The Fracture of Family
AUDIO UNAVAILABLE but you may be able to find the sermon in our Facebook Live section.
Hardly a week passes that we do not hear of some kind of domestic violence. Spousal abuse, child abuse, parental abuse, and sibling abuse are the products of dysfunctional home environments. Can one rise above a dysfunctional home life? The answer is, “Yes,” and the example is Joseph. In Genesis 37 we can observe the mounting tension in a home which finally erupted into murderous intent.
The root of the fracture — the father’s favoritism.
The shoot of the fracture — the son’s smugness.
The fruit of the fracture — the brother’s bitterness.
Two qualities of humility could have mended the break at any point: forgiveness and forbearance.
Joseph was his father's favorite child, not because of anything Joseph did, but because of the circumstances that surrounded his birth. Jacob's favoritism caused Joseph to become prideful; and caused his brothers to become bitter. Bitterness led to hatred. When hatred is sewn and continually watered, it can grow into a crop of murder. That was the brothers' plan for Joseph. They ultimately decided to sell him... but that's a story for another day...
Ephesians 4:31-32 tells us how to prevent this murderous crop. "Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."
Things could have been so different if Jacob had asked his sons to forgive him for his favoritism; or if Joseph had asked his brothers to forgive him for his pride; or if the brothers had asked Joseph to forgive them for their bitterness. Two qualities of humility could have mended this fractured family at any point: forgiveness and forbearance.
Colossians 3:12-13 tells us to follow our Lord's example of forgiveness: "Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you."
So the challenge to all of us is to be humble people who seek and grant forgiveness. Admitting we are wrong is not an easy thing for us humans to do. So practice saying this today: "I was wrong. I am sorry. Please forgive me."
God is always at work to make us more like Jesus. As we practice forgiveness and forbearance, He conforms our character to His. It may not always feel good, but if we obey; if we follow the Lord's example and allow Him to change us, it will turn out for our good - for our sanctification (ongoing process of making us more like Christ). He shows us this in Romans 8:28-29: "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son..."
Is there someone you need to forgive? Is there someone whose forgiveness you need to seek? Take a step of faith in humility and see what happens. Perhaps it will be the first step in healing a family fracture.