When Jacob returned to his
homeland, he arrived with a new name that reflected an encounter with God. Rachel,
the wife he dearly loved, died after giving birth to Benjamin. She had prayed for
a second son, so Joseph could have a full brother. Jacob had twelve other
children, so Benjamin was born when he was past sixty years of age.
However, it was Joseph, his
first-born son with Rachel, who became his favorite. Genesis 37:3 explains: "Now
Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his other sons because he had been born in
his old age." Favoritism exposes a
special bonding between parent and child but can create resentment and hatred in
the other siblings.
The negative fallout for
the favored child may be a lack of maturity in relating to others. Joseph
either was unable to detect the anger in his older brothers or simply flaunted
his status as the favorite son. God's love is unconditional and excludes
favoritism. He expects us to be a model of his character.
__________________
Peter
fairly exploded with his good news: “It’s God’s own truth, nothing could be
plainer: God plays no favorites! It makes no difference who you are or where
you’re from – if you want God and are ready to do as he says, the door is open.
~ACTS 10:34-35 The
Message
My
brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show
favoritism.
~JAMES 2:1 New International Version
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