Seriously, It’s Cool, Really.

January 25, 2009

Today's Reading: Genesis 49-50 and Matthew 16

There is nothing that I can’t stand any more than aught in a relationship. For those who aren’t familiar with what aught is, it is any type of hindrance for good relations. Sometimes an argument can turn the best of friends into enemies. It’s good when the air is clear and cooler heads prevail and the enmity between people is gone.

Case in point, Joseph and his brothers. It must have been weird when the one man that you left for dead turns out to be the one who is saving you later. Is it any wonder why they were a little on edge? It makes it a little easier to understand what they did when they approached his brother saying: “By the way, when our Dad died, he wanted you to forgive us all for what we did to you.” They even wanted to become Joseph’s slaves in a good faith payment.

So what did Joseph say: “It’s cool. Really. I’m not mad, seriously.” You know what, I actually believe Joseph had no sense of hatred toward his brothers, not even in the slightest. He really saw the big picture.

This is very different picture from what was seen in Matthew 16. Here, we see Peter who has never been cooler in the sight of the Lord. Not only did Jesus tell him he had some serious divine revelation, but Peter was going to have some seriously cool stuff coming his way.

And then, one of the quickest twists in the plot comes around when Peter says to Jesus that “surely you aren’t going to die”. Jesus quickly tells the disciple to “get behind me Satan”.

You can’t tell me that didn’t cause a little bit of a rift in the relationship between Jesus and Peter. I was always wondering why there isn’t any recording of a time between Peter and Jesus, when Jesus said to Peter: “It’s cool, really”.

I’m guessing that there was a time when Peter and Jesus had a time of healing, even if things weren’t cool. After all, Jesus was going to be crucified, and nothing could change that.

Still, that reassurance that everything is okay even though it isn’t is what we all want to hear. And this is what Jesus is telling us right now, even if we have a hard time believing it.

Recently, I have had issues that I’ve still not really gone through. However, I’ve never felt burdened by them, as I can feel God’s grace come over me, even though I don’t deserve it. It’s like God is saying “It’s cool, really”.