Having Faith in the Midst of Unfairness

“So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe—the ornate robe he was wearing— and they took him and threw him into the cistern. The cistern was empty; there was no water in it.  As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were loaded with spices, balm and myrrh, and they were on their way to take them down to Egypt.  Judah said to his brothers, ‘What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood?  Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood.’ His brothers agreed.

So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.  When Reuben returned to the cistern and saw that Joseph was not there, he tore his clothes.  He went back to his brothers and said, ‘The boy isn’t there! Where can I turn now?’

Then they got Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood.  They took the ornate robe back to their father and said, ‘We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son’s robe.’

He recognized it and said, ‘It is my son’s robe! Some ferocious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces.’  Then Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and mourned for his son many days. All his sons and daughters came to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. ‘No,’ he said, ‘I will continue to mourn until I join my son in the grave.’ So his father wept for him.  Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard.” (Genesis 37:23-36 NIV)

Often, life is unfair.  Perhaps it shouldn’t be that way, but it is because we don’t live in a perfect world, rather a fallen one.  When unfairness occurs, we want to scream and protest.  There are many who go so far as to blame God and become embittered toward Him.  I recall early in my ministry counseling a student whose ex-girlfriend began dating his best friend.  He was inconsolable.  “It was so unfair!” he claimed.  He remained bitter, blamed God, and eventually left the narrow path that leads to life.  

What this young man missed, and so many do, is that God is in complete control.  Nothing happens without either His permission or direction.  Reading just this part of Joseph’s story, one could easily conclude how unfair life was for Joseph.  And it didn’t get better for a long time.  He was enslaved and then falsely accused of sexual assault by his owner’s wife and imprisoned.  He was indeed treated very unfairly.  But what we don’t see at this point in the story is the Lord’s plan to use this unfairness to accomplish something great in Joseph’s life.  The whole story is one of the most beautiful in all of Scripture, topped only by the worst case of unfairness known in history—the execution of Jesus.

God used Joseph to save Egypt and his family, and He used Jesus to save us all. But it wasn’t really fair to either, was it?  Joseph suffered much and Jesus suffered even more.  There is often among us that God being for us and not against us means that things will always go well for us. It is, however, an undeniable fact that God often uses unfairness in life to accomplish something greater and far better. And it is by faith that we must walk in the midst of it to avoid resentment and bitterness.  

I can attest to this in my own life.  My parents suffered before their deaths when I was young, but they became followers of Jesus as a result.  My first wife abandoned our marriage, which eventually led me to being asked to resign from a ministry position I had held for more than 20 years; but the result was a refreshing new ministry and a wonderful second marriage.  God proved to be faithful in what seemed to me so unfair.  He had greater plans that I just couldn’t see in the midst of those moments.  Only long afterwards did my vision clear so I could see His steady hands had been surrounding those unfortunate events the whole time.  

Today, know whatever unfairness you may be experiencing, or have experienced, in life, the Lord is in control and has plans to use these things for a greater good.  You may not see that yet, but in time you will if you walk in faith.

© Jim Musser 2016