January 13th | Genesis 37

      Have you ever been so mad at someone you can’t see straight? Maybe it was a family member or friend. Perhaps it was a co-worker or peer. Maybe you shouted in anger, and your hate was made public, or you vented to a family member about this person in private. We are people full of sin, and chances are you’ve had bitterness in your heart toward someone else. Now, we aren’t perfect. We are bound to make mistakes, but what happens when we fail to control that hate and anger? Like it or not, we all have a choice. We can choose hate, and that will destroy our relationship with that person and with God. Or, we can choose healing. We can forgive, and in doing so, we can experience the healing power of God’s abundant grace. 

Bitterness Brews

“4 But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peacefully to him.” 

What a shocking verse! Joseph and his brothers were a family. Admittedly, they had their issues, but they were a family nonetheless. They should have been able to get along and at least be cordial. Yet, we see bitterness brewing in the hearts of Joseph’s brothers. Jacob shouldn’t have shown such blatant favoritism, but the brothers also had a choice to make. They could have forgiven and moved on, but they didn’t. They chose bitterness instead. 

Hate Turns to Hurt

18 They saw him from afar, and before he came near to them, they conspired against him to kill him. 19 They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer. 20 Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits. Then we will say that a fierce animal has devoured him, and we will see what will become of his dreams.”

       What was once some jealous and bitter brothers are now vicious murderers ready to kill their brother. How did they get to this place? Sin. Failing to address our jealousy and bitterness brews into hate and eventually boils over to death. As the familiar saying goes, “Sin will take you farther than you want to go and keep you longer than you want to stay.” We think we are in control, but if we fail to address the bitterness in our hearts, we will become prisoners to that bitterness, turning us into people we do not want to be. 

Healing Starts By Addressing Hate

       You might read this passage from Joseph’s brothers and say, “I’m just upset at that person, but I’m not going to hurt anyone. It is okay for me to be upset with them.” You might not try to physically hurt someone because of your hate, but Jesus tells us that hate in our hearts is a major problem that needs to be addressed.

Matthew 5:21-22 says, “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment.”

       Not only is murder a sin, but being angry at your brother is a sin as well. We are not off the hook. Jesus tells us that the standard is much higher than “Do not murder.” Jesus’ standard is, “Do not be angry.” You might read this and think, “That is impossible.” And yes, that is the point. In this passage, Jesus showed us that we cannot keep this perfect standard. We are sinful and will become angry and bitter. We will be jealous and hateful. We will harbor grudges and seek to hurt people who hurt us because it is our nature as sinners. Jesus gives us this impossible standard to show we cannot keep it on our own. We need someone greater to change our hearts, heal our hate, and break our bitterness. Christ can do this for you!

Have you been carrying around hate? It only hurts you and keeps you prisoner. Find freedom in forgiveness. When we think of the cross and Christ’s forgiveness of our sins, we are set free to forgive those who have hurt us and find healing instead of hate. Who do you need to forgive today? How can you be free of hate today?