Even if...

Dear family,

I am not leading the message on Sunday, Todd Hammond will be, but i did read Genesis 43, and i want to share some of my thoughts. First of all, my sense is that Joseph is beginning to show his true colors to his family. He feeds them. His servant reassures the brothers that the silver was a gift from God, and they had nothing to worry about. And when Joseph finally sees Benjamin, well Joseph has to leave and weep. Even those who have, seemingly, hardened hearts, are still human. They still weep when something moves them. For Joseph, this was the reunion with his brother, Benjamin.

And what does he do? He gives them a feast, not unlike what the prodigal son received when he came home. Joseph extends fellowship, hospitality, and acceptance. I had a friend, growing up, that he would do his best to be mad at you. He would scowl. Growl. And just do his best to make you feel his anger, but in reality, right after the scowl, no matter how hard he tried, my friend would laugh and say, "I cant be mad at you. You are my friends."

My sense is that when we have deep connections to one another, truly Godly connections, it doesn't matter what we do, because the love we have for one another is stronger than whatever damage we perpetrate onto each other. If Joseph can lavish this love upon his brothers, what can we do to each other? My sense is that when we hurt each other, in the church family, it is not intentional. We are simply not aware of how our words and our actions affect others. We mean well, but we are human. We will alienate and hurt each other.

But if our relationship is grounded in Jesus, then we can move past this misunderstanding and return to the table and break bread together. Returning to the table doesn't dismiss the hurt, but what it does do is make reconciliation and reunion possible. In order for these to be authentic, though, the victim of the hurt must offer the perpetrator the following: Forgiveness. Redemption. And a chance to rebuild the relationship. Because if we are anchored in Christ, then we will find ourselves saying, "I cant stay mad at you..you are my sister, you are my brother."

Pastor Todd will talk about redemption on Sunday, and my sense is that it will be a poweful message about the power of God to redeem even the most heinous act. But for us, redemption, based in forgiveness, overwhelmed in love, becomes the means by which we rebuild our relationships inside and outside the church. But for us, it means we invest time, energy, love, and effort into making the table open for friend and alienated friend alike. Let's eat. Let's laugh. And lets love. When we do, we will experience the power of God's redemption. Amen.

Shalom,
Jerry