Forgiveness and Memory

“When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, ‘It may be that Joseph will hate us and pay us back for all the evil that we did to him.'” Genesis 50:15 (ESV)

Forgiveness is tested by memory. Only God has the capacity to forgive and forget. We have the capacity to forgive, but we struggle with forgetting what happened to us. Inevitably, something will trigger the memory of the pain of our past.

Remember, Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery and Joseph experienced quite a ride before becoming second in command in Egypt. Joseph had revealed himself to his brothers. He had forgiven them in private before God, then he went public with his forgiveness and even provided for the needs of his family. Their father, Jacob, dies and it triggers the pain of the past. Joseph has already forgiven his brothers for their mistreatment, but they now fear retribution as a result of Jacob’s death.

Forgiveness has an Encore. After you have forgiven the one who offended you, wounded you, neglected you, or betrayed you, something may come along and trigger the memory of the pain in your past. Though you do not have the capacity to forgive and forget, by the grace of God and in the power of the Holy Spirit, though you remember, you can choose to forgive.

• “‘As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. ²¹ So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.’ Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.” Genesis 50:20-21 (ESV)

Joseph demonstrated a depth of spiritual maturity and embraced God’s perspective on his current reality. Instead of billowing in bitterness, Joseph addressed the encore of forgiveness by reassuring his brothers and being gracious to their children.

Chronological Bible Reading Plan: (Day 29: Genesis 48-50)

Pursuing God,

Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell