Focal Passage for 2010:
“And above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8 (NKJV)
Weekly Passage:
“And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32
This year, we are on a journey to learn to love as Christ loves. Last week, we focused on how our view of God shapes our approach to His commands. When we have a wrong view of God, we will try to define God according to our thoughts, expectations, and experiences. However, having a Biblical view of God will allow us to see God as HE defines Himself through the pages of Scripture and free us to worship Him, obey Him, and serve Him the way that HE desires. When we are living according to God’s sovereign design, God is glorified and we are blessed from the overflow of His glory.
This week’s focal passage is Ephesians 4:32. We will be spending the next couple of weeks taking this verse apart and studying each portion of God’s command. This week, we will focus on “being kind to one another” according to God’s definition of “kind.” The word “kind” in this verse means “gracious.” What does it mean to be gracious? As I studied this word, I found that the first time the word gracious is used in Scripture is in Genesis 43:29. This verse appears in the story of Joseph and his reunion with his brothers. Most of us are aware of this story, but for those who are not, allow me a moment to give some background information.
Joseph was the son of Jacob (also named Israel). Jacob had two wives who bore him several sons. Scripture tells us that “…Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age. Also he made him a tunic of many colors. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him” (Genesis 37:3-4). Joseph had dreams of greatness and he shared dreams with them. They were furious. In one dream, Joseph said that their “sheaves bowed down to his sheaves” (verse 7) and then in another dream “the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed down to him” (verse 9). His brothers decided to kill him but when they saw some Ishmaelite coming, they decided to sell Joseph to them. This is how Joseph was sold into slavery and ended up in Egypt.
Let’s picture this situation for a moment. Joseph was seventeen years old when this happened. He was betrayed by his brothers, stripped of his family, never got to say good-bye to his father, placed in prison in a foreign country, treated as a criminal, and never allowed to return to his homeland. That is a tragic event for anyone but especially for a young boy. Scripture does not record Joseph’s thoughts or all the events that happened to him but we can assume it was a very scary and painful time in his life. Yet, Scripture records in Genesis 43:29 that Joseph sees his younger brother, Benjamin, and says, “…God be gracious to you, my son.”
Joseph’s heart was not filled with anger, bitterness, and malice when his brothers approached him. Joseph’s love was demonstrated through his forgiveness. Joseph was not saying that what his brothers had done was right or that it was “no big deal.” Their sin was great and he suffered much because of it but Joseph chose to keep his focus on the Lord and not on the sin of his brothers. This allowed Joseph to be free to serve his family in a way that blessed them and brought glory to the Lord God. God’s Word even allows us to witness the very conversation that Joseph has with this brothers when he reveals to them he is the one they are facing. “Then he said, “I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. But now, do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life…So now it was not you who sent me here, but God…But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive” (Genesis 45:4b-5, 8a, 50:20).
How was Joseph able to be gracious/kind to his brothers? First, Joseph chose to love the way God loves, sacrificially and selflessly. Second, Joseph allowed himself to be used as a vessel to display the very image of God’s kindness and graciousness. Thirdly, Joseph kept his eyes, heart, and mind focused on God. God was protecting His people and HE had chosen Joseph to be the one in whom HE worked these things. God was creating a great nation out of this “troubled family.” In the midst of this, God’s grace was displayed through His allowance of restoration among these brothers and their father. God was proving Himself faithful to His promise to Abraham. God’s ways are not always clear to us. Sometimes, HE allows us to see what HE is doing and other times HE does not. But we can know through the truth of His Word that even in the midst of difficult and painful situations, God is at work. His glory will be revealed and we have the privilege of being used by Him to do just that.
So, how does this apply to our lives today? Let’s read our focal passage once more. “And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32). How do you love? Does your love mirror the love of the Lord Jesus Christ? Do you approach ALL people with a kind and gracious heart? Do you eagerly love them in sacrificial ways and put their needs above your own? Do you love those who are “unlovable”. Remember, even the wicked love those who love them. But Christ came and gave Himself for those who DID NOT love Him. I was one of those who did not love the Lord yet HE died for me!! “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Will you live a life that displays the Biblical description of the Lord God? Will you commit your life to Him and allow Him to use you in great and mighty ways for the advancement of His kingdom? Will you follow Him even if His glory and other’s benefit cost you much??
