(“Christ’s Remedy for Guilt”)

Genesis 50:14-21 (NASU)

“When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, ‘What if Joseph bears a grudge against us and pays us back in full for all the wrong which we did to him!’” (Genesis 50:15)

(A) THE BURDEN OF UNRELIEVED GUILT

(1) Life has its share of burdens – a prolonged illness, the death of a spouse or a parent, sending a son into combat, watching someone we love destroy their life with alcohol, and/or go off into a life of immorality. Some burdens are self-inflicted – some are imposed on us by others. All are an unavoidable part of living in a fallen world – but each one is also within the providence of God.

Scripture encourages Christians to take their burdens to the Lord. David said: “Cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you” (c.f. Psalm 55:22) … while Paul exhorts us to “bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.” (c.f. Galatians 6:2), which is also the law of love (c.f. Romans 13:8).

(2) One of the heaviest burdens of all is an unrelieved sense of guilt – specifically the guilt we incur on account of our sins. Unrelieved guilt drove Judas to take his own life (c.f. Matthew 27:4-5) … guilt over having denied Christ caused Peter to “weep bitterly” (c.f. Luke 22:62) … guilt is what makes “the wicked flee when no one is pursuing” (c.f. Proverbs 28:1) … David was recounting the burden of his own guilty conscience when he wrote: “my body wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. Selah.” (c.f. Psalm 32:3-4).

(3) Scripture assures us that when we repent of our sin and profess faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and only Savior of sinners, all the guilt we have incurred on account of our sin is completely and entirely removed. Hence, David went on to say: “I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide; I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord’; and You forgave the guilt of my sin” (c.f. Psalm 32:5). And Paul made a similar point when he wrote that “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (c.f. Romans 8:1, NIV).

God’s word also assures us any guilt we incur AFTER becoming a Christian is removed by confessing our sin and asking our Savior to forgive us. Hence, the Apostle John encourages us to “confess our sins, (because Christ) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and … cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (c.f. I John 1:9, NKJV). Elsewhere, David reminds us in another psalm of the magnitude of God’s cleansing and forgiveness, saying: “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us” (c.f. Psalm 103:12).

(4) Despite these promises, feelings of guilt often persist. And if we inquire as to why, one answer is because you and I find it hard to believe we’ve really been forgiven – hard to believe we’re no longer being held accountable for what we did – hard to believe God isn’t going to condemn us at some point in the future for some particularly heinous sin(s) from our past.

(a) Joseph’s brothers were struggling with this problem in this morning’s text (c.f. Genesis 50:15). Thirty years had passed since they maliciously kidnapped Joseph and callously sold him into slavery (c.f. Genesis 37:2; 41:46; 42:21; 45:11; 47:9, 28). Not once in all that time had he threatened to get even. But their feelings of guilt were apparently never far below the surface … hence, once their father was dead, the brothers feared Joseph might take revenge on them for what they did to him in the past.

(b) It’s been nearly seventeen years (c.f. Genesis 47:9, 28) since Joseph brought his brothers and their families down to Egypt. During that time he hasn’t done anything that would suggest he was harboring resentment, waiting for the right moment to get even, or plotting to make them pay for the terrible thing they did. For seventeen years he has done exactly what he said he would do – i.e. he has provided for them and their families (c.f. Genesis 45:7, 11), and interceded on their behalf before Pharaoh (c.f. Genesis 47:1-6). Now, however, following Jacob’s death Joseph’s brothers fear the restraint holding back his revenge may have been removed¹ – or, as this morning’s text indicates, they find it hard to believe Joseph will not “pay them back in full for all the evil they did to him” (c.f. Genesis 50:15) thirty years ago.

(B) GUILT CAN BE A FACT AND/OR A FEELING

(1) When discussing the subject of “guilt” we need to make some distinctions between facts and feelings.² As a “fact”, guilt has to do with things like blame, wrong-doing, responsibility, and/or breaking the law. Hence, “guilt” is the opposite of being innocent, blameless, and/or free from sin.

(a) The standard by which guilt or innocence is determined may be religious, civil, social, or even personal. It may be written down somewhere, like in the Bible – or it may be the unwritten opinions of an individual or group.² It may be a man-made standard, like a no-passing zone on the highway, or only watering our yard on certain days of the week. Or it may be a God-made standard, like honoring our father and mother, or not committing adultery (c.f. Exodus 20:12, 14).

The point is, if I violate any of these standards by doing something I shouldn’t, I’m guilty – and, if I violate any one of them by failing to do something I should, I’m also guilty. I may not “feel” guilty – but I am. I may not realize I’m guilty – but I am. I may not be held accountable and/or get caught – but the “fact” remains that I am guilty.

(b) The “fact” is, Joseph’s brothers were guilty of numerous violations of God’s moral law. They were guilty of hating their brother, plotting to murder him, kidnapping him, turning a deaf ear to his pleas (c.f. Genesis 42:21), and selling him into slavery – not to mention lying to their father by leading him to believe Joseph was dead, thereby bringing gut-wrenching grief to his aged-heart for the next fifteen years. Hence, they were absolutely right when they said to one another in an earlier chapter: “Truly we are guilty concerning our brother” (c.f. Genesis 42:21a).

(c) Nor did Joseph deny the “fact” of their guilt – for the “facts” were undeniable. Hence, he acknowledged in an earlier chapter that they had, in “fact”, “sold him into slavery” (c.f. Genesis 45:4-5) – while in this morning’s Scripture lesson he says: “you meant evil against me” (c.f. Genesis 50:20a).

(d) By way of application, the “fact” is you and I are guilty of breaking the laws of God and men. We have violated the civil laws of our governing authorities, and the moral laws of our Creator and Savior. We have broken the rules laid down for us at school, the rules laid down for us to follow at work, the rules laid down in our home, the rules that govern our church, and the commands laid out for us in Scripture. Whether we “feel” guilty or not is beside the point – whether we managed to escape detection and/or justice is also beside the point – the “fact” is, we are guilty.

(2) As a “feeling” guilt is related to a combination of things, including (but not necessarily limited to) the state of our conscience, the standards by which we choose to live, our understanding of what constitutes sin, our concept of God and His forgiveness, our awareness of having violated the standards of God or men, and/or whether or not we have been caught.

(a) As we’ve already noted, it’s possible to BE guilty without “feeling” guilty.

[1] In some instances, this may be due to having chosen the wrong standards to live by. For example, certain Muslims apparently have no sense of guilt when it comes to blowing other people up. Likewise, many entertainers seemingly “feel” no guilt whatsoever when it comes to the kind of movies they make, or the kind of performances they put on for the public.

[2] Sometimes not “feeling” guilty may be due to ignorance, as in violating the standards of God or men without realizing we’ve done so. Hence, the Old Testament had laws dealing with “unintentional sins” (c.f. Leviticus 4:22-31) … while in another place David prayed: “Who can understand (discern) his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults” (c.f. Psalm 19:12, NKJV – NASU in parenthesis).

[3] Sometimes the problem has to do with what Scripture calls a “seared conscience” (c.f. I Timothy 4:2) – i.e. a conscience that’s been rendered ineffective or useless – that’s been quenched or smothered by repeatedly ignoring its earlier warnings. Martin Luther said it’s not safe for a person to act against their conscience – in part, because if we do so long enough any legitimate “feelings” of guilt we may have had will cease to exist.

[4] Fortunately, Joseph’s brothers had not lost their sense of guilt. I have no doubt that over the years they tried to suppress it, and/or ignore it – that there were even days when they were able to “forget the past” and live in relative peace. But apparently, the Sovereign Ruler of heaven and earth never let their “feelings” of guilt get buried very far from the surface. Hence, two decades later, when things started to go badly for them on their first trip to Egypt, they said to one another: “Truly we are guilty concerning our brother … therefore this distress has come upon us” – to which Rueben added, “Did I not tell you, ‘Do not sin against the boy’; and you would not listen? Now comes the reckoning for his blood” (c.f. Genesis 42:21-22).

(b) While it’s possible to BE guilty without “feeling” guilty, it’s also possible to “feel” guilty when there’s no reason to be – and/or to “feel” guilty even though our guilt has been removed.

[1] An example of the former might be the person who “feels” guilty if they drink a glass of wine – or “feels” just a little guilty for having a Christmas tree in their house – or “feels” guilty if they don’t floss after every meal, or walk four miles every day. Sometimes “feelings” of guilt are simply figments of our imagination – i.e. we think we’ve done something wrong, or we suppose we’ve offended another person, or we assume we’ve made a mistake – only to find out none of it is true. Hence, our “feelings” our guilt were completely unfounded.

[2] Joseph’s brothers are an example of the latter – i.e. “feeling” guilty, even though the offense has been forgiven and/or removed. It's hard to know if the message attributed to Jacob before he died was true or not – the one that said, “please forgive the trespass of your brothers and their sin” (c.f. Genesis 50:16-17, NKJV). It’s clear, however, that the “feelings” of guilt Joseph’s brothers shared were very real, even if they were misplaced. Indeed, it was their “feelings” of guilt that led them to suspect Joseph might be preparing to take revenge on them,³ even though that wasn’t the case.

[3] Joseph’s past words and actions clearly indicate he had forgiven his brothers. Back in chapter forty-five, for example, when he first revealed his identity to them, he said and did some things similar to what he says and does in this morning’s Scripture lesson (c.f. Genesis 50:19-21). Back then he said, “I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. But now, do not be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are still five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant in the earth, and to keep you alive by a great deliverance. Now, therefore, it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh and lord of all his household and ruler over all the land of Egypt. Hurry and go up to my father, and say to him, ‘Thus says your son Joseph, “God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay. You shall live in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children's children and your flocks and your herds and all that you have. There I will also provide for you, for there are still five years of famine to come, and you and your household and all that you have would be impoverished”’” (c.f. Genesis 45:4-11).

As we noted earlier, for the past seventeen years Joseph has done exactly what he said he would do. Not once in all that time has he said or done anything to make his brothers think he was behaving like their uncle Esau, who said he would wait until his father (Isaac) died to take revenge on his brother (Jacob) (c.f. Genesis 27:41).

Nevertheless, Joseph’s brothers still carried around a strong sense of guilt – i.e. they still found it hard to believe Joseph had really forgiven them – they just couldn’t believe they weren’t going to have to pay for their sins – they just couldn’t believe they weren’t going to have to endure some kind of retribution for what they had done.

[4] There are Christians today who are a lot like Joseph’s brothers. By that I mean they still “feel” guilty about some sin(s) from their past – maybe it was something they did before they became a Christian – or maybe it was something they’ve done since they were converted to Christ. It’s been years since this thing happened, but sometimes in the middle of the night (as it were) they remember what they did, and are almost instantly filled with “feelings” of guilt. They have asked Christ to forgive them (often multiple times) – but they don’t always “feel” forgiven. They are familiar with promises like First John chapter one, verse nine, which says: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (c.f. I John 1:9, NKJV) – but the “feelings” of guilt are still there.

[5] The “fact” is they have been forgiven, but their “feelings” of guilt still persist – and it’s those “feelings” of guilt that are affecting their life and relationships in countless negative ways – much like the “feelings” of guilt Joseph’s brothers still carried affected their relationship with him following their father’s death.

(C) THE “REMEDY” FOR “FEELINGS” OF GUILT

(1) We live in such a “feeling” oriented society its often hard for us believe and/or trust the “facts”, even when we’re reading God’s word. Indeed, the word “feel” has replaced the word “think” in our conversations and/or discussions – nor is this simply a matter of semantics – for we really do base many of our decisions on how we “feel”, rather than “thinking” matters through.

(2) In this morning’s Scripture lesson, the “facts” said, “Joseph has forgiven us; therefore he will not repay us for all the evil we did to him, now that our father is dead”. Their “feelings”, however, told them a very different story – i.e. “Joseph has never really forgiven us; therefore, now that our father is dead, he’s going to make us pay for all the evil we did to him thirty years ago” (c.f. Genesis 50:15).

Hence, it was their misplaced “feelings”, not the “facts” of the case, that motivated Joseph’s brothers to send a messenger to him, saying: “Your father charged before he died, saying, ‘Thus you shall say to Joseph, “Please forgive, I beg you, the transgression of your brothers and their sin, for they did you wrong.”’ And now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father” (c.f. Genesis 50:16-17b)

(3) The last part of verse seventeen says, that when Joseph heard their message he “wept” (c.f. Genesis 50:17c). Some think he wept with joy because this was the first time (so far as the Book of Genesis is concerned) his brothers had come right out and asked him to forgive them. Others think he wept with grief because his brothers still doubted the sincerity of his forgiveness.⁴ John Calvin thought Joseph wept out of compassion for his brothers because they were still tormenting themselves over their past sins which he had forgiven long ago.⁵

(4) I’m inclined to the second or third view – perhaps even a combination of the two. In any event, after his brothers arrived, Joseph spoke to them with gentleness, humility, and compassion – reassuring them his forgiveness was genuine – that he had no secret plan to repay them evil for evil (c.f. Romans 12:17a) – that he would continue to provide for them and/or take care of them. Hence, we read: “But Joseph said to them, ‘Do not be afraid, for am I in God's place? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive. So therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones.’ So he comforted them and spoke kindly to them” (c.f. Genesis 50:19-21).

(5) Guilt can be a good thing, if/when it drives us to confess our sins and repent – when it drives us to say with David, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord” (c.f. Psalm 32:5c) – and in another place: “I (will) confess my iniquity; (for) I am full of anxiety because of my sin” (c.f. Psalm 38:18) – when it drives us to Christ for the cleansing and forgiveness we need – which, in God’s providence, “just happens” to be the same forgiveness and cleansing He promises to give (c.f. I John 1:9).

(6) Guilt becomes a bad thing, however, when we let our “feelings” overwhelm the “fact” that in Jesus Christ all the sins from our past have been forgiven! I suspect most Christians experience “feelings” of guilt over past sins from time to time – at least I know I do. I’m not even sure that’s a sinful thing – but more like a temptation we must learn to deal with (c.f. I Corinthians 10:13).

(a) When “feelings” of guilt over sins from our past surface, the solution is not to keep asking the Lord to forgive us (assuming, of course, we’ve already asked Him to do so) – for that only causes Him to “weep” (as it were), because we still do not believe Him after all this time, and/or because we’re still tormenting ourselves over sins He forgave long ago, and therefore are no longer on the books (so to speak).

(b) The right solution is a healthy dose of spiritual “facts” – which is one reason why it’s so important to study God’s word so we can draw upon these “facts” when we need them! Jesus once said: “you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free” (c.f. John 8:32). In this case, the “truth” (or “facts”) about the cleansing and forgiveness of our sins can “set us free” from needless “feelings” of guilt.

(c) Here’s the truth – or the “facts”, if you will – starting with Romans 8:1, which says: “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”. Condemnation has to do with being punished for our sins – but Jesus took that punishment for us on the cross. If God were to punish us now, after Jesus did, He would be saying the work of His Beloved Son was insufficient and/or incomplete – which is something He will never say, because it isn’t true!

Then there’s Proverbs 28:13, which says: “He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion”. Over and over Scripture tells us God is compassionate – and that He is especially so with His people when they sin. Psalm 78:38a (NKJV) says: “He, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity” … Psalm 86:15 (NKJV) says: “You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering and abundant in mercy” … Psalm 111:4a (NKJV) says: “The Lord is gracious and full of compassion”.

Psalm 103:2-3a says: “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget none of His benefits: (and what’s the very first “benefit” on this list we are exhorted not to forget?) “who forgives all your iniquities” (NKJV) – i.e. not some, but all – not a few, but all – not most of them, but all of them! None are left uncovered by the blood of Christ – therefore, none are left unforgiven – not even those that “haunt” us in the middle of the night, causing “feelings” of guilt to surface over sins that have long since been washed away. For the “facts” are He has “cast all our sins into the depths of the sea” (c.f. Micah 7:19b, NKJV) – He has “cast all (our) sins behind (His) back” (c.f. Isaiah 38:17c) – and He has promised to “forgive (our) iniquity, and (not to) remember (our sin any) more” (c.f. Jeremiah 31:34c).

(7) So who will you believe? Will you believe your “feelings”, which are often based on circumstances, misinformation, and/or are always changing? Or will you believe the “facts” – i.e. the “facts” from God’s word, which always remain the same, because God Himself is always the same (c.f. Hebrews 13:8)? If you say, “I know what you’ve said is true; but I still have a hard time believing it” – then pray this prayer, as many times as you need, until (by God’s grace) the truth finally sinks in: “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” (c.f. Mark 9:24b, NKJV).