accepting mercy and grace

Then he sent his brothers away, and as they departed, he said to them, “Do not quarrel on the way.”

Genesis 45:24

Joseph knew his brothers well. And even though his reunion and restoration to them was tearful and joyous, he knew they still had one more difficult, confessional conversation to have with their dad. It could make their journey back to Jacob a tense one. And that tension could lead to another fight among them if they failed to concentrate instead upon the good news.

They would need to come clean with their father about a lifetime lie and group deception. Joseph had not been killed as a boy by a wild beast. They instead had sold him to slavery into Egypt. But now in Egypt he had reunited with the family as Pharaoh’s prime minister in charge of famine relief.

True to the tension, Jacob was numbed by the truth when they first told him and would not believe the story. He was only convinced by the Egyptian wagons filled with the finest goods of an empire to back up the claim that Joseph was indeed alive. God had moved despite the deceit done to Jacob, and despite the hateful spite they had done to Joseph. God moved beyond a severe famine to bring Jacob and his sons all back together, and to keep the family alive in Egypt to honor His covenant.

When God does good despite the bad we have done, we should joyfully accept His mercy and grace. Our sinful flesh may not feel worthy of it, or may want to shrink back from full responsibility and repentance. But that tension must be crossed to know real restoration, peace, and God’s gracious forgiving love. In Jesus, whom our sins cast out as He suffered for the penalty of all the wrong we have done, we are given a Savior Who gives us all the treasures that the Father has given to Him. Humble repentance and confession bring the blessing of His grace to our shattered lives. Do not quarrel on the way! Embrace the outlandish grace of the story that God has turned our lives around in order to save us forever in His beautiful presence!