The Rest of the Story
Do you remember Paul Harvey? The famous radio broadcaster for ABC news radio whose career spanned 50+ years, who was known for his booming voice? He would end each newscast with “Paul Harvey, Good day.” And he was equally well known for his “The Rest of Story," his five minute quips where he would share a bit of historical narrative that most would not be familiar with. People may be familiar with a part of the story, but then he would share something that they may not have known about the story. He would end and say, “And now you know the Rest of the Story.” Paul Harvey died in 2009 and he was definitely a broadcast legend lost.
Today’s passage from Genesis is “the rest of the story” from last week’s passage. Last week, if you remember, Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers and taken to Egypt. The story was one of jealousy, and pride and deceit. Things were not going well for 17 year old Joseph.
Today, we enter the Genesis passage and it is important that we understand the context. After Joseph was sold into slavery, he was able to rise to a place of prominence in Egypt. We are told in Genesis 39:2 that the Lord was with Joseph and he became a successful man. v 3, “And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord caused all that he did to prosper in his hands.” So Joseph found favor in the Pharaoh’s site and he was made overseer of his house and all that he had. But things didn’t go continually well for Joseph - he had some hard years in there — where he was accused by his Master’s wife of laying with her (though he had not) and he was he was thrown into prison. But even there,
39:21-"the Lord was with Joseph and showed him his steadfast love, and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison” and “the Lord was with Joseph and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper.” (Genesis 39:23)
In Genesis today we learn that there had been a famine in the land and Joseph’s brother had come to Egypt seeking food. Joseph had recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him. Probably partly because they did not expect to see him alive ever again, and certainly if he was alive, they could not imagine him in a place of prominence. So they didn’t recognize him though he recognized them and this is where our passage begins today.
Joseph could not control himself in their presence and began to weep and told his brothers who he was.
This is a story of forgiveness. This is a story of forgiveness in the midst of extreme familial dysfunction.
Forgiveness is one of those things that much has been written about. And it is one of those things that while so necessary for each of us, it is so hard to do and sometimes seems so out of reach. Or, maybe we just choose to not forgive. I sometimes unfortunately do say, “I forgive, but I will never forget.” And while that is true, that I doubt I will ever forget, in saying that I am alluding to a certain lack of true forgiveness on my part. I like to tell myself and justify my hanging on to things that I need to let go of, that is because I am being wise and following, “if someone shows you who they are, believe them”… but deep down I am aware that is because a part of me is not willing or able to fully forgive and just move on. We are all familiar with the sayings that say something to the affect of that it is in forgiveness that we set ourselves free. And while this is definitely true, when I am working with someone who has chosen not to forgive someone, I usually always come around to asking, “What is it that you get — that I get-out of not forgiving someone?” Meaning, if we don’t forgive, if we choose to not forgive others, we must be getting something out of the constant hurt it causes us. There is a reason that we would choose to hang on to it.
There is much hate in our world today. There always has been. There is nothing new under the sun. Joseph’s brothers threw him in a well and sold him into slavery. Wanted to kill him. Couldn’t stand the sight of him, and not that Joseph was innocent in this feeling of hatred that had been stirred up in his brothers, but he suffered because of it.
We are moving toward a divisiveness as a nation that is painful to watch, and I am not sure how if the great divide continues, we are going to pull ourselves back into a unified whole.
We, as Christians, should not be contributors to divisiveness. We are called to be peacemakers-"Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called the Children of God," (Matthew 5:9) Peacemakers are people who have peace ruling their heart. They are active and not passive — they seek peace and among people. They don’t participate in gossip or try to divide people. They seek healing. They are gentle. They speak the truth. They are patient with those around them.
Joseph broke down and wept when he saw his brothers after all those years. And though he was in a position of power and could have brought suffering upon his brothers and family — he chose not to. He let it go. He brought peace to his family and healing.
This is a story of forgiveness, but it is also a story of God using an extremely horrible situation and using it for good. We are told continually that “the Lord was with Joseph”. God used Joseph’s enslavement in Egypt as a way of ensuring the family’s survival through the famine and making sure that God’s promises would be fulfilled.
But here is the rest of the story. The part I have left out. Before all of this, before Joseph just forgave his brothers, Joseph, when he had recognized his brothers, had planted a silver cup in his youngest brother Benjamin’s food bag. When the cup was conveniently “found," Joseph demands that the boy remain as a slave in Egypt with him. (Remember that Benjamin was his full brother by Jacob’s beloved wife Rachel.) We are told that the brothers are filled with sadness because they know that if anything were to happen to Benjamin, and if they returned home without Benjamin, the aged Jacob would certainly die of sorrow.
They don’t want to leave their brother. They are sorrowful. They had changed.
And that is when Joseph broke down and wept. He was aware that his brothers had changed in the intervening years and upon seeing this he could no longer control himself.
Here is a part about forgiveness. It doesn’t always or usually happen overnight. Like most things in life, it can take time. After the initial sting and hurt when someone wrongs us, we spend time in the hurt and shock of it all. And life moves on. And we have good days and bad days. But sometimes the weight of carrying unforgiveness can be too much for us and we just decide to set it down and move on. And sometimes, after some time, we may be in a position to cautiously approach the other and realize that the person who once hurt us is not the same person they were when they injured us. And we may be able to forgive.
And we don’t do this in our own strength, but thought the grace and strength that God gives to us.
“Almighty God, you have given your only Son to be for us a sacrifice for sin, and also an example of godly life: Give us grace to receive thankfully the fruits of his redeeming work…” (The Collect for today, Proper 15, Year A)
Jesus wasn’t just a sacrifice for our sin, but He was also an example of a godly life.
He was an example of how to be. Of how to forgive. Of how to live.
Here is the rest of the story. We are, by God’s grace, called to forgive. Because He forgave us.
Lord, help us to be the people you have called us to be — the peacemakers, the forgivers. Help us to guard our hearts and mouths… for
“…what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles… (Matthew 15:10-20)
Amen.
Today’s passage from Genesis is “the rest of the story” from last week’s passage. Last week, if you remember, Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers and taken to Egypt. The story was one of jealousy, and pride and deceit. Things were not going well for 17 year old Joseph.
Today, we enter the Genesis passage and it is important that we understand the context. After Joseph was sold into slavery, he was able to rise to a place of prominence in Egypt. We are told in Genesis 39:2 that the Lord was with Joseph and he became a successful man. v 3, “And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord caused all that he did to prosper in his hands.” So Joseph found favor in the Pharaoh’s site and he was made overseer of his house and all that he had. But things didn’t go continually well for Joseph - he had some hard years in there — where he was accused by his Master’s wife of laying with her (though he had not) and he was he was thrown into prison. But even there,
39:21-"the Lord was with Joseph and showed him his steadfast love, and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison” and “the Lord was with Joseph and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper.” (Genesis 39:23)
In Genesis today we learn that there had been a famine in the land and Joseph’s brother had come to Egypt seeking food. Joseph had recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him. Probably partly because they did not expect to see him alive ever again, and certainly if he was alive, they could not imagine him in a place of prominence. So they didn’t recognize him though he recognized them and this is where our passage begins today.
Joseph could not control himself in their presence and began to weep and told his brothers who he was.
This is a story of forgiveness. This is a story of forgiveness in the midst of extreme familial dysfunction.
Forgiveness is one of those things that much has been written about. And it is one of those things that while so necessary for each of us, it is so hard to do and sometimes seems so out of reach. Or, maybe we just choose to not forgive. I sometimes unfortunately do say, “I forgive, but I will never forget.” And while that is true, that I doubt I will ever forget, in saying that I am alluding to a certain lack of true forgiveness on my part. I like to tell myself and justify my hanging on to things that I need to let go of, that is because I am being wise and following, “if someone shows you who they are, believe them”… but deep down I am aware that is because a part of me is not willing or able to fully forgive and just move on. We are all familiar with the sayings that say something to the affect of that it is in forgiveness that we set ourselves free. And while this is definitely true, when I am working with someone who has chosen not to forgive someone, I usually always come around to asking, “What is it that you get — that I get-out of not forgiving someone?” Meaning, if we don’t forgive, if we choose to not forgive others, we must be getting something out of the constant hurt it causes us. There is a reason that we would choose to hang on to it.
There is much hate in our world today. There always has been. There is nothing new under the sun. Joseph’s brothers threw him in a well and sold him into slavery. Wanted to kill him. Couldn’t stand the sight of him, and not that Joseph was innocent in this feeling of hatred that had been stirred up in his brothers, but he suffered because of it.
We are moving toward a divisiveness as a nation that is painful to watch, and I am not sure how if the great divide continues, we are going to pull ourselves back into a unified whole.
We, as Christians, should not be contributors to divisiveness. We are called to be peacemakers-"Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called the Children of God," (Matthew 5:9) Peacemakers are people who have peace ruling their heart. They are active and not passive — they seek peace and among people. They don’t participate in gossip or try to divide people. They seek healing. They are gentle. They speak the truth. They are patient with those around them.
Joseph broke down and wept when he saw his brothers after all those years. And though he was in a position of power and could have brought suffering upon his brothers and family — he chose not to. He let it go. He brought peace to his family and healing.
This is a story of forgiveness, but it is also a story of God using an extremely horrible situation and using it for good. We are told continually that “the Lord was with Joseph”. God used Joseph’s enslavement in Egypt as a way of ensuring the family’s survival through the famine and making sure that God’s promises would be fulfilled.
But here is the rest of the story. The part I have left out. Before all of this, before Joseph just forgave his brothers, Joseph, when he had recognized his brothers, had planted a silver cup in his youngest brother Benjamin’s food bag. When the cup was conveniently “found," Joseph demands that the boy remain as a slave in Egypt with him. (Remember that Benjamin was his full brother by Jacob’s beloved wife Rachel.) We are told that the brothers are filled with sadness because they know that if anything were to happen to Benjamin, and if they returned home without Benjamin, the aged Jacob would certainly die of sorrow.
They don’t want to leave their brother. They are sorrowful. They had changed.
And that is when Joseph broke down and wept. He was aware that his brothers had changed in the intervening years and upon seeing this he could no longer control himself.
Here is a part about forgiveness. It doesn’t always or usually happen overnight. Like most things in life, it can take time. After the initial sting and hurt when someone wrongs us, we spend time in the hurt and shock of it all. And life moves on. And we have good days and bad days. But sometimes the weight of carrying unforgiveness can be too much for us and we just decide to set it down and move on. And sometimes, after some time, we may be in a position to cautiously approach the other and realize that the person who once hurt us is not the same person they were when they injured us. And we may be able to forgive.
And we don’t do this in our own strength, but thought the grace and strength that God gives to us.
“Almighty God, you have given your only Son to be for us a sacrifice for sin, and also an example of godly life: Give us grace to receive thankfully the fruits of his redeeming work…” (The Collect for today, Proper 15, Year A)
Jesus wasn’t just a sacrifice for our sin, but He was also an example of a godly life.
He was an example of how to be. Of how to forgive. Of how to live.
Here is the rest of the story. We are, by God’s grace, called to forgive. Because He forgave us.
Lord, help us to be the people you have called us to be — the peacemakers, the forgivers. Help us to guard our hearts and mouths… for
“…what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles… (Matthew 15:10-20)
Amen.