1

Summum Bonum

(Latin for ‘the Highest Good’)

Genesis 45:9-28

March 13, 2011

Rev. Sang-Kun Park

Sacramento Korean Presbyterian Church

‘Summum Bonum’ is a Latin phrase that means ‘The Highest Good.’ It was

the title of a poem written by Robert Browning, one of the two best British poets

from the 18th century. Browning wrote many poems about sincere and genuine

goodness, and ‘The Highest Good’ was one of those poems exploring its meaning.

I found myself wondering the same thing as I read and mediated today’s

passage, hence the title of this sermon.

Rich Mullins was a world famous CCM artist who lived to share the Gospel

through music and to heal those who were hurt. He saw his musical gift as a

debt to pay back to his neighbors, and constantly thought about what it truly

meant to follow Christ Jesus, and tried his best to show the unconditional love of

God to others. In order to practice ‘vow to the poor’, he lived in an Indian

reservation in New Mexico and taught music to children. He was a man of God

who regarded knowing Christ as the highest calling in the world, whose heart

experienced compassion for others and joy in the simple things, whose legacy is

unchanging honesty and sincerity. He tragically died in 1997 at the young age of

41 in an unexpected car accident.

This is a story from one day when Rich Mullins was walking along the

Appalachian trails. A young man was driving by and offered to drive him to his

campgrounds. After they rode and talked together for a while, Mullins found out

that this young man was a gay. The young man asked in a trembling voice, “Will

I go to hell because I’m a gay?” Mullins’s instinctual response in his head was,

2

“Yes, since the Bible condemns homosexual and sexually immoral people,” but he

did not say that. Instead Mullins suddenly replied, “No, just because you are a

gay does not mean you will go to hell.” Mullins felt uneasy then as if he had said

something on his own accord, not what God says, but in that moment he

suddenly had an epiphany of truth. “Just because you’re a gay does not mean

you are more likely to go to hell than a liar or a thief or a racist. The reason

people go to hell is that they have rejected the precious grace and forgiveness of

our God.”

Suddenly the young man started to cry. “No one’s ever told me that

before.” What do you think about this? Mullins’s response made me think. “If

you’re not applying the Gospel in your life, it is useless!” Many Christians think

they know the Gospel, but in many cases they in fact don’t know it. They think

they know the Gospel of God who forgives all sins, and takes care of us, but until

they have personally experienced the God’s grace, the Gospel is nothing more

than a catchphrase.

On that note, today’s text shows us the true value and ‘the highest good’ of

the Gospel. Being too weak to take revenge can lead to suppressed anger and

high stress. In fact I saw on the news last week that 80% of Korean women

cancer patients found their cause in suppressed anger. It is naturally difficult for

human beings to suppress their anger. However if someone has power to avenge

but suppressed their anger, it is called “forbearance.” Joseph’s heart toward his

brothers far surpassed forgiveness itself. Not only did he suppress his anger

against his brothers even though he had great power to revenge, he also

promised their well-being at his own cost. Even as Joseph revealed his identity

and wailed, he was worrying about his brothers and their family back home. The

rest of his life showed his sacrifices on behalf of his brothers and their children.

This is called meekness.

Even before he wiped away his tears, Joseph told them that five years of

the drought still remained, and was worried about his brothers. He told them it

3

would be impossible to survive from the drought in Canaan, but the brothers did

not think as Joseph said looking at their situation. It was true that they had

difficult time due to the drought, but they were still surviving, weren’t they?

They probably hoped that rain would come next year, and probably not seriously

thought about leaving Canaan. At the moment, they were more amazed at

seeing Joseph again than the trouble of drought. However Joseph understood

the spiritual meaning of the drought more than anyone else. He was begging

and trying to communicate to them that they would starve to death if they would

not move down to Egypt.

Here we see the difference in vision. We see the difference in faith. We

see the difference between those who know the future and those who do not.

Joseph knew that the drought was not just a natural disaster, but a God-

ordained judgment. The same is true with us. We should not live each day dilly-

dallying, but live believing that we will one day stand before God’s judgment.

This is faith.

40 years old Senior Pastor Rob Bell of Mars Hill Bible Church in Michigan

just released a book that became a big issue in Christian society these days. The

title is ‘Love Wins: Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever

Lived’. The book basically says ‘There is no hell!’ He says that there is no

reason for God of love to create hell to torment people. What do you think? The

problem is, it’s not about what we say or what Rob Bell says- but it has to be

about what the Bible says. Man is free to wish there would be no hell, but the

Bible describes hell in at least 54 places. To take our own thought differently

from the Bible and present it as truth is heresy.

It would be the same thing if Joseph’s brothers thought that the drought

was nothing to worry about. Joseph was trying to clearly tell them about the

dreadful drought. In the ways Joseph was telling his brothers to prepare for the

coming years of famine, we Christians also must prepare for eternity. If people

truly learned about God’s coming judgment, they wouldn’t live their lives so

4

flippantly. It is deplorable that this truth seems hazy to Christians as well. Only

what they see is what’s important to them. They live as if their lives are going to

continue forever. Consequently, their faith eventually becomes seriously ill.

When Joseph’s brothers did not understand the situation, Joseph said “it is

really I who am speaking to you.” This is a forceful Hebrew phrase that

emphasizes his sincerity. Joseph wanted his urgency to be well communicated to

his father Jacob, so he told his brothers to tell their father of his wealth and

honor in Egypt. This was not Joseph’s pride and vanity speaking, but his earnest

desire to show his ability to take care of them. He was showing his brothers how

to persuade their father who would not want to leave his homeland. He told

Benjamin and his brothers to describe all they saw in Egypt to their father Jacob,

and to trust that the whole family could come and live well in Egypt.

Wouldn’t the highest good we could offer to the world as Christians be this

kind of responsibility and certainty? There is nothing as forlorn-looking as

uncertain faith. Be certain about what you believe in.

As soon as Joseph revealed his identity, he first persuaded his brothers to

move down to Egypt if they wanted to survive through the famine, and then did

he embrace and kiss his brother Benjamin. To us the order seems backwards,

but this just shows how earnestly Joseph wanted the safety and well-being of his

entire family.

“Are you really Benjamin? I am your brother Joseph! My brother!”

he cried. His brothers still looked at him shocked. They had no idea how they

were supposed to respond to this. They were sure he was their brother Joseph,

but remembering their past stopped them from going up to him. He was also the

Egypt’s prime minister, so they weren’t sure how they were supposed to behave

around him.

Yet Joseph came up to them first with kisses and tears. This is grace. The

brothers had no courage or right to first come to Joseph because of what they did

5

to Joseph. Isn’t this just like us before God? Who are we that we would dare to

go before God and lift our face to him? We know how shabby and bad we are,

and even the thought of approaching God in that state overwhelms us. At that

moment God himself comes down to us, barefoot and with tears. Think of this:

God who comes and embraces us poor sinners with tears! That is the Gospel,

and that is God’s grace.

The important point is that Joseph hugged and cried with his brothers

getting over the hatred, enmity, jealousy and envy that had accumulated in the

past. At that moment, the inner fearfulness of Joseph’s brothers melted away.

At times, a drop of tear can show the genuine emotion more accurately than

dazzling rhetoric. Only after they received truthful crying comfort from Joseph,

did they become relaxed and start to converse with him. Genuine tears have

power to demolish falsehood and pretense, and eventually pull down distrustful

barriers erected between people. It was that kind of change that swept across

between Joseph and his brothers. What splendid goodness it was! Many things

are good in the world, but could anything be better than tearing down barriers of

distrust between people?

The reason why Joseph hugged and embraced his brothers individually was

to make peace with every one of them. By doing so, they were finally relieved of

their guilt-feelings of the past and restored peaceful minds. At last, they were

able to greet Joseph and started talking with him.

The fact that the Pharaoh and his servants were pleased with the news that

Joseph’s brothers came is a notable lesson, especially to modern churches. The

kind of treatments believers receive from this world depends on what they

themselves have done. The world doesn’t recognize you automatically or in any

other way. You have to earn it. Thoughtful consideration shown by the king and

his staff demonstrated eloquently how Joseph was perceived and respected in

Egypt.

6

Joseph could naturally be a target of jealousy from the officials of Egypt

because he was a Hebrew whom they despised and furthermore he was a slave.

An individual with such a poor background became the core of power over night.

Naturally, making enemies was inevitable in this situation and becoming a target

of jealousy seemed unavoidable. Nevertheless, not only Pharaoh but even his

officials were very happy to hear Joseph’s meeting with his brothers and offered

help from their heart, which was very clear evidence of how beautiful Joseph’s life

was in ordinary times. Isn’t it a huge challenge to us? Believers ought to give a

good impression to nonbelievers around them.

In certain prospective, the real value of faith does not arise from faithful

fellowship within a church. Rather, the essence of practical faith lies in how we

interact with non-believing neighbors in our society and what recognition we earn

from them. “Surely he deserves happiness. I am so glad to see him happy

because his everyday life was different from ours.” If we are able to earn this

kind of recognition from nonbelievers, that also would be “the highest good” in

our faithful life. That is why Jesus said “you are the salt of the earth and the

light of the world.” It is not that we are in the process of becoming the salt

and the light, but that we are already the salt and the light spiritually from the

moment we receive Jesus Christ as our Savior. Our light should shine before

men, and our salt should not lose its taste. The Pharaoh, his servants and people

saw the light before them clearly through the Joseph’s ordinary life. They tasted

the truthfulness of his life just like salt. This is the life of “the highest good” for

believers. Obeying the Lord’s command of evangelism is also “the highest good”

as commanded in a phrase “you shall be my witness to the end of the

earth.”

The Pharaoh provided as many as five things for the convenience of Joseph

and his brothers. He gave them food to be carried to Canaan, invited all his

family to move to Egypt, and promised the best of the land of Egypt and the fat

of the land. He offered wagons for their little ones, wives and Jacob as a

provision for them on the journey back to Egypt. He also commanded them “give

7

no thought” to their goods, which meant that they didn’t have to save their

household goods. We could imagine their mountain-high household goods that

they wished to save because of their emotional attachment to them in the place

where they had lived for decades. What the Pharaoh said was that they should

not be too attached to them to leave their land. He would compensate for all

their possessions with better ones to top their needs.

Joseph’s situation with his brothers was a huge interest to Pharaoh and his

officials. This shows how much he was appreciated for his contribution to Egypt,

and how deeply he influenced them by his good character. Thus Christians

should be able to influence his/her surroundings with faith and good character.

People of Egypt were truly thankful to Joseph for what he did to save their

life and the entire nation. They probably had been wanting to return the favor to

Joseph but could not find a way till then. Well, the opportunity finally came and

they were able to return that favor to Joseph’s family.

One day, my son went to a certain restaurant with a group of people from

his church. The lady restaurant owner kept looking at him and asked him “Do

you know pastor Park Sang-Keun?” He replied, “He is my father.” After he said

that, the lady’s face lightened up, and he was served and treated extra-ordinary.

I do not remember this lady but I was told that she attended the first Bible

Reading Revival our church held and wanted a chance to thank Pastor Park and

this was her chance. Since then my son thinks of me differently.

People of Egypt were happy that Joseph had a family and was not alone.

They finally had a chance to return the favor for all that Joseph had done for

them. It is apparent that Joseph’s family was treated like royal guests since the

royal wagon was permitted to bring Joseph’s family to Egypt. The generous care

and attention by the highest ruler of all the land of Egypt must have played big in

Jacob’s family deciding whether or not to immigrate to Egypt. If it wasn’t for

Joseph’s effort, Jacob would not have decided to leave Canaan because of his

8

carefully calculating ways. There was no way that he would have left everything

behind in Canaan after all that struggle settling down.

Joseph gave brothers gifts as they went on the journey home. He gave

each of them new clothes, but to Benjamin he gave five changes of clothes and

300 pieces of silver. This was not a simple gift to his brothers but it was his

intention to show his promise to take care of them in the future and they should

not have to be afraid to leave Canaan and come to Egypt.

The new clothes that Joseph gave to brothers were not just clothes, but

they were for festivals, according to the Luther’s annotation and I follow his

opinion. Joseph wanted to celebrate with his brothers. That is why he gave

them festive clothes. He also gave them wagon and food for their journey. He

sent ten male donkeys loaded with the finest products of Egypt. He sent grain

and bread and other supplies for his father and family need during the journey to

Egypt. This level of detail shows how much he cared, like a Korean mother

caring for her married daughter returning home.

There was some possibility that Joseph’s brothers could have thought that

it was not necessary to immigrate to Egypt since it was not an easy decision to

make. Even for the present time, immigration from one country to another is not

easy. It could have been harder in the ancient times because, in those days,

there was no freedom to choose where you wanted to live and no guarantees for

safety, and this kind of reality made Joseph worried. So he gave his brothers

clothes and gifts. He wanted to assure his brothers that they would be given a

better life and everything that Joseph had would be shared when they came to

Egypt and he would take care of them. Joseph knew that his father would not

come to Egypt unless he convinced his brothers first, and he relied on his

brothers to be a messenger to his father, not telling the father any negative

things about Egypt.

Then, he decisively gave his brothers one important request. “By the

way, brothers, I ask you, please do not quarrel on the way.” Why did he

9

say that? When they tried to harm Joseph in Dothan in the past, the brothers

didn’t agree with each other on the matter. Now they might put blame on each

other for the past incident and get into a fight. But Joseph was telling them not

to get bound by the past any more. There shouldn’t be any more division in the

community. They couldn’t survive in a foreign country in which the whole clan

would now have to move to settle down if they harbored resentment against each

other and not united among them. Joseph already realized that. Hadn’t Joseph

experienced the lowliest life of an immigrant in a foreign land first hand? So he

pleaded with them to be of one mind.

Unless people become one accord in a family, church or any other

community, they can’t have a vision together. Nor can they make their dreams

come true together. That’s why the Psalmist exclaimed and sang the hymn,

“How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!” My

beloved brothers and sisters, please do not quarrel. Apostle Paul stressed that

the result of quarrels was destruction of a community. (Galatians 5:5) “If you

keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be

destroyed by each other.” When they hurt and sold Joseph into slavery, the

brothers were divided by many different opinions. Do you remember Reuben

regretted and grieved after he found out Joseph was sold away? The ones who

were relatively less guilty might easily blame and reproach the other brothers.

“I told you not to do that before! Why did you do that then?” How often do

we see such an argument? It’s all in the past, done and over! Because Joseph

knew his brothers all too well, he had to ask them not to quarrel on the way.

Dear brothers and sisters, do not quarrel. You must not quarrel in church. It is

much better to keep peace without doing any work than to quarrel while serving

the church. I really don’t like people quarrelling anywhere. I hope we all live as

people of peace anytime and anywhere.

Why did Joseph ask his brothers not to quarrel as if they were little

children? Although all the troubles were over a long time ago, the brothers’

10

conscience problems were yet to be taken care of. Their conscience would

become the accuser and attack them from this time on. Then they would try to

make excuses for their evil deeds. They would start accusing each other and

naturally fights would break out among them. Joseph saw it all in advance. They

could feel guilty themselves for having deceived their father and doing evil to

Joseph. So they would condemn themselves. That naturally would make them

find faults and accuse each other of their wrongdoings in order to defend their

own selves. He asked not to do that.

Joseph’s saying, “Please do not quarrel on the way” is, in other words,

“There’s now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Looking back, we all have memories of shameful sin. Those memories deprive us

of our deep gratitude for salvation and joy of the Word. But don’t forget! All our

sins of the past were crucified on the cross with Christ Jesus, and we were born

again as new creation through Christ Jesus who resurrected. I pray that God

gives you the blessed forgetfulness! May God bless you with His enfolding grace

that you never remember your shame and guilt from the past, or those

memories, if surfacing up by chance, never judge you again!

While Jacob’s sons came to get some food, they heard the frightening news

of judgment. However, they could come back home with good news that they

could survive the judgment. The news they would bring home was not just that

Joseph was alive. They conveyed the amazing message that God had prepared

for them to survive the terrible pain of death.

Joseph’s brothers returned home with the news that Joseph was still alive,

and the way to survive the drought. Especially they brought the news that the

Pharaoh of Egypt would welcome them and help them to settle down in Egypt.

What do you think is the greatest news that church could give to the world in this

age? It is the news that the church has at last come to senses. It is the news

that the church is getting back her glorious image and the Holy Spirit works in

11

her. This is very important because the church has let people down for some

time.

Not only is the church’s restoration of the original glorious image good for

herself, but it also is a tremendous blessing for the world. Dear my friends, let’s

make our church a blessing for this community and for the entire nation. Let us

be the good news. No matter what changes people try to bring to society, it is

going to be useless if the church is dead. Do you think what people want from

the church? Even though they themselves are laden with greed or corrupt in sin,

they want the church to stay pure and beautiful. The more corrupt the world

gets, the firmer should the church stand and be their spiritual buttress. Don’t

you think people complain about the church because they have high expectation

of the church? Even though they could not live that way, since they expect the

church to be different, they criticize. In that point of view, I hope our church can

deliver the gospel as it should. I bless you that you would not quarrel but plant

peace in your life’s journey.

Today’s text ends where Jacob’s family was preparing to move to Egypt.

Jacob couldn’t believe the news that Joseph was still alive. He had believed for

22 years that Joseph was dead. Since Jacob did not trust his sons ever since the

massacre of Shechem, it was difficult for him to believe his sons’ words at their

face value. He might have thought that they teased him. On top of everything

else, he had a bad impression of this ruler of Egypt, didn’t he? Could he believe

that the terrifying ruler of Egypt was his son, Joseph? Jacob was so shocked that

his legs gave in. It must have been overwhelming for a 130-years-old. His sons

told him that Joseph was not only alive but had become the prime minister of

Egypt. I am sure the sons showed him the presents from Joseph as well. Jacob

still was not convinced. Finally he came to believe once he saw the Egyptian

wagons Joseph had sent for them. And then the spirit of Jacob revived.

Especially, the Egyptian royal wagons Joseph sent probably swayed Jacob’s

heart very much. He had been living without hope, but now his spirit had

12

revived. This had important symbolic meaning. Jacob had long lived without

hope. His dreams were dashed. He had grudges against God. The wife he loved

died while giving birth, and soon afterwards the son he loved the most was eaten

by beasts. He had no reason to live. So he fell into deathly despair. Since then,

though he was alive, he was not truly living.

But today he heard amazing and happy news. The dead son was alive!

Now he had a reason to live. He was happy again. Hope, that he thought had

died, was now back. Therefore, his name resurfaced as ‘Israel.’ Through all the

years of mourning over his son’s disappearance, the name ‘Israel’ was not used.

When hope was revived at the news of Joseph being alive, however, he was able

to use ‘Israel.’

‘Israel’ means ‘to struggle with God and overcame.’ Jacob became a

victor as the word suggests. In the end he lost nothing before God. Precisely

because of the pain of loss in his heart, he received something tremendous in

return. What did Jacob say? ‘It is enough.’ This word in Hebrew sums up the

joy that was welling up in Jacob’s heart. He no longer had any complaints or

grudges before God.

We, too, at times hurt over losses in life. This makes us hold bitterness

against God and cry out. Why do you take away my most precious? Of all

things, why my most precious person? Why my most precious thing?

But what we have lost for the sake of Jesus, we really have not lost. What

I think I have lost remains like a gem forever in God. Please remember. So long

as God does not give up, our life is not lost. It is not a failure. Therefore, at last

Jacob declared that he was satisfied. I pray that God would comfort you that

someday you may say ‘I am content!’

What does today’s text teach us? Though terrible hardship continues,

God’s plan of salvation does not stop. When God’s grace descends on us

unexpectedly, our painful torment of the past will turn into the greatest good for

13

us. The Bible is not just a tale. It is a book of promise. Are any of you in the

middle of suffering, and thus, in dire need of God’s promise more than anything

else? We may not understand now, but I hope someday you will find yourself on

the summit of your life through God’s grace. Thus, I truly pray with blessing that

God’s comforting grace would envelop you around so you may declare, ‘My life is

fulfilled.’