Forgiveness is central to our Christian faith, God’s forgiveness extended to all of us through the cross, and our forgiveness extended to others. Rais Bhuiyan’s statement and actions remind us that forgiveness, radical forgiveness, deep forgiveness, is not our possession. Those who seek and follow God through other religions also choose the road of forgiveness and reconciliation, even when they have suffered through what might seem to be inexcusable, unforgivable circumstances.

I wonder how many of us Christians would be willing to take the path of deep forgiveness this Muslim man took?

Today we listened to a remarkable story of forgiveness and reconciliation which is thousands of years old rather than grounded in current events, yet there is a timelessness to this story which makes it well worth our attention. Last week we heard of how one of the twelve sons of Israel, the brash, teenaged Joseph, so angers his brothers that they secretly sell him to passing traders and tell their father that he has been killed in the fields.

But God isn’t done with Joseph, and despite all the odds, this daring dreamer becomes a trusted official in the court of the Egyptian pharaoh. Through a dream, which got him into trouble in the first place, Joseph anticipates a drought and famine, so that the pharaoh stores away grain for the non-rainy day. As fate or providence would have it, Ten of Joseph’s brothers are among the desperate people who come looking for food aid, perhaps not unlike the food refugees who are seeking relief in that region of Africa today.

Once again we get only a piece of the story in the lectionary reading and some of the best bits are left out. In earlier chapters we’re told that Joseph recognizes them when they come for assistance but they don’t realize who he is – after all, he is long dead and gone. We get the sense that Joseph wrestles with the emotions which bubble to the surface after all these years and the temptation for revenge is strong. He accuses the men of being spies and demands that they give account of themselves. They respond that they are innocent, that they are just seeking food, ten brothers of twelve. They say that one brother is still at home and the other is “no more.”Joseph listens as they describe him as dead and gone.

After a few days in prison Joseph releases them but demands that one stay as surety until they return with the youngest Benjamin, who was his brother from the same mother. On the way home they discover, to their puzzlement and dismay that the money they had used to buy the grain had been tucked into the sacks. What were they to make of this?

They do come back with Benjamin to secure the release of Simeon, and Joseph treats them well, still not revealing his identity. Off they go again and this time Joseph hides a valuable goblet in a sack and then sends his men to track down the supposed thieves. How is this for intrigue! This morning we find them back before Joseph vulnerable, afraid of his power, ready for the worst. He tells them to come closer to him.

And what does he do? He sends his servants and soldiers away and then reveals his identity. But rather than exacting revenge he weeps and embraces them and they shed the tears of remorse, relief, reconciliation. Joseph reframes his experience, telling them that God is in this, that God has redeemed what could seem like a terrible tragedy.

Wow! Deep forgiveness. We all know about “forgiveness light,” the everyday “my bads” and the routine choices to offer and receive those apologies. We Canadians tend to be rather apologetic folk, saying we are sorry for the most innocuous things.

What we hear about in this story is a whole other level of forgiveness which does not come easily. It is the willingness to extend forgiveness even when it means doing so unilaterally, relinquishing power and with no guarantees about the outcome. If we have been harmed by another, we may fantasize about them grovelling before us, begging for mercy. If we’re honest, we may even imagine rejecting their efforts and savouring every moment of it.

The other side of this of course is that we may be the ones who hope for forgiveness for the wrongs we have done, and suffer because of our guilt and shame.

The call to deep forgiveness in our Christian faith, and other faiths as well, reminds us that while forgiveness often seems next to impossible, it is not just something we generate. God is both the source and the catalyst of forgiveness and reconciliation.

One of the raft of books I have on the subject of forgiveness is called Unconditional? The Call of Jesus to RADICAL FORGIVENESS, by Brian Zahnd. Zahnd essentially says that if we think we can be Christians without forgiveness we don’t have a real grasp of our faith. In his words:

But as the Apostle’s creed says “I believe in the forgiveness of sins.” Christianity is a faith of forgiveness.

The Christian life is a prayer of forgiveness:

“Forgive us as we forgive them”

The Christian life is a suffering cry of forgiveness:

“Father, forgive them.”

The Christian life is a commission to forgive:

“If you forgive anyone, they are forgiven.”

It should be obvious from an honest reading of the gospels that Jesus expected his disciples to master the lessons he taught and actually live a life centred on love and forgiveness.

I can’t speak for you, but I need this reminder regularly and without sugar-coating. Even though I have been speaking about forgiveness and teaching about forgiveness for more than thirty years I still find living forgiveness to be a tough challenge. In a way I feel like one of those beleaguered firefighters in Northern Ontario. Just when I think I have extinguished the flames I find another “hot spot” which sends me on the run.

I need the reminder, too, that the forgiveness I choose to participate in is rooted in my relationship with the God who forgives me in Christ. It stands to reason that in our increasingly secular society much more is being offered about forgiveness as a psychological state that doesn’t require belief in God. Recently there was a two part series on PBS television which was a thoughtful exploration of forgiveness and much of it was secular. There is a worthwhile book called Forgive for Good by Dr. Fred Luskin, which includes nine steps to forgiveness. Some of them don’t fit a Christian outlook, but there are two in particular which are excellent.

6. Give up expecting things from other people, or your life that they do not choose to give you. Recognize the ““unenforceable rules”” you have for your health or how you or other people must behave. Remind yourself that you can hope for health, love, friendship and prosperity and work hard to get them.

3. Forgiveness does not necessarily mean reconciliation with the person that upset you, or condoning their action. What you are after is to find peace. Forgiveness can be defined as the ““peace and understanding that come from blaming that which has hurt you less, taking the life experience less personally, and changing your grievance story.””

Don’t you think that when Joseph affirmed God was in the midst of what happened he was choosing to change or amend his grievance story because of his faith?

You may listen to all this, as you have with other sermons on forgiveness and think, “Maybe this is possible for some people, but I’m not sure that I can do this, or even want to do this.” It may surprise you to hear me say this, but that’s probably a good thing! If we think forgiveness is simple, you might not have a grip on reality. As I have said before, the older I get the more I realize that there is nothing glib or straightforward about forgiveness. As the years go by there are just so many more possibilities for smouldering grudges, for self-pity, for bitterness.

So I need Jesus. I need a major “power assist” in the challenging work of forgiveness and reconciliation, and perhaps you do as well. The words from one of the apostle Paul’s letters to the Corinthian congregation ring true for me and encourage me:

From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation . . .

If you wondering what happened to Mark Stroman, the Texas killer, he was executed, as scheduled. The appeals and the legal challenge were unsuccessful. Stroman had returned to faith before his death, the Christianity of his earlier years rather than Islam. Before he died he thanked the man whom he had tried to kill who “turned the other cheek” and attempted to save his life. Amongst his last words were “hate is going on in this world and it has to stop. Hate causes a lifetime of pain."

We are called to deep forgiveness and in Christ we can find the way.