Clothesline 239 "Love Your Enemies"

02/26/2025

Love your enemies…Bless those who curse you … That was our Gospel message from Jesus this past Sunday.  And the Old Testament message was an example of such love that goes way beyond our understanding.  It was about Joseph, great-grandson of Abraham…you know that Joseph… who was hated by his brothers so much that they threw him into a pit, telling their father that Joseph had been eaten by wild animals…yet, he was rescued from the pit by a caravan who took him to Egypt and made him a slave…then he ended up in prison, falsely accused of fooling around with his boss’s wife…then he interprets the dreams of other inmates and ends up interpreting Pharaoh’s dream about a famine to come…and that gets him rescued and part of Pharaoh’s court to stockpile for the coming years of famine!  Whew!   Did you get all that?  And besides the obvious theme that God was constantly protecting Joseph, what about the fact that he and his family were one of the most dysfunctional families we’ve ever heard of? 

I’ve only touched the surface of this story, but I suggest you read it for yourself in Genesis.  What has always stood out for me is the fact that Joseph came from a family, with all the dysfunctional traits you can possibly think of, and yet, Joseph was used by God in amazing ways.  His determination to be a follower of his Lord made him strong through all the turmoil and hate he experienced.  Much of his life was a living hell, until God rescued him and used him to save a nation.  How many times do we throw up our hands when things aren’t going quite right?  How often do we come close to giving up, wondering if God really cares about our problems?    I know I’ve been in that place more than once in my life.

But the thing is…God is always there, even when we think we’re alone.  Joseph knew that God had never left him.  That’s the only way he could have accepted his brothers back into his life…it was the love of God, the perfect love of God that can overlook hurts and disappointments, and look toward a new beginning.

Love your enemies…Bless those who curse you.  One of the last things Joseph did in this story was to forgive them for what they had done to him. He told them that God had used their hateful deed and turned it into usefulness.  He said, “You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good.”  Remember that wise pronouncement when you find yourself in a place of hurt or pain caused by someone else, and maybe—just maybe—your hurt can be turned around to teach you something, or maybe to just remind you that we are all broken and dysfunctional individuals that God uses every day to fulfill his purpose in the kingdom.  If you believe that, all will be well!