FORGIVENESS CAN BE a profoundly beautiful act. And I never talk about it without offering some critical disclaimers because I know all too often forgiveness has been misused to keep victims and survivors silent and oppressed. Forgiveness is not about allowing abuse or mistreatment to continue. It is not about excusing bad behavior or insisting that you remain in relationship with the systems or person harming you. Forgiveness is fundamentally about liberation—liberation of self, and when appropriate, liberation of the repentant party.
These passages engage the theme of forgiveness, and I encourage every preacher to handle these texts with care using a lens of liberation. Preach in such a way that you are never sending a victim back to her abuser. Preach in a way that sets the people free. Make forgiveness the thing of beauty it is capable of being, not another trap for the downtrodden. How? Perhaps by letting the texts be as complex as our actual human lives—full of nuance and heartache, consequence and hope.
Our job is not to resolve the tension but to carry it well. Yes, Joseph forgives his brothers. But he messes with them a bit first. It’s not that black and white, and neither are our lives. Yes, Jesus surrenders himself to death, and it’s brave, noble, and profound. He also rises from the dead and seems to know he would. He wasn’t surrendering to his enemies so much as entrusting himself to a God who could bring resurrection from death. That distinction matters. Forgiveness can be beautiful, but it is rarely simple.
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