How do you and your siblings get along? Do you get angry with one another? Have you taken revenge against a sibling? Have you considered revenge? What caused you to be angry with a sibling? Was it something significant? Is it worth tearing apart your family?
We can become angry with a sibling for any number of reasons. The disagreement we have can be short-lived or last for years. It may even start with thinking our siblings is being favored by our parents. But holding a grudge or continuing to be angry will not fix our problem.
Joseph’s brothers did not like him. They saw that their father, Jacob, favored Joseph. Not only that, but Joseph’s dreams had elevated him above his brothers. They felt like Joseph thought he was better than them. They were angry and seeking some way to put him in his place. When Joseph was sent by Jacob to see how they were doing with the flock, they saw their opportunity. Their anger was so fierce, they decided to kill him. Reuben talked them out of it. Still, they sold him as a slave and took his coat covered in goats’ blood to their father, who concluded Joseph had been killed by a wild animal.
We may not go to the extent that Joseph’s brothers did, but we can do just as much damage. We may turn our backs on our siblings. We may seek to never speak to them again. The effect is the same as having sold them to slavery. Too often our reason is weak, it cannot stand up to serious scrutiny. Rather than reacting in such a way, we should seek to discuss the offense and seek reconciliation. We are called to forgive one another, demonstrate grace and mercy just as God has done for us.
I pray we all seek reconciliation with family members. I pray we forgo anger and revenge. I pray each one of us will demonstrate forgiveness, grace, and mercy just as God as shown us. Seek reconciliation. Forgo anger. Forgo revenge. Forgive one another. Demonstrate grace. Show mercy.
Genesis 37:17b-18 So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at Dothan. They saw him from a distance, and before he came near to them they conspired to kill him.
Marty Pressey 