Joseph and the Golden Rule

February 23, 2025 homily on Genesis 45:3-11, 15 and Luke 6:27-38 by Pastor Galen

“Do to others as you would have them do to you.” – Luke 6:31

Bullies and Rivals

Joseph was in a position that most people in this world could only ever dream of. He had come from nothing and had been elevated to a position of immense power and influence. He was second in command only to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. This position not only gave him access to incredible wealth and prestige, but it also situated him in such a way that he could bring retribution and revenge on anyone who had ever wronged him.

And now, kneeling at his feet, begging him to show them mercy were his enemies — his rivals, his archnemeses, who had committed a horrible atrocity against him so many years prior. They were, in fact, his older half-brothers who had sold him into slavery. 

Most of us, if we stop and think about it, can think of someone who made life miserable for us at some point in our lives. For me, it was Melissa Anderson (not her real name). Melissa was the class bully and sat right next to me in third grade, and for a short period of time made my life miserable. Several times I came home from school with marks on my arms where her fingernails had dug into my flesh, because her long sharp fingernails were one of the ways she bullied me and the other kids in school into doing what she wanted. And the worst part of it was that because she was a girl, I couldn’t hit her!

Whether there was a bully like Melissa Anderson who made your life intolerable in grade school, or whether you had a coworker who lied about you behind your back, or a boss who took the credit for your ideas, or a neighbor who constantly judged you, just imagine years later this person coming to you and asking you for a favor. Now multiply this by 10, because in Joseph’s case, his ten older brothers who had sold him into slavery were here, not just asking him for a favor, but begging him to save their lives. 

Joseph and his Brothers

Of course, Joseph’s brothers didn’t recognize him. They hadn’t seen him for 20 years — he had been only 17 years old (Genesis 37:2) when they had stripped him of the special robe that their father had given him, the coat of many colors signified that he was their father’s favorite son, and had thrown him into a pit when he came to check on them in the remote area where they were tending their flocks. Joseph’s brothers were jealous of the special favor that their father showed him, and they were annoyed that he was always having dreams of grandeur and telling them all about how someday he was going to be great and powerful. They couldn’t stand him and wanted to get rid of him. So they threw him into a pit and were going to leave him there to die, until a caravan came along and they decided instead to sell him into slavery. That way they didn’t have to kill him, and they would get money. Then they lied to their father and told him that a wild animal had killed their brother Joseph.

And now, 20 years later, here they were in Egypt, kneeling before the Prime Minister of Egypt asking him to sell them food during the widespread famine that had affected their land and left their families destitute and facing starvation. They had no idea that the Prime Minister, who looked very much like an Egyptian, was actually their younger brother Joseph. 

Joseph’s life had been full of ups and downs. Believe it or not, getting sold into slavery might not even be considered the lowest part of his life, because after he was sold as a slave to a government official in Egypt and worked for him for many years, he was falsely accused of a crime he didn’t commit and was thrown into prison. Being imprisoned as a slave was about the lowest one could go. And yet Joseph’s ability to interpret dreams eventually got him out of prison and landed him this position of incredible power and influence in Pharaoh’s court.

And so now with the whole region dependant on Egypt for food, and with Joseph being in charge of the food distribution system, he had the power to withhold food from whoever he wanted. In fact, he could have sold his brothers into slavery, or throw them into prison, or worse. Their lives were in his hands. This was his chance to get revenge.

Joseph Forgives His Brothers

Certainly Joseph’s decision to extend mercy to his brothers could not have been easy. In fact, Joseph had several encounters with his brothers before he revealed his identity to them. Perhaps he needed time to work through his feelings, or perhaps he was testing them to see if they were sorry for what they had done to him, but it wasn’t until multiple interactions with them that he finally told them who he really was, and told them that he forgave them for what they had done to him. 

How Joseph found it in his heart to forgive them, we don’t know. There’s no way he could ever forget what they had done to him. But perhaps he was able to put himself in their shoes and to think about the kind of mercy he would want them to show him if he had wronged them, and was destitute and in need of food.

The Golden Rule

This is in fact what Jesus told us to do. “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Luke 6:31). It sounds so simple, doesn’t it? Treat others the way we would want to be treated. If everyone in the world did this — if we all treated others the way we want to be treated, this world would certainly be a much better place!

This concept of reciprocity — treating others the way we would want to be treated, has often been called The Golden Rule, because many religions of the world have a similar variation. It’s sort of a universal rule of thumb if you will — it’s a principle that predates Jesus, and that transcends cultures and religions. 

But historically this “golden rule” has often been given as a limitation against harming others.

• The Jewish rabbi Hillel, who lived prior to the time of Jesus, said, for example: “What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor.”
• Confucius said, “Do not do to others what you do not want done to yourself.”
• Hinduism says: “Do not do to others what would cause pain if done to you.”
• Buddhism says: Treat not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful.

In contrast to these prohibitions against causing harm to others, Jesus stated the Golden Rule in the positive, telling us to “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Luke 6:31). Interestingly enough, the earliest affirmation of this Golden Rule dates all the way back to Egypt to the time period 2040-1650 BCE (around the same time Joseph lived!) in a story called “The Eloquent Peasant”, in which this principle was expressed: “Do to the doer to make him do.” 

In extrapolating upon Jesus’ teaching, John Wesley, one of the founders of Methodism, said:

“Do all the good you can, By all the means you can,

In all the ways you can, In all the places you can,

At all the times you can, To all the people you can,

As long as ever you can.”

Rather than simply holding back from doing harm, Jesus tells us to do good to others, to bless even those who have wronged us. And he put no boundaries on who we should show kindness to, stating even that we should love our enemies (Luke 6:27) and to be merciful to those have wronged us, just as our Father in Heaven has been merciful toward us” (Luke 6:36).

All the Good We Can Do

I don’t know how Joseph found it in his heart to forgive his brothers. It’s not easy to show mercy and compassion to those who have wronged us. Joseph certainly didn’t deserve to be treated the way his brothers had treated him. He certainly didn’t deserve to be separated from his family, or sold into slavery. He didn’t deserve to be thrown into prison and treated so horribly. But on the other hand, he didn’t deserve the good things he had experienced in his life either. He didn’t deserve his father’s special favor, or his God-given ability to interpret dreams. He didn’t deserve the position of power and influence he found himself in in Egypt, or the wealth and honor bestowed upon him.

It’s easy for us to look back at the difficult things that we’ve experienced in our lives and to see that we didn’t deserve those things. But the reality is that we don’t deserve the blessings we’ve been given either. Yes, we can say that we’ve worked hard for what we have. But who gave us the ability to work? Who gave us the skills or abilities that we’ve been given? Who gave us the opportunities that have been extended to us, and who gave us the freedoms we have? Certainly, so much of what we have was not due to our own goodness, but rather because of God’s mercy and grace toward us.

When we realize this — when we realize that we have been given freedoms and opportunities and blessings that we don’t deserve, only then can we extend this same grace and hospitality to others. When we realize that we have been forgiven much, only then can we forgive. When we realize that Jesus gave his life for us on the cross, even when our sin and wrongdoing had separated us from God, only then can we forgive those who have sinned against us.

Conclusion

In closing, it is worth noting that we are living in a time when some of the wealthiest people in the world are making decisions that impact the poorest and most vulnerable in our world. Rather than following the Golden Rule, it more often seems that “he who has the gold makes the rules.” There are many different perspectives on this, with one fake tweet (purported to be written by a famous billionaire) circulating around Facebook stating that “billionaires are tired of subsidizing everyone else’s schools, parks, health care, even food and entertainment.” On the other hand, others have pointed out that if the world’s wealthiest billionaires were willing to give up even a tiny percentage of their wealth, global poverty would be wiped out and everyone would have what they need to live well.

As Christians, we are called to speak truth to power and to advocate for the poor and marginalized in our world. We can and should call on our leaders to account — to practice the Golden Rule. But this does not discount our own role in extending grace and mercy and hospitality within our own spheres of influence — of doing all the good we can, in all the ways we can, to all the people we can.

Like Joseph, may we remember that we have been given so much more than we deserve. May we love as God has loved us, and may we forgive as God has forgiven us.

Amen!

Questions for Personal Reflection in Response to Today’s Sermon:

1. How do you think Joseph was able to forgive his brothers? What helped him move toward mercy instead of revenge?
2. How does understanding God’s grace toward you influence your willingness to extend grace to others?
3. What blessings or opportunities in your life do you recognize as undeserved gifts from God?
4. How can recognizing your own blessings help you be more compassionate toward those in need?
5. Are there ways in which you can use your resources, skills, or influence to uplift others, especially those who are struggling?