Counter-Cultural Hatred || Joseph vs. Jesus #1

As we progress throughout the book of Genesis, it’s time to look at the long and comprehensive story of Joseph. While studying the material, I found a list of parallels between him and Jesus. I’ve learned that much Old Testament literature and storytelling often repeats itself, so does Joseph’s story truly prepare us for the story of Jesus. I have chosen eight parallels that they both went through, which we might be going through, to see how they wrestled with them and what we can learn from their responses.

There are more parallels to discuss that focus on the Messiah and leadership-like stories. If you’re interested in hearing that side of their stories, let me know, and Part 2 of this series will come back around. For now, enjoy the latest series that I’m simply calling “Joseph vs. Jesus.”

The first parallel we see is that their siblings both hated them.

Genesis 37:4

4            But his brothers hated Joseph because their father loved him more than the rest of them. They couldn’t say a kind word to him.

Joseph was a dream interpreter and shared with his family a couple of dreams that his family would submit to his rule, which rubbed them the wrong way. However, Joseph was the second youngest of the family, so he was probably babied well by his parents. We don’t know why he was so favored by his dad, but his dad showed his love in a way different than his siblings. Jacob made a coat of many colors as a showcase of his love. Something that his siblings probably would have struggled with.

If you have siblings, you have probably had, jokingly, or been told that there’s a “favorite” kid. If you’ve been called it, congratulations. If you haven’t, you may feel like Joseph’s brothers did. They were so frustrated by their father’s favoritism that they couldn’t treat Joseph kindly. This tone and theme will be shown throughout Joseph’s story. Their dad, Jacob, had been in Joseph’s shoes before.

Genesis 27:41

41          From that time on, Esau hated Jacob because their father had given Jacob the blessing. And Esau began to scheme: “I will soon by mourning my father’s death. Then I will kill my brother, Jacob.”

Jacob had tricked Esau into giving over his birthright. He tricked their dad, Isaac, to receive the blessing of the firstborn. Esau was so angry, and rightfully so, at Jacob for getting their father’s blessing through deception that he failed to see his own wrong in giving away his birthright in the first place. Jacob was a deceiver. The original Hebrew name of Jacob is translated to mean “deceiver or trickster.”  Jacob was so focused on getting what was his by whatever means necessary that it didn’t matter who he hurt. It wasn’t until later in life that he was able to have a chance to reflect on his wrongs.

When Esau lost the blessing, his future was changed for the worse. Reacting to how angry he was, he wanted to kill his own brother. This kind of anger blinds us from seeing our own faults. This is when we need to stop and reflect and ask if a wrong decision, mistake, or sin caused us to harbor the jealous anger we feel toward someone. Why do we feel angry towards someone? Why do we feel jealous of what others have and what we don’t? It’s why we need to pause and reflect before we say or do something we’ll regret later.

Anger is the first and most natural reaction when you lose something valuable or if others conspire against you and succeed. Anger is natural, which is something essential to remember. None of us like to feel it, but it comes naturally. It had to hit Esau harder because it was his own brother and his own mother that betrayed him. Instead of reacting out of that anger, we can use it to do three things: recognize what our reaction is for what it is, pray for strength to overcome any feelings or temptations we have because of that anger, and ask God for help to see what opportunities that could even arise out of the chaos. How could hatred and anger be used for good? In all situations like this, we should always look to Jesus.

John 7:2-5

2            But soon it was time for the Jewish Festival of Shelters,

3            and Jesus’ brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, where your followers can see your miracles.

4            You can’t become famous if you hide like this! If you can do such wonderful things, show yourself to the world!”

5            For even his brothers didn’t believe in him.

Jesus’ brothers had a difficult time believing in him. Some of his brothers would later become leaders in the church, but for many years they were embarrassed by him. Can you imagine being imagined by Jesus? Yet, think how you’d react if your brother or sister claimed they were the Messiah and could save people from their eternal life, heal people, resurrect dead bodies, and more. You’d think they’re crazy. All the attention they gathered would cause you to not acknowledge it or do whatever you can to distance yourself from those claims. Add all this to the fact that we have a crazy social media realm that would exacerbate this to an intense degree. The understanding of Jesus’ brothers makes a little more sense. Today, we have every reason to believe in Jesus because we have the complete record of his miracles, death, and resurrection. We also have evidence of what the Gospel has done for people’s lives for many centuries. We want to take advantage of this.

What do we take away from this? Allow your story to define your impact. Sure, people may not like you for what you’re doing, but we’re not trying to live according to the status and judgments of those around us. Joseph was the parent’s favorite. Jesus was spreading a message that felt counter-cultural and counter-intuitive to their beliefs and how they lived. Yet, the impact they have made on the Christian culture is so massive that we continue to talk about them as the mainstays of Christian imagery because of their upside-down views of living. Let’s learn from that and parallel that in our own lives.

I’ll be back soon for the next part to discuss other people’s plots to harm us. Until then, stay blessed.