14-15 After burying his father, Joseph went back to Egypt. All his brothers who had come with him to bury his father returned with him. After the funeral, Joseph's brothers talked among themselves: "What if Joseph is carrying a grudge and decides to pay us back for all the wrong we did him?" (The Message)
We come to the end of Genesis and we are still facing the family dynamics that we have seen from the very beginning. Questions remain about possible feelings of resentment and anger that don't seem to be able to be dealt with in a straight forward manner. We have seen one brother kill another, one steal his brother's birth right, step brothers who couldn't live in the same area from fear of violence, brothers selling one of their own into slavery, and on and on.
The stories in Genesis make us feel like our own lives are not nearly as messed up as we thought they were. But then when we take the chance and really look at our own family relationships we realize that we are probably not that far away from what we see here. It looks different but it really isn't. The good news is that Joseph is able to see how God has worked in spite of his brother's attempts to harm him. It is in the realization that God has been at work all along that Joseph is truly able to let go and forgive.
Some thoughts to ponder and share with others:
- Why might Joseph's brothers still be concerned about what Joseph might do to get back at them?
- What do you think Joseph would have felt when he heard the message from his brothers?
- When you look back over the family dynamics included in Genesis what stories most remind you of your own situation?
- If you could see God at work in your life in spite of the problems around you how might that change the way you relate to those who have caused you pain?
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