Genesis 37:12-36
Reflect
Anyone who has siblings has probably experienced a family life that has its share of ups and downs, fun and competition, love and strife. My own siblings are a beautiful source of love and support for me but growing up we had our fair share of squabbles. However, the sibling dynamic in this Biblical family is on a different level all together! When Joseph goes to visit his brothers in the field, they see him coming from a long way off and their first thought is to kill him (vs 18-20)! What is going on? If we go back to the reading from yesterday, we see that his brothers were jealous that their father loved him more (he was given that “coat of many colours”), and they hated him for it.
This hatred led them to quickly contemplate murder and then the selling of their brother into slavery. Although God was sovereign in this situation, we can see how serious hatred is. 1 John 4:20 tells us that “whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. In a world with views that can be intense and polar opposite, hatred can creep up on us.
As people who love Jesus, what does it look like to love all people? People who are different from us, who have different political beliefs, even people who don’t like us. For “anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.”
Erin Gibbard
Pray
- Pray for Pastor Dan, our Lead Team Pastor and his family.
- Pray for our Young Adults Pastor, Nathanael Trinh, his ministry, and his family.
- Pray for our Congregational Life Pastor, Melissa Chaffee and her family.
- Pray for our church Groups Assistant, Noah Okken
- Pray for our Young Adults Ministry Assistants, Ethan Okken and Shone Williams.
- Pray for our Communications Specialist, Katrina Grey.