Homily for Epiphany 7C
February 20, 2022
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We can feel Lent around the corner. We still have a bit of ‘star-gazing- Epiphany’ left, but the Lectionary has begun to shine its own light on the road ahead. “O Lord, you have taught us that without love whatever we do is worth nothing.” As recently as last weekend, Shannon has convincingly argued that almost every homily I preach comes back to this message. Perhaps, today’s lectionary readings are my defense: God said it first!
These readings are thematic. Jesus is teaching, "I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” Psalm 37 is convincing in the argument that God will take care of the wicked. Revenge and hatred are not to be our food. But it is the first reading today that really gets us. There is nothing startling here. Rather it is the sad reminder that family dynamics and jealous insecurity have been impeding human relationships forever. It often feels like a hopeless cycle.
And then Joseph speaks. “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years; and there are five more years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. So it was not you who sent me here, but God; he has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt.” Sara Karber observes that this is not forgetful on Joseph’s part. He is not letting his brothers off the hook when he reminds them about the last time they saw each other. “Imagine how difficult it would be for Joseph to love his brothers. They did everything possible that might make someone hate instead of love, and yet, Joseph chooses to love them,” says Karber. “When we make the choice to love when it is hard to love, it starts with naming the injustices, just as Joseph does. He doesn’t ignore what happened to him. Instead, he uses what happened in the past to make sure they know it isn’t just the part of them that is connected by duty or blood that he is accepting, but the whole of who they are.” [sic] ((https://d365.org/devotions/when-loving-is-tough-5/)
Sit with this for a moment. Instead of slamming his betrayers down in memory and resentment of those awful actions, Joseph shows love in spite of betrayal, suffering and expected death. And yes, that sounds exactly like Jesus. The similarity is undeniable.
But why is it so hard to change?
An argument can be made that Joseph can be gracious because he now has more power than his brothers. We almost ache for the missed opportunity to exact revenge. But that is not Joseph’s motive. He perhaps sees the motive for his brothers’ earlier actions. Do you remember? Way back in Genesis 37, we see these words: “Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he had made him a long robe with sleeves. 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.” (37:3-4.) Fast forward, and they have been sent to buy grain during the Famine. Unlike his brothers, Joseph recognizes them, and sends them home with food and their currency still in the bags, asking only that the youngest brother Benjamin return with them should they return. That narrative leads us to today.
I have not found this in commentaries, but I wonder if Joseph remembers his Father’s love for him (and maybe his immature gloating thereof.). Perhaps Joseph is able to forgive because that love was instilled in him. It defines him and it abides in him. “If this is a microcosm of how God loves us,” ponders Karber, “– even the parts of us where we did wrong – how wonderful it is to know that we are loved so fully!”
The rest of today’s part of the Joseph narrative finds Joseph pulling all the threads together into a new weaving. “Hurry and go up to my father and say to him, 'Thus says your son Joseph, God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay. You shall settle in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children's children, as well as your flocks, your herds, and all that you have. I will provide for you there--since there are five more years of famine to come--so that you and your household, and all that you have, will not come to poverty.'"And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them; and after that his brothers talked with him.”
It gives us pause, when we have believed with all our hearts that someone has been evil all the way through, to witness across the centuries that things can turn around.“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them,” observes Jesus to those listening. He concludes the lesson with strong words against judging and condemning and a plea to do the opposite. “Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.”
Can you imagine how it might be if we practiced this with the tenacity of an Olympic Athlete? It is not easy, ever, to love those who have treated us badly. I am hearing it myself right now as well; “. . .without love whatever we do is worth nothing. . .”
I think our only hope is to remember just how much God loves us through Jesus Christ. That very love both defines us, and abides within us.
Amen.
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