Guilty Conscience

Genesis 50:15

15When Joesph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they "what if Joesph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?"

Did you know that one with a guilty conscience often lives and breathes fear? Many of you know the story of Joesph and how he was his father favorite because he was born of the woman Jacob was in love with? He was tricked into marrying Leah but it was Rachael his heart longed for and he showed it among his sons. So Joesph's brothers already had contempt for him. But when Joesph told of the dream God gave him how they would all bow down to him, it was the final straw. They mistreated him, sold him and lied to Jacob. Joesph's dream turned out to be true. God's word NEVER returns void as stated in Isaiah 55:11. Joesph did reconcile with his brothers before taking his own sons to visit Jacob on his death bed. But because of his brothers' guilty conscience they immediately thought Joesph would hurt them after Jacob died. So what did they do? They lied again by putting words in Jacob's mouth as a note to Joesph. Joesph wept. He had forgiven them but their own guilt they couldn't get beyond. The brothers started with a lie and ended with a lie. They weren't remorseful enough to just apologize for the horrific things they did and ask for the forgiveness themselves. But they feared  Joesph would have the same spirit of meanness they unleashed on him. That wasn't Joesph. He only tested them early on but his intent was not to harm them. He loved them and he knew that what they meant for evil, God meant for good. He was not like them and that's why God chose him to lead in Egypt.

When someone has a guilty conscience they are always looking over their shoulder wanting to know a person's every move. So they may have gotten away with whatever they did by everyone else's standards but the mind won't let such a person forget. If they are not humble enough to admit what they've done, like Joesph's brothers, some of their previous behavior that caused the mishap will still be present. Like Joesph, forgive them and let it go. What they did will then be between them and God. God obviously worked it out for your good. Whatever it was you needed to receive, understand, etc...you did.