Sermon Tone Analysis

February 20, 2022

7 Epiphany, Year C

The Rev. Mark Pendleton

Christ Church, Exeter

We are More than the Worst Thing we have Done

3Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph.

Is my father still alive?"

But his brothers could not answer him, so dismayed were they at his presence.

4Then Joseph said to his brothers, "Come closer to me."

And they came closer.

He said, "I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt.

5And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life.

6For 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.

7God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors.

8So 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.

9Hurry 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.

10You 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.

11I 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.' 15And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them; and after that his brothers talked with him.

Genesis 45:3-11, 15

27"But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.

29If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt.

30Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again.

31Do to others as you would have them do to you.

32"If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you?

For even sinners love those who love them.

33If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you?

For even sinners do the same.

34If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you?

Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again.

35But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return.

Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.

36Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

37"Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.

Forgive, and you will be forgiven; 38give, 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."

Luke 6:27-38

Here's a question to get us started: what is the worst thing you've ever done?

Bryan Stevenson is the author of Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption, which was later turned into a movie.

It is a difficult story of the impact of mass incarceration in America and the potential for mercy - for the poor, for juveniles and minors sentenced to die in prison, and for those wrongly condemned.

It is tough reading and watching.

But one quote of Stevenson stands out: "I believe that each person is more than the worst thing they've ever done."

And there is the opening.

We are more than our actions - in this case our worst.

Humanity has forever tried to climb back from our failings - from the Greek tragedies through Shakespeare's morality tales.

From Peter over his guilt in denying he knew Jesus to Paul for have having persecuted his followers.

Misjudgments.

Scandals.

Foolishness of youth.

A fleeting lapse of attention and focus.

A careless mistake.

A heat of the moment act of passion and vengeance gone badly wrong.

A wrong turn.

Is there ever a way back from ruin?

Is there a way to climb out of the pit of our doing or the malice of others?

God says there is.

Always.

For everyone.

Do we dare we believe it to be true?

Our church teaching in the catechism - and yes, we have a catechism in the back of the Book of Common Prayer in the pews - defines redemption as the act of God which sets us free from the

power of evil, sin, and death.

We have grown to believe that there is nothing and no one beyond redemption in the eyes of God.

Christ after all is the Redeemer, the one sent to restore humanity from where we had fallen and who rescues us from that life of darkness and sin.

Christ stands at the center of the way forward back to life and new life.

Let's see how redemption plays out in a well-known Bible story, long before Jesus was born.

Our first reading this morning is from the Book of Genesis.

Let us meet or meet again Joseph, who takes up a lot of real estate in the first book of the Bible.

The names of the Patriarchs are familiar: Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Joseph is the second youngest son of his father Jacob.

And here is the important point: of all his children with his wife Rachel, Joseph was his favorite.

This status was conferred when his father made him a long robe with sleeves.

Broadway in the 1980's turned the story into 'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.'

Joseph was a handful: he was prone to share his many dreams with his brothers that hinted that one day they would bow to him.

The pressure was building within the family.

There is always a risk to a parent and a child in choosing or becoming the favorite.

Consider your own family of origin.

First born, middle children, youngest, only child?

Or your own children if you have children.

Being the favorite or choosing a favorite can unsettle the power and loyalty dynamics in a family and stay with you for a lifetime.

The cost we read about in Gen.37:4 "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."

And then the brothers did something to their brother that should be considered the worst thing they had ever done in their lives.

9They said to one another, "Here comes this dreamer.

20Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; then we shall say that a wild animal has devoured him, and we shall see what will become of his dreams."

Jealously had done them in.

In the end the pit wasn't good enough, so they sold him off to slave traders who were bound for Egypt.

Throughout it all, the Lord was with Joseph.

Long story a bit shorter: after a rough start, ups and downs and some years spent in prison, Joseph the dreamer made it out and to the top and to the right hand of Pharoah, who put him in charge of everything, including the harvest.

An amazing turnaround for this outsider.

Then the brothers reenter the scene.

They were sent to Egypt by their father because there a famine, and they heard there was grain in abundance.

They could not have known that their lost brother was behind that abundance.

Imagine what must have gone through their minds when they heard: 3"I am Joseph."

Dumbstruck.

Terrified.

Could they believe their eyes?

Maybe not.

So, Joseph said: 4"Come closer to me."

There would be no mistake.

They came closer.

He said, "I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt."

The tables had turned.