Feb. 24, 2019                      The Golden Rule

A number of years ago, there was a musical called “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” It was a wonderful production that told the story of Joseph from the book of Genesis, through a variety of musical and dance scenes. It was a great show and very popular. I think Donny Osmond played Joseph in the movie. In the next to last scene, we find our reading from Genesis this morning. Joseph, seeing that his brothers have learned to overcome their selfishness, by offering themselves for their brother Benjamin, Joseph reveals himself and Joseph forgives them. Now I suppose, that that is a solid moral interpretation of the story, but there is just one problem with that, it lacks God.

Many of you know the story of Joseph, how he had dreams of ruling over them, how his father gave him a multicolored coat, how they took him, threw him in a pit, sold him to traders, and told his father he was dead. How Joseph was a slave Potiphar’s house, and rose to be his overseer, till Potiphar’s wife accused him of being forward, and he was thrown in jail. How in jail, he interpreted dreams for his fellow inmates, and eventually for Pharoah, which earned him the position of grand vizier, second only to Pharoah himself.

It is at this point that Joseph’s brothers show up on the scene, Joseph plants a cup in his brother Benjamin’s sack, and then has him arrested and held till the other brothers bring their father back with them. When they are told this, the brothers throw themselves before Joseph, and Joseph reveals himself to them. And the major difference between Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, is that in the movie, Joseph acts with compassion and forgiveness because his brothers have met his criteria for selflessness. But in the Bible, Joseph acts with compassion and forgiveness because of God.

Do not be afraid, Joseph says, God sent me to preserve life…. God send me to preserve a remnant, God sent me here… not you. You see, this moment is the high point of the book of Genesis. Genesis begins with the creation story, then the fall of humankind, then the rise of vengeance, violence, and fear, till the flood. Then we follow the patriarchs as they seek to overcome these sins in their lives and families, and finally we have the story of Joseph, who rises above it all. Joseph acts with compassion and forgiveness towards his brothers not because they have proven themselves to him, but because that is God’s plan. To preserve life, to preserve a remnant. Joseph is the reversal of all that has gone wrong with humanity, he sees the world and acts in the world not according to his fears, but according to how he might fufill God’s plan for him.

Now in our gospel lesson this morning we find the golden rule. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Many people know this from Sunday School, and I even think I saw this on a school bulletin board when I was a kid. And I think that most of us came to interpret this as be nice to others who are nice to you, or worse stick it to others who stick it to you. That interpretation comes from the pain and hurt that people have experienced in their life, and so they live in fear, and lash out, doing to others only as they do unto us.

But that is forgetting the rest of our gospel lesson this morning. Jesus goes on to say in effect if your love only to those who love you, what does that accomplish? Love your enemies, do good not evil, lend to those in need, expecting nothing in return, do not return violence with violence, pray for those who have abused you, those who hate you. Now those who do not believe, interpret this as Jesus asking us to be doormats, but there is nothing here about not protecting yourself from abuse or violence, just not responding to it with abuse and violence.  

What Jesus is doing is asking us to rise above humanities fallen state of fear, vengeance, and violence. Jesus is calling for us to recognize this fallen state in the actions of those around us, and break that endless cycle, by acting according to God’s plan – compassion, forgiveness, mercy. Remember, God’s plan is not to condemn the world, but to save it, and that is why Joseph forgives his brothers, why we are called to forgive and seek to be reconciled to those who have done wrong to us, for this is God’s plan for our salvation and the salvation of the World. And that’s the Good News of Jesus Christ.