseph’s.
Obviously, Joseph’s brothers didn’t have his best interests in mind when they sold him into slavery. They didn’t mistreat him with the idea that it would help him become a high-ranking official in Egypt. They intended to hurt him, but their intentions backfired, because God was with Joseph. For you, God can and will turn your curse into a blessing. He can turn the times people mistreat you into times of blessings.
Here’s the second thing we can learn about treating those who mistreat us:

2. Release the Offender
Joseph reveals his spiritual depth in the words he speaks to his brothers…
(v. 5) “And now, do not be distressed, and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here…”

Joseph could have given his brothers a long speech about the terrible things they had done to him. He could have said, “Now it’s your turn; you will suffer as I have suffered.” But Joseph wasn’t interested in revenge. He just wanted to let the offense go. Joseph understood that when you release the offender, you release yourself. As long as you hang on to your bitterness and resentment, you will never be free, no matter how much success you achieve.

God is willing to turn the curses of your life into a blessing. Don’t waste it by clinging to the past. Let it go. Release the offender.

Augustine said, “If you are suffering from a bad person’s injustice, forgive him, lest there be two bad people.”

When you are mistreated, don’t hang on to the hurt. Don’t cling to the past. Forgive whoever you have to forgive. Release the offender. In fact, more than just forgiving the offender, you need to go to the third step –
3. Repay Them With Kindness.
This is what Joseph did for his brothers. He said…
(v. 9-11) “Come down to me; don’t delay. You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me…I will provide for you there…”
In spite of the fact that he had been sold as a slave for 20 shekels many years before, when he had the opportunity, he repaid his brothers with kindness.
It may seem outrageous to do good to someone who has gone out of their way to do harm to you, but that is exactly what God has called us to do. And remember that God leads by example — Jesus was beaten, mocked, and spat upon, though he had done nothing to justify such treatment – but while he was hanging on a cross he didn’t deserve to bear, he said, “Father, forgive them.”
If you’ve been mistreated, look for an opportunity to repay the mistreater with kindness.
When Norman Vincent Peale wrote The Power of Positive Thinking, he was lambasted by many theologians and religious leaders. One leader, the Methodist Bishop of New York State, was particularly outspoken in his criticism of Peale, to the point of publishing mean-spirited articles about him. Dr. Peale was also a featured book reviewer for a national magazine, and a book by this hostile Bishop came across his desk. Here was his chance to get even, to say everything back to this man that had been said about him. So, how did Peale review the book? Peale said, “It was a fine piece; accordingly I wrote a favorable review.”
Repay mistreaters with kindness.
For example, your parents may have mistreated you as a child — but don’t withhold your kindness from them now. Your brother or sister may have made life difficult for you in the past — but if you have the ability to do good for them now, do it. Your neighbor may have offended you or taken advantage of you — but if you now have the opportunity to do them a favor, take advantage of it. Repay them with kindness.
The fourth way to treat a mistreater is…
4. Re-invent the Relationship.
Listen to how Joseph reinvented the relationship with his brothers:
(v. 14-15) Then he threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin embraced him, weeping. And he kissed all his brothers and wept over them. Afterwards his brothers talked with him.
It’s as if Joseph was saying, “Let’s start over, and let’s do it right this time.”
Some of you are probably asking, “Does this mean I should let my abusive husband back in the house, as if nothing has happened? Are you saying I should re-hire a dishonest employee and make my business vulnerable again?”
No. I didn’t say “resume the relationship”, I said “re-invent” it. Make it the way it should have been all along, with the proper boundaries and the proper understanding of each other.
Reconciling with someone who has hurt you in the past doesn’t mean that you’re setting yourself up to be hurt all over again. Change the terms of the relationship. Make it the way it should have been all along. This is what Joseph did with his brothers.
It’s inevitable that you will be mistreated. Maybe in big ways, maybe in small ways, but it’s sure to happen.
The thing is that mistreatment can be the catalyst for God doing something great in your life, or it can be the catalyst of your undoing. How you respond to mistreatment will determine whether or not you experience God’s peace and joy in your life.
Here are 4 tings we can learn from Joseph – and apply to our own life – so can learn how to treat mistreaters:
1. Recognize God’s hand in your life and trust him to turn the curse into a blessing;
2. Release the offender, because in doing so you release yourself;
3. Repay them with kindness when the opportunity presents itself;
4. Re-invent the relationship to make it what it should have been all along.
Good advice – no – make that God’s advice – for how to treat mistreaters.
Amen.